Ecstasy Bound (18 page)

“Pitch is much better at figuring out security files than any of us.”

“Yeah, but I’d feel better if I were the one protecting Alexa and the babies. I don’t want to do that down on the sublevel. I don’t want them near the ships while they’re being worked on. Just in case there’s another overload. It’s too dangerous. I can’t let anything happen to my family, Erik. Now that I know Frost could show up, I want to be with them as much as possible.”

Erik nodded. “I understand. I’ll take care of the orbiters and make certain everything is set.”

“Thanks.” Braden appreciated Erik’s understanding and cooperation, without him having to make it an official order. “We can let Pitch know what’s going on after we talk to Alexa about the transport-connector. Then we’ll get her and the babies moved to medical.”

They headed down the corridor. Braden’s thoughts raced. If everything didn’t work perfectly, they could all be in real trouble. It scared him shitless, though he’d never admit that aloud. Erik must have sensed his stress, for he didn’t say anything more, only kept in step beside him.

Erik had always been a good friend. He and Erik and Kam used to be practically inseparable. They’d gone on too many missions together to count. They’d raised a lot of hell, fucked a lot of women and achieved great military success.

Bygone days.

Within moments he and Erik reached his and Alexa’s quarters. He punched the button and the door slid open. Pitch stood with his weapon in hand. He lowered the disruptor when he saw who stood in the corridor.

“Where’s Alexa?” Braden asked him, stepping inside.

“She’s in the back with the babies.”

“Hang outside the door. Erik and I want to talk to you but we need some privacy with Alexa for a few minutes.” He didn’t want to announce to Pitch, or any of the others really, that they’d come up with an emergency exit plan for his mate and children but not for anyone else.

Pitch nodded and stepped into the corridor.

Braden motioned for Erik to follow him into the back. “Alexa, it’s Erik and me. Are you decent?”

Alexa turned toward them as they approached. She planted her hands on her hips.

“You’re supposed to ask that before you come in.”

“Ah. Yes, dear.” He’d seen her image in one of the reflectors before entering the room but he loved to tease her.

Erik chuckled.

Braden kissed Alexa on the cheek, then immediately went to hover over his children, who were lying on the bed, wide awake and looking around. He touched each one tenderly on the cheek and swore the girls smiled at him, even though Alexa had told him they were too young for that.

Erik came up beside him and grinned down at the triplets. “When are you two going to name these little ones?”

Alexa smiled. “We have some names in mind but we’re waiting for the right time to tell everyone.” Her expression turned serious. “Now, what are you guys doing here?

Somehow it doesn’t feel like a social call.”

The two straightened up. Braden cleared his throat. “We want to talk to you about getting out of this shelter.”

“Okay.”

“Lots of things could go wrong, Alexa. We want you and the babies to have the best possible chance of surviving. So we’ve come up with an emergency plan.”

“Emergency plan?” She shook her head. “I thought we were pretty much out of options except what’s currently in motion.”

“Not quite.” Erik took out the transport-connector. “We have this.”

Her brow furrowed. “A transport-connector? You said those were useless.”

“Yes,” Braden answered. “We can’t use it to dematerialize up to a ship without being in contact with the vessel to make certain it maintains coordinates. But there’s a relatively safe and stable location, near enough, that you and the babies can dematerialize to in an emergency.”

“Where?”

“It’s an old repair station that’s orbiting Xylon,” Erik answered. “It’s abandoned, so nothing and nobody’s there. But it has an atmosphere and temperature regulation. It will be a safe haven until someone can rescue you.”

Braden pulled out his vid-comm. “If you use the transport-connector, I’ll receive notification through the VC. In case our internal connections go screwy again.”

Erik pointed to a button. “All you have to do is power it up, then push this button and you’ll dematerialize out. It’s already programmed. Remember which button. Don’t make a mistake. Also be certain you’re holding the babies or they won’t go with you.”

“All three?”

“Get them in your arms or on your lap somehow. You’ve got to have a hold on them. I know it’ll be difficult but it’s the only way.”

“What about everyone else?”

Erik shook his head. “The device isn’t strong enough for any additional people. I could only program this for two adults. Or for one adult—you—and the babies.

