CHAPTER 3
Reece
The sound of the door closing behind me with a satisfying snick had me releasing a breath of relief that didn’t do much to remove the majority of my worries, but at least allowed me a moment to breathe.
The fuckers that had hurt me, Addy, and Artemis, not to mention Baldr and the other children, were now locked up unable to hurt anyone else.
Now we just needed to destroy their friends who thought they could get away with hurting our families.
The image of my parents, their naked and dirty bodies contorted into uncomfortable angles just to fit inside the cramped cages, flashed through my mind, and I had to stop where I was in the corridor to take deep breaths before I went on a killing spree.
Soon, I promised both them and myself.
Soon, I will obliterate anyone who dared touch you to get to me.
With wrought nerves, I was barely able to keep under control, I stomped back to the bridge where I found the others already waiting.
The circumference of the room was now free from prisoners, Tormik the only body now leaning deceptively casually against the wall, and I sent a nod to a few of the officers who had helped me to move them.
Most of them had stayed on the lower deck to guard the cells, but a few had chosen to keep their distance once they were finished hauling the unconscious prisoners.
I didn’t blame them.
Not too long ago, I probably would have been them.
I was well aware of my rage.
My parents had raised me to temper it so I would never let it control me, though I had never felt fury so hot that it had ever been an issue before now.
I wasn’t sure I liked who I was becoming, but I couldn’t see any way out of it.
This war was not going to be one through kindness, and they had fucked me and the people I cared about over too many times not to let the anger rule, but it hadn’t completely consumed me just yet. I was still able to think relatively clearly, my moral compass still pointing firmly North.
I just hoped I could maintain the teetering balance.
Artemis was the first to notice my presence, turning to face me before I had even fully entered the room.
It was as if she could sense me long before I appeared, and the truth was that she probably could.
With her enhanced senses, she more than likely could hear me coming from all the way down at the lower levels of the ship.
I wasn’t able to stop my blush from flushing what I knew would be a deep crimson, not wanting to think about what else she overheard without even meaning to.
No wonder she was always blushing around us men when she was undercover as a boy.
She must have been privy to more than just morning wood being waved about in her face every morning.
But then again, she wasn’t exactly shy about her own body.
Perhaps it was just her inexperience around men or simply just people in general. Or maybe it was something else entirely. She remained a mystery to me, though I doubted that would ever change. I wasn’t sure I wanted it to, either. I enjoyed that about her, even when it did unnerve me sometimes.
‘Is it done?’ she asked as I approached, kindly ignoring my warm cheeks.
‘It’s done.
They’re all locked away and under guard,’ I confirmed.
‘Good.’
I gestured to the holographic map they were studying, quickly taking note of the different pathways that made up the interior of the rogue planet’s makeshift settlements.
They were mostly above ground in tents and such, a dome covering them to maintain habitable conditions.
I wouldn’t like to think of what would happen to them if it were destroyed.
Oh, who was I kidding? I was going to make sure they suffocated from a lack of oxygen.
Perhaps they would even float off into the vast expanse of space and turn the asteroid field into a graveyard, if it wasn’t already.
The knowing look Artemis sent me sent chills down my spine.
It was as if she could read my mind, and I wondered for a moment if that was the case.
I couldn’t rule it out as a possibility, but something told me that wasn’t one of her abilities.
She would have told us if she could invade our privacy like that. Even if she could, her honour wouldn’t have let her betray us in such an invasive manner. I knew how guilty she felt about lying to us about her identity before. It just wasn’t who she was.
Correction: it wasn’t who she wanted to be.
She would become anything or anyone to save the people she cared about, and a chink of the wall surrounding my heart fell off at the reminder.
I was glad to have her on my side and be accepted as a part of her inner circle.
‘Are you going to contact Liberty?’ I asked her when my mind ran through the different people inside that inner circle, suddenly concerned how she would react to us sending Baldr away.
‘We have a little time if we’re all done going over the plan?’ she glanced at the others to confirm.
‘We’ve got it, Arty.
We can fill in Reece while you talk to Libby,’ Addy said, compassion shining through her wide magenta eyes as she placed a comforting hand on Arty’s arm.
As a group, we moved closer to where Tormik had stationed himself near the door to give Artemis and Liberty the pretence of privacy, but in reality, we merely gathered close while we eavesdropped.
Whenever Liberty was around, it was one of the few times we saw Artemis mostly, if not fully, drop her mask.
It was a wonderful thing to see, and I was clearly not the only one who was fascinated by the change.
She was like a completely different person, but this time there was less joy and more trepidation driving her motions.
‘A?’ Libby’s voice came through loud and clear, worry colouring her tone.
‘Hey, Libs,’ Arty replied warily. Guiltily.
‘What happened?’ Liberty immediately demanded, her voice no longer warbly but hard and cold.
‘We took over the enemy ship.
We have Demari and a few others in the holding cells on the lower deck,’ she began, avoiding the real reason for the call.
‘Good.
And?’ she pushed, but when Arty didn’t immediately respond, she lost any pretence of patience.
‘Artemis, what aren’t you telling me?’
‘We came across another threat.
