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Plumes of black smoke rose from the tree line behind the docks. It could have been raiders, so armed men and women stood guard near the shuttles. It also could have been a forest fire. Though worrying, the smell of pine-tinged smoke mixed with the scent of— what was it?—grass—fascinated Tayel. She reached down to rub her hand over the dark wood planks which comprised the dock. They were rough and scratchy under her fingers. The stuff felt nothing like any surface in the Under Sector. She let loose a satisfied sigh. Chapter 8 Tommy lifted the shield from its resting place and stared into the shadow underneath. A yellowish object caught his attention. Propping the shield up with one hand, he used the other to reach under. A moment later, he laid the shield back down and held up the object hed removed. The womans blue feathers fluttered in the light breeze. Welcome to Aishan’s refugee installation. Please put your thumb on the scanner. Yeah, Tayel said. Rokkir.” Team effort, Shy teased. I suppose there are a few patchable masks in the mix, Locke said. Okay… What do you have to say for yourself? the Speaker asked. Adonna asks, Adonna gets. I know youre new to this post, but you have to know you don’t get on that lady’s bad side. RAF flying boats based on Kilindini already had them. Another ring sounded in Ruxbanes skull like a deep pulse. His breaths sounded short against his throbbing eardrums— wheezy, raspy; his hands had clenched into fists. His people were dying. Their work was under siege. He’d failed them. He never should have started this mess. Heat surfaced at the front of his head and combed away the excess thoughts. It was a relief, and it started to spread. Ruxbane held up a hand.The raiders are simply following orders to terrorize. They havent gone rogue. If the station’s destruction is such an upset to you, then I suggest you do what a good Delta councilmember would do, and help your planetary government provide alternate routes of escape. Shy joined her elated cry, and a chorus of cheers rose out of the hold. Overwhelmed with relief, like thirty pounds had been lifted off her chest, Tayel slouched against the wall. The loss of so many Varg, Fehns grievous injuries— for one precious Moment none of it seemed to matter. She hadn’t lost her life at the bottom of a fiery wreck. A safe place where a scientist was murdered in his lab. Only when everyone was out of sight did Tommy dare ask Sean what was going on. Thank you, he said. Instead, what they saw was a dusty shield. No skeleton. No armor. Just a shield. The man went on.In addition to your search, youll have one additional hurdle. Another collector is after the same three pieces of art. He has employed one of your contemporaries, a thief known as the Chameleon. I wish I knew more about this person,but unfortunately, details are thin at best. Just be aware that at any moment you could potentially run into this other thief. It is highly likely that they also know about you. Good luck. I sincerely hope you succeed. There is a screenshot of the drop-off point on the last screen of this video. I’m sure I don’t need to remind you of the price for failure. Again, I wish you luck. There was no doubt she couldnt trust Adriana. The woman was a thief. On top of that, she’d gone to extraordinary lengths to keep her real identity concealed. That wasn’t something unheard of in their world, but many thieves prided themselves on their reputation as well. It was how they acquired the kinds of jobs she’ddone for Frank in the past. On the other hand, Adriana had got the best of Allyson when they were in Zurich. The Spaniard could have killed her had she so desired. It certainly would have made things much easier. Allyson supposed that Frank would find another thief to come in and finish the game were that to happen. But ithadn’t happened. Adriana had let her live, a fact that both caused her to wonder and caused a great deal of irritation. Like an insect burrowing under her skin, it scratched at her..
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