Reede

by Veronica Scott

  Fallyn licked her lips and decided to take a gamble. “Fastlink?”

  Reede’s eyes opened wide and he shot his hand out to grab her wrist so fast she didn’t have time to be afraid. “You? You’re the Sectors scout whose ship crashed?”

  “We came out of hyperspace right in the middle of several Chimmer ships exiting this solar system. Scout ships have minimal weaponry and next to no shields. Captain Brandon did his best to evade and get us into a safer position close to the star but obviously he failed.” Fallyn blinked hard and straightened her spine, unwilling to give in to her grief over her fellow officer. “We were sent to check out a mysterious fastlink transmission apparently emanating from this star system, using identifiers from Amarcae Seven and others.”

  “Three of our people sent it, using cobbled together tech,” he confirmed. “We had no idea if we’d succeeded or failed and then we picked up intel on a Khagrish transmission loop about a crashed Sectors ship and a captured scout. What happened to the other guy? Is he out there still?”

  “He’s dead. Died after the crash from his injuries the Khagrish told me. I was thrown clear or else he carried me—I was injured in the initial attack, out in space. I—I don’t remember much. When I came to, I was already here in the lab, getting medical treatment. Then I was put in the other cell and that’s been my story until today, when I met you.” Her head ached with unshed tears over Fred, her teammate but Fallyn fought to stay professional.

  Reede opened his mouth to say something else but paused, releasing her arm and turning his head sharply toward the corridor. “Someone’s coming. Remember, follow my lead.” Throwing down the cards, he rose and waited for her to join him, placing her slightly behind him.

  She protested, trying to stand beside him.

  “I appreciate your military instinct to cover the flank,” he said in a low voice, “But as my prospective mate, I’d be protecting you with my life and the Khagrish will expect to see us demonstrate the appropriate behavior.”

  Swallowing hard, she nodded and stepped back, allowing him to assume a defensive posture in front. How real is this mate business to him? Fallyn pushed the concern away. Now wasn’t the time to distract herself but he seemed to be sending mixed messages.

  A tall Khagrish scientist with a towering, flaming head of red hair tortured into the spiky style they preferred, sauntered down the corridor, followed by lab techs, including the one Reede had knocked out earlier in the day, and black clad security guards. Smoking a long, slender feelgood stick, she stood in the hall for a moment, assessing the two of them.

  “So we did find you a mate,” she said to Reede eventually. Coughing from deep in her chest, she closed her eyes and wobbled a bit on her high heeled boots.

  He took note of the way the other Khagrish exchanged glances and the techs fidgeted as if they wanted to move away from her. Flicking ash from her feelgood, Enishiggama glared at her underlings. “I told you, it’s merely a harmless rhinovirus I picked up at the conference. Stop distracting me.” Satisfied the women were properly admonished, the scientist directed her attention to him once more.

  Reede decided to take the initiative. “These aren’t the proper surroundings for me to pursue the mate bond.” He gestured at the stark walls of the cell. “The human women are slow to accept the mate status and must be persuaded appropriately.”

  Pursing her lips, arms crossed, Enishiggama considered. “I’ll need samples. Both of you might already be producing the proper enzymes and pheromones, having been brought into proximity by my experiment. If so, I can separate you and proceed to step two.”

  “It’s too soon,” he said, shaking his head and ignoring Fallyn’s uneasy movements behind him. “We haven’t bonded.”

  Bushy red eyebrows raised to her hairline, Enishiggama stared him down. “If you have fertile gametes, then you have. Really, you animals should know better than to attempt to debate science with one at my elevated levels of understanding.” She coughed again. “But I must admit to being fatigued today. Too much partying with my fellow scientists last night.” She directed a cold look at her techs, laughed without much enthusiasm and the guards and a few of them dutifully tittered or chuckled in response. “It may be best to wait a day or two to begin further experimentation. What are you proposing, 803?”

