“I hear them too.” He sighed. “I don’t like listening any more than you do, but I know they are fiction, no more than smoke and mirrors.”
“But you also know he’s not going to hurt you.” I shivered. Real or not. the screams played on my fears.
“Yet you think he’s going to hurt you?” Kelby turned to look at me. “Didn’t I just tell you Darto doesn’t hurt people?”
“Everyone we’ve seen so far has talked about collecting me or something.”
“But have they succeeded?” He laid his hands in his lap palm up. “You think that’s something you have to worry about?”
“I barely know you. It’s hard for me to nonchalantly put my life in your hands.” I picked at a small patch of nail polish I’d missed when I’d taken it off the day… or was it two days before? Time was all blending together.
“Yet you are.” He stated the obvious. “And so far it’s worked out fine for you.”
“Don’t even start.” I gave up on the nail polish removal attempt.
“Start what? You’re the one who wants to run out of here.” He glanced down at his watch. “We need to move fast.”
“Why? What’s up?” A new type of fear hit me. He used his watch to communicate, didn’t he?
“The ship has been detected,” he whispered.
“Noah.” I hadn’t even really considered he’d be in danger. I’d been so focused on doing something helpful. No. This couldn’t happen. I couldn’t let anything happen to my brother.
“Like I said, we need to move fast.” He pressed something on his watch before pulling down on his sleeve to cover it.
“So what are we waiting for?” I jumped to my feet. I couldn’t just sit there when my brother might be in danger.
Kelby stared at me. “We’re waiting for Darto to call us in.”
“I’m done waiting.” I’d had it. Waiting wasn’t going to get me back to Noah sooner. I walked briskly to the door.
“What are you doing?” Kelby yelled to my back, but as far as I knew he made no move to stop me.
I reached the door and knocked. The screaming abruptly stopped. A moment later the door swung open.
“Hello.” A man with piercing electric blue eyes and hair watched me from inside the room. He was tall, but not as tall as Kelby. Maybe a few inches beyond six feet. And he was wearing a jumpsuit that looked like something a mechanic would wear. It was also blue, and opened just enough at the top to reveal his chest hair was the same shade of blue. “Were you sent as a gift?”
Oh no. Not again. “No! And I’m not available to be part of anyone’s collection either. We are here to ask you something. We have no time. Can we come in and get this over with?” My fear for myself was gone. We needed to get what we needed and get back to the ship. My little brother was in danger, and I wasn’t going to procrastinate for a second.
“Who is this we you are referring to?” He glanced around me. “The dog?”
“No. Not the dog. Him.” I pointed to where Kelby stood behind me with an amused expression.
“Oh.” He smiled. “You have a warrior friend I see.”
“Hello, Darto.” Kelby nodded. “I apologize for our departure from usual custom, but Angie is correct we are short on time.”
“Angie.” Darto grimaced. “Is that your name?”
“Yes.” I tried not to let his reaction to my name get to me. Who cared what this weird guy thought?
“I don’t think it fits. How about Delthea? Yes. I like that one better. From henceforth you will be called Delthea.” He wove his hand around as if weaving a spell.
“I prefer Angie. Thank you.” I could at least pretend to be polite. And what was Kelby talking about with persuasive? I’d never listen to this guy. My eyes went to his chest. Did he dye his hair? Ugh. I shook myself. Why did it matter?
“My, oh my. Aren’t you pushy, Delthea?” Darto turned and walked into the room. “Come in then why don’t you?”
I stepped inside. The room was empty. There were no spiky chairs and no seventies décor. There was nothing. What was he doing in here the whole time while we waited? I searched the walls for a door leading to a back room. There had to be something else, but even with the bright overhead lights, I saw nothing.
“My name is Angie. Not Delthea.” I wasn’t sure why I was fighting it so much except maybe I’d had it with the lack of respect. I wasn’t a toy—or a curiosity. I was a person. And despite all the warnings, I wasn’t scared of this guy.
