Leaning closer, he realized the first woman was weeping, tears squeezing out from under her closed eyelids and tracking onto the mattress below her. She didn’t appear to be conscious but, to his eyes, she seemed to have grown thinner, with hollows in her cheeks.
He was desperate to help her and the others but, before he could make another attempt on the control box, if indeed that was the purpose of the boxy red rectangle, he heard a sound in the corridor. Gabe retreated to the vent, barely making it to safety with the stool kicked far away again and the grate swung shut behind him before the door opened with a hiss.
Dr. Farahnnim walked in, followed by the lab tech Slibb and a black clad security officer. Gabe shrank back in the shaft, wondering where this guy had been when he was captured and allowed to walk around, and how many guards he had in his command. Keshara had said there was only one security person so maybe this man was he.
“I made immense strides today on solving the linchpin equation. There’ll be a breakthrough soon.” The scientist was rebraiding her hair as she walked and the security officer crowded her, hand on her waist, straying slightly below the belt as if they were a couple. Slibb stayed a few paces behind.
Adding dots and a squiggle was a big advance? Something about her boast felt really off to Gabe, and he caught Slibb rolling his eyes as he brought up the rear of the little procession.
Farahnnim peered at the container of whatever it was she was extracting from her subjects and rapped on the side with a long fingernail, making the fluid shimmer in the lab lights. “See, I told you there’d be plenty,” she said to the others. “By the time I perform the complete process, we’ll have enough doses for several more months.”
Slibb was checking the various readouts. “Two of the daughters appear to be in good enough shape to survive a few more rounds of extraction. But then we’re going to need new specimens.” He pointed at the pod of the woman who’d been silently weeping. “Jezari isn’t going to last much longer, maybe one more cycle.”
Farahnnim shrugged. “Keshara has outlived her usefulness, with this stunt of running away, and she’s shown a dangerous level of independent thought. The Daughters all know the penalty for breaking the rules. Her exposure to this human is another problem. Who knows what he may have told her? She can come in here a year or two early rather than us taking a chance we can continue to control her.”
Over my dead body. Gabe held his anger in check because right now he wasn’t in a position to take action. The security officer wore a neuro whip and a stun gun at his hip and, even with the element of surprise, Gabe was outnumbered.
“But we have to start dealing with the looming issue of scarcity, darling,” the officer said, nuzzling the scientist’s neck and fondling her rear. “Are you sure you can’t coax any more specimens from the mattrichiexe?”
Gabe’s translator balked at the word so apparently there was no equivalent in Basic.
The scientist frowned and shook her head, even as she arched her body coquettishly into his casual caresses. “You know I can’t, which is why we’ve discussed ways and means of acquiring what we need from the other labs.”
“And ruled it out,” the man said emphatically. “It’s been too long, Fara. We can’t risk it. We have no idea what the conditions are out there.”
“Well, we can’t exactly go without, can we?” She took a step away from him and glared.
Gabe wished he knew what the core of the argument was. It sounded like highly useful data. Maybe Keshara could shed light on things for him later.
The scientist was speaking again, her voice thoughtful. “But now there might be a new possibility, with this human male we’ve captured. If he proves to be compatible, if I can activate the right receptors in the daughters and, if the correct genes are dominant, the offspring might be useful to us here, once they were in early adulthood. We could stretch the yield from the others that long, especially if I could use growth accelerants on the offspring. The women and this man are all humanoid stock at the root, despite the enhancements to the DNA of the Daughters.”
Gabe stared at her so hard he was afraid she’d feel the weight of his hatred. Didn’t take a scientific genius to get the gist of that remark. No way in seven hells he was providing his services as a donor to make human-Badari babies for her to experiment on. His skin crawled. Every time he encountered them, he realized all over again how depraved the Khagrish were.
“Right in line with your specialty, darling,” said the officer in a fawning voice. “Tweaking DNA, adjusting genes. If anyone can do it, you can.”
