Kyler's Justice (Assassins of Gravas Book 3) - N.J. Walters Page 0,5

built from years of training and conditioning allowed him to stay there indefinitely.

He clicked through his mental files, bringing up their names and ages. Sera and Maggs Mortis—both named after the planet, as was their older sister. The girls’ skin was almost the same golden color of Etta’s hair, inherited from their mother who was originally from Darkata. Their red hair and green eyes came from their father. Their mother was deceased, but only for a matter of months.

Was that why Etta was here?

Because she’d been gone for two years, which was why there’d been only a passing mention and no recent picture of her in the file that had been compiled by the best hackers in the universe at Gravasian command.

The conversations at the nearby tables at the bar had centered on Etta. Not surprising after the earlier event. What had been a shock was that most of the men had a grudging respect for her. Even Wallace, the one she’d threatened to ban.

Etta Mortis had a way about her. It went beyond her beauty—which was exceptional—and her body—slender but with gentle curves in all the right places. There was something about her…

Innocence. That was it. She gave off a vibe of innocence that made a man want to live up to her expectations, to be better. Mixed with her obvious intelligence, it made her a very dangerous lady.

What did she know?

No time like the present to find out. She should be asleep by now. Working silently, he withdrew a tool from the slender utility belt around his waist and secured one end of it against the sturdy plasglass. He tilted the small arm of the device and turned it in a circle, silently scoring the glass with the mini laser. When he tugged, it came away easily, leaving a round hole large enough for his hand to fit through. It was child’s play to reroute the alarm, undo the lock, and raise the window. Boosting himself, he was through and inside. She hadn’t stirred. The entire operation had taken him under a minute.

For the briefest second, he hesitated. It wasn’t too late to leave.

She’s not innocent if she’s Helldrick’s daughter. And why did he care? Her only use to him was for information. Her life was not his concern.

Anger beat at the vault deep in his brain where he packed away his emotions. He shoved it back, covering it in a wall of icy calm.

Just do it.

Moving swiftly, he sat on the side of her bed and put his hand over her mouth. A glint of metal flashed in his peripheral vision. Only his exceptionally fast reflexes kept the knife from slamming into his neck. He caught her arm in an iron grip and squeezed. Her bones were slender. If she didn’t release her weapon soon, he’d break them.

Distasteful but necessary.

She didn’t make a sound as she struggled, not even when he had to be hurting her. The muscles in her arm and shoulder strained. Courageous and unpredictable were added to the list of things he knew about her.

He shook her arm slightly. “Don’t make me break it.” He’d never had a problem doing what needed to be done for his missions before. This time, his gut clenched and bitterness coated his mouth. “I only want information.” His voice was pitched higher, the accent different from the one he’d used earlier. Wearing all black from head to toe, including a face covering, there was nothing to give away his identity. He’d left the cloak tucked away two alleyways over.

She was smart enough to suspect him, but there was no way she could know for certain.

Her struggle eased and she went still.

“Drop it.” No way was he releasing her until she lost the knife. She’d already proven she was more than willing to use it.

The room was dimly lit. The source was a small light strip that ran along the baseboard on one wall. It seemed unusual, so he filed the detail away for further examination later. There were many reasons people feared the dark. None of them good.

Her eyes flashed with anger and a hint of fear. He wanted to smooth the lines in her forehead.

“Do it.” His voice was little more than a toneless whisper that wouldn’t carry beyond them.

She opened her hand. He released his hold on her, caught the blade before it could hit the mattress, and slipped it into his pocket.

With a glare, she rubbed her wrist. He opened his mouth and slammed it