“You can rename me too if it makes you feel better.” He crossed his arms. “I really don’t mind. Pet names are fine. Terms of endearment. You can get as vanilla or spicy as you’d like. Or even use the name of an old friend. Names are in the eye of the beholder after all.”
This man made no sense. “I have no desire to rename you.”
With all the screams I’d been expecting to be scared. Instead, I was annoyed. Incredibly annoyed.
“Is she always this difficult, Kelby?” Darto proceeded to sit—in thin air. I stared, trying to understand. I looked over at Kelby for help, but he was looking at Darto as if sitting in the air was perfectly normal.
“You call him by his real name.” Of course he did. Kelby got respect from everyone. I wondered if it was his size or his royal background. I didn’t get the hierarchy of this place at all.
“Because the name fits. He is a Kelby. You are most certainly not an Angie. You have too much fire boiling inside you for a name like that. You are more a dragon than a mouse, wouldn’t you agree? You have dazzle.”
“Dazzle?” I looked at his black boots. Maybe he should have been the one with sequins. While I noticed the boots I took a few steps toward him, trying to get a clue as to how he was sitting like that. “Do you have any troops to spare?”
“Troops?” Darto narrowed his eyes. “You get straight to the point.”
“Once again I apologize for the departure from custom,” Kelby jumped in. “Our cohorts are in danger. We don’t have much time.”
“How did you get involved in all of this, Delthea?” He crossed one leg over the other.
I gritted my teeth. “My. Name. Is. Angie.”
“Can’t I call you by my own name? Since we are going to be such good friends now?” His eyes roamed up and down my body. “You really aren’t an Angie. You’re far too sexy for that.”
Sexy? First fire, then dazzle, now sexy? This guy needed to shut up. At least he wasn’t asking if he could have me. “We aren’t going to be friends if you don’t respect me.”
Darto whistled. “Fiery Earthling aren’t you? I’m in. I haven’t been this stirred up in ages. You may be just what I need to break the monotony. What can I do for you? What kind of numbers do you need? I assume this is about your uncle.”
“Don’t call him that. I admit to no relation to that man.” Kelby scowled.
“Yet he was your uncle when you needed things. When your sister needed you.”
“Don’t bring her up…” Kelby tensed.
“Okay, okay. I’ll give you all my men.” He jumped to his feet. There was a loud sound as if a chair had fallen to the floor. But I saw nothing. Absolutely nothing. “And myself.”
“You are coming?” Kelby asked with surprise. “You’d leave the Bunker?”
“Yes. I generally don’t, but Delthea here has piqued my interest. And I already promised her we’d be good friends. We can’t be friends if I don’t have the opportunity to get to know her.”
Malton growled. Maybe he felt the same way I did about the new name.
“How did you end up with King’s mutt?” Dalto frowned at Malton.
“I don’t really know.” That first strange interaction seemed like forever ago.
“I’m not a mutt,” Malton bellowed. “I am a purebred of the highest quality.”
“He is as bad as you are with the semantics.” Darto rolled up his sleeves. “Ok. Let’s get this party started.”
“I don’t really think I’d classify this as a part
y.” It was anything but. Especially now that I was so worried about Noah.
“There isn’t much of a difference between a war and a party. They both involve lots of individuals together. Often breaking out into groups. They both often involve intoxication and fighting over women. I think you get the point.”
“We need to go.” I looked at Kelby. I couldn’t take the chance of something happening to Noah. Would he think I deserted him?
“Give me twenty-two minutes, and I’ll be ready.”
“Twenty-two?” I raised an eyebrow.
“Do you have a problem with that number?”
“Not at all, but it’s an unusual one.” Who said twenty-two minutes instead of twenty or twenty-five?
“There is nothing wrong with unusual, Delthea. Maybe you’d be happier if you understood that.”
I bit my tongue. I wasn’t going to say anything that delayed us any more than we already were.
“Good. Why don’t you two wait for me by the fountain? I’ll be back shortly.”
