The coordinate navigation system flashed on Kayla's bike monitor to indicate they were nearing their destination. She let Veridian know of their approach through her headset and slowed down.

Carl's facility was substantially larger than the largest ruin rat camp. It was also a permanent fixture, built with specially treated building materials designed to withstand the climate's effects. More than half a dozen bikes were parked at the front overhang. Kayla had a moment of speeder-envy, eyeing the bike closest to her. Both its wheels had the new bionic skin to automatically adapt its traction based on the traveling surface. Even the mounted solar cells were shiny, polished to a gleam and sparkling in the sunlight.

She wrinkled her nose and patted her bike affectionately. Sure, the other speeders were more than a little pretty, but they probably couldn't keep up with her retrofitted transport. Hell, who was she kidding? She was tempted to steal those tires on her way out the door. With a sigh, Kayla disengaged her engine and climbed off, careful not to damage any of the scavenged items stored in her backpack.

Veridian pulled up beside her, hesitating before dismounting. He'd been upset about this visit, even going so far as to suggest they consider canceling. It had taken her a while to bring him around, but he still wasn't fully on board. Hoping to lighten the mood, she gestured to the size of the base.

"Think he's compensating for something?"

Veridian groaned and shook his head. "Kayla, that's awful."

Pleased she had cut through some of his nervousness, she grinned and stepped through the UV guard at the front entry. The sight of Carl and Cruncher waiting made it obvious Carl's crew had been tracking them since they approached the facility. Unsurprised, Kayla pulled off her helmet and jacket and hung them on the rack by the entry. Veridian followed her lead.

"Glad you decided to join us," Carl said, extending his hand in greeting.

"Yeah, yeah," Veridian muttered but took the proffered hand.

Kayla stepped forward, placing her hands on her hips. "Let's get this moving. I'm a busy girl. Business first, or the tour?"

Carl's mouth curved into a slight smile. "And that's one of the many things I like about you. You get right to it. Let's go to my office. You can show me what you've brought to sell."

"Suit yourself," she replied and followed Carl down a long hallway. She noticed Cruncher followed a few steps behind her and Veridian, careful to make sure they didn't stray. She'd have to find an opportune moment to distract them so Veridian could plant the bug. The other bug rested in her pocket. Although it was smaller than her fingernail, her awareness of it made it feel more like a large speeder.

Electronic dividers with the capability of blocking out light and sound surrounded Carl's office. The costly technology gave the occupants a large measure of privacy. Despite herself, Kayla was impressed with the extravagance and interested to see what other gadgets they had in their camp.

Carl stepped over to his desk and waited while she opened her backpack. She spread out the jewelry and carving on the desk.

Cruncher let out a low whistle. "Holy shit, girl. Did you smuggle all of that out of Sector Twelve yesterday?"

She sat on the corner of the desk and feigned innocence. "I don't know what you're talking about, Cruncher. These trinkets have been in my family for generations. I told you I was just taking in the sights yesterday."

Carl gave Kayla a hard look before turning to assess the merchandise. He studied each piece carefully before moving on to the next one.

"I may have underestimated you," Carl admitted. He pointed to the collection. "I'll give you twenty-five hundred for the lot. That's a final offer. There's no negotiation on this one."

"Done." Kayla smiled sweetly. "I wouldn't dream of trying to take advantage of your generosity."

"Hmm." Carl turned on his commlink and initiated the instructions to wire the credits to her camp's account. When the transaction was complete, he scooped up the jewelry and put it in a lockbox behind his desk.

Kayla verified the transaction was final and hopped off the desk. At least something positive had come out of this trip. "Are we still on for the tour? Or have I worn out my welcome?"

Carl's mouth twitched as though he were suppressing a smile. "You're not getting out of here so easily. You just cost me a few thousand credits, and I intend to make sure you hold up your end of the deal."

He pressed his hand against the small of her back to lead her out of the office. She stiffened slightly at the gesture but allowed the contact. Veridian frowned at her but remained silent when she shook her head. There was a fine line to walk when dealing with a trader. So far, Carl had kept his word. She'd give him some leeway, at least to a point. Besides, there were far worse things than having a gorgeous man's hands on her.

