Page 71 of Stealing Mercury
The aftermath of suppressing her fear washed over her, leaving her trembling. Another flash of movement and Mercury pulled her into his arms. She buried her face in his chest and breathed him in. The subtle spice of him cleared the tang of blood from her nose and settled her nerves. She pushed back and slid her hands up to frame his face. “When they came, I thought something had gone wrong. That maybe you were hurt, or worse.”
“I’m fine and Drake lives.
“Carn is with the others,” said Lo. “They all live.”
“We’re all safe.” Mercury pulled her back into his arms.
She stretched out her hand to Lo. “Come here.”
He didn’t hesitate. He settled his big body against her side and wrapped his arms around them both as he pressed his nose against her neck.
They sat that way, quietly reassuring each other, for a full minute before Mercury shifted. “We must get these men out of here and help Samantha ready the ship.”
“I’ll take them,” said Lo. “You stay here and help her. Carn and I will return shortly.”
“Be careful,” said Mercury. There are at least four more in the area.”
“Just two. I ran into two in the forest. That’s why I headed back here.”
Samantha cleared her throat of emotion. “We’ll be ready when you get back.”
Everything moved quickly then. By the time she got back to the pilot’s station, the hack had completed and she had full access to the ship’s controls. The moment Lo and Carn stepped back onto the ship she sealed the hatch and started the launch sequence.
The familiar rhythm of the work and the force of the ship shooting toward space fit like the comfort of old work boots. As they cleared the atmosphere, Samantha saw theDove. “Bastards.” The damage was far worse than it should have been for the small directed charge she’d triggered in the cargo-hold.
“Samantha?” Mercury appeared over her shoulder.
She wanted to turn, to see his face, reach out to touch him, but until they cleared the planet’s influence she had to stay focused on the controls. “You should be resting.”
He dropped a hand on her shoulder. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
She pointed at the view screen. “When the hunters boarded looking for that tracker they made a mess of her boarding hatches and scattered the remnants of the cargo-bay blowout.” Maybe setting off an explosion hadn’t been such a good idea. “The debris field surrounding her will make it impossible to dock. We won’t be able to salvage a thing.”
His hand squeezed gently. “You hoped to salvage your personal possessions? Your mother’s cloth?”
“No,” she said. No, it had been nothing as sentimental as that. “I was hoping we could siphon some fuel from theDove’sauxiliary tanks.”
“Fuel?”
“Yeah, this beauty was designed for speed, not efficiency.” She tapped the readouts on the control panel. “We only have enough fuel for one Skip and that won’t get us back to Roma.”
“Why would they travel without enough fuel?”
“They must’ve spent extra fuel getting here so quickly.”
As the ship moved out of range ofG-45987, Samantha quieted. She checked navigation and set a course to take them out of the solar system.
“There are two refueling ports in range,” she explained. “We’re on the border between Gollerra and Earth Alliance territories, but the closest fuel depot is on the Alliance side.” She swiveled far enough to look at Mercury. “If Roma sent out a bulletin on you guys, it could be dangerous to go to the depot on the Alliance side.”
“Drake wouldn’t have admitted his loss to anyone outside the company. He wouldn’t have believed we could evade recapture.”
She considered his words and her own feelings. She couldn’t let her own concerns and needs delay their return to Roma. “Okay, but, in an abundance of caution, let’s say he did. Or he tagged my credit accounts. I might not be able to pay for the fuel.”
Mercury nodded. “Our other option?”
She sighed but held his gaze. “Haverlee.”
He reached out and ran a finger along her jaw, stoking under her chin. “We go to Haverlee, then.”
