by Layla Stone
"You're sleeping in our make-shift brig," he answered in a condescending tone, once more showing his emotions.
"First of all, the captain told me to find a bed. I found one. He can get an attitude with me for not moving, but he was the one who told me to find a bunk instead of assigning me one. Second of all, I'm safe, and if I wasn't, then neither are any of you. Because if Sci still had his abilities, I don't think any of you, especially Ansel, would be alive right now," she said, holding her index finger in the air, feeling all kinds of righteous indignation.
The male clicked his tongue. "Are you siding with the Cerebral?"
"No. But I take exception to you telling me I have emotional issues." Was the male dense? Anyone would be offended.
He snorted. "You think that rant helped your case of looking less emotional?" Sasha knew he was right, but Lotus Nexis would freeze over before she agreed with him. He quickly finished his drink and put it back in the cleaner. As he brushed by her, he said quietly, "Humans are also easily emotionally compromised. I know it, and obviously, the Cerebral knows it."
She didn’t like the cyborg being so close, and she hated that he was causing her to doubt herself. Did he know she had been talking to Sci? He made it sound as if he knew her thoughts and feeling regarding Sci. Then she wondered what he’d meant by “the Cerebral knows it.” Was Sci messing with her? Why would he do that? "Are you trying to make a point?"
The cyborg leaned in, his body casting a shadow over her slight frame. Everything in her wanted to step back away from the threatening move. At five feet and six inches, she had a fit body but not a muscular or tall one, and he was taking advantage of that fact in the most visceral way possible. She resented it.
His metal jaw moved as he said, "He told you his name. Talked to you. Prisoners who get their captors to see them as a person usually get them to mess up so they can free themselves. Don't let him. For yourself, and the crew. Remember, you're on our side, not his."
He knew. Did everyone know? Did the captain know? What was going to happen? Her stomach tumbled. Fear flooded her blood. She was terrified of being found out and punished for it.
Still, Sasha refused to admit anything. "I’m a pilot. My first priority is getting everyone to their destination safely." Also, Sasha knew that Sci had been wronged, and she was not going to treat him like anything less than a person.
The cyborg walked out, and Sasha stayed in the galley longer than usual. When she returned to her room, Sci didn't have a cup near him, and he looked at her curiously as she walked by him without saying a word.
She pulled off her boots and placed them at the end of her cot. The cyborg was right, she was emotional. Right now, she was terrified of what would happen to her. She was not so simple-minded to think or assume that others didn’t know she had failed to follow the captain’s orders.
Would Rannn send her home after they arrived on Pegna? What would she do if he did? How could she be so stupid?
She scratched the side of her head, unable to look at Sci, who was at the bars of his cage, facing her direction. She couldn’t talk to him. Not anymore.
Her mind refused to focus and submit to the reality that she was going to be sent home. There was no way that the cyborg knew and no one else did. That’s what the captain had to be talking about when he said she wasn’t the best pilot.
She rubbed the side of her head, her shoulders slumping and her body doing its best impression of a ball.
Failure had never felt so wrong.
Curling up on her cot, she gave her back to the Cerebral. Soon, she would have to explain her failings to her mom. Just thinking about explaining that she hadn’t been able to keep her mouth shut made her tense. It sounded so brainless that tears welled in Sasha’s eyes, and a lump formed in her throat at the mental picture.
Her mom, broken, bruised, and waiting for her was now without hope. How was Sasha going to free her mother if she didn’t have any money?
Sasha fell asleep in a haze of nebulous guilt.
Chapter Eleven
Soon
Sci watched Sasha’s mind attack itself. Never had he felt the type of confliction he did as he witnessed her misery.
He couldn’t feel her feelings because he wasn’t sorry she had talked to him. He cherished each memory. Her voice, her eyes, and even when they touched. All of it was his, and no one else had shared in those moments.
