Chapter 30
Of all the ways they could have landed on Sylvester’s ship, having the Caruso hand them the opportunity and covering for them was not something Ethan would have considered.
That was Velda and the magic she seemed to sprinkle around her.
She might even have sown the seeds of a cooperation treaty with the Caruso, if Nirro and his rebels managed to pull off their coup.
But first they’d have to survive Sylvester and his people.
The runner moved slowly once it was in the launch bay, and then settled into place.
The floor vibrated a little under his cheek as the ramp lowered and then there were the sounds of boots striding up into the small runner.
“How many of you made it out?”
“Ten, including Linao and Park.”
Ethan recognized the person who spoke as the one who he’d heard issuing orders on the runner during the flight away from the Caruso.
“That’s nearly all of you.” The person asking the question sounded surprised. “And the boss will be pleased you were able to rescue Linao.”
Other people began talking, and then there was the sound of a mass exodus. Ethan guessed they’d carried Linao and the other guard out.
Velda squeezed his shoulder after things had been quiet for ten minutes, and he gave a nod.
She moved first, cautiously lifting up the flap nearest her and then sliding out.
She crouched beside the flap in front of his face and opened it, and he handed her the laz.
She shuffled out of the way until he had managed to fight his way out of the tight space, and then she stood, a scalpel in one hand, the laz in the other, facing the now-closed ramp, until he’d gained his feet.
He had barely straightened when she spun, facing the pilot’s area. It was separated from the rest of the runner by a floor to ceiling screen with a narrow doorway, giving the pilots access to the back.
A door opened, and Velda pressed herself up against one side of the doorway, he the other.
She tossed the laz to him, and lifted her two scalpels, one in each hand.
Someone climbed onboard and stepped through from the pilot’s area into the back.
For a moment, he didn’t see either of them, his focus on the flaps under the seats, and Ethan shot him on a low laz setting.
He collapsed.
They looked at each other.
“He didn’t see us, so when he comes round there’ll be nothing he can say that would give us away.” Velda studied him.
“True. But why was he here in the first place?” Ethan asked. “Maybe their scanners showed something in the storage area, which would be us, and he came to see what it was they’d transported in.”
Velda gave a slow nod. “He was focused on the flaps. I think you’re right.”
That meant they’d lost the benefit of surprise.
“We need to find a place to hide as soon as possible, then.” Ethan didn’t want to be trapped in the runner. “Then we can plan how we’re going to take this ship.”
Velda eased through the doorway, crouching between the pilot and co-pilot’s seats, and looked out. “Seems clear.”
The door had been left open, and she disappeared down the ladder, and Ethan followed, laz up to cover her if there was someone watching.
They headed for the bay doors, but halfway there it began to open, and they were forced to dive for the closest hiding place, a stack of boxes and crates Ethan guessed were full of supplies.
He crouched beside Velda and looked around the stacks, saw a guard frowning as he headed for the runner.
Before the guard got there, he began to call out a name.
The moment he swung himself up into the runner, they ran again, reaching the doors and going through them so fast, Ethan was aware they were both able to move at unnatural speeds.
That was fine, as long as it helped to keep them safe.
No one was in the passage beyond, but that wasn’t going to last long.
Voices were approaching from the left so they both ran right, and when Ethan heard footsteps just up ahead, he touched the panel beside one of the closed doors in the corridor they were in and grabbed Velda, pulling her inside with him.
He had his laz up as the door closed behind them, but no one was in the room. It was a bedroom, with a narrow bed on one side, two chairs and a table in the middle, and a wall of cupboards and a tiny bathroom on the other.
Velda went to the cupboards and opened them, studied the clothing hanging there. “Someone definitely lives here.”
That was unfortunate but Ethan never thought they’d get that lucky as to find an unoccupied bedroom where they could stay until they were ready to venture out.
He looked through the clothing, found two uniforms, and Velda lifted one off the rack and held it up against him.
“It might fit,” she said.
There was nothing to lose, so he pulled off his now slightly frayed shirt and trousers and got into the uniform. It was a little tight, but it had quite a lot of stretch in it.
“Depending how small the crew is, and how well people know each other, you might get away with wandering around,” Velda said.
Ethan studied himself in the bathroom mirror. He agreed, and it would be a good idea to map the ship, and get to know where everything was located.
“I’m guessing they don’t walk around armed on their own ship.” He handed the laz to her and tucked the scalpels into his pocket. “Watch the door, in case the occupant comes back, but I’ll be as fast as I can.”
“I wish I could come too, but I know I can’t.” Velda held the laz to her side. “I’ll try not to shoot you when you come back.”
He grinned at her, gave her a quick, hard kiss, and then motioned her to stand out of sight as the door opened.
She leaned against the wall and he exited, striding out into the corridor with as much confidence as he could muster.
He decided to keep going right, because he was sure there was a lot of panic and commotion in the launch bay, and he didn’t need anyone looking at him and wondering who he was.
The corridor curved to the left, and then opened out into a communal social space, with lounges and screens, and what looked like a food station.
Across the lounge, he could see the corridor curving away to the right, giving him the sense this was the front of the ship, and the doors even further to the front probably led to the bridge.
None of the crew eating or sitting in the large space looked up at him as he walked from one side to the other, and he made his way to the corridor on the left.
There were raised voices coming from that direction, and he considered reversing course but he hesitated too long. Two crew turned the corner, a raised stretcher between them, and one glanced up at him as they turned into a room on the left side of the passageway.
The door they’d gone through remained open as he passed by, and he saw it was the med bay. There were three beds—one held Linao, he guessed, plus the other guard from the runner, and now, the one he and Velda had just shot.
He kept moving along, aware he was headed back toward the end of the ship and the launch bay, and wondered again if he should turn around and go back the other way.
Except, there was no guarantee that would be better.
A man stepped out of an open doorway up ahead, turned in his direction, and then came to a stop. “I don’t know you.”
“That’s not my problem,” Ethan said with a shrug, managing not to break his stride as he continued forward.
“I think it is.” The man drew out a laz, and Ethan wondered at his new-found confidence as he eyed the weapon, already thinking of the ways he could make it his own.
He could feel a tingle in his arms and legs, could see a way to dart forward and grab the laz, and as the man lifted his arm to shoot, he did exactly that, leaping toward the wall as the man fired, then pushing off it to slam the man to the ground.
The laz was in his hand before the man even made a sound, and Ethan shot him immediately.
Unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to see what or who lay beyond the door the man had exited, and as he rose up, he noticed it was the armory before he felt the jolt of a laz hit, and fell himself.
“Who is it?” someone asked above him, as he tried to breathe through the pain.
“I think it’s one of the prisoners from the other runner.” A woman crouched beside him, and then he blacked out.