As they exited the room, Kayla caught a glimpse of Cruncher still trailing behind them. Planting the bugs was going to be more than a little challenging if they kept watching this closely. Carl escorted them into a large, open room they used as a common area. A dozen chairs surrounded an elongated, conference-style table. Cabinets covered most of one wall with an expansive countertop. A state-of-the-art food preparation and storage machine sat in the corner.

Two people turned toward them when they entered. She recognized Elyot from yesterday, but the young woman was unfamiliar.

"Kayla and Veridian," Carl began, introducing them to the new people. "This is Elyot and Lisia. He's one of our scavengers, and Lisia's one of our crew techs."

Elyot smiled warmly. "Nice to see you guys again. I've heard quite a few stories about you, Kayla. You've impressed the hell out of some of us."

Lisia, a tall, thin girl with a mass of blond curls on top of her head, looked at Carl and Kayla with open hostility. "I've got stuff to do," she announced, pushing away from the table. "I'll catch you later, Elyot."

Without another glance, she headed out of the room. Surprised by the rude departure, Kayla peeked up at Carl for an explanation. His jaw was set, and he stared at the door where the young woman had disappeared. Elyot cleared his throat and offered weakly, "Uh, Lisia's somewhat temperamental. Ignore her."

"She's a good tech, but Elyot's right," Carl elaborated on an exhale, rubbing the back of his neck. "She'll warm up once you get to know her."

Kayla shrugged. She wasn't there to make friends or get caught up in camp drama. Leo's camp had more than enough to keep her busy. Carl continued the tour by saying, "Through here we have the crew's quarters and the tech room."

The crew's quarters consisted of a large room separated into individual personal areas with modular constructs. Each personal area had a cot, a small desk, and a storage locker. It was different than the setup at Leo's camp, where the bunks were sandwiched together in an open room.

Kayla ran her fingers along the wall, admiring the privacy dividers installed in this area. They were reinforced to block out sounds and light from the outside, although someone could always leave the door open if they weren't in the mood for privacy. She wondered what it would be like to have a place of her own, where she could shut out the world. The only place she ever felt a few moments of peace was down in the ruins. If nothing else, she had to give Carl credit for providing his people with some rather expensive comforts.

They moved to the tech room next. Carl paused outside the door, an expectant look on his face. "I think you'll enjoy this room."

Puzzled, Kayla moved past him and stepped inside. Realization dawned, and her eyes grew wide in excitement as she stared at the equipment Carl had recently acquired from OmniLab.

"No fucking way." Forgetting her plan to act nonchalant, she moved across the room to pick up one of the underground sensors designed to identify rare metals. She ran her fingers across it with reverence, recalling what she'd read about it. Not only was it one of the prototypes unavailable to ruin rats but it was also capable of locating specific rare metals housed within other metals. It had the potential to detect artifacts hidden miles below the surface.

She looked up at Carl in disbelief. A knowing smile flitted across his face. "I picked it up a few days ago. There are some other prototypes in there too. OmniLab developed a new chemical monitoring kit and some other UV-protective gear. We were asked to test it out."

"Oh man. I read about these, but to actually see them..." Her voice trailed off as she rifled through some of the other equipment, incredulous at the playground of toys around her. Veridian crossed the room to study some monitors mapping the topography of the area.

"This is amazing." He gestured to the monitors. "You're able to track all of this from here?"

Carl nodded and pointed to one of the screens. "That's the IM-XL system. It uses our current geographical location to generate some basic topographic maps of the underground ruins. It uses the old-world maps as a basis for comparison and updates to provide new potential high-artifact ruin locations."

Veridian whistled in appreciation and watched the screen. Kayla barely spared them a glance, clutching the sensor in one hand and digging through some of the other boxes with the other. It'd be interesting to find out how difficult it would be to smuggle the sensor out of Carl's camp.

Carl cleared his throat to get Kayla's attention. "If you can manage to put the sensor down, we picked up some new lock-cracking tools too. I've got Zane trying them out in the testing lab. I've heard you have an interest in locks. You're welcome to take a look."

