One thought kept hammering in his brain, adding to his agony. Alina betrayed me. I was wrong. She’s working for the Xer after all.
His beautiful Alina was a traitor. And if he escaped, he was bound by duty to kill her.
After a white-hot eternity that was probably a minute and a half, the pain faded, leaving him to slump, sweating and nauseated. But worse even than the pain was the black despair.
Alina.
“I can keep this up all night,” the Xer torturer said, her voice light, almost pleasant. “And so can you. That’s the wonderful thing about the collar. It doesn’t break bones, it doesn’t burn the skin off your body, it doesn’t ram spikes into your eyeballs. It only feels like it.”
Panting, Baird glared at his enemy as sweat rolled stinging into his eyes. The control collar they’d put on him felt as if it was slowly choking him, but unfortunately, it wasn’t.
He wouldn’t get off that easily.
They sat in what looked like a perfectly ordinary office of the kind found in private homes. Baird knew the Xer didn’t have a military compound on Calista; it appeared they’d had to make do with renting a house. The carpet under his feet was thick and lush, and the walls were a soothing blue. The Xer was seated comfortably behind a faux wood control desk, while Baird sprawled in a blue, thickly upholstered armchair in front of it.
He wasn’t even bound, though he might as well have been. The collar interrupted his brain’s signals to his body, leaving him completely paralyzed, though his muscles responded well enough to whatever stimulation the torturer chose to inflict.
“Come on, Baird, don’t do this to yourself,” she said, her smile flirtatious. She could have passed for pretty with her platinum blond hair and perfect face, if it wasn’t for the viciousness in her sky-blue eyes. “What do you boys know about the Femmat? We know you’ve been following her courier.”
He licked his lips. “Look, Alina and I are old friends. We just got together for a little sex.”
The torturer’s perfect pink mouth drew into a bow. “Don’t insult my intelligence. We know who you work for. We…”
“I want my daddy!” A child’s voice rang clearly through the closed door. Apparently there was no soundproofing in here at all.
“Look, kid, your daddy’s not here,” the guard in the hallway said, sounding frustrated. “You go on back to the Femmat now.”
“You’re lying! I know you’ve got him in there!”
“Kid…Shit!”
Thud.
“Dadddyyyyy!” the boy yelled at the top of his lungs.
“Retar, you idiot!” With a huff of frustration, the torturer rose and stalked to the door. Baird rolled his eyes, trying to see what she was doing, but she passed out of his field of view. The door sighed open. “Retar, could you get that child under…AH!” Feet scuffled. Baird heard the distinctive buzz of a stun baton, then the thud of a body hitting the floor.
Somebody grunted with effort, followed by rustles and a series of thumps that sounded like a body being dragged across the floor. “Damn, lady, what have you been eating—ferocrete?” Baird’s eyebrows rose. That sounded like the kid.
Another series of thumps, and the door closed.
Frustrated, paralyzed, Baird growled, “All right, somebody want to tell me what the hell is going on?”
To his astonishment, a ten-year-old boy walked into his field of view and sat down at the torturer’s desk. The kid gave him a bright, white grin. “Hi, Dad.”
Nine
Baird blinked in utter astonishment. He recognized the boy from a trid in his files. It was Rajin Kasi’s son, Galar.
But though Baird had been paralyzed, his computer and sensors still worked. And both were telling him the boy was not the purely human child he should have been. “You’re a warrior.”
“Yep.” The boy didn’t look up, too busy peering intently at the desk’s touch screen, evidently trying to puzzle out the controls.
“If you’re trying to deactivate the collar, hit the red square.” He’d gotten another agent out of a Xeran collar once before. “Why aren’t you in a creche?”
“Because I’m a hostage.” The boy touched the desk.
The collar opened and fell into Baird’s lap. Cautiously, he stretched, making sure everything was working, but his attention was focused on Galar. “The Xer are holding you?”
“No, Rajin is. She’s been using me to blackmail my mother.”
