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She turned away and stared off into the horizon. The sun was beginning to set. Fitting.
“Kayla, I’m not trying to force you into this. I honestly had no idea Ramiro would target you. If anything, I figured he would have gone after me. It was never my intention to put you in danger. If I could protect you at Leo’s camp, I would. I wanted you to join my crew willingly, not like this.”
“I know,” she said in annoyance and turned around to look at him. “Dammit, I know. For what it’s worth, I appreciate it. You’re not a bad guy, Carl. You’re a pain in the ass, but you’re not a bad guy.”
Veridian looked hopeful. “So you’ll agree to join him?”
“Yeah,” she said in dejection, shoving her hands in her back pockets. “Doesn’t seem like I have much of a choice if I want to keep breathing.”
Carl nodded, and Cruncher handed him a small computer tablet. He pulled up the contract and offered it to her.
“It’s the same contract you reviewed the other day,” he explained. “Just press your thumb on the bottom panel. It’ll scan your thumbprint and take a small blood sample to record your DNA.”
Kayla took the tablet from him. “And Veridian?”
Carl nodded. “His contract is already prepared. It would be in his best interest to join us too. I’m sure Ramiro knows the easiest way to get to you is through Veridian.”
Kayla looked down at the tablet. The moment she pressed her finger against the panel, her fate would be sealed. Even Leo wouldn’t risk taking her back if she broke an OmniLab contract. She hesitated, lifting her head to meet Veridian’s gaze, silently asking if he was sure. He gave her an encouraging nod. Dammit. It was going to be a long year.
She pressed her thumb against the bottom panel until she felt a slight pinch. The tablet beeped its acceptance of her sample. It was such a small thing, but she felt like she’d just signed part of herself away. Struggling to keep her hand from shaking, she handed it back to Carl. If he noticed, he didn’t say anything. He pressed a few buttons before passing it to Veridian.
Veridian scanned the document and pressed his thumb against it. When it beeped, Carl took the tablet. “Well, it didn’t happen quite the way I hoped, but I’m glad you’re part of the team. I’ve sent your contracts directly to OmniLab to be recorded. You’re now authorized to act on my behalf throughout this district.”
Cruncher grinned and shook Veridian’s hand, then gave Kayla a big bear hug. “Welcome to the dark side, kiddo. I’m glad you came around.”
She couldn’t help but smile at his enthusiasm. “Yeah, well, let’s see if you’re still saying that after a year.”
Xantham grabbed her, picked her up, and swung her around. A laugh bubbled out of her before she could help it. He kissed her cheek. “Shit, girl, this is going to be great!”
Carl smiled at them. “If you don’t mind, I think it might be safest if you came directly to our camp, Kayla. Veridian, Cruncher can go with you to pick up your things and escort you back.”
Kayla and Veridian exchanged a look, and Veridian shook his head. They both knew Leo was going to lose his shit when he found out. Bringing Cruncher to the camp would put him directly in the line of fire. “That’s okay. Take Kayla with you, but I think I should go alone. I need to talk to Leo and explain it to him. It’ll go better without someone from a trader camp there. I’ll stay there tonight and come over tomorrow with our things.”
Carl nodded in agreement.
Veridian hugged Kayla. “Thanks. You’re doing the right thing.”
“Yeah, yeah,” she muttered but squeezed him tightly as she returned his hug. After she pulled away, she picked up her helmet and glanced back at her bike where the purloined items were hidden.
“So, now that I’m part of your crew, do I have to turn over the loot I scavenged earlier?”
Cruncher and Xantham chuckled while Carl closed his eyes and shook his head in exasperation. Kayla gave them a small shrug. Did they really think she’d been taking in the view?
“We’ll figure it out,” Carl said with a sigh. “It’s getting late, and I want to get back to camp and find out what’s going on with Ramiro. They’ve been monitoring his chatter back at camp. I had to bring Xantham with me to help track you.”
“All right,” Kayla agreed and mounted her bike with the others. Veridian disengaged the UV guard and gave her a wave before taking off toward Leo’s camp. She hesitated a moment, wanting to follow him but dutifully turned her bike to follow Carl and the others back toward their camp.
When they arrived, Kayla dismounted and followed Carl inside. Even though she’d been to his camp a few days ago, things were entirely different now. It was strange to think she’d return here each day after scavenging in the ruins. She’d spent so long avoiding traders and now she was living with one. Steeling her resolve, she followed the example of the men and hung her helmet and jacket at the entrance.
“Let me show you where you’ll be staying,” Carl offered. She bit her lip but nodded in agreement. Her feet felt heavy as she trudged behind him into the crew’s quarters.
Someone had already set up two additional sleeping areas, complete with privacy dividers. Enclosed within each area was a bed, storage locker, and desk. The personal areas were about three times the size of what she had at Leo’s camp. She couldn’t help but feel annoyed at the sight though. These areas hadn’t been there a few days ago.
Cocky bastard knew we’d accept before he even came out to find me.
Her first instinct was to snap at him for his assumption. But when she looked up at him, his brows were furrowed as though he was unsure about her reaction. She faltered, wondering if she could be reading him wrong. Most traders wouldn’t have cared about what happened to someone like her, much less sought her out and offered to protect her. Biting back her retort, she said, “Pretty nice.”
Carl gave her a warm smile, looking relieved and somewhat pleased by her comment. “If there’s anything else you need, let me know. I want you to be happy here, Kayla.”
She looked up in surprise, the intensity of his gaze making her stomach do a neat little somersault. Oh, crap, he’s got the most incredible eyes.
“Thanks, Carl,” she managed with a weak smile. “I can’t imagine needing anything else.”
“She needs some spare clothes,” Jinx called out from her private area, making it obvious she’d been listening to their conversation. She popped her head out with a grin, her eyes twinkling. “I’m glad you decided to join us. I know you probably weren’t ready to make the leap, but we’re happy to have you on the team. You can borrow some of my clothes until you get your things. I’ll leave them in your locker.”
Surprised, and a little touched by the offer, Kayla nodded her thanks.
Carl cleared his throat, drawing her attention back to him. “Kayla, if you want, I’d like to take you over to the tech room. You should become familiar with our system, and we need to configure your commlink for our frequencies. We can check with Xantham, too, and find out what’s going on with Ramiro.”
“Sure.” With a wave at Jinx, she followed Carl out of the crew’s quarters and into the tech room. Cruncher and Zane were in the room working on one of the systems.
When she walked in, Zane stood up and greeted her. “Welcome to the crew.”
Xantham came skidding into the room. His face lit up at the sight of her and he flashed a huge grin. “This is going to be great! Kayla, wait until you see some of the toys we’re getting in the next few weeks.”
Kayla laughed at their enthusiasm. Although she still felt a little uncomfortable, they seemed to be going out of their way to make her feel welcome. “Thanks, guys. I appreciate it.”
Carl and Xantham had disappeared and left her with Cruncher, explaining they needed to configure their communication settings to allow her access to their frequencies. Cruncher was in the process of giving her an overview of their system map, and she leaned over to get a closer look. It looked like a security grid around the camp.
Kayla had to remind herself she was playing for the other team now as Cruncher pointed to the screen and launched into an explanation. “These systems track any movement within range. Any guests, invited or uninvited, are picked up. Our bikes have monitors that let us know when it’s one of us approaching or someone
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