Page 82 of The Alien's Private Redemption

"Yes, though I'm not privy to how much."

"What about other allies?"

Colonel Schuh looked at him. "I was under the impression that you were the best your people could afford to send."

The statement held a question, almost an accusation, and Zoric had to swallow his pride to not answer it with anger. His people had been devastated by the fight that had freed them from their bondage to a monster. Centuries of depredation and abuse had left many of them angry, hurt, and fearful of the outside world.

"I am," he said. "But I wonder if there are others out there who may offer more help."

"If you have other resources, I'm all ears," Colonel Schuh told him.

Zoric nodded. "I'll have to discuss it with Ae-cha," he said. "It's a long shot if it exists at all, but I have an idea."

What are you talking about?Angela asked him.Do you think Ae-cha's people are holding out on resources?

I think we should take you home,he told her.

Panic shot through their Bond before she smothered it. He didn't understand what had caused it or why she would try to hide. The safety she had felt in that memory, in the middle of a pain-filled and fearful event, had spoken to him.

"You'll have a long flight to talk it over," Colonel Schuh said.

As they crested the next hill, the airfield came into view - a sprawling complex surrounded by razor wire that glinted inthe harsh sunlight. Armed guards stood in towers at regular intervals, their shadows sharp against the bleached concrete. The acrid smell of jet fuel hung heavy in the air, mixing with the metallic taste of exhaust as they approached the massive aircraft waiting on the runway. Heat waves rose from the tarmac, distorting Zoric's view of the ground crew that scurried around the plane like ants, their voices carried away by the wind.

Angela craned to look out the window then whistled. "Who are we hitching a ride with, sir?"

"Nobody," he answered. "It was the first plane nearby that could make the flight without needing to stop to refuel."

Fear shot along their Bond and Zoric sought out the cause. A jumbled explanation about military travel and how it was scheduled only confused him further, but he understood that the speed at which she was being moved did not indicate Good Things.

That was something he could understand. Even with a monster who had proven to be increasingly crazy and sadistic, the natural pace of anything outside of combat was slow, methodical. The kind of logistics that were necessary for this kind of speed were difficult if not impossible to pull off unless it was an emergency.

They stopped a few feet away from the lowered ramp and Colonel Schuh was out the door, barking orders before Zoric had gotten the door open. When Angela would have stood up, he held her closer, even though it made getting out of the vehicle tricky.

I'm not injured,she protested across the Bond.

No, but you are in my custody,he responded.And I do not want to give anybody the chance to remove you.

He hoped she let the argument end there and she did, though he could read her confusion at his insistence. While the Bond he shared with Angela was the deepest he'd ever experienced,he'd also forged one with the Chelion he'd grown up with, served with. Created by necessity when they couldn't risk speaking out loud, it had carried more than information and conversation.

The pain his men had felt when their Bond-mates were taken from them had echoed through all of them, until he was afraid he was going to lose all of them. He'd shielded Dorcas from whatever he could, her pain and fear radiating at him, and he let her go because he knew he couldn't save her. He'd never intended for the others to be taken, as well, and his private pain had been shared in a way he'd never expected.

With everything he'd learned, everything he'd seen, it was more important than ever to keep her close. And, while he knew he was going to have to put her down eventually, he wasn't going to do it yet.

She didn't argue as he carried her up the ramp, and he was grateful he wasn't going to have to explain. Instead, he looked around for a place to sit, and realized it was going to be a very uncomfortable ride.

Dr. Phillips and Ae-cha were talking animatedly as they walked up the ramp and Zoric caught the mention of the Jade Princess. It sounded like Ae-cha was giving the human doctor a history lesson.

Dr. Torres followed behind, his head turning as he walked through the back of the enormous plane, though he stayed close behind the women.

The transition into the aircraft hit all of Zoric's senses at once - the rubber and metal smell common to military planes, the cold press of steel under his feet, the deep thrum of idling engines that resonated in his chest. His claws clicked against the metal floor as he carried Angela to their seats, the sound almost lost under the whine of hydraulics and the sharp hiss of pressurized air.

It looked like the plane was set up to carry mostly cargo, with several pallets already strapped to the floor in the center. Seats were attached along the sides, with strange harnesses instead of the seat belts he remembered from the movies.

"Take a seat," Colonel Schuh shouted over the cacophony of pre-flight checks. "We're taking off as soon as we're cleared to go."

"Do we have a destination yet?" Dr. Torres asked. He'd chosen a seat between Ae-cha and Zoric though he seemed to be making an effort to refrain from staring at either of them.

It struck Zoric as an odd thing to do but he couldn't quite pinpoint why.

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