by Kate Pearce
“Einarr? Did you hear that? It’s an alarm. It should stop in a moment.”
She leaned against the door, awaiting his response. If the alarm had scared her, what had Einarr made of it?
“I am well, Frey. I believe Aki’s ship has been sighted. I’m going to see what is happening down at the docks. Can you join me there?”
Frey thought he sounded remarkably calm, considering. “I don’t think so. I’m locked up.”
“Then I will find you when I’ve dealt with Aki.”
“It’s okay. I’ll try and get out of here myself. You don’t have to worry about me.”
“I will find you, Frey, regardless.”
She was torn between gratitude at his obvious sincerity and fear that he meant it. “Be careful.”
He snorted. “I will do my best. I assume they will be reluctant to kill me until I have paid for my journey here.” He paused. “If you plan to escape, mayhap you could find my weapons and bring them with you?”
“Sure, why not?” She grimaced at her slightly hysterical response.
“Now I just have to find my way back to the docks,” Einarr continued speaking. “It is hard to read most of these symbols on the walls.”
“Oh that’s easy,” Frey said, pulling up the map of the base in her head and relaying it to him. “Go to level 01 and look for a symbol that resembles three inverted ‘v’s like the head of an arrow. That’s the sign for the docking bays. Aki’s ship will be coming in to one of those. It will be pretty obvious which one it is if the entire Alpha Three military is surrounding it.”
His laughter saturated his thoughts, and for a moment, she forgot to hold him at arm’s length and simply enjoyed being so in tune with him. It wasn’t fair for him to have to face the might of Alpha Three all by himself. She put her hand on the control panel on the wall of her cell.
“I’ll try and join you.”
The security system wasn’t programmed to withstand a Pavlovan’s telepathic ability to disrupt electrical patterns and currents. It was a flaw she was more than happy to exploit. She’d already lost her job, and her future was in doubt. What was to stop her helping the Viking? If she was being screwed by FREN, Gods knew what they planned to do to an ancient Viking.
Letting out a slow breath, she placed her hand back on the control panel and focused on the intricacies of the security system until she understood the flow well enough to reach in and telepathically disrupt it. Her cell door lock clicked open, and with a soft prayer, she eased it open an inch until she could see out onto the corridor. There was no one there, only the flashing red lights, the boom of the alarm and the sound of hurried orders being issued over the public com.
If Einarr’s weapons were on Alpha Three, they would be stored in the most secure area, which had to be where she was currently being held. As she ran along the corridor, she used the matrix of the building plans to identify exactly where she was.
“Einarr? This might sound weird, but can you connect with your weapons at all? I mean magically or telepathically?”
From the stream of his thoughts, she could tell he was also on the move, his route downward through a series of emergency staircases and locked doors.
“Aye, I can sense they are here.”
“Can you send that thought to me?”
For a moment he went quiet, and she considered how to rephrase her request. She’d grown up surrounded by telepaths and never had to think about how she’d acquired her knowledge. Trying to explain things to a four-thousand-year-old Viking was proving to be a lot more complicated than she’d anticipated.
She almost gasped as the image of his axe and dagger appeared in her mind with such vivid clarity that she wanted to reach out and touch them.
“Hold that thought, Einarr. Call them to us.”
He understood her better than she had anticipated, his strength blending with hers and leading her unerringly to a manned desk at the center of the small detention center. Frey thanked her Gods that Alpha Three was a research complex and not a military base as the lone man stared at her, consternation on his face. He looked about sixteen years old and everything about him screamed research geek.
“How the hell did you get out?”
She blinked innocently at him. “My door opened when the alarm went off. I assumed I was supposed to get out?”
“I…”
“Perhaps you should go and ask someone?” She checked his nametag. “Merton, is it? I’m quite happy to wait here while you check.”
He stared at her and then tapped his wrist com. “Pastur? Come in, please. We have a situation here.”
Half-turning his back on her, he repeated the request. It was just enough time for Frey to lean forward, grab the weapon he’d left on the desk and point it at him.
“Stop talking, Merton, and turn off your com.”
He swallowed hard. “You can’t do this. What’s the point? Someone will just get hurt.”
“Turn it off.”
She kept the weapon pointed at his head until he shut down his com. “I won’t hurt you if you tell me where you’ve stored the Viking’s weapons.”
His gaze flicked nervously toward the door behind him. “I can’t tell you that. It is classified information.”
“Oh for goodness’ sake,” Frey huffed. “The weapons are totally harmless in this society and they belong to our guest. If the other Viking has defrosted and gone berserk on that space ship then our Viking might be the only person who can calm him down.”
“Well he won’t need his weapons for that.”
“He might. It would be unfair of him to use a modern weapon on his own kin, wouldn’t it?”
Merton bit his lip. “I still don’t like it.”
“You don’t have to like it. You can just tell your superiors that I held a gun on you and forced you to get the weapons for me. You’ll be a hero.”
“I doubt that.”
“You’re not military, are you? No one will expect you to do anything violent,” Frey said reassuringly. Part of her wanted to stand back and appreciate the absurdity of their conversation while the rest of her was desperate to move on and help Einarr. She hardened her resolve. “I don’t want to use this weapon, but I will if I have to.”
