“So, you were raised in the Devil’s Nebula. You remember your childhood?”

  She swallowed. “Yes. The Guild raises children in isolation from the adults and starts their preliminary training early. Once I became an adult, I entered my full training.”

  “You don’t remember the planet Delta V?” The farming world Vik couldn’t wait to escape.

  Ria shook her head. “I’ve never been there.”

  Zayn frowned, his gut churning. He watched the way she looked at him. There was something in her gaze. It wasn’t just a stranger watching a stranger.

  She cleared her throat. “Look, I need your help to steal the derringer.”

  “We’ll help you if you take a bio test.” The words blurted out of Zayn.

  “Z.” Dathan’s tone held warning. “We need the details and you know we all have to agree to take a hunt.”

  “I’ll give you details.” Her gaze was steady. “And I’ll take the test.” She looked straight at Zayn. “As long as you can handle the fact that I’m not your lost friend.”

  “Zayn, sit down.” Dathan moved over and sank onto a couch. He dragged Eos down beside him. “So, it was Ria, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Tell us why you want to steal from your own Guild.”

  She was silent for a second. “I want out.”

  Zayn blinked. “The Guilds never let people go.”

  “I don’t belong there.” Shadows in her eyes. “I’m not a killer. I ran six months ago and—”

  “They’re hunting you,” Zayn finished. He’d heard the stories of members who’d tried to leave the Guild. It never ended well.

  She nodded.

  “How does the derringer help?”

  “It’s their ultimate prize. Valued above all else. A symbol. With it, I can buy my freedom.”

  Zayn moved closer, drawn to her beyond his will. “You want to steal it and give it back in return for your freedom.”

  A nod.

  “You trust them not to take it and still come after you.” He couldn’t believe anyone would trust any of the denizens of the Nebula.

  Another nod. “Honor is vital to the assassins. They’ll honor a deal. Master Kassius, head of the Guild, he’d do anything to secure the derringer.”

  Niklas stood, leaning against the wall. “Making enemies of the Assassin’s Guild isn’t a great idea.”

  “I’ll include your immunity in the deal.” She made eye contact with all of them. “And I can pay.”

  Dathan crossed one leg over the other. “I’m not sure there are enough e-creds in the Exodus Quadrant to make it worth pissing off the Assassin’s Guild.”

  She managed a tiny smile. “How about all the treasures I’ve collected from under your noses the last few months? The lanthiam necklace from Medalia, the Degas sketch from Earth and of course, the Crown of the Consorts.”

  Zayn raised his eyebrows. Quite a haul and all items they already had buyers for. But he didn’t care. Even if she had nothing, he wanted to do this. He needed the chance to discover exactly who this woman was.

  “Take the test.” Zayn felt his brothers’ gazes but he didn’t look at them. No matter how much they ribbed each other and occasionally fought, they always had each other’s backs.

  Eos stood. “Ria, would you come with me? We can take this sample quick and easy.”

  Zayn watched the women leave, struck by their near-opposite appearances. Eos with her darker skin and dark hair, Ria pale and blonde. Eos of medium height and Ria several inches taller. The one thing both women had in common were their curves—and Zayn couldn’t tear his gaze off Ria’s.

  “She’s probably not your Vik.”

  Taking a deep breath, Zayn faced Dathan. “Let’s wait for the test.” He needed the truth. And even if it turned out she wasn’t Vik, he still felt compelled to help her.

  No one deserved to be trapped where they didn’t want to be. Especially somewhere like the Assassin’s Guild.

  “Penance?” Nik asked.

  Zayn ignored the question even as it wormed under his skin. “We need to start planning.”

  “Jesus, a raid on a guild. In the Devil’s Nebula.” Dathan shook his head. “I’m not sure it’s worth it, even for those treasures.”

  “I want the crown,” Nik said.

  “And the other two treasures are valuable…and we already have buyers lined up,” Zayn said.

  Dathan shook his head. “Fine. But whatever the plan, I don’t want Eos there.”

