“And you aren’t?”
His blue eyes met mine for just a moment. “Your sister is a traitor. Your mate is at her mercy. I’d say you’re worse off than me.”
I grunted then. There wasn’t anything else to say. It hurt learning our sister wasn’t what we’d thought. Who we’d thought. But she wasn’t a child anymore. Her decisions, her actions, were hers alone.
Pulling Bella into her twisted games? Sister or not, I would get my mate.
“There!” Liam pointed over my shoulder. In front of us we could see four people, although we were too far away to see exactly what they were doing. I wanted to go faster, but the rover was going max speed. My heart rate picked up the closer we got.
I knew the moment they heard us. They stilled, then two of them started moving about quickly. I could see now they wore the heavy coats and pants for outdoor exposure. One didn’t. One all but blended into the snow. If it weren’t for her dark hair, she would have been camouflaged completely.
“Bella’s not wearing any gear,” Rager said, his voice a rough growl. He’d slid up so he was positioned between me and Dravon.
“She’s been out there how long, an hour?” Dravon asked, his voice betraying his nerves.
“Fuck.” Liam’s growl matched my thoughts exactly.
Bella had been outside, exposed to the elements in just heavy clothing for at least sixty minutes. She’d been walking, which helped, but she would still get cold no matter what. Life didn’t survive here without protection in the harsh weather.
I shut down the rover directly in front of the group. I counted two guards, Thalia and Bella. The other rover circled around behind and two of our best marksmen climbed onto the roof of the vehicle. These traitors weren’t going anywhere, not on foot.
Rager was out of the rover before I turned off the engine, the rest of us right on his heels.
“Bella!” he shouted, ripping off his coat as he ran to her.
She knelt on the ground and her shoulders were tucked in, her legs pressed together. Her hands were under her armpits and she was facing away from the wind. But she was in the middle of…oh no.
A portable transport pad. Thalia was going to send her somewhere.
“Stop,” Thalia shouted, then fired her ion pistol at the ground, just in front of Rager. He held his coat in one hand as he stopped. He didn’t turn to face my sister, just looked at Bella, and tossed her the coat.
Bella reached over to grab it, but fell to her side. Shit. She was as white as the snow, but her cheeks were bright red. So were her fingers. She was freezing to death before our eyes.
“Thalia, let her go,” I said.
My sister didn’t turn towards me, kept her eyes on Rager.
“She’s going,” she said. “She’s going to Hobart 6.”
“What?” Rager asked, spun to face Thalia, arms out. Liam’s guards had their weapons out, pointed at the two Viken with Thalia. We were in a standoff, but Thalia still had all the power.
Hobart 6 was an outpost on the far side of the Atlan solar system. Known for its raiders and militant pirates, it was no place for an unclaimed female. Based on what Thalia had been doing recently, she was sending my mate to those people as payment. Fuck.
“She’ll be out of the way and we can be together,” Thalia said.
Rager took a step toward her. Liam slowly moved in Bella’s direction. He wasn’t going to save her, he didn’t dare with ion pistols pointed at her, just to block her from them. Dravon moved as well. They were big, big enough to form a wall. I stayed to the side to keep an eye on everything. I couldn’t be laser focused on just Bella. Or just Thalia.
Where was the mobile transport control?
“She’s my mate, Thalia. It’s too late for that,” Rager said. His words were like an ion blast. The truth had to be said, but it could set my sister off. It did.
“I know you don’t want me. It’s because she’s here. With her gone, we can be together.”
Rager shook his head, took a step toward Thalia. Her finger moved on the tablet in her hands.
“She’s got the coordinates,” Dravon said.
He was right. I could hear the humm