by Rachel Aukes
He motioned to her left. “They live in sections of Jade-8 that have been compromised at some time or another, and the gutter rats sealed them up and took them over. The rats own those tubes, even though they’re hazardous to be in. In those tunnels, they are the only law you’ll find. Neither East nor West security forces will go down there. Rumors are there’re cannibals in those tubes. Trust me, you’ll want to avoid that area. Look, there’s a rat now.” He pointed.
She turned and saw someone stepping out from what looked to be an access tunnel near the tram. A red hieroglyph was painted on the door. She was too far away to make out the person’s features, but the girl—at least Throttle thought it was a girl—was filthy and moved like the homeless street urchins she’d seen at every colony.
She turned back to the bartender. “What’s the mark on the door?”
“Just something they use to mark their areas. Janitors used to scrub the marks off every week, but the marks would show up the next day, and I think the janitors finally gave up.” He shrugged. “It makes it easier for Jaders to know which tunnels are best to avoid.”
She blew out a breath and tried to act depressed. “I came here for adventure. I didn’t realize I was going to come up against the same red tape I had to deal with back home. I’m going to end up in the gutters.”
He thought for a moment. “Well, if it’s adventure you’re after, there’s always the salvage crews. Most offer short-term contracts—usually for a tour or two—but it’s dangerous work and not many women sign up. Those guys generally aren’t the nicest to be around, if you get my meaning.” He glanced at her, eying her weapons. “But I’m guessing you can hold your own against most men.”
Throttle smiled. “Most.”
“Salvage crews are where the real money’s at. I know a few crew members who stop by whenever they’re docked, but they’re all out on tours right now. Your best bet is to walk down to the docks and try to catch one. I know the Harlot just returned with a huge salvage, so they’ll be docked for at least another week or more waiting to get that sorted out and to get their payments.”
“Thanks. I think I’ll do exactly that.” She downed her drink and pulled out her pass-card.
“That’ll be one hundred credits.”
She paused. “A hundred credits for two drinks?”
“Inflation.” He gave a commiserating half-smile. “I warned you that you’d be eating on L-One a lot. A thousand credits won’t last you very long around here.”
She rolled her eyes and handed him her card. He ran it under a scanner and handed it back.
“See you around,” she said and headed out.
“Wait, honey.”
She turned to see Duggar hustling toward her.
“Listen, friend. I’m not going to sleep with you. Not now, not ever,” she said.
Disappointment flashed before being replaced by a grin. “You say that now. I bet I could change your mind.”
She started walking.
“I work at the docks. Want me to show them to you?” His breath stank of alcohol and rotten teeth.
She paused, then motioned for him to come without looking back.
He hustled to catch up. He placed a hand on her shoulder.
“No touching,” she said.
He removed his hand.
She stopped at the next bar and made eye contact with Nolin, who was sitting in a booth. He said something to the man he was sitting very close to before sliding out of the booth and walking toward her.
“Who’s he?” Duggar asked like a petulant child.
“My friend. We arrived on Jade-8 on the same ship.”
“Oh.”
Nolin eyed the Jader as he approached.
Throttle glanced at the drunk before making eye contact with Nolin. “Duggar is going to show me the East docks. Care to join us?”
“I’d love to,” Nolin said and joined the pair.
Duggar led them to a large tube exiting Jade City. As they walked, he looked down at Throttle’s legs. “What do you wear the braces for? You have bad legs or something?”
“Or something,” Throttle said.
“I don’t mind. I think you’re pretty enough,” the Jader said.
“Aw, thanks. You’re too sweet,” she said drily.
As they walked, Duggar rambled on and on about Jade-8 East and even more about his life there. None of the information was of any value to Throttle, but what was of value was Duggar himself. No one would question her and Nolin’s presence on the dock when being led there by someone who worked there.
They had to stop along the way for him to take a piss in a corner before continuing. When they arrived, Duggar held out his hand. “And here we are. The grand East docks of Jade-8, the best space dock in the Ross system for doing any kind of business.”
