Not Just Playing Catch-Up

From the air-conditioned cool of his suite a few doors away from Katya, Xion glanced at a screen that showed his woman lounging on the beach.

A tiny Sable drone was keeping a close eye on her. From time to time, Xion tapped into its feed while liaising with Mirage on the mission parameters, who was seated in the Tachy in a hover above the island, stealthed and invisible from view.

Fokk, she was one talented, whip-smart, funny, kind and badass lady.

More captivating than any model, actress or beauty who'd graced the holos and magazines of Pegasi.

He was in deep with her, and even now, eyes flicking over her lithe body in a bikini, he recognised he'd hit the mother lode with her.

Mirage pinged his neural node. ‘A ship registered to the D'Hanna family has just changed course and is set to land in half an hour,' the Sable consigliere murmured.

Xion's eyes narrowed as he studied the holo map of incoming vessels and smiled.

‘It's ‘go' time,' he drawled into Katya's earpiece.

He saw her check her wrist comm and stiffen.

Taking her time without rousing suspicion, she dressed and strolled back to her suite, her face unperturbed.

Always the consummate professional whom no one suspected was about to wield her charisma and supremacy of extortion, trickery, and skulduggery to unveil the criminality of Iccythria's ruling monarch.

As Katya walked back to her room, a message came in.

Korin: Here. Meet up in the restaurant. Now.

There it was—the call to war, so to speak.

She wanted to leave her brother on unread for a moment, then tamping down her annoyance at his arrogant words, she flicked back a reply.

Katya: I'll be down when I'm ready.

She decided to take her time, needing to compose herself to face her siblings again. She was still enraged by what they'd done to her, her kids and her mother.

Now, the tables were flipping, hopefully in her favour, and perhaps she would exact her form of revenge because forgiveness was out of the question until penance was exacted.

With a fierce inhale, she jumped into the shower. Soon, Katya stepped out, rejuvenated and with clarity in her thinking.

Slipping into a silk dress and applying makeup, she ran over her pitch to her brothers. She had to convince them that she was necessary for the op and that her recent interactions with Xion had given her some advantage in accessing the Sable vaults.

She had to sell it and make them believe she was their ticket to success.

Katya clenched her jaw as she studied herself in the mirror. She was back in her element, impeccable, and primed for battle.

Exiting her suite, she walked across the resort, hips swinging in her heels, giving off confidence. Her face was a foil of charm and courtesy.

Her wrist comm vibrated, and she knew it was Xion checking in.

Letting her know he was still watching close by.

Fokk, he was good.

She hadn't managed to pick him out yet from the other guests.

He had been well concealed for two days, and despite her efforts to find him, he remained unseen. Knowing he had her back was reassuring.

Her eyes narrowed as she took in her surroundings.

When she entered the restaurant, she spotted them seated at a table near the window, their eyes scanning the room for her arrival.

She took a deep breath and steeled herself for the encounter with her kin.

Approaching, her gaze locked on their ice-laced, unwelcoming eyes.

‘You're late,' Korin said, his voice cold and distant.

She refused to yield to his needling. ‘Can't give a woman a five-minute heads up and expect her to come running. I needed to be presentable.'

Korin sucked his teeth. ‘Fine. Sit.'

She settled into their booth, sizing her other two brothers.

There was no love here.

There never had been.

Her father had favoured her for years, and they'd been treated like shit.

In essence, he'd played them off each other, and they, in turn, had bullied her for it.

She'd learned to cope. To survive.

To give as good as she got.

And to use her brain.

This had meant over the years, she had risen to the top of their flotsam, using her smarts that had delighted her father.

For years, he'd made her the spearhead of most of their heists and thieving plans, which had sown even more division between her and her siblings.

Their torment of her, away from their father's purview, became worse.

Unable to stand it anymore, she'd fled her family as soon as she'd got out of prison in Galicia.

Until they'd reeled her in by force, which she intended to make them pay for.

