Hybrid Saga 01 - Hybrid by S M Briscoe Read Free Book Online

forgotten was still there, suddenly moved forward, stepping in front of him and stopping him in his tracks.
    “You’re a bounty hunter,” she declared plainly, not asking.
    Jarred hesitated briefly, being thrown off by the girl’s new sudden interest in him. The look of apprehension and her overall hostility had vanished, replaced by what he took to be genuine intrigue shadowed by something else that seemed to be almost opportunistic. He wasn’t sure why she would be interested in what he was, or what she could possibly want from him, but his own experience had taught him not to hang around long enough to find out. He had always made an effort to stay under the radar whenever possible. In his opinion, having an interest taken in you was never a good thing and was usually a precursor to trouble.
    Wanting to make a quick exit, he simply nodded in affirmation. “Is it that obvious?” He stepped around the woman, but made it only a couple of steps before realizing that it wouldn’t be that easy.
    The woman had moved up behind him, not seeming ready to let the issue drop. When she spoke again there was a hint of desperation, or possibly even hope, in her voice.
    “Then . . .” she began cautiously, “. . . you have a ship, right?”
    Jarred looked back at her, curiously. There was an expectant, hopeful look in her eyes that caught him off guard, considering her earlier reaction to him.
    Before he could say anything, a low rumble began to resonate through the air, the ground trembling lightly. As the sound grew louder, he let his vision track around the border of the outpost’s crater wall, searching for the source, while noticing most others in his vicinity doing the same. Dust began to rise from the streets, swirling through the air in blinding clouds. As the thunderous rumble grew louder, Jarred made out the higher pitched sounds of smaller ion drives approaching. He looked up into the sky to see the familiar outlines of a number of Sect patrol ships hovering into positions over the compound, followed by two much larger troop carriers.
    What was the Sect doing out here? He silently cursed his bad luck. Of all the backwater outposts in the entire system, they had to come storming into this one.
    Blinding lights flared into existence from under the carriers, tracking back and forth inside the outpost.
    “This is a routine Sect security raid,” a feminine, computerized voice began, booming out from the amplification system of one or both of the carriers. “Stand down and prepare for search and identification parties. As of now, all vessels are grounded. Your cooperation is mandatory. Noncompliance will result in harsh penalties.”
    Around the compound most people simply stood frozen, staring up at the approaching ships. As the transmission continued to repeat itself, Jarred saw the source of the thunderous rumbling, a massive bulk freighter, lumber into view, its huge mass hovering into position over the outpost.
    Something was definitely off about this. Jarred didn’t know why a Sect patrol would be bothering with a hole like this, but it seemed far from routine and the presence of the bulk freighter gave him a bad feeling. One thing was for sure, he didn’t plan on sticking around long enough to find out what they were doing here.
    “It’s time to go,” he said, pulling at Mac’s restraints.
    “Yeah, good idea,” Mac agreed, his eyes focused up on the ships that were preparing to land.
    “You should too,” Jarred suggested to the young woman and boy, who were both staring up at the ships in awe. “If you have the means.”
    “Why?” she asked, pulling her attention from the ships to look at him. “Won’t they just do their search and then leave?”
    “Well, they might,” he began, “if that was what they were here to do. But, I doubt that’s the case.”
    “What do you mean?” she asked, turning her full attention to him.
    Jarred pointed towards the largest of the ships that was just now