Only Good Enemies — Zane Zimmer bonus chapters

ZANE ZIMMER BONUS CHAPTER #1

Takes place after Chapter 9 in Only Good Enemies

Holloway droned on for a few more minutes, basically saying the same thing a bunch of different ways: that we were to infiltrate this second suspected Techwave facility, download all the data we could find, kill everyone inside, and destroy it. I stifled a yawn. The Imperium leader certainly loved the sound of his own voice.

A servant sidled up and whispered something in his ear. Holloway nodded, and the servant retreated. He sliced his hand over the table. The facility images vanished, replaced by the ones of Vesper’s kidnapping.

“Forget everything I just said. There is no second Techwave facility. I want the three of you to follow Kyrion to Magma 3.”

Surprise flickered through me. “Why?”

Holloway ignored my question and turned to Adria. “You’ve seen Kyrion now. What do you think?”

Adria stared at the doors where Kyrion had exited, a thoughtful look on her face. “It’s hard to tell. He could be bonded to Vesper Quill—or not. I would have to see the two of them together to know for certain.”

Shock zinged through my chest like a blaster bolt. “You think Kyrion and Vesper have a truebond?”

Even as I said the words, a little voice deep inside me whispered they were true. I was no seer, so I didn’t have visions of the future like Julieta Delano had had, but sometimes an odd sense of certainty swept over me, and I simply knew things were true, even if no one believed me and there were mountains of evidence to the contrary. And right now, every bit of my psion power was screaming that this was one of those times.

Plus, Kyrion and Vesper having a truebond would explain so many things, including why he kept insisting that he had killed Julieta when I knew that Vesper was the one who had done the deed. If people—if Holloway—knew the truth, they would wonder how Vesper had managed to take down a highly trained Arrow like Julieta, the same way I had been wondering about it for months now. But the truebond must have helped Vesper, must have let her tap into just enough of Kyrion’s fighting skills to defeat Julieta.

Grudging admiration filled me. Keeping a secret like that was no easy task. Just when I thought I had Vesper Quill figured out, something entirely unexpected about her surprised me yet again. 

“Of course I think they have a bloody truebond,” Holloway answered me in a distracted voice. “Why else would I go to so much trouble for a commoner?”

“But there wasn’t any sign of it during the ball a few months ago.” I gestured toward the spot where the two of them had stood during the truebond test. “Kyrion sliced himself to pieces, but no marks appeared on Vesper’s hand.”

Holloway let out a merry, mocking chuckle and clapped me on the shoulder. “Oh, Zane, my boy. Sometimes I forget how simple you are, how you always fail to see the big picture.”

I kept my pleasant smile fixed in place, but rage curled around my heart like a Tropics dragon wanting to spew fire and burn everything to ash. I might be the heir to House Zimmer, but most people considered me nothing more than a handsome face planted atop a chiseled body. Most of the time, the pigeonholing didn’t bother me, and I did nothing to dissuade them from the notion. With someone like Callus Holloway, it was far better to be seen as less than what you actually were. But right now his casual dismissal rankled me in a way it never had before.

“You think Kyrion and Vesper Quill somehow beat your truebond test?” Dargan asked.

“Yes. I know Kyrion better than anyone else. He never would have questioned an order before he met Vesper Quill, and the only reason he would hesitate to kill her now was if his own fate was tied to hers.” Holloway held his hands out wide. “Like if there was a truebond between them.”

I thought back, trying to recall everything I could about the truebond test. Kyrion cutting his hand time and time again, Vesper flinching with every vicious slash, then peeling off her gloves and revealing her unblemished hands.

“I’ve reviewed the test footage,” Adria said. “Kyrion cut his hand. There was no way he could have faked that.”

“I agree. Blood was pouring out of his hand. I could see it, smell it, taste it in the air. Kyrion didn’t fake it, which means Vesper Quill is the one who tricked me.” Holloway’s eyes glittered with anger. “The little gutter rat is going to pay for that, for keeping me from what is rightfully mine. I haven’t invested all this time and energy in Kyrion to let him or a truebond slip through my fingers.”

Despite the gossipcasts presenting it as a romantic ideal, all the Regals knew Holloway was obsessed with truebonds and that he would do anything to get his hands on another truebonded pair like Chauncey and Desdemona Caldaren. The gossipcasts might have reported that Desdemona died from a sudden illness, but my grandmother Beatrice had discovered the ugly truth through her network of spies—that Holloway had taken too much of Desdemona’s psion power at once and had essentially killed her.

