Page 71 of Bred by the Alien Prince

Why does it always have to be him that does something insane?! I would rather we lose the damn ship than for him to take this type of risk! My brain worked overtime to think of what I could do to help, and the only thing I could think of was the possibility of Connor still being onboard the ship.

I ran back to the mobile home used for housing for the colony, and sure enough, Lorvian's comms device was on the night table.

"Connor!" I yelled louder than I needed to. "Connor! Come in? Are you onboard the ship?!" I waited for a moment before speaking again. "Connor! Come in!"

"I am here, and so is Tavi. I'm on my way to engineering. There are seventeen Travols onboard with her. She let them aboard."

So, it was her! I scoffed. I knew I should have just told Lorvian I didn't trust her. "You have to stop them! Lorvian just jumped onboard; he should be in the cargo bay."

He seemed to hesitate. "But I cannot injure organics directly. It is against Geneva Conventions protocol 846."

"Never mind that! Lorvian will be in there alone! Can't you do something?!"

"I am sorry, he will have to take back the ship alone... unless..."

"What?!" I said, desperate for any way to help Lorvian. I hated feeling so useless.

"There should be an AI. core in the administration building, the one Lorvian chose as his main office."

"Yes, I know it. On my way!" I had no idea what his plan was, but I was on it. It didn't take long to get to the admin building across the colony. By this time, the ship had long since taken off. "Okay, I'm inside, but where do I go?" My breathing was labored, and sweat rolled down my body. This sun was murder.

"From the entrance doors, take two rights; down the hall should lead you there."

I pulled at the door to no avail.

"Try security code 4609."

The harsh beep threw me off, and the door was no closer to opening. "Shit, it's not working!"

"Caspian?" The woman with the red hair stood behind me, Fran. I had no idea how long she was there watching me, and I felt like a little kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "I saw you run in here like a bat out of hell! Why did your ship take off so soon?"

I scrambled to come up with something, but my damn brain just froze.

"Why are you trying to get into the AI core?"

"Her ID card should work."

"I need you! Or your card. I need to help take back my ship!" I turned to her, hoping she would give in and just give me her card.

"Why the hell do you need our AI core for that? I think you should leave." She pointed at the door, done with my shit.

She grabbed me and yanked me down the hall toward the doors, and when we passed the front desk, I grabbed a small trophy on top and swung it fast, knocking her upside the head. I was hoping just to knock her out like I've seen so many times in the movies, but instead, she released me and turned to face me before reaching for me again. I hit her, causing her to slump over on the floor. I snatched the ID card from the set of keys hanging off her belt and ran back down the hall, pressing the card against the black bar, which read off its information. The doors whooshed open.

"I'm in!"

"Good. Now go to the large terminal in the back and allow me remote access. My code is Alpha T 4946720 Charlie."

"Okay, got it?"

I waited with bated breath, taking in the massive room's pearl-like color and the large coiling structure in the center, which almost resembled a DNA cell or whatever it's called—a helix? The place smelled like the soft burn of a heated machine. The whirring ceased, and the room went dark.

"Thank you."

"Now, can you do something?"

"Yes."

I ran from the room, and when I reached the lobby, Fran was gone, probably on her way to tell Derek what I had done or maybe to gather the small security force they had left. I didn't enjoy seeing the handprint of blood on the floor; I hoped I didn't hurt her too badly, but Lorvian was my number one concern.

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