“Except this idiot let the human escape.” Farahnnim pointed at Slibb and the tech cowered.
In a placating tone, head bowed, shoulders hunched as if expecting a beating, Slibb said, “Zammarqq was lapsing into one of his fits—”
“With the blizzard outside, the human hasn’t gone anywhere, I promise you,” the officer interrupted smoothly. “He’s in the building, and we’ll find him.”
Eavesdropping, Gabe grinned and shook his head. Talk about misplaced faith in his own abilities—this security guy was all kinds of egotistical. Dealing with a Sectors Special Forces operator here, pal. Nothing you’ve ever encountered before. You don’t even know I’m right here, a few feet away.
The machine finished harvesting the motes from the body of the third Badari woman and the machine shut down with a series of loud clicking noises. Slibb took the container from the core, handling it as if it was the most precious object in the galaxy, and set it securely into a padded holder on a rolling cart nearby. “Shall I take this into your personal lab now, doctor?”
“Yes. I’ll make the elixir tonight, and we can do injections in the morning.” Farahnnim patted the top of the nearest pod and turned on her heel to leave the medlab.
“You should let Slibb help you,” the security officer said as he followed her.
The scientist made a rude noise. “How many times have we had this same discussion? You know my answer to that: only a senior scientist such as myself is skillful enough to understand and manipulate the elements. Distilling the elixir is my job and mine alone.”
Slibb and the officer exchanged looks behind her back, which seemed derisive to Gabe, even though he was no expert at reading Khagrish facial expressions. These guys don’t like her monopoly on whatever it is she’s doing. Maybe they don’t trust her.
He waited a few more minutes after the door closed behind them. Giving the three prisoners a final glance he made a vow, Hold out, ladies. I’ll do my damnedest to get you out of there. But first he had to rescue himself and get the pack up here for a full assault. I can’t wait to see Aydarr’s face when I tell him there actually are Badari women.
Muscles kinked from sitting in an awkward position in the air shaft, he debated. The ventilation network continued in the direction he’d been going, which was also the way he’d seen the Khagrish head when the trio left the medlab. Curious to know more about the purpose of the elixir Farahnnim had harvested, he decided to keep working his way into her private lab.
Only to be stymied a few minutes later when the ventilation shaft narrowed and became impassable. There was no access to any room deeper in this wing of the installation. He couldn’t risk a trip into the corridor when he wasn’t sure where his enemies had moved, so he retreated, past the medlab, through the deserted wing, and into the main lab again.
With happy anticipation, he followed the smell of cooking and shimmied and crawled his way to the kitchen, where the staff’s meal had evidently been prepared. No lumpy mush for them. Since the place was deserted, he left the vent to raid the storage compartments and found the leftovers of some decent roasted meat and fresh vegetables. Careful to take a small quantity from each dish, he also got some bread and a piece of fruit, two bottles of nutrient fluid and re-entered his new home, the warren of tunnels.
He assumed it would occur to the Khagrish to set a trap for him in the kitchen at some point, but at least tonight he could eat well
Resolving to pick out and fortify a room in one of the deserted areas so he could get some much needed sleep, Gabe retreated from the active area of the complex, hoping tomorrow the blizzard would wane, he could find the clothing and gear he needed, break Keshara out of her cell, and escape.
CHAPTER FOUR
Keshara sat on her bunk in the cell, playing a desultory game of cards. After a week in confinement she moved from bored to on edge about what her ultimate fate was going to be and then reverted to boredom. It was impossible to maintain the high level of stress. The Director had been silent on the topic of her ultimate punishment, and Ashla made vague threats on her daily visits to Keshara. The past two days she hadn’t even bothered to strike at Keshara during her time berating her, so maybe the situation was easing.