Nobody can help you. Don’t let them. If more than you four try to dematerialize out at the same time, none of you will survive.”

Her eyes widened.

At her reaction, Braden swore to himself. He hated to frighten her but she had to know the dangers. “Keep this emergency plan to yourself, Alexa. We don’t think anyone would actually object, given the circumstances. Not after what Laszlo related to us about the Reign of Three. But no reason to cause any additional tension down here.

Just in case.”

“Okay. Um, if we have to go, we’ll be all alone up there. What if something goes wrong? What do I do?”

“Nothing will go wrong.” When a wary look crossed her face, Braden again felt bad, understanding just how scary this must be for her. “I know it’s a lot to take in.” He put his arm around her. “Try not to worry. You might not even need this. In fact, you probably won’t. It’s a just-in-case option.”

“My head is spinning.”

“It’ll be all right, Alexa,” Erik said. “It’s a simple plan and will work if you need to use it. As long as you follow our instructions.”

“If you do dematerialize out, you’ll need a survival pack,” Braden continued. “I’ll make one up for you. I want you to have it with you at all times so you’ll be ready.

We’ll fit it into a Xylon jacket.” He reached down and pulled a disrupter from his boot.

“I want you to take this too.”

“Where’d you find that?” Erik asked, his eyes widening.

“In one of the ships.”

Alexa pushed it away. “No. You need that. Whoever is going to Earth will need a firearm. I can’t take it. It wouldn’t be right.”

“We have Warriors on Earth who can arm us,” Braden told her.

“Not enough for everyone. Earth will need every advanced weapon they can get.

You’ve already said so.”

“Do you remember everything I say?”

“When necessary.”

He felt a scowl cross his face and worked hard to force it away. “One weapon, more or less, isn’t going to make any significant difference.”

“I’m not taking it, Braden.”

“Alexa…”

“I’m not arguing with you about this. No one is on this spaceport place. No one will know I’m there, right? If someone other than a Warrior does come, I’ll just hide until he leaves. Besides, I hate those disruptors. I’m not trained to use one. It would be too easy to have an accident.”

Braden felt reluctant to leave her unarmed, though her words made sense. She looked scared to death. He knew she would feel much safer armed with something she could effectively use to protect herself and the babies.

“Braden will send help as soon as possible,” Erik said. “It might not be right away, depending on our situation, so use your supplies well.” A small smile appeared on his face. “I’ve brought a little something extra for you. I think it will make everyone feel better.”

“Something extra?” Braden looked at Erik in surprise. “What do you have?”

Erik pulled out a pain inducer—a small handheld weapon for close-range use. It induced compliance or punishment, in prisoners mostly, and delivered a wide range of shocks when applied to the skin. It was also very easy to use. No training was necessary, just a basic instruction session on its functionality. It would be virtually useless in their battle against the Egesa on Earth but was perfect for Alexa’s situation.

“Where’d you get that?” Braden asked.

“Leila. She always carries one. She told me it’s gotten her out of a jam more than once. It’s not as good as a disruptor but quite effective in a pinch. Just don’t let anyone know you have it, Alexa, because you can only use this directly against skin. If you get into a tight situation, pull it out when you see a chance. I’ve got it set on max. Push the red button and hit your target. It’s not going to kill whoever you zap unless they have some sort of advanced heart condition. But it’ll give you ample time to get away and hide. It’s reusable, so keep it with you. Just don’t fiddle with the settings. And don’t touch the pad after you’ve activated it. Once the target is hit, it will automatically shut off, so you have to hit the red button each time. The charge is strong. You don’t have to worry about it giving out.”

“Perfect. Thanks, Erik.” Braden appreciated Erik’s concern for his family more than he could ever say. “Does Leila know you took that?”

“Yes, she offered. I told her about the plan. Sorry, Braden. She caught me working on the devices when she stopped by our quarters to pick up some medical notes she’d made last night. I hadn’t expected her to do that but she won’t tell anyone. She gave me her word.”

Braden nodded. He turned to Alexa. “We need you to get the babies ready to take to medical now.”

