Elite mercenary Connor Rattakul can't escape his past.

After choosing the wrong side in a war against the Directorate, he becomes a fugitive, hiding in the ranks of the thousands of mercenaries always desperate for the next job. But a series of mishaps force his team deep into the Talon Sector, where the Directorate holds power. Only his former girlfriend's intervention can save him.

With Directorate assassins on his trail, Connor is forced to take on a job that his team might not survive from a client his boss says can't be trusted.

But that boss seems ready to crack, and the client is hiding deadly secrets from the mercenaries. Will Connor be able to lead his teammates through the dark world he's led  them to, or will they all die in the alien gloom?

Ill Fortune

When Kalpana threw up an arm to signal a halt, Connor almost sighed in relief. She was still a golden glow of fire in the infrared from his visor, brilliant against the midnight blue.


His back spasmed after far too many kilometers with Martienne on his shoulders, and his mouth was so dry that his tongue stuck to the roof.


A rest. She had to have found a place for them to stop.


The scout waved him forward and pointed to a small, upward sloping clearing about fifteen meters ahead. “One of those mounds Lem and I can watch from.”


Connor sucked in deep gulps of the night air, no longer caring that it wasn’t as cool as he would’ve liked or that he stank from the exertions and the gore covering him.


Chapter 60