Page 41 of Rescued By the Convicts
Two additional guards were busy securing an animal cage to metal rings in the floor. A heavy, black tarp had been draped over the top half of the cage, but the cage itself was empty. Unless they planned to capture a baby casp on Veenith, none of the animals on the surface would fit in that cage. Perhaps the owner of the vessel had a guard dog with him. From the matching uniforms on these guards and the rather posh interior of the passenger cabin, whoever was transporting them off of Veenith was more than a mere middleman. This was not as Zev had expected, nor Ivan for that matter.
Ivan prayed Reece had found the trail Zev had left for him and that he’d rescued Melina by now. When they’d left Hawke’s camp for this landing sight, everything had been calm, which meant Melina had not yet escaped. Not knowing, his imagination conjured up all the horrific possibilities, plaguing Ivan.
A tall man of medium build, dressed all in black with a red stripe down his left sleeve like the guards, entered the cabin. He wore a sleek, curved knife on his left hip and expensive rings on his left hand. Not mating rings, but ones with jewels, to show off his wealth.
“Which of you is Perilov?”
Ivan greeted the man with a stare.
“You are as petulant as Hawke described,” the man said.
“And here I thought Hawke didn’t like me,” Ivan said with a smile to hide his hatred for the man. He’d been around criminals of all types and personalities during his two years on Veenith. Arrogant ones usually ended up dead faster, but this guy’s arrogance bled from him like an open, festering wound.
“You’ve created a lot of trouble for Hawke. And for me.”
Ivan needed to align himself with this man, no matter how much arrogance he’d have to endure. Hawke was already suspicious of Zev, which was why Zev had concocted this plan to insert Ivan aboard the next transport. Ivan and Jayce had been on Veenith too long for anyone to suspect them of being Company spies. Zev would stay with Reece and protect Melina while Ivan and Jayce became just two more criminals escaping Veenith.
Once Ivan discovered the name of the person receiving the criminals leaving Veenith, he’d pass the information to Zev’s superiors, who’d then exfil Zev from Veenith. Then, Zev would use his pull to get Melina off Veenith as well. She hadn’t killed anyone. If Zev couldn’t arrange some type of pardon for her, then he’d find a way of getting her assigned to a Level 4 prison planet, one that allowed a few non-violent Level 5s. She needed to be anywhere by Veenith, and Ivan trusted Zev to ensure her safety.
“This is Veenith,” Ivan snapped. “We do what we need to, to survive. You want a pussy cat in your ranks, then go elsewhere. Hawke said we’d get a ride out of here in exchange for a job and then we’d be free to go where we want.”
“Are you telling me you can follow orders, no matter how distasteful they may be to you, soldier?”
“I haven’t been a soldier since The Company turned on me. I look after myself now.”
“And what of your friend?”
“Partner. We’ve worked together since our teens. He’s the best dealer there is.”
The man drew his knife and placed the tip below Jayce’s chin, lifting his head. “He’s rather pathetic.”
“I know how to manage him.”
“If you were simply an ordinary murderer like the rest of the men Hawke gives me, then I’d have no issue with giving you a job, but you’ve taken something of mine, Perilov. Used it. Made it your own when you had no right. And for that, I will not be freeing you.”
“I don’t even know you.”
“Oh, did I fail to introduce myself? You may address me as Lord or Sir.” He waved his knife around, indicating the craft. “This is my ship, not a simple courier vessel, but I had to pick up a package personally, so here I am, checking in on my man on the ground and getting a chance to see the operation first-hand. I’m not impressed with either, but the men Hawke supplies me have been competent for my needs. You would have been a good choice.”
The asshole cut a fine line down Jayce’s neck. Jayce didn’t even flinch; the glazed over look in his eyes scared Ivan. He was losing Jayce.
“Instead, I will deposit you and your friend on another penal colony, where you have no allies or connections. Oh, and I may start a rumor about how you work for The Company. The prisoners on Tarcliss rather hate The Company, but I’m sure you can handle any trouble they may cause you. Your friend here, however. . .” The bastard waved his hand toward Jayce who was staring at the floor, the ceiling, everything except the asshole who’d cut him. “He won’t last a day.”
The bastard wasn’t just trying to end Ivan and Jayce, he’d do so in a way he’d enjoy. He could easily have had Hawke kill them, but no, this asshole intended to torture Ivan and Jayce, or rather ensure others did so for him.
And he was right about Jayce. He was in no condition to fight.
Their host held a wrist comm to his mouth. “Boxer, lock down the ship and tell the pilot to lift off as soon as my pet has been loaded.”
Boxer. Ivan knew the name. The man had disappeared from Veenith two months after Ivan’s arrival. He’d had a reputation for breaking men’s necks at the end of a blow job. Too many new arrivals, weak ones, died because they fell for his charm, because they’d thought he’d protect them.
“We’re having trouble with your pet,” Boxer replied over the comm.
Dark eyes brightened. “Bring my little kuvak here.”
A kuvak. . . It figured the man would have an exotic animal as a pet. The wild cat-like creatures weren’t meant to be domesticated.
A brute of a man with dark blond hair and three claw marks down his face, fresh ones, lumbered into the passenger cabin. He tossed a naked body off his shoulder to the vessel’s hard metal floor.