As a Cerebral, everything is shared. Every moment, every learning experience is shared telepathically. Nothing is secret, and nothing is special.
What he had with Sasha was extraordinary, and he would never allow himself to think of it otherwise. It meant so much that he could—and had—entertained hopeful thoughts of never sharing them with his kind. Never having to share her.
But her anguish was separating them. He resented it…her from pulling away like she was. But she had no idea that he could help. Once he was fully able, he could save her mother, and she could return with him to Cerebral…
But would it be safe?
Could he keep her the way those of other Federation races kept their mates?
His resolved settled. He’d keep Sasha, save her tribal mother, and return home to help his brother. It would be simple—as soon as his abilities were at full strength. He would solve Sasha’s problems for her.
He knew her mind, he knew her worries, and he needed to take care of her.
Sci sat down, keeping his eyes on his Terran.
His Terran.
The words felt good. Sci took in a breath and continued to train. He wanted to be ready for when escape was possible. And it would be, very soon.
Chapter Twelve
Space Scavengers
Sasha didn't sleep well. Her mind was flooded with anxiety riddled dreams about her mom and Jandy. She woke up irritable. Sands, the cyborg, knew about her conversations with Sci, and she needed to discover the depth of his knowledge. She needed to know what the repercussions were because she couldn’t live another second assuming or wondering what might happen.
Pulling her boots on after a quick jump in the cleaner, she walked straight to the medical room and waited for the door to open.
It didn’t.
She pursed her lips. Hitting her boiling point, she pulled out her utility tool and manually opened the door.
The cyborg was snoring, with one massive arm over his eyes. She took only one step into the room and growled out, “Sands.”
The snoring stopped immediately. Without moving, the cyborg’s raspy voice said, “I’m sure I locked the door. This is my space, and you will remember that, or you will get a talking to by me.” Somehow, she interpreted the talking to as a physical punishment rather than a verbal lashing. It may be the way he’d said it, or that she’d grown up on Nexis and that was one of the many ways female slaves were punished.
Either way, she wasn’t ruining this opportunity to ask, “Does the captain know? Did he tell you I’ve been talking to Sci? Does he have a recorder in the room?” The questions and assumptions came out in one hot breath.
Sands’ arm dropped, and she watched his dark face turn to face her. “No, I can hear you from here.” He tapped the side of his head. “Cyborg, remember? Enhanced hearing.”
Well, that was good. Or, was it worse? “Rannn didn’t say anything to you?”
The cyborg narrowed his eyes. “You were told not to talk to him, weren’t you?”
She nodded quickly.
“From the captain?” He sounded amused, which both irritated and concerned her.
“Yes.”
With a smug smile, he said, “Was it worth it? Because from what I heard, it sounded pretty dull.”
“Are you going to tell Captain Rannn?” She had to know. She was even willing to pay for Sands’ silence. She needed this job.
The bastard shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
“My life, and my mother’s life depends on this job.” Every word echoed in her h
eart.
Sands didn’t look affected. “Looks like you owe me a favor.” And then he put his arm back over his eyes. “Now, be a good girl and shut the door.” It took a second for the words to sink in. It couldn’t be that easy.
“Out, or I swear I will get up now and inform the captain that you disobeyed a direct order and were willing to bribe me to be quiet about it.”
Backing up, she left the medical area. Manually shutting the door, she still felt numb and maybe a little cautious. But now that she had bribed Sands with a favor, she didn’t feel better. Sands could break their deal for any reason, and Sasha just didn’t get a great vibe from him.
Walking away, she wondered if everything were going to be all right. It was a short-lived feeling as she turned and stared at the closed door to her and Sci’s cabin. She’d broken the rules because she enjoyed getting to know the Cerebral.
And the desire was still there. Plus, Sasha would always think of Sci as an innocent prisoner. But she needed to be smart this time and stay away. After her shift, she would ask Ansel to change rooms with her.
