Naked

by Alexandra Christian

  “Aren’t they the sponsors of the New London colony?” Phoe asked, confused.

  “Exactly,” Eve said. “Machine bought the site from the IU several years ago, saying he was using it for a medical research facility, work that couldn’t be done on Earth. He set up a trust and got grants from all over the world. Manticore was heavy into pharmaceuticals at the time, and Machine claimed there was some mineral up there on Mars that could save us all from cancer.”

  Phoe gasped. “Oh God, that’s when Jess started working for the IU. She was supervising the dig.”

  “Maybe that’s when she found the amulet,” Cage said.

  “Most certainly,” Eve replied. “According to Ollie, a couple of years ago the IU pulled their funding completely. And all of their people. Evidently they saw something up there that scared the hell out of them. They completely abandoned New London, and that’s when Machine started moving in hardcore. Apparently he wants to turn it into some rich people paradise up there. Suddenly medical research was out the window, and he started building those bubble cities.”

  “Bubble cities?” Sadie asked with a chuckle. “What the hell is a bubble city?”

  “They’re these massive cities built under oxygen bubbles. It was the IU’s design, but Machine expanded it. The science encampments the Interplanetary Union built were just like little tents. The scientists had to wear spacesuits to walk between them and in case there was a breach. Machine and his team of less-than-ethical scientists figured out a way to make them massive so that they could put whole cities underneath. They’re virtually indestructible. Amazing what private funding can do, huh?”

  “Who would want to live in a bubble?” Phoe said. “Sounds claustrophobic.”

  “They’re so large you don’t notice,” Cage replied. “And the glass they’re made of is so thin and transparent that all you can see are the clouds up above. That beautiful, greasy Martian atmosphere.” The sarcasm was thick in his voice as he lit a cigarette.

  Eve laughed. “Cage hates Mars.”

  “Why?” Phoe asked.

  “I just do,” he growled. “Obviously Oliver thought he knew something that would help us. So spill it, Eve. I know you didn’t come all this way just to show off your shape-shifting and talk about Derek Machine.”

  Phoe was no expert in flirtation, but she recognized a come-hither smile when she saw one. “Maybe I came to see you, Cage,” Eve said.

  Phoebe glanced at Cage then rolled her eyes. She was on the edge of losing her patience, but at least he didn’t seem to be dazzled. “What about the amulet?” Phoe asked.

  Eve swallowed a knowing smile. “It’s what Oliver expected. As far as he can tell from those pictures, your suspicions are confirmed. It is a Sin’khari artifact. But it’s not the map, it’s the key. He said the striations on the edges are like the little teeth on keys.”

  “A key? Like to open a door?” Phoe asked.

  “Right-o,” Eve answered.

  “And the markings?” Cage prompted.

  “Definitely Sin’khari in origin,” Eve said. “Well, some of them. There are hieroglyphs, cuneiform and something else we aren’t sure of. Sin’khari has never been spoken, though some archaeologists speculated that Ancient Egyptian was really just a derivative of Sin’khari. As far as anyone can tell, given that there’s evidence of their race both on Mars and on Earth, they were a species that came to Earth looking for a new home. The samples of their handiwork that’s been found on Mars suggests that there was some kind of plague. There’s a network of caves in the Zagros Mountains in Iran that have markings similar to these. I believe your sister Jess wrote a paper on them.”

  “She almost ruined her career with that paper,” Phoe said. “They thought she was crazy for suggesting that space people planted the seed of civilization as we know it. Her old faculty advisor called it ‘twentieth-century pop science of the worst kind.’” She grimaced, remembering Jess’s reaction. “She was devastated.”

  “Seed of civilization?” Cage asked.

  “The Zagros Mountain range is probably one of the oldest in the world,” Phoe explained. “It also happens to be seated between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, otherwise known as the Fertile Crescent. Jess thought that your Sin’khari might be what we call the Sumerians. Which means, all life as we know it started on Mars.”