The East docks were nicer, more vibrant, and far busier than the West docks, and Throttle suspected that Jakob West had led the Javelin to a private port to avoid attention.
“It’s nice,” Throttle said as they weaved through people. “How many ships are here?”
He counted on his fingers. “Twelve, I think, right now, but ships come and go every day. A big salvage haul just came in, so there’s a lot of people coming and going off it all the time.”
People? “Passengers?”
He shook his head. “No. Dockworkers like me. I’ve been on it a few times myself, unloading anything that East wants for Jade-8. It was chock-full of crates, so it’ll take some time to unload it all.”
Throttle shot Nolin a glance.
“You mean no one came off that ship?” Nolin asked.
Duggar blew out a breath. “It’s a salvage haul. A black swan. That means it was found dead in space. Luckily for us, there were no corpses found on this one. They’re never fun to deal with. Once they thaw out…” He shivered.
“That seems odd that no one was on board,” Throttle probed.
“Well, a few guys from the Harlot’s crew had to be on board to help fly it in.” Duggar pointed to a man walking toward them. “There’s the newest guy on their crew now.”
The bearded man caught their gaze, spun on his heel, and headed back the way he’d come.
Nolin’s jaw slackened. “I swear I just saw a ghost.”
Throttle turned to him. “What?”
Nolin stared at the back of the man. “I swear I recognize that man. I remember his picture on the most wanted list. He was a real piece of work. Quite a radical. He riled up a mob and killed some citizens right before the war.”
“What’s his name?” she asked.
His brows furrowed for a moment. “Hinze. I think.”
She shook her head. “I don’t remember any colonist on board with that name. You sure it wasn’t something else?”
“It’s Hinze. Alfonso Hinze. I’m sure of it.”
“Unless we had another colonist come on board under a false identity, it can’t be him. Anyone who wasn’t on the Gabriela is forty light-years away.”
Nolin continued to stare. “Wait. He’s wearing a wrist-comm.” Then he yelled, “Hey, you! Hinze!”
The man sped up.
Then it hit her. “You said it yourself. You saw a ghost.”
“Yeah, I did. So?”
“I think you saw the ghost.” She motioned. “Come on. Let’s go ask him.”
Duggar called after them as they strode briskly to catch up to the man Nolin believed to be a Trappist. Throttle would’ve run if she didn’t think it’d draw too much unwanted attention their way. They moved in between people in an attempt to keep a visual on the fleeing pirate. He disappeared around a corner. Throttle broke into a jog. Nolin kept pace.
They reached the corner, around which was a smaller, vacant hallway. They sped up and ran down the hallway until it turned, and they turned with it. Standing before them was Hinze along with several armed security forces, all of whom had their rifles aimed at Throttle and Nolin.
Her hand was on her blaster, but Hinze shot firs
t. Her chest burned hot and then her body went cold black.
Chapter Nine
Birk wished that he’d gone with Throttle to the bar scene because reconnoitering the East side with Finn was downright boring. They’d strolled through the docks but drew too much attention when they tried to approach the Gabriela, so they’d turned and reentered one of Jade-8 East’s main thoroughfares. Birk and Finn had shadows for several blocks, but the guards who’d been following had become bored and found someone else to bug.
Carts of food and crafts lined the walls, reminding Birk of the Darion farmers’ markets. The difference was that these food carts had little produce, with nearly all selling what looked to be wilted greens and tiny fruits. Birk snagged a small lemon—or maybe it was a lime—when the clerk wasn’t looking and pocketed it for a treat to be enjoyed later.
Finn shot Birk a hard look, which the redheaded pirate countered with a grin. “Come on, you can’t tell me you’ve never cut loose before.”
“I’ve cut loose plenty in my life. I just don’t do it when I’m on a mission. That sort of thing can put us in danger. Besides, who knows what bacteria and viruses they have in this system that we have no immunity to,” Finn replied.
