Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
Ria thought Diablo looked like the homemade marbles she’d seen the street kids on Lucifa playing with. It was shades of brown and red, without a single hint of green or blue to break the monotony.
Beside her, Zayn handled the ship with a finesse that continually impressed her. She stared at his hands as he manipulated the controls. Hands she was all-too-aware had been touching her not long ago.
“BEll, run scans for high explosives concentrations on the surface,” he said.
“You got it,” the computer replied. “Displaying on screen now.”
On the console screen in front of Zayn, a color map appeared. Ria leaned closer. “Half the planet reads positive for explosives.” How the hell could they possibly find Lastite Lala amongst all that?
“The planet’s covered in mines. Mainly Ma and Pa type operations, no regulation. Anyone who can get their hands on explosives can light a fuse and blow things up.”
“Well, Lala chose her hidey hole very well.” Ria sank back into her chair. “Where do we start?”
“BEll, where are the largest concentrations of explosives?”
The map changed, showing half a dozen hot spots.
Zayn frowned as he studied it. “Any that aren’t right over a mine?”
“One.” The computer zoomed in on one spot near the equator. “A small town with the delightful name of Bedlam.”
“We’ll start there.” Zayn tapped at the controls, then pointed to something else on the screen. “See this canyon, just out of town? We’ll hide the Infinitas in there. See if we can buy a couple of horses at the trading post nearby.”
Ria turned her head. “Horses?”
“No tech, remember? You go zooming in on an airspeeder and you’ll get mobbed sooner than you can blink. We’ll have to wear local clothing and carry older weapons than you’re used to.”
“You’ve been here before.”
“Yep, one lovely visit chasing a smuggler who’d relieved an arts collector of a crate of Tuskian bourbon. Unfortunately for the smuggler, the collector had also hidden his prized Terran coin collection in the crate.”
“You got it back?”
“Yeah, but we learned the hard way not to go in covered in high-tech goodies. A lynch mob of cowboys almost made off with the Infinitas.” Zayn stroked a hand along the top of the console. “We were lucky to get out with just a few scratches. This time, we’ll go in under the radar.”
The Phoenix brothers just couldn’t resist an adventure. “Sounds like a good idea.”
“Sit back, we’re hitting the atmosphere.”
Heat flared over the cockpit windows and the ship vibrated with the descent. Moments later, they broke through into a cloudless blue sky.
“What if someone spots the ship?” she asked.
“Cloak’s on.”
Below was a dusty desert landscape of twisting rock formations that speared into the sky and flat-topped mesas that sat like giant tables.
They flew in lower. Ria tried to spot the canyon Zayn had pointed out on the scans, but her attention was captured by the landscape.
She could see the different layers of rock that made up the rock formations.
Bands of gray, yellow, brown, beige, and red.
Like some giant sculptor had mixed all sorts of clay together then twisted it into the brilliant formations.
She saw shapes amongst the rocks, one spire looking like a tower on the Assassin’s Guild Headquarters, another like a graceful Gardan dancer, and one like the lances carried by the soldiers on Dentan VI.
Zayn flew the ship in lower, until they passed down a narrow canyon, the formations flying past only centimeters from the sides of the ship.
Something about this desolate place was beautiful, in a stark, harsh way.
She could understand a little why the settlers had come here.
This place equaled freedom. Just you, the rocks, and the hot desert air.
“Setting down.” Zayn’s brow furrowed as he concentrated on landing.
They set down with the slightest jolt in the shadow of a large mesa.
He unclipped his belt. “Once we’re changed and out of here, I’ll reset the cloaking device. Don’t want some prospector to stumble onto my baby.”
“I am perfectly capable of using the ship’s weapons systems for protection,” BEll said with a sniff.
His lips quirked. “Yeah. I know, but you aren’t exactly subtle.” He turned to Ria. “I’ve pulled out some clothes from storage that should do the trick.” He eyed her. “I’m pretty sure there’s something that’ll fit you.”
“I’ll find something.” She stalked back toward the cabins.
Ria didn’t take long to get changed. The trousers she found were made of a soft, brown leather and were only a little bit too big for her.
She cinched the waist in with a belt. The navy and white checked shirt he’d left for her, however, was a size too small.
She slipped on one of her navy tank tops underneath and fastened the shirt over the top.
A hint of cleavage was still visible, but at least she didn’t look like a pleasure worker.
She braided her hair then glanced in the mirror.
