Before the Countess could do anything else, Seb punched her in the throat. If for no other reason than to silence the scream. He showed a little restraint, hitting her just hard enough to knock her down, but not so hard that he broke her neck. They needed her alive. They needed answers.
The Countess fell so hard to the ground it seemed to shake the entire ship. Seb looked up at SA, Bruke, Reyes, and Sparks. Bruke kept his gun raised from where he’d shot her. He then looked back at the large hooded figure on the floor. “Shall I pull her hood back?”
None of them answered. Instead, they all stared at her as if awaiting his decision.
CHAPTER 64
The group had waited for another few minutes in silence before Seb had finally been the one to pull the Countess’ hood back. Both Reyes and Bruke vomited instantly, so he covered it over again.
To think about it as they flew away in Reyes’ ship left him confused. He couldn’t pick out what it was about her burned and blackened face that bothered him so much. Sure, it looked revolting. Her lips were scorched away, so her teeth were permanently displayed. But something about seeing it gave him a feeling he’d not experienced before. Almost as if the vision of her had a dark force that reached inside him, grabbed his guts, and squeezed hard.
Also, for some reason, when he’d seen her, he’d nearly lost control of his bowels and a noise went off in his head like a thousand tortured souls cried out to him. Maddening and indecipherable, it sounded like it could have been the echoes of all the slaves she’d tortured. It seemed like everything about her paid a karmic debt for the life she’d chosen. Maybe the others had felt it too because no one had spoken since.
They were heading back to Aloo. The Countess lay alive but unconscious at their feet. She wouldn’t get a fair trial; she didn’t deserve it. But she had answers to questions they needed to ask her.
SA then came through Seb’s thoughts.
I’ve always been able to communicate telepathically. I chose not to for the longest time, and for that I’m sorry. She glared at Seb. Although I have good reasons, despite what Seb thought. The others then looked at him too.
My family were slaughtered when I was a kid. To look at this evil bitch, knowing what she’s done, reminds me of that time. I was young, too young. I was taken in by the monastery in our village. They practiced martial arts all day every day and never spoke.
I learned early on that I could communicate with telepathy, but never used the gift. As a monk, we should always listen and never voice our own thoughts. They’re not that important. But then one day, I said something in my mind to another monk. It just slipped out. I couldn’t help it.
A sheen of tears spread across SA’s eyes, glazing them and magnifying their bioluminescence.
“What happened?” Bruke asked.
They kicked me out of the monastery. They called me a freak and said my desire to disobey their rules was so strong it had turned me into a witch. I was TWELVE years old. I had to survive on my own after that. Fortunately, I’d been trained to fight. I could look after myself. Seb was the first person I’ve shown my gift to since then. I was worried I’d be rejected again.
To hear her story hurt Seb’s heart. “I’m so sorry I pushed you to speak to the others. I thought we needed it.”
You often think you know best.
The expression on the faces of the others showed Seb she was speaking only to him. Before he could reply, she spoke again, not angry, just sad. And that’s the problem, isn’t it? No matter how far forward we step, you always try to make decisions for me. Decisions like your dad made for you.
Although Seb wanted to reply, SA spoke to the others again. I was talking to Reyes in the mech when we got trapped by the Countess and her army. I knew the airlock would work if we could get her there. I didn’t have the headspace to talk to you guys and direct her. Also, I wanted the mech to be a surprise. If none of you knew, there would be less chance of someone giving the game away to the Countess. I gambled everything on it working.
Again she switched to just Seb. I’m not sure we can work if you never trust me.
I do.
SA didn’t reply. After a deep breath, she looked at Seb again. The hurt had lifted a little. I suppose in some way it was sweet of you.
Huh?
Well, I felt like a freak for what I could do, but that didn’t even enter your mind. That’s why you couldn’t understand why I didn’t use my gift. That was sweet. In a strange and frustrating way, it showed me you accept me for who I am.
I do. Of course I do.
Seb stepped towards SA. He was about to grab her hands, but the Countess stirred next to them.
Even groggier than before, the Countess’ voice bubbled from her throat when she turned to Seb. “How did you manage to follow me?”
“That’s a good point.” Seb looked at Sparks. “I meant to ask you the same. Did you hack the bridge so it stretched back across?”
A curt nod, she looked almost offended by the question. “Of course. It wasn’t hard.”
Although he hadn’t answered the Countess, Seb said, “Why did you put the parasite on Carstic?”
“Ruthane, why else?”
“Just for the credits?”
“Yeah. What other reason is there to act in this galaxy?”
She sounded like Moses. “And the shuttle?”
“The one to leave the planet?”
“Yep.”
“That was me. The pilot was working for me, but when I heard someone was coming off Carstic looking to throw accusations about how the parasite got there, I couldn’t let them live.”
A slight pause, Seb froze. “How did you get that information about who was on the flight? That was a private conversation between Moses and myself.”
The Countess’ laugh rang around the small ship. “Oh, you’re such a fool. You still haven’t worked it out yet, have you?”