***
At the controls, she looked at the map and realized she had another seventeen hours on the ship before they reached Pegna Station. Rannn was going to fly the last eleven hours. She didn't stop to get her after-work sludge. She went straight to her room, stopping only after she noticed that Sci wasn't looking at her. He was lying down, arms behind his head, eyes closed. She narrowed her eyes, wondering what was wrong.
She had planned to come and get her leather jacket and then leave the Cerebral behind, but something was wrong, and her feet refused to move forward.
Seconds ticked by, and he still didn’t move.
She had been gone for hours flying, he should have gotten plenty of sleep the night before and during the day. Was he sick? Did he need a medscope?
Futilely, she realized she was going to break down again…the words are you okay were on her tongue, waiting only for a modicum of effort to come forth.
The responsible side of her brain battled for her to grab her jacket and leave. To do the right thing for once in her life. But there was a side of her that couldn’t ignore him. If he were hurt and she left him that way, what did that say about her? What kind of person would she be? Not one her mother would be proud of.
"Sasha." His eyes opened wide, turning towards her, but the horror in his face took all her thoughts away.
He jumped off the bed and pointed at the door. "Sasha! Go, the ship is about to be attacked."
She couldn’t process his words. They were being attacked? Who would attack a Federation transporter?
Pointing at the front of his forehead, he said, "Telepathy, remember? I can hear the thoughts of the captain on the other ship. He has no blocker. You need to tell the captain to divert course, now! Go. Move."
She turned to go, but the dumb part of her brain was worried about her leather jacket. She couldn’t leave the only possession she still had from her mom.
"Move, Sasha!"
She ran into the cleaner where the jacket was hanging. "I need my jacket."
Sci cursed right before the ship violently jerked. It knocked Sasha to the floor and into the wall. "Hold onto something," Sci commanded. Another hit. This time, she watched her jacket slide past her. She reached out for the mound of white leather, and another hit caused her to skid towards the cage.
"No!" she choked, but it was too late. She was mentally disoriented, and the collision with the bars was unavoidable. A hair’s breadth away, she could feel the prickly electricity of the bars against her cheek. She braced, waiting for the inevitable shock that would knock her out. It never came. Before she knew what was happening, she was floating in the air, hanging several feet away from the electrically charged cage.
Slowly, she floated back down until she was dropped like a bag of rocks on her cot.
What the hell had just happened?
"Grab the bed!" he said.
She did, shooting an accusing look at Sci, who didn’t appear to be as handicapped as Ansel claimed him to be.
"You're…." She couldn't even get the words out of her mouth.
The door slammed open, and Pax rushed in. He didn’t spare Sci a glance, his sole focus was on Sasha. He scooped her off the bed and pulled her into his chest. “It’s amazing you didn’t hit those bars, hellcat.” He maneuvered her out the door. She was about to tell him that she could walk when he added, “This is one of those moments when ‘I told you so’ doesn’t feel satisfying enough.”
Sasha was still reeling from floating in the air seconds before. The secret was burning in her mind, and she wanted—desperately—to tell someone. But it didn’t feel right, and she wanted to keep Sci safe because he had, in fact, saved her life.
Pax turned the corner, and she realized that she was in the medical room. Ansel looked at her. “Where are you hurt?”
“I’m not.” She pushed at the mountain-sized male holding her.
Reluctantly, Pax let her down, but he was keeping her close. Towering above her, she heard him say, “We need to stash her and Yon somewhere safe. As soon as the limited shields go down, they will board us and attack.”
Stash her? Unbelievable. “I’m not going to hide. I can fight. Hand me a phaser.”
No one gave her anything. In fact, she was being ignored as Ansel returned to settling Yon in some sort of tube.
“What is that?” She moved to help, to be useful.
“A gutted torpedo. Sands is bringing one for you,” Ansel answered.
Pressing her hand on Ansel’s arm, she said, “I’m not going to hide. I can fight.”