Birk waved him off. “You’re wound up too tight. Trust me, I know what I’m doing. We’ve got nothing to worry about.” He then eyed the edge of a pass-card peeking out of a man’s back pocket. He flexed his fingers and angled his path to the Jader. He ignored Finn, who he assumed was scowling at him, and focused instead on the hunt.
He approached the cart where the Jader was sorting through a bucket of green beans. The man was scruffy and had a blaster holstered on each hip. He was likely a pirate and most definitely a scoundrel, which encouraged Birk all the more. When Birk reached the cart, he acted like he was examining the produce as well before turning and bumping against the man.
“Oh, excuse me,” Birk said.
“Watch it, you idiot,” the man growled before returning to his grocery shopping.
Birk and Finn continued forward. The feeling of success warmed his heart as he slipped his hands in his pockets, along with the pass-card he’d lifted.
“Birk,” Finn gritted out.
“Relax already. Enough with the condescension. I’m just having fun.”
“I was going to say that he’s following us,” Finn said.
“Oh.” Birk didn’t turn around. Instead, he focused straight ahead, homing in on the next hallway they could take. That the Jader hadn’t called for security meant that either it was just a coincidence that the man was following them, or Birk had stolen from someone who liked to handle thieves in their own way.
He placed his hand on his blaster, as he suspected it was the latter. “Here,” he said when they reached the hallway, and the pair turned abruptly into the hallway.
Birk scrunched his nose. Not a hallway. A dead end. He pulled out his blaster. Finn flattened himself against the wall. A second later, the Jader came around the corner with a scowl on his face and a blaster in his hand.
As soon as the Jader made eye contact with Birk, he raised his blaster, and Birk did the same. Finn swung around and kicked the man in the head, and he collapsed.
“Nice move. Can you show me how to do that?” Birk asked.
Finn scowled at Birk while he grabbed the blaster off the floor and slid it into his waistband. “Help me move him before people notice.”
Birk grabbed the man by one shoulder while Finn grabbed the other. Birk grabbed the grocery bag just before they pulled the man to his feet. They carried him between them, like two friends helping a drunk. They tried the first door to find it locked. The second door was locked as well. The last door in the narrow hallway was unlocked, and they learned why immediately upon opening it. The room wasn’t a room but a small supply closet. The trio squeezed inside and Birk closed the door.
They released the Jader, and Finn set the unconscious man in a slumped position on a mop bucket and disarmed him. Birk set down the bag and rifled through his backpack and pulled out a roll of tape. He tried to squeeze past Finn, found that he couldn’t, and handed the man the tape.
Finn restrained their prisoner’s hands and legs. The man began to stir, and Finn ripped off a strip of tape and went to place it over the man’s mouth.
Birk grabbed Finn’s shoulder. “Wait.”
Finn turned to him.
“He might know where the sleepers are,” Birk added.
Finn nodded, then turned back to the Jader. He lightly slapped the man’s face. When the man groaned, he slapped harder.
“Sto—stop it,” the Jader muttered and winced as he rolled his neck. As he blinked his eyes into focus, he took in the closet, Finn, and Birk. “You won’t get away with this. I’m on a crew. They’ll come looking.”
“How long do you think it’ll take them to find you missing?” Finn asked. “An hour? A day? A week? Sure, they might find you, but do you think they’ll find you alive or dead?”
The Jader shivered. “What do you want?”
Finn smiled and pulled out his blade, and Birk realized that he didn’t like that look on his fellow crew member whatsoever.
“Even if they found you in just one hour—which both you and I know it’ll take them much longer—imagine what we can do to you in one hour.” Finn touched the tip of his knife to the pirate’s throat. “Imagine what can happen in just one minute.”
Birk cut in. “Your buddies can find you alive or they can find you dead. That’s up to you.”
“What do you want?” the Jader blurted. “I’m no one special. Just a crew member on a small ship. I haven’t done anything.” He blanched. “I didn’t do something to your wife or daughter, did I?”
Birk stiffened. “Not to mine, but now you have me wondering how many others you’ve wronged out there.”
“I haven’t, I swear. I mean, I’ve made a mistake or two in my life, but who hasn’t. Please let me go. I promise I won’t tell no one.”
