Bandits (3 page)

Faulk shrugged. “Seemed like a good time to get the hell out of there, if I ever wanted to run my own life. Otherwise, my parents would’ve put me in the diplomat program on Earth
.
I had nowhere else to go. I knew family wouldn’t turn me away, right? So I caught a trade ship here and paid my way by wor
k
ing as a kiss-ass to the pilot while messing around with his daughter,” Faulk bit the nail on his thumb in thought.

“Hah! You must’ve stunk as a kiss-ass,” Daniel snic
k
ered.

“Yeah, a family failing I have is being too much like my U
n
cle Rayne - stubborn as hell. My dad figures that I’ll never be any good, especially if I’m anything like your father,” Faulk said while imitating his father’s stern reprimand.

“Your dad was a stuck-up prick when I met him. What made him think he could change my father?” Daniel asked before making his turn.

Faulk looked out the window and adjusted his seat back. “I guess he thought your father wanted to change. But then again, he was wrong about that. Especially since he hadn’t seen Uncle Rayne since he was a kid.” He wiped a hand through his hair. “It was the first time my dad lost control, and let me tell you … he never, ever lost control. My mom was real shaken up after that. My dad left pissed and hurt.”

“That’s why I was shocked as hell to see you standing at my door like you belo
ng here. I gotta hand it to you, Faulk, y
ou def
i
nitely have the Pierce family balls, man.” Daniel cupped his hand u
p
ward before pushing Faulk’s shoulder. “Hold on to them, ‘cause in the next couple of days, you’re gonna need them if you want to stay alive.”

Daniel pulled into the driveway of the lone one-story house, slightly hidden by large overhanging branches of su
r
rounding palm trees. Huge, colorful flowers decorated the night, sticking out in various places amongst the plush grass. The house was illuminated by colorful lights tucked in the high trees and the walkway that led to the door.

Faulk leaned forward on the dashboard and asked, “Where are we?”

“My best friend Gabe’s house,” Daniel replied, staring at the driveway in front of him.

Faulk put his hand on Daniel’s chest to stop him from getting out of the car. “Hey, what about his parents?  Won’t we have to fess up to why we’re here so late?”

“No worries. Gabe’s parents work nights. They own one of the bars and game
dive
s in town. Gabe, Franz, or Michael are usually home – unless, they had a job to do tonight,” Daniel said and sat back in his seat.

“Brothers?” Faulk asked.

“Yeah. They still live at home. Gabe is the youngest boy. Franz the oldest and Michael are living here in between jobs for the Zukar. They want to move, but digs for kids in training aren’t this good,” Daniel said. He looked back in the seat to see Nickel sleeping.

Faulk followed Daniel’s gaze to Nickel. “What are we g
o
ing to do with him?” he asked, motioning his thumb back at his younger cousin.

“Wake his butt up. Nowhere is safe, especially until I ditch this car and get to my father’s trove
.
But to do that, I need keys to a water cruiser. The one we had was wrecked last week during a botched-up snatch job. Gabe’s family has a couple, and I know Gabe will let me borrow one. C’mon. Get Nickel and meet me at the door,” Daniel said before getting out of the car.

BANDITS

The plush over hanging leaves that flanked Gabe’s house gave it a hidden feeling of seclusion, as if concealed from civil
i
zation. It was similar to Daniel’s own house in many ways. The rounded roof and inviting door were both things his mother had insisted on. He absently fingered the beaded necklace she’d made for him. She’d wanted their house to be
‘
one with the island’ so her family would feel like they were the only ones on Merwin. Unfortunately, she hadn’t lived past Nickel’s
chil
d
hood
to see it finished.

Another one dead.
Daniel remembered his mother’s brown hair, soft green eyes and lilting songs that flowed over him. Her constant shows of affection, bantering with his father, and playful chases around their home brought a bittersweet smile to his face. Daniel’s world had changed with her death, and again with his father’s murder. Now, he was the only one left to take care of
Nickel – thanks to his father
.

Daniel walked through the tall, plush foliage surroun
d
ing the house. He bypassed the cobbled walkway that he’d helped Gabe build and arrived at the door. He hesitated there for a m
o
ment and took a deep breath as the chirping of the seabugs mating sounds filled the night. Usually this would be the perfect time to sit out with Gabe and dream of the worlds they would travel to when they became fully trained EBRA. Tonight, though, he wo
n
dered if that dream would become nothing more than a distant memory.

Lifting his hand, he swallowed before he hit the door with a coded rap
.
The
bang
was rapid, then slow as its rhythmic beating matched the uneasy symphony of his saddened and angered heart. They’d made up the knock as kids -a joke that became a habit.