  Zayn understood. Eos had been kidnapped by slavers and sold at auction in the Nebula. Thankfully Dathan had gotten in and rescued her in time. But Zayn knew she still had occasional nightmares. A few times in the middle of the night, Zayn had caught Dathan making her a warm Bailen milk drink that she found soothing.

  “I believe that’s my choice.”

  Eos’ tart voice made Zayn wince. The women were back.

  Eos tossed her head, shooting a glare at her husband before she looked at Zayn. Her expression softened. “We’ll have the results in a few minutes.”

  “Thanks, Eos.”

  Eos turned back to her husband and any softness disappeared. “I think you and I need to have a talk.”

  Dathan straightened his shoulders. “Bring it on, Doc.”

  As the couple moved out of the room, Nik sank onto a couch and pulled out a thin Sync communicator. He extended the screen so it was larger. “I’ll start pulling any additional data on the derringer.”

  Zayn was left standing with Ria. He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I don’t know what to say to you.”

  “You see her when you look at me. I understand.”

  “Yeah, but I don’t understand.” He turned away and looked out the large windows. Outside, he spotted Mal wandering around the scrap yard. “Why the cat and mouse? Stealing our hunts. Sneaking in here?”

  “I had to get your attention. And I wanted to see how you worked.” A slight smile. “I wanted to see if the legendary Phoenix brothers lived up to the myth.”

  That smile, it was nothing like Vik’s wide grin, but something about it called to him. “And?”

  “So far so good.” Her lips flattened. “I need this to work.”

  He couldn’t stop himself. He reached out and traced along her jaw with the lightest touch.

  She froze, her eyes widening.

  When he felt the tiny ridges near her hairline, he dropped his hand. “We’ll help you.”

  “Even if I’m not her?” Ria whispered.

  “Even then.”

  There was a chime from the console near the screens.

  “BEll has the results,” Nik told them.

  “BEll?” Ria asked.

  Zayn shook his head. “You really don’t want to know.”

  “Excuse me.” BEll’s voice rang out. “My name is BEll. I’m a Biocomputerized Entity Mach II. The most advanced biocomp in the galaxy.”

  “Ah…I’m Ria. Nice to meet you. You’re the first computer with integrated biological components I’ve ever met.”

  “Maybe you aren’t the most advanced anymore? Maybe someone’s made a new model by now?” Zayn said.

  A sniff. “I highly doubt that.” BEll’s voice was prim. “I monitor all technological advancements. I’m still the best.”

  “And the most humble.” Dathan strolled back in, holding Eos’ hand, but there was tension in his face.

  Zayn read between the lines. They’d made up but Eos had gotten her way.

  “You have the results, BEll?” Nik asked.

  “Yes.”

  Nik looked at Zayn and Ria. “Ready?”

  Zayn turned to Ria. She nodded.

  His heart pounded and it was then he noticed she was worrying her fingers together. He reached out and grabbed her hand. Surprisingly, she willingly tangled her fingers with his.

  “First off, I had a hell of time finding Pictori DNA anywhere on file. You guys are rare,” BEll said.

  Ria breathed in a long breath. “But you found some?”

  “One obscure sample. I had to sneak into the Assassin’s Guild records. Ria’s DNA is consistent with Pictori DNA. She’s not Deltan.”

  She wasn’t Vik. Zayn had thought he was prepared for this, but he felt dizzy and a complex mix of emotion burst through him, threatening to spill out like toxic fluid.

  “I—” God, his throat was so tight.

  He dropped her hand and saw her face go blank.

  Without another word, he turned and walked away.

  ***

  Ria was amazed by the room they called Mission Control. The Phoenix brothers sure had lots of high-tech toys to help them with their hunts. Not to mention the biocomp. No one had biocomps. At least not working ones.

  They stood around the table, Dathan and Nik both busy making lists. Eos was carefully going through details on the derringer.

  Ria kept glancing at the empty doorway. Zayn had been gone a long time.

  “So,” Dathan said. “Where’s the derringer kept?”

  “In the Guild headquarters.”

  He winced. “I was hoping for a bank vault or maybe buried on a deserted moon.”

