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

Clo gave a small shake of her head. “We might be in deep mud. I don’t know yet.” Clo had been quiet for so long as she raced the ship through space, but she was on edge again. “There’s a call coming through the command deck. No identifier.”

Damn. Eris had started to relax—they had passed outposts without incident for hours—every part of her tensed on high alert.

If the pilot managed to make it through his jump in Asteria alive, he might have been able to hail a Tholosian ship by now. The Oracle would be hunting for Zelus. As long as they were in Tholosian space, they weren’t out of danger. Ariadne had put up a block for scanners, but Eris didn’t know the girl’s skills well enough to trust them.

“Can you track the signal?” Eris asked Clo.

“No.” Clo pressed her lips together in frustration. “It’s blocked. Could it be Nova? You contacted headquarters, right?”

“Hours ago,” Eris said softly. “I’m not sure it went through. I didn’t get a response.” That wasn’t exactly uncommon; Nova was constantly barraged by dust storms. She worried her lip. They’d have to pick up; they had no choice. If it was a Tholosian ship, an ignored call would alert the Oracle. “Answer it.”

Clo looked at Eris sharply. “You’re sure?”

Eris’s hand crept to her blaster. She was subordinate, just another piece of the spy network, but aboard this ship, she was leader. A general of a small group of women who depended on her to survive.

She would not fail them.

“I’m sure.” As Eris reached for the headset, she put her other hand on Clo’s shoulder in a gesture of reassurance she’d used back when they were friends. “I’ll handle it.”

Clo stiffened at Eris’s touch, then shrugged it off. “Fine.” Her voice was hard. She nodded once as the call went through.

Eris put on a false voice as she spoke into the headset’s microphone. “In Tholos’s name, this is Zelus.”

A familiar snort almost made Eris collapse with relief. Almost. “You’ve fucked up, haven’t you?” Kyla asked.

<Oh, thank the gods.> Clo sprawled in her chair, relieved. <I thought we were dead.>

<Don’t be so sure. She sounds like she wants to kill us.>

“We may have hit a small snag,” Eris said to Kyla.

Clo’s laugh was low. <Small. Like, the way a small asteroid destroys all the life on a whole planet. Nice one, marshbrain.>

Eris scowled at her.