He looked away from her to take his mind off of her full lips and studied the seat across from him intently. “Mom died early, a year after she had my brother. I was only six, so I don't remember much of her. Dad said she died of Indigo Fever."
"She wasn't vaccinated?"
"Dad thought she got a bad batch. Anyway, he pretty much raised us on the edge of the slicer circuits. He was addicted, gambling on the slices all the time. He taught us both to slice, got us racing. Made some credit off us, too, but not enough. When he died, he was into the Core for over four hundred thousand credits.” Del tried, but he couldn't quite hide the bitter edge to his voice. “They made it clear that his death didn't erase the debt, that my brother and I still owed."
He fell silent, brooding on dark and bitter memories.
"So you took the debt on yourself and sent your brother away,” Sin finished for him, and he turned his head to meet her gaze. There was a look in her steady green eyes that took him a minute to recognize, because he hadn't seen it for so long. It was respect.
Flustered, he glanced away again, a frown furrowing his brow. “With our parents gone, he was my responsibility. He didn't have anybody else to take care of him."
"That must have been hard, though. How long has it been since you've seen him?"
"Ten years. I found a place for him and left him there, changing my name so he wouldn't catch any hell for being my brother. He probably hates my guts, thinks I ditched him."
"I doubt that."
He barely heard her, remembering the last time he'd seen his brother—remembering the pain and anger on his young face. “I told him it wouldn't take that long. That I'd be back when it was paid. I was young and stupid, and I had no clue what the Core was really like."
It took him a minute to realize that she hadn't responded, and when he looked at her, she was staring at her brother with a strange expression on her lovely face. It almost looked like guilt and sadness. Or maybe it was worry.
"Sorry,” he said abruptly, and she snapped her head around as if he'd startled her. “Didn't mean to bring you down."
She smiled slightly. “You didn't. I was thinking about something else. Food for thought, though.” She returned her gaze to her brother, and her smile took on a tenderness that made his stomach flip over. “You can resurrect Adelmo Givliani now. You can see your brother again."
The idea left him speechless. He stared at her in wonder.
She caught his look and laughed softly, patting him on the arm. “You look like you need a drink.” She got up and brought him back a glass after a moment, something orange over ice.
He took a swallow and winced. It was some kind of liquor with a little juice for color. “You tryin’ to get me drunk?” he asked wryly, and her lips curled in response, eyes twinkling.
"You just look tense. Give that a try. Then maybe tip your seat back and get some rest."
She shifted back out of his line of vision, and he heard her moving around in the kitchen. He decided that her suggestion was a good one and downed the drink in three long swallows, shuddering at the combination of heat and cold as it hit his stomach. The cold disappeared quickly, and the heat of the liquor spread relaxation through his muscles. Setting the glass down, he reclined his seat and copied Manakai's slump, crossing his ankles on the seat across from him. The cushioned recliner was almost as comfortable as a mattress. That made him think about the bed in the corner, and he was sliding into a fantasy about being in it with a certain green-eyed temptress when he fell asleep.
His dreams were filled with her. He relived the slice they had run together in such stunning, perfect accord, his body throbbing with exaltation. Then he relived the kiss, except in his dream they didn't stop at one. And then they were no longer in the crowd, but in a slicer, or maybe they were slicers, but he knew that they were naked and moving, flying together, twisting and sliding and...
He felt a touch on his shoulder and opened his eyes to see Sin bent over him. At that moment with the dream still clinging to him, he didn't realize that he was awake. It seemed only natural for him to reach up and bury a hand in the dark silk of her hair, pulling her closer to capture her mouth with his. She tasted sweeter than any dream could be and her scent filled his senses like a drug. But reality caught up with him when she pulled away, a storm in her green eyes and a frown on her brow.
He swore softly when he realized what he'd done. “Sorry...” he rasped, but wasn't sure what else to say. How was he supposed to explain himself? Sorry, boss, I was having a sex dream about you?
"We're here,” was all she said before walking away, but her voice was cold.
