BooksBarbecue
Back Seven Devils
Chapters (62)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. 1.
  4. 2.
  5. 3.
  6. 4.
  7. 5.
  8. 6.
  9. 7.
  10. 8.
  11. 9.
  12. 10.
  13. 11.
  14. 12.
  15. 13.
  16. 14.
  17. 15.
  18. 16.
  19. 17.
  20. 18.
  21. 19.
  22. 20.
  23. 21.
  24. 22.
  25. 23.
  26. 24.
  27. 25.
  28. 26.
  29. 27.
  30. 28.
  31. 29.
  32. 30.
  33. 31.
  34. 32.
  35. 33.
  36. 34.
  37. 35.
  38. 36.
  39. 37.
  40. 38.
  41. 39.
  42. 40.
  43. 41.
  44. 42.
  45. 43.
  46. 44.
  47. 45.
  48. 46.
  49. 47.
  50. 48.
  51. 49.
  52. 50.
  53. 51.
  54. 52.
  55. 53.
  56. 54.
  57. 55.
  58. 56.
  59. 57.
  60. EPILOGUE
  61. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  62. ABOUT THE AUTHORS

<Eris. I’m moving Zelus’s bullet craft, then I’ll guide Asteria deeper into the loading bay,> Clo said. <I don’t like it so close to the doors—a rough jump might damage our ship worse than it already is.>

<Good call,> Eris replied, sounding distracted.

Right. She was busy dragging bodies to throw out of the airlock. Clo shuddered, glad she’d managed to dodge that job.

She rounded the corner into the loading bay, pausing when a soft click sounded to her left. It took her a split second to realize someone was climbing into the bullet craft—a man, sandy blond hair, pale skin, wearing a spacesuit dark as the night sky. Light reflected off the sleek helmet he held poised over his head. A spacesuit’s cooling layers would mask a heat signature.

“Hey!” Clo pointed her Mors at him, her heart thudding but her hand steady.

“Fuck,” he muttered, ramming the helmet on this head. He dodged behind a crate.

Clo sprinted after him and fired her Mors just above his head. The shots echoed through the metallic loading bay, sending sparks as the lasers sizzled across the metal. He didn’t even pause.

<Clo?>

Clo ignored Eris.

The man had pried open the door to the bullet craft, but at her second shot, he ducked to the other side for cover. Clo crept closer, footsteps silent. The others would be coming her way for backup, but she hoped she could disable the straggler before they did.

And what then? A silent corner of her mind asked. Would you kill him? Sink him like a stone in a marsh?

She couldn’t answer. She couldn’t even think it.

Clo ducked low, her breath loud in her ears. With her Mors raised, she darted to the other side of the bullet craft. Nothing. She swung around, frantic, muscles tense. For all she knew, she was a sitting target, easily in range.

She jumped at the screech of the loading bay doors. Eris and Nyx burst in.

“What are you doing?” Nyx asked.

“There’s someone in here.” Her voice was breathless and wavering. Back in the Snarl, they’d say she sounded lotic. “I saw him try to break into the bullet craft.”

Eris glanced around and hurried to Clo. Under her breath, she asked, “Where?”

Clo shook her head. “Dunno where he went. Didn’t see a hatch.”

“Shit,” Nyx swore. “I was afraid of this. Someone from the manifest was missing when we threw the corpses out of the airlock. Ariadne just gave the ship an infrared scan a few minutes ago, but we didn’t see anything. We’d assumed they’d stayed on Myndalia.”

“Who was missing?” Clo asked.

Nyx looked wary. “The copilot.”

Fluming great.