Nowhere to hide- a short story

The glittery gem held all the secrets of the past. It was why she had always veered away from this particular haul. Some said it was cursed. Others said it was special technology that read your DNA. All she knew was that anyone who tried to steal it in the last ten years had not faired well. Now she had very little choice. The sinking feeling in stomach did not make her feel at all comfortable.

The party was well timed. Stealing an invitation and coming as the Venusian Delta’s envoy was not difficult. Venus Delta had a reputation for going through government officials rather quickly so no-one would question the fact they didn’t know her. Her dress was pretty but not beautiful. Her shoes stylish yet not impractical. Her make up, grudgingly put on, but not enough to make her stand out. The trick was to make sure no-one had a lasting memory of her after tonight. She would wait twenty four hours before she made an attempt to acquire the object but it wouldn’t take much for investigators to make a connection to the soiree.

Her brother was the bane of her existence. First he tried to copy her, practically blowing her cover and making her known to people she would rather not know she exist. And now, now he gets himself abducted by Galatians who want her to steal the NovaStar in return for Billy. She was in half a mind to let them keep him. It was only a moment of weakness that had made her let him out of the cage she had trapped him in earlier in the year. 6 months trapped in a museum case had taught him a lesson however and he had stopped trying to muscle in on her work. They might both be of the Nyridzi family but only she had inherited her grandparents’ skills at artefact acquisition. There work had been a little more above board than hers she admitted, but it used the same skill set.

She had almost lost herself completely to thought when she registered something across the hall of the party. She backed up a few steps, trying to see what had caught her subconscious. There. Chatting and flirting with a woman in a barely there red dress was Hektor. She had seen his mug shot enough times to know him instantly on sight. He was a heavy for the Galatians. So they had decided to send someone to assess her work. Of course she had the upper hand, they might have contacted her but they still didn’t know what she looked like. This was the opportunity she needed. She gave the NovaStar a last lingering look. It was pretty but not worth the hassle. Now she had a route to the Galatians. Now she had a method of sending a message to anyone who thought they could manipulate her. She tapped her ear gently to make a connection to her wingman on the ship.

“Carlos, scan for signals. A scrapper ship somewhere nearby.”

“Change of plan?”

“Oh yes.” The sinking feeling was already lifting. “I never do as anyone tells me to.”

This story was written in response to Putting My Feet In The Dirt’s January Writing Prompt. No.21  URL https://puttingmyfeetinthedirt.com/2019/01/01/january-writing-prompts-2/