“You two know each other,” Loch said, something strange in his voice.
“Surprise,” I said. I stepped up beside him. “In my defense, you didn’t specify which Rhys we were going to see, and these are new digs. Very nice, by the way.”
“It was your money that helped me get here, so you have my thanks.”
I tilted my head. “Does that mean you won’t alert the authorities now that I have a substantial price on my head?”
Loch cursed quietly but Rhys just grinned. “I’m rich as hell now. I don’t need your father’s money. And that would be a poor way to show my gratitude. But, in return, I insist you have dinner with me tonight.” A pointed glance at Loch. “Alone.”
“Like hell she will!” Loch growled.
I pushed back my own urge to accept just because Loch refused to let me make my own decisions. It was clear Rhys had added the “alone” stipulation just to yank Loch’s chain. Meeting Rhys again for dinner would be a risk, but he’d helped me before and nothing indicated he would betray me now. Plus he wouldn’t have offered if he didn’t have a reason.
“I’d be delighted,” I said, “as long as I can bring a guest.” Loch settled slightly, correctly guessing that he would be my guest. I continued, “And as long as you understand that my wardrobe is lacking. What you see is what you get.”
“You look lovely as always,” Rhys said, “but I would be honored to send over some dresses for you to choose from, if you desire. I still have your sizes from last time.” A world of insinuation saturated his tone.
Loch went stone cold. Rhys noticed it as well, because he half turned into a defensive position. I hooked my hand around Loch’s bicep, just above his elbow, like he was escorting me on a walk. His arm felt like touching sun-heated granite. I wasn’t sure what I could do if he decided to attack, but for all of his needling, Rhys was a friend and I didn’t want to see him killed.
“Thank you for the kind offer, but I must decline,” I said. “I happen to like these clothes.” I felt like I was wading through a Consortium gathering where one wrong step could mean war. The last time I’d talked to Rhys in person, he’d been at turns aloof and amusing. I narrowed my eyes at him. This new persona was annoying and unwelcome.
Rhys watched the entire interaction with sharp eyes and a half grin. When it was clear neither of us would comment further, he sighed and smiled. “Loch, you know you’re always welcome at my table, I’m just messing with you. And it was quite . . . illuminating.”
“I thought you’d gotten smarter over the years, Rhys,” Loch rumbled. “Don’t make me kick your ass, because I won’t hesitate to do it.”
Dinner with both of them seemed like torture. Perhaps I could bow out and the two of them and their egos could dine?
“Do you have a gun for the lady or are you all talk?” Loch asked, exasperated.
“What happened to the last one?” Rhys asked me.
“I had it until Father dropped the bounty on my head. Then I had to leave it when mercs started sniffing around. Been traveling light ever since.” I shrugged off the pain. Leaving things behind bothered me. I could live a nomadic life, but I didn’t enjoy it. I was more of a home and hearth kind of woman.
“My offer still stands, you know,” Rhys said, almost gently.
Loch’s arm, which had started to relax under my hand, returned to granite. It would be a miracle if these two didn’t come to blows. I squeezed Loch’s arm slightly.
“I know,” I said. “And it means a lot, but my answer remains the same.”
“In that case, let’s see what I have in the armory.”
We managed to leave without bloodshed. I picked up two tiny blast pistols and Loch bought a few bigger guns, including a shotgun. He seemed to be loading for war.
As the transport slid away from Rhys’s door, Loch asked, “What did Rhys offer you?”
“Just let it go, Marcus,” I said.
“What. Did. He. Offer. You,” he demanded.
I huffed out a frustrated breath. “He offered me a home,” I said. Loch’s jaw clenched. “But not what you’re thinking. He offered to make me a silent partner in his business, which he had just started to rapidly expand. He offered me a place to stay—not his house—and vowed to misdirect anyone following me. He was entirely honorable.”
Loch grunted. If he thought he was getting off that easy, he was so, so wrong. “Care to explain what all that was about? And how do you know Rhys in the first place?”
Loch’s expression shuttered. “We’ve known each other for years,” he said.
I waited for him to continue and when he didn’t, I pointed a finger at him. “No. You don’t get to demand answers from me then blow off my questions.”
He hit me with a cold stare and remained silent. It felt like an unexpected dagger between the ribs. I blinked hard and retreated into my public persona where nothing could get close enough to hurt.
It took a lifetime, but the transport finally dropped us at the ship. I activated the correct ID chip and waved it over the reader, then I stepped out into the afternoon sunshine. Thanks to the cloak the heat was no longer stifling, so I enjoyed the sun on my partially covered face.
The urge to get in the ship and fly off to the ass-end of nowhere rode me hard. Maybe Veronica would like to go with me. It would be a lot of work, but the two of us could manage a ship this size.
Then the current bane of my existence stepped out of the transport and snapped me out of my dreams. I moved ahead of him up the cargo ramp. “Polaris, status report,” I said as I approached the door.
“No one has entered or left the ship, Captain. Currently there are three souls on board,” the computer responded from the speaker near the keypad.
“Open the cargo door,” I said.
The door slid upward, revealing the cool, dim, empty interior. It wasn’t until then that I realized I was gripping my blaster with white knuckles, as if I thought a horde of mercs—or worse, Rockhurst soldiers—would be waiting.
I stepped inside and Loch followed me. But when I stopped at the door control panel, he disappeared deeper into the ship. While I waited for the cargo door to close, I remotely locked the captain’s quarters. Loch could find a new place to sleep.
We had a few hours until we needed to leave for dinner. Rhys had tried to persuade me to stay, but I needed to talk to Veronica, and I’d put it off long enough. After all, why stop now when I could make this the grand slam of terrible days?
I found Veronica in her room frowning at a com. The door was open, so I knocked on the jamb. “Hey, you have a minute to talk?”
“Yes, come in. Let me tell Imma that I’ll be busy for a little while.” She stepped next door and murmured to the other woman.
I swept the room for bugs and trackers and found one. I destroyed it then sat in the guest chair and ordered my thoughts. Veronica returned and closed the door. She sat cross-legged on the bed. “Ask, and I will answer what I can.”
“You are running from Lin’s father,” I said. She nodded warily. “Which Yamado is it?” She looked unhappy but not surprised that I’d guessed.
House Yamado had just three heirs in my generation—two sons and a daughter. None had children of their own yet, so if Lin was the firstborn’s son, even a bastard, it would be very, very bad.
She ran a hand down her face. “It is Hitoshi,” she said quietly.
I half expected it, but the confirmation landed like a punch to the gut. Hitoshi was the eldest Yamado heir, and if I was honest, the one most likely to keep a woman hidden on a backwater planet.
“Hitoshi was so sweet at first,” Veronica continued. “It was perfect. And, naturally, I was thrilled to have caught his attention. But once it became clear that I was pregnant and going to keep the baby, he went insane.”
I sat back and tried to tamp down the tension her confession had caused. It reminded me of my own disastrous dating experience. Did anyone in the Consortium have a normal relationship?