by Dena Christy
“I’d like to wait.” Collette looked down at her hands. “Just until we rescue Ryce’s friend. I’m not ready to say goodbye to any of you.”
Evie seemed to understand the reason behind her hesitation. She patted Collette on the hand and stood.
“It’s a big step so we’ll do it when you’re ready,” Evie said as she turned and walked toward the door.
“Thanks Evie,” Collette said as her friend looked back at her. Evie nodded and let herself out of the room, closing the door quietly behind her.
The exhilaration of forging a new path wore off as the reality of what she needed to do sunk in. She would have to leave her friends behind. And she would have to walk away from Ryce. That thought hurt more than it should, and she shoved the feeling aside as she gathered her things to go take a shower. If she wanted to leave her old life behind, she would have to do what needed to be done, but at least she didn’t have to do it today.
Chapter Eleven
Collette hurried down the hall toward the conference room. Everyone was waiting in there to get a progress report on how things had gone at the ball last night. She walked in and all eyes turned toward her as she was the last one to arrive.
Her eyes went to Ryce, and a smile pulled at one corner of his mouth when he saw her. A flash of memory from last night with him inside her came to her, and a flush crept up her cheeks.
She went over to where Miranda was seated and took the chair next to her. She did her best to avoid looking at him. If she was going to focus on the task at hand she didn’t need the distraction. The attraction she felt toward him hadn’t diminished now that she’d been intimate with him, and it was stronger than ever. If she was going to move forward toward a life without him, she needed to keep her distance from him. She had a feeling that it would be easier to say, not so easy to do.
“So how was it?” Miranda asked in a quiet undertone. Collette looked over at her, and Miranda had a knowing look on her face.
“The ball? It was fine,” Collette said and Miranda let out a snort.
“The ball isn’t what I’m talking about. How was it, sleeping with him?”
“Did Evie tell you I slept with him?” Collette felt a flash of anger. She wasn’t ashamed to have been intimate with Ryce, but she would have liked to maintain her privacy. She thought Evie had more discretion.
“Evie didn’t tell me anything. You have the look of a satisfied woman that’s all.” Miranda gave a little laugh. “So do you have any details for me?”
“No details. All I will say is that I’m sure my experience was similar to when you slept with Synn the first time.” Collette glanced up to see Ryce wink at her.
He watched her from his spot on the other side of the room as if he couldn't keep his eyes off her. She suppressed the smile that wanted to creep upon her face, and she shoved down the feeling that she was a schoolgirl with her first crush. What was wrong with her, she was not a twelve year old.
“That good,” Miranda murmured, and she didn’t say anymore on the subject.
Evie stood up at the front of the room, and Collette wondered how she became the coordinator of the little gang they’d formed. Evie was a natural organizer, and it was her organization that was lending its resources so Collette supposed it was only fitting that Evie would hold the threads of everything together.
“I spoke with Collette this morning, and I know that Ryce was successful in contacting Dawson. Was that contact enough for you to be able to convincingly be him?” she asked as she looked directly at Ryce. Collette watched her face carefully when she addressed him, but if Evie had any thoughts on what she’d learned this morning, she was keeping them to herself.
“Yes it’s enough. We need to get Cynric out of there. I skimmed Dawson’s mind and didn’t like what I saw. Cynric is alive, and they have him in a prison cell of some sort. He’s also been tortured.”
There was a harsh bitterness in his voice. Collette wished for a moment that she’d chosen to stand beside him, since she could see in his face that his friend’s situation was difficult for him. She longed to offer him comfort, but stayed where she was. She had to remember to keep her distance and not to look for excuses to be close to him.
“What are they doing to him?” Synn asked, and Collette could see that he too was disturbed by what must be happening to his friend.
“I only got flashes, but it appeared they had some electrical thing hooked to his back, and were using it on him,” Ryce said and Synn nodded.
“I’m familiar with that, since they put one on me too. We have to get him out of there.” Synn balled his fists at his side. Miranda stood up and walked over to him.
Ryce must have seen his opportunity because he moved over to Collette’s side and sat down beside her. His leg brushed against her, and she had to concentrate on focusing on something other than his looming presence beside her.
“I missed you this morning,” he said in a voice meant only for her.
“I thought it would be best if I went back to my room.” She smiled up at him to soften the blow of her leaving. “Evie saw me leaving your room, and Miranda knows that we’ve been together. I don't think she keeps any secrets from Synn, so I’m sure he’ll know soon enough.”
He got a funny look on his face, and he glanced away only to look back at her.
“Does it bother you that the other’s know that we’ve been together?” The muscle flexed in his jaw, and she put her hand on his to sooth the sting he must be feeling.
“Not at all, only I wanted it to be something between you and me,” she said and he looked relieved.
He took her hand in his and moved it so that it looked like he was going to raise it to his mouth. The room had gone silent, and they both looked up to see everyone was looking at them. Synn had a speculative look on his face and gave Ryce a pointed look. Ryce let go of her hand, cleared his throat and addressed the group.
“What are we waiting for then? I say we go tonight and get him the hell out of there,” Ryce said.