I had only been a boy back then, roughly the same age as Kyrion, but I’d heard my grandmother and my father, Wendell, whispering about the Caldarens. How Chauncey had gone mad with grief and attacked his own son, forcing Kyrion to kill his father in self-defense.

I’d never given much thought to truebonds beyond tuning out the starry-eyed stories on the gossipcasts about how utterly wonderful they must be. But right now, the greed and hunger on Holloway’s face made me uneasy. Kyrion and I might be Regal rivals, and I would happily shove my stormsword into his gut given the right opportunity, but even he didn’t deserve to endure the misery that Holloway wanted to inflict on him. My gaze strayed back to the images floating over the table. And neither did Vesper Quill.

This was the problem with having a bloody conscience among the Regals and especially among the Arrows. From time to time, it made me want to help people, even those I considered bitter enemies. Kyrion had been a thorn in my side for years, and I would never be the leader of the Arrows as long as he was around. On the bright side, Kyrion having a truebond with Vesper meant no more Arrow missions for him. Holloway wouldn’t let either one of them out of his sight, not until he had completely broken them.

Adria stared at the image of an unconscious Vesper. “Every truebond is different, so even if Kyrion is bonded to Vesper, it would have a different feel from my connection to Dargan. Especially if they have genuine romantic feelings for each other.”

Kyrion Caldaren in love? Before this morning, I would have cackled with disbelief at the absurd idea. My hand crept up to my nose. A good wrench and a skinbond injector from the House Zimmer medic had fixed the damage, but I remembered the frosty rage that had spread across Kyrion’s face when I’d insulted Vesper in the training ring. I ran my mouth all the time, and I’d just been trying to distract him and win our sparring match, but he had reacted far more violently than usual. Now I knew why.

Dargan swaggered over and draped his arm across his sister’s shoulder. “Wouldn’t it be interesting if they did have a truebond? Just think of how much fun we could have with them.”

An answering smile spread across Adria’s face. Images flickered off her and filled my mind. Dargan swiping his sword across Kyrion’s side, hobbling him. Adria doing the same thing to Vesper. Kyrion and Vesper on the throne room floor, crawling toward each other, desperately trying to reach the other person however they could . . .

I blinked, and the images vanished. Sometimes I hated the telempathic abilities that came along with being a psion. I could happily have gone the rest of my life without that disturbing glimpse into Adria Byrne’s psyche.

“And that is precisely why Zane is going with the two of you,” Holloway said in a cold voice. “To ensure that you don’t have too much fun. Forget what I said earlier about playing with Vesper Quill. I was just trying to provoke a reaction from Kyrion. I want both him and Vesper intact. I can’t siphon their magic if they’re both on death’s doorstep. Is that understood?”

Dargan rolled his eyes, but Adria tilted her head in agreement. 

More unease filled me. I was a strong telekinetic and a battle-hardened warrior, but even I was wary of the Byrnes. Their truebond turned the siblings from dangerous to deadly. If they decided to ignore Holloway’s orders and have some fun with Kyrion and Vesper after all, then I would be hard-pressed to stop them.

“What are your real orders?” I asked.

“Follow Kyrion to Magma 3,” Holloway replied. “Make sure he kills the Techwavers on-site and collects as much information about their plans as possible. Then, when you approach him, find a way to separate him from Vesper Quill.”

“What do you want us to do with the woman?” Adria said.

Another cruel grin spread across Holloway’s face. “Bring her to me.”

He stared at the image of Vesper, even more hunger, greed, and lust surging off him than before. I had always known that Callus Holloway was a villain through and through, but for the first time, I realized the depths of his depravity when it came to truebonds and using the people involved in them. I had never considered myself to be a particularly good person, and I excelled at compartmentalizing the many questionable things I did as an Arrow, but this twinged my conscience in a way that nothing had in a long time. I wasn’t quite sure why.  

Dargan frowned. “But you need both Vesper and Kyrion to have the full power of a truebonded pair. So what do you want us to do about Kyrion?”

“Yes,” Adria chimed in. “If they really are bonded, he won’t let us just take Vesper away. He’ll do everything in his power to hang on to her.”

Holloway shrugged. “Then fight him. That’s why I summoned you both. You two are the only Arrows and psions strong enough to take on Kyrion and live.” He waved his hand at me again. “While Kyrion is distracted, Zane can get Vesper onto a ship and off-planet. He shouldn’t have nearly as many problems with her as the two of you will have with Kyrion.”