  Cage snuffed out his cigarette on the bottom of his shoe and tossed the butt into the dead plant at his side. “Your sister’s advisor was right. That’s hardly a new theory. And I still fail to see what any of this has to do with you or your sister now.” He turned to Eve. “Why would Machine be so eager for a scientific find like that? What difference does it make if humans came from Mars, Venus, or under the mulberry bush?”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Phoe said. “If that thing is a key, then he wants what’s inside.”

  “Exactly,” Eve said. “So what’s inside?”

  “That’s what we have to find out,” Cage replied with a wink. “I’m pretty sure that whatever’s inside those caves is what Machine is after. And it has something to do with the Others.”

  “Maybe he’s looking to use them,” Eve added.

  Phoe looked from one to the other, unable to believe her ears. Suddenly she was infuriated with both of them. The whole thing was irrelevant. Her sister’s life was at stake and they were acting like it was some kind of game.

  “Forget it,” Phoe exclaimed. “We don’t have to find anything out. Our only involvement with this amulet is to get my sister back.”

  “Oh come on, Miss Addison,” Eve said. “Aren’t you the least bit curious?”

  “Not at all,” Phoe said. “I don’t care. This amulet is my sister’s life.”

  “No,” Cage said. “Whatever’s inside that cave is your sister’s life. Do you really think Machine is going to let you go? You and your sister both know entirely too much at this point.”

  “I don’t know anything.”

  “You know that Machine is holding your sister captive and has threatened her life over a dusty old necklace. It doesn’t take Sherlock Holmes to deduce that the man’s bad news. I know about Derek Machine, and he isn’t someone to be trifled with. He’s every bit as bad as you think he is and more.” Cage lowered his voice. “Speaking as an expert in scary people—I’d have already killed you and taken the medallion as soon as your sister coughed up who was hiding it for her. He hasn’t done that, so there’s got to be more.”

  “You don’t know that,” Phoe said.

  Cage placed a calming hand on her shoulder. “Once he gets you to New London, it would be easy to make you and Jess disappear. No questions asked. As long as he’s lurking in New London, he’s untouchable. At least if we had the prize under the mountain, we’d have leverage to bargain with.”

  He sounded so sure, and his theory made terrible sense. But Phoe had promised herself that all she had to do was get to New London, that if she could just make it there, everything would be okay. “I can’t believe I’m hearing this,” she said, pulling away from him to pace the floor. “You said you’d help me.”

  “I am helping you,” Cage replied. He pulled another cigarette from the pack at his side and toyed with it. “But you have to admit this all sounds a bit dodgy. Machine’s an opportunist, that’s clear. We can make a pretty good guess as to his motivation.”

  She was upset and had every reason to be. But the more she thought about what he was saying, the more she was sure he was right. Taking the amulet to New London was suicide.

  “What about the IU?” he went on. “And your own government? Don’t forget, those weres that came after us had Central Intelligence written all over them.” He put his hand on her shoulder again, stopping her in mid-pace. “Phoe, there’s more to this. You know it.”

  “I don’t care,” she shouted. “All I care about is bringing Jess home.” She pushed him away and stormed out of the room.

  She burst through the front door and out onto the porch. She wanted to shut out all the
things Cage and that awful woman had said, and she just couldn’t while they stood there staring.

  She looked around, seeing the stars beginning to poke through the navy blanket of night. Everything had changed. Her entire world had been turned upside down, and she knew that there would be no turning back now.

  Even if she rescued Jess and went back to St. Francisville and the sheltered life she’d carved out for herself, nothing would ever be the same again. She knew too much. Truer words had never been spoken.

  Cage was right.

  Going to New London was probably the worst thing they could do, but she had no choice. Jess needed her and she couldn’t let her down now. Even if it meant her life.

  The door slammed open behind her and Cage stepped out onto the porch. Standing beside her, he brushed his fingertips down her arm. An affectionate gesture; he was trying to soften her up.

  “You okay?”

  “I’m fine,” she mumbled, not looking at him. “I just had to get out of there for a little bit.”

  “We’re going to be leaving soon, but we need to talk, Phoe.”

  “About?”

