Ivar's Escape (Assassins of Gravas #2) - N.J. Walters Page 0,46

muscles in his arms flexing. A couple of the men were easing into the hanger, putting some distance between themselves and Delphi. Several of them were fingering the trigger of their blaster. One wrong word and the entire situation would explode, becoming a bloodbath.

Delphi sauntered toward Ivar and ran her forefinger across his chest. “Imagine my shock when I found what I was looking for all alone in one of your cells.”

What is she up to now? It would be easy to wrap his hands around her neck and snap it, if he still believed she betrayed him. She knew that, and whatever she was, she wasn’t stupid.

“And you broke him out? All on your own?” The skepticism was thick.

Adrenaline pumped through Ivar’s veins, but his entire body went still, became hyper-focused. With military precision, his brain weighed the distance between him and the nearest men, calculating who the biggest threats were. He picked his targets and planned his strategy—drop, grab the blaster, and fire.

Wouldn’t be the first time.

The certainty settled over him like a warm blanket.

“What can I say?” Her lips tilted upward. “I’m that good.” She looked him straight in the eyes and mouthed the word, “Now.”

****

The small disc in her pocket was vibrating. That had to mean help was close. Right? She could only hope so. No one had mentioned that small quirk to her when they’d inserted the tracker under her skin.

All she had to do was get into the hanger with Ivar. Balthazar was losing patience, had already decided he could torture the information from her and use it to save himself from the Gravasians, maybe even make some money.

She read it as easily as she could the growing agitation among the men. Throwing out Artemis’s name had been a risk, but a calculated one designed to unsettle them, to make them think twice about getting involved.

The loyal men would die for their leader. The hired guns didn’t want anything to do with crossing the Gravasians. The mere mention of the warrior planet was enough to weaken the knees of even the most ruthless and cutthroat of criminals.

And they’d hired her.

They were all seeing her through a different lens. She was no longer just some woman. She had a connection to the bogeyman of the universe.

What they didn’t seem to fully grasp was she was as deadly as any Gravasian assassin.

The vibration increased. Now or never. She peered up at Ivar. If he fought her or decided to make a break on his own, they’d both end up dead. Risking it all, she mouthed the word, “Now.”

In one quick movement, she withdrew two knives, whirled, and threw. They cut through the air, piercing the flesh of her intended targets. Knives protruding from their necks, they fell, gasping and clawing for breath.

Already in motion, she leaped at the nearest guard and took him down. Yanking his blaster from him, she rolled and fired, taking down him and the one closest to him.

Balthazar roared in fury and fired. She took a hit in the arm that knocked her flat. It was only a graze, but the burn shot up her arm. Fuck, that hurt.

“Delphi!” Ivar roared.

“I’m fine. Inside,” she yelled back, already back on her feet. Blocking the pain, she kept firing her weapon. Some of the men had run toward the town, but most had retreated into the docking station. “We need cover.”

Sweat and blood dripped down Ivar’s forehead. His expression grim, he ran behind her, both of them laying down cover fire.

They’d be at their most vulnerable entering the building. From memory, she brought up the layout of the station. “Keep shooting,” she told him.

“Charge is low.” His voice was calm, his hand steady. He might not remember who he was, but he’d fallen back on his training. He might not be a Gravasian assassin, but he had some serious skills.

“In five, keep blasting until you run out.” They needed a diversion. “Be ready to take cover when I tell you.”

“What are you going to do?”

Whatever she had to. Ignoring him, she counted down in her head. As she lunged forward, she realized she trusted him, without question, to watch her back.

The revelation was lost as blaster fire kicked up bits of metal and plastique from the floor and walls. She dove for cover behind a small cargo ship, aimed, and fired. Not at any of the men, but the fuel tank on the far wall.

“Down! Down! Down!” she yelled as she covered her head.

The