Bounty Hunter

Chapter 43

"It was bad enough you sent that criminal to the Devil's Dance Floor rather than send him to me for punishment, but then you let him escape? What were you thinking?" Roderick practically yelled through Gabriel Sloan's armlet.

"Watch your tone with me, little brother. I run the operations around here, not you," Gabriel said.

"Well, maybe that should change," Roderick spat back.

Gabriel clenched his jaw shut. "You might be family, but that won't prevent me from cutting you out of the plan if I must. Now, I will recapture the fugitive, and I will kill him. You have my word."

"I want to watch him die. He humiliated me in front of my soldiers."

Gabriel nodded. "I'll report back once I have him." He disconnected the call. Then he tapped an intercom line on his desk. "Send them in."

A moment later, two hunters stepped into his office. Both wore full exoshields. If they didn't have the expensive armor, Sloan wouldn't have bothered hiring them, but it was still cheaper hiring than outfitting more of his troops with the stuff.

"Bolt, Tumbler," Gabriel began. "I have a job for you."

"Do you have a ticket?" Bolt asked.

"No. And you don't need one. You know this individual."

Bolt's head lifted slightly. "Who is it?"

"He's a hunter who goes by the name Havoc."

Bolt chuckled dryly. "We'd be happy to hunt him down. Is this a knockout?"

Gabriel thought for a moment. "Alive, if you can, but dead is just as good."

Bolt tilted his head forward, and the two exited the office.

Gabriel steepled his fingers as he considered a plan. He nearly called off Bolt and Tumbler until he decided that it was better to have two plans in play rather than just one. He made another call on the intercom. "Bring in the new girl, Sara."

Minutes passed before his door opened. A guard escorted in the woman who'd tenured herself to Gabriel a week earlier. She held her chin up, not making eye contact. She stood defiantly, but he noticed her fear, evident in her trembling fingers.

"Your friend Havoc has escaped," Gabriel began lightly.

She met his gaze, and he saw the spark of hope in her brown eyes.

"How much do you mean to him?" he asked, eyes narrowing.

She swallowed. "I mean very little to him."

She was a very bad liar. He smiled, then spoke to her guard. "I want her kept near me at all times, and quadruple the security. Havoc is going to try to rescue this woman, and I want him caught when he does. And send patrols to any place Havoc was known to frequent."

"Yes, sir," the guard said.

Gabriel sneered as he watched the woman's face blanch. "Yes, you make tantalizing bait. I look forward to this game."