Lunar Exposure (On the Hunt) (6 page)

Regroup. Replan. He had less than ten
trics
until the dock opened. More before the Moon blew. Noga wouldn’t go down with the Moon, he’d be long gone—making it that much harder to pin on him.

For a moment, he considered hacking the Moon systems but then decided against it. They’d have found the hack and found him before he was able to leave. He couldn’t risk losing his license.

Trust no one, especially pretty scented women of his own species. Had Noga been expecting him and used Haliday or was Callen now being overly paranoid? Was it possible to be overly paranoid when the Moon he was sitting on was going to blow and become contaminated space junk in less than one Allied Standard Day?

He rummaged through his luggage until he found what he wanted, then scanned the room for bugs or anything that didn’t belong. Nothing. Clean as the day he’d arrived. He packed everything away, slipped his
plex
into his pocket and left the room. He may not be able to find Noga easily, but finding Haliday should be much simpler. She made sure everyone saw her and was looking at the smile and the fashion, not what she was doing behind her back. Clever. He had to admire that. He was smiling when he got in the lift, and he wasn’t faking.

But she wouldn’t trick him twice.

* * * * *

Haliday had Benth’s full attention as she chatted to him in the Aqua Bar. Her palms were itching. It was stress related and she was trying to ignore it and smile as the orange-skinned man patted her hand and made less and less subtle hints about what it would take to secure a donation for the orphanages. Any other time, she would have taken him up on the offer. He was the type of rich investor that she was usually seen with and she was used to faking her way through sex.

Her belly tightened at the memory of being in Callen’s bed. There’d been nothing faked there. Heat swept over her skin, followed by a prickling down her back. If she’d been male, her spines would’ve been lifting. Callen was in the bar. She didn’t need to turn to see him. She could sense him, smell him as he got closer and almost feel the animosity rolling off him like a midsummer thunderhead.

He was angry. And she didn’t blame him. She also hadn’t expected him to get free so fast. It had taken her ages to learn how to undo those knots without making them tighter.

Benth was waiting for an answer. What had he asked?

She smiled at him. “I think I need another drink.”

“I’ll get it.”

“Just juice this time. Too much alcohol goes straight to my head and I won’t be able to talk business.”

Disappointment flickered across his features. At least she thought it was. Sometimes it was too easy to misread facial expressions on other species. The cues were slightly different.

Alone for a moment, she ran her fingers through her short hair and tried not to look at Callen directly. He was smiling, even though she could feel him bristling. But he wouldn’t risk attacking her on the Moon, no one would. There was too much security and too many rules.

Her traitorous body started melting, her underwear dampened and her nipples peaked because she could smell him. Worse, he hadn’t showered and she could smell herself on him and the unmistakable scent of sex. Bastard. He’d done that deliberately.

Benth came back with a drink. She could smell the alcohol before he set it down. Did he not realize how well tuned a
Phrial
’s sense of smell was? That he was trying to get her drunk enough that she’d go with him filled her with sadness and resentment. Pricks like him thought money bought whatever they wanted, including people.

She stood up, deciding that Callen was the lesser danger to her person. “Time has gotten away from me. I have another meeting to attend. Contact my assistant if you need further information, but I do look forward to hearing from you and I know the children would be delighted if you do decide to fund the building of a nursery school.” She smiled and placed her hand on his shoulder as she walked past as if she truly were sorry she had to leave him. “We both know how important education is in improving one’s lot in life.”

When she walked away, it was minus one tracker. Maybe he’d be able to lead her to Noga. If not, she’d be hanging out by the dock and then following Noga onto whatever craft he boarded. If she got him, she wouldn’t need Benth’s chits to fund the school that would take children from three city orphanages.

With her chin up, she glided past Callen. She knew before he got up that he would follow her. She didn’t glance back but kept walking as she considered where to go—somewhere public, but not too public. She didn’t want their confrontation to stand out so they both got thrown off the Moon.

She knew just the place.

Her heart beat fast as she made her way to a theater. Safety in crowds. It was how she hid. It had always worked in the past. Yet she couldn’t fight the nerves that made her want to scratch her palms until they bled. For the first time she began to think she was in over her head.

She should’ve given up on Noga, walked away and gone after a smaller, easier scalp. And yet she couldn’t. She had to push herself to take bigger risks and bigger scalps because one day she wanted Yem in chains. She wanted him to feel powerless and alone and afraid that each day would be his last.

That was what got her up in the morning. That was the thought that made her give away almost everything she got to make sure no one else was sold the way she was. But she knew it happened. Corruption and poverty went hand in hand in a twisted dance.

She walked around the back of the theater, looking for a table with a bit of space around it. Most people clustered toward the front for the best view of the performance. Above the stage, acrobats in very little spun and tumbled, while onstage dancers moved like the ocean, sensuous and never still. It took her a moment to realize it was a very naked and sexy retelling of the Moth Prince and his mermaid lover.

For a moment, she was mesmerized by the beauty of the performance. The dancers might be here because of their beautiful bodies, but the shows were of a quality that was well above what she’d expected. She’d thought they would look cheap and smutty, not exquisite and sensual.

A hand slid around her waist and lips brushed her ear. “We need to talk.”

She swallowed and resisted the urge to lean against Callen. Her mind was filled with images of his naked body. The room was too hot and her head was light, but he wasn’t exuding any new pheromones. She’d killed his attraction when she’d tied him to the bed. A bubble of sadness popped in her chest. She wouldn’t be enjoying him again.

