Chapter 13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Nik stared into the darkness, his arm still outstretched. His frantic heartbeat echoed like a hammer striking his skull. He couldn’t see her, just heard the frenzied cries of the zombies as they rampaged below.
No. No. He didn’t let himself think. He leaped up and charged across the roof, not even looking to see where there were holes or weak patches.
He reached Galen and the others. They’d retracted their aeropacks, so the wings were gone and they just wore what looked like heavy backpacks over their combat armor.
“She fell?” Galen’s face was grim.
Niklas eyed the man who’d once been his friend. Galen was a few inches taller and a lot leaner than Nik. Nik glanced at the other soldiers. A human woman, a slightly-built Modian, and a young blond man. The blond looked about Nik’s size.
“I need your armor,” Nik bit out.
The man blinked. “What?”
“Combat armor. Now. Hurry.”
Galen stepped closer. “Nik, it’s too late. She’ll be one of them—”
He felt a muscle in his jaw tick. “Take your damn armor off!”
The blond agent stood frozen, but when Galen nodded, the younger man reluctantly stripped his heavy chest armor off.
Nik slapped it on his own chest. “Weapon.”
It was the woman who stepped forward and handed him her plasma shotgun.
Without another word, he turned.
“Phoenix, you’ll need this.” Galen held out a mini zip line and retractor, similar to the grappler Nera had used.
He took it. “Thanks.” Then he turned and ran back to where he’d last seen her.
He attached the zip line to the edge of the roof and clipped the other end to his belt. He lifted the shotgun and stepped into the hole.
As the zip line lowered him, he aimed up at the roof. He shot out a larger section of it, the mostly rotted pieces falling down, letting more sunlight flood into the room below. The zombies moaned and writhed, scrambling back into the shadows.
Now he aimed his weapon downward. The shotgun’s boom was loud in the confines of the room. The zombies scattered.
The floor was smeared with black blood. He prayed there wasn’t any red mixed in with it.
His feet touched the floor. He unclipped the zip line and strode forward. Where was she? All he could see were zombies hovering in the shadows, trying to work out how to get to him and at the same time, avoid the sunlight. He shot any that got too close.
One large zombie reared up in front of him. Nik swung the shotgun around, but a laser weapon whined, and the zombie fell under a hail of green laser fire.
Nik looked up and saw Galen lowering himself down on another zip line above, clutching a laser rifle. He gave Nik a nod.
Nik nodded back and focused again on the shadows at the edge of the room. The zombies definitely seemed more sluggish and uncoordinated. They clearly didn’t function best in the day.
He spotted a doorway and pushed through, taking down three more zombies as he went.
Then he heard a high-pitched ringing sound, followed by the sounds of fighting.
He charged in, afraid of what he was going to see.
And there she was.
She had her sword out. She was twirling and slashing in a horrific sort of dance. Zombie body parts were flying, and some creatures looked like they were trying to retreat. Others had their hands clamped over their ears, frozen where they stood.
Nik took down another zombie and reached her. God. She was covered in blood from head to toe.
But she was alive. Gloriously alive.
“Couldn’t let me rescue you, huh?” He grabbed her and yanked her close for a second. Then he pulled back and checked her arms, her legs.
“No bites.” She stared at him. “You came after me.”
“I said I would.” He frowned. “What’s that annoying ringing sound?”
She pulled out her Sync. “It got damaged when I fell and started making this noise. The zombies don’t like it. They must have sensitive hearing.”
The Sync’s screen was cracked. The thought of her falling made his chest tighten again. “Let’s get out of here.” Not able to let her go, he tugged her back toward the other room.
Galen appeared. He eyed Nera with a hard, assessing gaze. “You’re alive.”
“Yes. Sorry to disappoint.”
He didn’t react to her barb. “You’ll have to be scanned before we board the ship.”
Nik bristled, but Nera pressed her hand to his arm. “Of course.”
“Let’s get the hell out of here.” Nik decided not to punch Galen, since he’d come to help and he was doing his job. But it was a close call.
They attached themselves to the zip lines and zoomed upward. Soon, they were navigating across the roof toward the others. Every step of the way, something dark and ugly—born in that moment Nera’s hand had slipped out of his—was growing in his chest. It pumped through his veins like poison.
He thought he’d lost her.
“Ms. Darc?” The female agent stepped forward. “You’ll ride with me.” Suddenly, the wings on her aeropack shot outward.
Nera stepped closer, busy eyeing the aeropack like she’d just been out for a quick bite to eat, not battling for her life against monstrous zombies.
The agent attached a harness to Nera. “Hold on.”