An image of Julieta’s bloody body slumped in the Kent Corp weapons lab flashed through my mind. I seemed to be the only one who realized that Vesper had killed the other Arrow—and just how smart and powerful she was.

My gaze flicked from Holloway to Adria to Dargan. All of them were cruel, sly, and dangerous in their own ways, as were Kyrion and Vesper. This was a situation that could swiftly spin out of control and end up costing several people their lives.

I was okay with that, as long as mine wasn’t one of the lives lost.

“You’re giving us permission to engage with Kyrion? Finally!” Dargan cracked his knuckles. “That arrogant bastard thinks he’s untouchable, and I’m going to enjoy showing him just how wrong he is.”

Holloway held up a warning finger. “You can bend Kyrion, but don’t break him. Let him escape, if you must, but I want him alive and functioning. As long as I have Vesper Quill, Kyrion will come after her sooner or later, and then I will have them both, along with their combined power. With their truebond, I can finally eliminate the Techwave once and for all, along with the Regals who are secretly aligned with the group and plotting against me.”

Dargan and Adria murmured their agreement. I chimed in as well, even though the words tasted like poison in my mouth, and another uncomfortable twinge rippled through my body.

For the first time in a long, long time, I actually felt sorry for Kyrion Caldaren.

#

Holloway gave us a few more orders, then dismissed us. Adria, Dargan, and I got into an elevator, rode down to the armory level, and split up to grab some supplies. I made sure the siblings were busy, then ducked into a bathroom, locked the door, and turned on the water in one of the sinks. I wet my hands and ran them through my hair, mussing it up just a bit, as though I was in here washing up before we left for Magma 3.

I left the water running while I dried off my hands. Then I flipped one of the zippers on my Arrow jacket around so it was upside down. A faint hum emanated, and an electrical charge filled the air around me, one that would scramble any nearby cameras and listening devices. The zipper was one of my father’s many inventions. House Zimmer had produced some excellent spies over the years, myself included, and Wendell’s job was to create all the equipment we needed to keep tabs on our enemies and allies and maintain House Zimmer’s exalted position among the Regals. Something that was more important than ever, given the increasing hostilities with the Techwave.

When I was certain no one could see or hear me, I pulled my tablet out of my pocket and swiped through to the appropriate screen. A moment later, a woman’s face appeared. She was in her eighties, and her silver hair had been teased out into a fluffy oval around her head. Her skin was rosy, but her eyes were the same pale, cold blue as mine.

Beatrice Zimmer, my grandmother and the head of House Zimmer, sat back in her chair, a cup of tea steaming in her hand. “Well? What are your orders? Are you going after the Techwave again?”

“Something like that. Although Holloway has a far more valuable prize in mind.”

I told her everything that had happened in the throne room, including Holloway sending Kyrion off to rescue Vesper, even as he sent Adria, Dargan, and me along in their wake to subdue and deliver the two of them back to Crownpoint.

“So Kyrion finally formed a truebond with someone,” Beatrice murmured. “It doesn’t surprise me. His parents had one of the strongest bonds I’ve ever seen. Even after the truebond test a few months ago, I suspected that something was going on. I’ve sensed a . . . shift in him recently.”

My grandmother was a very strong telempath, able to pick up on people’s thoughts and feelings from great distances, like a spider sitting in a web of emotions.

“What do you want me to do?” I asked. “Kyrion is no friend of mine. Neither is Vesper Quill.”

My grandmother’s lips puckered in thought. “What do you think you should do, darling?”

I bit back an annoyed huff. Beatrice was always turning things around, always trying to get me to forge my own path instead of following her orders. She claimed it was part of my training to take over House Zimmer one day. Normally, I didn’t mind the prodding, but right now it annoyed me.

Sometimes it was nice to be told to just kill someone and be done with things.

“What do you want me to do about Kyrion and Vesper?” I repeated.

Beatrice sucked in a breath as if to say something. But then she stopped and shook her head, as if dismissing the thought, whatever it was. “Do whatever you think is best, darling. I trust you.”

Normally, her vote of confidence would have pleased me, but I couldn’t shake the suspicion that she knew far more about the situation than she was letting on.

“Regardless of how things play out, it’s a shame you’re leaving so soon,” Beatrice continued. “I’m having lunch with Lady Asterin before she departs from Corios later today. I’d hoped the two of you might meet again, but that won’t happen now.” Her head tilted to the side, and her lips puckered again. “Although you’ll see her again soon enough.”