"Nice move, Giv,” Manakai murmured as he rose from his own seat, his green eyes bright with humor and mouth curled in a smirk.
Del grimaced, both for what he'd done and for a nickname he hadn't heard in a long time. Rubbing his face with rough hands to get rid of the lingering disorientation from sleep, he rose to his feet and followed the two of them out. They passed very few people on the way to the docking bay, and Del realized that the twins had waited until most of the other passengers had disembarked before waking him to leave.
The same young crewman who'd greeted them was at the door to the docking bay. Her whole face lit when she saw Manakai, and her voice was breathless as she asked if their trip had been a pleasant one. Del saw him start to turn on the charm again, but Sin made an impatient noise in her throat and shoved at her brother.
"Move your ass, Kai. We've got things to do."
The woman's face fell, and she wished them a mournful good day. Del offered his thanks, but didn't think she heard him. Her eyes were glued to Sin's brother as they walked away. Shaking his head, Del mused that the Shadow twins were damned dangerous in more ways than one.
Catching up to the two of them, he heard Kai say, “Just because your love life sucks, doesn't mean mine has to,” in irritated tones.
"Funny,” she snapped back, “I didn't think love had anything to do with your activities."
Kai slapped a hand to his chest dramatically. “Oh, that hurts. Really it does."
"Just telling you, one of these days it's going to get you in trouble."
"One can only hope,” he sighed and flashed a wicked grin at Del over Sin's head.
Del returned the grin with masculine amusement, but smothered it in a hurry when Sin shot him a quick glance.
"Let's go home, boys,” she muttered. “I hate leaving the kids alone for too long."
"Kids?” Del asked in alarm, a sudden flash of Sin with a husband and family roiling his stomach and causing bands of tension to clench around his chest.
"Sin's other broken birds,” Kai answered with a mocking smile. “Hasn't she told you that you're not the only one?"
Del clenched his jaw under the coolly assessing gaze of the other man and didn't respond. He was sure Manakai had said it just to get a rise out of him, but he also might be warning Del off of his sister—implying that he wasn't good enough for her and was just her charity case. Del had a feeling his relationship with Sin's brother was going to be a rocky one.
Sin's reaction was a little less stoic. She cuffed her brother upside the head.
"Ow!” he yelled and ducked away from her, but hilarity brightened his eyes and the lines of his face. “Sun's sake, Sissa..."
"Don't be rude, Kai,” she warned, and Del realized that her brother had meant to get a rise out of the both of them.
They separated to go to their respective slicers, but Del followed Sin to hers. “Broken bird?” he asked softly and saw her tense.
"Kai's idea of a bad joke. Let's get going,” she said abruptly, but he caught her arm before she could slip away from him into the Shadow.
"Is that how you see me?"
She looked up slowly as if she was reluctant to look him in the eye. There was a furrow in her brow, and her green eyes were dark with something that looked like pain. “No, Del. I don't see you as broken."
He believed her. Maybe it was just something he d
esperately wanted to believe, that she would have more respect for him than that, or maybe it was the look in her eyes, an edge of darkness that made him ache to hold her. He could drown in those eyes...
The growl of Kai's Shadow engines brought reality back, and Del realized that they'd been standing there staring at each other for a while. He let go of her arm reluctantly, noting with discomfort that the blood was rushing through his veins at an accelerated rate and his temperature seemed to have gone up a couple of degrees.
She dropped her eyes and slid into the slicer without comment, and he turned to go to his own ship, rubbing an uneasy hand around the back of his neck. His situation was becoming more complicated by the second.
They left the cruiser together without a word spoken between them and set off away from the star-way at a fast pace. Course and destination were downloaded to Del from Sin's slicer, but she didn't communicate with him. For a while, silence reigned between the three of them, and they flew without deviation towards their destination.
Then without warning Manakai's Shadow flipped and slid upside down under Sin's, righting itself on her other side. Del eyed the ship curiously, but it didn't seem to be in distress. What was her brother up to? Sin's Shadow did nothing. Then Kai shot out in front of her and began to roll, edging closer to her as he did. She took an abrupt nosedive, and he spun out of his roll to follow.
