Stalker's Luck (Solitude Saga Book 1) (29 page)
Read Stalker's Luck (Solitude Saga Book 1) Online
Authors: Chris Strange
“Hm.” Pine pointed his chin at Williams. “Identify yourself.”
Williams said nothing.
Pine stepped back and snapped open an extendable baton. “Identify yourself.”
“Roy Williams,” the fugitive said. “And if you touch me with that, I will tear your Fed tongue out.”
“The threats are unnecessary, Mr Williams.” He glanced at Dom and nodded as he retracted the baton. “He fits the description. I’ll trust you’ve provided the right man, for now. We’ll make additional checks once we have him in custody.”
“The reward?” Dom said.
“A number of Mr Leone’s people were killed during your hunt for this man. I have deducted two million vin from the final reward to compensate Mr Leone.”
“You’re fucking kidding me,” Eddie said before Dom could stop him.
Pine’s nostrils flared. “Is that a problem, Mr Gould?”
Eddie glanced at Dom. She shook her head ever so slightly. She could see him grinding his teeth.
“No. No problem at all, Jack.”
“Very well.” Pine took out his tab and touched the screen. “One quarter of the reward has been paid against your debt, Miss Souza. The rest has been transferred to your accounts.”
“Then I relinquish custody of the fugitive to you.” She pushed Williams forward. “And the contract has been fulfilled.”
“A pleasure working with you,” Pine said. He jerked his head at his men. “Take him away.”
The marines stepped forward and grabbed Williams under his shoulders. The fugitive didn’t look back as they dragged him away.
Alone with them now, Pine exhaled. “I’ll be glad to see the back of this place. I always disliked Temperance. Too much sin for my taste. The view from up here should be much better when it dies. Of course, I won’t be able to stay and enjoy it. I’ll be transferred somewhere else. The life of a public servant.”
Dom tried her best to smile. “Yes, sir. If there’s nothing else?”
“Nothing. Enjoy your reward, stalkers. The Federation appreciates your service.”
“Thanks, Jack,” Eddie said. “Always happy to be of help.”
Pine turned his back and strode down the umbilicus. Dom pressed the button and the airlock door slid closed. She glanced at Eddie.
“I’m setting our course. Any requests for our next destination?”
“You’re the pilot.”
“How are you doing?” she said.
He shrugged. “We’ll see.”
“It might be a bit of a journey until the next stop. Might be a good chance for a sleep.”
He shook his head. “Next book’s not going to write itself.”
“You’re going to start so soon? I thought after…you know….”
“Me too. But it’s what I’m here for.” He turned away and raised his hand in a wave. “Try to make sure the ship doesn’t fall apart on the way. I can hear it groaning already.”
“She’s fine.” She patted the wall. “Aren’t you, girl?”
“Whatever you say, Freckles. Whatever you say.” He disappeared into his quarters and shut the hatch.
Dom returned to the bridge and started the engine sequence once more. Outside, the maglock disengaged. As she brought up the system map on the nav terminal, she heard shuffling footsteps behind her.
“Marshall’s Folly,” Knox said.
“What?”
“That’s where I want you to drop me. Marshall’s Folly.”
“There’s not much there. That’s in the Outer Reach.”
“That’s why I want to go there.” He leaned against the helm. “And I’ll be taking my share of Williams’ money, now, if you don’t mind.”
She shrugged. “Suit yourself.” She reached into her pocket and deposited two small bundles of cash in his hands. “There you go. Don’t spend it all at once.”
He stared down at the wads for a minute, then looked up at her.
“What the hell is this?”
“It’s your share. Two thirds of his money. Shame you weren’t a bit quicker getting us that tracking information. We might’ve found it before that woman went and spent it all.”
“This is bullshit,” Knox said. “I want some of the reward money.”
“That wasn’t the deal.”
“Fuck the deal.”
She turned towards him. “Did I hear you correctly? Would you like to cancel our deal? Because I’d be happy to turn around and put you back on Temperance.”
Knox glared at her, then looked down at the cash in his hands. “You’re devious, stalker. I guess I should’ve expected this, given your upbringing.”
