Liar's Game

by Kait Gamble

Overview

Rumors of Aurelia Popkiss's death have been greatly exaggerated. In fact, she and her crew have been drifting through the big black, scavenging to survive since the day she "died." Yet after years of being on the wrong side of less than favorable odds, they never thought that finding a young girl stowed away on their ship would prove to be among the worst things to happen to them.
From the moment Aurelia finds Kateryn concealed in her cabin, Auri knows she's hiding something. But even Aurelia can't imagine the true reason for the stowaway's sudden appearance in her life.
Kateryn's past is as convoluted and murky as Aurelia's own. The girl is out for revenge and nothing is going to stop her from destroying Aurelia and her crew—including Keys, Aurelia's fellow shipmate and the man she's secretly in love with—to get it.
32,000 words

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781426894015
Publisher:	Carina Press
Publication date:	02/11/2025
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	92
File size:	929 KB

About the Author

An inveterate traveller, Kait has set foot on three continents and has the other four on her bucket list (yes, even Antarctica). Until she can see them all, she writes romances that take readers to far-flung locales, often to places she's been or hopes to one day go. For now, she's settled in England, where she spends most of her time plotting, scribbling ideas on every available scrap of paper and trying out dialogue on her cat.

Read an Excerpt

Aurelia Popkiss glared at the half-dozen men who dared to board her ship and didn't know what annoyed her more: the fact that eight meagerly armed men thought they would take them so easily, or the imbecile currently blocking her shot.

"Where's the vault?" The small one in front without a single strand of hair on his head obviously fancied himself the leader. Not a man she would have followed into battle, personally. He waved a mass of metal nearly the length of his arm at them. "This ain't a toy, you know."

No, definitely not a toy. She felt the urge to comment on his need to carry such a big gun, but she figured it wouldn't be well received. It was never good to taunt a man about the size of his weapon.

"You'd best shove off, mate." Everhard, aka the man-mountain blocking her from view, made her so proud. "We haven't got a vault."

A sharp bark of laughter burst from the little man. "Look at your clothes, your fancy weapons. This ship ain't exactly a relic. Of course you've got a vault. Now, tell us or we start shooting and find it anyway."

Not only was he short in stature, but on brainpower too.

Weapons on her side lifted a little higher. They had at least eight men while Aurelia's side had five, including her. But her men's weaponry was much more advanced. Surely they had to see this too. The exotic munitions her men carried should have been a tip off that they weren't the type that got hijacked.

The intruders seemed to realize they might be at a disadvantage when Bam stepped forward. They took an instinctive step back. He had that effect on people. Or at least his mechanical bits did. With one eye and an arm replaced by machinery—in addition to his size—he cut a frightening figure. "Best think again, mate. Y' might have the numbers, but we've more firepower. Whatmakes y' think y' can get past us?"

The other group looked more than a little daunted by the overt challenge. Their eyes darted from one another to their diminutive leader.

The little man's face twisted with such hatred that Aurelia could almost feel it coming off him in waves. "Have it your way!"

Then hell decided to have its way with her ship.

Shots flew from the guns of the invaders, while Aurelia and her crew dove for the nearest cover.

Aurelia landed behind a crate just as a bullet grazed the corner. "Fire!"

Her men didn't hesitate. She edged around her shield and fired. The scream that rewarded her almost made a smile curl her lips. She relished the cries of fright when they unleashed the awesome power of Meri's weapons. Unlike what the would-be marauders were firing, their weapons didn't merely propel bullets. Hiding behind things wasn't going to save them from what was essentially target-seeking lightning.

Brilliant flashes of light burst in the cargo hold, accompanied by the dull thud of bodies falling to the floor.

Unable to see any more adversaries, Aurelia sidled out from her hiding place inch by inch in search of another target. She stifled a cry of pain behind gritted teeth when an arm snagged around her middle and dragged her to the forefront.

Furious, Auri glared at her men when their guns sagged a little. The expression on her face was enough to buoy them back up again.

"Get your hands off her and get the hell off this ship!" Everhard jerked his head toward the airlock. "We've got the upper hand."