In a more emotionless voice than she’d ever heard from him, he relayed the message. “‘We agree to your terms and will honor the agreement. However, we will not cancel the contract with Toth Krag until all credits have been restored. Despite your impressive attempts at misdirection, we have tracked the origin of your signal to Vaadla Station. The hunter is en route. We are most entertained by the possibility that he may eliminate you, regardless of contract status.’ Message terminates.”

[  20  ]

Violence did not come naturally to Helix.

Not in the sense that he wanted to inflict pain. But as he considered rationally, if the situation escalated and he must choose between preserving life and protecting Qalu and Aevi? He would find some means to eradicate the bounty hunter.

He had nothing to prove from a physical altercation, but if the hunter favored a smart suit, there would be technology Helix could turn against him. Unfair, certainly. By most standards, those tactics counted as dirty, but he would do whatever it took to keep his love group safe. With any luck, it wouldn’t come to that.

Qalu curled into him, apparently untroubled by the threat that might soon manifest in their vicinity. At first, he lay awake, trying to factor the probability that they would survive an encounter with Toth Krag when nobody else had. Nita could have given him an exact number, astronomically low, but for once, Helix felt better without the precise calculations. In time, sleep set upon him like a thief, stealing his consciousness, and the next thing he knew, Aevi was perched by his head, her tail tapping gently between the eyes. He stared upward, interested in this unique glimpse inside the Pherzul’s nasal cavity.

“Get up! I’m bored. And hungry. But mostly bored. Where’s Qalu?”

With a sense of foreboding, he realized he was alone on the sleep platform. Perhaps, she’d gone to procure sustenance? It would be a kindness in character with her other qualities, and if she’d expected to return before he roused, she might not have left any indication of her whereabouts. But when he scanned her place beside him with augmented senses, the composite held no traces of her warmth, only cool blue tones where there should be red and yellow.

She’s been gone a while. Even if she decided to leave me—to board the ship after all—she would never go without Aevi.

Something is wrong.

His pulse spiked. Helix didn’t wish to alarm the Pherzul. He rose carefully without responding, but Aevi clutched at his lower limb, her claws digging in. Not hard enough to draw blood, but he sensed her growing agitation. Soon, she’d pierce the skin, creating wounds.

“You smell frightened. Where is she? Something is wrong.” Unconsciously, Aevi voiced his private thoughts. “Qalu does not vanish.”

“We should look for her,” he said, striding toward the exit.