“Make your decision. Marshall’s Folly with that cash there, or I take it back and return you to Temperance. Time’s running out.”
Knox hesitated. “All right. All right, stalker, you win. But I get to help myself to anything in the kitchen I want.”
“Fair enough,” she said. “Now go be annoying somewhere else. I need to concentrate.”
Knox stuffed the cash in his pockets and shuffled away. When he was gone, Dom exhaled and leaned back in her chair.
Through the viewing window, she watched the slow rotation of the blue gas giant. Temperance was barely a speck against its swirling surface, dark and grim from way out here. Tens of thousands of souls would die there in the coming days. Too many to comprehend. So she didn’t try.
She could feel the
Solitude
’s engines rumble through the ship. With a few touches of the control panel, she locked in the coordinates for Marshall’s Folly. She’d have to stop at a refuelling depot on the way, then they’d be jumping in and out of dark roads to get there in the next seventy-two hours. The autopilot would take care of the heavy lifting. She needed a nap anyway.
She leaned back, put her feet up on the helm, and thumbed the intercom button.
“Gentlemen, take your last look at Temperance. We are now departing Eleda VI space. Prepare for engine thrust in three…two…one….” She punched the throttle.
And the
Solitude
rocketed alone into the silence of the void.
The Saga Continues…
Join the stalkers for their next adventure in
Stalker’s Bounty
. Click below to grab your copy!
TO SOME, ARKAS IS A TERRORIST.
TO OTHERS, HE’S THEIR SAVIOUR.
TO THE CREW OF THE SOLITUDE, HE’S THEIR NEXT PAYDAY.
Following a devastating campaign of sabotage on a vital agricultural colony, the figure known only as Arkas makes his final threat: if the Federation fails to meet his demands within five days, he will permanently cripple the star system’s food supply.
Bounty hunters Dom Souza and Eddie Gould have the contract on Arkas’ head. But as they race to find Arkas before the deadline expires, Dom begins to doubt everything she was told about this so-called terrorist.
As the fires of rebellion spark across the colony, Dom will have to unravel the truth behind Arkas. Because if she can’t, her bounty will turn to dust. And the colony with it.
Sign up for the author’s New Release Email List and get a free ebook copy of
Stalker’s Work
. Join Dom and Eddie for two more thrilling side adventures!
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Author’s Note
If you enjoyed
Stalker’s Luck
, please share your thoughts by leaving a review at Amazon. And feel free to email me any time at
[email protected]
. I’d love to hear from you!
About the Author
Chris Strange discovered at an early age that he was completely unsuited to life among normal human beings. After experimenting with several different career paths, he said to hell with it and went back to writing, his first love.
Chris is the author of DON’T BE A HERO and the Miles Franco series of hard-boiled urban fantasy novels, beginning with THE MAN WHO CROSSED WORLDS. He writes for the daydreamers, the losers, the cynics and the temporarily insane. His stories are full of restless energy and driven by a passion for the unorthodox. He loves writing characters on the fringe of society: the drifters, the knights errant, the down-and-out.
In his spare time, Chris is an unapologetic geek, spending far too long wrapped up in sci-fi books, watching old kaiju movies and playing video games. He lives in the far away land of New Zealand, and he holds a BSc and a Postgraduate Diploma in Forensic Science.
He doesn’t plan on growing up any time soon.
Want to be the first to hear about new releases from Chris Strange? Sign up for the email list at:
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Contact Chris at:
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Also By the Author
The Solitude Saga
Stalker's Luck (Solitude Saga #1)
Stalker's Bounty (Solitude Saga #2)
Stalker's Exile (Solitude Saga #3)
Miles Franco Urban Fantasy
The Man Who Crossed Worlds (Miles Franco #1)
The Man Who Walked In Darkness (Miles Franco #2)
The Man Who Lost Everything (Miles Franco #3)
Heroes of the Atomverse
Don’t Be a Hero: A Superhero Novel
Kaiju Thriller
Stalker’s Luck
Cover art by Jarrod Owen
Originally published by Cheeky Minion 2015
Copyright © 2015 Chris Strange
All rights reserved.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, and locales are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons is entirely coincidental.
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