Baird blinked, belatedly seeing the resemblance. “Alina.”
The kid nodded, his blond hair the exact same shade as hers. His mouth was drawn into a familiar line Baird knew from a hundred combat missions. “And you’re my father.”
About to roll out of the chair to have a go at the computer desk, Baird gaped at the boy. He’d assumed Galar had been joking when he’d called him Daddy, but it sounded as if he actually believed it. “What leads you to that conclusion?”
Galar shrugged. “Mother says so.” He frowned down at the desk console, frustrated. “I know all about you. She told me all kinds of stories about when you were her partner during the war.”
The pain was stark and breathtaking. Alina had dared tell her son such a lie before betraying Baird and handing him over to the Xer. I never knew her, he thought in sick rage. I never knew her at all. He fought the anger down long enough to address his comp. Does he actually think I’m his father?
Sensors indicate he believes what he says.
Despite the fury sizzling through him, Baird rose and stalked to the desk. He had a job to do, which meant he needed to disable the Xerian’s communication jammers so he could call the Vardonese embassy.
The child moved aside for him without being told. Baird glanced him and felt a stab of pity. None of this was his fault. “I don’t know what they’ve told you, Galar, but your mother and I haven’t been together for twenty years. I couldn’t be your father.”
Level, golden eyes met his. For a moment, it was like looking into a mirror, but he knew that was an illusion. “My mother loved you, Baird. That’s why she had me.”
He wanted to rage and swear, but forced himself to speak calmly instead. “She misled you. If you were my son, you’d be nineteen.”
“My mother doesn’t lie!” Temper flared in those too-familiar eyes. “Look, she thought Kasi House would emancipate her, but Rajin refused. Mom was still pregnant with me when the old bitch ordered my fetus surgically removed and put in cryostorage. She said Mother could have me back if she continued to work for Kasi. So she did. Eleven years ago, they thawed me out and let her have me. Rajin’s been using me to manipulate Mom ever since.”
Baird frowned, considering the idea. It sounded plausible. Goddess knew it sounded like the kind of thing Kasi would do.
Could this boy be his? Had Alina given birth to him as an expression of love for Baird? The thought was so staggering, so painful, he shoved it away. The little traitor had lied to her son, just as she’d lied to Baird. “Look, I don’t have time to argue about this…”
“No, we don’t,” Galar said. Fear and impatience whitened his face, though to his credit, his voice remained controlled. “We’ve got to get to Mother before she tries to kill Rajin. Because if she’s not fast enough, I’m dead, and even if she succeeds, the Xer will kill her.”
“What are you talking about?”
As Galar explained the trap he was in, Baird used the desk unit to hack into the Xer’s communications and security systems. By the time the child finished describing the death he faced if Rajin used her codes, a great deal was painfully clear. “So that’s why Alina went along with Rajin’s treason,” Baird said. “It doesn’t make it forgivable, but…”
“My mother is not a traitor!” The mouth so like Alina’s drew into a mutinous line. “She didn’t know Rajin was working for the Xer, and now that she does, she’s going to kill her. And as many of the Xer as she can take with them!”
Baird frowned. “She’d put you in danger like that?”
“No,
she told me to leave and call the authorities so they could rescue you, but I took the chance of turning you loose instead. You owe us, Warlord. And if you don’t help us, we’re both dead.”
Lifting a brow, Baird studied the boy. Galar had taken a hell of a chance to free him—not only in tackling three full-grown Xer, but in braving Baird’s own disbelief and anger by telling him his story.
And those golden eyes—it was like looking into a mirror. Computer, give me a DNA scan of this child. Is he my son?
The mental silence that followed was long and nerve-wracking.
Yes.
“Sweet Goddess,” Baird whispered, stunned.
Sometime in the past twenty years, the Xer had figured out how to build neuroweb computers, probably with tech they’d stolen from the Vardonese during the invasion. According to Alina’s sensors, the leader of the Xer agents had one, though her computer pronounced it inferior to Kasi House tech. Too, given Major Jenci Csaba’s age, it must have been implanted in adulthood rather than infancy, so it wasn’t as well integrated into his brain.