  Reede suppressed the flash of white hot anger over the use of his numerical designation. He was not and never had been 803 in his own mind or to his pack brothers. This monster wasn’t going to get under his skin so easily though. The number wasn’t as much of a trigger as she hoped, certainly not enough to break his self-control. “This lab must have a fenced in area outside, like the facility where I was created did. Give me a few days with my soon-to-be-mate in the fresh air and wide open space, and I’ll seal the bond.”

  “Doctor, we must ask ourselves why he’s being so co-operative,” said the tech he’d knocked out the day before. She glared at him and it was clear if she had her way, he’d be dying in agony at her feet. Reede resolved to kill her next time they met and be done with it. “The animal obviously wants to go outside and it’s not in their nature to proactively work with us. What’s his motive?”

  Eyes wide, Enishiggama turned on the lower caste Khagrish woman. “What’s his motive? We’ve supplied him with a nubile female—it doesn’t require my level of intelligence to figure this out. It’s quite natural he’d want to mate in a more secluded spot than one of our cells,” Enishiggama said, looking down her nose at her employee. “I’m not blind to his clumsy attempt at manipulation of the parameters. There were in fact notes in the file of the successfully impregnated female that a special habitat was provided so what he says is accurate.” Now she resumed her contemplation of Reede and studying her in turn he thought he’d never seen a Khagrishi so wan and drawn.

  She’s sicker than she wants to admit. Reede speculated briefly about the situation and the way her subordinates were reacting to her ill health. He found their level of uneasiness to be extreme, which interested him. There’d been other reports from Badari in the field about illness affecting the Khagrish.

  “My tech will run the necessary tests, take the samples I require, and if as you claim, you’re not capable of siring children yet, you and your mate will be released into the Preserve for a few days to rut in private to your libido’s content.” Dr. Enishiggama walked off, one hand to her chest as if to stifle her coughing.

  The tech moved closer to the force barrier. “Stand aside, human, while we take your so-called mate for his tests.” To Reede, she said, “This will be as painful as I can make it.”

  He stood in stoic silence as the guards put him into restraints and escorted him out of the cell. He prayed to the Great Mother merely being in Fallyn’s presence wasn’t enough to prompt his body to produce whatever the Khagrish wanted from him. He was counting on being able to get outside to make their escape a sure thing. If the pack had to extract them from inside the lab, the risks were much higher and Fallyn’s life had to be protected. Not only was she his prospective mate but she was the Sectors recon scout he’d been seeking. The pack needed her in one piece to help them reach out to the Sectors again.

  And he needed her to survive.

  Fallyn paced the cell, up and down. He’d been gone for a long time now—how long did it take to gather a few blood and tissue samples? Or whatever the Khagrish were doing. Chewing her lip, she worried Reede was being seriously mistreated, if not tortured outright. The lab tech clearly hadn’t given him any credit for mercifully knocking her out rather than killing her and welcomed a chance to take her revenge. Most of the conversation had been in rapid Khagrish so she knew she’d missed some of it, but the overall gist had been clear. Better keep my fingers crossed Reede gets his way and we’re released outside. He exuded such confidence in his team’s ability to extract them safely if they could win limited freedom and the more Fallyn saw of this place, the more desperately she wanted out.

  Footsteps echoed down the hall and she
rushed to the force barrier, trying to peer out at an angle.

  “Move away from the barrier, human.” A guard strode up, stunner at the ready. “We’re bringing your boyfriend back now.”

  She obeyed the order, taking her place on the black muster line painted on the floor. Two more Khagrish arrived, escorting an antigrav litter. Part of the force barrier was inactivated and the litter floated inside the cell, piloted by remote control as far as she could tell. Suddenly the device tipped on its side and Reede fell to the floor, as if too weak to protect himself from harm. He was clad only in low slung pants, his torso bared. She rushed to his side, appalled at the new bruises and wounds.

  “Sorry he’s banged up.” The closest guard laughed, making it obvious he relished the damage done to Reede. “The senior lab tech was more than a little upset over how he treated her during your break for freedom, so she was a bit rough and we helped her out on punishing him when she got tired. Apparently he also killed her brother in an incident at the original lab, back in the day so she harbors a grudge.”

