Pirate Ambush Read Online Free PDF Page B

the tarpaulin. They had to be space pirates. Peri edged closer to eavesdrop. He listened for a while. He could only hear snatches of their conversation.
    ‘. . . IF ship for sale . . .’ The words triggered an internal alarm. Peri leaned in.
    ‘I’ve never seen a real IF ship,’ one pirate said. ‘But I bet it’s a perfect replacement for our rust bucket.’
     

     
    The other pirate was halfway through crunching into a fried rat. ‘Can’t be a real one, can it?’ The pirate spat tiny flecks of fried rat as he spoke. ‘We’ll check it out, but I want to eat first.’
    ‘Yeah, all right. The guy selling it hangs around outside the Probe Palace. He should be there for a while.’
    Peri couldn’t believe his luck. He activated the coms-patch. ‘Someone’s trying to sell an IF ship. It has to be Jaxx,’ he whispered. ‘Otto, the seller does business around the Probe Palace. See if you can find out where it is. I’ll round up the others. We’ll meet you there.’
    ‘Maybe later,’ Diesel replied. ‘I’m in the middle of buying something.’
    ‘That sounds like a long shot, Peri,’ Selene chipped in. ‘And I’m in a good place to watch people coming and going. Jaxx is bound to pass me if he’s here.’
    Peri sighed. Why aren’t they listening to me? He would have to go and collect them. He activated the location-trackers on the coms-patch. An arrow appeared in his field of vision and Peri started jogging in that direction. He weaved through the streets until he found Diesel in the middle of a small crowd, haggling with an old man.
    ‘Come on,’ Peri said, pulling Diesel away. ‘We’ve got to go.’
    ‘ Põr’sünĝ , Peri ,’ Diesel hissed. ‘I’ve got him down to ten squares. You have to be pretty clever not to fall for their tricks. They always start too high.’ Diesel turned, but the old man and the crowd had melted away. Diesel patted down his pockets, then gasped. ‘ S’fâh , all my squares are gone. I’ve been robbed!’
    Peri dragged the half-Martian away before he could cause more trouble.
    They found Selene crouched by the teleporters, watching people arrive and depart. She shrugged and followed them.
    Peri activated his coms-patch. ‘Otto, any luck finding the Probe Palace?’
    ‘Yes!’ Otto boomed over the coms-patch. ‘It’s a large casino next to a used-spaceship yard! Transmitting coordinates now.’
    A map flashed across Peri’s mind’s eye. ‘Come on,’ he said.
    Peri led Selene and Diesel back through the streets of Haven until they came to a tall, tapered building that towered over the others. A sign saying Probe Palace Casino hung over the door. Otto was waiting for them outside. He pointed to a squat orange alien with a mouth full of gold teeth who was standing at the entrance to the used-spaceship yard.
    ‘That’s Awdus Erox, the spaceship dealer!’ Otto boomed. ‘I bet he bought the ship from Jaxx hoping to sell it for a lot more!’
    ‘But why would Jaxx abandon a decent ship?’ Diesel said.
    ‘He must suspect the IF is tracking him,’ Peri said. ‘But he’s always a step ahead of us. Someone must be helping –’
    ‘What do we do now?’ Selene interrupted.
    ‘The ship is our only lead,’ Peri said. ‘Diesel, Otto, you guys pretend you’re interested in buying it. That will create a diversion, then Selene and I can sneak on board to snoop around.’
    As Diesel and Otto started haggling with Awdus, Peri and Selene tiptoed past. The IF ship was made of sleek grey and yellow panels. It wasn’t big, but it looked fast and well designed. It was definitely the best ship in the yard.
    ‘This way,’ Selene said as she shinned up one of the ship’s metal landing struts.
    She pulled out an electro-wrench from her pocket and removed an access panel, then helped Peri up into the ship and on to the Bridge. Inside, it was a mess. The deck was covered in wires, components and strange-looking gadgets.
    ‘I think Jaxx was taking apart the consoles,’