Inferior comp or not, Alina’s instincts told her she’d better keep an eye on Csaba. The number of sensor scans he’d sent her way over dinner certainly indicated he was suspicious. That was no doubt why he hadn’t requested she transfer the file to him. He was afraid of a virus.
As well he should be—she had one all loaded up and ready to send him. He’d be dead before he hit the ground when his comp stopped his heart. Of course, the Xer could restart it again with a regenator, but Alina figured dropping him would still cause some very satisfactory chaos. With luck, she could use the confusion to escape and free Baird.
Though if Galar had succeeded in getting away, the boy might even now be summoning the Calista authorities. The fact that the Xer hadn’t raised the alarm over his escape was a very encouraging sign.
Alina leaned back in her seat, playing with her fork as their server brought in dessert—something showy and flaming. Her attention was focused across the elegant table, where Rajin flirted with the Xer major. Csaba probably wanted to enlist the Femmat as a long-term asset. And Rajin, the traitorous bitch, seemed interested.
Alina rolled her fork between her fingers and calculated the angle and force she’d need to bury it in Rajin’s eye socket. It was a tricky shot, but doable.
But if she missed, was Galar far enough away to be beyond Rajin’s code transmission? The boy had been gone half an hour. It was a good thing Rajin and Csaba were so wrapped up in their little waltz of treachery. Alina needed to move before either of them missed him.
And Goddess only knew what the Xer were doing to Baird in the meantime. The thought made her stomach twist, so she pushed it away.
She’d get to him in time. She had to.
Suddenly Rajin looked over at her as she and the Xer rose. “Alina, come. It’s time to give Major Csaba what he’s paid for.”
Finally. Alina smiled easily, put her fork down, and stood. She considered telling her computer to prepare for riaat, but Csaba might notice. She’d have to do this at normal strength, but if she hit Rajin hard enough, fast enough, the woman should be unable to get the command out.
Hopefully. It was the only game in town, in any case.
She rounded the table, mentally cursing herself for not killing Rajin earlier. She’d delayed too long, hoping for a better chance, for a way to both save Galar and keep him.
Csaba and Rajin were moving ahead of her into the next room. She lengthened her stride to catch up. Her breathing slowed, calmed. Her mind went cold and still.
In one smooth, powerful motion, she scythed her leg up and across, aiming for the side of Rajin’s head with her boot.
Csaba whirled in an blur of inhuman speed, throwing up a forearm to block the kick that would have shattered the Femmat’s skull. Alina didn’t hesitate, throwing herself at him, punching, kicking, trying to drive past his guard to get at Rajin. Her heart slammed in panic. No! Galar!
From behind the protection of the Xer’s shoulder, Rajin stared at her with infuriated terror. “He’s dead, bitch!” the Femmat screamed. “You just killed your son!”
Alina cried out in anguish as her comp picked up the stream of code pouring from Rajin’s communication’s implant.
If Galar wasn’t out of range, he was dead.
Go to riatt! she ordered the computer, as she kept trying to beat her way through the Xer’s guard. Keep a lock on Rajin, I want to be able to find her when I’m finished with this bastard.
The Xer’s fist shot toward her head, and she jerked aside, backhanding him so hard he slammed into the wall behind him. But before she could close in to finish him, a dozen agents charged into the room. She spun to meet them, her teeth bared in despair and rage. She might be done, but she was going to take as many of them with her as she could.
Then a familiar war cry stopped her in her tracks. A big male body charged in behind the Xer, beads flashing in his braids.
“Baird!”
“Yeah, it’s me.” Baird plowed into the agents like a tachyon shell, sending some of them reeling, as the others whirled to fight.
With a cry of joy, she ran to help.
“You do realize,” he said on their old battle frequency, “I’m going to kick your ass when I get done with these idiots.”
Alina plowed her fist into a Xeran’s gut. “I guess I’ve got it coming.”
