Chapter 35
Lexi grumbled the whole time they used the long-distant lascom to send Mace”s message. He kept the communique short, using encoded information to verify his identity and guarantee the message wasn’t being sent under coercion—a precaution both Grey and Cache would expect. Mace counted on at least one of them receiving it. His chest panged. If neither of them had survived the siege, he didn’t know what he would do.
When the message was finally sent, he took hold of Lexi’s elbow and turned her toward him. “I wouldn’t have come here if I’d had alternatives.”
“I know.” She exhaled a long breath. “I do understand that. And I wouldn’t want the pair of you drifting and running out of air. But with everything…” Her voice trailed off, a grimace marring her features.
“It’s the bio-weapon stuff, isn’t it? It’s got you on edge.”
She tossed her hands in the air. “How can it not? I wake up in cold sweats, wondering what the hell we’re doing out here, if there’s even a purpose to it all anymore. I think, ‘What if we destroy it all?’” A mirthless laugh shuddered through her. “But there’s no point. The information won’t be lost, they’ll have backups. And we’re replaceable. Another CORE outpost would get built. Another batch of CORE scientists would take our place. And if we’re not here, then Tellusians become uninformed. I know we save lives.” Fingers twisted together, she hung her head. “But I’ve been here so long, I sometimes forget I’m Tellusian.”
“Ah, Lex.” Mace wrapped his arm around her neck and pulled her close, his cheek pressed to her hair. Against her ear, he spoke his next words in Tellusian. “Your courage inspires the stars.”
A small sob left her, then she straightened quickly, shrugging off his arm. “You’re so sentimental.” Turning to the terminal, she tapped on the glossy surface.
He grinned at the deflection, then became serious. “It’s time for you to come home.”
Her fingers slowed.
“You’ve done your duty,” he continued. “Don’t let Cache or anyone else convince you differently. You finish the time you’ve promised here, and that’s it. You’re done.”
Mace thought she would refuse and insist she was handling it, but she surprised him when she swallowed and agreed with a nod.
Tension eased from his spine. His big sister would come home. Even if Orion had been taken, she’d return to Tellusian territory, to safety. Too long had she put herself at risk with no thought to her own happiness. He couldn’t begrudge her whatever contentment she’d found with her colleague.
Lexi cleared her throat and refocused on the terminal. “I’m going to download everything from our last months here for Cache. The Condor should be able to hold a file that size.”
Leaning a hip on the terminal, Mace watched her work. After a while, Nia joined him, and he pulled her into his embrace. His sister shot her a glance, but otherwise didn’t stoop to her earlier hostility.
It took three hours, but they received a response, Grey’s ID embedded in the code. Relief his friend had made it to the rendezvous lightened more of the load on his shoulders. But what of Cache? The message was a set of co-ordinates, but it would have been foolish to expect anything else. It gave them a target.
Then there was nothing left to do except say goodbye.
Standing in the docking hatch, Lexi embraced him, wrapping her arms tight. “You be careful.” She pulled back and stared at Nia for a beat before hugging her too. “You take care of each other.”
Over Lexi’s shoulder, Nia’s eyes widened in surprise. Lexi’s temper ran hot, but forgiveness always followed. Amusement flickered through him when she patted Lexi’s shoulder awkwardly before his sister released her. Cheeks pink, Nia stepped away and tucked a stray curl behind her ear.
Justice moved into his line of sight, extending a hand. Mace grasped his forearm in the Tellusian way.
“Your engine coil is fully charged,” Justice said. “Be well.”
“Thank you.” Mace nodded. “Same to you.”
After a self-conscious wave, Nia climbed down the docking tube ahead of him. With one last nod to both scientists, Mace followed. He slid in behind Nia, and she shifted forward to accommodate his size.
“Stay safe, brother,” Lexi murmured above them, the sound echoing, before she locked the docking hatch.
Powering the Condor’s engines, a sense of unease grew inside him, along with the need to tell his sister to come with them, to fly the shuttle to fleet and leave this place for good right now instead of waiting. He had nothing to substantiate the feeling, but it buzzed beneath his skin all the same.
They separated from the outpost with clink clank and accelerated away. The farther they flew, the more Mace’s stomach churned. He couldn’t put his finger on why he was so on edge.
They traveled a long while in silence, Nia shifting and turning, trying to get comfortable in front of him.
When he settled a hand on her hip to keep her still, she huffed out a breath. “How long will it take to get to the rendezvous?”
He touched the panel. “About eight hours.”
Another heavy breath left her as she settled more fully against him, leaning her head onto his shoulder. With nothing to break the monotony of space flight, he thought she dozed off, but she asked, “Can you teach me to fly?”
He tilted his head, and his cock twitched. “Is that a euphemism?” Though it would be virtually impossible to have sex in such a small space.
Slowly, she turned until she met his gaze, her eyebrow raised, lips pursed. “Not a euphemism. I want you to teach me how to pilot this thing.”
“Now?”
“Do you have somewhere else you need to be?”
His lips twitched. “No, I guess not.”
