Depths Of Desire XW5 (16 page)

“Don’t think about it, Erik.”

“How can I not!” He tried the comm channel.

“It’s not fully functional yet. We have
ship to ship now, but only within a certain range. A solar storm is causing
interference.”

“I have to do something, Braden.”

Braden nodded. “Reach out to her with your
mind. Calm her. She’s going to feel your emotions. Don’t make it harder on her.
Let her feel your love. Let her realize that you’re getting closer. It will
give her strength.” He wished he’d been able to do the same for Alexa.

Erik took a deep breath and let it out
slowly. He visibly relaxed his muscles and sat quietly, within his own
thoughts. Braden dimmed the lights in the fighter and remained quiet. Erik and
Leila were both full Xylon. Their connection to each other was stronger than
any he’d seen before. They would be able to feel each other’s love and take
comfort in the bond. He just hoped they got to her in time, otherwise Erik
would be the one to lose his mind.

* * * * *

Planet Earth, State of Colorado, U.S.A.

Underground Tracking Facility

Jaeda bit into a cracker as she stared
around the break room. She hated this junk food but it was all they had. It
certainly did nothing to keep up her strength. She spotted a case on the floor.
It looked like the one Leila had with her. She picked it up and set it on a
table. Maybe the woman had packed something useful in it besides the serum. She
opened it and looked inside. Pretty much empty.

She moved aside a few remaining vials to
check the bottom. Her fingers came back moist. “Darn it.” She wiped them
against her uniform. One of the vials must have leaked.

“What are you doing?”

She turned to see Torque standing in the
doorway. “Looking in Leila’s case to see if there was anything in it that we
could use. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Anything there?” He stepped closer.

“No. Nothing but a few remaining vials.
They must have been defective. I got some of the serum on my hand.”

Torque’s brow crinkled. He briefly closed
his eyes. “Shit.” The word came out low but strong.

“What? I know that it’s not entirely safe
for females, but I just got a little on my fingers.”

“It’s not that. It’s specifically for
humans. Purebred humans. You have Xylon DNA.”

“So?”

He paced the room, shaking his head and
mumbling. Her nerves slowly increased when he didn’t say anything. How bad
could it be? It was just a little liquid. It didn’t contain anything lethal and
she hadn’t even ingested it.

“You’re going to have to be initiated now,
Jaeda.”

It took a moment for his words to register.
“What?” She had to have misunderstood him.

“The serum protects humans without them
having to go through the process. It works because they don’t have any Xylon genes
or blood in them. All Xylons, once exposed to the chemicals—even by touch, have
to go through the rite, if not already initiated. Otherwise their mind will
snap.”

“Torque, I’ve got such a variety of genes
in me, only a small part of which is Xylon. Certainly it can’t be enough to
adversely affect me.”

“You’ll fare better. But all that will do
is extend your ability to tolerate the chemicals. The end result will be the
same if you don’t go through the initiation.”

She collapsed into a chair at the table and
hung her head.

He stepped behind her and put his hands on
her shoulders. “It’ll be all right. We can do this. Grady and I know the
procedures. And Kirk can help because he has the chemicals inside him now.”
When she didn’t say anything, he squeezed her shoulders.

“You’re not a doctor, Torque. Can’t we wait
and see what happens?” she finally asked. She didn’t want to bare her body to
all these men and do whatever sexual things were required in an initiation. She
didn’t know the exact details of the rite, just what she’d heard as rumors.

“I’ll monitor your brainwaves. I have a
small medical sensor. I think this is part of what we saw in our visions. They
might have been more accurate than we even thought, given what’s happened.”

She nodded, wondering if that were truly
possible. But the men she’d seen fucking her in some of the dreams fit—Torque,
Grady, Kirk. She looked up at him. “Why do you have a medical sensor?”

“It’s Leila’s. I found it on the ground.
She must have lost it as she crawled into the duct. I don’t know how it works
completely. But I know enough to read brainwaves and to detect minor medical
problems. I need to go talk to the men and fill them in. Try to get some rest
on the cot in the supply room.”

“With the dead bodies in there? No thanks.
They smell like rotting fish. I think the sofa in here folds out. I’ll use that.”