He sighed. “I’m an intern on a science scholarship. I don’t want all this hassle. I’ll get you his weapons.”
“Thank you.”
“Turn your back so you don’t see the codes I’m inputting.”
Frey fixed him with her most intimidating stare. “Yeah, right. I’m a Pavlovan I can probably do it myself. Just go ahead. I promise not to tell anyone.” She could take over at this point, but she didn’t have to. It might be worth informing Alpha Three that any Pavlovan over the age of five would stand a good chance of breaking through their power systems and that they might want to fix that. But not quite yet…
Merton came back clutching two large, sealed packages to his chest. “I think these are the weapons.”
As soon as she ripped off the wrapping and touched the first item, Frey knew she held another powerful source of Einarr’s magic. The handle of the axe was worn smooth and the dark grey blade pitted with tiny nicks and scratches. The second weapon was a long dagger within a leather sheath. Tossing the plastic aside, she winked at Merton and took off at a run toward the docks.
She thought she heard him call out, demanding the return of his weapon, and she pretended not to hear. Einarr might be proficient with an axe and dagger, but she certainly wasn’t. She suspected he might need all the help modern weaponry could provide.
Einarr crouched behind a large pile of barrels and scanned the area around the dock. Lights flashed and sirens blared, but the place appeared to be deserted. A ship that looked like the twin of the one he’d arrived on sat on the ground, heat still vibrating in waves off the metal surface. The high-pitched whining sound of what Frey had called the engines reminded him of a million angry honeybees in full swarm. The main door stood open and a single body lay
stretched out on the gangplank.
“Come out with your hands up.”
Einarr jumped as a magnified voice echoed over the docking bay.
“We will not harm you.”
Another slight movement behind him had him whirling to face Brown, the security guard from the ship he’d arrived on. Brown jammed his weapon against Einarr’s throat and leaned in close, pointing to the open door.
“I think your brother’s awake. He appeared at the door and threw the body out. There’s no apparent way to communicate with the ship’s crew or him.”
Einarr frowned. “Mayhap they were unable to give him the necessary tools to translate your language.”
“It’s highly likely. We were lucky that you were distracted enough by Frey for her to put the translator on you.” Brown glanced to the side. “I’m fairly sure you shouldn’t be here, but I reckon you are the only chance we have to get out of this without a bloodbath.”
“What do you expect me to do? Go in there and kill him for you?”
“As if you would.” Brown shifted his position. “I’m more interested in preventing a massacre of innocent scientists who’ve definitely bitten off more than they can chew with you two guys. The security on this planet sucks ass, and they are already panicking. I don’t want you or your brother to die.”
Einarr stared into the other man’s eyes, judging his worth. “Then I will help you.”
“Good.” Brown withdrew his weapon. “Just remember if you try anything fancy, I have the ability to blow your brains out with one click of my finger.”
Even as he finished speaking, he stiffened as Frey appeared on his other side and held a weapon on him. Einarr smiled at her.
“My lady.”
Not taking her eyes off Brown who was cursing quietly, she grinned at Einarr. “I’ve got your weapons.”
“Thank you.” He nodded at Brown. “You can lower your weapon, Frey. We will help him.”
He waited until she stowed her weapon and then she carefully handed over his axe and dagger to him. He couldn’t help but smile as his fingers closed around the well-remembered grooves of the oak handle of his axe. He returned his dagger and sheath to his belt and kept hold of his axe.
“So what’s the panic?” Frey asked. “I assume Aki is awake?”
“Awake and angry by the sound of it,” Brown said. “The main power and com links on the ship are down. Aki’s already thrown out one body. When he appeared the second time, he had the captain by the throat.”
Frey looked at Einarr. “Can you reach him?”
He grimaced. “Aki’s powers are not as strong as mine. I can hardly sense him at all. He is not acting in a rational way.”
“Well, duh.” Frey rolled her eyes.
He didn’t understand the words, but her meaning was clear. Her ability to make fun of him even in the most dire of circumstances alternately amused and befuddled him.
“I suspect I will have to go on the ship and find him myself.”
“Not on your own,” Brown stated.
“I thought you trusted me.” Einarr raised an eyebrow. “It’s hardly likely my brother and I will steal your ship and fly away. We do not have the ability.”
“But you could force the crew to do it for you.”
“I’ll go with him,” Frey said. “I can communicate with all sides. I’ll slap a translator on the guy as soon as I get the chance.”
Brown looked down at Frey. “How the hell did you get out, anyway? And who gave you his weapons?” He shook his head. “This security system is as full of holes as a slice of Swiss cheesara I’ve assumed command. I’ll tell everyone what you two plan to do and stop any arguments.” He turned to Frey. “Tecky, you need to keep me informed at all times.”
“I will if my com works. Is Slavin around? She’s Pavlovan. I can communicate telepathically to her.”
Brown grimaced. “Then get her down here. The more the merrier.”
9
Einarr went up the slope toward the open door of the ship and paused beside the unmoving body of the man. Keeping a wary eye out for Aki, he went down on his knee and tried to find some sign of life within the slumped form. He breathed a prayer of thanks when he caught the faintest of heartbeats. If Aki hadn’t actually killed anyone, it would make things a lot easier for them both.