He drew her into an alcove, one of many that lined the walls, for those who couldn’t wait to get back to their room. She could resist, call out and have him arrested, but she didn’t want to. She had to keep her cover and Haliday Fisher would let the handsome man try to seduce her. Not that he was going to do that, judging from his closed expression and the thin line of his lips.

“You want to explain or shall I jump to what I think?” He kept his voice low and his hand around her waist. To anyone watching, they were simply lovers kissing and contemplating a semi-public tryst for excitement.

Her pulse fluttered in her wrists, but she forced her hands to be still instead of exposing them to him and revealing how she felt. No doubt it was too late and he could smell her. Blockers. She was never going to stop taking them ever again—no matter how expensive and hard to get they became.

She met his gaze and tried to keep the act going that she was nothing more than a socialite looking for a good time or a man with more chits than sense. “I wanted to make sure you were still in bed when I came back.”

“You sure you were coming back?”

“Of course.” She ran her hand up his chest.

He caught it but kept it there. “Were you coming back alone?”

Haliday frowned. “Why wouldn’t I?”

Callen drew her closer, so her body was pressed against his. There was no way she could slip free from his grasp. “I know that five years ago you didn’t exist. What I don’t know is what you are up to.”

Her spine stiffened. He knew.
He knew!
He was going to hand her into Yem and collect the reward. It wasn’t well publicized, but she knew it existed. She twisted her hand and tried to break his hold, but he was quicker and stronger. Ex-military. She was screwed.

“Start talking,
Haliday
, or I will have you detained for working with a known criminal. There may not be a bounty on your head, yet, but you mix in the wrong circles.”

Her mouth opened. He thought she was working with Noga? She blinked, but in those few
milli-tric
s, she could understand why he’d think that.

“I’m not working with Noga.”

Callen looked at her as though she’d just claimed to have wings. “So you know who he is. I think you use your orphanages and the fame as a cover. And it’s good, very thorough. But you’ve fucked with the wrong person. And I intend to get to the bottom of who you are and what you are up to.”

He let her go and turned away.

Haliday tried to think, but the music and the heat were making it hard. It was better for him to know what she used her cover for than dig into who she had been five years ago. “Have you heard of the Kingfisher?”

Callen turned. “All good bounty hunters know the competition. Unregistered, secretive, works alone. What’s the Kingfisher got to do with you?” But even as he asked the question, she could see the wheels spinning in his mind, his yellow-green eyes narrowing as he studied her.

“Golfrin, six million chits. Roghu, ten million. Swin, fifteen million.” Only bounty hunters kept score of their scalps. And she was counting on Callen knowing who the recent scalps were. If he was as good as he said, he’d know the scalp and the chits and who’d claimed the reward.

His gaze changed from one of suspicion to one of skepticism. “You?”

She smiled as if she was going to cut his lungs out while he was still using them. “Me.” She pushed him against the wall. “Where do you think the chits come from for my charities? I spend far more than what is donated.”

“I need Noga’s scalp or a loaner is going to sell my body parts to make up the shortfall.”

“That was your misstep. Not mine. The children need help. You ever had to wonder where your next meal is coming from? Ever wondered if you would sleep without nightmares? I am making a difference. Noga is mine.” She kept her voice low but firm. She wouldn’t let him have Noga.

Callen spun her against the wall. “So you were an orphaned brat and now you want to save the world. Good for you, but you are out of your league. Do you know why Noga is here?”

She was very aware of the press of Callen’s body, the way his hips were hard against hers and his response to her scent—the rise of his shaft was unmistakable. But a man like him wouldn’t let himself be caught again. “Business.”

He shook his head. “Wrong. Heard of firemoss?”

The air whooshed out of her lungs. Firemoss was a class one prohibited item. Just carrying it in space was enough to get someone locked up for ten cycles. Whole zones were off limits to ships because of contamination. “You’re not suggesting…” While she knew Noga enjoyed blowing things up, she couldn’t even say it. She was on a Moon that was set to explode.

“I know.”

“Then why haven’t you reported it, why are we here?”

“In small amounts, it’s undetectable. Scans now will show nothing, then I will get thrown off for making trouble and get first-row seats to the end of the Moon. I’m waiting for it to grow so I can report it. I also need to get Noga alone to take him down without breaching the rules.” He kissed her. His tongue stroked over her lip as if he couldn’t resist tasting her before pulling away. “You know, the ones you broke by tying me up.”

“I’m sorry. I can’t let you get to him.” The silk of her dress hid nothing as her nipples pressed against the fabric. Every breath she took was laced with his scent…and it was changing. He wasn’t immune to her this close, but that didn’t mean he’d act on it.

His fingers trailed along her arm. “I know how you work now, but Noga doesn’t want you in his bed. You’re in a bit of a bind.”

“And what’s your plan?”

“Don’t know yet.” And there was something in the way he spoke that she knew she was going to be part of it.

“I work alone.” But even in her ears, it didn’t sound convincing, not when she wanted him. She tried to block him out and make her body behave. He had the power to find out who had owned her. And yet, she didn’t think he’d turn her in even if he knew—there’d been something in his voice when he’d called her an orphaned brat. He’d understood, even though he was trying to hide it. Callen wouldn’t do anything that hurt her charities.

“So do I.”

She tilted her head and tried to sound flip. “Good, then we go after him separately. Winner takes the chits.”

Callen shook his head. “You know that’s not going to work.”

There was a pause as he looked at her. Was he waiting for her to agree? She wouldn’t. “You got blockers?”

He laughed. “This isn’t about the sex—although I admit I wouldn’t mind more. This is bigger than us. Do you remember the
Solar Bird
?”

She nodded. Everyone knew of it.