She’d put aside her plans for revenge, partly because getting the Meridian treatment was her priority. Once she achieved that, she would have time enough for everything else. But also because she’d realized, with Rico’s help, that she couldn’t allow hatred to control her life. That wasn’t the person she wanted to be. Rico was old, he’d lived over fifteen hundred years, and while he wasn’t always wise, he’d learned a lot about survival in that time, both mental as well as physical. He’d told her there was no point in living forever if you didn’t enjoy it. He’d warned her about centering her whole life on revenge, because once you’d obtained it, you were left with nothing.
Janey strolled into the galley. Perfectly groomed as always, long red hair artfully styled, Janey would have made Tannis feel totally inept as a woman if she hadn’t known that the ship’s beautiful and brilliant tech expert actually had more issues with men than Tannis. The good looks were a mask she hid behind. She pulled out a chair, sank down, and then leaned toward Tannis.
“You know, Captain, I’ve been thinking.”
“You have?” Why did she get the impression that whatever it was Janey had been thinking, she wasn’t going to like it?
“Yes. I’ve been going over the intel, and I reckon this is probably a really bad idea.”
This time, Tannis put her spoon down very slowly and looked around the table. Skylar’s face held no expression. Rico was grinning.
“Okay,” she said, keeping her tone even. “Time for a reality check. Who the hell is captain here?”
Janey answered. “You’re the captain, Tannis.”
Tannis would have felt better if the flicker of a smile hadn’t accompanied her words
“Yes, I’m captain, and we’ve already agreed to do the job. My honor is at stake.”
Someone sniggered, but she ignored the sound.
“It’s just…” Janey obviously didn’t know when to shut up, but the glare Tannis shot her way did the trick. Her mouth snapped closed.
“I don’t get it,” Tannis said. “This job is going to pay good money. Hell, more than good—brilliant money.”
“I didn’t like him,” Rico said. “Except the wings—I liked them a lot.”
“He was trying to kill us—what was there to like?” Tannis ran a hand through her short hair. “And since when have we needed to ‘like’ our clients—as long as their money is good, who gives a fuck what they’re like?”
“I don’t trust him,” Janey added.
“You weren’t even there.”
“I’ve been doing some research and something’s not right. The whole thing is giving off bad vibes.”
“Holy freaking Meridian. Give me a break.”
Rico studied her for a moment, and then he nodded. “Okay. It’s your call, but let’s just be careful on this one.”
Tannis frowned. Rico was never careful. Hell, he was totally reckless; the more dangerous a job, the more he was eager to jump right in. Maybe he was scared for Skylar. Maybe that’s what being in love did for you, made you worried for the one you loved. Still, the strangeness of his behavior added to her unease as though there was something not quite right with her world.
“So have we heard from him?” Daisy asked. “Do we know where the rendezvous point is?”
“Not yet. He said someone would contact us nearer the time.”
They were in orbit over Trakis Five, which in itself was enough to make everybody twitchy. Trakis Five was where the headquarters of the Collective was based, along with their own personal army—the Corps. Nobody wanted to mess with the Corps, and it was hard to forget that only weeks ago El Cazador had been on the run, with the Collective in deadly pursuit. Their differences had been resolved—sort of—but all the same, she guessed they’d all rather be a long way from this particular planet.
“Nearer what time?” Janey asked.
At their first and only meeting, Callum had indicated he was soon to make an announcement to the world about the nature of the Collective. Very few people were aware of the wing thing, or that the supposedly indestructible Collective could be destroyed. When the crew of El Cazador had threatened to expose their vulnerability, Callum reluctantly called off the Corps poised to kill them.
“Okay, we wait then,” Rico said. “In the meantime, we have important things to do…alone.” He stood up and held out his hand to Skylar, who slid her palm into his and rose to her feet.
Sweet Jesus, Tannis had honestly never thought she’d see Rico holding hands. Yup, the world as she knew it was gone forever. She needed a drink.
At that moment, Skylar gave a small cry of pain, put her hand to head, and swayed. Rico caught her as her knees gave out.
Tannis jumped to her feet. “What’s the matter?”
“How the hell should I know?” Rico sank down in his chair with Skylar in his arms. Her eyes were closed, as if she’d fainted, but behind the lids, they moved rapidly. Rico shifted her so she lay across his lap, and stroked his hand over her head, down her cheek.
“Sweetheart, wake up.”
For a minute, it looked like she wouldn’t respond, and then she blinked. Her violet eyes were dazed, but they cleared rapidly.
“That was Callum Meridian.” Her voice filled with awe.
“Couldn’t he have commed, like any normal person?” Janey asked.
But then Callum Meridian was hardly normal—and why comm when you shared a telepathic link with all the members of the Collective, including Skylar?