“You’re going to get inside the torpedo, or I’m going to stuff you inside.” Pax’s eyes were red. He was angry and helping Sands pull in the bulky item that didn’t fit through the door well. It scraped small metal shavings off the sides, but no one seemed concerned.
Pax grabbed her arm, and she struggled, digging her nails into his skin. “What the hell is wrong with you? I’m with the Federation! I can help.”
He twisted her around, pulling her arms to the front to lay her down as he leaned down into her face. She wished she could pull back. She didn’t like him close. She didn’t like the crazed way he was looking at her. In a harsh whisper, he said, “I vowed never to let another team member die while I lived. This is me keeping my vow. And, hellcat, I will not let you die, even if I have to tie you up and spank you red. Do you understand me?”
Words failed her.
He was scared. So scared, he was angry. Sasha understood in a way, but she wanted to fight. She wanted to be a useful member of the team.
“Stay alive, little hellcat, and I’ll let you buy me a bottle of whiskey for saving you.”
Whiskey? Terran whiskey was something you saved up to buy. It wasn’t cheap.
As the lid on the gutted torpedo was closed, Sasha keenly felt the darkness. Taking in small breaths, she tried to calm her mind. She wouldn’t freak out. Hopefully, there was enough air. They had to have thought of that. Right? Yon was in a tube, and they wouldn’t have overlooked the air. At least, she hoped.
Sasha felt her heart pump harder and harder.
Sucking a breath in between her teeth, she tried to calm down. In vain. The metallic flavor of the air did nothing but make her efforts worthless and ramp up her anxiety. Unable to stop herself, she pushed against the curved walls, gasping.
“Let me out! Let me out. Please, please. Just need some air.”
The tube jerked and then rolled until she was upside down. She couldn’t keep in the hysterical scream.
Air.
What was happening?
Air. She needed air. It was getting too warm, and the tube was filling with her breath. She was going to die. In a torpedo tube, in space. The metallic smell was getting worse, and her mind was settling into greyness. The same dimness that encroached when you stood up too fast.
Then she touched the
cold metal and felt herself succumb to the dark.
Then…nothing.
Chapter Thirteen
Flesh-Eaters
Sci had been plotting his escape from the moment he woke up on the transporter ship. An attack was not what he had planned, but it would accelerate his getaway. But now that he had decided to take Sasha with him, things were more complicated. Especially since she was unconscious in a torpedo tube.
His telepathy was still very much intact, and he scanned several of the invaders’ minds. He learned that they were cannibals, they called themselves Donnies. This would not end well.
Sci was surprised by his disgust at the way Pax had talked to Sasha. The Demon obviously cared for her, and it drove Sci absolutely crazy. It was an unfounded emotional response, but he didn’t lie to himself either. He didn’t like another male getting Sasha’s attention. He wanted it for himself. Moments before the attack, he knew she had been about to break the captain’s orders again, and that gave him a rewarded feeling.
Sci’s brain burned, knowing the Donnies captain was looking for fresh meat to eat. The concept alone was highly uncivilized. The Donnies had only two boys left from their last raid, and they needed more food to get them through the coming weeks.
Fighting against his very nature, Sci stopped listening to the savage captain’s mind and began sending confusing and abrupt pictures of their ship crashing or blowing up. It was a mental attack, and it was the first time he had ever sunk so low, but it was necessary. Their transporter couldn’t keep taking those kinds of hits from the Donnies’ vessel, and Sci wasn’t going to die in space. Not to mention, he didn’t want Sasha to die or get hurt either.
His priorities changed again: fend off the Donnies, keep Sasha safe, and then get a ship, escape, and find his brother.
Suddenly, the enemy ship stopped firing. He checked on Sasha’s mind, mentally brushing over where he’d last felt her. Her mind was still dark, and he was happy about that. She wasn’t taking her confinement very well, and he may have helped her mind calm without technically interfering with her natural conscious state.