God, she looked like something out of the neo-western movies that had made a comeback in the last decade.
She picked up the pistol Zayn had left her.
The thing took real bullets. Real bullets!
She slipped it into the holster fixed to her belt.
She pulled on her boots next. They came to her knees, were soft and supple, and a perfect fit.
Inside one of them, she slipped in a tiny scanner.
It was no bigger than her palm and looked nondescript.
If someone found it, hopefully they’d just think it was a hunk of metal.
She made her way back to the cockpit and came to an abrupt halt.
Well-worn denim sheathed lean hips and long legs.
He turned for a second to adjust something on the control console, and the way the fabric cupped his ass made her mouth water.
He straightened and she saw his white shirt was unbuttoned at the top, showing a generous slice of tanned chest. A dark-brown leather vest completed the outfit. The man looked good in anything.
His head shot up and his gaze ran over her in a slow, deliberate way that made her want to fidget.
“You make a pretty decent cowgirl.”
She grimaced. “Thanks. I think.”
“You’re missing one thing.” He strolled over to her with his loose-limbed stride and snatched a brimmed hat off a chair. It was a soft, supple brown and looked like it had been worn previously. He set it on her head. Adjusted it.
“There you go. A certified Diablo cowgirl.” He grabbed his own hat and jammed it over his tawny hair. The battered black cowboy hat had seen better times, but of course it suited him in a roguish kind of way.
She cleared her throat. “We should get going.” Before I do something stupid, like touch you.
“Go get ’em, pardners,” BEll drawled.
Zayn rolled his eyes. “Thanks.”
They left the ship and it only took him a moment to set the cloaking device. The air around the Infinitas shimmered, and then all Ria could see was rock. It was no surprise to her that Zayn had a top-notch system.
Following a barely discernible track created by some sort of animals, they wound their way out of the canyon. The afternoon sun beat down on them mercilessly, and soon Ria felt sweat beading on her face and dampening her shirt.
“How far to this trading post?” she asked.
“Not far.”
Twenty hot, sweaty minutes later, they came across a tiny, dilapidated wooden shack. A crude, hand-painted sign hung crookedly above the door and pronounced ‘Smoky’s Fine Goods Emporium.’
Ria snorted. “Is Smoky serious?”
Zayn grinned. “If nothing else, he’s optimistic.”
Smoky turned out to be a wiry man with a shock of gray hair and a face like boot leather. “Horses, you say? I might have a couple.”
He chewed on something and then spat a brown blob of saliva on the sawdust-covered ground. Ria suppressed a wince.
“They’re good animals. Well bred. I can get a real good price for them in Bedlam.”
Zayn kept his face blank. “Two thousand e-creds.”
The old man gave a harsh, hacking chuckle. “You must have dust in your head, boy. Not worth my time.”
She listened as Zayn haggled back and forth with the old man. They finally settled on a price and Smoky led them out behind his shop.
When she saw the two horses in the small pen, she realized she and Zayn had just been swindled.
She threw her hands in the air. “They don’t look strong enough to carry us.”
“They’re stronger than they look.” The old cowboy opened the gate and the two horses plodded over. One was a deep chocolate brown, the other was white with brown patches. They were both on the thin side with tangled manes. “Hardy Diablan stock. We don’t need pretty around here.”
Ria glanced down the dusty, rock-strewn road and across the barren landscape. Smoky wasn’t lying about that.
Not long later, she found herself bumping along down the road clinging onto the rope reins for dear life.
“Relax into the horse’s movement, Ria. You’ll be damn sore before we reach Bedlam.”
She shot Zayn a glare. He trotted up beside her, looking like he’d been born in the saddle. All liquid grace. Could all space jocks operate any mode of transport—artificial or living—with perfect ease? It—along with her numb butt—made her testy.
“I am relaxing, but this dumb animal isn’t exactly a smooth ride and this road…well, I use the word road lightly.”
He coughed and looked away. “Lucky for you the town isn’t far.”
She stiffened, which only hurt her ass more. “Are you laughing at me?”
He shook his head vigorously but refused to look her way.
Her temper flared. “You are!”
Now blue eyes swung her way. A wide grin showed white teeth against a handsome face she wanted to hit.
“I just thought assassins were competent at everything. I like seeing you a little out of your element.”
“Fuck you, Phoenix.”
“Now, now. You look cute.” His smile widened. “Look ahead.”
She did, and for a second, all she saw was more desert shimmer off the hot rocky ground.
