Songs of Love & Death

He huffed out a hard laugh at her comment. “A bit more dangerous, but yeah.” He’d met Serri playing the holosim game while at the university. Impressed with her skills, he recruited her to his team—the best decision he ever made. A year later, he recruited Rez Jonas. The worst decision he ever made.

“Why does the DIA care about Filar? Okay, he’s dirty, but Jabo Station’s had that reputation for decades. What are you really doing here?”

Definitely not what he’d been sent to do—including blowing his cover. He waited until two human dockworkers and a Kortish male in garish yellow robes clambered down the stairs and out of earshot. “It’s one thing when pirates get into pissing contests with rival factions. It’s another when legit haulers get hit with an extortion scam. And yes, I really do work for the DIA. They recruited me a few months after you left.” Serri never even said good-bye, never gave him a chance to explain why he’d kept her busy and away from Jonas all those months. He glanced over at her as they climbed, chancing a bit of honesty, as painful as he knew it was going to be. “There was no reason for me to stay at Widestar. You were gone.”

Something flashed in her eyes. “I’m sure Rez had other infidelities you could have helped him cover up.”

They’d reached the next level—one more and they’d exit into the corridor then head for the bank. Nic kept his senses tuned to anyone coming up behind them. It was in Filar’s best interest to let them retrieve the supposed funds, but this was Jabo Station. Filar wasn’t the only thug. Just one of the bigger ones.

Given that, he’d picked one hell of a time to initiate this discussion. “I never meant to hurt you.”

“Well, you did.” She pushed ahead of him.

He kept to the right side of the heavily trafficked passageway, tucking them as much as possible between larger groups as they headed for the bank’s main entrance off Corridor Supreme. If Filar had his Bruisers following them, Nic didn’t see any.

That Filar could be following them on security vidcams was a definite possibility. It was the reason Nic chose Sector United. The vidcams in Corridor Supreme were the least effective and not just because of the crowds, but because two popular pleasure houses there paid good money not to be recorded.

Sector United was crowded—it was the only bank on-station that was multi-species-friendly, including a private office for methane breathers and decking-level teller terminals for four-legged patrons like Skoggi. He guided Serri past the currency-exchange kiosk, then spotted a vacant space along a side wall. He nudged her quickly in that direction. They needed to look as if they waited for a loan officer.

“Serri, I’m sorry,” he said as she wedged herself between a fake redsprout tree on her right and a tall blinking advert pillar on her left.

She brushed a synth-frond off her head. “I’m okay.”

“No. About Rez and his affair with Janna. It was Rez I wanted to hurt. Not you. Never you.” He didn’t know why it was so important to tell her that now, but it was. He suddenly had a bad feeling about this mission, and about what exactly he’d have to do to make sure Serri and Quin got off station alive and in possession of their ship.

Emotions played over her face, her eyes darkening, her mouth parting slightly. He had to force himself to look away from all that, from what it made him want to do, because they now had forty-three minutes to get up four more levels, pull the plug on station defenses, and get back down to the Pandea before alarms started wailing. And before Filar’s Breffan Bruisers figured out just what he’d wanted that extra hour for.

Suddenly, she grasped his forearms, pulling him closer. Nic was very aware that he had three minutes to spare, and that three minutes wasn’t nearly time enough to kiss Serri like he wanted to. People in hell want ice water, his grandfather always used to say. He’d take what he could get.

But her face didn’t hold a look of passion but concern. “A pair of Bruisers just came in.”

Nic shot a quick glance over his shoulder. Time to disappear. “Side exit. Go.”

She threaded her way through the crowd of bank patrons. He took one last look at guards—the Breffans hadn’t seen them, he was sure—and then followed on her heels, cursing silently. He should have demanded more time.

There was a maintenance storage room about fifty feet to the left of the bank. At least, there had been two years ago, which was the last time Nic was on Jabo Station. But when they came around the curve in the corridor, something else had been added: two more red-uniformed Bruisers. One leaned against the bulkhead, checking something on a transcomm in his upper left hand; the other watched the crowd through narrowed eyes.

He pulled Serri behind a pylon.

“They’re looking for us,” she said. It wasn’t a question.

“They’re also blocking access to the maintenance core.” Where they would have been able to continue with much less chance of being seen.

“There must be others.”