2. Valmore

2

Valmore

"Are you listening, Valmore?" Zol growled.

"Hm?" I pulled my gaze away from the cargo bay where the human female disappeared. Hazel Simmons… that fascinating creature. "Oh. Yeah. Sorry."

"Pay attention," Zol snapped. "I'm not paying you to daydream."

I bit back a grin and faced him. "I wasn't daydreaming. I was assessing."

"You don't get paid to assess, either. You get paid to keep tabs on her until the time comes to strike. Focus on nothing else. We depart this station at 1040 hours."

"I know that."

"Once we get out of IPA-controlled space, I'll give the signal to strike. You'll be closest to her, so it's up to you to disarm her."

"Yeah," I replied. "I got all that."

"You're sure?" Zol demanded, his blobby head bouncing.

I narrowed my gaze at him. I wasn't even sure where his eyes were, but I did my best to give him a stern look, regardless. "I'm not an amateur, Zol. When should I expect the signal?"

"Three days from now, approximately. I'll have to gauge the right time. We want to be far enough away that the IPA won't be able to react quickly. We'll be so far gone that they'll be forced to comply with our demands."

I bristled when I saw Jesse reemerge in the cargo hold after he had escorted Hazel into the ship. "You'd better talk to that dope Jesse. He hasn't stopped grinning like a moron since we docked here. He'd make anyone suspicious."

"Forget about Jesse," Zol hissed. "Focus on your job. I won't know exactly when I'll give the signal, which means you need to be near her and prepared to strike at a moment's notice. Her record shows that she can be headstrong and determined under stress. We need you to keep her calm and under control at all times. The entire mission depends on you."

"I realize that. I'll be ready, and I'll keep her guard low so she doesn't suspect a thing." My gaze migrated back to the ship. "Trust me on that. I'm gonna enjoy getting cozy with her."

"Perfect. We're counting on you."

I grabbed his shoulder just as he was about to turn. "Hey, as soon as the IPA pays the ransom, we're dropping her off at the nearest friendly outpost, right? No muss, no fuss."

"Of course. You know the drill."

"And no one gets hurt."

"Of course not. It's a simple plan. How can a trained killer like yourself be so squeamish, anyway?"

"Say it," I snapped. "I won't go along with this plan if you don't say it."

Zol puffed up in exasperation. "No one gets hurt. Are you satisfied now?"

I shrugged. "Just make sure you keep your side of the bargain. I don't want to be implicated in any of this."

"You can't be worried about the IPA," he went on. "Those records we inserted into their personnel system were foolproof."

"Foolproof!" I snorted. "I've heard that before."

I glanced back at the Methuselah 's cargo hold again, but Hazel was long gone inside that deplorable ship's bowels. Hazel Simmons… Her na me gave me a strange feeling in my stomach. What had me so unsettled?

I wasn't worried about myself, that was for sure. We might be robbing the IPA with this ransom ploy, but this operation was still peanuts compared to some of the jobs I pulled off in the past.

No, I was worried about her . She had no idea what was going on. She didn't know she had just stepped into a trap. And she also didn't know that her supposed bodyguard was in on the entire thing.

Zol wobbled into my line of sight. "Let's go over it one more time, since you seem so distracted, hm?"

"I wouldn't mind that."

"As soon as I give the signal, the crew will turn on you both. They'll pretend to kidnap you and lock you two in the security cell. As soon as we secure the ransom and transfer everyone's cut, you can both return to the IPA in an escape pod."

I nodded, but I didn't look at him again. The ship gave me an uneasy feeling. Something about this operation didn't sit right, despite how foolproof I had initially thought it was.

I was supposed to pretend I wasn't in on any of this, that I was being kidnapped too. I wasn't much for acting, but there was no other way to make sure Hazel didn't try any heroics in the escape pod. Though it was common for hostage situations like this to end with the hostage being killed as soon as the money was transferred, none of us wanted that kind of heat from the IPA. We just wanted the money, and a clean break.

I'd be debriefed for sure once we returned. The IPA would suspect me for having failed in my mission to protect Hazel, but it'd be easy enough to argue that I was outgunned. Then I'd be safe to make a getaway, having returned Hazel to them in one piece, all the while receiving a big pay day.

The IPA deserved to lose some of their ill-gotten funding, so that couldn't be what had me so unsettled. They made a big fuss about protecting downtrodden races, but the truth was they routinely put human interests above all others. The IPA never did anything for my people, not when we were at our most vulnerable, and now we didn't have a home. Maybe with the money I scammed from them, I could actually put it to good use.

No, my second thoughts were all about her . This mission revolved around me getting close to her and winning her trust. I didn't doubt I could do that. I just didn't expect to care so much about the IPA officer I was roping into this. I hadn't expected to care at all.

Then again, I didn't expect the IPA officer in question to be so… tantalizing. Her eyes… Her curves… They all consumed my attention from the very start. I noticed her as soon as I stepped onto the do cking floor. Up close… Well, that was a different story entirely.

She stood up straight like a soldier. She wore her wavy black hair pulled back from her face, and her pale brown eyes flashed when she scanned the docking bay, but none of that made her look harsh or unappealing.

Her sad attempt at hiding her astonishment when she looked up at me… The way her pupils widened when she looked down at my chest… It released something primal and untamed in me.

I wanted to grab her and tear down the walls holding her together. I wanted to make her feel primal and wild, like me. Just thinking about it made my blood rush to my cock.

That wasn't part of the mission, though. I had a job to do, and that meant behaving myself. More importantly, it meant making sure she didn't get hurt.

There was that phrase again. Why did I make Zol say the words out loud? I never did before, but I never had this feeling of something being off before either. And then there was the way Zol said it. No one gets hurt. Everything else he said, he said with his usual bored transparency.

But when he said that, an insidious hint of sarcasm sneaked into his tone. I'd never heard it before in all the time I'd known him. Why now? Why would he lie about that, of all things?

I tried to shake those thoughts away. The Methuselah would launch soon, and I had no further time to mull over things. I turned away and walked into the cargo hold, but my doubts only grew as I headed for the crew quarters.

Every face of every crewmate I passed seemed to change before my eyes. They all seemed to harbor hidden secrets. Every pair of eyes swiveled in my direction as though they were planning to do me in.

I found Hazel's quarters and glanced through the porthole. She sat on her bunk, tapping away at her tablet, failing to notice me.

She had let her hair down. It swept around her face and gave her a softer, more vulnerable appearance. She had let her perfect posture slouch into a more relaxed position. She even looked a bit comfortable. She had no idea what was about to happen to her.

I took my position outside her door and clasped my hands behind my back. I couldn't read anybody's mind, especially not hers. I would just have to rely on my eyes and ears. That sixth sense never steered me wrong before, and I learned a long time ago to listen to it.

I would stay alert for any sign of treachery. If it came—when it came—I would be ready to meet it.