Tazhr

TAZHR

I paced back and forth across the polished perma-crete floor of the bakery, my nerves fraying more with each glance at the timepiece on the wall. Emma was two hours late for our planned meeting, and my mind conjured increasingly dreadful scenarios about what might be keeping her.

Did she decide to pursue a reckless lead on her own, thinking her clever little head immune to danger? The chaotic streets of the lower decks were hazardous enough in daylight, let alone after the curfew alarms sounded. And for a vulnerable human female, the threats lurking in every shadowed alleyway were far worse than a simple mugging.

If any filthy lowlife so much as looked at Emma the wrong way, I would tear their spine out through their throat. Assuming they even had a spine. But that did little to ease the sick tension coiling in my gut.

I should have insisted on escorting her here directly from Conii's vile compound. Trusting her to evade trouble on her own was clearly a grave mistake. She was brave but foolhardy, prone to following her curiosity into peril. How could I have underestimated the risks?

"You're wearing a hole in my floor with all that pacing, Taz," Makar commented drily as he emerged from the kitchen carrying a tray of freshly baked sweet rolls. I halted my restless prowl across his shop to glower at the timepiece yet again. Still no sign of Emma.

"Here, have some patis," Makar offered, setting the tray down on the counter next to me. "Might settle your nerves a bit."

I shook my head curtly, the thought of food turning my stomach when Emma could be injured or worse. Noticing my grim expression, Makar sighed.

"Look, maybe she just got held up finishing her duties at the compound. Conii runs those poor servants ragged, from what you said. I'm sure Emma will turn up soon, safe and sound." His tone aimed for reassurance, but I detected the hint of doubt beneath it. Makar was too perceptive not to notice the ominous tension thrumming through me.

We both remembered what happened the last time Emma was late.

"You're probably right. Thank you for the hospitality as always, but I should begin searching the nearby streets, just in case." I struggled to keep my voice even. Visions of Emma bound and bleeding, crying out for me, threatened to shatter what fragile calm remained.

Makar's expression turned grave. "Of course. Be safe, Tazhr. Let me know immediately if I can assist the search." His steadfast solidarity meant more than he knew. With a final nod, I stalked out of the bakery into the chaotic maze of streets and alleys outside.

I paused just beyond the doors, nostrils flaring as I drew in deep breaths of the pungent air, sorting through the jumble of scents for any trace of Emma's sweet fragrance. But the medley of smells—machine oil, spices, refuse—revealed no clues to where she went. Cursing under my breath, I set off toward the seedier drinking establishments of the Under.

If Emma went anywhere on her own, it would likely have been to confront that sniveling coward Plarr again, thinking she could pressure more information from him. I should have forbidden her from venturing near that grubby hole where the cretin was hiding.

But Emma's defiant glare whenever she thought I was being overprotective flashed through my mind. She never would have tolerated such restrictions, no matter that they were for her own good.

You damned stubborn fool , I snarled silently, even as a grudging smile tugged at my lips. Did any other being ever manage to frustrate and entrance me so completely as Emma Rochester?

Likely not. The woman was an eternal contradiction—both endearingly naive and surprisingly cunning, wavering between reckless daring and sheepish vulnerability. Certainly far too complex and contrary for me to grasp fully.

Yet despite barely comprehending what unfathomable forces drove Emma's quicksilver moods, I knew with unwavering certainty that I would lay waste to entire star systems if that was what it took to keep her from harm.

The passages grew more crowded as I descended through levels, the press of bodies and cloying stench intensifying. I shouldered roughly through the throngs, scanning the mass of faces for the one I sought.

A flash of golden hair had my heart seizing for an instant before I registered the sharp talons and tentacles that definitely did not belong to Emma. Cursing my foolish hope, I continued toward the dingy bar where we found Plarr cowering.

The elderly Fanaith woman was perched on her usual stool inside, fiddling idly with an outdated percomm. Her drooping fleshy facial lobes quivered in recognition as I loomed over her. Clearly, my menacing bulk intimidated, but she made an effort not to cower. I had to admire that flicker of courage, despite her obvious unease.

"You were here several days ago with the human girl, yes?" Even her gravelly voice shook faintly, but she met my searing gaze. "The nice one who treated me kindly, not like most who come around here."

Emma's gentle compassion left an impression it seemed. I latched onto that, willing my tone to be less harsh. "Just so. She's gone missing, and I'm trying to find where she was headed. Did she come here?"

The Fanaith hesitated, clearly reluctant to get involved in any trouble. But eventually she gave a slow nod. "Didn't come here. But I saw her, just the same."

My chest constricted, dread clawing up my throat. I leaned in intently. "Where did you see her?"

"About three blocks from here." The Fanaith fidgeted nervously with her percomm. "Heard a rumor that my guest," she glanced over to the hatch that had sheltered Plarr, "That he was gone. Not coming back. So I went looking. Instead, I found what looked like Enforcers hauling that human girl into a transport pod. Heard she was arrested for Plarr's murder."

My blood turned to ice in my veins. "Arrested for murder, here?" Nobody cared about a murder or two down in the Under. "Are you certain they were real Enforcers?" I demanded.

"Fairly sure," the Fanaith said slowly. "The uniforms looked convincing enough. And they were headed toward the judicial precinct, last I saw."

I slammed my fist down in frustration, making her jump.

I wanted to destroy the bar, tear apart the entire district.

But that wouldn't help.

I needed to be smart, like Emma.

Like her friend, Sherlock Holmes.

Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to think it through.

None of this added up at all.