Kayla jerked her head up, trying to decide if the man was serious or toying with her emotions. It would be an evil prank if it were the latter. "Really?"

Carl chuckled and nodded. It broke her heart a little, but she carefully replaced the sensor. Trailing her fingers over it in farewell, she gave it one last, longing look. "You've definitely got some cool toys in here."

There was no mistaking the pleased look on his face at the compliment. Motioning for them to follow, Carl led them past what appeared to be the communications room and into the testing lab. Remembering their purpose, Kayla shot a meaningful look at Veridian. He returned a barely discernible nod.

The testing lab was only slightly smaller than the tech room and had a wide variety of different locking mechanisms set up like an obstacle course. Kayla recognized most of them from her scavenging expeditions.

There were two men in the room. One had rich caramel-colored skin with short, dark hair and eyes. He lounged against the wall and flashed a smile when they entered. Kayla had met him several months earlier when he'd helped Cruncher make a delivery to Leo's camp.

Kayla didn't know the other man sitting on the floor working with one of the locks. He possessed an average build and fair skin. His blond hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and he seemed to work the locks with an intimate familiarity Kayla recognized.

Carl cleared his throat, and the man on the floor looked up expectantly. "Xantham and Zane, I'd like you to meet Kayla and Veridian. Xantham is in communications, and Zane is another one of our scavengers and master locksmith."

Kayla narrowed her eyes at Xantham. If he was a communications expert, he was likely the one responsible for planting the sniffer on their system.

As though guessing her thoughts, Xantham winked at her. "We've already met, Carl. Besides, I feel like we're already intimately acquainted, given how often you've asked me to intercept her communications."

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

Kayla crossed her arms and gave Carl a dark look. He offered her a sly smile in response. "I protect my interests, Kayla. You've caused a significant dent in my revenue over the past year."

"Ah, sad but true," Xantham lamented.

Zane stood and wiped his hands on his pants before offering his hand to Kayla in greeting. "Nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you. Cruncher says you've got a knack for locks?"

Kayla shrugged, deciding the change in subject was a welcome one. It probably wasn't a great idea to keep reminding Carl she'd been stealing from under his nose for months. She studied the lock Zane abandoned. "I've been called more than fair. That's an 8600, right?"

Zane nodded. "Yeah. We brought it up a few days ago to let the others practice on it. It's one of the most difficult in the series. I figure if they can crack this one, they should be good on most of the others in the line."

"No one's been able to beat Zane's time yet. With the new equipment, he's running at one minute fifty-four seconds," Cruncher added.

"One minute forty-six seconds," Zane corrected proudly.

Kayla cocked her head and said casually, "Is that so? Well, how about a friendly wager? I'd be willing to give it a shot."

Zane looked interested. "Sure. How much are we talking?"

"A token. How about twenty credits?"

Zane nodded at the amount. Carl rubbed his chin and considered Kayla for a moment. "If you don't mind, I'll sweeten the pot. One hundred credits for the best time."

Surprise crossed Kayla's face, but she shrugged in response. It wasn't an exorbitant amount, but it wasn't chump change either. "Your money. V, would you mind grabbing my equipment for me?"

Veridian nodded and headed back out the way he came. Carl studied Kayla carefully for a minute and then motioned for Cruncher to follow him. Kayla flashed a charming smile at Carl, inwardly cursing his intuitiveness. "I'm sure your equipment is nice, but for a hundred credits, I prefer to handle something I know can get me where I'm going."

Carl smirked. "There's no doubt in my mind my equipment can take you well and beyond where you want to go."

She arched a brow, scanning him up and down to assess his "equipment". He might be right, but she damn well wouldn't admit it. "We'll see about that."

When he grinned, she turned away to hide her smile and pretended to look over the equipment in the room. Veridian and Cruncher returned a few minutes later. Judging from Veridian's demeanor, Kayla knew he had planted the listening device. He handed her the equipment, and she walked over to the lock, confidence in each of her steps.

