Star Raiders (27 page)

Once Shyanne docked the
Liberty
with Dempster’s ship, the man had made one aborted attempt to destroy the
Independence
. But Bear had gotten
Independence
’s weapons system back online and returned fire, attempting merely to disable the cruiser and not cause any damage that might harm Shyanne. At
Independence
’s attack, apparently unwil ing to engage in a two-sided battle and satisfied with his prize, Shyanne, Dempster quickly turned tail and left Uta’s orbit.

Because of Rian they couldn’t risk going to FTL to fol ow. Doing so during surgery would have kil ed him.

Greyson had waited aboard
Independence
, torn between wanting to fol ow Shyanne and needing to make sure Rian made it through surgery. Eldin had exited the OR fairly quickly with a smile on his face, however, so Greyson didn’t lose much time. He’d taken off with a plan to report back soon.

Yes, as soon as he reached the outpost and tapped in to the tracking system, he’d notify
Independence
of the coordinates so they could fol ow. Even if Dempster hadn’t captured Shyanne, the bastard now knew Uta’s location. He needed to be destroyed. With her weapons system back online,
Independence
was the best chance at accomplishing that task.

Greyson slipped out of
Lady Hawk
and melted into the shadows of the ELF

outpost’s cavernous docking port. Even though the station’s radar equipment couldn’t detect his ship, by now the opening and closing of the main air lock would have triggered alarms. And while
Lady Hawk
might be invisible to scans, the human eye could easily see her. He had only minutes to get past the guards and reach Carter’s quarters.

The stomping of feet against the metal deck alerted him. He ducked out of sight and waited until the guards moved by.

He pressed a palm against his rib cage in a futile attempt to ease the burning.

Swal owing the nonstop nausea, he forced himself to move quicker. Sweat dripped into his eyes. Pain stabbed through him as he paused to catch his breath. In the four days he’d been traveling, his condition had grown steadily worse. He was bleeding internal y; he was sure of it. Without surgery to repair the damage, he feared he’d soon col apse.

He gripped his laser pistol and eased the door to Carter’s office open. Carter sat at his desk with his back to him. It surprised Greyson the man hadn’t gone with his men to investigate the intrusion.

“Either shoot me or put the damn pistol away,” Carter said as he swung around.

Greyson shook his head.

Carter sat forward. His eyes narrowed as he took in Greyson’s pale, sweaty skin and blood-soaked shirt. “You look like shit, man. Come in and sit down before you fal down.”

“I need you to hack me in to ASP’s UTD system,” Greyson said without preamble.

Shock widened Carter’s eyes. Ignoring the pistol stil pointed at him, he stood.

“You don’t ask for much, do you, old friend?” He studied Greyson’s face, then tapped the com.

“Don’t!” Greyson pressed the barrel of his pistol against Carter’s chest.

His old friend ignored him and continued. “Doc, send up a dozen Drexel-five hypos.”

Greyson sagged in defeat. He couldn’t bring himself to shoot.

“That’s highly irregular, Captain Kincaid,” the doctor objected. “Drexel five is a regulated narcotic. If you’re having pain or weakness, you need to come in for a checkup, not self-medicate.”

“Doc, I don’t have time to argue. Send it up now. That’s an order.”

“Very wel .” The doctor huffed, and closed the connection with a snap.

“Doc’s a bit touchy about handing out prescription drugs, but it looks like you can use it. D-five should take the edge off whatever’s ailing you. At least for a bit.

But I’m with Doc—you need to get it looked at soon.” Relief lent Greyson strength. Carter hadn’t betrayed him. “There’s no time. Get me into the UTD system.”

“Tel me what’s going on first; then I’l decide.”

“Dempster’s taken Shyanne…” Greyson quickly explained the particulars. With each word, Carter’s face reflected more surprise and concern. He sank back into his chair and stared up at Greyson as if he’d never seen him before.

The com gave a shril whistle.

“Ignore it,” Greyson pleaded.

“Priority-one message from headquarters coming through, Commander Kincaid,” a voice said.

Carter glanced up at Greyson, shrugged, then answered, “Put it through.”

“Commander Kincaid, this is Chalmer Dane.”

Shock rippled through Greyson. His pistol muzzle dropped and he sagged against the door.

