Through Uncharted Space: A Phoenix Adventures Sci-fi Romance (16 page)

She sucked in a breath.

“The man who spanked that pretty ass of yours until it was pink and made you come harder than you ever have before. The man who is so crazy possessive, the thought of you with that cretin drives me crazy.”

They stared at each other.

“I know you’d do anything for the treasure, Dakota—”

She jerked away from him. “Even whore myself, right?”

“Dakota—”

“The truth is, I never slept with Korrdo. Never wanted to.” She wrapped her arms around herself, staring out the window. “But I let him think I would. I’m a good liar, remember?”

Dare’s arms came around her, but she stayed stiff.

“I’m sorry.” He sighed against her ear. “Down on Sulla, I’d held you, touched you, gotten close to the beauty you keep hidden under your prickly exterior. And then he acted like you were his, and he put you in danger. I want to keep you safe, it’s the way I’m built, and it makes me a little crazy.”

The fight drained out of her and she turned, eyeing him. “That was pretty honest for a man who I’m guessing doesn’t apologize or explain himself that much.”

“I am sorry.” He ran a finger along her cheek. “And I can make it up to you.”

“Oh?”

“Eos sent through some images of the Atocha Treasure.”

Dakota gasped. “You’re forgiven. Gimme.”

Dare shook his head and grabbed a Sync off the desk. “You are so easy.”

“Only with you.”

He held out the Sync, and she studied the images. She felt Dare’s gaze on her as she took in the pictures of silver coins, gold artifacts and amazing green emeralds.

“Incredible.” She stroked the screen.

“This treasure means more to you than just e-creds. What will you do with it once you have it?”

“Whatever I want.”

He frowned. “That’s not very exact.”

“I’ve never had anything before—no family, no home, no things. I just want to know that I don’t have to scrape and fight for every little thing. That no one can come and take everything away from me.” Silence fell in the office. She couldn’t make herself meet his eyes. She’d never told anyone anything like this before.

“You can’t risk-proof life, Dakota.”

“I can try. I grew up never knowing if I’d survive one day to the next.”

“Mase is a crap world for adults, let alone children.”

Her head snapped up, something hot burning in her belly. “You know where I’m from?”

“Of course. You tried to steal from me, so I ran all the searches on you that I could.”

He reached out, but she knocked his hand away. She hated knowing that he knew about the hellhole she’d come from.

“We aren’t where we come from, Dakota. We are what we make of ourselves. I’d prefer to hear the information from you now.”

“Mase is the hellhole of all hellholes. Criminals, gangs, traffickers…you name the depravity, it’s there. What else is there to say? The people who conceived me were probably some sort of junkies. They left me on a doorstep, but those people already had mouths to feed. I raised myself.” Stars, the office felt as tiny as a box. “So with my treasure, maybe I’ll buy a house on some fancy mega-city planet. With all the high-tech gadgets I can find.” She wheeled back to face him. “Or maybe I’ll buy some land somewhere, a farm. With trees, and grass, and animals.” She stared at the walls and the window showing space beyond. “Or maybe a ship.”

He leaned back against the desk. “You don’t know what you want.”

She thrust out her hand dismissively. “I’ll work it out once I have the treasure. And you’re one to talk about knowing what you want.”

Dare raised a brow. “I have exactly what I want.”

“Career-wise, maybe. But I think you’re just as messed up as I am. I see the dark edges you keep under your gloss and control. Something in your past is still nipping at your heels.”

A muscle ticked in his jaw. “Drop it, Dakota.”

His icy tone made goosebumps break out on her skin, but she’d never been one to back away.

“You prodded into my past. You wanted all the gory details. I slept in doorways, and I ate scraps that were unfit for dogs. I even traded sex for food once or twice.” She’d thrown up afterward and vowed to find a way, any way, to escape. To one day be rich and to be the master of her own life.

She saw an answering darkness on Dare’s face.

“So whatever you’re trying to control and keep hidden, it can’t be as bad as what I lived. I’ll do whatever I have to do to outrun my past. You just seem to be ignoring yours.”

They stared at each other. She thought he was about to say something, anything, when there was a chime from the comp.

Rynan’s voice filled the cabin. “We are coming up on the coordinates.”

Dare and Dakota stared at each other a few more seconds.

