Page 113 of Only Cold Depths
Esmina turned to Pollux. “Anyone else on the feeds?”
Pollux swiped through several more security feeds on his own tablet, then shook his head. “No one is showing up, and I’m not getting any thermal readings on the sensors. Looks like she came alone.”
Esmina tilted her head to the side, and her green eyes glowed with power.
“Something wrong?” Pollux asked.
The power faded from Esmina’s eyes, and she shook her head. “Too soon to tell. But have everyone on high alert. Vesper probably has a few tricks up her sleeve.”
Pollux nodded and started barking orders at the other mercenaries. Most of the mercs spread out across the cavern, although several climbed a set of permaglass stairs to the second level. Every merc was armed with either a blaster or a hand cannon.
More frustration surged through me. Vesper was walking straight into a trap, and there was nothing I could do to help her.
Oneminutepassed,thentwo, then three. A tense silence dropped over the cavern. None of the mercenaries moved or spoke, and the only noise was the steady cascade of the waterfall.
Then, in the distance, footsteps scraped across the stone, quickly growing louder and closer.
Once again, I tried to reach out with my psion power, and once again, I couldn’t get a grip on it. The chemicals were still dampening my abilities, and I needed to get out of these cuffs if I had any chance of helping Vesper. So I redoubled my efforts, rubbing the plasticuff on my left wrist up against that jagged bit of stone over and over again . . .
Vesper entered the cavern, trailed by a couple of mercenaries. She was carrying the Techwave cannon in her arms, and her stormsword dangled off her belt, along with my sword. She glanced around, looking at Esmina and Pollux standing in the middle of the open space, with their mercenaries arrayed behind them and more enemies stationed on the second level.
Finally, Vesper’s gaze met mine. Her eyes blazed with determination, the silver flecks burning like pinpoint stars in her dark blue irises. For a moment, I could feel her through the bond, and I stared back at her, trying to tell her so many things just with the force of my gaze.
Vesper stared at me a heartbeat longer, then strode forward and stopped in the center of the cavern.
“I see you fixed my hand cannon,” Esmina purred. “Excellent! Pollux was right. Taking Kyrion properly motivated you.”
Vesper hefted the cannon a little higher in her arms. “I don’t need any motivation to kill you.”
“It’s nothing personal. And it’s certainly notmyfaultyou’reso weak in your psion power. Jealousy does not become you.” Esmina clucked her tongue in mock sympathy, and Vesper flinched.
I amnota weak link.Vesper had said that after our skirmish with the Hammers in the antiques emporium, but for the first time, I realized just how much Esmina had made Vesper doubt her own abilities. Once again, I cursed the cuff around my neck, because if I could have used my telepathy and telempathy, I would have told Vesperexactlyhow strong she was and let her feel every ounce of my unwavering belief in her.
Esmina stepped forward and held her hand out. “Give me the cannon.”
She didn’t say anything about letting us go, and I knew she wouldn’t. So did Vesper, judging by the way her jaw clenched.
“Nah, I’m going to hold on to the cannon for now,” Vesper said. “After all, I haven’t met your boss yet, and I’m justdyingto talk to them.”
Boss? What boss? Who were the mercenaries working for?
Esmina’s hand plummeted to her side. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Sure you do,” Vesper replied. “The person who told you about the Techwave cannon and hired you to come after me in the first place. Your boss is here, right now, in this very cavern. They wouldn’t leave such an important moment to chance, especially since you haven’t been very successful in carrying out your missions so far.”
Esmina stiffened, and for the first time, a bit of uncertainty flickered across her face.
“I know you’re here,” Vesper called out, her voice ringing through the cavern. “So you might as well come out and face me, instead of hiding like the coward you are.”
For several seconds, nothing happened. Then more footsteps scraped against the stone. A figure rounded one of the stalagmites and stepped into view. A long dark blue cloak covered their head, along with the rest of their body, and I couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman.
“Come on,” Vesper called out again, her voice even more mocking than before. “There’s no need to hide any longer.”
The figure huffed in annoyance, then tossed back the hood of their cloak, revealing familiar features—long dark brown hair, pale skin, and eyes that were the same dark blue as Vesper’s.
The mercenaries’ boss was Nerezza Blackwell.
CHAPTER THIRTY