  “About New London. We can’t take that amulet to Mars. At least not until we have what it’s hiding.”

  Phoe whipped around so quickly that Cage stepped back. “We don’t have time for that. Machine said I had ten days. Ten. We only have a little more time to get to the spaceport and to the colony. Don’t you understand? He’s going to kill her.”

  She couldn’t hold back anymore and suddenly burst into tears. Heavy, shuddering sobs wracked her body, and despite feeling so ashamed, she couldn’t help it. “She’s all I have, Cage. The only person in the whole world who loves me. I can’t let her die.”

  He pulled her into his arms, letting her cry against his shoulder. He stroked her hair soothingly and kissed her forehead. “Shush now. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you or your sister.”

  “How can you be sure?” she sniffled.

  “Machine is a businessman. He needs that amulet or else his entire plan falls apart. He’s not going to kill anyone until he has it. You just have to trust me.” Cage tipped her chin higher, staring into her eyes. “And she isn’t the only person you have in the world, you know.”

  Phoe nodded. “Please, Cage. Please take me to her. I don’t care what happens to me, but I have to try. Jess has always been there for me and I always manage to screw up. This time she came to me for help. To me. Mousey old Phoebe, scared of her own shadow.” She was desperate, but she knew in her heart that she had to do this. “Please, Cage.”

  After several moments he sighed, looking defeated. But he finally nodded. “Fine. But you need to give me time to figure this out. Whatever happens, we cannot let that amulet get into Machine’s hands. Agreed?”

  Phoe nodded. “Agreed.”

  He pulled her into an embrace and kissed her gently. “Good girl. Now come on. We have to go. It’s getting late and it’s a long way to Tulsa.”

  12

  Phoe was a seething storm cloud in the passenger seat of the broken-down old truck. Sadie had given it to them in exchange for some of Cage’s heavy artillery. After all, her husband wasn’t coming back to use it. Unless, of course, someone decided to raise the dead, which lately didn’t seem like such an impossibility.

  Phoebe had suggested that they take the old woman with them, but Cage was adamant that she would be fine on her own. “Her army of zombies seemed pretty effective to me,” he’d grumbled. Eve had insisted on coming with them as far as Tulsa and Phoe was not happy about it. The longer she stuck around the more Phoe distrusted her.

  “For real? We’re going to take a car to Tulsa?” Eve chuckled as she pushed the seat forward to climb into the tiny space in the back. Phoe turned to glare at her. “I mean, seriously,” Eve said, ignoring her. “We’re fucking shape-shifters. Those dragons could make it there in an hour.”

  “We are, but Phoe isn’t,” Cage replied. “Besides, I’d like to get there with as little fanfare as possible. Not to mention that we’d cause mass hysteria.”

  Eve smiled sweetly at Phoe, who looked away. “Point taken.”

  They started off down the dirt drive toward the tiny town. Phoe shivered. She was glad to leave this place behind. The memory of their encounter with Sadie’s protectors was still too fresh for comfort. The bodies of the ones they’d killed still lay all over the road. Cage drove over them without batting an eyelash, but Phoe’s stomach rolled over at the sickening thud.

  “Do you mind?” she asked.

  “What?” he said.

  “Those things used to be people. You could show them some respect.”

  “I save respect for creatures that don’t try to eat me,” Cage said, gunning the engine as they neared the city limits.

  “Pretty talk for someone who drinks blood,” she countered. “They might be zombies now but those people used to be someone’s mother or sister, father or son. You shouldn’t be so blasé.”

  “I’m not blasé. I’m realistic,” Cage said. “And don’t compare me to them. I still have my humanity. Those creatures are shells of what they used to be. Whoever they were is long gone.” He glanced over at her as if he expected her to agree, but she said nothing. “You won’t last long if you keep up the bleeding-heart routine,” he said, turning his eyes back on the road. “Those zombies were no more than pieces of dead meat in the road. Werewolves are vicious animals trying to kill you. Vampires will exsanguinate you without a thought.” He jerked the truck into the next gear, making it wheeze in protest. “You would do well to remember it.”

