Deadly Pursuit (A Blood Hunter Novel, #2) (26 page)

Rico
sighed,
loudly.
“Put
the
gun
away,
querida
,
he’s
just
trying
to
wind
you
up.”

Bastion
smiled.
“You
know
me
so
well.
But
why
not
take
the
woman.
I
thought
we
might
do
a
little
trade.
It’s
easy
to
find
willing
food
on
this
planet,
but
it
tends
to
be
a
little…used.”

“And
I
thought
she
was
a
gift.”

“Surely
you
wouldn’t
miss
a
little
one.”
His
gaze
searched
their
small
group,
and
Alex
took
a
step
sideways
so
she
was
hidden
behind
Janey.
It
bought
her
up
against
Jon,
but
he
didn’t
move
away,
and
she
was
comforted
by
his
solid
strength
beside
her.

“Not
a
chance.”

Bastion
shrugged.
“So
what
do
you
want?
I’m
presuming
it’s
not
merely
the
pleasure
of
my
company.
Though,
you
used
to
find
my
company
very
pleasurable.”

Skylar’s
eyes
widened.
“Ugh!
Rico,
you
better
tell
me
right
now
you
and
dead
guy
here
didn’t…you
know.”

“No,
we
didn’t.”
Rico
sounded
offended.
“We
played
cards
and
things.
Man
stuff.
And
that
was
a
long
time
ago.”

“And
in
a
faraway
place,”
Bastion
finished.
“So
what
is
it
you
do
want?”

Rico
waved
at
El
Cazador
behind
them.
“My
ship’s
in
need
of
some
repairs.
I
need
somewhere
to
hole
up
while
we
do
them.
And
maybe
some
information
on
what’s
going
on
in
the
city.”

“I’d
stay
away
from
the
city
if
I
were
you.”

“Why’s
that?”

“There’s
a
bounty
out
for
your
ship
and
crew.”

“A
bounty?
Who
from?”
Skylar
asked.

“Two
bounties
actually.
It
appears
you’re
very
popular.”

“Just
get
to
the
point,”
Skylar
snapped.

Bastion
shrugged.
“Both
the
Collective
and
the
Church
have
a
price
on
your
heads.
The
Church
want
you
found,
but
the
Collective
are
quite
happy
to
have
you
dead.”
He
waved
a
languid
hand
toward
Skylar.
“Though
perhaps
you’ve
sorted
your
differences
with
the
Collective.”

“Shit,”
Tannis
muttered.
“That
was
too
freaking
fast.
They
must
have
the
comms
out
on
every
planet
in
the
system
by
now
if
it’s
reached
here.”

“We
knew
it
was
likely,”
Rico
said.

“I
thought
we’d
have
more
time.”

“Well,
we’ll
just
have
to
get
in
and
out
fast.”

Tannis
folded
her
arms
and
tapped
her
booted
foot.
“So
why
are
we
standing
around
like
it’s
some
sort
of
tea
party?
Let’s
get
moving.”

“Aye,
aye,
captain.”
He
turned
back
to
Bastion,
who
was
watching
the
interaction,
a
smile
of
disdain
curling
his
narrow
lips.

“These
are
my
people.”
Rico
waved
to
encompass
the
crew.
“Keep
off
them.
Don’t
touch
them,
don’t
drink
from
them,
and
don’t
even
look
at
them.”

“Really?”
Bastion’s
gaze
swept
over
them,
pausing
at
Jon,
and
his
nostrils
flared
as
he
breathed
in
deeply.
His
eyes
widened
slightly.

“You’ve
brought
a
pet?
How
nice.”

A
low
growl
trickled
from
Jon’s
throat,
and
a
smirk
flashed
across
Bastion’s
face.
His
gaze
shifted
to
Alex,
and
he
examined
her
as
though
she
were
something
interesting
or…tasty.

“So
are
we
good?”
Rico
asked.

“Of
course.
Su
casa
es
mi
casa,”
he
murmured.
“Now,
I
must
be
off.
This
meeting
has
made
me…peckish.”
He
looked
again
at
Alex
as
he
spoke,
and
a
knot
tightened
in
her
belly,
her
breasts
ached,
her
nipples
hardening.
She
tried
to
turn
away,
but
she
was
drowning
in
his
blue
eyes…swaying
toward
him.
A
hand
clamped
down
on
her
shoulder
and
yanked
her
back,
and
she
shook
her
head,
trying
to
clear
the
haze.

“Get
a
grip,”
Jon
barked,
and
the
spell
was
broken.

She
brushed
his
hand
away.
“I’m
fine.”

Bastion
nodded
once
then
swung
around
and
disappeared
the
way
he
had
come,
his
guards
following.
Alex
watched
him,
her
whole
body
trembling.

“
I’m
hardly
likely
to
be
attracted
to
a
vampire
,”
Jon
mimicked
her
earlier
words.

Her
gaze
flashed
to
his
face.
For
a
moment,
he
appeared
furious,
but
he
quickly
regained
control
and
the
expression
was
wiped
clean.

“Get
lost,”
she
said.

He
breathed
in.
“You
wanted
that
bastard.
I
can
smell
it
on
you.”