A few minutes passed and the door opened. Instead of Gabe, however, Daniel faced Gabe’s youngest sibling, Jade. Her jet-black, wild, curly hair was pulled back in her typical pon
y
tail. The curls slipped out and framed her face. Jade pushed a wa
y
ward curl away from her wide, cinnamon-colored eyes and looked up at him with her usual dimpled chin.

Jade returned his irritated stare with a smirk. “Come on in.” Her gaze traveled behind him to Faulk. “Wait!” Her hand shot out and pressed against his stomach. “Who’s that carrying Nickel?” she asked with a skeptical raised eyebrow.

Daniel brushed her hand away. “Uh, that’s just my co
u
sin Faulk. C’mon Jade
. H
urry up and let us in. Gabe here?”

Jade reluctantly slid out of the way and allowed them i
n
side. “I don’t know if he’s here, but I’ll go check the game room. I need to go get more darts anyway.”  She gave Faulk a tho
r
ough once over before she left the room.

Faulk stared after her with a big grin on his face. “Wow. Who was that?  Miss hot and
sexy
just the way I like ‘em
.
Um-um-um
!” He smacked his tongue on his teeth as his eyes drank her in.

“Back off. Her brother’s my best friend, so Jade’s off li
m
it
s
- like the little sister I never had. Besides, you perv, she’s only
fifteen
years old. Her brothers are all built like their father, who’s from the Planet Zanden. Those guys there are giants compared to most Earthlings like you,” Daniel added before gave Faulk a reality punch in the arm.

Faulk waved a hand, unimpressed. “Yeah, whatever. We had one of those at our school -all barbaric and muscle, but not a bit of sense in between the you-know-where.” Faulk pointed at his head and cocked his thumb like a gun. With a jerk of his head he pretended to shoot, and let out a chuckle. “The sorry muscle head ended up getting kicked out of the program and sent home.” He rubbed his hands together. “Anyway, you might see her like a little sister, but no sister of mine looks that good. On top of that, I like challenges -especially when they’re that juicy.”  He sat in the chair facing the hallway in which Jade had left.

Jade returned shortly and smiled then winked at Faulk who sat in front of her. She turned to Daniel and placed a hand on her waist. “You’ve got a problem. Looks like Gabe sneaked out. He was supposed to help my dad out at the club. Of course, he bailed, claiming he was sick. He got stuck watching me. But he ditched the gig when I told him I wasn’t going anywhere. The faker, obviously, he pulled the stunt so he could go to his girlfriend Malera’s house.” Jade leaned close to Daniel, her nose just under his chin. “You know her right? The one who’s the younger cousin of your
much older
morsel of the week, Deana,” she laughed out. Saucily, she turned to throw a metal dart at the dartboard right over Faulk’s head.

“What the f…” Faulk blurted out with a hop at the
thump
of the dart landing at a bull’s-eye above his head.

Jade laughed and spun back to Daniel. “He’s definitely not from Merwin, still a jumpy one. Without a doubt your cousin isn’t ready for Gabe, or my other brothers.”

Daniel glowered. Leaning forward and placing his e
l
bows on his knees, he faced Jade. “Cut it out with the Deana jokes. I gotta get one of your water cruisers. We had a, uh…a situation, and I gotta get out of here fast and quiet like.”

“Oh. Well, in that case, I’ll take you to my dad’s club to get the keys. He doesn’t keep them here,” Jade said, and then started to walk toward the closet to get her jacket.

Daniel grabbed her arm and stood. “No you won’t.” He released her and dragged a hand through his hair in frustration. “I don’t have time for these flippin’ games. Stop playing around, Jade. You never go with Gabe and me. You know that. So don’t try to play me because Gabe’s not here.” He scowled down at her. “How can I get the keys to the water cruiser?  I know your father keeps spares for Michael and Franz.” 

Jade appeared to grow in height as she challenged him. Fire blazed in her eyes, and her short stature came under the shoulder of his muscled arm. “I’m sick and tired of you butt holes treating me like I’m stupid kid. I’m turning sixteen in just two days, and that will make me just a year younger than you and Gabe. I can handle myself. Besides, there are no spare keys
here
.” She shrugged. “There’s no way for you to walk into my father’s club without explaining to him why you want the water cruiser. He’s used to me getting it for my brothers. So, you can either take my help, or go find your own water cruiser.” 

Faulk got up and stood behind Jade. “We don’t have a choice, dude. Just let her come.”

Jade pointed her finger at Daniel. “Listen to your jumpy cousin. At least he doesn’t have some macho ego holding him back from accepting help from a girl.”  She walked away to get her gun and promptly put it on her hip.

Daniel growled and glared first at Jade and then at Faulk. He walked over to Nickel who was asleep on the floor. “Get up. We gotta go.”

Nickel didn’t budge.

In exasperation, Daniel picked up his sleeping brother. He snatched open the front door, and walked to his car. Wit
h
out so much as a backwards glance, he knew Faulk and Jade were follo
w
ing behind.

