Page 34 of Hunted By the Wraiths
We moved through it. My side wound was bad now. Very bad. The water had washed away the remaining synth-skin. Blood ran freely.
Eight hours to systemic failure. Maybe six.
But we had the data. All three caches.
The mission was almost complete.
The bond hummed, but the signal from Maris changed. The exhaustion was gone, replaced by a cold, sharp spike of focus. Pure, controlled fury. She’d already run the numbers. Already seen the outcome. I knew what we’d find before I saw it.
The tunnel opened into a massive cavern. Natural rock walls. A ship sat in the center, sleek and predatory. Dark plating. Angular design. Built for speed and violence.
Maris’s personal ship.
And standing between us and the ship was Vashil.
She wasn’t alone. Five mercs flanked her. All armed. All positioned to cover the approaches.
“Maris,” Vashil said. Her voice carried across the cavern. “I was hoping you’d come here.”
I felt Maris go cold. Not afraid. Just utterly, completely focused.
“Vashil,” Maris said. Her voice was flat. Empty. The same voice she used on people who owed her money and refused to pay.
I’d heard that voice before. The people it was aimed at rarely walked away intact.
“You sold me out,” Maris said.
“I made a business decision.” Vashil shrugged. “The Consortium offered more than you could.”
“How much?”
“Does it matter?”
“No.” Maris started walking forward. Slow. Deliberate. “I’m just curious what my life was worth.”
I stayed one step behind her. My hand on my weapon. My scales darkening to their protective gray.
The bond let me feel her cold fury. Her absolute certainty.
Vashil was dead. She just didn’t know it yet.
“Two million credits,” Vashil said. “Plus territorial rights to Sectors Four and Seven.”
“That’s all?” Maris kept walking. “I’m insulted.”
“Nothing personal.”
“It’s very personal.” Maris stopped twenty feet from Vashil. “You worked for me for six years. I trusted you.”
“That was your mistake.”
“Yes. It was.”
The cavern went silent. The kind of silence that comes before violence.
I watched Maris. Not Vashil. Not the mercs. Just Maris.
She stood perfectly still. Hands loose at her sides. Weight balanced. Ready.