Tossing the cards on the table, Keshara reclined against the thin pillows and found her thoughts drifting to the human, Gabe. She was relieved yesterday to see him on his feet and healthy. She couldn’t find it in her heart to regret the decision she’d made to rescue him at the cost of surrendering herself. She hoped now he understood why she’d lied to him about the fact he was going to find himself in Khagrish captivity.
Conjuring up her favorite new mental image of him, standing outside the force barrier, face set in lines of concern over her, with that sexy low voice caressing her ears, she sighed and shifted on her cot to relieve some of the internal ache. An ache she was sure he’d be able to take care of better than anything she’d ever been able to do for herself in the privacy of her small bedchamber.
Keshara wasn’t even sure what exactly she was yearning for where he was concerned, but she’d never felt like this before about anyone in her extremely limited circle of acquaintances and associates at the Retreat.
Gabe was something way outside her experience all right, and she craved more intimate knowledge.
When the alarms sounded later she’d been worried for him all over again. When Raeblin brought her dinner, she’d whispered telepathically the news of Gabe’s escape, and so far he hadn’t been recaptured. Palinna had confirmed the information in a hasty exchange when she delivered the morning meal.
Keshara was happy for him and not at all surprised he’d fulfilled her expectation of being able to escape without too much trouble. Self-indulgent sadness colored her mood, however, because she’d never see him again, and there was so much more to know. She felt restless and frustrated that the Great Mother had set her on the path to find Gabe, only to lose him so soon thereafter. He seemed to be an honorable man, and remembering the warm look in his eyes and the kind tones in his voice set off little explosions of heat and desire in her inner core.
At least I got to see how well he recovered and talk to him one more time. She brushed away a tear.
“Psst!”
At the unexpected sound coming from the direction of the grate, she blinked, sat up, and slid off the bed, staring across the cell in disbelief.
“It’s me, Gabe.” The whisper was nearly inaudible, even to one with her acute Badari hearing.
She hurried to the wall where the grate was situated, near the ceiling, and peered upward. Dimly, she could see him behind the thin metal slats. “What are you doing here? I believed you’d escaped.”
He made a shushing gesture with one hand. “Keep your voice down. Is there a working vidcam in the cell? Anyone in the corridor?”
“No to both questions.”
“I’m going to unscrew this grate, help you get in here, and then we’re on our way out of this place again. I’ll help you escape in return for guiding me off this peak and toward the foothills where I crashed. Deal?”
“I’d be a fool to say no. Deal.” Excitedly, she watched him undo the fasteners and carefully open the grate. She stretched her hands to him, and he pulled her inside the ventilation shaft, retreating in the narrow space so she could fit.
“You’ll have to screw it back together,” he said. “I can’t squeeze past you. Let them wonder how in the seven hells you escaped with the force barrier activated. But do it fast—we have to grab our gear and make it outside.”
Turning awkwardly in the confined area, she did as he requested. “Using the vents didn’t even cross my mind. Too used to my own environment, I guess.”
He laughed, a low sexy sound arrowing straight to her core. “I’ve had experience escaping Khagrish labs before. Ready to travel?”
“Yes.” She crawled on her hands and knees behind him, trying not to notice how closely the tight black security uniform he’d evidently stolen somewhere hugged his well-muscled butt. Those were the wrong observations, distracting her from what she had to accomplish today.
The journey through the maze of shafts astounded her, but Gabe moved unerringly, clearly well aware of his destination. They had to lie motionless at one point while Slibb and the other lab tech stood having a conversation in an inconvenient spot adjacent to the very ventilation shaft the fugitives were moving through. Then the human took her into a deserted portion of the lab and soon she was climbing down in a closed off room, where he’d evidently stashed the results of his foraging for the past day and night.
She got a good look at him as he helped her out of the opening and set her on her feet. He was dressed in the tight fitting uniform, which outlined his muscles clearly, and he had the command device for neurocontrollers and a pulse gun at his hip. He’d found boots to fit somewhere, and he presented the picture of a determined soldier ready for action, which she found both reassuring and wildly attractive. “Thank you for coming to get me,” she said.