"Start the timer, boys, and I'll show you how it's done." Kayla knelt and placed her frequency detector on the safe. With practiced motions, she slid her lock-picking tool into the lock and easily worked through the combinations.

With a flourish, she pulled the handle and the door swung open.

"One minute fourteen seconds," Cruncher said in amazement.

Xantham chuckled in amusement while Zane stared at her in disbelief. "I've never seen anyone work a lock that fast."

Kayla sauntered over to Carl, holding out her hand and rubbing her fingers together. "I believe that's another hundred credits you owe me?"

"Apparently so." His eyes skimmed up and down the length of her body as though assessing and considering her in a new light. "If you'll join me in my office, I'll transfer the credits now." He turned to Zane. "I'll do your transfer as well. I believe you owe her twenty?"

Zane nodded sheepishly. "Mind if I take a look at your equipment, Kayla?"

She hesitated for a moment before handing her equipment to Zane. Motioning for Veridian to stay behind and retrieve the device when Zane had finished trying it out, she followed Carl back toward his office.

"Protective of your equipment, are you?"

"I like to keep my toys clean. Nasty things happen when they leave my sight."

"But you left them with Veridian," Carl pointed out.

"Yes, I did. They're safer with him than they are anywhere."

"You have that much trust in him?"

Kayla frowned, becoming uncomfortable with the personal direction of the conversation. "You ask a lot of questions, Carl. But, yeah, I do. Veridian is... I guess you could say he's like a brother to me."

"A brother then," Carl mused. He nodded as though that cleared up some question in his mind. "He mentioned family yesterday. Is that important to you?"

Kayla shrugged. "Only Veridian. Most other people are a waste of perfectly good oxygen."

"I see," he observed, stepping back into his office. Kayla hopped back on the edge of the desk and watched while Carl initiated the credit transfer. So far, the day was turning out to be more profitable than she'd expected. When the transfer was complete, she verified the transaction.

He put down his commlink and leaned across the desk to study her. "Now that we have that settled, I'd like to talk to you about the reason I asked you to come here."

Kayla tucked her hair behind her ear and cocked her head. "Is this the part where you try to turn me into a legitimate scavenger?"

Carl smiled. "Something like that. You've met most of my crew, except for Jinx. She's out mapping some sectors right now. I asked the crew to stick around today so you could meet them. But we usually try to do two separate shifts. One group is on one day and the other on the next. It seems to work out well for us."

Kayla nodded. Most crews scavenged that way. She was scheduled to be back underground tomorrow.

"I know what most ruin rats think of us, but we're not bad people. In fact, the majority of trader crews are made up of former ruin rats."

"Yeah." Kayla blew out a breath. "Ruin rats who decided they'd rather sell themselves and live under OmniLab's thumb."

"It's not that bad, Kayla," Carl insisted. "The benefits far outweigh the negatives. I'm prepared to offer you a salary with an added percentage of whatever you scavenge. This percentage would be directly from an OmniLab trader with no negotiation fees attached. It would be far more than you've ever seen working with Leo."

"How much?" Kayla wasn't really interested but was trying to hurry the conversation along.

Carl walked around the desk to stand next to her. "Five hundred credits a month with a twenty percent bonus to whatever you bring in. I'll pay for all of your equipment and living expenses, and you can spend your credits on whatever you want. Send it back to Leo, for all I care. I want you, Kayla."

Kayla was momentarily taken aback. She hadn't been expecting such a generous offer. But either way, there was no way she'd accept the offer of a trader. The thought of working for OmniLab left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"No, thanks. I wouldn't ever leave Veridian."

Carl studied her for a long moment. "If you want him, you can have him too. He'll have a salary of two hundred fifty a month. No bonus, though, since he doesn't scavenge."

Kayla's eyes widened, her fingers gripping the edge of the desk to prevent her from falling off. She hadn't expected Carl to want both of them. Veridian was skilled, but he wasn't a scavenger. Most trader crews had plenty of techs, but there was a high demand for people who were actually willing to navigate the ruins. "Holy shit. Um, wow. Uh, I guess I'll think about it and get back to you."

