The Key

by Pauline Baird Jones

  The cloaked ships infiltrated the enemy, popping in and out of sight, sowing havoc right into the very heart of the Dusan fleet. In just a few moments, the previously straightforward battle dissolved into random skirmishes as they tried to find and eliminate the cloaked ships without taking out their own vessels. And failing. Pretty good when you could get the enemy to take out their own stuff.

  Every one of their ships in the battle was kicking trash.

  “Any word from Donovan?” he asked again.

  “No, sir.”

  Halliwell looked at the HUD. Two Dusan ships were approaching the outpost. But according to this, it was dead in the water. What the hell—suddenly he knew.

  “Commander Gaedon, which ship is your Leader commanding in this fight?”

  “Our…leader?” The unease in his voice was all the answer he needed.

  The son of a bitch.

  He looked at communications. “Tell Foster and Loren to prepare to engage outpost defenses.”

  At least we’re holding our own. Those cloaked ships will make short work of the Dusan fleet…

  “Sir! Multiple contacts emerging from hyperspace at six o’clock!”

  To add emphasis to that report, the ship got hit with multiple shockwaves. Several bridge monitors blew and bodies went flying.

  “Medic! Medic to the bridge!”

  “Sir, they’re too close. Counter measures ineffective at this range!”

  Shit.

  * * * *

  “Room is secure, Captain.” Perkins sounded calm, but Sara could still hear anger below the calm.

  She got up, another hundred years older, found the power controls and flipped them back on. The room lit up and she could feel the outpost’s systems coming back on line. Her connection was back. It didn’t feel as good as she thought it would.

  At least she was connected to the Dusan network again. She started sending data to mother.

  The Dusan ships had just exited hyperspace. Only two of them. She’d hoped to draw more from the fight, but at least it was something.

  She turned around. The Marines were lining the Ojemba up against the far wall. One man kneeling, one standing, hands clasped behind their heads. Some of them looked like their eyes were still spinning the sockets.

  Kalian stood in the middle of the group, watching her warily. He’d recovered quicker than his men. He was wearing a uniform, one that showed, rather than hid the power in his body. This was the real deal. No more prissy boy.

  “You have succeeded in surprising me.”

  “You thought my feelings for him made me weak.” Sara paced toward him, her M4 coming up, the red dot stopping over his heart. “You were wrong.”

  He stared at her with lifted chin, his eyes calm.

  “If I had surrendered, you would have killed him.”

  It wasn’t a question.

  “I would have killed him.”

  Sara felt her finger tightening on the trigger.

  “He was resisting capture, Captain.” Perkins’ voice was deadly cold. “You didn’t have a choice. You had to shoot him.”

  * * * *

  Halliwell saw the outpost come back on line on the virtual HUD. Luckily he could still think it up. The fixed HUD station had a nasty crack all the way across it and one side sagged drunkenly.

  Finally some good news.

  The past few minutes had been brutal. He didn’t know what the Dusan did to their missiles, but damn, they’d delivered a beating, despite the upgraded shields. It was almost as if they’d been designed to slam into shields and shake a ship to pieces. Maybe even make the shields become a negative?

  One of the medics was trying to stop his nose from bleeding. Halliwell didn’t have time for this, but the guy wouldn’t go away.

  Now he started to get the first of the relayed data from the Dusan network.

  Seize the Earth ships for information. Take no prisoners. Destroy the rest.

  Okay, that wasn’t good. Information. Was Xever after their intergalactic propulsion?

  Another bone jarring impact rattled through the ship. He got on the ship’s internal intercom.

  “All personnel prepare for boarding parties.”

  * * * *

  Kalian stared at her, no fear in his eyes.

  She wanted to kill him more than she wanted to fly again. But she’d never shot an unarmed man. Life still wasn’t fair.

  Her finger eased up on the trigger. Kalian must have seen it in her eyes. His shoulders relaxed a little. She turned her back on him, then spun around and slugged him as hard as she could in the jaw.