“On our way,” Dare answered, his tone ruthlessly controlled.

Then he stood up and walked out of the office.

Dakota’s shoulders sagged. She’d pushed him too hard. She knew better than most that no one wanted all their inner demons out there for the galaxy to see.

Dare, it seemed, was happy to uncover all of her secrets, was more than happy to share his body with her.

But anything else was clearly off-limits.

She strode out of the office. The treasure was within her grasp. That was all that mattered, and all she needed to think about. Not Dare Phoenix.

Chapter Thirteen

A rocky, lava-covered proto-planet appeared on the viewscreen, and Dare sucked in a quick breath.

This
was it.

Most of it was pockmarked, gray rock, but large pools of glowing, orange molten rock dotted the surface. It didn’t seem a likely planet to wreck your starship on…unless you wanted to kill everyone.

“Scan it,” Dare ordered.

“Done,” Rynan replied. “There’s nothing here.”

“What?” Dakota said sharply.

“There are no signs of structures, starship wrecks, or any life.”

“There must be something.” Dakota pressed a fist to her chest. “The wreck of the
Southwind
must be there, somewhere.”

Ry cleared his throat. “I’ll run the scans again, but my equipment’s good. There’s nothing here but rock.”

Dare glanced at Dakota, and saw she was struggling to contain how upset she was.

“Maybe lava covered the wreck?” Nissa suggested.

“This is only a proto-planet with limited atmosphere,” Ry added. “Perhaps it impacted with the original planet.”

“Dakota?” Dare asked. She was staring hard at the screen. “What do you want to do next?”

“Nothing.” Her arms fell to her sides. “There is no next. I’m out of options.”

Hell. He hated seeing her so lost, with that bruised look in her eyes.

Suddenly, Nissa straightened. “We have an incoming transmission. There’s a ship on course for us and the proto-planet.”

Dare frowned. “Justyn?”

“No.”

“Put it up on screen.”

The screen filled with the image of a young man with pale-blue skin. He was sitting in a small cockpit. His blond hair was swept back off his face and gills were just visible on his neck.

“Hello, my name is Ralu.” The man smiled. “You have something of mine.”

Dare’s brow creased. “I’m convoy master Dare Phoenix. I’m not sure who you are, Ralu, but we don’t have anything of yours.”

“The orb.” The young man’s smile disappeared, leaving a hard look on his blue face. “It belongs to me.”

There was silence on the bridge. Dakota stepped forward. “No, the orb belongs to me.”

Her jaw was tight and Dare could feel her anger.

“Everyone wants a piece of this.” She lifted the orb up, dangling it from the chain. “And frankly, I’m sick of it. This is mine. So whoever the hell you are, you can fuck off.”

The man tilted his head. “I want the orb, and I’ll trade you for it.”

Dakota shook her head. “I’m not giving it up. You have nothing that could interest me.”

“I’m not so sure about that. I have something I think you’ll all find very interesting.” The man’s gaze shifted to Dare, and then the man moved to the side.

Behind him, tied to a chair, was Justyn.

Nissa gasped and stood. “What the hell have you done to him?”

Justyn was slumped forward, and appeared unconscious.

Dare felt the icy blade of anger. His brothers, his family, his convoy. They were all his to protect, and whoever this man was, he’d hurt one of Dare’s brothers.

“Send a shuttle down to the proto-planet. We can make the exchange there.” The man smiled. “You have thirty minutes.” The man’s image disappeared.

Ry moved to Nissa, pulling her close to his side.

Dare dragged in a deep breath. Justyn was his, but the orb wasn’t. He knew Dakota inside and out. Knew just what the treasure represented to her.

He looked at her and saw she was staring straight ahead, her face blank.

“Dakota?”

She refused to look at him and didn’t say anything.

His gut cramped. “Dakota, I’ll pay you a fair price in exchange for the orb.”

He saw her stiffen, her fingers curled into her palms. “Really?”

Why wouldn’t she look at him? He wanted to find a way to get Justyn back safely and not leave Dakota empty-handed. He knew how hard she’d worked toward escaping, toward her dream of a life of her own.

“Let’s talk bottom line,” he said. “Tell me what it will take for you to give me the orb.”

“Right. It’s all about the bottom line.”

