Heart of Winter: A Sci-fi Alien Warrior Romance (Winter's Edge Book 2) Read online

  A naked Walter Kane was on top of an equally naked smaller form with a short pluck of blonde hair who Jane knew to be Bry.

  “Well shit,” was all Jane could muster, trying to process the disturbing and very nude spectacle in front of her. There was a surprised cry and a quick disentangling of limbs and other body parts, with Walter quickly wrapping the sheet around him instead of offering it to Bry who just stood there naked, her small round face radiating shame.

  They all stared at one another, nobody daring to be the first one to break the silence, which the intercom did for them.

  “Attention everyone,” came Damion’s voice. “We’ve just received new information from our client regarding our mission on Baravia. I’ll be addressing you on the details in the rec room in ten minutes. That is all.” The intercom crackled into silence, relieving the room of any sort of noise that might have distracted from the current situation.

  “Well,” said Jane, drawing the word out as long as she could. “I guess we better get dressed. Meeting’s in ten minutes after all.”

  Chapter 3

  Jane stepped off the Winter’s Edge, her feet touching the soft desert sand that shifted beneath. In front of her was a lonely city comprised of several large, brownstone buildings with a few, gleaming towers of onyx that rose into the sky. Above them was a translucent glass dome, its shape only visible where its edges had caught the sun.

  They had entered Baravia’s orbit a day ago, drifting along in the empty ether of space before they had been given the go ahead from the planet’s surface to land. As they had approached the planet, the dome that encircled the entire town had parted along its peak, allowing them to fly and land the ship on an empty stretch of land just outside the town.

  Beside Jane stood Bry and Walter, the two of them still refusing to meet her gaze whenever she happened to glance in their direction, and the Professor who was staring at his new surroundings with the kind of curious fascination that only scholars and academics seem to be capable of. Standing out in front, just as he always did for such occasions, was Damion. The three missing members of their crew, Savannah, Charlie, and Achilles had been left to tend and look after the ship.

  They waited for several agonizing minutes while Jane clenched her knuckles until they turned white. She felt her heart pound and her hands sweat. It’s going to be okay, she told herself. It’s going to be okay.

  On the edge of the town, a small procession could be seen coming their way. As they got closer, Jane could make out three men and one woman. The woman, who appeared to be leading the way, had on a long black dress which moved in tune with the wind. Her hair, black as the night sky, was similarly unbound and billowed out to the side. As she came closer, Jane could make out the woman’s small delicate features which were at odds with the single red scar that ran the length of her right cheek.

  The woman continued to approach, coming to a stop when she was several feet away from Damion. The three men that had accompanied her, hung back a few paces.

  “Hello there.” The woman’s voice rang in a pleasant tone.

  “I’m Damion Winter, Captain of this ship and its crew.” Damion gestured behind him. He extended a hand which the woman took in her own, much smaller one.

  “It’s a pleasure Captain. Welcome to the planet of Baravia.”

  Their handshake lingered for a moment, Jane noting the way the woman’s fingers seemed to stroke the top of Damion’s hand before he pulled it away. She felt a twinge of disgust at the gesture and a not-so-small desire to go over and slap the woman across the face.

  “I assume you run this place?” said Damion.

  “I do. My name is Sabetha Grey.” She smiled as she talked, her manner easy, almost bordering on playful. “Before we get to the pleasantries,” she stressed this last word to the point where Jane wanted to vomit, “Can you tell me why you’ve come here?”

  “We’re looking for something. We were led to believe by our client that your colony might have a personal heirloom of his. We’re here to retrieve it.”

  “I see,” said Sabetha.

  “It’s a stone with three ravens etched on it.”

  “We might have something like that. If I do have it, perhaps we can come to some sort of agreement.”

  “Perhaps we could,” said Damion.

  “Now that we’ve dealt with business for the moment, would you and your crew care to join us for dinner?” Sabetha and her dark blue eyes turned towards the rest of the crew, her gaze lingering for a moment on Jane before flicking away.

  Damion replied, “We’d be honored.”

  “Then by all means, follow me.” Sabetha began walking back towards the town she had emerged from. The rest of the crew followed with Damion in the front.

  As they entered the city, Jane realized that it was simply a small collection of several houses, a few farms, and the four towers that surrounded it all.

  “We’re a small community,” said Sabetha, seeming to echo Jane’s thoughts. “And yet still we manage to thrive due to the hard work of the people who call this place home.” She gestured to several of her people, their backs arched as they picked crops and tilled the land. They glanced up as Jane and the rest of the crew passed, their features heavy with weariness like their legs were about to give way beneath them.

  Professor Jung had opened up a small pocket notebook and was frantically scribbling in it. “I’m curious where you get your water from. To sustain this amount of vegetation in a climate such as this…..well it would take quite a lot.”

  “As I’m sure you’ve already observed, the temperature inside the dome is quite bearable. At least when you compare it to what’s outside. We have designed an ingenious cooling system that we can adjust but only to a certain point considering how hot the planet is. Despite that, the planet itself has quite the reserve of water buried beneath its surface. When we need to water our crops, we draw it up from the ground, parse it, and then disperse it through the air. It’s quite effective.”

