When Mahoney reached Mikael’s quarters, she had also reached a decision. It would be foolish to continue on this path with him. It would give him false hope of a future together, and give her nothing but heartache when she had to leave him. It was better for her to focus on Jessica now and helping her get through the next month safely so they could go back home to their lives. To that end, she replicated a duffel bag and began stuffing her scattered clothing into its depths haphazardly, uncaring if they were clean or dirty. She wanted to be back in her old room before he returned for the evening.
Her plans were foiled when the doors slid open and his now familiar form strode into the room. His face was wreathed in a smile, and his long legs ate up the distance between them until he was able to pull her into his body for a rough kiss. “I have missed you today, Katsuko. I am sorry that I have been away from you all day. We spotted an unknown vessel trailing us that would not respond to our hails. It has disappeared now, so I made haste to come find you so that we may take our evening meal together.”
When she didn’t respond or meet his eyes, he took a step back and noticed the bag swinging from her hand with clothes spilling out of its top. “There’s no need to rush in packing, little warrior. Our ship will not enter T’Kalan airspace for another 20 hours,” he stated, his tone cautious.
She broke away from his strong embrace and continued stuffing her clothes in the duffle and retrieved her hairbrush to throw it on top. “I’m not just packing for T’Kala, Mikael. I’m going back to my room.”
His silence weighed heavily on her, but she dare not look at his face for fear that she would waver in her resolve. Finally, he broke the tension and asked, “What have I done to anger you, Katsuko? Just speak your truth and know that I will do whatever is in my power to make it right between us.”
Mahoney rubbed a weary hand over her face. She hated emotional confrontations. Usually, she was able to walk away without a backward glance, but this was different. This time, this man, had changed her and it scared her to death. “I’m not angry with you. I just think that we need some space from each other. All of this,” she gestured helplessly around them, “Isn’t going to lead to anything. I’m still going home in a month, and I don’t want to make our parting harder on either of us than it has to be.”
His lips thinned in anger, and his pale eyes darkened with his temper. “What if I do not want space from you? Why do you get to decide what is right for me, for us? I want you in my rooms and in my bed. I want you every minute of every day, and even in my dreams. I am asking you to stay, Katsuko.”
She could tell that it was hard for the proud warrior and commander to bend enough to ask, but her racing heart sent adrenaline coursing through her blood to ignite her temper. “You mean like when I asked you to take us back home? Or like when you got to decide that you wanted me, so you took me from everything I knew with no thought of how I would feel about it? What about what I want, Commander? I want to go back home to a time and place where everything made sense and there were no such things as alien kidnappers and replicators and talking computers that drive me insane!”
His face was stricken by her harsh words. “Are you sorry we met, Katsuko? Do you really wish that you had never laid eyes on me or shared your body with me? Have I treated you so terribly these past weeks that you refuse to even look me in the face when you tell me that you wish to leave me?” he demanded, his voice full of reproach and despair.
“That’s not fair, and you know it,” she snarled, her eyes filling with hated tears. “I didn’t ask for any of this. I tried to make the best of a bad situation, and you have been more than kind to me. That still doesn’t change the fact that you took me against my will and continue to force me to remain here because of your stupid laws. They aren’t my laws, Mikael! I am a human being, an American from the planet Earth, and I don’t recognize your barbaric and backward laws!”
He reared back as if she had slapped him. “Barbaric? You think me and my kind are barbaric?” he hissed, his tawny skin flushing with anger. “I have seen how your kind treats each other, Katsuko. I have seen your people’s indifference to suffering, children starving in the streets, your elderly housed in squalor, and entire nations warring and killing each other over whose deity is the correct one. You have no right to judge our laws when your world pays no attention to their own!”
Mahoney was vibrating with rage and she embraced its familiar heat as it warded off the chill of his cold words. “You just said it yourself, Mikael. We have nothing in common. It was a mistake for you to bring me here, it was mistake to allow you into my bed, and those are mistakes that I mean to correct.”
With those parting words, she whirled away from her lover and stalked toward the door. Her body was shaking with suppressed emotion and she felt as if she would explode if she didn’t make it to her room to fall apart in privacy. However, she didn’t take more than a handful of steps before her momentum was stopped by Mikael’s firm grip on her arm. She whirled and lashed out, striking him a blow on the cheek that snapped his head backward with its force.
His expression was one of stunned disbelief that mirrored her own. They froze within their fraught tableau, he with his hand to his cheek, and her covering her mouth to contain the horror of what she had done. Never in her life had she ever struck someone in anger outside of competition, training, or threat of harm to herself or others. Her stomach heaved, threatening to upend its contents, and she held a shaking hand out toward him.
“Mikael,” she whispered raggedly. “I didn’t mean to-“
“No,” he stopped her. “I brought this on myself. I allowed my greed and desires to force you to this place. I wanted so badly to take you for my lifemate and see you bear my children that I never stopped to question myself if that was what you wanted, too. I see now that I was wrong in believing you were growing to care for me as I do for you.”
