Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
Dathan fought back the electricity winging through his body.
Star’s End. A repository of the most fantastic Terran treasure in the galaxy. It would be the biggest haul of his career.
The Mona Lisa. The one thing his father had always wanted.
But Dathan had learned one lesson the hard way: things that seemed too good to be true often were. The woman wasn’t telling him everything she knew.
She smelled good, though. Like some exotic flower from the hothouses of the planet Incensia. It matched her appearance.
Eos Rai wasn’t tall, her head topped out just below his chin. She had a curvy little body, but he saw the tone in her arms. She kept in shape and the boots she wore had scars. She wasn’t an astro-archeologist who stayed behind a desk or simply walked the vaunted halls of the stuffy-assed Institute.
Long dark hair with a hint of curl fell halfway down her back.
Pulled back, it bared a face that whispered of desert oases and warm winds.
Her skin was darker than his, a beautiful smooth tan that looked good enough to lick.
Her eyes were large, tilted at the corners, and were the brightest gold of a stellar flare.
They made him think of the ancient gold coins he’d discovered on the ocean floor of Aurum.
But most tantalizing of all were her markings.
A trail of black scrolls wove from the tip of her longest finger up the back of her hand to wind around her delicate wrists.
Intricate with a vaguely floral pattern, they were stunning.
He also saw a hint of the same design on the side of her neck, hidden by her shirt collar.
It made him insanely curious to know where it went under the blue fabric of her shirt.
Dathan knew that unlike his own ink, she’d been born with the markings. A trademark that gave away her race.
Most of all, he saw bright intelligence in those golden eyes. God save him from smart women. They were so much trouble, but oh so irresistible.
But his hunting instincts were humming.
She had die-hard archeologist written all over her, even if she did manage to drag herself out from behind a desk occasionally. He sensed her disdain a quadrant away. He doubted the righteous doctor would be happy with him auctioning off any treasure they found.
And what the hell was a woman like her doing bargaining with him rather than leading some Institute expedition? What was really driving her?
“Imagine if we found Star’s End?” Zayn said.
Dathan shook his head. Zayn was always willing to dive into the craziest of hunts. He hadn’t learned yet that you could never outrun old ghosts. “This is a complication we don’t need.”
Niklas stood. “I think we should check it out.”
Dathan spun. His conservative older brother was the last person he expected to agree to this.
Nik was usually the sensible Phoenix brother.
Then Dathan realized. “You’re willing to risk our resources on a harebrained scheme all so you can give the middle finger to those Institute bastards who tossed you out like garbage? ”
Eos gasped. “I thought you resigned?”
They ignored her. Nik’s darker blue eyes narrowed. “I thought you’d be all over this. Given your little fetish.”
Sometimes it sucked having brothers who knew you too well. Dathan felt Eos’ scrutiny but didn’t look at her. “You don’t know shit, Nik. And I think the doctor has her own agenda.” He looked at her now. “Something makes me think the doc isn’t going to let us take a share of the treasure.”
Her lips pressed into a flat line but she didn’t say anything.
“Well, Doc? You going to hand over the Mona Lisa fragment if I find it?”
She sucked in a quick breath. “Of course not—”
Niklas stood. “We can negotiate salvage rights. This is the opportunity of a lifetime.”
Dathan had had a shitty day. Today’s treasure hunt had gone spectacularly wrong and he’d lost the Terran timepiece he’d wanted.
His father had dreamed of acquiring a Terran timepiece.
Of course Brocken Phoenix had also dreamed of finding the famed last fragment of the Mona Lisa.
Dathan’s jaw clenched. His father had done a whole lot of dreaming and not a lot of doing.
What Dathan didn’t need right now was his brothers turning on him. He’d had enough. “All I want is the timepiece back. We know where it is and what it’s worth.”
“What timepiece?” Eos asked.
“The Terran timepiece I risked my ass to get off Lumina before it was stolen.”
Eos’ mouth dropped open. “You went to a planet that turns to molten lava during the day? That’s crazy.”
Yeah, he’d had enough. Especially of beautiful women who screamed trouble.
He flexed his hands. “It needs all three of us to agree to take a job—” he speared Eos with his gaze “—and I vote no.”
Zayn groaned. “Dath—”
“I’m not going to let Darc get away with electrocuting me with a Tase stunner and leaving me to fry on Lumina.” He shot his brothers a look.
Eos cleared her throat. “Who’s Darc?”
“A cunning, unfeeling treasure hunter who works for anyone who has enough e-creds.”