“What fountain?” I glanced around the room. It was as empty as it had been before.
“The one over there.” He shook his head. “Really, Delthea, you’d think I wasn’t speaking in your native language.” He walked off toward the back wall, mimed opening a door and disappeared into thin air.
“What fountain is he talking about?” I looked at Kelby.
“That one.” Kelby pointed toward the left side of the room.
“Wait. Are you messing with me? You actually see a fountain?”
“Yeah…” Kelby started walking and stopped. “You don’t see this?”
I walked over to where he was and got splashed in the face. “Hey!”
“You felt that.” He bent over. “But you don’t see the fountain.”
“Yes.” I wiped the water off my face.
“Incredible.” Kelby grinned. “You truly are gifted.”
“Gifted? Because I can wipe water off of me? Right.”
“No… because you can see beyond his images. That’s incredible.”
“You mean I can’t see things. I just got wet. There’s a fountain here.”
“There’s only a fountain here because Darto wanted me to find a fountain here. Remember what I said about persuasion? You couldn’t be persuaded. That’s fantastic. You really are a gem.”
“And you aren’t screwing with me? Most people could see a fountain?”
“I would imagine all would other than a select few.”
“So he was sitting on a chair earlier?” I looked back at that spot. Would I trip over the chair if I walked over?
“Yes. Of course.” Kelby smiled. “This is wonderful! You are going to be of such use to us. Your brother didn’t say your gift extended to seeing the truth behind things.”
I rubbed my forehead. “Okay. This is all too much.”
“What is too much?” Darto appeared out of thin air from the same spot he’d left.
“She can’t see your images,” Kelby readily explained.
Dalto smiled. “I figured that out early on when you didn’t even flinch at the beast in the back corner. Most Earthlings would have been scared.”
“Okay. We need to get out of here.” I had no interest in meeting some invisible beast— whether it was an image or not.
“My troops are packed and ready to go.” He patted a satchel hanging off of a loop of his outfit.
“They are packed in there?” I stepped closer. “Is that one of your illusions or something?”
“You have a lot to learn, Delthea.” He put on a long grey overcoat.
I sighed. “Fine. Just get me back to my brother.”
19 Angie
“What do you mean Noah isn’t here?” I stared at Telton with disbelief. I’d just put up with Malton and Darto arguing the entire trip back. I’d probably have preferred if Malton was a normal dog and barked the whole time. My head hurt, and I was fully freaked out already. Now I was being told Noah wasn’t there? Impossible.
“He is safe. You should calm down.” Telton spoke in his completely monotone voice, and I wanted to shake him. Did he think I was going to calm down until I saw my brother? If he did he was delusional. I’d only been gone a few hours. Or well a bunch of hours, but not all that long.
“Delthea is not going to calm down. I can assure you of that.” Darto patted my shoulder as I stepped away.
“Delthea?” Dale stepped around the corner. His eyes lit up. “Do tell.”
“Can it.” I scowled. I wasn’t in the mood for his crap. “Someone is going to tell me where my brother is. And it is going to be now.”
Kelby put a hand on my back. “Where is he? Angie isn’t going to calm down until she knows.”
“I understand.” Telton waved his hand and a small screen appeared. “He’s on North Star with Rachel. Now that you are back, we can go and join them. We no longer have to worry about you being able to find us.” He wove his hand again and a map appeared. “It’s not far. I assure you.”
I was tired of people assuring me of things. Words didn’t mean anything. Actions did. “What is North Star?” I studied the map, but the where wasn’t as important as the what.
“It’s a neutral planet that gives safe harbor to all,” Dale explained. Evidently he’d been filled in on it. “Except apparently I wasn’t good enough to get an invite. Instead I was human bait.”
“Human bait?” I looked to Telton. “Is he serious?”
“Why are you asking him?” Dale frowned. “Ask me. I was the human bait.”
“He played an integral part in distracting the enemy so we could protect the ship.” Telton did another hand wave and the map disappeared.