My eyes narrowed. “What does that mean? Are you having some psionic vision of the future? Or just imagining your next scheme coming to fruition?”

Beatrice smiled and took a sip of tea, which was her preferred method of not answering questions, along with looking at people until they either dropped their gaze from her steady, intimidating stare or stammered out exactly what she wanted to know.

Despite my annoyance with my grandmother’s lack of information, I was glad that I was leaving on a mission and wouldn’t have to meet with Asterin again. 

Lady Asterin Armas was a member of Erzton society, and her mother and stepfather, Verona and Aldrich Collier, were among the leaders of the powerful rival group. The Erztonians controlled many of the minerals in the Archipelago Galaxy, and Asterin herself owned some Frozon moons that were rumored to be rich in lunarium deposits. 

Holloway had brought Lady Asterin to Corios and introduced her to Kyrion at the spring ball, hoping the two of them might spark a truebond. But if what Holloway said was true, then Kyrion had already been bonded to Vesper before he had even met Asterin.

Either way, nothing had happened between Kyrion and Asterin, so her handler had set his sights on another Regal lord: me. Over the past few months, Asterin had visited Corios several times, and we’d been forced together at one society event after another. Every interaction between us had been genteel and polite and had made me grind my teeth in frustration. 

Asterin Armas was a beautiful puzzle I couldn’t quite decipher. Beatrice and Wendell thought she was exactly what she appeared to be—a lovely noble lady with perfect manners—but I thought Asterin had hidden facets, just like the lunarium she mined on all those Frozon moons. 

A loud banging sounded, and the bathroom door shuddered in its frame. “Let’s go, pretty boy!” Dargan’s annoyed voice barked out.

I glanced back down at my tablet. “Gotta jet.”

“Be careful, darling,” Beatrice said.

I winked at her. “Aren’t I always?”

That teased a laugh out of her. “Never.”

I slid my tablet into my pocket and flipped the zipper on my jacket back into its normal position, releasing the electrical countersurveillance field. Then I unlocked the door and jerked it open.

Dargan wasn’t expecting the motion, and he almost toppled over. I put my hand on his shoulder and shoved him away. I was a strong telekinetic, so I put a little psion power into the blow, sending him staggering all the way back across the hallway. Dargan bounced off the opposite wall and skidded to a stop.

“Hey! You did that on purpose,” he accused.

“Absolutely,” I replied in a light, cheery voice. “Pushing you around is one of my favorite pastimes—and so surprisingly easy.”

Anger stained his cheeks a bright red. His hands clenched into fists, and telekinetic power rippled off him in dangerous waves, making the bathroom door behind me creak back and forth in warning. 

“Easy, Dargan,” I drawled. “You wouldn’t want to start a fight you can’t finish.”

His hand dropped to his stormsword, and I could see the calculations going on behind his eyes as he debated whether he could kill me by himself. The answer was no, and we both knew it. Oh, Dargan was a formidable fighter, but it was his truebond with Adria that gave him an advantage over me, not his own psionic skills and strength.

Footsteps sounded, and Adria stopped between the two of us. “What is taking you two so bloody long?”

Dargan jerked his chin at me. “Ask the pretty boy. He’s the one who locked himself in the bathroom.”

 Adria’s gaze swung around to me, suspicion flaring in her eyes. “Why is that?”

I gestured at my still-damp hair. “This doesn’t happen by accident, you know. It takes serious effort to look this good. Besides, some gossipcast reporters might be hanging around the palace, and I want to give them a show before we leave.”

I ran my fingers through my blond hair, fussily arranging the thick locks just so. Dargan and Adria rolled their eyes, dismissing me and my vanity just as I wanted them to, just as everyone always did.

“Let’s go,” Adria said, striding past me. “According to Holloway’s spies, Kyrion has already left Corios. We can’t afford to get too far behind him. Holloway might think this will be an easy mission, but I know better.”

“How so?” I asked, falling into step beside her, still playing the part of the nonchalant idiot.

“Because nothing in the galaxy is more dangerous than a truebonded pair. Whether he realizes it or not, Kyrion will do anything to protect Vesper Quill, and vice versa.”

“Just as you and Dargan would do anything to protect each other?” I asked, genuinely curious.

“Of course,” Adria replied.

“Aw, don’t worry, sis.” Dargan jogged up and draped his arm across her shoulder. “No one is stronger than we are together. We’ll make short work of Kyrion, and Vesper too, if she tries to cross us.”