  The stretcher floated out of the cell and a robo drifted inside, laden with a tray full of food, ration bars and nutrient drinks.

  “Hurry up and take your dinner tray or else I’ll decide you don’t want it,” the guard said, fingering his neurocontroller as if hoping for an excuse to use it on her.

  Fallyn jumped to retrieve the food. Boring and bland as it might be, she and Reede needed sustenance. She hadn’t eaten since yesterday when all this craziness about mates started and she had no idea when he’d last been offered food. She set the tray on the battered table. “What was decided, do you know? Are we going outside?”

  Laughing unpleasantly, the Khagrish nodded. “Oh yeah, in about an hour, so you’d better eat and make 803 stand up like the man he claims to be. Although we’d be happy to drag him outside.” He coughed, which seemed to take him by surprise and his fellow Khagrish went all wide eyed and moved away a few steps.

  The barrier buzzed loudly as the robo exited and the guards strutted away.

  Fallyn rushed to Reede. She suspected the guards knew about something the outside she didn’t, but right now it was important to get her companion ready to move, lest the Khagrish change their minds.

  He was working hard to sit up and she gave him a hand, while noticing the bruises and wounds were once again fading. “Can you make it to the table?”

  “Yes. We’d better do as the guard said and eat quickly.”

  Reede sank heavily into the nearest chair, after leaning on Fallyn to get there. “If he wasn’t lying about the time, I should be fairly well healed when they come back.” He reached for a bottle of nutrient drink and drank the whole thing in a few gulps.

  Fallyn handed him another. “That bitch better not ever get within my reach. You could have killed her when you had the chance and you didn’t, yet she treats you like this.”

  Reede shrugged, wincing a bit and putting a hand to his ribs. “Khagrish have no mercy or restraint when it comes to mistreatment of my kind. We were bred specifically to recover rapidly, in order to absorb more punishment. She informed me I was involved in the death of her brother when I was younger and she wants revenge.”

  “The guard told me.” Fallyn balled her fists. “She shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near you.”

  Eyebrow raised, Reede stared at her for a moment before dismissing her concern. “I’ll be fine. Most importantly, they are going to let us outside.” He gestured toward the food. “Please, you need to eat too.”

  Fallyn sat and pulled a bowl of speckled beige mush toward her. “It’s like they spice this stuff with insects,” she said, forcing herself to swallow a heaping spoonful.

  “They might, for all we know.” Reede laughed. “You should stash the energy bars in your pocket for later.”

  Getting up her nerve to take another mouthful of the mush, she asked, “How far is it to where we might be able to call for extraction?”

  “I’ve kept my men apprised of events. We’ve selected a place but it’ll be a couple of hours hike.”

  She nearly choked on the food and did a double take as she set the spoon down. “How big is this outdoor Preserve?”

  “Fairly large. Not the biggest one I’ve seen. We’re actually lucky Enishiggama isn’t feeling well enough to take an active interest in us tonight.” Reede began devouring the second bowl of mush, methodically spooning it into his mouth and swallowing fast as if to get the process over with.

  “I think they’re planning to spring a surprise on us,” she said, mentally reviewing her conversation with the Khagrish. “The guards are awfully happy about us going outside soon, as if there’s a joke on us.”

  Jaw clenched Reede stared at her and then at the food. “If you don’t mind, I’d rather not tell you what I know. Your reaction to what awaits will be more genuine if you’re unaware and the Khagrish will be pleased with themselves and unsuspicious.”

  Taken aback to learn he was keeping vital information from her, she dropped her spoon into the now empty bowl and studied his face. Reede met her scrutiny with a calm demeanor, although his eyes gave off a hint of the astonishing luminescence. Fallyn uncapped a nutrient bottle and sipped, reining in her temper. “Are we partners in this situation?”

  Voice firm, he nodded. “You’ve been an excellent comrade.”

