Page 47 of Enthraller

Ed lowered the visor in front of his face.

“Which way?” Violet Fann asked.

“Out the loading bay and to the right.” Ed glanced back at Wren, as if to make sure she was all right, and when she gave a tiny nod, he turned back and walked through the doors. Darnell and his three soldiers, Violet Fann and her two officers,and Hatch and herself, all formed a loose protective formation around him.

The military unit flanked him on one side, the Protection officers took the other, leaving her and Hatch to take up the rear.

Wren studied the ship with interest as they moved down a passage.

This was a medium-sized freighter, gray and utilitarian, but clean and neat. The crew looked out at them from a few doors as they passed, with Wren catching glimpses of bedrooms, and a small lounge.

One thing she noted was that all the crew she could see were men. It stood out as unusual. Wren didn’t think she’d ever encountered that before.

Ed led them all the way to the back of the ship, to the captain’s suite, and they found the captain standing outside his door.

He frowned at the sight of the scanner.

“What’s this?”

“I suspect it’s your downfall,” Ed said, his voice going grim as he stared at something on his visor only he could see. He turned to Darnell and Fann. “You’ll need to restrain him.”

Ed looked . . . dangerous. Like he could slide into violence at any moment. And all his attention was focused on the captain.

Whatever it was that he could see, it was bad. Wren felt the hairs stand up on the back of her neck and her breath caught.

Violet Fann flicked a look at Ed, and seemed to be about to ask him for more information, but one look at his face and she suddenly moved, grabbing the captain and shoving him up against the wall.

“What’s the charge?” the captain asked, voice going higher as Darnell joined her, pulling out wrist restraints.

Violet’s two officers took charge of him, pulling him back.

Wren studied the man, and he glanced her way. The look he sent her was . . . wrong. Disturbing.

As soon as he was secured, Ed walked through the door, and Wren followed directly behind him, with Hatch on her heels. Like her, Hatch must have felt the tension, because he pulled his laz from its holder as they moved into the room.

“Move that cabinet,” Ed said, pointing, and Wren made her way to it, leaving Hatch free to hold his laz two-handed in readiness.

She found the one side of the cabinet was attached to the wall with hinges, and felt a prickle of anticipation and dread. She went to the other side, found a tiny lever at her eye level at the back of the cabinet, and flicked it up.

There was a click and the cabinet swung free—silent and smooth.

Wren pushed it away from the wall, using some muscle as the cabinet was much taller than herself. As she did, she saw faint marks on the floor where it had made a path from regular use.

The cabinet was made with a material she wasn’t familiar with, and she guessed it would block a normal scan.

Once the cabinet was out of the way, she found a low sliding door she had to crouch down in front of to open.

A noise came from the room hidden beyond—a clink of metal.

She glanced back.

“I hear it,” Hatch said. “Let me see.”

“Wait.” Wren crouched lower and slid the door open, angling her head to see into the space while still giving herself some cover.

“They’re tied up,” Ed said, voice soft and strained. “They’re no danger to you.”

He sounded . . . too calm.

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