Page 50 of New World

Mei started with surprise. A low mutter that sounded suspiciously like ‘Good for Sergi’ caused her to look under her eyelashes at Dorane. He had a disgruntled expression on his face. He had been unusually quiet since they left Deek’s.

“Sergi found it?”

“Oh yeah,” Ash said emphatically, eyes glinting with amusement. “And he nearly died trying to get to it.”

Mei’s stomach dropped. “What happened?”

Ash leaned back, one arm draped over the couch as he smirked. “La’Rue was looking for the pod to help pay off a debt, but it turned out that she wasn’t the only one. Sergi’s pod had landed on Turbinta too. They had a little disagreement, but they worked things out. Anyway, I guess your pod landed on the Leaning Tower of Turbinta in a badass ravine. Long story short, there was grappling hook, flood, and a massive storm involved. Sergi pushed off the rock that had fallen on the lid, opened it up, and found a big-ass, very dead alien inside instead of you. They got out of there in the nick of time, and then they met up with me and Kella. We were there trying to kill her old Turbinta Master. She was a very nasty piece of work,” he added with a wink.

“We left her in Sergi’s pod,” Kella added with a sniff.

“Sergi was relieved,” Ash continued, ”to find the dead alien you left in your pod, you know? Those pods do seem to be handy places to stash bodies?”

Mei stared. “He was relieved to find my dead alien?”

Ash snorted. “Hell yeah. He was like, ‘If Mei was in there, she’d be dead.’ He found a video of you kicking some ass. You forgot to remove the onboard video chip.’”

“Yes, I did. I’m glad it was Sergi who found it,” she softly replied.

“So, how did you get off the freighter?”

Mei looked at Dorane when he asked the question. His eyes were a dark greenish color. She vaguely wondered if they changed colors with his moods—and if they did, what color would they be when he was locked in passion.

A delicate flush rose to her cheeks as the image of them together, mixed with twisted sheets, flashed through her mind. The slight curve of his lips told her that he could see what she was thinking—and it had nothing to do with escape pods and freighters.

“Tiv hid me in a crate under some scrap metal. Two men who worked for the Legion wanted Yi to deliver the metal to their docking bay. I slipped out while Yi argued with them. You saved him,” she said, turning to Dorane. “They were about to hurt him when you came along,” she quietly explained.

Dorane’s eyes widened. “I remember that day. Word had just come in on the escape pods the Legion was searching for. I spoke to the captain, but he said they hadn’t seen anything. I had each ship and all the scrap that came in checked.”

Mei nodded. “After we loaded Grak’s body in the pod, Tiv placed a directional thruster on it and aimed the pod for Turbinta. She figured if the Legion was stupid enough to go to the planet, they would get what they deserved. How funny that it was Sergi who found it.”

“Ah yes, Sergi again. And who is this Sergi to you?” Dorane asked.

Ash snorted. Mei shot him a glare when he raised an eyebrow, pointed a finger between her and Dorane, and mouthed ‘Couple?’

Kella was not so subtle. She frowned and sat forward, then said, “You sound jealous. Sergi is not with Mei. He is with La’Rue. You do not need to be jealous. You can have Mei,” Kella stated with a wave of her hand.

Ash didn’t bother trying to hide his amusement when Mei looked at Dorane with a startled expression while Dorane had a very pleased expression on his face.

Distraction. That was what she needed. Good ol’ redirection of the conversation.

“Kella… do you know anything about a Turbinta named Zoak?”

Kella’s expression sharpened. “Yes.”

The energy in the room shifted, just as she’d hoped. She could handle dealing with danger—as long as it wasn’t the kind that included her heart.

Dorane straightened slightly, his gaze flicking toward Kella as she exhaled through her nose.

“I have explained to Dorane that Zoak kills for legacy, not credits.”

Mei nodded slowly, her mind clicking the pieces together. “That fits. He’s been watching Dorane, but he’s also targeting his people. I think he’s testing your security.”

Ash frowned. “What do you mean ‘his people’?”

Mei met his gaze. “Asta, Jammer, and I imagine he knows that Ash and Kella are here. If he seeks legacy, he will want to kill someone he considers his equal, and an Ancient Knight would qualify. The Legion has announced that we are a valuable target of great interest.”

The room fell silent.

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