Daniel put his brother in the car and buckled him in. With a surly frown he climbed in the driver’s seat. He spied Jade in the rearview mirror.
Of all the nights for Gabe to sneak out.
He’d have to ditch Jade as soon as he got the keys. There was no way he was taking her with him. He already had an inexper
i
enced Faulk to deal with, and he didn’t need any extra ba
g
gage to slow him down.

Daniel slammed on the accelerator and sped down the lush grass that was flattened on the driveway. He observed the dar
k
ness around him and realized that he’d wasted valuable time arguing with Jade. The night was difficult to maneuver through after a certain time. By that time, he wanted to be on the water cruiser and on his way to his father’s trove. It was far away, and depending on how heated things were, he knew he might have to make a stop before he actually got there. Frustr
a
tion filled him. The situation sucked and nothing was going as planned.

He pulled into the parking lot of the club, where he drove the car to the back and parked near the employee e
n
trance. He hit the steering wheel in anger with the heel of his hand and unlocked the door.

Jade hopped out of the car. “I’ll go in and get it. You wait out here.”

“No, I’m going in. I don’t want anyone to think it’s strange that you’re getting water cruiser keys yourself. Since Gabe’s not with you,” Daniel replied.

Faulk drummed on the dashboard lightly. “I’m going in too. I’ll be damned if I’m gonna stay trapped in the car.” He opened his door.

Nickel sat up groggily. “Me too, I’m hungry - really hu
n
gry,” Nickel added and followed Jade out of the car.

“Go straight to the kitchen and get some food. Duck low and don’t let anyone see you,” Daniel added when they fo
l
lowed Jade into the employee entrance.

Jade cracked the door open and motioned for them to fo
l
low. The doorway led to a back hallway behind the kitchen, to the main dance floor of the club. Nickel took off running b
e
tween the waiters who were going back and forth to the kitchen. Jade sau
n
tered causally down the hall toward her father’s office.

Daniel watched Jade turn the corner and glanced back to make sure Faulk was behind him. When Faulk caught his eye and winked, Daniel ran his hand down his face. “God help me, he’s not ready for this,” he muttered under his breath after returning Faulk’s grin with a scowl. He followed Jade and looked around to make sure none of the Zukar from the EBRA camp was there. They were supposed to all be on jobs.

“Hey, who should I look out for?” Faulk whispered as he followed closely behind Daniel.

Daniel walked calmly, watchful of Jade. “Anyone with a tattoo like the one you see on me. It’s the mark of the EBRA, always on the back of the neck.”

“What is an EBRA?” Faulk sneered.

Daniel cut his eyes at Faulk. “It’s a bird of prey here on Merwin. It looks like your eagles on Earth, but it has a stinger in its tongue, something like a cobra. It kills and paralyzes in one strike.”

“What’s with the weird tattoo? Does it mean som
e
thing?”

“It’s the name of our sect of the Zukar. We’re the ones who go for the unattainable jobs and get it done. If you see one of them, stay out of their way. If you see me talk to one, hang back and pretend you don’t know me and take Nickel and run. He knows how to get to my father’s trove.”

Jade stopped just before they reached the end of the hallway leading to the main room. She smiled at Faulk. “Okay guys, you better hang back. Dad won’t be happy to see you alone with me. Usually one of my brothers is close on my heels. I’m going to be doing some major kissing up and Daddy m
a
nipulation. Just stay outside the door, and I’ll get the key to the cruiser for us.”

Daniel pointed at himself and stared at her unflinching. “You mean for
me
right?”

She smirked. “Oh, Daniel, you don’t get who you’re dea
l
ing with do you? Your ticket to freedom is taking me with you, or you get no key. Think on that while you’re standing outside my f
a
ther’s office,” she whispered. She smiled innocently at him and sent a thumb up to Faulk.

Faulk grinned back at Jade. “Oh yes, yes you, ugh…” Faulk choked out when Daniel grabbed him by the neck.

“Use your brain Faulk, or you won’t survive here… or with
me
,” Daniel said. He jerked Faulk by the neck before letting him go. Faulk coughed several times before throwing Daniel a goofy smile. Daniel shook his head at Faulk, knowing the love-struck fool didn’t realize that Jade’s brothers would beat his sorry ass for even looking at her.

Faulk eyed Jade greedily. “What’s wrong with bringing her with us?  I have a sister that could probably pound you to your knees. She’s a vicious fighter and tours around the galaxy for competitions. Jade looks like she can take care of herself and I could use a fine looking diversion,” Faulk reasoned. He cleared his throat.

Daniel grumbled. “You’ve got a lot to learn about this world and the people on it. I don’t want two dead fools in the family, and you’re working real hard at being the next one. Let’s go before they spot us. Stop walking like an off-worlder. Act like you belong here.”