The Two Towers by Jamie A. Waters Read Free Book Online Page B

a ruin rat. If you decide this isn’t the life for you, you can always leave. You have nothing to lose.”
    Kayla shook her head and pulled her hand away. It was too much. His touch, him, the whole OmniLab trader thing. “I can’t. Look, I appreciate the offer. But I won’t ever join a trader’s crew.”
    A loud beep at the door interrupted them. Carl cursed at the interruption and pressed the button to open the door.
    Veridian entered the room, panic on his face when he saw Kayla and Carl together. He looked anxiously back and forth between them. “I came as fast as I could. Are you okay?”
    Carl raised an eyebrow. “She’s fine. Why wouldn’t she be?”
    Veridian shook his head. “Not her. You. Leo called me and told me Kayla was pissed off and headed here. I was worried she was going to come over here and try to kick your ass.”
    “One punch is hardly an ass kicking,” Carl admitted.
    Veridian’s eyes flew open. Whirling around to face Kayla, he threw up his hands in exasperation. “Are you crazy, Kayla? You hit him? You hit a trader?”
    Kayla gave a small shrug. “I didn’t get to finish a full ass kicking. Give me a few more minutes and I’ll see what I can do.”
    Cruncher stuck his head through the open door. “Sorry to interrupt, Boss. Ramiro and Vex just pulled up. You want me to bring them in here?”
    Kayla jerked her head up to look at Carl. “Uh, would that be Trader Ramiro and his trusty sidekick?”
    Surprise crossed Carl's face. “You’ve met them?”
    “Oh, shit,” Veridian swore, running his hands through his hair in agitation.
    “What is it?”
    Kayla shifted uncomfortably, not liking the turn of events. “Yeah, Ramiro and I go way back and not in a good way. So, if you’ve got a back door, it might be a good idea to show us to it.”
    “Oh?” Carl asked, leaning against the desk and waiting for an explanation.
    “Shit, shit, shit.” Veridian paced the floor. He spun around and pointed at Kayla. “Dammit, Kayla, this is what happens when we get involved with traders.”
    Kayla gave Veridian an annoyed look and then turned to Carl. “Ramiro and I had a misunderstanding about a year ago.”
    Veridian shook his head. “It was a lot more than a misunderstanding.”
    “Keep them in the entrance for a minute, Cruncher,” Carl instructed. The moment Cruncher disappeared, he turned back to Kayla. “You’d better tell me fast.”
    Kayla crossed her arms over her chest. “It was his own damn fault. I found that data cube. That pig-headed sack of shit stole it from me, so I stole it back.”
    Veridian nodded, his shoulders slumping. “Not to mention she slapped him down in front of his crew when he made a pass at her. By the time he realized it was missing, she had already sold it to Warig.”
    Carl gaped at Kayla. “The Aurelia Data Cube? That was you?”
    “Well you don’t see anyone else claiming credit for it,” she retorted. “Besides, don’t you traders talk to each other?”
    Carl took a deep breath. “Yes, but Ramiro was pretty tight-lipped about that one. Cruncher told me about it. He heard about it from some of Ramiro’s crew. It’s a low blow to a trader when an artifact like that disappears. They lose a lot of respect. He tried to keep it quiet as best he could.”
    Carl’s comlink beeped and he glanced at it. “Cruncher just met them at the entrance.” He pointed to Kayla. “Stay here. You’re a potential recruit and I’m going to resolve this one way or another.”
    Veridian gaped at Carl. “You’re crazy if you think Ramiro’s going to listen to anything you say when it comes to her.”
    “He’s right. I tend to piss Ramiro off simply by existing. I appreciate the gesture, but you might want to show us a back door.”
    Carl headed for the door, ending the discussion. “Forget it. You’re staying here. I’ll take care of this.”
    Kayla sighed and leaned against the corner of the desk, trying to mentally prepare for the inevitable showdown.