Frey knelt beside him, her brown gaze locked on his.
“He’s still alive,” Einarr murmured. “Get Brown to take him to the healers after we go inside.”
“Okay.”
He stood, offering Frey his hand, the other he kept on the shaft of his axe. “Come.”
For a moment she stayed where she was and stared into his eyes before hurriedly turning away and following him into the darkness. It took a moment for his gaze to adjust to the dim lighting. He paused just inside the door as his boots crunched over something scattered all over the floor.
“What’s happened?” he asked.
“I suspect Aki blew the lights out. Let’s hope that’s all he did. The ship automatically switches to back-up power to supply the emergency lighting that runs at floor level.” She pointed downward. “We’re walking on broken glass. Can you sense where your brother is?”
Einarr concentrated hard. “Is this ship laid out in the same way as yours?”
“They are almost identical.”
“Then I think he’s in the food hall.”
Frey touched his arm. “While we approach, try and block your thoughts from him. Can you do that?”
“I’ve never tried to shield my thoughts from Aki. There has never been a need.”
“I’d like to see if we can pick up anything from him—anything that might help us know how to deal with him.”
“Aye.” Einarr focused inward, mirroring Frey’s actions, and built a sturdy wall in his mind enclosing her with him and keeping everyone else, including Aki, out. It felt surprisingly secure. “I sense his rage and fear. He believes he is alone and that he has nothing to live for.” He started jogging faster. “We don’t have much time.”
He remembered that the food hall had more than one entrance, which made things easier. It could be accessed from the kitchen, and there were two other doors, one at each end, that went back into the main passageway.
“Kitchen?” He looked down at Frey who had already drawn her weapon.
“Sure, I’ll go through the back, while you grab his attention from the front. I’ll shoot him with a tranquilizer dart and slap a translator on his ass so that we can start this conversation again.”
“That thing won’t kill him?” He gestured at her weapon.
“Not this one. I have a proper gun in my belt, but I’m hoping I won’t need to use it.”
They were outside the kitchen door now. Frey smiled up at him. “Good luck.”
In response, Einarr slid his fingers into her hair and cupped her scalp, bringing her up on tiptoe to kiss him. When she sighed and relaxed against him, he had to fight himself to end the kiss.
“Wait for me to get into position.” Einarr kissed her again.
She stepped back, her fingers to her mouth, her eyes wide, and nodded.
He didn’t want to leave her, but he could already hear voices from the food hall and knew Aki was in trouble. His mate could wait for his full attention. His brother could not.
Frey crept forward between the cold metal storage bins, the still-warm ovens and the broken cups and plates, until she was kneeling below the open serving hatch. Someone in the mess hall was crying softly and being comforted in a low-voiced murmur. A lone voice was talking and talking as if convinced that the Viking would at some point suddenly be able to understand what was being said if the words just kept getting louder.
Frey felt in her pocket for the translation patch. Why didn’t the ship carry them? It was a fairly standard piece of equipment. Maybe the Viking had torn off the strip before it had become fully functional. She also checked the tranquilizer dart was armed and ready to go.
“I can se
e him,” Einarr said. “He has his dagger at the captain’s throat. Five men are tied up on the floor and three women are huddled together beside them. They all seem to be alive.”
“Good, that’s pretty much the whole crew. Let me relay that to Slavin.”
Einarr spoke again. “I’m going to walk out in front of him, with my weapon held out and speak to him.”
“Are you sure that’s the best approach?”
“I can think of no other.”
“You could wait, and I could see if I—”
“Nay.”
She fought a desire to curse his stubbornness as the swing door opposite the kitchen creaked and opened to reveal Einarr. While everyone’s attention switched toward him, she raised herself onto her knees so that she could see over the counter. With as much care as she could manage, she rested her elbows on the countertop, the tranquilizer gun held steadily between her hands. Aki’s back was toward her and Einarr was moving forward, his axe held high.
“Aki? It’s me, your brother, Einarr.”
“Einarr?”
That was the only word Frey understood as the fair-haired Viking started screaming in ancient Norse.
“Nay, I am not a ghost or a vision from Valhalla. I am as alive as you are,” Einarr said calmly. “Let the man go, lay down your weapon and I will explain what has happened to you.”
“Hvaða helvítis fáviti ertu!”
Had Aki just called his brother an idiot? It didn’t seem to disturb Einarr’s calm at all. Frey’s grip on the dart tightened.
“We are both alive, Aki. Please, listen to me.”
Aki shook his head as Einarr took three steps closer. There was another sharp exchange. The smell of blood caught at Frey’s senses and a line of red dripped off the bone handle of Aki’s dagger. His captive moaned a prayer.
Einarr continued to advance, his hand held out, and his expression calm. “I would never deceive you. I am your twin. Find me in your heart and mind, brother, hear my truth.”
Frey added her power to Einarr’s as he lowered his barriers and pushed deep into Aki’s mind. He took another step forward, his gaze intent. Frey climbed up onto the countertop and took up a new firing stance.