"Of course," Carl said easily with a trace of a smile on his face. He tapped a few instructions into the keyboard on the desk and pulled up a contract. "I'd appreciate it if you could read through this. I've outlined the salary, bonus percentage, and other benefits. The contract is for a year. At the end of the year, we can renew it for the same terms or renegotiate. Veridian will have a separate contract."

Kayla sighed as she glanced at the lengthy document. "You want me to read through this now?"

At Carl's nod, her shoulders slumped in dejection. Resigned to her task, she pulled her hair into a ponytail to get it out of her face.

Carl froze, studying the side of her neck. "Is that from yesterday?"

"Huh? Is what from yesterday?"

"You've got a particularly nasty bruise back there." Carl frowned, his gaze fixed on her neck. She reached up to touch the area in question and winced when her fingers brushed against a painful bruise that crept up from her shirt.

"Yeah. Guess so," she said with a shrug. "It happens when you fall through the floor."

"I heard about that. I've got something that can help." He moved around the desk. "You should take a couple of days off to heal. Your muscles won't be relaxed, and you could injure yourself even more if you try scavenging too soon."

Kayla scoffed at his statement. "Some of us don't have the luxury to take days off. I'm amazed people aren't lining up at the door if you treat all recruits like this."

"Not all," Carl admitted and reached into a drawer to pull out a bottle of dark-colored liquid and two glasses. "Just the promising ones." He opened the bottle and poured a small amount into each glass.

She accepted the offered beverage, sniffed it apprehensively, and grimaced. "You want me to drink that?"

Carl didn't reply. Instead, he lifted his drink and took a long sip, savoring it before putting his glass back on the desk. Kayla looked at his beverage and then considered her own. It seemed harmless enough. Raising it to her lips, she took a drink, making a face at the unfamiliar taste. Her eyes watered from the burn in her throat.

"Hell's balls. What is that?"

He chuckled at her reaction. "It's an old-world drink OmniLab recreated called scotch. It helps relax the muscles."

"Hmm." She licked her lips. "It's not too bad once you get past the burn."

She reached over to confiscate the bottle, poured herself a slightly larger amount, and took another drink. This time, it went down a little easier. She examined the bottle while Carl watched her in amusement.

"Be careful," he warned. "It packs a hell of a punch, especially if you're not used to drinking it."

Carl reached into the desk drawer and pulled out a small tube of cream. Kayla recognized the OmniLab medicinal cream used to promote healing. It was extremely expensive and, in Kayla's experience, should only be used in dire emergencies.

He tried handing it to her, but she pushed it back toward him with a look that clearly let him know she thought he was nuts. "It's a bruise, not a gaping wound."

"Use it. You ruin rats don't take care of yourselves and wait until someone's near death before trying to fix the problem. If you use it, you'll heal faster and it could help prevent further injury."

"If you say so," Kayla huffed. She put a tiny amount of cream on her finger and rubbed it half-heartedly on her neck before handing the tube back to him.

Carl sighed at her lackluster display. "Well, there's not much point if you're going to do it that way."

He flipped open the cap and squeezed a generous amount of the cream onto his fingers. When he touched her neck with the cream, she yelped.

"Hey! That's cold."

"Shh. Don't be such a baby."

She scowled but kept silent. Gentler than she thought he'd be, Carl massaged the cream into the back of her neck and shoulder. She relaxed against him and closed her eyes as his fingers caressed her skin.

He pulled his hands away far too soon and closed the cap on the cream. Kayla opened her eyes in disappointment and watched as he dropped it back into the drawer.

"That's much better. You looked like you were falling asleep. I can't let that happen when you've got important reading to do."

"Yeah, right," she grumbled and turned back to the detailed document. She was relatively quiet for several minutes while she skimmed the monotonous legalese, making occasional, colorful mutters about boring contracts. When she finished, Kayla pushed the tablet away and hopped off the desk. She pulled out her ponytail and shook out her hair.

"All done. Is that it?"