Del realized that they were playing like young dolphins in open water and watched with amusement and envy as they spun, twisted, and dodged each other in front of him. He loved his slicer, but watching the lazy ease with which the Shadows executed even the most difficult maneuvers made his breath catch and his mouth go dry with longing. Manakai had a flamboyant style of slicing, his movements extravagant, but brilliantly executed. Sin was less flashy, but the swift and simple grace with which she flew was a beautiful counterpoint to her brother.
"Hey, Giv,” Kai murmured in his ear and startled him out of his entrancement with the dancing Shadows.
"Yeah,” he answered, watching them perform a series of figure eights in front of him with perfect synchronicity.
"I've got you on a private frequency. Sin's not listening."
Uh-oh, Del thought and responded with a wary, “Yeah?"
"Relax, I'm not gonna bang your head against a wall for wanting my sister. Just wanted to make sure you knew it wasn't going to work.” For once, he sounded completely serious.
Del grimaced, but wasn't surprised. He hadn't been wrong about Kai warning him off earlier. “Got it,” he growled. “You're my bosses now."
"It's not only that,” the other man answered, while his Shadow did a flip and he ran backwards nose-to-nose with his sister. “She doesn't get involved with her ... projects. You can see why, can't you?"
The callous arrogance in Manakai's tone made Del grind his teeth together in anger. Sin might not consider him broken, but apparently Kai did.
"You telling me this as her brother or her partner?” he asked through clenched teeth. There was a long silence and Del wondered if he'd just gotten himself fired before he was officially hired. Implying that Manakai was thinking of his position in the company rather than his sister's welfare probably wasn't his swiftest move.
Kai's Shadow suddenly flipped over his sister's and ran straight at Del. With a muffled curse, he dodged to one side, but even as he did the other ship pulled up and swung back around to come alongside Sin's slicer.
"We'll have to get you a Shadow ship, Giv,” Kai said, laughter in his tone. “You can't keep up in that red thing."
Del wasn't stupid—he caught the double meaning in the other man's words and snarled silently. Kai didn't see him as a threat on any level. No, he and Sin's brother were not going to be the best of friends. He didn't get a chance to respond, though.
Sin broke through their communication. “Put a leash on it, Kai. We're almost there, and you know you make them nervous when you play like that."
"It's good for ‘em—gets their blood flowing."
"And that's a good thing ... how?” she asked dryly, and Kai chuckled.
Del registered this sibling exchange, but was distracted by the large structure they were approaching. It was orbiting a gas giant and was the size of a small moon. Ships of all shapes and sizes were swarming around it like bees on a hive.
"Your company is in there?” he asked, thinking this was a hub of some sort for commerce.
"That whole station is Shay Enterprises. Our headquarters, anyway. We've got other stations, but this is our main one."
He didn't answer—he couldn't. He stared at the enormous structure in amazement and misery. These two owned all of that. And more besides. No wonder Kai didn't see him as any kind of threat.
They dodged larger ships with effortless ease and entered a massive docking bay filled with a variety of ships, including slicers. Del saw several Shadow ships as well as some other expensive models as they landed, and he grimaced. He was in over his head, and he knew it.
Levering himself out of his slicer, he watched the twins wave to a group of dockworkers and pilots. As he approached them, he heard Kai mutter, “Still having trouble with the docking clamps and conveyers."
"We'll have to sit down with Spec and his crew."
"You know that's gonna freak him out."
Sin acknowledged Del's presence with a quick smile, then shook her head at her brother. “Not if only one of us goes. He only freaks when we gang up on him."
They started for the doors at one end of the bay away from the group of workers.
"So which of us gets to watch him sweat?” Kai asked with a glum expression.
"He likes you better,” she muttered.
"No, he doesn't. You just make him nervous ‘cause he fantasizes about you."
"Oh, ew!” she exclaimed with a disgusted look, and Del smothered a grin. “He does not, you pervert."
