God's Bounty Hunter (Biddy Mackay Space Detective Book 1) T Olivant (free ebook reader for pc .txt) 📖

“You… or rather, the people you work for, have something of mine.  Several things, in fact.  I want to make an exchange.  The portal drive for my valuables.”

The man stared at him now, all pretense at artifice gone. “What could it be that you would swap for the greatest technology the universe has ever seen?”

Lu Tang tapped his datapad, then turned it around for the human to see.

“It… it cannot be.” Idris stared at the screen.  His eyes were so wide they looked like twin moons.

“It is, I assure you.”

“I have nothing to do with such a… thing.”

“But you recognize it, do you not?  Your partners know where they are kept.  I wish them to be returned to me in three days.” Lu Tang took the portal engine and placed it gently back into its case.  He snapped the lid shut. “When I have my items, I will let you have the engine.  Not before.”

“I will have to speak to my friends,” the young man said, his hair now plastered across his sweating forehead.

“See that you do,” Lu Tang replied.  He allowed the man a few minutes to exit, then made his way outside to wear Tibo was waiting.

“I still don’t see why you had to have the meeting on board my ship,” Tibo moaned. “I thought you wanted to keep a low profile.”

Lu Tang shrugged.  He was getting a headache, one that started at the back of his neck and radiated all the way to his right eye. “After our small demonstration on the planet there is little point in hiding.  They will know where we are soon enough.  Besides, once I make the exchange, it does not matter where I am.”

“It matters to me, you old fool,” Tibo said. “What if the gangs decide to go after the person that gave you the weapon?  I don’t share your death wish.”

“You have already been compensated more than adequately for this task.  After the exchange I will send you to any star system you wish.  Wait a decade or so and you will be perfectly safe to come home.”

“Wait a decade?  Damn you, Augment.” Tibo stalked off towards the control room.  Lu Tang found it hard to register the man’s displeasure.  He was exhausted.  He needed a rest, but that was about as likely to happen as the stupid Idris was to get the portal drive.  In other words, not very likely at all.

Chapter 17

Barely three hours had passed since they had received news of the explosion on Eritree, but it felt like a month to Biddy and her frazzled brain cells.

“We will be in orbit of Eritree in less than thirty minutes,” Hastings announced.  Biddy looked over at the Captain and was disturbed to see the glassy look in his eyes.  Normally he would be cracking jokes, looking forward to landing the ship.  Now he looked on edge, like any unfiltered remark might send him into a fit of rage or floods of tears.

It was the thought of the Augment and what had happened to his brother.  It was sending Hastings to a very bad place.  Biddy should have taken him out of command, but she simply didn’t have the opportunity.  Not with her not-so-neutral Observer watching their every move.

“You are still sure that the Augment is on that ship?” Biddy asked the woman.

Macleod had found herself a chair from somewhere and was looking at a datapad, examining the news reports flooding in from Eritree.  She looked like a harmless old woman in her own living room, and that wasn’t helping Biddy’s temper.

“I am confident in the reliability of my intel.”

“Your intel?”

Macleod let out a dramatic sigh, but Biddy didn’t break eye contact.

“Well, if you must know… We looked into the initial escape from Widdershins 3.  As you might imagine, we were eager to know how he had evaded our security systems.  Our first clue was the drone.  It was an unusual model and there were only a handful made.  These connections eventually came up with the name of a middleman who sourced the drone. I’m not aware of his birth name but around here he’s known as Tibo.”

“Hang on,” Biddy said, “the middleman? Does that mean there’s someone bigger involved?”

“I would have thought that was evident.  Unfortunately we do not know the organization behind the Augment’s escape.  But this Tibo may be the key.  He owns a number of spacecraft and this one is certainly the flashiest.”

Biddy stared at the ship. It was completely ridiculous, and utterly beautiful. Just the sort of thing a God would travel in.

“All right,” Biddy said finally. “I think we can reasonably assume that our guy is on that ship.  Looks like we’re going to get the Augment.  But we’re going to do it my way.  No Scotclan backup.  Is that understood?”

Macleod scowled. “Against my advice, of course, but it is your ship.”

“Damn right.  Now I want some options on getting onboard the ship.  Phil?”

Her bodyguard snapped upright from the corner he was lounging in. “Plenty of ways of getting aboard that flimsy little thing, but I’m guessing you would prefer to leave everyone alive when we do it?”

“That would be the optimal solution, yes.”

Phil walked over to Elvis’s position and tapped at the console. “We could use some sort of ultra-EMP, right?”

Elvis nodded. “We have a couple of these onboard.  They are very small missiles, minimum of physical damage.  But once they attach to the hull of a ship they let out an EMP, disabling all systems.”

“What about life support?” Francesca asked. “Not much point in using a non-lethal missile if we stop all the controls for oxygen and heat.”

Elvis was already shaking his head. “That’s a brand new ship you’re looking at.  State of the art.  There will be an emergency backup for all the essential