She only hoped she wouldn’t have to tell him their son was dead.
Heart in her throat, Rajin slunk out of the room, praying neither of the warriors saw her go. She knew she had to catch a flight to whatever ship was in orbit, or she was dead. Alina wouldn’t stop until she had revenge for her brat’s death.
Sweet Goddess, but this situation had melted down with staggering speed. She’d be lucky if she…
A door hissed open behind her.
With a strangled shriek, Rajin whirled to see Galar step out of what looked like a closet. Something silver gleamed from around his throat. Shocked, Rajin gasped, “Why aren’t you…? And why are you wearing a Xer control collar?”
“To block your fuckin’ signal, bitch,” the brat said, and flicked his wrist, snapping the stun baton out to its full length.
Before she had time to jump back, he shoved it right into her belly. Rajin bent double with a howl of agony. She never felt him jam it against the base of her skull.
The boy watched her tumble to the ground at his feet, out cold. He bounced the baton in his palm and grinned. “Damn, that felt good.”
They were fighting back-to-back again as the Xer circled, looking for an opening. Baird growled, “These odds really grind.”
“We’ve faced worse.” Alina was sweating, and her mouth tasted of blood from her cut lip.
He snorted. “Not in the past two decades.”
Suddenly her computer began to howl. Tevan lifesign approaching!
What?
Alina jerked her head around just in time to see the huge reptile step through the door, a tachyon rifle lifted and aimed in his seven-fingered hands. A number of other figures followed behind him, all armored and armed. Alina’s heart sank. “Oh, we’re screwed.”
“Not exactly.” Aloud, Baird added, “What the hell took you so long, you big lizard?”
“Traffic was a bitch,” the Tevan growled, as his armored backup leveled their weapons at the Xer agents. “Hey, assholes—you gonna give us an excuse?”
Cursing, the Xer straightened and backed away, throwing their batons aside.
“Mother!” A small figure raced around them.
“Galar!” Alina caught him as he leaped for her. “Sweet Goddess, you’re all right!”
“I knocked Rajin out!” he told her happily. “The Warlords took her away. Baird reprogrammed his control collar and put it on me so her signal couldn’t get through, and then he told me to hide in the closet, but when I heard Rajin in the hall…”
“What—wait, slow down!” She put the boy on his feet, barely noticing as the V
ardonese agents started forcecuffing their prisoners and hustling them off. “What are you talking about? Explain.”
“Actually,” Baird drawled from beside her, “he’s not the only one with some explaining to do.”
Alina paced at Baird’s side, every muscle tense with a blend of fear and hope. They’d stepped outside the Xer’s headquarters while he questioned her. Now they walked together under the alien trees, as zipcars sighed overhead and a warm wind blew in their faces.
He told her he worked for military intelligence, which in retrospect made a great deal of sense. It was obvious their encounter yesterday had not been chance.
It turned out an official at Kasi House had learned about Rajin’s theft of those gems. Yet because she was the company’s president, it was virtually impossible for the lower-ranking Femmat to confront her. Then Rajin began showing an unhealthy interest in a Vardonese warship the company was building, and the official reported her to military counterintelligence.
Baird was one of the agents assigned to the case. When he learned Alina was involved, he volunteered to make contact with her.
He explained all that with a cool dispassion that somehow hinted at boiling rage. Alina had tried to blunt his anger by holding nothing back, from the night she’d decided to get pregnant through Rajin’s blackmailing her into carrying the gems. When she finally worked her way to the present, he said nothing for five steaming minutes.
When he finally spoke, it wasn’t what she’d expected. “Obviously, I have a conflict of interest here. One of the other agents will have to question you further. You’ll be required to undergo a deep scan of your comp’s memories to verify your story. Assuming you’ve told me the truth, I doubt you’ll be charged, though the ultimate decision will, of course, be up to the Femmat chief prosecutor.”
Assuming you’ve told me the truth. She winced. “Baird, I’m sorry.”
Warlord Page 34