Without waiting for Carter’s response, Chalmer went on. Though the man’s voice was even, Greyson could hear the strain. “Greyson’s emergency locator has been activated. ELF and ASP forces are en route to his location as we speak, but your outpost is closer. President Sinclair has authorized you to mount a rescue operation and—”

“Mr. Dane,” Carter interrupted. “Greyson is standing right in front of me.” He swung the vid screen around to prove his words.

“Greyson? What’s going on?” Relief and bewilderment showed on his foster father’s face. The man had aged greatly in the weeks since Greyson had last seen him. Al trace of blond was gone from his hair. Lines of pain and tension radiated around his eyes and pul ed his mouth downward.

“Long story. Is there anyone one else with you? Is this a secure line?” No sense involving Chalmer in his crimes.

“No, I’m alone. And the line is secure. I stil have quite a bit of clout in both ASP

and ELF.”

Greyson quickly laid out the situation. To his credit, Chalmer listened without comment, but with each word he aged more. When Greyson finished, Chalmer shook his head.

“What have you done, son?”

He didn’t try to justify his actions with excuses. “What I needed to do. When this is over I’l live with the consequences.” If he lived. Nausea left him woozy. Cold sweat trickled into his eyes and he couldn’t stop himself from asking, “Why didn’t you tel me I was Kedar’s natural son?”

He heard Carter suck in his breath, surprised.

Chalmer ran a hand across his weary face, then gazed at Greyson. “With her dying breath, your mother made me promise not to tel you.”

“Why?”

“She wanted you to have a better life. To be a member of society, not an outlaw, an outcast.”

“And what about Shyanne, her daughter?” Greyson spat out the question.

“How could she leave her behind to that life?” He left his other issues, such as his horror regarding his relationship with Shyanne, unaddressed.

Chalmer hesitated for a moment, then met Greyson’s gaze. “Shyanne isn’t your mother’s or Kedar’s daughter.”

Against reason, hope and relief blossomed in Greyson’s heart. “What? Then whose daughter is she?”

Chalmer met Greyson’s accusing glare without flinching. “Mine.” Greyson swayed. He didn’t object as Carter grabbed his arm and pushed him into a chair. He listened in numb shock as Chalmer continued his story.

“After years of searching, Kedar learned your mother was working aboard a space cruise ship. He was going to attempt contacting you and her. Unbeknownst to Kedar, Dempster planned an attack to kil you. He wanted no rival to his place at Kedar’s side. But things went wrong. The ship’s crew drove the attackers back.

During their escape, one of Dempster’s men grabbed Anna as a shield. When your mother tried to stop him from getting away with the child, he shot her.” Chalmer’s voice cracked. “We assumed Anna died along with her abductor in the fol owing explosion. We were wrong.”

“Why didn’t Kedar ransom her back to you?” Carter asked.

“If only he had! I would have paid anything to have her back. Kedar decided to keep her for himself. He figured a daughter for a son was a fair trade.” Anger sparked in Chalmer’s eyes. His words came out harsh and ful of pain as he stared at Greyson. “You remember my sweet little Anna? During the trip, despite the age difference between you, the two of you were inseparable.

“Forgive me, Greyson, I didn’t learn about Shy—about Anna—until a few days ago when I went to see Kedar.
He
told me.” Chalmer’s words faded as memories flitted through Greyson’s mind. The image of little Anna’s innocent blue eyes staring up at him with adoration melded with Shyanne’s look of love; then that faded to her look of betrayal. How could he not have recognized her? Anger at both Chalmer and Kedar burned in his gut. Pain blurred his vision. Why, during al the time they’d spent together, hadn’t Kedar told him the truth?

Honesty forced him to ask: If he’d known the truth, would it have changed his life? Perhaps if he’d learned when he was young, but after he’d chosen a career with ASP, no, knowing the truth wouldn’t have swayed him from his path. But it might have altered his course with Shyanne. When they first met, if he’d believed her to be his sister, things would have gone down entirely differently. He would never have let himself fal in love with her. Never made love with her. Never fathered Rian.

Which was total y unacceptable. Despite the pain Kedar’s and Chalmer’s lies of omission had cost him and Shyanne, he wouldn’t trade his experiences with her.

“I’m in.” Carter broke the silence, clicking away on the keyboard. “Got him.

Let’s go.” He read off the coordinates of Dempster’s location.