  He staggered back into the wall, his eyes wide with surprise. A little blood trail formed at the side of his mouth. He angled his head, moved his jaw, then dabbed at the spot.

  Looked like she’d surprised him again.

  Surprise spread both directions through his Ojemba ranks.

  She turned her back on him, on them, and made a face.

  Damn, that hurt.

  Perkins hid a grin. “They make it look easy in the movies, ma’am.”

  “No kidding.” She flexed her fingers, feeling the nanites move in. Lucky they didn’t get tired of fixing what she did to herself. “We gotta stash these guys somewhere before the Dusan land.”

  “The Dusan?” Kalian’s voice was sharp.

  She spun back around. “Yeah, the Dusan. News flash, we had a plan and you almost screwed it up. I should just let them kill you.”

  One of the Ojemba looked at her. “We wish to fight them with you.”

  Sara stared at him. “I need people I can trust at my back.”

  “You don’t have to like us, but you know you can use us.” Kalian hesitated. “This is our fight. Or theirs, if you won’t let me fight. Let our deaths count for something.”

  Sara got in his face. “You mean like Fyn’s? His death counted for so much.”

  “Now you are a woman.”

  Damn him, he was right.

  “What do you want to do with them?” Perkins asked her.

  “They’re damn lucky it isn’t our way to execute prisoners. Take ‘em to the roof. Henderson’s picking you up there. It’s his call, not mine.” She turned away. “Just get them out of my sight.”

  Kalian stopped in front of her. “Xever is coming?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  She shrugged. “Must have been something I said.”

  “With Fyn…down you need someone at your back. Let me…help.”

  “You want Fyn’s spot, you go with them.”

  “I don’t believe he would leave you to face Xever alone.”

  “Clearly he had more faith in me more than you do.” She checked the sensors. “Even if you were right, which you aren’t, I don’t trust you to act in our best interests.” She looked at Perkins. “Get him out of here before I change my mind and shoot him.”

  One of the marines jabbed him in the back with his M-4, making him move away from her and finally, finally she was alone. She didn’t have long. Two transport ships were leaving the Dusan mother ships.

  First she radioed Henderson and told him about the Ojemba’s offer of assistance. She didn’t care if they got left to die, but Henderson could probably use the help.

  “Can we trust them to do the job?”

  “It is their reason for living, but you decide.”

  He signed off. That left one thing to do. She knelt by Fyn and touched his face, one last time, her palm tingling again.

  “I’m so sorry.” Her tears hit his face. She rubbed them away.

  She stroked her finger across his mouth.

  Her radio crackled.

  “Donovan, the Dusan ships are touching down. I got at least two hundred-plus bogeys on the sensors and they’re all heading your way.”

  “Roger that.”

  She got up. If she failed now, Fyn’s death would be for nothing and a lot of good people would die.

  So, she couldn’t fail.

  Twenty

>   “Stevens! You’ve got one on your tail!”

  “I see him!”

  A few laser bursts flashed past Hawkins’ cockpit. In tight fighting, the slow ship had the edge. Superior speed was actually working against them.

  “I’m taking hits!” Stevens had an edge of panic to his voice. It was his first dogfight. “Shields are down to twenty percent!”

  “I’m coming!” Hawkins did a tight, bat turn, then put the pedal to the metal. His speedjeans inflated as he hit the g-zone. He closed on Stevens, feeling his shields take multiple hits.

  They were holding, but for how long? He accelerated and banked so that he would cross behind Stevens and fired.

  The Dusan fighter tried to play chicken with him…

  His shots made contact…

  It exploded.

  He blew through the flaming wreckage.

  Behind him, Stevens took out the fighter on his tail.

  “Bravo zulu, Stevens!”

  Clear for a moment, Hawkins took a second to improve his situational awareness. All the fighter groups were kicking trash, but it wasn’t making a hell of a lot of difference. The HUD was still thick with Dusan fighters.

