Free Enslaved (Brides of the Kindred Book 14) by Evangeline Anderson Page A

central zone, close to the heart of the station,
meant attracting immediate attention from the inhabitants. It also, however,
guaranteed a swift getaway if the deal went south.
    After
almost an hour’s deliberation, Trin chose the central zone. She was one woman
alone and she didn’t like to take her chances in the small, twisty corridors
that ran through the peripheral branches of the station. Plus, she was hoping
that B’Rugh would be willing to do a quick, straightforward deal which would
allow her to go straight back to her ship with no problems.
    Please Goddessof Judgment, she
prayed as she walked, trying not to see the eyes gleaming in the dark offshoots
on either side of the main corridor. Please—I’ve
always followed all your precepts and held your laws sacred and holy. Let
everything go easily and well!
    She
carried her credit in gold chip-coins hidden in the money belt strapped to the
small of her back. Other establishments might be linked to various financial
institutions and accept a thumbprint scan for a transfer but not here. The
Demon’s Eye was a strictly cash-only kind of place. Not too surprising
considering who ran it. B’Rugh wasn’t known for his tolerance or leniency—he
was more famous for business acumen and cruelty, though he had always been
civil to her.
    Trin
had met him when she sat in on a card game of three handed thrash in a trashy
little dive in the Leffaba System. It was a complicated game which involved
periodically trading hands with the player sitting three seats from you as well
as managing three groups of cards at once.
    Despite
the fact that two of the players had been Leffbas—the species that had
originally invented the game and who each had three arms and six hands, Trin
had still managed to win. B’Rugh, who had lost badly, was much impressed with
her skill and had been inviting her to come visit him at the Demon’s Eye ever since.
    This
was the first time Trin had taken him up on his invitation. She just hoped it
wasn’t the last thing she ever did.
    She
scanned the long, dirty metal walkway as she went, her low heeled boots ringing
against the floor. So far, so good. Though she could see the huge, lumpish
shapes and gleaming eyes of males in the side corridors, no one had accosted or
attempted to approach her yet. There were some leering expressions of lust and a few catcalls from time to time but that
was all…for now. Had B’Rugh put out the word that she wasn’t to be bothered? Or
were the thugs simply so surprised at seeing a lone female in their midst they
didn’t know what to do?
    Whatever
the case, Trin hoped that their apparent policy of non-contact continued.
Although at some point she was going to have to ask someone to point the way to
B’Rugh…
    “Greetings,
my lady,” a high, grating voice announced.
    It
was so close to her and so unexpected that Trin nearly jumped out of her skin.
    “I…what?”
She looked around wildly, only to see the speaker appear suddenly right in
front of her. He didn’t walk forward, he simply showed up as though he’d
materialized out of nothing.
    She
took a look at him…and had to fight to keep from stepping back. He was a tall,
skeletal male with a skull-like face and boney, prominent eye sockets around
his deep-set eyes. Or eye, anyway.
The entire right side of his face was covered with some kind of rigid metal
mask with an unblinking purple light glaring from where the right eye should
be. He had a knife blade of a nose and thin, almost non-existent lips that were
the color of raw meat.
    The
worst part in Trin’s opinion, was that a piece of his skull had been removed
and replaced with a clear, plasti-glass dome. Through it, she could see his
pulsing gray brain implanted with a few weakly flickering lights. The brain
matter around these implants was darker that the other tissue and looked
almost…rotten. But that wasn’t possible, was it? How could anyone live and
function with a rotting brain?
    “I
see