Pirate's Gold - S.J. Sanders Page 0,73

That didn’t make sense, unless…

Egbor laughed, his arms stretched out as he circled. “Is it not as I told you!? Behold the wealth of the Evandra! It is ours!”

Hands dove among the treasures, eagerly filling packs to the brim as Veral took one step back and then another to place his hand once more on the key panel. Terri sucked in a breath as he initiated the sequence to seal the door once more. The pirates spun around just as the door began to slide shut, panic on their faces, but what Terri saw made her blood run cold.

An enormous fin broke free of the water, and a deafening shriek filled the room.

They shouted in fear, scrambling for the door. Veral grinned ruthlessly at Egbor, who had waded too far into the room to make it back in time. The captain shouted as he made his way to the door, only then noting the creature emerging behind them.

“Wait! Argurma, you cannot leave us in here!” he bellowed.

“I told you, did I not, that you would never threaten my mate again?” Veral said just as the door slid home, the heavy chink of the locking mechanism engaging filling the room. He turned away from the door just as the screaming began and looked at Azan.

“Will I have any trouble from you, pirate?”

A lazy smile stretched over the female’s face, and she shook her head. “From me? Not at all. With no Igwins left on the ship, I will be able to exact complete control and put things back in shape that his endless greed allowed to fall apart. In fact, I would say that this may put me in your debt for ridding me and the crew of that overbearing male.”

Terri sloshed over to his side, a tremor running through her when the last hair-raising scream split the air. “That might set some kind of record for vengeance delivered. Send the guy to be eaten by a monster. Well done.”

He smirked down at her, his vibrissae smoothing through her hair. “It would be lauded among my people, though I lost the trophy,” he said, his smile falling.

“I’d say it was worth it. Something worthy of legends, far better than a skull.” A puzzled frown pulled at her brow. “But how are we going to get off the planet? The pirates…” She cast a hopeful look to Azan, but the female shook her head.

“Although I fully intend to take over the crew, it will not be so easy as that. I will need to return to the ship and wrest control. That takes time—and a lot of blood spilled, if I’m unlucky. I do hate to lose crew members, but I will have to deal with those who consider themselves loyal to Egbor. We still need to devise a way off this planet, and to return us to the ship, without being blown out of the sky. By now, his vitals implant will have flatlined. His upper crew will be aware of his death. They will have been alerted by medical immediately.”

“Fuck! What are we going to do?”

“Do not be concerned. I have a contingency plan en route,” Veral replied.

“What?” Terri asked, bewildered.

“We will no doubt have to deal with him as well, but it will allow us to get away from the pirates.” Veral tilted his head again, smirking. “He is arriving now. We must leave.”

“Let’s hope we don’t meet up with 226 on our way out,” Terri muttered. “How did you know it was in there?”

“My scans revealed that the room was flooded and a large bio-organic tech was present. It was clear that the thing had made the treasure room its den. I estimate that we will be able to pass through the flooded compartments before it realizes that there is more prey awaiting it.”

“Please don’t refer to us as prey,” Terri groaned.

“Yes, please,” Azan muttered as she swung Garswal onto her back. “Lead the way, then.”

25

Veral noted the longing look that Terri gave the room, no doubt wishing to scavenge for anything that captured her attention. If this had been a normal salvage job, he would have been pleased to watch the joy on her face.

“We do not have time to linger,” he said quietly at her side, his hand grazing her arm as he gently nudged her forward. It was perhaps unnecessary, but still it required saying for clarity sake. “I am sorry that I cannot give you more.”

A small sigh escaped from her, but she met