“No, Mikael! Please, let me explain,” she begged him, tears streaming down her face and choking her with their bitterness.
He turned his back to her and continued, “I have done you a great wrong, Katsuko Mahoney. When we arrive on T’Kala tomorrow eve, I will petition the king for your immediate return and that of Jessica MacGregor, as well. We will find another way.”
Mahoney struggled to close the widening gap between them, but her feet refused to cooperate. “I’m so sorry, Mikael. Please forgive me,” she sobbed, her heart ripping in half with a physical pain.
He never turned to look at her when he replied, “I know you are, Katsuko. I am sorry, as well. You have no idea how much.”
Then he walked away from her and left her to her tears.
Chapter Twenty
Mahoney stumbled down the hallway toward her old room, her lungs heaving for breath and her throat clogged with recriminations and tears. She felt as if her chest would burst from the pain and her head pounded as if Thor himself were striking her temples with his mighty hammer. She didn’t even make it to her room when she collapsed to her knees and buried her face in her hands to sob with the deep, wracking cries of a wounded animal. It was ugly and brutal, just like she felt on the inside. How could she have hurt him that way? How could she have struck him when he had shown her nothing but kindness and caring?
All her life, she’d had to fight for what she wanted. She had to fight her mother in order to continue her martial arts training, she had to fight the misogyny of her male competitors in class, she had to fight her opponents in the ring to win her matches, and she had to fight for her job and equal compensation for the dangerous stunts she was expected to perform. Was that all she knew how to do anymore? Fight? When would it end?
Her body shook with grief. He had said he wanted her as a lifemate and to raise children with her. No one had ever said those things to her before, and she had never been tempted to seek those things with anyone… until now. Mikael had touched her heart in ways that no man had ever done before. His honest and sincere declarations of caring paired with his re
spect, humor, and the way he brought her to new heights of ecstasy were unlike anything, or anyone, she had ever known before. She had fallen too hard and too quickly, and that had scared her. Instead of talking it through like an adult, she had lashed out at him and pushed him away like a child.
She struggled to her feet and swiped the tears from her face. She had to see him and make him understand. It wasn’t too late; it couldn’t be. She would force him to listen to her and to talk to her. She could work this out. They had another month to figure out how to make this work, and she would fight for his love again. She was good at fighting. This time she would do it the right way.
She had only taken three steps back towards his quarters when a harsh, wailing alarm cut through the silence of the hall accompanied by flashing lights. Mahoney covered her ears and looked around helplessly to see if she could find out the source of the noise. The answer was provided for her when the computer voice announced, “WARNING! Code Alpha! Security breach located at loading dock bay A-741. Intruder alert! All non-essential personnel should report immediately to their pre-arranged safety zones. Repeat: All non-essential personnel should report immediately to their pre-arranged safety zones.”
Mahoney’s heart leapt up her throat and she turned back around to run towards Jessica’s room. Within their first days on the ship, the safety officer had given them detailed instructions on what to do and where to go in the event of different emergencies such as a hull breach, crash landing, contagion, and the unlikely scenario of an unauthorized boarding. Even though he had assured them that such things had never happened during his ten year career, he still drilled them on each emergency and what they were to do.
As she rounded the corner to Jessica’s wing, she almost crashed into the young woman who was obviously on her way to find her, too. “Mahoney! Thank God I found you!” she yelled over the blaring siren. “What’s going on?”
Mahoney grabbed her arm and started running for the lift. “We’ve been boarded by intruders. We have to make our way to the medical ward like the safety officer told us during orientation,” she explained as they ran down the hall.
Other doors in the sleeping quarters started to open and pour out their occupants who followed in their wake in various states of undress and alertness. They reached the lift and waited impatiently as the crew shoved and jostled their way inside until it was full. The noise of the siren, continuous announcements from the computer, and the panicked babble of their company made it impossible for further conversation between the two human women.
When they reached the next floor down, over half of the occupants of the lift exited out of the doors to head towards their safety zones. Mahoney and Jessica had been assigned to the medical ward, and they did not hesitate as they ran toward its relative safety. They dodged other running crew members who were either reporting for duty or racing for their safety zones while the computer continued to issue instructions.
Within minutes, they arrived at the medical ward and rushed inside to see utter chaos. The three medi-techs were grabbing supplies, devices, and rolling beds against the walls while the chief medical officer called out commands.
“Fallon, get the emergency kits out of storage in case we need to abandon ship. Mylana, make sure all of the corrective treatment devices are charging and situated next to each bed. Octavari, ready the steri-pads and skin sealant and prepare for incoming injuries,” Mikael’s mother ordered as she raced from one vid screen to another pressing buttons. When her eyes landed on the two women, relief swept over her face and she announced, “Command, initiate protocol Omega-One-Nine.” The doors slid closed and a second panel made of dull, thick metal slammed shut over top of it.
Jessica, her eyes taking in all the frenzied activity, asked, “What can I do to help, Officer?”
A proud smile flashed across the older woman’s face and she replied, “Report to Fallon and he will give you tasks to complete if you are willing to offer your assistance.”
