Page 92 of Stealing Mercury
“I know,” she said. “You think you failed your brothers in the arena when you led Lo to attack the patrons.”
Stunned by her choice of topic, Mercury straightened. Her hands trailed down his chest, but she wouldn’t be discouraged. Not his brave little mate.
“If you hadn’t done that, we’d never have met. And if I hadn’t taken a chance to help you escape, we wouldn’t be here, together, today. When I was headed down to the planet in the pod with Drake and Resler I can tell you I was worried that my impulsive decisions had gotten me into a bad spot.”
“You act from your heart,courra. It’s one of the things I like most about you.”
She smiled, that mysterious now-I’ve-got-you smile she sometimes used when they were sharing pleasure. Damn how he’d missed pleasuring her.
“And I want you to think about something,” she said. “What you did that day in the arena, it may have seemed like a mistake at the time, but you went with your heart and your instincts that day. You lost two brothers, but not because of anything you did. If you hadn’t done it, Carn might be dead too.”
And he would never have found her and had a chance at freedom. “In battle it’s cool reason that most often wins the match.” He knew this to be true, but her words also had merit. “Carn and Lo depend on—”
She pressed her fingers to his lips. “Carn and Lo don’t follow you because you’re smart or clever or great at strategy. They follow you because they know you would do anything in your power for them.”
She smiled again, but this time the smile was sad and the sparkle in her eyes dimmed. He could think of nothing to say.
The door to the external corridor flew open and Knock stormed into the room. “Sorry it took me so long to get here.” The man panted as if he’d run the whole way from the shuttle-bay. “I’ve got the security grid map and the lock overrides as promised. But I’ve also got something you’re really gonna like.” He looked from face to face. “Hey, did I interrupt something?”
“No,” said Samantha. “Show us what you have.”
He held out his hand and three tiny-metal cylinders sat in his palm. Each secured to a slender chain. “Personal scatter-shields. They’ll make it harder for them to see you during scans, vid or sensor.”
He passed them around then stopped in front of Samantha. “We should be getting inside now. Give me a hand.”
Samantha allowed Knock to help her into the closet and he and his brothers followed her inside. Once they were all inside the narrow space, the door snicked shut, leaving them in total darkness.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
TheGwendella,RomaSpaceport
EarthAlliance Beta Sector
2210.185
“Just staying here, waiting, is going to kill me.” Samantha paced the length of theGwendella’srec-room. Knock’s eyes followed her as if she were the ball in a ping match. Everything had gone to plan, but that was no comfort when Mercury, Lo and Carn were out there risking their lives.
Knock tossed a ball in the air and caught it. “Nothing else we can do until they get back. Until the commotion starts.”
“If they’re caught, I’m not leaving.” She would find a way to get them out. She wouldn’t leave them. She couldn’t.
“Don’t borrow trouble. They have the shields and the overrides I rigged. They’ll be fine.”
Knock got to his feet and stepped into her path. Momentum had her crashing into him before her brain could give up its worrying enough to respond to the movement. “Damn, Knock.”
He set her away from him but kept a grip on her arms. “Sammie, we’ve been all through this. Covered every contingency. All we can do is wait. You wearing out the decking isn’t helping a damn thing.”
TheGwendella’sduty officer appeared in the hatchway. “Sorry to interrupt, Ms. Devlin, but there’s a woman demanding to see you.”
Everything that could go wrong crowded into her thoughts. Her pulse surged. “She asked for me by name?”
The man fidgeted with his jacket as he answered. “Samantha Devlin.”
“Damn. She alone out there?”
“Alone, yes. Out there, no. She begged me to bring her in,” he explained sheepishly. “She looked scared to death.”
Samantha and Knock exchanged a glance and Knock left. Samantha knew he’d make a sweep for surveillance and tracker tags and monitor the hangar for transmissions.