Dare couldn’t read what he heard in her voice.

She turned now and her blue eyes were sharper than Perman ice. “How much are you willing to give me?”

Dare felt a vibration of pain. A part of him had hoped that she’d felt enough for him to help him out here. He named a price. An outrageously high price. He banked the majority of the money they earned from the convoys and it gathered nice interest in a central-system bank. He had more than enough to spare. He felt the others watching him.

Dakota’s gaze searched his face and then it was like she just shut down. The light drained from her eyes and her face went blank. She reached down and lifted the orb over her head. She held it out. “I’m coming down to the planet. I want to know who the hell this guy is and what he knows. He knows something.”

“Okay.” Dare held out his hand. “And I’ll have the e-creds transferred to you straight away.”

She set the orb in his palm, careful not to touch him. “I don’t want your credits, Dare.”

She turned around and stalked off the bridge.

Dare’s fingers closed over the sphere. It felt warm to the touch and he knew it was from her skin. What the hell had just happened?

“You broke her,” Nissa said quietly.

“What?” Dare frowned, a lick of panic in his gut. “Dakota is unbreakable. All I did was what I had to do to save Justyn. Your husband.”

“Yes. But you didn’t trust her to help. You decided and demanded.”

Dare rubbed his forehead. “We need to get down to the planet and get Justyn. Hopefully, we can make this bastard pay for his games and keep the orb.”

“You should have mentioned that to Dakota first,” Nissa added.

“I didn’t want to leave her with nothing. That’s why I paid for it.”

Nissa just shook her head.

Angry now, Dare strode out. “Come on, Rynan.”

When Dare and Ry entered the shuttle bay, they found Dakota there, waiting beside the shuttle. She was already decked out in an envirosuit. She refused to meet his gaze.

Soon, Dare and Ry were also in suits and they all boarded. Rynan maneuvered the shuttle out of the
Nomad,
and they headed down toward the proto-planet.

Dare kept glancing back to where Dakota sat. She was stiff, silent, all her energy…gone.

He’d hurt her, and he wasn’t sure exactly how. Damn, she confused him.

“Landing shortly,” Rynan said.

They closed in on the rocky surface of the planet. As they got closer, he could see the bubbling lava in giant pools. Ahead, on a small patch of rock surrounded by molten liquid, was a small, sleek shuttle.

Dare frowned. He’d never seen a design like this one. It had large wings that were currently folded upright, pointing into the sky. Ralu was standing beside it, and nearby, on a small, rocky outcrop, sat a tied-up Justyn.

“Landing.” Rynan’s hands moved over the controls.

Dare took a deep breath. He needed all his control and patience for this. He glanced at Dakota again.

Whatever was going on with her would have to wait. For now, he needed to get his brother back safely.

***

As Dakota stepped out onto the rocky surface of the planet, she was internally berating herself.

She should’ve just taken the credits that Dare had offered and left the
Sky Nomad
.

Maybe the sum he’d paid her wasn’t as large as what the Atocha Treasure would yield, but it would be enough for her. She could find a nice, cozy place on some distant world.

Alone and in peace. With no demanding men, no one asking questions that made you feel like crap, no one ever wanting your things, and no one underestimating you.

She felt a confusing mash of emotions inside her—anger, hurt, sorrow.
Ugh
. She hated it.

Dare hadn’t even asked her if she’d just give the orb to him to help Justyn. He’d just assumed she’d let Justyn die and that all she cared about was being paid.

Her eyes prickled and she sucked in a breath. Hell, why was she so bent out of shape? She couldn’t blame him.

As they exited the shuttle, she spotted the man with the blue skin who’d set all this in motion. She decided to focus her anger on him.

Beside her, she felt Dare and Rynan’s tensed readiness. Both men had their hands hovering over their holstered laser pistols.

They looked over to the rocks where Justyn sat. He looked up. His face was swollen, his eyes unfocused and dazed.

She looked at Ralu. “Who the hell are you?”

The man shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter. All you need to know is that I will protect the Atocha Treasure, and ensure no one finds it.”

“How did you know we had the orb? That we were looking for it?”

“I have friends on Sulla. We protect the treasure. The final decryption of the map was changed, to lead any would-be thieves here to this hunk of rock.”