Bounty Hunter

Chapter 22

Val stood next to a small concrete shed that seemed to exist out of nowhere in the rocky landscape. A single metal door broke the smooth concrete lines. Her contact was late, over an hour late, and she began to worry that he wasn't going to show.

"Commander Vane," a voice called out from the dark.

She turned, startled that he had managed to sneak up on her, even though she knew he'd always been sneaky. "Step out where I can see you," she said, holding a blaster in her hand.

A single shape walked toward her. He wore a long, black cape that seemed to melt into the night. "The years have been good to you," he said.

"And I can't see your face," she said.

He reached up and lowered the hood. His smile glistened in the dark, as did the metal orb in one of his eye sockets. A scar ran down his pale skin, beginning an inch above his eyebrow, cutting it in two, skipping over his false eye, and running down his cheek to end at his chin. The skin puckered around it. When she looked at him, she focused on his metal eye rather than on his real one, knowing he saw far more through his artificial implant.

"You haven't changed a bit, Commander Renzo. You're as pretty as ever," she said.

"And you're as disrespectful as ever. But I understand why. You've been in these lawless lands for so long, you've become more like them."

She bit her tongue. Talking back had never done her any good when it came to her commanding officer. She inhaled deeply to remain calm. "Do you have the keycard?"

He reached into his cape and pulled out a single gray card.

She reached for it, but he pulled it back.

"You understand how much we're helping you in giving you access to an unmapped silo?" he said.

She nearly laughed. You're only helping because somehow this benefits you. "Yes."

He handed her the keycard. "Your refugees will be safe here."

"Thank you," she gritted out as she took the card. Renzo made his actions sound so generous, yet he asked for nothing less than her soul in exchange for a safe place for all the refugees. She swiped the card over the surface of the door, and a red light nearly covered by sand turned green.

Renzo smiled, though his scar only allowed half of his face to move. "No. Thank you. Zenith State welcomes your return."