  She shook her head. “They keep everything valuable close to home.”

  “So where in the HQ?”

  She dragged in a deep breath. “I don’t know.”

  His eyebrows shot up. “Come again?”

  “They have tech that disorients and distorts reality. You can walk into a room and not remember what door you used. You turn left down a corridor, but when you come back out, you can’t find the way you came in.”

  Nik stroked his jaw. “Lucky we like a challenge.”

  “So, are you all still up for this?” Her heart was a drum in her ears. They had to be. Zayn had to be. Her life depended on it.

  “Yes.”

  Zayn’s voice. She turned slowly. He stood in the doorway, his face unreadable, his gaze on her.

  “We’ll need a blueprint of the facility.” He stalked forward. “If we can’t trust our senses, we’ll have to follow a map.”

  Ria shook her head. “I don’t know if any exist. Headquarters is a fortress. A sprawling mass of concentric buildings, all protecting the central area where the treasures and important documents are kept. And the weapons.”

  “Who built it?” Zayn asked.

  Ria recalled all the Guild history they were forced to memorize as children. “The original design was done by the Tekton.”

  Dathan groaned. “Secretive bastards.”

  “But they keep records,” Nik added.

  Zayn moved forward. “Can we buy the blueprints off them?”

  Nik shook his head. “Nope. They’ve built their reputation by never, ever selling plans to their buildings.”

  “So we’ll have to steal them.” Zayn leaned against the wall and popped a piece of gum into his mouth. “Nik, surely you and BEll can work some magic, get into their systems and steal the designs.”

  Eos looked up from where she was tapping away at the table. “Problem. The Tekton don’t keep electronic records.”

  Zayn frowned. “Come again?”

  “She’s right,” Ria said. “Nothing electronic.”

  “There are other options for keeping records?” Dathan asked.

  Eos’ nose scrunched. “Ha, ha. They keep everything on plas-sheets.”

  Zayn whistled. “Really old school.”

  “So we’ll have to go in and take the plans.” Ria felt a fizz of excitement. She’d always dreaded planning assassinations but hunts were something different.

  Eos scrolled through more data. “The Tekton have their home base inside an asteroid in the Hale Cloud.”

  “Jesus.” Dathan slapped a palm against his forehead. “It’s easier to extract your own teeth than navigate the Cloud. Anything about this hunt going to be simple?”

  Ria shrugged. “Probably not. That’s why I came to the Phoenix brothers and not Jonas Solomon.”

  Dathan scowled. “Solomon is a hack. He’s all flash, not much treasure hunting.” Zayn and Nik grumbled their agreement.

  She managed to hide a grin. Men were the same, whatever their race. Eos caught her eye and grinned.

  “I don’t suppose there are blueprints of the Tekton base anywhere?” Dathan asked hopefully.

  “Not that I know of,” Ria said.

  Eos turned back to the computer console. “Give me some time to pull up everything I can find on the Tekton and their asteroid. Nik, can you help?”

  “Sure thing, Eos.” Nik’s gaze turned inward. “And I might just know someone who can help us.”

  Dathan headed for the door. “I’m going to check our supplies. And hope some brilliant idea on how to infiltrate this place crashes into my head like a falling comet.”

  Ria sensed Zayn come up beside her. She felt the heat off his lean body.

  “I need to do some diagnostics on our ship. Want to help?” he asked.

  “Sure.”

  They walked down the stairs in a silence that Ria felt like an itch on her skin. She rubbed one hand against her ridges. “I’m sorry about your friend. That I remind you of her.”

  Zayn kept his gaze straight ahead. “Your eyes are the same. It’s partly the color, but it’s more than that. The way you started lighting up over the thought of this hunt.” He shrugged. “It’s the same way she lit up when planning one of our Strike Wing missions.”

  “She sounds like she was pretty smart and tough.”

  “The toughest. The smartest and a damn good pilot.”

  Ria heard something buried deep in his tone. Something that made her feel a little sick. “You more than just liked her.”

  He hunched his shoulders. “We were colleagues. Friends.”

  But he’d felt more, wanted more. Ria could read it all over him.