“Well, then.” She gestured to the controls.
Affection lightening his heart, and since he couldn’t think of a good excuse not to, he began to teach her the basics. He started with pre-flight checks and how to initiate the engines. Then how to see if there was a full charge and how to engage the shields. Nia caught on quickly, and before he knew it, he let her take the controls.
She put them in a spin.
“Wow, that was harder than I thought,” she said with a hand to her stomach once he’d righted their position. “You make it look so easy.”
“I was ten when I took the controls of my first ship. I’ve had a bit more experience than you.” He kissed her neck.
She tipped her head to give him better access. “How many different ships can you fly?” His lips tasted the skin of her throat. “I mean, I’ve seen you in, what, three so far? Or are they all similar?”
“No.” He pulled away slightly. “They’re all different, especially between the CORE and Tellusian ones. But I haven’t been in a ship I couldn’t fly, even if I’ve never seen it before.” He shrugged.
She captured his gaze over her shoulder. “So you could fly a Guardian? Or a Destroyer?” she asked, tone disgruntled.
He smiled, kissing the side of her brow, smoothing its lines. “If I had to, but there has to be more than one person on the bridge. Their systems are numerous.”
She turned back to face the front. “My stomach is settled now. I’d like to try again.”
“Keep your eye on your thrust balance. If one is firing hotter than any other, we’ll spin again.”
“Got it.”
He gave her the controls. This time she was able to keep them steady. After a few minutes, she developed a feel for the craft and had them banking in turns. Quick study. It sometimes took tyros weeks to achieve the same success.
“The tricky bit is navigation,” he said, lifting her hair for another kiss and inhaling deep.
“Is this how you teach all your students?” He heard the smile in her voice. “With reward kisses?”
“Yep.”
She shook her head. “Why is navigation tricky? Don’t you use the nav system?”
“Yes, but you can’t take it for granted. If it fails for any reason and you’re out too far, far enough the sun looks like another star, and you can’t chart on your own, you’re fucked. You could fly out of the system instead of where you want to go.”
“I’ve never considered that. Guess I’ll be studying my orbital parameters.”
Mace displayed their current position on the viewer and waited, letting her read the information on her own.
She stiffened. “Doesn’t that mean we’re in Calypson territory right now?” she asked, voice tight.
“Yes, but only on the edge. They won’t bother us.”
She looked out the viewer, like she could see the Calypson nebula so far away with her own eyes. “How can you be so sure?”
“Experience.”
The first time he’d cut through their territory as a kid to avoid a CORE patrol was a day he’d never forget. He was so sure they’d follow him and suck his brains out—or whatever they did to change people—he didn’t go home for an extra two days. But they hadn’t pursued him then or any time after when he needed to shoot across their territory in extreme circumstances.
The front panel blinked. Dread filled him, and he took the controls from Nia.
“What’s that?” she asked.
“A communique from my sister’s outpost.”
If she was breaking comm silence, it meant something bad had happened.
Mace touched the controls, and his sister’s image filled the screen. An angry red mark colored her cheek, the imprint of fingers visible. Her eyes were puffy from crying.
“Justice!” he roared. He was going to cut the man’s balls off and feed them to him. Then beat the shit out of him until he was nothing but a puddle of blood.
“He’s gone,” Lexi said on a sob.
“What happened?” Nia’s softly spoken question broke through the haze of Mace’s rage, making him focus.
“I overheard his communique with the CORE. He’s an agent, Mace. All this time and I had no idea. I’m a blasted idiot. He played me from the start.” Her learned CORE accent disappeared in her upset. “He thought he knocked me out, but I was able to tag the shuttle. Sending you the marker, now.”
This was his fault. He’d done this. Their arrival had spurred whatever Justice had planned, whatever his reason for being at the outpost.
Mace adjusted the controls. “We’re coming back for you.”
“Don’t!” Lexi almost stood when she said it, then sat in her chair. “A Guardian is almost here. He must have signaled it as soon as you arrived. You’ll be captured too, if you return. I wouldn’t fit in the fighter anyway.” Her voice broke.
“I’m not leaving you at the mercy of those people,” he said between his teeth, his clenched jaw throbbing.
“You’re going to have to, little brother. You have a bigger mission ahead of you. You free Orion.” She ran a shaky hand over the mark on her face. “Everything you sent and received from Grey will be compromised. I’m sending you and him alternative rendezvous co-ordinates now.”
“Lex,” he whispered, impotent with the need to help her. The co-ordinates came through, and he changed trajectory.
She jumped, then looked behind her. “They’re here. Take care of yourself, Mace. I love you. Don’t come after me.”
The feed went black.
“No!” he yelled, the sound ripped from the deepest part of him. Fingers digging into the sides of his seat, he tried to tear it apart with his bare hands.
Nia turned her body until her face rested against his chest, fingers clutching his shirt.
He took gasping breaths. If he thought about what would happen to Lexi, he would implode.
“I think I’m going to be sick.” Nia clutched his shirt tighter. “I’m so sorry.”
His big sister.
Mace couldn’t stop his silent tears.