“I forgot about the minions’ smell. We need
to pack those bodies away, I guess.” He kissed the top of her head. “Whatever
happens, I’ll be right here. I’ll take care of you and make sure you’re all
right.”

The sincerity in his eyes touched her
heart. She believed him. But she still wondered if the initiation rite was
truly necessary. She wished Leila were here. A wave of guilt washed over her.
She glanced toward the supply room. When Torque turned and walked from the
room, she stood and headed toward the back.

The weight on her shoulders grew heavier
with each step. In addition to losing Leila and having to engage in this sexual
ceremony, the Egesa knew she was down here. They knew who she was. Maybe she
should just turn herself over to them. She might be able to negotiate a deal
for the others’ release. Leila’s release too, if the woman still lived. Or maybe
Daegal would simply kill them all.

She shook her head, trying to clear her
thoughts. She couldn’t concentrate. She looked down at her trembling hand and
wondered if her thinking process was already being affected by the serum.
Others were depending on her to live and to make it out of here. She had to
remember that and not do anything reckless or stupid. Still, there had to be
something she could do.

* * * * *

Torque worried about leaving Jaeda alone.
But at the same time, she needed the opportunity to think without anyone
hovering over her. “I need to talk to you two,” he said as he approached the
men. He didn’t want Grady and Kirk touching her but they had little choice now.
“There’s been an accident with Jaeda.”

Kirk glanced toward the break room. “Is she
all right?”

“What happened?” Grady asked, looking
equally concerned.

They cared about her. Torque could see
that. It would make things easier. For her. Not so much for him. “She got some
of the serum in Leila’s case on her hand.”

“It’s unsafe for women,” Kirk said, his
voice lowering. “I remember Brianna saying that.” He locked his gaze with
Torque’s. “Even just getting some on her skin? Leila didn’t warn the female
techs about that.”

“Human females won’t be affected by merely
touching the serum.”

“Human females?” Grady hesitated a
heartbeat then shook his head and made a sound of disbelief. “Shit. Now things
make more sense. I should have known. The serum’s going to screw with Jaeda’s
brainwaves, isn’t it?”

Torque nodded. “I’m afraid so.” Grady had
figured it out—that Jaeda had Xylon genetics. “I’ll be able to monitor her. But
I’m pretty certain we’re going to have to initiate her to save her sanity.”

Kirk shook his head. “I don’t understand.”

“We don’t have the proper equipment.”
Grady’s concerned look deepened.

“She won’t be fully protected or prepared
for breeding. But she’ll be able to self-heal and it will balance her
brainwaves,” Torque explained. “I think.”

“You’re guessing.” A frown crossed Grady’s
face.

“Yeah.”

“Breeding?” Kirk asked. “Is someone going
to fill me in?”

Torque took Kirk aside and explained the
problem to him. The shocked look on Kirk’s face told him that the man truly had
no idea about Jaeda’s genetics. He hadn’t mentioned to either man her shifter
connection. He considered that information need-to-know only. And they didn’t
need to know. When Torque related the steps of the initiation rite to Kirk, he
protested strongly until he realized that it would be the only way to save
Jaeda’s sanity and ultimately her life.

“I don’t like it either,” Torque told him.
“We’ll get it done as quickly and efficiently as we can. We all care about her.
It’s going to be our job to make this as easy on her as possible.”

“Will it really take all three of us?”

Grady came up behind them. “Trying to edge
me out? Hell, yes, it takes three.”

“Not always.” Torque stepped back and
leaned against a desk. “It’s been done with two and even one in the past, with
minor help from a second.”

“Bullshit.” Grady peeled off his jacket and
set it over a chair.

“I’ve seen it,” Torque continued. “But it’s
not advised. And since we don’t have a healer here to monitor the situation, I
think we should stick as closely as we can to tradition. I can measure her
brainwaves, but not specific brain functions.”

“When do we start?” Grady asked.

Torque pushed away from the desk. “I’ll go
check on Jaeda. I’ll let you know. Oh, and I need you two to reopen that
heating duct. Stuff those minions in there and then seal it back up. They’re
starting to smell—worse than normal.” He walked into the break room. “Jaeda?”
Where was she? He headed into the supply area, which was only dimly lit, so he
didn’t immediately see her. After a quick search, he found her near the bodies
of the minions. “What are you doing?”