Carl nodded and crossed the desk to stand in front of her. "For now." He looked down into her eyes, and a tingling feeling crept into the pit of her stomach.

Yep, I should have clocked him yesterday when I had the chance. He's too damn pretty for his own good.

"Ah, looks like I missed some," he added when he spotted a tiny bit of cream still on her shoulder. He ran his hand along her shoulder and gently massaged it into her skin.

Yeah, too damn pretty, and I'm a sucker—a sucker with a bug to plant. Kayla placed her hand on Carl's chest, curling her fingers into his shirt. With her other hand, she discreetly slipped the listening device out of her pocket and attached it to the underside of his desk.

Leaning closer to him, she closed her eyes and tilted her head back. That was all the invitation he needed.

Carl lowered his mouth to hers, capturing her lips with his. He tasted like the scotch—warm, spicy, and surprisingly soft.

Damn, the man can kiss. Might as well enjoy this.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against him. This time, she didn't resist and pressed her body against his, winding her arms around his neck. Kayla let out a soft moan, and he deepened the kiss in response. His mouth moved against hers, nipping and teasing and she clutched him tighter, wanting more.

A loud beep interrupted them.

"Damn," he swore as he broke away from her.

She wasn't sure if she was talking about the kiss or the noise. Kayla blinked in confusion, trying to get her head around what happened. He pulled back slightly but didn't release her. Running his thumb along her swollen bottom lip, he gave her a long, heated look. Kayla swallowed and managed, "What was that?"

Carl smiled, looking amused and smug by her flustered state. "It's probably Cruncher and Veridian. Your friend is probably worried about you."

"Oh, right." Kayla slipped out of his grasp, casually straightening her shirt. She glanced up to see Carl still watching her. She flushed and nodded toward the door to remind him about the visitors. He sighed in resignation and hit the button to open the door.

Cruncher and Veridian stepped inside. Veridian was grinning and held up Kayla's equipment. "Zane wasn't able to beat your time even using OmniLab's fancy equipment. I think he got frustrated and gave up. He wants to watch you again at some point."

Cruncher took a quick glance around the room, his eyes moving to the bottle of scotch on the desk and then settled on Carl's annoyed expression and Kayla's mussed hair. His mouth twitched in a grin.

"How goes the recruitment, Boss? Convince her to switch sides yet?"

Carl frowned, giving Cruncher a dark look. "It was progressing nicely. I think I covered most of the major points. Did you have any other questions, Kayla?"

She shook her head, shoving her hands in her back pockets. "Nope, I think you covered everything."

The door beeped again and slid open. Xantham stepped through the door and tsked at Kayla like she was a naughty child. She narrowed her eyes at him. He held up a small metal device no bigger than his thumb. "Hey, Boss, you know how you mentioned you wanted me to do a sweep to make sure Kayla and Veridian didn't accidentally leave anything behind? Well, I found this little bug in the comm room. It must have gotten away from them."

Xantham slid the listening device across the desk. Carl picked it up and examined it closely. He tossed it back down on the desk and looked at Kayla expectantly.

She looked down at the bug and then back up at Carl, giving him her best innocent look. "Gee. Looks like you've got bug problems here too. Nasty little things. You know, we had that same problem up until last night. Seems like there's something going around."

"Imagine that," Carl replied in a dry voice. He turned to Xantham. "Start scanning my office."

He leaned across the desk toward Kayla. "I can only guess what we're going to find in here too. Although, I can't say I didn't enjoy your little distraction."

Kayla bit down on her bottom lip, still feeling the effect of the kiss. With a small shrug, she said, "It's always nice to take pleasure in one's work."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "You're going to be more trouble than I expected, aren't you?"

Veridian snorted. "Leo tells her that all the time. You might want to reconsider whatever offer you made."

Carl gave Kayla a long, lingering look and then shook his head. "No, I don't think so. The offer still stands. I enjoy a challenge."

"Glad to hear it," she replied easily and winked at him. "I'll enjoy giving you one."

She took her equipment from Veridian and turned to look at Carl one last time before heading out. "Thanks again for the tour. It was enlightening. Good luck with your bug problem."