  “There’s too many of them! I’m hit! I’m hit!”

  Hawkins saw the fighter spiral out of control, smashing into a Dusan cruiser with a deadly flash. Both ships exploded into debris that took out the nearby ships.

  “Stick with your wingman and protect each other!”

  Dogfighting chatter filled the comms as he and Stevens dodged fire from five Dusan fighters. It was going to be a long day.

  * * * *

  Fyn opened his eyes, surprised that they could open. He tried an arm. It moved. He felt across his chest, finding the hole in his clothing, but the skin under it was smooth again.

  He inhaled, then exhaled slowly. It felt like breathing. Shouldn’t. He was dead, wasn’t he?

  He tried out his arms and legs. It hurt like hell. Kind of expected death to not…hurt.

  So, did that mean he wasn’t dead? He didn’t feel dead. He felt… healed. She’d touched him and he’d felt…something. Warmth moving in to replace the cold.

  If this was healing, Sara said it was weird. She was right about that. Made him understand what weird meant, too.

  He managed to sit up. He could see. Sara had got the power back on.

  How long had he been out? And where was Sara—

  A HUD appeared in the air in front of him, with a dot flashing that he took to be Sara. She had two hundred bogeys closing in on her position.

  He got up and looked around. Kalian had tossed his gear back here…yes, there it was. He pulled on the vest and started checking his weapons.

  He had some Dusan to kill.

  * * * *

  Sara followed Adin’s progress through the outpost on tracking. He moved like an incoming storm. She could feel his rage as he drove his men before him.

  This could go really badly. Or kind of badly.

  She didn’t see how it could go well.

  While she waited for him, she checked the data she was sending to home plate and the status of the battle. The fleet was kicking trash, but there were just too many of them. If she didn’t act soon, there’d be no one left to help. Panic tried to take over, but she pushed it back. There was no time.

  When Adin was almost on her, she stood up and faced the door, her chin lifted. No one said anything as they burst in, but now it didn’t surprise her. She knew they couldn’t.

  It was still creepy.

  Two of his men grabbed her arms, dragged her to the wall and slammed her against it. Through a few stars, she saw Adin stride in.

  No more unassuming attitudes. No more charm.

  He was the Supreme Leader to his toenails.

  And he was pissed.

  His gaze zeroed in on her.

  Rage and lust warred for prominence in his eyes.

  Oh, crap.

  He strode toward her, his gaze raking her body for a heated moment. She thought she was ready for it, but she wasn’t. His body slammed into hers. His hands and mouth were rough. He bit her lip, drawing blood, then found her neck with angry insistence.

  She made a face. “What I don’t even get a, hi, Sara, how have you been?”

  His hands tried to find a way into her vest.

  “You’re looking good for a dead girl?”

  He froze.

  “Unless I look like crap. Which I could. I mean, dying isn’t pretty, is it? So you can tell me if I look like crap. I won’t be upset.”

  His head lifted. It was a relief to see reason returning to his eyes, to see humor filter in there with it.

  Sara gave him a cheeky grin, her brows slightly lifted.

  “I thought you’d be glad to see me.”

  “You…” he stopped.

  “I know.” She shrugged. “You’d think dying would make me less annoying, wouldn’t you?”

  Her gaze swept the room. There were about twenty guys at his back, all watching them.

  “Didn’t think you were into voyeurism.”

  His brows arched.

  “Companioning with an audience.”

  A bit of color came into his face.

  That was interesting. Not quite sure how to use it, but it was… interesting.

  He didn’t say a word, but the two men released her arms.

  Sara shrugged her shoulders. They weren’t out of joint. That was good. It was always easier when the shoulders worked.

  His hand settled on her waist, desire started in his eyes again, but he was back in control.

  “Hello, Sara.” His voice was as intimate as his smile. He touched the side of her face, smoothing her hair back off her face. She could feel his gaze ping on her mouth.