She rushed off to obey the officer, and Fallon seemed pleased to have an extra pair of hands to help. That left Mahoney and her lover’s mother alone amid that mounting panic. “Ax’Sandre, what have you found out about the intruders?” Mahoney asked, watching the woman’s fingers flying over touchscreens.
Her lips thinned into a grim line as she pressed a few more buttons before facing Mahoney. Keeping her voice pitched low enough not to be overheard, she replied, “We’ve been boarded by a rogue scouting party of Warfarers. Somehow, they have acquired cloaking technology only available to a handful of the most powerful planets in The Great Alliance. That was how they managed to get close enough to us to board without raising our alarms until it was too late.”
Mahoney’s eyes widened in alarm. “Warfarers? Wasn’t that the hostile alien force that tried to invade your world? I thought that T’Kala came out victorious in that war?”
Ax’Sandre nodded sharply. “They are and we did. However, they lost a great many of their number under T’Kalan blades, and it appears that they are looking for revenge. My greatest fear is that if this small craft has gotten their hands on this technology, what could that mean for their warships? If they are all using the cloaking tech and decide to attack T’Kala again, we may not be so lucky the next time around.”
Mahoney’s heart pounded and her palms were sweaty with fear. “What about Mikael and the warriors? Have you heard from him?”
“I have. He tasked me with making sure you and Jessica made it safely to the medical ward before sealing the room. When I initiated the protocol, Command informed him that you were safe. He and the warriors are on their way to confront the intruders and hopefully route them from the ship. It’s our job to remain safe and prepare for the wounded.”
The thought of Mikael in danger sent Mahoney into a tailspin of fear. Grabbing his mother by the arms, she demanded, “I have to get out of here, Ax’Sandre. I have to go help any way that I can, and the only thing I know how to do is fight.”
“No, absolutely not, Mahoney. The best way you can help is by staying safe here with us so that he can do his job as commander without having to worry about the woman he loves being in danger,” she replied firmly. “He would never forgive me if something were to happen to you.”
A single tear slipped from her eye to trail down her face. Her voice ragged with desperation, she countered, “And I will never forgive myself if something happens to him and I was not there to watch his back. Please, Ax’Sandre. I can’t stay here and do nothing while he is out there fighting for our lives.”
The older woman searched her face carefully for several moments. Finally, she sighed heavily and looked away. “Fine, I will open the doors briefly for you to leave, but you had better stop by the training room to arm yourself. There is also body armor located in the cabinet along the western wall. Be safe, Katsuko Mahoney, and keep yourself from harm.”
She nodded sharply in understanding and made her way back to the door. Jessica watched her curiously, but horror widened her eyes when she realized what was happening. “No! Mahoney, you can’t go out there! Stay here with me where it’s safe. You don’t know what you’re getting into!”
As the officer issued her command override, she replied, “I have to go, Jess. I’ll come back, I promise. Just stay here and help any way you can and I will be back before you know it.”
Without another word, she stepped out into the eerily silent corridor and began to run.
Chapter Twenty-One
Mahoney burst into the training room at full speed to find it empty and echoing with the noise of the siren. She raced across the open space toward the weapons cabinet and was relieved to see her two favorite short swords still mounted on their hooks. She lifted them free and trotted over to the cabinet where Mikael’s mother had said there would be armor. When the panel opened, she rifled through the stock, but found next to nothing that would fit her smaller frame. She settled for two flexible knuckle guards, arm shields, and a handful of the familiar stun flares
that Mikael had used during her capture.
When she was as ready as she would ever be, she paused in the center of the room and called out, “Jarvis! Locate Commander Mikael R’Varsel!”
“Commander Mikael R’Varsel is located in loading bay A-741,” came the prompt reply.
She remembered that was the same area where the breach first occurred, which meant he was already in the thick of battle. “Jarvis, how many invaders have breached The Ax’Sandre?”
“There are 53 armed Warfarers currently engaged in combat on board The Ax’Sandre,” he replied.
Mikael’s warriors were outnumbered. Including the commander, there were only 25 trained T’Kalan warriors on hand. “Shit! Shit, shit, shit!” she yelled, her eyes wild with panic.
A door panel along the wall slid open to reveal the bathroom, but Mahoney ignored the distraction. What they needed were more warriors. Her gaze trailed around the room until they landed on the ten remaining android training bots. They had been wildly successful in helping train the warriors with new skills once Jarvis had downloaded the necessary programming based on the schematics from Earth’s internet. She viewed them skeptically, her mind rolling over an idea.
“Jarvis, do you have access to information about the Warfarers? I need their general appearance, typical method of dress, and any information you have about their battle techniques and weaponry,” she snapped.
“Affirmative. Requested information has been compiled and is ready for transmission. Where should I deliver it?” he asked in his dreary monotone.
Her eyes sparkled with excitement. “Can you download the files into each of the remaining training bots with the command to initiate battle sequence with targets identifying with the Warfarer files? I will need you to stay linked with bots and control them to follow my commands.”
Fighting Chance Page 11