“Wait, everything is going too fast here. Why are we going to medical? Leila said she didn’t need to see the babies again until tomorrow.”

“I’m going to pull Pitch from guard duty to help Erik with the orbiters. I need to do some computer work, so I’ll be watching over you and the triplets.”

“I’m armed now.” She smiled at him, albeit a bit shakily. “The babies will be more comfortable here. We don’t need to relocate.”

Braden glanced at Erik before meeting her gaze again. “I’d feel better if you stayed with me for now.”

Alexa’s smile faded and she looked at him hard. “Is something else going on? What aren’t you telling me?”

“Tell her, Braden. She has a right to know.”

Alexa looked from him to Erik and back to him again.

Braden couldn’t fault Erik for saying something. He was right. She needed to be on alert for the sake of herself and the babies. “Someone down here contacted Frost. She and the Egesa might be on their way.”

“What? How? Who?”

“We don’t have a lot of details yet. I want to see if I can find any evidence or information in the computer system.” He didn’t want to tell her about suspecting Halah and detaining her and Kam. Not if he didn’t have to.

“I thought we couldn’t communicate with anyone up top.”

“We can’t. Not with the installed equipment. Someone down here has to have a preconfigured handheld comm device, set for the proper frequency to send and receive pulse codes from Frost.”

“I can’t believe anyone down here would…” Her voice trailed off. “Who would have the skills to do that?”

“Probably everyone except you and Josella.”

He saw worry and fear enter her face. “Don’t worry. Please. If the worst happens, we’ll take the babies and go to the decontamination room. That’s the safest place.” He looked around. “Where is Josella, by the way? We need her.”

“Leila called for her to go to medical. Something about them possibly needing her for the Initiation. Leila wanted to do some tests on her first.”

“Well, hell,” Erik said. “We’ve got everyone else on duty or otherwise occupied.”

“You and I can handle the triplets, Braden,” Alexa said.

“Not if Frost shows up or if I’m fighting off an Egesa. I’d like someone else close and available at all times.”

Alexa chewed her bottom lip a moment, then released it. “What about Delemar? Is he assigned to anything?”

Braden’s brow furrowed.

“Yeah, where the hell is he?” Erik asked.

“I passed him once in the corridor but that was a while back. He’s probably sulking somewhere, since his power and privilege no longer carry any weight.” Braden walked over to the comm panel and pressed a button. “Delemar, this is Braden. Report.” When he didn’t get an immediate response, he walked back to Alexa. He rested a hand on her shoulder. “Go ahead and get the babies ready while Erik and I talk to Pitch.”

“All right.” She leaned forward and kissed Braden’s cheek. “We miss you,” she whispered in his ear.

“Me too,” he whispered back.

Erik cleared his throat. “We need to get on this, Braden.”

Braden turned toward Erik and straightened his shoulders. “Yes of course.”

“Thank Leila for me,” Alexa said. “For the weapon.”

Erik gave her a quick wink. “You bet.”

With Erik in step beside him, Braden headed toward the corridor where Pitch was standing guard. Braden let the door to his quarters slide shut behind him and Erik before he said anything. “I’m replacing you for now. I want you to help Erik secure the orbiters. We’re going to take Alexa and the triplets to medical where I can watch them while I’m doing some computer work.” He hesitated a beat before continuing. “We have a traitor among us.”

“A traitor?” Pitch’s eyes widened. “Who?”

“We don’t know for certain,” Erik said. “But someone sent a message to Frost from the subcommand station.”

“Frost? Shit. Wait. Sent a message? They’d need an independent communication device for that. Something they could channel through our system outside Xylon’s grid.”

“Yeah, we know,” Erik replied.

“Why aren’t you assigning me to track it down? I’m head of security. I’m more likely to be able to find out who sent it, when the message was sent and even what it said.”

“We need your security expertise to lock down the orbiters once the programming is completed.” He didn’t want anyone to be able to sabotage those ships again. If the malfunction had indeed been sabotage.

Pitch looked back and forth between them. “You two are just as skilled in ship security as I am. I’m more skilled in computer security. What’s going on here?” His eyes suddenly grew even larger than they had a moment ago. “You don’t think I’m the traitor do you?”