“It’s not as simple as that,” Miranda said as she held her hand up. “Dawson will wear a colonel’s uniform to work, and while we have a soldier’s uniforms, we don’t have his.”
“Then why the hell did we go to the trouble of having contact with him if we still can’t get to Cynric?” Ryce’s anger exploded out of him.
Collette reached out and put her hand on his leg, and he took her hand and gripped it again, much tighter then he had before. She could feel the tension in him and knew that the thought of another roadblock in the way of his saving his friend was the source of his frustration. She longed to do more to sooth him, but wouldn’t while they were sitting with everyone in this room.
“We all want Cynric back.” Synn glared at Ryce. “I understand your frustration, but you don’t take it out on her.”
Ryce’s breath escaped in a sigh, and Collette could feel him deliberately trying to relax beside her. She looked over at him, and he had a shamefaced expression as he looked at Miranda.
“I’m sorry Miranda. I had no right to talk to you like that. So to get Cynric back we need to get a colonel’s uniform. Would you know where we might get one?”
“I know exactly where you can get one,” Miranda said as she looked first at Synn and then at Ryce. “It will be tricky, and there would be risks involved.”
“I don’t care about the risks. We have to do something. They won’t keep torturing him indefinitely while we sit around with our thumbs up our asses. Eventually they will do something far worse to him. I don’t care what the risks are, we have to get him out.”
Collette could sense Ryce’s agitation, despite his efforts to suppress it, and she took his hand, cradled it in her lap and ran a soothing hand up and down his arm. He gave her hand a squeeze, and she looked over at him. His attention was focused on her and mouthed the word “thank you.” She smiled softly at him and longed to kiss away the frown that marred his forehead. If only they had a few minutes alone, but now wa
s not the time for that. They had to come up with a plan to get what he needed to rescue Cynric.
“So where will we find this uniform?” Synn asked.
“In Dawson’s apartment,” Miranda said, and it was like she dropped a bomb in the middle of the room with the shattering silence that followed her statement. She plowed ahead as if everyone wasn’t sitting there stunned. “I said it was risky. Ryce, you can already disguise yourself as him, so you can go to his apartment, and steal a uniform. If anyone sees you, they will think you are him returning home.”
“While that sounds like a good plan, what will Ryce do if the real Dawson comes home unexpectedly?” Evie, ever the voice of reason, pointed that out, and Miranda’s shoulders sagged.
“I hadn’t thought of that. We could go into his calendar again, maybe, and see when he has an engagement away, but I don’t think we have time to wait for the right opportunity. Ryce is right, they won’t be patient with Cynric stonewalling forever. The sooner we get him away from there the better.”
Silence descended again, and Collette racked her brain to figure out something. There had to be a way to make stealing the uniform safer for Ryce.
“I’ll just take my chances,” Ryce said, and Collette knew enough about him to know that he would recklessly charge in there, and if Dawson came home, there would definitely be a confrontation. The thought of Ryce ending up in a cell next to Cynric made her sick to her stomach, and she wasn’t the only one who didn’t like the notion of him taking such a risk.
“We’ll figure out another way. I’m not losing another friend to these people,” Synn said, and he looked sharply at Ryce. “You and I will be able to rescue Cynric, but I don’t think I can get both of you out if you end up sharing a cell with him. And that would be the least catastrophic outcome to you charging in there. You could end up dead. I need you with me.”
“Cynric doesn’t have a lot of time, and arguing about the risks is pointless,” Ryce said and an idea came to Collette, one that she knew Ryce wouldn't like. But if they pulled it off, they would get the uniform and Ryce wouldn’t be putting himself at risk.
“What if someone went with Ryce and acted as lookout,” Collette said and he looked over at her in surprise.
“I’d do it, but who would I disguise myself as?” Synn said as a frown marred his forehead.
“I wasn’t thinking that you’d go,” Collette said softly. “I was thinking that I would.”
“No way,” Ryce said, and he let go of her hand as if it was on fire. “I’m not putting at risk like that. It was bad enough that we were almost caught out by Reggie at the ball. Do you know what they’d do to you if you were caught helping the people they consider the enemy?”
Collette looked around the room, to see if everyone shared Ryce’s view, and could see by the thoughtful expression on Synn’s face that he didn’t share the same opinion as Ryce.
“It’s not a bad idea,” Synn said, and he looked at Collette directly. “What were you thinking of doing?”
“She’s not doing anything,” Ryce said before Collette could speak.
“I think we should at least hear her out and decide as a group what’s being done. You can’t go in there alone, that’s obvious, it’s too risky,” Synn said as he gave Ryce a firm look. A growl escaped from Ryce’s chest, but it appeared he would not say anymore. “Collette, you have the floor.”
“Ok, here is what I was thinking.” Collette said took a deep breath. She could feel the anger radiating from Ryce, but she had to ignore it. She understood that he didn’t want to put her in danger, but he couldn't go to Dawson’s apartment building by himself. The plan in her head was a good one, and it carried little risk for her. “I will go with Ryce to Dawson’s apartment and stay in the lobby. If Dawson shows up, I can alert Ryce if he still hasn’t stolen the uniform and stall Dawson to give Ryce enough time to get the uniform and get out of the apartment. We time our visit to Dawson’s apartment for when he’s still at work, but not too early in the day to trigger any suspicion from anyone who might see Ryce.”