Then she saw the first of the buildings lining the road.
They were mostly single story wooden shacks, but as they neared the town, more came into view, including some larger two-story places painted bright, shiny white. A small whirl of wind sent a cloud of dust spinning through the main street of the small town.
Why the hell would anyone want to live here? She jolted hard in the saddle and her sore butt throbbed.
“Welcome to Bedlam.” Zayn kept pace beside her. “Let’s go find ourselves a teenage explosives genius.”
Zayn thought Bedlam had its own kind of laid-back charm. Part of him got the attraction of not living among the hustle, bustle, and bombardment of technology the rest of the galaxy gloried in.
He saw some sharp-eyed cowboys sitting out on a wooden deck, watching them go by. He tipped his hat to them. There was a neat and tidy mercantile, a small shop with ladies’ dresses in the window, and an office with a brass star out front. Sherriff’s office, he guessed.
He flicked a glance at Ria and smothered a grin.
She was bouncing on the horse in a way that made him want to slide in behind her, grab her hips, and help her learn to move with the rhythm of the horse.
Okay, it wasn’t just Ria’s sure-to-be-aching ass that made him want to do that.
He imagined being pressed up against that lush bottom, their bodies rocking together.
Shit. The last thing he needed while riding a horse was a hard on.
He focused back on the town. Across the road, the two-story, white building was a hotel, and beside it was a more ramshackle version with a crooked balcony on the second floor and a set of swinging doors at the bottom.
Two girls leaned on the balcony railing wearing tight corsets—one in eye-searing red and the other electric blue—trimmed in black lace with skirts that were long in back and short enough in front to show off plenty of slim leg.
The girls tittered at each other, and then one blew him a kiss.
He pretended to catch it, and the girls laughed.
“Phoenix, what the hell are you doing?”
Ria’s sharp tone had him raising an eyebrow. “Just being friendly. Not often you see an honest-to-God saloon, with a whorehouse.”
“Plenty of brothels all around the galaxy.”
“Yeah, but none with this kind of old-fashioned charm.”
She made a harrumphing sound. “The diseases are all the same. How about we remember why we’re here? How are we going to find Lastite Lala?”
Suddenly, a deafening boom thundered through the town. The horses shied, Zayn’s rearing up on his hind legs. It took all his strength to stay seated and calm it down. Surprisingly, Ria managed to soothe her horse by talking softly to it.
Ahead, a huge cloud of smoke rose in the shape of a mushroom above the dusty roofs.
He smiled. “How about we start at the explosion?”
She nodded and pointed her horse in the direction of the billowing smoke. A small crowd had gathered around a large hole in the ground. Smoke had turned the air hazy, but it was clearing quickly.
“You crazy-ass idiot.” One man in a battered brown hat and boots was stamping his feet, his face red.
Beside him, another man hopped from one foot to the other, slapping at his singed trousers. “I’m not the idiot. She is.” He stabbed a finger across the hole.
Zayn heard the riotous laughter now. Through the clearing smoke, he saw a tiny slip of a girl dancing around in circles. She was dressed in a pink-checkered shirt and black trousers with a short, white, frilly skirt over the top. Her hair was a shocking shade of neon pink.
“Blow it up, blow it high, blow it up into the sky.” The girl did a pirouette. “You morons shouldn’t have tried to steal my stuff. You can’t just come in and take someone’s explosives.” She wagged a finger at them. “Bad, bad manners.”
“I guess we found Lastite Lala,” Ria murmured.
Yep, they certainly had.
“You blew up our house,” Burned Pants yelled. “All our stuff.”
Lala poked out her tongue. “I saw you beating that horse of yours, Ray Baker. She never did anything to you.”
“And you destroyed the train line up to our mining claim.” The other man was red in the face. “All because of a damned horse.”
“No, Clint. The train line is for what you did to Clarissa over at the saloon. She was covered in bruises, you bully.”
“You crazy bitch,” Ray spat.
Lala paused. “What did you call me?”
The men looked at each other, nerves wafting off them.
“Did you call me a crazy bitch?” She looked over at the crowd. “Did they?”
There was a murmur of “yeses.”
She broke out into a wide grin. “Why, thank you.”
Ria shook her head. “She’s certifiable.”
“Should be fun taking her with us then,” Zayn said.
It was then he saw Ray and Clint drawing their weapons and taking aim at the girl.
Pulling his blade from its sheath, he broke into a sprint.