"Just because he's old enough to be your grandfather doesn't make him dead,” Kai retorted, as they passed through the doors into what looked like a mechanics bay.
"Well, now you're definitely going to have to go, because that visual is just...” she trailed off as they heard loud voices echoing through the bay. It sounded like an argument. The twins looked at each other, and Del wondered at the sudden tension in their faces.
He wasn't given enough time to ask what was wrong, though, because they both took off at a dead run. After a second, he sprinted after them. As he rounded a corner into a double row of slicers, he could see a small group of people standing together in a tense circle. At the center of the circle were two men and a small woman. The woman and the taller of the two men were yelling at each other at the top of their lungs.
Until the man caught sight of the twins sprinting towards him. Then he turned ghost white and bolted. The circle scattered to either side as the twins blew through them after the man. Del slowed to a stop as he watched Kai pause to scoop a bracing pole up in one hand and fling it at the fleeing form in one smooth move. It struck the man around the knees, and he went down in a tumble. He got his hands under him, but before he could get to his feet again, Sin reached him.
Del's jaw dropped as he watched her stomp on the back of his neck, slamming him to the floor again. Then she grabbed one of his arms, wrenching it straight up behind him. She twisted it viciously, ignoring the man's yelp of pain as she plucked something out of his hand. She looked at it and then down at the man under her foot with the coldest expression Del had ever seen.
"This looks like Blue, Pete,” she said calmly enough, but something in her face spoke of a towering rage.
"G-get off me! Ah, my shoulder!"
"Does it hurt?” she asked in a conversational tone and gave his arm another good wrench, unmoved by his strangled cry. “I'd be happy to dislocate it for you if you don't answer my question."
"Yes! Yes, it's Blue! M-my cousin must have—"
"Shut up, Pete. Lying to me is dangerous right now. You were trying to give this to Jinx, weren't you? He's a Bl
ue addict, and you were going to drop him down that hole again, weren't you?"
"I-I just—"
She ground her foot into the back of his neck, and his words broke off with an agonized gargle. Then she looked up at her brother, lovely face set in hard lines. “How many chances do we give people here, Kai?"
"Just one,” he answered in an equally cold, hard voice.
Del couldn't see his face, but he would bet that he was just as pissed as his sister.
She looked back down at the man squirming under her. “Looks like you're out of ‘em, Pete. Systems control!"
An echoing, toneless voice that seemed to come from everywhere answered, “Sinsudee Shay."
"Connect me with Lieutenant Baker, please."
That galvanized the man beneath her foot into desperate convulsions. “No! No...” he gasped, but she twisted his arm once again and he yelped.
"Baker here,” a feminine voice resounded off of the bay walls.
"Lieutenant, I hear you've been looking for a drug runner by the name of Peter Feslowski, is that correct?"
"Yes, it is. Do you have information for me, Ms. Shay?"
"I can do you one better. I've got your man. Come get him."
Pete moaned and slumped under her.
"Thank you, Ms. Shay. We'll be over soon.” The woman didn't sound the least bit surprised, and Del wondered how many of these calls she'd received from the Shays.
Sin flung the man's arm away from her and stepped off of him, moving towards the group with hard strides. She looked ready to strip the skin off of the next person to step in her way, and Del noticed the others edging away from her. She stopped in the center of their circle and glared around her with hands on hips. No one met her gaze.
"Sin,” Kai said in a warning tone, and she flung a hand up at him.
"I know!” she snapped and stepped in front of Del.
He looked down into her anger-bright eyes with fascination and wondered what she'd do if he touched her.
"Welcome to Last Chance,” she said bitterly. Then she was past him and moving swiftly towards a door at the far end of the bay.
All eyes switched from her to Kai. Without a word, he turned his head and looked at the offender. Pete had sat up and was sullenly rubbing his shoulder, watching Manakai with bitter, wary eyes. Kai pointed to a spot closer to the group and snapped his fingers in uncompromising demand. Dropping his head, Pete slowly pushed to his feet and shuffled forward.
Sunscapes Trilogy Book 1: Last Chance Page 5