Galen appeared, holding up his scanner. He ran it over Nera’s long form. It beeped. “You’re clean. You won’t even have to spend any time in the decontamination chamber.”
“Glad to hear that,” she said.
Galen turned to Nik. “You’re with me, Phoenix.”
Nik watched as Galen expanded his aeropack wings, then attached the harness to Nik.
“Ready?” Galen asked.
“I was ready ages ago,” Nik replied. “Let’s just get out of here.”
“Done.” There was a quiet rumble from the aeropack and Galen pushed them off the edge of the roof.
They dipped at first, and so did Nik’s stomach. Then they soared upward, the wind rushing against his face.
He turned his head and saw Nera and her ride beside them. She wasn’t smiling, but he got the impression she was enjoying herself. At any other time, on any other occasion, Nik would have been interested in the flight. Would have appreciated the bird’s-eye view of the city ruins below.
But now that feeling inside was choking him and he couldn’t even speak.
He’d almost lost her.
As they neared the Drake, he saw that it was no longer on the ground, but hovering in the air. A large cargo door on the side of the hull retracted.
Nera and the female agent went in first. He watched the woman slow the pack’s engine, then both women touched down, running a few steps to come to a stop. An electronic capture field shimmered blue beyond them, a precaution for a bad landing.
The other two agents went in next.
“Our turn,” Galen said.
They flew through the door, and seconds later, Nik’s feet touched metal. He let out a breath. Safe.
Avril was waiting for them. “Nik, I am so pleased to see you’re okay. I’ve brought the medics so you can get your injections straight away.”
He nodded. Now the adrenaline of Nera’s fall was wearing off, he felt the fatigue and nausea of the radiation poisoning. He bared just enough skin for the medic to jab him. He winced, then redid his trousers. He watched a female medic doing the same for Nera.
Avril gestured. “We really need to debrief—”
He brushed past Avril, grabbed Nera’s arm, and strode toward the exit.
“Nik?” Avril called out.
He didn’t bother answering her.
“I believe Phoenix and Darc need some time to…clean up, rest…recuperate,” Galen said dryly.
Nik charged down the corridor toward his cabin.
Nera cleared her throat. “Niklas—”
“Don’t talk.” His voice was low, harsh.
“We’re both alive—”
“Be quiet.” He reached his quarters, opened the door with a bang of his palm on the lock, and dragged her inside.
Once the door locked behind them, he spun her and slammed her against the wall. He moved in, his hands pressed to the wall on either side of her head. His chest was heaving, and he wasn’t sure what he wanted to say. God, he wasn’t sure the black, ugly pressure inside would even let him talk.
All he knew was that it needed her, he needed Nera. He needed to know she was alive, okay, and his.
“You’re upset,” she said.
Upset. Upset didn’t begin to describe what he was feeling. He kissed her.
Heat. It was like being swallowed by molten flames. He deepened the kiss, thrust his tongue into her mouth, and she tangled her tongue with his. God, she tasted so good.
“I thought you were dead.” He tugged her silver-blonde hair back. “I thought—” His voice broke.
“I’m alive.” Her mouth slid away from his lips, nipping at his jaw, then down the side of his neck.
Nik suddenly realized he was pawing at her, after they’d both spent a rough night stuck in a zombie-infested ruin.
He stumbled back. “God. Sorry, Nera. You probably want to rest, clean up.” He raked his hands through his hair. “I’m tearing at you like a jacked-up schoolboy.” He opened his door. “Go. Rest.”
He led her to her door, felt her watching him, her gaze intent. He opened her cabin door and gently pushed her inside. His hands flexed, he wanted to drag her back to him.
They stared at each other as the door closed between them.
Suddenly, Niklas was at a loss as to what to do with himself. He strode back to his room. His hands cried out to be on her flesh, and that ugly pain inside was still beating at him.
He’d almost lost her. She’d almost died.
Cursing, he stomped into the tiny bathroom. He stripped off his armor and his dirty clothes, and dropped them on the floor. He was usually tidy, but right now he didn’t have it in him.
After running the water burning hot—well, it was mostly spray with the water-saving devices ships used—he scrubbed off the filth. Then he switched to cold to douse his still raging emotions. He pressed his palms to the wall and let the water beat over his head. It didn’t work.
Finally, he flicked off the water and got out. He ran a towel over himself, then wrapped it around his hips. He might need to hit the gym, or pull out some work to do, anything to distract himself from thinking of Nera falling, his hand uselessly grabbing air.
He stepped into his room. He’d taken a few steps when a weight hit him from the side, sending him sprawling onto the bed.