Niklas raised a brow. “Darc won’t make it easy to get the timepiece back.”
Dathan smiled. “Good.” He turned back to Eos. “Like I said, Star’s End is a no.”
Disappointment cut through Eos like a laser blade.
The Phoenix brothers had been her last chance.
She’d worked so hard to achieve the dream that had killed her mother. She’d staked her career, her savings, her entire life on finding Star’s End.
Her hands fell to her side. Now she had nothing. Just like that horrible day when her world had been torn apart.
“Dathan, you need to reconsider.” Niklas slashed a hand through the air. “This is just like you. You finally have a chance to go after something that really matters and you wimp out.”
Eos felt the energy in the air amp up. She saw a glint in Dathan’s eyes as he rounded on his brother.
“You need to shut the hell up.” Dathan’s voice held a hard edge.
Niklas shook his head. “I’m sick of staying quiet about this. I can never work out if you’re trying to prove him wrong or prove him right.”
Eos didn’t know who they were talking about, but Dathan’s gaze turned lethal. The hairs on the back of her neck rose.
Then Dathan launched himself forward.
He tackled Niklas’ larger frame like a VelocityBall linebacker. They crashed to the ground.
She watched wide-eyed as they rolled across the concrete floor. When Niklas landed a punch to Dathan’s face, the thud of flesh on flesh made her wince. Her homeworld was a matriarchal society. They didn’t solve their issues with violence.
Zayn pushed past her. Good, he was going to break them up.
When he dived into the fray, she gasped.
Unbelievable. She felt the burn of anger now. She needed these three supposed professional treasure hunters to help her.
She watched Dathan pummel his younger brother. One of them was cursing like a space freighter handler.
“Stop it,” she called out.
No one heard her. With a huff, she strode forward and nudged—she thought it might be Niklas—with her boot.
When they continued to fight, she reached down. Suddenly Niklas shoved Dathan hard. He flew back, his elbow striking her cheek.
With a cry, she fell, Dathan’s heavy weight crashing down on her.
“Shit.” He shifted off her and into a crouch. “You okay?”
She was fine, but eyeing the horrified look on all their faces, she realized the best way to stop the fight. “I’m…not sure.”
Dathan pressed a finger to her cheek. “There’s a bit of swelling. Nothing broken.”
His hands were so gentle. She’d expected him to be rough. His face was serious, the fire draining from his eyes. His left eye was swollen and was going to bruise.
He wrapped an arm around her back and helped her up. “Come on. I’ll sort that out.”
“I think you need medical attention more than I do.”
He touched the corner of his eye. Winced. “You might be right.” He shot a nasty look over his shoulder. “When we get back, my idiot brothers will apologize.”
Niklas and Zayn were silent and looked chastised.
Dathan kept one strong arm pressed to her back. The heat of his body seeped into her clothes—he was just so…intense. “You started the fight.”
He shrugged one muscular shoulder. “There’s always a fight around here. We don’t keep track of who starts them.”
She shook her head. “Why do you fight? They’re your brothers?”
He looked down. “You must be an only child.”
“What’s that got to do with anything?”
He laughed. A deep rumble that shivered down her spine. “Everything.” He glanced at her hand. “You’re Vedic, right?”
Her fingers flexed. “The mehndi give me away.”
“That’s what you call the markings?” His gaze traced the trail of a design up her hand. “You’re born with them?”
She nodded. “Our scientists believe they evolved over the millennia. Before that, legend says the ancestors painted them on with ink for special occasions.”
“They’re beautiful.”
Eos blinked. His eyes had turned a brighter shade of aquamarine. She swallowed and an errant thought blazed across her brain. What would he think of the markings on her back?
Dathan shook his head. “Ah, anyway…what I know of your world, it’s pretty peaceful. Calm.”
He made Vedia sound boring. “We aren’t plundering, risk-taking treasure hunters.”
His lips quirked. “Well, the rest of us mere mortals aren’t so good with our impulse control.”
She thought back on the fight. “You liked the fight.” She sniffed. “All three of you did.”
“Nothing like a woman’s scorn to sting a man.” He pushed open a door. “Come on, take a seat.”
The room was tiny, not much more than a storage area, but it was well organized. Medical supplies were stacked and labeled with precision on the shelves. “I guess you guys get banged up a lot?”
After she sat on a bench pushed against one wall, Dathan sat on a stool. He snapped on a bright lamp and moved closer to check her cheek.