Falling for Sky (Cyborg Seduction Book 11) Read online

  Time seemed to crawl by before the Varnish flew into view. It circled the station a few times, before finding the best port to dock. Stag opened coms, allowing them to listen in as his crew boarded the station.

  “It’s dark,” Hellion whispered. “Too quiet.”

  “Weapons ready,” Stag ordered.

  “We should have brought Maze,” Veller muttered.

  “Shut it,” Stag snapped. “Our medic gets too emotional when he sees a lot of bodies. I’m counting at least sixteen dead in the main corridor. Both stationers and pirates,” Stag whispered. “Check each body and do a count on both civilians and pirates. Make sure we don’t have any Markus Models among them. That’s who they reported attacked them. Maybe pirates came afterward?”

  “On it,” Kelis acknowledged.

  “Fuck.” Hellion sounded angry. “I see evidence they were fighting hand-to-hand and with blades. Someone must have discharged a power disrupter.” He paused. “This laser rifle is fried.”

  “I’m seeing the same thing,” Kelis agreed. “This pirate has an ear implant and the side of his head is showing burn marks around it.”

  “It must have been the station’s security that fired the disrupter. They had to have been desperate,” Stag concluded. “Look at how well-armed the pirates were. I’m counting three laser weapons on this asshole. They’re newer models, too.”

  Sky frowned. That wasn’t common, either. Pirates tended to attack transports to steal cargo but new weapon shipments were heavily guarded. He reached forward and opened coms. “Are you certain they are pirates?”

  Onyx shot him a look but didn’t try to stop him from talking to Stag’s crew.

  Veller answered. “Absolutely positive. Some of the dead have hair loss and skin issues. The shape and size of them are all wrong to be Markus Models. A body I just checked had seven fingers.”

  “We read four life signs,” Teg reminded them. “What are you picking up on the station?”

  “Four,” Stag confirmed. “We’re tracking them now but checking each body we pass. We’ve found over thirty dead. They were definitely not androids. It seems the residents rushed out of the living and work areas to fight and tried to block them from reaching their control center.”

  “That’s where the life signs are coming from,” Hellion whispered. “All four.”

  “Moving forward. Lock down coms. We don’t want them to hear us coming.”

  Sky silenced communications on their side at Stag’s command and straightened, crossing his arms over his chest. He wished he could see what was going on instead of having to listen to it.

  Long minutes passed—then weapons fire sounded.

  No one spoke over the coms until Stag yelled. “Keep them alive!”

  “Fuck,” Hellion gasped. “They just turned on each other!”

  Sky was pretty sure the growl that sounded came from Stag. Another minute passed.

  “They just shot each other. All four are dead,” Stag informed Sky and his crew. “Head shots.”

  Onyx turned on their side of coms again. “Why would they do that?”

  Stag didn’t answer right away, and when he did, his voice held an icy tone. “I don’t know, but… You’ve got to see them to understand. Contact the Star. We’re going to need to meet up with them. They have a full medical facility to do scans. We’re bagging the bodies of these four to take with us. I want the medics to take a closer look at these bastards. Something is different about them.”

  Sky leaned forward. “What’s going on, Stag?”

  Stag sighed. “These four are wearing matching uniforms…and they don’t smell.”

  “Are they station security?”

  “Fuck no,” the Varnish’s captain spat. “Pirates. One hundred percent certain. They were also removing the station’s main computer from the casing and preparing to transport it. But…the other pirates weren’t in uniforms. Just these four. Then they killed each other to avoid being captured. Everything about this is odd and alarming.”

  Sky frowned. “What kind of uniforms are they wearing?”

  “Not ones I’ve seen before,” Stag replied. “The fact that they are wearing matching outfits that resemble a uniform is strange.”

  Sky agreed. Pirates also weren’t known to sacrifice their own lives for any reason. Most pirates weren’t rational enough to realize the odds weren’t in their favor if outnumbered in battle. When caught, they usually tried to escape. The less-crazy pirates sometimes surrendered.

  It really bothered Sky to know they had been removing the station’s main computer. It didn’t make sense. They were large, difficult to move, and would be useless for trading. No existing station would buy or trade for it.

  Then he got a sick feeling…

  What if the pirates were building a station?

  But how? Surely it was beyond their capabilities. They couldn’t even properly repair their aging ships.

  He met Onyx’s confused expression and shrugged. “I’ve got no idea what to make of that. I’m an expert on humans. And not messed-up ones who’ve suffered brain and physical damage from years of radiation exposure. Perhaps they were stupid enough to think it was valuable? It’s definitely out of character, though. They go for food supplies, easily tradable electronics, and women when they attack.”

  “I’m contacting our council now to let them know what’s happened.” Onyx opened coms.

  Ten minutes and a few coms later, they had new orders from the council. They were going to escort the Varnish to meet up with the Star. Everyone was alarmed and confused by what had happened on that station.

  Sky was ordered to transfer ships once they met up with the larger vessel. He hurried back to his quarters and, as soon as the door opened, Mick threw herself into his arms. He held her close and kissed the top of her head.

  “I told you not to worry.”

  “What happened?”

  “Something very confusing. We’ll figure it out, though.”

  Chapter Nine

  Sky hugged his friend as soon as they left the Bridden and entered the Star.

  “I’m your welcoming committee.” Mavo gave a formal nod to Mick. “It’s nice to meet you, Sky’s wife.”

  “Please call me Mick,” she offered.

  “Her full name is Mickayla Caroboll but she likes it shortened.” Sky took her hand in his. “Who is in charge?”

  “Flint. He and Steel traded off recently.” Mavo sighed. “It’s put him in a foul mood. He left his wife and child on Garden. We all hoped we’d find the Markus Models by now.”

  The news wasn’t a surprise to Sky; everyone was under a lot of pressure. Still, he winced because he knew Flint hated to be away from his family. “I’m surprised he agreed to leave them on Garden.”

  “Space has become too dangerous. He wasn’t willing to risk their safety. He’d like you to contact every station and vessel located anywhere near that attack to see if you can find out anything. Why Markus Models were reported when we captured pirates.”

  Sky understood Flint’s worries. “It might have just been paranoia. My wife said her supervisor had been warning her about the Markus Models. Maybe they just saw the incoming attack and assumed.”

  “Maybe.” He shook his head. “I just wish we could find and destroy them once and for all.”

  “Why is everyone so concerned with these androids? I mean, I get that they’re dangerous, but they’ve been attacking Earth stations and vessels, right? Have they attacked you?”

  Sky held Mick’s gaze. “They want to locate Garden and trade us to EG, in exchange for all their models created in factories on Earth.”

  “Wouldn’t it just be easier if you were to destroy the factories, rather than go on a full-scale search for those three ships they have? The Markus Models can’t trade you for something that doesn’t exist anymore. Space is huge. It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack.” Mick arched her eyebrows, peer up at him.

  Sky gave her a small smile. “I like the way y