Page 29 of Rupture

A look passed between them.

“Do you know what happened down here?” Ethan asked.

“No—”

He looked forward. “Well in that case, we’re sticking with the guns.”

“This is a rescue mission.” Her voice rose several octaves, but she was no longer sure she cared. “Why do you need weapons? We’re here to help people, not shoot them.”

Finn’s expression hardened into a mask of professionalism. “We don’t know the reason for comms going dark. We have to come prepared. Anything else would be naïve.” He paused, his gaze softening. “It’s important to be prepared for all eventualities.”

Rose swallowed hard. He had a point, as much as she hated to admit it. They were walking into an unknown situation.

Even so, the sight of the weapons, the easy efficiency with which they both carried them, felt wrong. This was a civilian research facility, not a war zone. Her mind raced with the implications of what their presence here might mean, the questions piling up like stones on her chest. How honest had Margaret been with her about what had happened here?

“We’re here to help.” She couldn’t help but frown. “I’m here to help get people home. That’s all.”

Finn’s expression shifted and Rose glimpsed the man beneath the military exterior. “I know.” His voice gentled. “And that’s what we’re going to do. But we can’t help anyone if we’re not prepared for all eventualities.”

Ethan slowed and pointed to the large double doors that loomed ahead of them. “Command center.”

“Rose. Behind me.” Finn’s voice became razor sharp, his gun raised once more.

“What—”

Finn cut her protest dead as he stepped in front of her, his enormous frame blocking her way forward.

She stared at his back. The man was a mountain. If she threw herself at him, she’d be lucky if he even noticed her body hitting his. She wiped her damp hands on her pant leg, trying to calm the nervous flutter in her stomach.

Ahead, Ethan palmed the door lock. The doors slid open with a muted whoosh. Ethan stepped inside, gun ready.

“Stay here.” Finn turned and pressed his hand to her shoulder, emphasizing his words with downward pressure. He pinned her in place, his gaze intense. “Don’t. Move.”

While his commanding tone irked her, she nodded her silent compliance. He released her and disappeared into the command center with Ethan.

She leaned against the corridor wall and waited for them to return. The emptiness of the corridor was unnerving, a tangible presence that seemed to press in on her from all sides.

This place was spooking her out.

Several minutes passed as she fought to keep her breathing steady.

Just when she thought she couldn’t take it anymore, Finn reappeared at the door, his expression unreadable.

“There’s no one here. It’s safe.” He beckoned her inside taking her hand and giving it a brief squeeze.

A current ran up her arm, stilling a tremor. Her breathsteadied as his shoulder aligned with hers, his solid frame between her and the darkened corridor of the Io.

Since burying her parents and watching Thea walk away for the last time, she’d navigated life alone. No safety nets. No backup plans that involved someone else catching her if she fell.

Yet now, with the habitat’s strangeness surrounding them, her reflexes betrayed her. When the shadows shifted, she didn’t step forward—she stepped closer to Finn.

Her fingers ghosted over the spot where his hand had touched hers. The warmth persisted. She’d forgotten what it felt like, that peculiar lightness that came when someone else carried part of the weight. She swallowed hard, surprised by how much she wanted to reach for his hand again.

“This place gives me the creeps.”Finn’s mutter brought her back to the present.

He was right.

A resonant hum of power dominated the command center, but just like everywhere else in the habitat, it was empty, devoid of any sign of life. The crew had left nothing but a ghostly silence in their absence.

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