Shaking his head, he smiled. “Hey, we’re a team, and I owe you. Let me see your arm so I can get the damn bracelet off. I hate those things.”
Keshara nodded as he gently supported her arm with one hand and applied the control with the other. “I never had one on before. The pain was intense when Blanggin gave me a dose to teach me a lesson before they shoved me in the cell.”
“Blanggin, is that the security guy? How many men does he have under his command?”
“Only himself.”
Gabe shook his head as he dropped the now-released bracelet on the floor. “The more I learn, the stranger this setup gets.” He rubbed her arm, examining the fading bruises. “Was the bracelet before or after someone beat you up?”
Keshara blushed, shame rising in her like a tide. “Ashla, the First Daughter, administers punishment. She was livid at my lack of gratitude for all the Director does for us, for insulting her by leaving the Retreat.”
“Uh huh.” Head tilted, Gabe raised his eyebrows. “I’ve got my own views on the issue, starting with never trust a Khagrish. Listen, we have a lot to talk about, stuff I want to know, questions I’m sure you want to ask, but right now we need to get out of here before anyone notices you missing.” He moved to the stack of outerwear and gear. “Damn Khagrish are like pack rats, even in a half deserted outpost like this one. I tried to find something in your size. Where’d you get the clothes you had on when we met?”
Keshara joined him and sorted through his stack of purloined items. “We have to go outside and do maintenance on occasion and the Khagrish send us into the preserve to hunt game so I had my own boots and coat, but it was all taken away when Ashla brought me back. What’s your plan?”
“This room is close to an outer door. We open it or blow it or whatever’s needed and run like hell. The storm is still going on, but at a reduced velocity so we’ll have good cover.”
“We have another advantage since today is Elixir Day.” She pulled on appropriate outerwear. “The Khagrish tend to keep to their own chambers.”
“Yeah, that’s one of my questions: what the hell is that stuff?”
Keshara shrugged as she piled ration bars and other items in a backpack. “I have no idea. Some ritual they observe. It seems very serious to them. Where did you get all of this?”
“This place has a number of storerooms in the deserted wings. Seems like at one time the Director planned for a higher occupancy rate.” He picked up a stunner, checked the charge and held it out to her. “I’ll keep the pulse rifle, but you can have this one.”
Keshara hesitated. “I’ve never held a weapon before.”
“You are a weapon, you Badari.” His tone was admiring and the remark was obviously meant as a compliment. She felt herself blushing. “But sometimes it’s handy to have stopping power that works from a distance.” He offered it to her again. “Problem?”
Keshara took the weapon from his hand and marveled at the feel of the stunner. The power it conferred on her was astonishing—she could take down a Khagrish. Even the Director herself!
He laughed, showing his deep, genuinely amused mirth again. “I see the idea taking hold in your mind. Amazing what a bit of offensive power can do for a person. But the two of us aren’t enough to take down the place and rescue the others. Trust me, if I could pull off an extraction operation right now, today, I would. Nope, our task is to get away and call in the reinforcements. The Alpha will be more than willing to come north with the pack and kick ass. I won’t kid you, we have a lot of hiking to do before we get somewhere that I can figure out a way to make contact. Weeks maybe. I searched here for a coms unit but didn’t see anything I could use.” Now Gabe was stuffing the second backpack full of food and a few salvaged items whose purpose she didn’t understand. Why did he want a rope? Apparently struck by a thought, he paused and gave her a searching look. “Is there a flyer here?”
“Like the one you crashed?”
He grimaced as he directed his attention to the stash of supplies and gear. “Yeah. Don’t remind me.”
Hastily, she tried to atone for the gaffe. Obviously, his flying skills were a point of pride for him. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”
“You didn’t, no problem. Based on what you’ve seen of my abilities as a pilot, I don’t blame you for being skeptical.”
-->