Once again, the image of a bloody, injured Kyrion and Vesper crawling toward each other on the throne room floor flashed through my mind. I was no seer, but I couldn’t help but think it was a portent of things to come—for all of us.

# # #

ZANE ZIMMER BONUS CHAPTER #2

Takes place after Chapter 14 in Only Good Enemies

“He’s not bloody here!” Dargan growled, swinging his sword back and forth in an annoyed motion.

Adria glanced up at the ship. “Judging from the lack of psionic echoes, Kyrion was never on this blitzer.”

The three of us had arrived on Magma 3 about thirty minutes ago to find the Techwave facility engulfed in flames. With no one to control them, a few Black Scarabs had been aimlessly wandering around, but Adria, Dargan, and I had made quick work of them. If there had been any human survivors, they’d had the good sense to flee from the fire or hide at the sight of three Arrows slicing heads off suits of armor.

After we’d finished with the Scarabs, we’d started searching for Kyrion, and a scan of the surrounding area had revealed this blitzer, Kyrion’s official Imperium ship, sitting in a field about half a mile away from the Techwave facility.

No energy shields or defensive measures had been activated around the ship, so Dargan had used his enhanced strength to forcibly lower the cargo bay ramp. Then he and Adria had rushed on board, stormswords in hand, ready to attack Kyrion the moment they spotted him.

I had followed at a more leisurely pace. I might dislike Kyrion, but he was an excellent warrior, and I had no desire to get cut down for Holloway’s greed. Better to let the Byrnes bear the brunt of Kyrion’s fury. Then I could come in and deal with the bloody mess of whomever was still alive. 

But Kyrion hadn’t been on board the blitzer, and there had been no sign of Vesper Quill either. Kyrion wasn’t as blindly loyal to Holloway as I’d thought. Or perhaps he had seen through Holloway’s ruse. Either way, the Arrow wasn’t here, although he had left some interesting toys behind, including a spy camera. 

The camera had been attached to the flight controls, looking like just another little black navigation box, but I’d recognized the House Zimmer tech for what it truly was, and I’d plucked it out of the row of similar boxes. A tiny light on the side burned blue, indicating that the camera was recording, so I’d picked up and grinned into the lens. 

“Clever, Kyrion,” I murmured. “Using House Zimmer tech to spy on your own ship. Very clever.”

Then I’d left the blitzer and rejoined the Byrnes. I hadn’t told Dargan and Adria about the camera, though—or the fact that it was currently recording us.

Dargan stabbed his sword at the still-burning Techwave facility in the distance. “Maybe one of the Techies zapped him. Maybe he’s already toast inside the factory.”

I laughed. “Your naivety is almost charming. Kyrion Caldaren is much too stubborn to be killed in anything as clean, simple, and easy as a factory explosion.”

Adria nodded. “Zane is right. Kyrion’s not dead in the factory, which means he left on another ship, most likely with Vesper Quill.”

She shoved her sword onto her belt. Then she wet her lips, stepped forward, and held her hands out, skimming her palms back and forth, almost as if she was tasting the air with her fingertips. Psion power ebbed and flowed around her, surging back and forth with her slow, steady movements.

“Oh, yes,” she purred. “Kyrion and Vesper left together, and the truebond between them is stronger than ever.”

Dargan stepped up beside her and sniffed the air as though he was trying to catch a hint of a Regal lady’s perfume. “Oh, yeah. Holloway was right. Kyrion and Vesper are definitely bonded. It smells all sweet and gooey, like a marshmallow, but with burned edges. Definitely a romantic bond. It’s going to be so much fun for us.”

Matching grins spread across their faces. The sister and brother started laughing, their chuckles ringing out like a dark, ominous chorus. Suddenly, I was very glad that I wasn’t Kyrion Caldaren.

“Where do you think Kyrion and Vesper went?” I asked, kicking one of the shiny black rocks that were strewn across the ash-covered field. “We have to find them. Holloway is already pissed that they beat his truebond test. He’ll be even more pissed if we don’t deliver them as promised.”

Adria shrugged. “Holloway had a spy in the Techwave facility. Maybe they got out before it exploded and they know where Kyrion and Vesper are heading.”

She yanked her tablet out of her pocket, stalked away a few feet, and started typing on the device.

I had nestled the spy camera in a pocket on the front of my Arrow jacket so that the device was pointing out toward everything that was in front of me. I reached up and pretended to fiddle with a button while I checked the camera. The small blue light was on, indicating that it was still recording and transmitting.