  He pulled something from his pocket. She stared at three silver birds of prey on his palm. Her calling cards.

  “I believe these are yours,” he said.

  Okay, he wanted to change the subject. Fine. “Keep them.”

  “Why a bird of prey?”

  She shrugged. “A bird of prey is a favorite icon in the Assassin’s Guild. They’re the ultimate predator, no one sees them coming.” But even as the words were out, she knew they were a lie. That silver bird had called to her and she wasn’t exactly sure why. “And something else about the bird and talons called to me.”

  He slipped the birds away. “So, you’re an assassin and good at sneaking. How do we get into this asteroid base?”

  Ria focused on the new topic. “Best way is to use the utilities. Power, water, drainage.”

  “Excellent idea.” A tiny smile quirked his lips. “I’ll have BEll pull what she can find, but I’m guessing it won’t be much.”

  “We’ll need a distraction. Something to keep them busy while we’re sneaking in.”

  Now he smiled, full and true. “The Phoenix brothers are experts at distraction.”

  Ria was blinded by his smile. Wasn’t that the truth.

  Chapter Five

  “There it is.”

  Zayn called out to the others, watching the wide asteroid cloud coming into view. His hands flew over the control panel. He was most at home in his well-worn pilot’s seat with the controls at his fingertips. It was the first time he’d felt steady in the last twenty-four hours. Since he’d first seen Ria’s face.

  “Where’s the Tekton base?”

  Her voice was in his right ear as she leaned over his shoulder. So close he felt the warmth of her breath on his skin. His entire body tensed. Jesus, he had no idea if he was attracted to her for her own sake, or because she reminded him of Vik.

  “Still a ways off yet. It’s on the other side of the cloud.” He glanced at his timepiece. “I hope Nik’s contact comes through with the map of the Tekton base soon.”

  “They will,” Nik said from the chair beside Zayn.

  “How are Dath and Eos going organizing the distraction?” Ria asked.

  Zayn adjusted the engine controls. “They’re almost ready.” Suddenly, he felt Ria stiffen. He turned his head. “What’s wrong?”

  She was scanning the main cockpit area. “I’m not sure…I—” she tensed even more “—someone’s here.”

  Zayn looked at the empty space. “There’s no one here but us.”

  Ria launched forward, striking out with her arm. It looked like she hit empty space, but Zayn was shocked when the air shimmered and a black-clad figure materialized.

  Son of a bitch. He surged out of the chair and Niklas did the same. There was no way anyone could get on a ship moving at interstellar speed undetected. And no way Zayn or BEll could have missed it.

  Ria kicked out at the infiltrator, her moves fluid and power-packed. But the tall, black figure covered in light body armor moved with its own deadly moves.

  They grappled with each other, spinning around, before Ria managed to tackle the intruder. They rolled across the floor.

  Damn it, Ria was going to get hurt. Zayn moved closer and when he got the chance, he grabbed Ria from behind and yanked her up. Nik grabbed the intruder, his arms wrapped tight around a slim torso.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Ria struggled against Zayn.

  Now was not the time, but his mind recorded every brush of her body against his. “Saving you from a nasty injury.”

  “What?” She finally went still but her gaze was on the figure in black.

  Nik was still holding their visitor. One hand was resting lightly around the person’s throat. “Don’t move.”

  “Or what?” The voice was an eerie electronic sound through the armor helmet.

  Nik touched a button on the side of the helmet and it retracted. “No games, Nera.”

  Ria blinked. “Nera? Nera Darc?”

  “In the flesh, unfortunately.” Zayn still couldn’t believe such a black-hearted and sneaky treasure hunter could be so incredibly beautiful. A flawless face was dominated by eyes the color of a multihued nebula. Her hair was short and platinum blonde. “How the hell did you get on the ship?”

  The tiniest smile tugged at full lips.

  Zayn scowled. “BEll, any record of her entry?”

  “Nothing.” BEll sounded peeved.

  Darc gripped one of Nik’s arms and her gaze moved over Ria and then Zayn. “You hanging out with assassins now?”