Unless it was some elaborate ploy by Conii to get Emma out of the way and Plarr shut up for good. That conniving serpent was certainly capable of using her influence to arrange such a deception.

Cold fury washed through me at the thought of Emma terrified and alone. Conii would pay dearly for this—just as soon as I got Emma to safety.

I managed a curt thanks to the cowering Fanaith before storming off to find the bumbling squad members who were supposed to be guarding Plarr. Someone would answer for allowing Emma to be taken right under their noses.

It didn't take long to locate the sole survivor, a twitchy youth named Noitc, who nearly collapsed in relief at the sight of me unharmed. Babbling nervously, he confessed that the squad had abandoned their post after getting a message from me.

One I obviously hadn't sent, because after they went to the designated coordinates, they were attacked by a pack of Voleks.

"It l-looked totally legitimate, sir, I swear! The security protocols matched, and everything!"

This was one of the many reasons we needed Havek back.

I barely restrained myself from crushing the fool's throat for his idiocy.

Emma was gone because of his incompetence. But losing my temper wouldn't bring her back any faster.

Seething with quiet rage, I left Noitc quaking in his boots and set off.

I fingered my percomm. I should notify Alkard and the others, let them know what was going on.

Except there was a reason he sent me on this mission alone.

Knowing Alkard, he had at least one other scheme to free Havek underway. More likely, he had a whole stack of them.

I couldn't risk distracting him from that.

Even worse would be drawing attention to the Syndicate's movements. We had too many secrets, too much information that could never be revealed.

I needed to solve this by myself.

Where would Conii take Emma?

Her old base in the Serpentine where Mera and Kovas were captured?

No. Word on the street was that Conii's rival Munk made that sector too hot for her.

Word on the street.

If anyone knew where Emma was taken, it would be one of the Arkani. Those mysterious hooded figures made it their business to trade in secrets and information. And their network of eyes and ears was unparalleled in scope.

Fingers tapping as I ran, I set up another meeting with my contact.

First, I stopped by the bakery to grab something Arkani would consider valuable enough to trade.

"Makar, I'm using your system for a minute!" I shouted, then locked myself in the office.

This was… not exactly orthodox. And Void only knew what Alkard would think about the plan.

But I was ready to blow things up. Just in a different way than usual.

Back to the ring district, to the seedy bar I was at just days ago.

"Why are we meeting again?" the first Arkani hissed. "It is too dangerous."

"If you're as good at rumors as you say you are, you'll know why I'm here, and who I'm looking for."

The two hooded figures turned towards each other, seeming to converse without speaking. But behind those black masks, who knew what they were doing?

"The human female," the second one admitted. "You want her back."

Fury coiled through my gut but I tamped it back down. "I'll get her back. It's just a matter of finding out how many people are going to die along the way."

Right. Apparently the anger was still pretty damn present.

"The Karavak are small players," the first started. "We risk little by telling you of their secrets."

"But Conii and her clan," the second picked up the thread. "They would crush us if they could."

Slowly, I pulled a data spike from my pocket, sliding it halfway across the table to them.

"I know you can gather data from all over the station." I moved the spike back towards me. "But can you also send data everywhere?"

As one, they reached for the spike, long fingers stretching for it.

"What is it? Is it good? Is it interesting?"

"Secrets," I promised. "Secrets like you've never imagined."

"Whose? What do you want for it?"

I wrapped the spike in my fist. "Tell me where my mate is first. How do I get to her?"

The hoods leaned so close to each other now that they touched as long minutes stretched out.

Emma. She was waiting for me.

But strangling the Arkani wouldn't get me to her any sooner.

I needed the one virtue I spent my life thinking of as useless.

Patience.

Finally, they sat back.

"The human woman is back at Conii's compound," the one on the left announced. "There is a hidden section that none of her regular staff know about."

Secrets upon secrets, indeed.

"Then how do I get in?"

The one on the right reached for the spike, and this time, I handed it over. Sliding it into the slot on his percomm, he froze. Not for the first time, I wished I could see the expression behind the mask.

"Is this…"

"Yup." I grinned. "Exactly what you think it is."

"What do you want us to do with it?"

"Whatever you want. Personally, I think it would be funny if everyone got a chance to see what's on that spike." I shrugged. "But not everyone gets my jokes."

A low hiss of agitation. "That would mean chaos."

"You say that like chaos is a bad thing."

I stood up. "You've got the spike. Now tell me how to get to Emma."

They sketched a quick map on a scrap of synthplas, detailing a circuitous pathway through rarely-used maintenance tunnels and ductwork.

I committed the maze of turns to memory before igniting the synthplas with a quick twist.

"Many branching paths lie along the way," they warned. "Follow only where I've mapped, else become lost forever."

Not going to happen.

I cut through the station, heading for Conii's compound.

Emma was so close now, near enough I practically felt our connection thrumming. Each step brought me closer to where she was imprisoned. Soon I would steal inside the viper's nest and catch Conii off guard for once.

But I had to be smart, not simply tear through walls roaring Emma's name. The element of surprise was crucial with the limited forces at my disposal. I needed a thief's cunning, not a berserker's savagery. Not yet.

Up ahead, the alley split around an awkwardly jutting maintenance shaft. I scanned the sparse space for anything amiss. And there, half-buried in debris near the shaft—the glint of metal and glass shards.

My heart seized as I raced over and gently lifted the ruined percomm from the muck.

A twisted shred of metal was all that remained of the delicate filigree pendant I gave Emma.

She'd been here.

Have patience just a while longer, Emma. I'm coming for you.