She turned. “Thinking that lies and secrets
cause nothing but trouble.”

He cocked his head as he studied the look
on her face. “What do you mean?” He certainly agreed with the statement but he
didn’t know what it meant coming from her—if she was referring to something
specific or just making a general observation.

She shook her head then rubbed her temple.
“Pain, war, death, destruction of one’s whole way of life. For what? A cause?”

Torque saw her fingers tremble. “What
cause? Xylon’s cause? Daegal’s cause? You’re not making a lot of sense, Jaeda.”

She kept shaking her head. But she didn’t
say anything further.

He stepped forward and slid his arm across
her shoulders. “It’s starting. Come back out to the control area. We’ll prepare
the break room for the rite.” As they stepped out of the supply room, he closed
the door then led her back to the main room. “Which one is your desk?”
Something familiar should calm her.

“There.” She pointed toward a large, padded
chair in front of a computer station.

He helped her into the chair then went to
talk to the others. She’d said that the sofa in the break room pulled out into
a bed. They’d use that instead of the cot in the supply room. He’d try to make this
as easy as possible on her. The initiation rite was usually a pleasant
experience, sexy and satisfying. He’d participated in more of them than he
could count. This one made him nervous as hell.

* * * * *

Earth’s Orbit

Daegal’s head felt as if it were about to
explode. “Frost? Are you sure?”

The commander in front of him nodded. “Just
confirmed. Those supply ships are disguised fighters. An old Sunevian design
junked decades ago. All upgraded on the inside according to our spies. And she
probably has some cloaked fighters with her too. Apparently she followed us out
here. She might even have been the one who destroyed those d-orbs.”

“Why? What’s that bitch want?”

“Revenge maybe?”

“Damn the whole female gender! They’re
nothing but trouble.” Daegal sat behind his desk. “What about Jaeda Spargo? Do
we have her yet?”

“Not yet. She’s in a secure area of the
tracking facility at 38-104 and we can’t get to her or the stash of high-level
items housed there. We did capture another female who was with her.”

Daegal waved his hand. “I’m not interest in
anyone else. If she’s human, put her on one of the slave ships or send her to
one of the slaving camps being set up on Earth. If she’s not human, kill her.”

“You’ll want this female.”

Daegal’s interest peaked and he leaned
forward. “Oh?”

“It’s Leila Abdera Rhodes.”

A smile split his face. “Leila.” His smile
faded. “What was she doing on Earth?”

“Unknown. But she was with Jaeda.”

“Hmm. Interesting.” He tapped the desk with
his fingers while in thought. When he came to a decision, he flattened his palm
atop the metal. “Bring her to me. Have our spies incapacitate Frost’s fleet
from the inside. Is that Xylon ship still orbiting?”

“No, Sir. It’s been destroyed.”

“Good. Do whatever you can, short of
destroying the tracking facility, to get me Jaeda Spargo. I want to use her to
negotiate with the shifters.”

“Do they hold her in esteem? She’s not even
a pure shifter from what I understand.”

Daegal’s eyes narrowed. “You would do
better not to ask questions. Now see to my orders.”

The man stiffened and fear entered his
eyes. “Yes, Sir.” He made a quick exit.

Smart man.
Daegal rubbed his aching chest. He wasn’t in the habit of explaining his
motives to anyone but his brother and not even him some of the time.

The shifters didn’t hold Jaeda in any sort
of esteem. She was a rebel, their warrior queen, in alliance with Laszlo to
bring a better life to that planet which was strictly ruled by the elite. He knew
all about those plans and had recently acquired partial information on what they’d
labeled as ACE. Neither concerned him nor affected his own plans.

Jaeda had the knowledge he needed to
infiltrate and take down the shifter life-support systems, their engineering
systems and their economic systems. All obtained from when she’d served the
higher powers of that planet. Or so was the rumor. He was still waiting for
more data about that. But her importance—her knowledge and the shifters desire
to have her back if their criminal database was any indication—could prove to
be priceless.