  Professor Jung gave an enthusiastic nod. “Fascinating.”

  Sabetha shrugged. “I suppose so.” Her body language showed little care for the matter. The more Jane listened to the woman talk, the less she liked her.

  They came to a stop in front of one of the towers, which Jane noted was much wider than she had first believed. Sabetha ascended the few short steps that led to a sizable door made from what looked to be various bits of scrap welded together. She rapped her knuckles against it a few times. A small hatch slid open at the top of the door and a set of eyes peered out at them. Just as soon as the hatch had opened, it closed. Moments later the door swung inwards, its hinges creaking as it did so.

  As they stepped inside, Jane began to feel disturbed by the strangeness of it all. She knew colonies were sometimes underfunded, but a door that looked like it was made from recycled parts? And they were suspicious enough to verify someone’s identity by peering out through a small makeshift peephole before they let anyone inside. In a colony this size, surely they all knew each other, so why bother?

  These thoughts were pushed aside for the moment as Jane entered a small, high ceilinged room where an ornate table lay at the far end as the centerpiece of the place with several strange paintings adorning the walls and a long red carpet that traveled from where they stood to the foot of the table. Above, Jane could see several more levels and a winding staircase that connected them all.

  The table had a red cloth with gold embroidered on its edges. Its corners were studded with small gems and on its four edges was carved the same, solitary figure, dressed in a robe, his hands folded and a hood pulled down over his face, the carving detailed enough to obscure his eyes while showing the shadows beneath. It was quite the contrast to the rather rickety looking door that had led to it.

  Sabetha came to a stop and made a sweeping gesture with her arm. “Our greatest possession. Carved by the Master wood smith Jacob Vaudling. A gift from the Germain family when they commissioned us to establish this
colony in their name.”

  “Very impressive” said Damion, his face impassive.

  Professor Jung ran his hand over its edges. “Yes, indeed. A work of art I would say.”

  “Looks like a table with some gems nailed on it to me,” Bry muttered. Jane tried to suppress a smile.

  “This is where we will dine tonight,” said Sabetha, either ignoring or not hearing Bry’s remark.

  At the far end of the room a door opened and a man stepped through. He was of average build with short black hair and a trim mustache to match. His face had a chiseled, angular quality to it but was not so sharp that he was rendered unattractive. His one imperfection, a gap on the right side of his teeth, was revealed when he opened his mouth to grin. Jane squinted her eyes, knowing that she recognized the man from somewhere.

  “I forgot to mention-” Sabetha turned to look at the new arrival. “We had another ship dock a day before you did.”

  The man withdrew a single toothpick from his pocket and began to pick at his teeth in a manner that was surprisingly precise, like he was tidying up his appearance.

  “Hello everyone.” The man beamed a smile. “I’m Bill Saunter, Professional Bounty Hunter.” He winked.

  Chapter 4

  They sat down to dinner an hour later, after they had been shown what their lodgings would be for the night and given a chance to shower. Jane had been pleasantly surprised at the state of their rooms, which were nicely furnished and carpeted with good bedding. Nothing impressive, but far better than what she had been used to at the orphanage she had grown up at and her accommodations on the Winter’s Edge.

  They were seated at the finely carved table that Sabetha had seemed so proud of when they had first entered the tower. It was large enough to fit their entire party but small enough to engender a feeling of intimacy. Sabetha sat down at one end with Damion by her side, a fact that irked Jane more than she cared to admit. Jane sat at the other end, with Walter and Bry on one side and Bill Saunter and the Professor on the other.

  They were in the midst of pre-food small talk which consisted of Sabetha listing what she saw as the numerous accomplishments of the colony and then giving the occasional laugh at one of Damion’s stoic responses, interpreting everything he said as something riotously funny.

  Trying to ignore what was going on down at the end of the table, Jane had attempted to talk to Bry who was seated next to her but had found their conversation to be lacking given what she really wanted to talk about was what she had seen occur between Bry and Walter on the ship and the grinning harpy who was currently occupying Damion’s attention. Instead, they had talked long and hard about the planet they had just landed on and what the weather was like here. Meanwhile, Walter was pretending to stare straight ahead while not saying a word.

  Having given her all at the attempt of small-talk with Bry, Jane decided to turn to the person seated next to her and ask the question she had been dying to ask ever since he had introduced himself.

  “Aren’t you supposed to be a fictional character?” Jane looked at Bill Saunter who was sipping his glass of wine in a lazy way, like he didn’t have a care in the world.

  He turned to look at her. “Come again?”

  “I have a book on the ship called the Adventures of Bill Saunter, Professional Bounty Hunter and it’s certainly not supposed to be a biography.”

  Bill Saunter chuckled and took another slow sip of his wine. “Yeah, little fellow by the name of Charles Cambridge wrote a couple books about me a few years back.”

  “So why is it listed as fiction?”

  “Well, that’s easy. If it was claimed to be true, nobody would have believed it.” He grinned.

  Jane had to admit that he had a point. Most of the things that she had read had seemed so fantastical that they must surely eclipse reality. At least, that’s what she thought before she had traveled to Vrune and met the Umbra.