  “Hello, Adin.” She tipped her head to the side. “You look…tired. Not sleeping well?”

  His eyes widened. Wary crept in there. He stepped back and studied her.

  Sara kept her chin up, her slight smile in place. Carefully, cautiously, she went deeper into the Dusan network. Now, more than ever she could sense the different connections. It was incredibly complex with lots of built-in fail-safes. Her only hope to help the fleet was to disrupt the whole network, or take it completely down…

  “What are you up to?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You knew I was coming.”

  She pointed to the panel behind him. “Saw you on tracking.”

  “And you stayed?” His brows arched. “And you are here alone.”

  It was amazing. He was still sending orders to his armada. No sign of strain on his face. He looked relaxed, totally focused on her. Maybe he did deserve to be called supreme.

  He touched her cheek again, just one finger following the curve of her cheek.

  “You look…tired, too. What have you been doing…since you died?” A flicker of a smile softened his intent expression for a moment.

  Sara stepped back and sat down on a stool. She propped her elbows on a console, and let her chin rest on her hands. She felt the need. The split in focus made her feel like her brain was being sawed in half.

  “I’ve been exploring the Garradians’…wonders.”

  That caused a huge flicker in his control. Clearly right bait for the hook. She went deeper into the network.

  He stepped to the other side of her console, his face a cross between a brood and a pout.

  “Want to know the funny part?” He didn’t say he did, but she went on anyway. “I didn’t have the key. I am the key.”

  His brows arched. And again his control of the grid faltered.

  “Crazy, isn’t it?”

  “It is certainly…unexpected.” He pulled up a stool opposite her. His gaze reminded her of their last encounter. Focused, intent…dangerous.

  Her only hope was to keep him off guard. If he found her inside his head, well, she’d seen what he could do with just a thought.

  “It’s not the only unexpected thing I learned…since I star
ted playing with the…wonders. There’s actually a very…interesting story about how I came to be the key.”

  “And why would you share that story with me?” Suspicion darkened his eyes.

  “A fair question. But I should think it’s obvious. I’m hoping to stop this war…before it gets out of hand.”

  “Before I destroy the people who brought you here.” A flicker of satisfaction sparked in his eyes.

  “You’re so sure you’re going to win?”

  It was his turn to shrug. “I believe I told you, shortly after we met, that I always get what I want.”

  “You didn’t get me.” Sara didn’t like the direction this was going. But it was helping to lessen his control.

  “I seem to have gotten another chance.” His eyes told her he still wanted her. “My suite is not far from this place.” He smiled again and his gaze warmed. “We could finish what we started.”

  “Yeah.” She looked down, then up. “Someone tried to clean that up, but you can still see the bloodstains under my chair.”

  He didn’t move, but Sara felt his mind flinch.

  His gaze sobered. “So much blood. I felt you die. And yet, here you are. Looking quite…beautiful for a…dead girl.”

  A slight smile as he tried to recover.

  Sara’s grin felt wry. “I am as surprised as you are.”

  He leaned toward her. “How is it possible?”

  His control slipped a bit more. Sara moved into the gap. Damn, she didn’t know how he did it. It was a…remarkable achievement.

  “To explain, I’d need to tell you the…story.”

  “Your last…story…ended…badly.”

  “Yes, it did.” Sara stared at him. “Maybe this one won’t have to.”

  * * * *

  More Dusan battle orders began to appear on the HUD.

  What was she waiting for? She needed to take Xever down…

  Not that the distractions weren’t helping some. Just not enough.

  It was strange, but Halliwell could almost see each time Xever’s attention was diverted from the battle. A Dusan ship would be ready to take out one of theirs and just…pause. Then control would return. Sometimes it was too late.

  Sometimes it wasn’t.

  It was more than a furball out there. It was a knife fight in a freaking phone booth and messy, real messy.