Page 340 of Hunters and Prey

“How’s the old man?” he asked me.

“Fine.”

He ran his tongue over his teeth. “Have you heard the rumors about the sentinels?”

Helgi nudged me under the table with her knee, and my ears perked up because information was information.

“Common belief is that the Draco are up to something,” Dunstan continued.

Sentinels were the Draco’s eyes. They sent them over the Outlands every so often. They were hovering discs that gathered data to take back to Draco City. We had no idea what the information was used for.

“Sentinels are always hovering above the Outlands,” Helgi scoffed. “They’re probably trying to locate all the smugglers exporting tech out of Draco City, or making sure that we aren’t gathering an army in preparation to attack the city and take it back, or checking the Dreki haven’t somehow found their way here.”

She was right, the sentinels were harmless. If the Draco wanted to attack, we’d have no chance at defense. Even though Skins probably outnumbered the Draco two to one, the Draco had the tech and armory to bring us to our knees. Our primitive weapons didn’t hold a candle to their sophisticated ones. We still relied on fossil fuels while they’d engineered an alternative that was limitless and twice as powerful. The only way a Skin ever made it into the city was if they were signing up for the army or for servitude.

“It’s more than that,” Dunstan said. “They’re gearing up for something, we just don’t know what. I’ve put the feelers out, but so far crickets.”

If Dunstan was entertaining the idea that something was about to go down, then maybe we should be wary? He was a tosser when it came to romance, but he was excellent in the spying and intelligence department.

Dunstan glanced over my head and the skin around his eyes tightened. He cursed under his breath. “I have to go, but I’ll see you around.” He slid out of the booth and made to duck into the crowd.

That was it? No come-on. No innuendo? Something was wrong.

“He’s running,” Helgi said in a singsong voice.

Shit, she was right.

“There he is!” someone shouted.

Dunstan froze on the edge of the crowd and turned back. His body was tense even though his expression was amiable. He held up his hands. “Guys. I was just coming to find you.”

Three large males strode up to our table. One had green scales running down the side of his face and across his neck and collarbone. The other had the vertical pupils and yellow irises of the Dreki, and his hands were covered in thick leather gloves, probably hiding another deformity. The final Skin had the flared nostrils and turgid upper lip of his Dreki ancestors. All three were openly carrying weapons—breach load, double barrel shotguns sawn off to pistol size, and Magnum bolt-action rifles. The shotguns were pretty common, but the rifles could bring down big game in a single shot. They were expensive and wielded predominately by only one type of Skin.

Mercenaries.

Dunstan was in shit with a band of mercenaries. Of all the scrapes to get into ... Seriously? The guy was a beautiful moron.

Dunstan flashed the mercs a grin. “Guys, guys, I’m sure we can resolve this like gentlemen.”

“You ain’t no gentleman, D,” the turgid-lipped merc said. “You’re a fucking double-crossing thief. Now hand it over.”

“I don’t have it.” He looked over at us. “I just sold it to them.”

The mercs turned their thick necks to look at us, and Dunstan bolted.

Ah, shit. I slid out of the booth with Helgi at my back. “He’s lying, obviously.”

Turgid-lip, the spokesperson of the trio, looked me up and down. “How about we make sure?”

He stepped toward me, hands out, ready to frisk me.

He never made it.

A fist connecting with bone is always a satisfying sound, especially when that bone belongs to someone who could tear you a new one given half the chance and the fist belongs to you. Mercs are lethal, so hearing one scream like a bitch was mighty satisfying.

Helgi, the crazy cow, burst into belly laughs. The merc’s backup team recovered from their shock and moved in for the kill. The Skin with the mashed nose glared at me with bloodshot eyes that bled murder.

Helgi’s laughter cut off. “Anya, shit is about to get crazy.”

My lips parted in a grin. “Hell, yes.”

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