A look at the others, Seb returned his focus to the bound Countess. “Worked what out?”
“Moses was in on it. Who do you think gets paid when something like the parasites invade a planet?”
A moment of stillness as Seb tried to control his rage. He’d known Moses was in on it all along. He should have acted on his hunch weeks ago. The horrible shark didn’t deserve to live.
“Naive little fool,” the Countess said and laughed again.
Seb pulled his gun from his belt and ripped a shot off into her hood. The reek of cauterised flesh smoked from the shadowy hole and she snapped limp.
The others stared at Seb, their faces slack.
“Some beings don’t deserve to live,” he said. “I gave her longer than I wanted to anyway. We need to send her out the airlock so she can float in the void of space. That’s all she’s earned from this life.”
“So what do we do now?” Sparks said.
A steadying breath to try to bring his fury down, Seb clenched his jaw. “We go to Aloo. It’s time Moses paid for the way he conducts his business.”
END OF BOOK FIVE.
Thank you for reading Fugitive - Book Five of The Shadow Order.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Like most children born in the seventies, Michael grew up with Star Wars in his life. An obsessive watcher of the films, and an avid reader from an early age, he found himself taken over with stories whenever he let his mind wander.
Those stories had to come out.
He hopes you enjoy reading his books as much as he does writing them.
Michael loves to travel when he can. He has a young family, who are his world, and when he’s not reading, he enjoys walking so he can dream up more stories.
Contact
www.michaelrobertson.co.uk
[email protected]
ALSO BY MICHAEL ROBERTSON
The Shadow Order
The First Mission - Book Two of The Shadow Order
The Crimson War - Book Three of The Shadow Order
Eradication - Book Four of The Shadow Order
120-Seconds: A Shadow Order Story
The Alpha Plague: A Post-Apocalyptic Action Thriller
The Alpha Plague 2
The Alpha Plague 3
The Alpha Plague 4
The Alpha Plague 5
The Alpha Plague 6
The Alpha Plague 7
The Alpha Plague 8
Crash - A Dark Post-Apocalyptic Tale
Crash II: Highrise Hell
Crash III: There’s No Place Like Home
Crash IV: Run Free
Crash V: The Final Showdown
New Reality: Truth
New Reality 2: Justice
New Reality 3: Fear
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Sixth Cycle
Nuclear war has destroyed human civilization.
Captain Jake Phillips wakes into a dangerous new world, where he finds the remaining fragments of the population living in a series of strongholds, connected across the country. Uneasy alliances have maintained their safety, but things are about to change. -- Discovery leads to danger. -- Skye Reed, a tracker from the Omega stronghold, uncovers a threat that could spell the end for their fragile society. With friends and enemies revealing truths about the past, she will need to decide who to trust. -- Sixth Cycle is a gritty post-apocalyptic story of survival and adventure.
Darren Wearmouth ~ Carl Sinclair
DEAD ISLAND: Operation Zulu
Ten years after the world was nearly brought to its knees by a zombie Armageddon, there is a race for the antidote! On a remote Caribbean island, surrounded by a horde of hungry living dead, a team of American and Australian commandos must rescue the Antidotes' scientist. Filled with zombies, guns, Russian bad guys, shady government types, serial killers and elevator muzak. Dead Island is an action packed blood soaked horror adventure.
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Whiskey Tango Foxtrot
Alone in a foreign land. The radio goes quiet while on convoy in Afghanistan, a lost patrol alone in the desert. With his unit and his home base destroyed, Staff Sergeant Brad Thompson suddenly finds himself isolated and in command of a small group of men trying to survive in the Afghan wasteland. Every turn leads to danger
The local population has been afflicted with an illness that turns them into rabid animals. They pursue him and his men at every corner and stop. Struggling to hold his team together and unite survivors, he must fight and evade his way to safety. A fast paced zombie war story like no other.
W.J. Lundy
Zombie Rush
New to the Hot Springs PD Lisa Reynolds was not all that welcomed by her coworkers especially those who were passed over for the position. It didn’t matter, her thirty days probation ended on the same day of the Z-poc’s arrival. Overnight the world goes from bad to worse as thousands die in the initial onslaught. National Guard and regular military unit deployed the day before to the north leaves the city in mayhem. All directions lead to death until one unlikely candidate steps forward with a plan. A plan that became an avalanche raging down the mountain culminating in the salvation or destruction of them all.
Joseph Hansen
The Gathering Horde
The most ambitious terrorist plot ever undertaken is about to be put into motion, releasing an unstoppable force against humanity. Ordinary people – A group of students celebrating the end of the semester, suburban and rural families – are about to themselves in the center of something that threatens the survival of the human species. As they battle the dead – and the living – it’s going to take every bit of skill, knowledge and luck for them to survive in Zed’s World.
Rich Baker
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Edited and Cover by …
Copyright
Mailing List
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
About the Author
Also by Michael Robertson
Other Authors Under the Shield of Phalanx Press
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Fugitive: A Space Opera: Book Five of The Shadow Order Page 21