The Program is working with pirates to smuggle the people they kidnap for their experiments, and they sent us a video.
They have the families of many of the people here, and they’re hurting them.
We’re going in for a rescue mission.’
‘And what about Bal? Where is he?’ Libby asked, digging right through the centre of the problem to drag the truth out, even if it was kicking and screaming.
I shared a wide-eyed look with Addy when Arty sighed heavily, the weight of this war and the decisions she was forced to make weighing heavily on her shoulders.
‘I sent him and the other children away on the other ship.
They’re heading to Gerinium ahead of us while we handle the threat and free the captives.’
Liberty didn’t answer straight away, the silence like an icy wall between them.
When she finally spoke, her words were just as chilly.
I could practically feel the frostbite nipping at me from all the way over here, and it wasn’t even directed at me.
‘And who is keeping him safe, Artemis, if not you?’
‘All the children are being watched over by the volunteers.
Urman and Foryk went with them, and I put Dorian in charge in my absence.
They’re as safe as they can be right now, Libs.
Baldr’s safe.’
‘He’d better be, A,’ Libby tried to say forcefully, but her voice broke on the last word.
Artemis immediately softened, reaching a hand toward the holographic depiction of her best friend like she could touch her despite the distance.
‘I’m doing everything I can to get him back to you, okay? I promise, he’s safer away from here right now.
I couldn’t risk the pirates getting their hands on any of them if things went south… not that I expect them to, but it wasn’t a risk I was willing to take.’
Liberty’s answering sigh was exhausted and filled with pain.
I couldn’t even begin to imagine how hard it must have been to have had her son snatched away from her so suddenly, and then to just sit back and wait while someone else handled the rescue, even if that someone was the person she trusted most in the entire Intergalactic Union.
‘I know.
I’m sorry.
I’m not mad, I just…’
‘I know, Libs.
You’ll see him soon, I promise.
We both knew it was going to be a tricky journey, and I know it’s not helping that we have to keep redirecting our course, but he’s okay.
He’s safe. They all are.’
‘Captain,’ the pilot called, interrupting the women’s emotional moment.
‘We’re nearing the other side of the asteroid field and closing in on the enemy fleet.’
‘Go,’ Libby ordered, suddenly back to the strong woman we all were getting to know.
‘Let me know when you’re out of the danger zone and keep me updated on Bal when you can, okay?’
‘You got it, Libs.
I love you.’
‘Love you too, A.
See you soon.’
The call ended, Liberty’s holographic face flickering twice before the blue lights eventually cut off.
‘So, two of us are staying behind to shield the ship and provide a distraction.
After a closer look inside the enemy ships, we have found no sign of any captives, only pirates.
We know the layout of their settlements and how they converge in underground tunnels, which is where they’re keeping our loved ones.
We go in, free them, and blow up their dome on the way out, then we leg it out of here and meet up with the others on Gerinium. Easy,’ Cadmus explained, drawing my attention away from Artemis before she could catch us snooping.
I wasn’t kidding myself into thinking she didn’t know, though.
She wasn’t stupid, but at least we could pretend.
‘Who’s stationed where?’ I asked, ready to fight for my spot on the team that was going planet-side.
‘Addy and Bromm are staying behind to shield the ship,’ Xander stated, staring down his woman when she opened her mouth, only she wasn’t about to argue like he thought.
‘No one is going to stop you from getting your parents, Reece.
You’re heading in with Arty, Cadmus, Tormik, and the Corporals.’
I refrained from physically deflating with relief, mentally chastising myself for my unfounded worries.
Arty had already promised me I could go with them.
I wasn’t sure where my fears were coming from, and I didn’t like it.
‘Yeah, I know.
Sorry,’ I apologised sheepishly.
‘It’s fine.
We’re all wound up, we get it,’ she replied with a sad smile.
‘Addy, Bromm, get those shields up now,’ Artemis ordered, her voice cutting through our little bubble.
‘We’re coming up on the enemy within a few clicks.
We need to be ready.’
‘On it, Cap!’ Addy saluted, grabbing Bromm’s hand and dragging him over to the side and ignoring the way he shot a lust-filled glare at Arty that he quickly shook off.
I looked away when they started to glow and Arty joined us.
‘Time to suit up and get your people back.’
She pressed her hand against the wall which turned out to be a hidden scanner, and it opened up to reveal a few dozen black space suits lined up ready for use.
She plucked six of them out and handed them to us, waving Gwyn, Hum’Rit and Stanson over to put on theirs.
I was worried mine wasn’t going to fit as they were all the same size, but it expanded to mould to my size and shape.
The Program’s technological advancements took me by surprise once again. It pissed me off when a grudging respect for their achievements broke through the deeply embedded hatred, but despite their cruelty towards living beings they still managed to create an astounding amount of useful trinkets and devices that I was begrudgingly glad for.
At least they were useful for something.
As the zipper on my suit blended seamlessly into the fabric, hidden away to avoid any leaks, and my reinforced glass helmet slid over my face, I looked around at the people who had become my family in such a short space of time.
Pride and affection swelled in my chest right above the knot in my stomach that twisted with anticipation.
I’m coming, Ma, Pa.
You’ll be free soon.