Now, with the stakes so high, she had to rise above it all.

So she plastered on her smile and manners, playing nice to get what she wanted.

Korin, the oldest and most cunning of the three, spearheaded the conversation.

‘So, Katya,' he began, his voice smooth and calm, ‘this Sable vault job, you want in?'

‘I do. I've checked out the requirements. I think we can do it all. Together. We need to discuss the plan and ensure everyone is on the same page.'

‘Why should we cut you in?' K'Zito sneered.

‘Did the metanoids you siphoned from Xion Sable survive?'

Korin jolted. ‘They should have. The King has not advised otherwise.'

She leaned in, speaking with care and emphasis. ‘I have it on reliable authority from a contact with eyes and ears in the palace that they did not. How stupid do you think the Riders are? Xion escaped, and you think he didn't have some way to deactivate them?'

Panic rose in her siblings' faces.

‘What do you mean?' Kiros growled.

‘We need to work together on this vault gig because, most likely, K'Sumi will come after us. Blaming us because Xion Sable enacted a fail-safe for the metanoids.' Katya said. ‘We must show the King we can get the job done. Otherwise, it's off with our heads.'

‘Fokk,' K'Zito snapped. ‘K'Sumi has become the monkey on our backs.'

Katya sighed, trying to find the right words to convince them. ‘He's unrelenting, which is why we have to make sure this vault plan is foolproof before we proceed.'

Their faces remained stern, but she sensed they were considering her offer. They weren't the brightest bulbs in the room, but they were also reckless opportunists, and she pressed on, hoping they'd lean into their latter quality.

‘We must be smarter than the Sable Riders,' she urged. ‘We have to use our brains, not just our brawn.'

Korin scoffed. ‘So what do you suggest, maestro?' snarling out the dig he'd always used on her since they'd been children.

Katya ignored his needling. ‘I believe I can bring something valuable to the table that'll keep us one step ahead at all times.'

Kiros snorted, unconvinced. ‘And what's that?'

She pulled something from her bag. ‘This.'

They stared at the sleek device on the surface.

‘It's a Sable comm-tab,' she informed them. ‘Xion had a spare in his carryall, which he brought to my room on Enia. I swiped it.'

‘Fokk,' K'Zito cursed. ‘Sable tech is high-end and freakin' hard to get a hold of.'

Katya sat back and nailed them with a long look. ‘Exactly. It's our ticket in.'

‘What if, like the metanoids, he's deactivated it?' Korin asked with a twist to his lips.

‘He hasn't,' his sister murmured, swiping the device's display, and it came to life.

A flurry of data flashed across the screen, and they gazed in awe as a blueprint of the Sable vault system appeared.

‘I've got access to the Sable mainframe plus detailed maps and entry codes to get us into their vaults,' Katya said, her triumphant. ‘I've also downloaded the entire blueprint of their security setup. We'll know every single weakness and strength they have.'

‘Watch this,' she smirked, tapping the screen.

The comm unit began to hum, displaying a map on the monitor. Her fingers danced over the controls, and tiny dots materialised, each representing a Sable employee or guard on Eden II.

‘This is real-time tracking data,' she explained. ‘We can use it to bypass security and determine the best time to strike.'

Silence fell over the table,

‘Well then, little sister,' Korin said, his eyes never leaving the device, ‘you've got our attention.'

Katya nodded. ‘Good, because time is of the essence. I don't know how long it'll be before they detect this wrist comm, which is not where it's supposed to be. We must move fast, map out every possible scenario, and stay ten steps ahead of them. This is also our chance to prove to King K'Sumi that we're not just playing catch-up.'

A voice broke into the conversation. ‘You'll never have to play catch up with me coming along.'

The three D'Hanna brothers jolted in shock.

Katya lurched, and she turned with slow dread.

To tag the face of the man looming over the table.

Her heart sank as she inhaled and swallowed, tamping down the burst of rage that washed over her.