[01] Elite: Wanted by Gavin Deas Read Free Book Online Page B

chair and turned to face the rest of the crew. Debussy played softly in the background. Outside the stars were smears of light as the ship traversed hyperspace. They had made a series of jumps, laying a false trail.
    There was a lot of shifting and nobody was looking at her. She wondered how much of that was down to her order to kill a number of innocent people. Only Harnack looked her straight in the eyes.
    ‘Newman’s going to screw us,’ the ex-Gurkha told her. She thought about this, a grimace on her face.
    ‘Yes, he really is, isn’t he?’ she finally said.
    ‘Shit!’ Jonty spat. ‘Why did we get in bed with these people?’ he demanded angrily.
    Jenny looked scared, but Orla seemed as impassive as ever.
    ‘We talked this out and voted,’ Orla reminded him. ‘There’s not much point in whining about it now.’
    ‘Catharsis?’ Jonty suggested.
    ‘That doesn’t matter,’ Ravindra said quietly. ‘The question is, what do we do now?’
    ‘Realistically, what are our options?’ Harnack asked, though it was more thinking out loud.
    ‘We run,’ Jenny suggested.
    ‘Can you run from the Judas Syndicate?’ Jonty asked. ‘They’re everywhere. Anyone could be a Veil.’
    ‘For all we know you’re one,’ Jenny said, smiling weakly.
    ‘Surely Ravindra’s the criminal mastermind?’ Jonty replied, also smiling, easing the tension just a little bit.
    ‘We run,’ Ravindra said. ‘We don’t go back to Whit’s Station, we sell the ship, new identities, reconstructive surgery and we go our separate ways. Who we are now dies.’
    ‘What about Ji?’ Harnack asked.
    Ravindra swallowed but tried very hard to show no outward reaction to the question, despite how her stomach was churning.
    ‘There are contingencies,’ she told them evenly. Contingencies that meant she never saw her son again. She had left enough money with Harlan Whit, along with instructions. She trusted the station boss to do the right thing. It wasn’t a coincidence that they had settled down on Whit’s Station.
    ‘Ravindra—’ Orla started.
    ‘I said it’s sorted,’ Ravindra said, cutting Orla off.
    ‘So we spend the rest of our days looking over our shoulders?’ Jonty asked. Ravindra nodded. The rest of the crew went quiet as they thought about this.
    ‘Is it just us he’s going to screw over?’ Jenny asked.
    ‘You mean is he going to screw the Syndicate as well, sweetheart?’ Jonty asked. Jenny nodded. Her hands moved in the holographic control gloves as she did busy work to distract herself. ‘We’re a lot easier to rip off than they are.’
    ‘Are we?’ Ravindra asked. Jonty looked a little taken back.
    ‘Well, yes.’
    ‘We’re easier,’ Harnack said. ‘But we are not a push-over crew. There are a lot easier crews to rip off than us.’
    ‘We’re assuming that he is going to rip us off,’ Jonty said. Everyone turned to look at him sceptically. ‘Just trying to stay positive,’ he muttered.
    ‘Look at what he did on the Orca,’ Ravindra said. She reached for a bulb of water adhered to the control board, knocking it free. It spun up in the zero G, drops of condensation whirling away from it. She caught the bulb and took a drink from it.
    ‘He’s a sick bastard,’ Jenny said.
    ‘He’s a crazy bastard,’ Harnack added. Ravindra nodded. ‘So if he’s messed up in the head enough to do that …?’
    ‘Then he might be crazy enough to rip off the Syndicate,’ Jonty finished.
    ‘That doesn’t help,’ Jenny said. ‘The Syndicate still doesn’t get what they want and we’ll be in the frame for it.’
    ‘He could be following the Syndicate’s orders. If he screws us, I mean,’ Harnack said. ‘They get what they want and save some money.’
    ‘Do that often enough and people won’t work with them,’ Orla commented.
    ‘That depends on whether or not anybody finds out, and the spin you put on it, darling,’ Jonty muttered.
    ‘The Syndicate always do what they say they will, no matter