“That big black swan sitting in the docks out there,” Finn began. “What do you know about it?”
The Jader shrugged. “Just that the Harlot found it. They got the credit for bringing it in. I don’t have anything to do with it.”
“What have they done with all the cargo?” Finn continued.
“I don’t know. I’m not a dockworker.”
Finn pressed the tip of his knife into the man’s cheek. He whimpered as a line of blood dribbled down his cheek.
The man spoke in a rush. “They’ve been unloading it for a while now. There was a lot of cargo in there. My guess is that they’re storing the cargo in the warehouses, like they do with all the rest.”
“Which warehouses specifically?” Birk asked.
“The East warehouses. The ones that are tethered off-station.”
“Do you know which warehouse they’re moving the cargo into?”
He shook his head fervently, stopping when he eyed the knife tip so close to his face. “No. I swear. I have no idea.” He paused and his features opened up. “Ah, you’re thieves. You have to fly to the warehouses, and you can’t get to them without authorization from Anna East herself. They’ll kill you if you try.”
“Let them try,” Birk said.
Finn slapped the tape over the man’s mouth and then punched him. He sagged in unconsciousness.
Birk eyed his partner. “You can be a bit ornery.”
Finn seemed bothered by the statement and fidgeted. “I was trained to be…efficient.”
“That you certainly are.” Birk leaned against the wall and pulled a bean out of the grocery bag. He bit into it. The bean was rubbery and chewy rather than crunchy and juicy, but it was real food, something he hadn’t had in over fifteen years. He finished off the bean and ate another before holding the bag out to Finn.
His partner grabbed one, oblivious to the fresh blood on his knuckles, and ate. The look on his face reflected the same feelings Birk had at eating fresh food for the first time in far too long. Th
ey’d emptied the entire bag before Birk pinged Throttle. When she didn’t respond, he pinged Nolin.
He frowned and looked at Finn. “Try to reach Throttle and Nolin.”
Finn tapped his wrist-comm. “Neither are responding.”
Birk stiffened as a chill ran through him. “Well, that can’t be good.”
Chapter Ten
Throttle came awake with a sensation of bugs crawling over her entire body. She jerked up and scratched at her skin.
“It’s from the stunners. The feeling will go away in a few minutes. They zapped me the first time they saw me on the Gabriela.”
She looked up to see Hinze watching her from the other side of steel bars. Turning from him, she then took in the rest of her new environment to find herself sitting on a cot in a small cell with three gray walls and bars for the fourth wall. Her weapons were missing, but at least they hadn’t taken her leg braces. She looked back at him and sneered. “You must be Hinze…or should I call you the ghost?”
He smiled, revealing heavily stained teeth. “I see you figured me out. I’m glad we finally met. I feel like I know you so well after watching you on the ship for fifteen years. There were even a few times over the years when I thought you were going to discover me. But you never did.”
She gave a small tilt of her head. “You have a knack for being invisible. I’ll give you that. Though the Gabriela is an awfully big ship, making it a bit easier for a stowaway to hide. But I knew you were on board. Or I should say, I knew there was someone else on board other than my crew and the sleepers.”
“Ah, but I’m just a colonist myself, looking forward to helping expand humanity’s footprint across the galaxy like everyone else on that ship.”
“No, you’re a stowaway. If you came forward, you could’ve become a part of the mission. Instead, you skulked around, hiding and stealing resources. That makes you more like a pirate than a colonist to me, and it looks like you’ve finally revealed your true colors.” She stood. “So tell me, how’d you manage to pull off the cat fail?”
He shook his head. “I had nothing to do with that. I was as surprised as you when it happened. I even considered revealing myself when you were getting ready to abandon ship, but I thought against it at the last minute. As luck would have it, that’s when the crew from the Harlot—the ones who simulated the cat fail—came on board. I convinced them that my knowledge of the Gabriela and of the Trappist system could come in handy. They brought me to meet Anna East. She offered me a rather lucrative contract, and look at me now.”