  “As have you.” She gave credit where it was due. “All right, keep your secret for the sake of operational security and I’ll do my best to be properly appalled when we go outside.” She waggled her finger at him. “Just one thing, if you want to stay healthy.”

  Reede leaned closer. “Yes?”

  “Do not ever, under any circumstances, refer to me as nubile, got it?”

  He laughed, sputtering his drink and wiped his lips. “Agreed. I could tell you didn’t much care for Enishiggama’s discussion earlier. Thanks for not objecting at the time.”

  Pleased by his reaction, she sat at ease in her chair. “How can you stay so calm when she and the others keep calling you an animal? And referring to you by a number?”

  “Years of practice,” he said. “The Khagrish believe my kind aren’t any more than animals to be experimented on.” He tapped his chest with one of the deadly talons extended. “The fact we know the truth of who and what we are is our secret strength.”

  She’d finished the meal, such as it was, and was waiting with Reede when the guards marched down the corridor for the second time that evening. Fallyn had two nutrient bottles in a makeshift pack she’d made from the mattress covering on the bed and she’d packed the odd deck of cards as well, which Reede insisted they take. Standing next to him on the muster line, waiting for whatever was going to happen next, she took a glance at her unexpected ally and thanked the Lords of Space for sending a man like him into her orbit. This situation might be survivable with Reede helping her navigate.

  He gave her a smile and then the Khagrish swarmed into the cell, putting her and Reede into the force binders before dragging them into the hallway and setting off for wherever the door to the outside might be. Several of the guards were coughing and Fallyn studied the man she’d spoken to earlier, when Reede was brought back to the cell. In less than an hour’s time, the Khagrish had become much sicker. He was sweating heavily and had dark circles under his eyes.

  Whatever bug Enishiggama caught at her scientists’ retreat must be pretty aggressive and extremely contagious A super flu. Fallyn hoped it didn’t affect humans but so far she felt fine.

  As they proceeded to the exit portal, her steps slowed and she stopped, staring at the world outside, where it was pitch black except for the silvery sheets of rain blowing sideways in the external lights. She could feel the vibration of the storm against the outer wall. “You can’t send us out there, not into those winds. We don’t have bad weather gear—seven hells, he doesn’t even have a shirt. How do you expect us to survive?”

  The guard laughed, which morphed into a hacking cough. “Are you saying you want
to change your mind, human? To refuse Dr. Enishiggama’s kind and considerate offer to let the two of you become mates in private? You asked to be allowed outside and there it is.”

  “We’ll be going,” Reede said calmly.

  Appalled, Fallyn refused to give up, even as the guards tugged her forward toward the door and she loudly voiced her next objection. “Does Enishiggama even know there’s a storm going on? She said she was going to bed.”

  “I’m in charge at the moment,” said a new voice and the lab tech strolled into view. Hands on her hips, a satisfied expression on her face and a gleam in her eye, the woman was clearly enjoying her authority over them. “Suits me to put you out into the storm. Show us you deserve to survive and procreate, eh?”

  Reede faced Fallyn, making a private space just for them. She watched his eyes, fascinated by the way they literally shone when he was addressing her. His voice was quiet and his words arrowed straight to her heart. “We’ll be fine, I give you my word.”

  “All right, I trust you.” Not being able to touch him was stressful.

  “Enough of this, I have things to do,” said the lab tech. “Free them and send them outside, the woman first.”

  The guards did as ordered and Fallyn recoiled as the door opened and wind and rain swirled inside the space. She evaded their grasp after the force binders fell away and stepped over the threshold on her own power, only to be buffeted by the gale blowing. She staggered sideways, trying to shield her face.

  Freed from the force binders, Reede strode outside and wrapped his arms around her, holding her steady and protecting her with his own body for a moment’s respite. He bent over and spoke crisply. “Would you allow me to carry you?”

  “Are we going to try to make it four hours through this?” she asked, putting her lips close to his ear.

  “There’s shelter closer,” he said. “And we’ll finish our journey in the morning. These storms blow over rapidly.”