“Human bait.” Dale sat on the back of a chair. “Plain and simple.”
“And it worked?” I wasn’t going to admit it, but I felt for Dale. No one deserved to be used that way, even the most annoying.
“It did.” Telton nodded in Dale’s direction. “As I said his role was integral.”
“Well, then you did a good job.” I smiled.
Dale eyed me warily as if waiting for the punchline of a joke. There was none coming. In a weird way I was happy to see him. He reminded me of normalcy and Noah. We’d get both back.
“Is Caspian still in containment?” Kelby glanced down the narrow hallway.
“Containment?” Darto raised an eyebrow. “Are we discussing the Caspian I think we’re talking about?”
“Yes,” Kelby answered Darto without looking at him. “Of course.”
Darto laughed. “Terrific. This day is getting better and better.”
“He is no longer on the craft.” Telton looked away.
“Why not?” Kelby’s eyes widened. “Where did he go?”
“He turned himself over.” Telton turned back toward us. “There was nothing I could do to stop him without jeopardizing the safety of the craft and in that way the safety of all of us. You would have made the same calculations and reached the same conclusion.”
“Why would he do that?” I wasn’t getting it. The guy seemed obsessed with Rachel. Why would he leave her behind?
“Kelby knows him better than the rest of us.” Telton looked at Kelby. “Why do you think he did it?”
Kelby didn’t hesitate with his answer. “It was for Rachel in some way shape or form. He had to have had a reason. He’d never willingly leave her.”
“Oh, the drama.” Darto sighed dramatically. “I am so glad I joined you for this.”
“You like crazy drama?” I wasn’t surprised. He was nuts.
“You don’t?” He studied me. “I would have thought you would.”
“No. I like normal, quiet life.” That seemed like a lifetime ago.
“Yet you are here in the middle of a great war. Strange isn’t it?” Darto had a twinkle in his eye.
“I had no choice. I had to come for my brother.”
“The same brother who is currently on North Star?” Darto brought his hand to his lips and mimed as
if he were drinking. But he wasn’t miming. His throat moved in a way to suggest there was actual liquid moving down.
“Yes.” I ignored the judgment in Darto’s voice. It wasn’t my fault Noah had left.
“I wonder if he is as delightful as you are.” Darto ogled me again. I stepped out of his line of sight.
“He isn’t.” Carl leaned against the door frame. “He is nice, but not delightful.”
“Did we take on any damage in the attack?” Thankfully Kelby changed the subject. The rest of this conversation was pointless. We needed to get to Noah and Rachel.
“Nothing of significance,” Carl reported. “We should be fine to land.”
“How do you know anything about this ship?” He’d never been in space before either.
“There are benefits to spending your whole life training for a chance like this.” There was a real tone of pride in Carl’s voice.
I shrugged. “Whatever you say. How soon can we get to North Star?”
“As soon as you want.”
“Now.” I stamped my foot a bit more dramatically than intended. I wasn’t going to wait.
Telton pulled up another screen. “First we need Kelby to debrief us on your recruitment.”
“He can do that on the way.” I wasn’t sure if my opinion actually mattered, but I could at least try.
“Very well.” Telton nodded. “To North Star we go.”
Malton pawed at my hair. “Can I get out?”
“You got a dog?” Dale’s eyes widened.
“And it can talk.” Carl grinned. “I’m never going to be able to repay Noah for getting me into this.”
I was currently thinking the exact opposite thought.
Part 8
Rachel
20 Rachel
A few minutes into the carriage ride I wanted to be sick. Partly it was the rough ride and part of it was fear of the unknown. The only thing keeping me sane was Noah. We were in this together. Of course that also filled me with guilt, as we were in this together because of me. From the moment we’d met I’d put him in danger. The selfish side of me was thrilled I’d found someone as amazing as him, but the rational side knew he’d have been way better off without me. But as turning back the clocks was impossible, the best thing I could do was use everything I had to protect him.
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