  “And what of you?” Phoe started. “What if I didn’t know you? Would you have me kill you without thinking twice?”

  “That would be incredibly ambitious of you, but yes.”

  “Yes?”

  “Of course. You have to do what you must to save your life, Phoe.” His eyes were fixed on the road ahead. “No thinking, no emotion. In those situations you’re a machine. A machine bent on survival and nothing more. If I shifted right here and attacked you, I’d expect nothing less.”

  Phoe stared at him, appalled by his cold logic and reason. Did he really mean she should cast him aside after everything that had happened? After he’d made love to her? A glance into the rearview mirror revealed Eve’s smug grin. Phoe could feel jealous rage bubbling up inside her, and she wanted to slap that smile right off her face.

  “I’m afraid I can’t dole out death so carelessly,” she said.

  “Then you’ll be the first to die,” Eve answered. “That old adage ‘the meek shall inherit the Earth’? It’s bullshit. Right now, this very minute, more of those creatures are seeping up from the poisoned underworld of the Sin’khari. Soon it’s going to be about survival of the fittest.”

  “And you think you’re the fittest?” Phoe asked, turning to stare into Eve’s cold eyes. Something in Phoebe’s gut told her that someday she and this woman were going to have a serious disagreement.

  “Of course. I’m not afraid to do what has to be done.” Eve paused. “Like some people.”

  “Are you implying that I’m not capable of defending myself?

  “Oh, of course not, darling. I wasn’t implying. I thought I was being pretty plain.” Eve’s smile widened, showing her longish teeth, reminiscent of her draconian form.

  “All right, kittens, put the claws away,” Cage said. “We have to get to the airport in Tulsa. If we can’t get a flight, we won’t be getting to New London, and all of this will have been for naught. Chances are that agents from the IU will be waiting for us, so we may have to fight our way onto an airplane and hide in the cargo bay. So if I were you, I’d conserve my energy.” He shot a pointed glance at the rearview mirror. “Both of you.”

  A tense silence fell over the cab of the truck as they bumped over the uneven terrain toward the highway.

  Phoe would be glad when they finally reached civilization again. Out here in the middle of this desolate place, she felt uncert
ain, not just of her situation, but of her allies. Cage might have given in, but he’d made no secret that he was interested in finding out what exactly Machine’s plan was.

  Now, riding through the silence with time to think, she had to admit that what he said made sense. Machine had no reason to let her or Jess live once he had what needed. It also didn’t take a genius to figure out that he’d been bluffing with the threat to kill her. He needed Jess. Needed her so badly that he was willing to kidnap her out from under the watchful eye of the Interplanetary Union. He wasn’t going to kill her until he had what he wanted.

  Maybe Cage and Eve were right. Maybe they should try to negotiate with Machine. Or maybe go after whatever was in that cavern themselves.

  Phoe shifted in her seat, her gaze drifting toward the woman wedged into the small space between the seat and the wall behind them. Thankfully Eve had fallen asleep so they wouldn’t have to hear her mouth anymore. She was another problem.

  Despite telling herself it was ridiculous and she wasn’t some teenager anymore, Phoe’s biggest problem with Eve was jealousy. Even if she’d been the truest of allies, Phoe knew she’d have been suspicious of her. So that made her suspicions suspect, right?

  She glanced at the man beside her. He stared out at the road, his posture ramrod straight, his grip on the steering wheel tight. His hands, with their sinuous fingers and prominent veins thick with blue blood, were strong despite their delicacy.

  She had watched him commit such acts of savagery with those hands, but then they were so tender. Her breath quickened. She wanted to feel those hands again. She longed for the reassurance that they would offer. Not just that he would keep her safe, but that he preferred her over the insolent, arrogant child perched behind them.

  Intellectually Phoe knew that it was ridiculous, but she couldn’t stop the ghosts of her past from rearing their ugly heads. She needed to feel close to him again, to feel as if he were on her side, that she could trust him to see their mission through.

  “Cage?” she asked. Her voice was hoarse and quavering slightly.

  “Hm?” he grunted in response.