  “And now you’re here at the same time we are,” she said in a near-whisper and felt her pulse began to race.

  “Isn’t that interesting? I’d say it’s a coincidence, but your Captain spent the previous hour enlightening me to your purpose here and it turns out it’s one we share.”

  “You’re here for the stone.”

  “Indeed I am.”

  “The same client hired both of us?”

  He laughed again. “No, I was hired by someone else. Another family in fact, that wants to see your client embarrassed. What better way to do that then take away a priceless family heirloom.”

  Jane shook her head in disbelief.

  “Pretty fucked up isn’t it? That they would spill a fortune on me, just so they could stick one in the eye of their competitor. Borders on petty I would say.”

  “But you still took the job.”

  Saunter shrugged. “Like I told your Captain, may the best man” he paused, looking her up and down “or woman, win.” He shifted in his seat, his eyes now fixed on her in a way that made her uncomfortable. “Speaking of, if you’ve read my books you’d know that I’m good at quite a number of things.”

  He had the sort of boyish good looks that Damion, whose features were more mature, lacked. But the way he had come on to her, made her want to squirm.

  “I think I’ll pass.”

  He shrugged and gave another easy smile. Your loss. What about you sweetheart?” He looked over at Bry.

  “Excuse me?” squeaked Bry who had evidently been lost in her own thoughts. Walter on the other hand had been listening to every word and chose this moment to lean forward, his eyes flashing with anger.

  “How dare you speak to her that way!” His voice flush with rage and just as petulant as it usually was, even when he was attempting to defend a woman’s honor.

  “I’ll speak to anyone, however I like,” Bill Saunter said coolly. Jane saw his hand slide down his side towards his thigh. Without a moment’s hesitation she reached out and grabbed it.

  “Don’t,” she said, the coldness of her voice surprising even her. He looked at her with renewed interest, his eyes searching her.

  Several moments passed before his face relaxed and he gave a long sigh.

  “Those were bad manners on my part. I offer my most sincere and heartfelt apologies for my behavior.” He looked over at Walter and Bry. Walter gave a begrudging nod while Bry just looked around in confusion. Satisfied, Jane took her hand away, but kept a close eye on him. She didn’t think that he had intended to start shooting in such a public place, but she had wanted to send him a message.

  Bry looked at everyone like they had lost their minds. “What just happened?”

  “Your friends were putting me in my deserved place. Again, my apologies madam,” said Bill Saunter, effusing cordiality in a mocking manner. What Bry found more disturbing, however, was the way his eyes lingered on her.

  Dinner was a short affair. They ate quickly with little conversation to go around between the various parties except for Sabetha, who talked as Damion listened and gave the occasional nod.

  After dinner was finished, Sabetha rose from her seat and raised her now thrice empty wine glass. “Thank you all for a lovely evening.” Jane rolled her eyes. The only person she had talked to the whole night had been Damion. “It’s been an honor and a privilege having you here. Retire to your rooms and we’ll speak more in the morning. Perhaps I can mediate some sort of compromise between Mr. Saunter and Captain Winter so that you both go home happy.”

  Bill Saunter gave a snort while Damion sat there looking stoic as usual.

  “Don’t be so quick to judge Mr. Saunter. This wouldn’t be the first miracle I’ve performed.” Her mouth seemed to curl inwards at these words, like she was enjoying some private joke that only she could hear.

  On that note, they all began to rise, Professor Jung heading off to the front door to take another look around the colony while Bry and Walter went off in opposite directions not a word spoken between them, even though Jane knew they had probably planned to meet up later. Bil
l Saunter stayed seated, his eyes closed like he was planning on sleeping at the table. Jane got up quickly catching Damion’s eye as she did so. He motioned his head to the side and then got up himself. Sabetha poured herself more wine and watched them go.

  They walked through a small, metal door which emerged into a tight corridor with a staircase at the end of it.

  Jane, faced Damion who looked more solemn than usual. “So, what’s our next move?”

  “I didn’t expect there to be someone else looking for the exact same thing. For once, I thought this one might be simple.” He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

  “What about Sabetha?”

  “What about her?”

  “You trust her?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Well, she certainly seems to think highly of you” said Jane, trying to keep her voice calm.

  Damion narrowed his eyes at her. “You’re not jealous are you?”

  “Do I have a reason to be?”

  “No.” He put a hand under her chin so that she was staring up into his dark green eyes which had a measure of softness to them at that moment. He bent down and kissed her, his lips pressing gently against hers. It was less passionate than their usual kisses, but more tender in a way. She put a hand on his chest, caressing the muscle beneath.

  Jane heard the door open behind them and they quickly broke apart, Damion taking several steps back.

  “Did I interrupt something?” Sabetha Grey studied them intently with her dark eyes.

  “No at all,” said Damion smoothly, his face betraying nothing.

  Sabetha smiled like she knew something they didn’t. “I hope to see you in the morning Captain. We have much to discuss.”

  “Perhaps you could set my mind at ease. Do you have the stone or not?”

  “I do in fact have this stone you seek. And I apologize. I’m afraid I’ve been a little too coy with you ever since you got here.”