While Greyson was coordinating timing with his foster father and the
Independence
, Carter had been busy hacking in to the UTD system. It was a reminder of what he’d known al along: He had to get to Dempster’s stronghold before those other troops, and before Dempster did anything irreparable. Greyson would deal with his fathers later, if there was a later for him. First he had to rescue Shyanne.

Shy shivered and blinked as consciousness returned. When she lifted her head from the hard pal et where she lay, pain jolted through her. With a groan, she swal owed the rising nausea, then gasped as memory rushed in.

Dead! Al dead. Everyone she knew and loved. Dead. Uta’s people. Her crew.

Her friends. Matha. Tomas.

Rian.

Greyson.

There was nothing, no one left for her. Dempster had destroyed them al .

Emotion drained away, leaving her numb but resolved. She wanted to die. When ELF forces arrived to destroy Dempster’s stronghold, she would die. But she would die kil ing Dempster.

She sat and waited. When the door to her cel final y opened, light spil ed into the room. She looked up at the two men silhouetted in the opening and smiled.

“You don’t have to do this,” Greyson told Carter as he settled into
Lady Hawk
’s pilot seat. “You don’t have to risk your career. Your life. I can do this alone. Stay here. Stay safe. Or come with your troops.”

“And miss al the fun? Hel , no! Besides, you need me, man. You can barely stand.” Carter slipped into the copilot’s seat.

Reluctantly Greyson agreed with Carter’s assessment. His hands shook as he powered up
Lady Hawk
and entered the coordinates of Dempster’s stronghold.

After each shot of D-5, he felt the boost to his strength fading more quickly. He didn’t have time or energy to talk the man out of joining this suicide mission.

Triggering a UTD emergency beacon was almost always a doomsday code, indicating the sender was dead or as good as, and that the enemy needed to be taken out. ELF and ASP would come in, guns blazing, set on destruction. He and Carter had to get in and get Shyanne out before the troops arrived and leveled the place.

Based on the outpost’s location, they would arrive about about thirty minutes ahead of the authorities, assuming ELF and ASP launched from the expected bases. Carter’s troops would fol ow, but Greyson decided to use
Lady Hawk
. She was faster and could sneak past Dempster’s defenses undetected, giving him one chance to rescue Shyanne.
Independence
would arrive soon thereafter, based on the information Terle had given Greyson in their recent conversation. If nothing went wrong, they could be in and out before the authorities arrived, leaving the beacon behind so the base remained the target. But al this could only happen if nothing went wrong.

The hours of travel passed in a blur of pain.

“Greyson, wake up. We’re coming into range.”

Carter’s voice roused him from a half dream. He grateful y blinked away the distressing images of Shyanne lying dead, Shyanne screaming in pain over the broken body of their son, Shyanne looking at him with hate in her eyes for the destruction of those she loved.

He switched the ship into stealth mode. Each motion it took to fly the damn thing sent shards of pain through his gut. He felt as if he swam through mud, his movements sluggish and clumsy, his limbs stiff and uncoordinated. He fumbled with the last D-5 hypo. The drug entered his system in a rush, deadening the pain and giving him a burst of energy. It wouldn’t last, but for the moment he felt invincible.

Their destination was a whol y inhospitable planet. One devoid of life. Stark mountains strewn with sharp, jagged peaks and deep, dark crevices covered the orb’s surface; violent winds and storms swept across through the thin, barely breathable atmosphere, scouring away any life foolish enough to try and take root.

Dempster had chosen his stronghold wel . In this place, the one who control ed water, food and shelter control ed al life. Here none of the scum he surrounded himself with through promises of wealth and power as wel as fear and intimidation would dare cross him.

Lady Hawk
glided unseen passed Dempster’s battle cruiser and land-based watch posts. Despite Greyson’s rough handling, she settled featherlight on a narrow ridge just out of sight of what was clearly Dempster’s stronghold. The bleak stone fortress rose three stories into the cold, thin air and covered over an acre.

Greyson groaned. This last shot of D-5 would wear off in less than an hour. Would he have the time to locate and free Shyanne before Earth’s troops arrived? Their attack would be merciless, focused more on destruction than rescue.

“Twenty-eight minutes until Earth’s troops arrive. Mine wil be here in fifteen, but they won’t come in guns blazing, they’l wait for my orders,” Carter answered his unspoken thought. “I’ve pinpointed Shyanne’s location. Let’s get moving.” He started to rise.