Children of Junk (Rogue Star Book 3) Read Online Free Page A

Iaka asked.
    “No, just the weather control units. Management discovered people don’t like getting tracked on vacation. When they ditched the security satellites bookings went up forty percent.”
    “I’ll bet.” Cheating husbands on business trips and criminals making illicit deals most likely. “Do you know where the girl was staying?”
    Smith consulted his data pad. “A small hotel called the Glittering Star. It’s one of the lower end establishments, about two miles North. I sent a unit to check it out. When I hear something I’ll let you know.”
    The ten eyed alien held out a data chip. “Screen captures.” It spoke with a sibilant, drawn out s at the beginning and end of the sentence.
    Marcus pocketed the chip and nodded his thanks. It seemed they’d done about all they could here. He exchanged contact information with Smith then he and Iaka headed out. Security officers blocked the front entrance so they went out the back and swung around to a little cul-de-sac where the security people had sent the taxis that arrived that morning looking to pick up fares. Marcus flagged down a yellow taxi, even out here they painted them yellow, to take them the twenty miles to the spaceport.
    He climbed in beside Iaka and slammed the door. The taxi sped away and Iaka asked, “What now?”
    “If you’re willing I’d like you to dig up as much as you can on Solomon’s girlfriend. I’ll contact Vlad and send him the pictures. If he doesn’t know who the heavy hitters on this planet are he’ll know who to ask.”
    “I’ll do what I can, but I assumed Solomon would have checked up on Emily as soon as he met her. If he found nothing what are the chances I will?”
    “Excellent. You know how well men’s brains work when a woman’s involved. Solomon probably did a cursory background check, found nothing incriminating, and left it at that. He didn’t want to find anything bad about her so he didn’t.”
    Iaka shook her head. “I see your trust issues remain unresolved.”
    They reached the spaceport in time to see a massive star cruiser, easily twenty times the size of the Star , take off. Marcus paid the driver, a blue skinned near human with a bionic left eye, who took off in search of his next fare. The drop off point was right in front of a five story terminal made of shinning steel and darkened glass. Thousands of tourists from dozens of species came and went, lugging their suitcases behind them on antigravity sleds. Out on the landing field a second huge commercial transport capable of carrying over a thousand individuals hovered near the loading bays. They hurried away from the crowded terminal and toward the private hangers. The Star waited in hanger forty seven. The hanger resembled a giant pipe someone cut in half and hammered into the ground before adding doors on either end. Simple and ugly compared to the terminal, but secure, even more so since Gruesome was on guard duty.
    Marcus typed his six digit access code in and the hanger doors slid open. His beautiful ship, a fresh coat of gray paint on her smooth hull rested on hydraulic landing gear, the cargo bay doors sealed tight. No one had tried to get in. “Voice recognition activate, Marcus Drake.” The computer hummed and a moment later beeped. “Open cargo bay doors.”
    After a clunk and creak the hydraulics activated and the doors opened. Iaka glanced at him and raised an eyebrow. “I thought you got the ship fixed up.”
    “I did, everything works perfect, she just a little stiff after sitting for a while.” The door thudded on the concrete and Marcus led the way up. At the top a pair of red lights flared to life ten feet off the floor. “Hi, Gruesome, I’m back.”
    The war bot’s eyes flashed from red to green when it recognized Marcus’s voice. Iaka flipped the light switch, revealing Gruesome in all his frightening glory. Marcus grinned at the robot. Shinny, black enamel covered Gruesome from top to bottom, protrusions as sharp as