I turned to Dargan. “Why will Vesper and Kyrion’s bond be fun for you and Adria?”

A grin spread across Dargan’s face. “What did you think I meant?”

“Nothing good.”

His grin widened. “Exactly! I’ve always hated Kyrion. Such a bloody arrogant dick. Always bossing all the Arrows around, even though Adria and I are much more powerful than he’s ever dreamed of being. Kyrion thinks because he’s Holloway’s little pet project that he’s untouchable, but I’m going to enjoy showing him otherwise.”  

Dargan stroked his finger along the edge of his sword like it was a housecat he was petting. “While you were off getting pretty for the mission, Holloway summoned Adria and me back to the throne room for a few final instructions. He told us that we can have a little fun with Kyrion and Vesper before he sticks them in one of the palace labs and siphons off their magic. Holloway isn’t going to screw around with them for years like he did with Kyrion’s parents. He’s planning to take all their magic at once.”

My stomach clenched. “But that will kill them.” 

Dargan clapped me on the back. “That’s the idea.”

Kyrion and I had always been rivals, even when we were just boys fighting for the same academy awards and accolades, and I had never liked him. But I had been in Holloway’s labs, and I’d seen the horrific experiments his scientists conducted on anyone who displeased the Imperium ruler. Killing your enemies was one thing; torturing them for sport was another. Callus Holloway truly was a cold, cruel, conniving bastard. Me too, but there were some lines that I wouldn’t cross—and torture for torture’s sake was one of them.

“And what do you and Adria get out of this arrangement?” I asked, genuinely curious but also dreading the answer.

“People think Callus Holloway is the only one who can tap into a truebond,” Dargan replied. “But if you’re part of a truebonded pair, then you can feel the power of other bonded pairs around you, just like Adria and I could taste and smell Kyrion and Vesper’s connection.”

He glanced over at Adria, but she was still typing on her tablet, so he leaned closer to me. “Holloway doesn’t report every truebond, and the other Regals have no idea how many couples he’s drained over the years. Whenever Adria and I come across a truebonded pair, we take some of their energy for ourselves before we turn them over to Holloway. It’s like sinking your teeth into a juicy steak. The taste just explodes on your tongue, and it fills you up with more power than you ever imagined.”

Dargan’s gray eyes gleamed with anticipation, and he lifted his fingers to his mouth and blew a chef’s kiss. Once again, my stomach clenched, with dread or perhaps a touch of guilt.

Adria finished with her tablet and came back over to us. “According to Holloway’s spy, Kyrion and Vesper are most likely headed to Tropics 33. The Techwave is planning something there, and the two of them have probably decided to be brave, noble heroes and try to stop it.”

Dargan snorted. “Idiots.”

Adria nodded in agreement. “Idiots indeed. New orders. Holloway wants us to let Kyrion and Vesper stop whatever the Techwave is doing. Then we’ll move in and capture them.”

Dargan and Adria headed for my ship, but my fingers crept up to the spy camera still hidden in my jacket pocket. I could turn it off—I should turn it off. Kyrion, or, more likely, his chief of staff, Daichi Hirano, was probably reviewing the footage right now. I would have been if our positions had been reversed.

But I couldn’t do that. Not yet.

I pulled the camera out of my pocket and flipped it around so that I was once again staring into the lens. I kept my face carefully blank, although disgust continued to churn in my stomach, along with a tiny bit of regret. As an Arrow, I’d done a lot of questionable things on Holloway’s orders, but this assignment . . . bothered me in a way that nothing had in a long, long time. I still wasn’t quite sure why.      

“See you soon, Kyrion.” I winked at the camera, once again playing the part of the arrogant idiot. “You too, Vesper.”

My hand covered the lens, and I finally turned off the device. If nothing else, I’d given Kyrion a clear warning that we were heading his way. So why did I still feel so shitty about things?

“Zane!” Dargan yelled at me from the top of the cargo bay ramp on my blitzer. “Stop mooning into space. Let’s go!” 

I slid the camera back into my pocket and ambled toward the ship. My boots scuffed through more of the shiny black rocks, which crunched like broken glass. I grimaced and quickened my pace, but each one of my heavy steps seemed as loud as an alarm blaring out all my disgust, guilt, and regret.  

I truly had picked a terrible time to grow a conscience.

# # #

Thank you for reading the bonus chapters. Zane Zimmer is a really fun character for me to write, and he will be the star of Only Hard Problems, a novella in my Galactic Bonds series, which will be released Feb. 20, 2024.

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