“Won’t Dawson’s suspicions be roused if he finds you in his lobby,” Synn asked seriously, and Collette let out a little laugh. He didn’t realize what type of man Dawson was. Collette had met his type before.
“He’ll be flattered, since he only just met me this past weekend. There have been rumors circulating that Reggie and I are on the rocks, and he knows I’m a chippy. He’ll think I’m looking for a new protector. And if he’s the kind of man I believe he is, he won’t be put off by me turning up at his place. He’ll think that it’s a stroke of luck for me to come to him on my own. His ego won’t let him think anything else.”
“Will it be safe for you, though,” Evie said as she chewed her bottom lip. “I think it’s a good idea, since Ryce going on his own is not an option, but none of us want you to put yourself at unnecessary risk either.”
“I will stay in the lobby and talk to him if it comes to it. If he wants me to go up with him, I’ll fob him off with some excuse and get the hell out of there. And this is only assuming that he shows up at all. Ryce may very well be able to get in and out of Dawson’s apartment without the real Dawson showing up.”
Collette looked over Ryce and his face was a mask of stone. He stared straight ahead, and the muscle flexed in his jaw. She could see there was no appealing to him to see reason, and she looked back at the group.
“If you’re sure you can handle it, it’s the best plan we have. I suggest we make arrangements to do it today. I’ll have Rebecca dig around and see if she can find his address,” Evie said, and she walked out the room to go do that.
“It’s a good plan, Ryce,” Synn said to his friend, and Ryce’s answer was a sound of disgust as he stood and followed Evie out the door.
“I’ll go talk to him,” Collette said as she stood.
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea. You might be better off letting him stew for a while,” Synn said, and he walked up to her. “I don’t know what is going on between you, but he feels very strongly about keeping you out of this.”
“I know, but I want to help, and this is the way I can do that. I’ll talk to him,” Collette said as she stood and looked toward the door.
“Why don’t you let me talk to him first, I know how his mind works. If you want to talk to him after, fine, but let me take the sting out of his anger first.” Synn turned on his heel and walked out the door.
Collette looked over at Miranda, who shrugged her shoulders.
“Let them sort it out, and while their doing that, you can tell me all about your night,” Miranda said as she smiled at Collette.
Collette could see that Miranda wouldn’t let her leave without a few details. Besides, Ryce wasn’t going anywhere at the moment and she needed to fill the time. What better way than to dish the dirt with her best friend. It would be like old times, before both their lives had completely changed because of two men from a distant planet.
Ryce slammed the door to his room and looked around for something to smash. He couldn’t believe that none of them could see the risk Collette was putting herself in, and that he was the only voice of reason. The man was a shark who would devour a woman as soft and vulnerable as Collette. Ryce didn’t want her within ten feet of him, but he couldn't seem to get anyone else to see his way of thinking. Placing her in Dawson’s path wasn’t a risk he was willing to take, not with her.
A knock came on the door, and he thought for a moment about ignoring it. It was probably Synn, come to tell him that he was being an idiot, but he didn’t think that Synn’s reaction would be any different if it was Miranda they were talking about putting herself at risk. Collette may not be his true mate, but there was something between them, and the protectiveness he felt her damn near overwhelmed him.
The knock came again, and Ryce realized he wasn’t going away.
“Come in,” he growled, and he paced away as Synn came in the room and closed the door behind him.
&nbs
p; “So that was quite the show you put on, want to tell me what the hell your problem is? It’s the best plan we have. Just like going to the ball was a good plan, but you had a fit over that too. What is going on with you?”
“Nothing,” Ryce said as he dragged his hand through his hair.
“It’s got to be something. I’ve never seen you so reluctant to do what needs to be done. You’re usually the one who wants to go in guns blazing regardless of the risks. Cynric needs saving, and we can’t sit around and wait for another plan to fall in our lap. Is it because you’re sleeping with her?”
Ryce looked sharply at Synn, ready to belt him if there was any sign of disrespect toward Collette, but there wasn’t. He still didn’t like that Synn had referred to it as sleeping with her since that phrase did nothing to convey the depth of what Ryce had felt when she’d shared her body with him.
Synn wouldn’t know what was going on in his head, and he knew that his friend respected Collette enough to not think of her as anything other than Miranda’s good friend. Synn was the one who’d warned him away from her, and perhaps Ryce should have listened. If he had, maybe he wouldn't have found himself so tied up in knots. But then again maybe not since he’d been drawn to her from the moment he’d freed her from Dr. Avery’s clutches.
“It’s feels like more than just sleeping with her,” he said, and Synn nodded. If anyone would understand what he was going through it was Synn, who gone through the same thing himself with Miranda.
“Do you have the mark?” Synn asked as his eyes darted down to the shirt that covered his chest.
“No,” Ryce said, and that was something else that worried him. He didn't know if he did or didn’t want the mark to appear. He was not in a place in his life to take a mate, but that was rushing things. “It has nothing to do with the mark. I don’t want her near him.”
