Page 70 of Protected By the Convicts
A guard shoved her into the dirt.
Anger erupted so fast, so hot, there was no thought involved as Sersie decked the guard standing between him and Hannah. The guard went down as Sersie broke through the line.
A blaster fired. Once. Twice.
Screams erupted everywhere.
Another volley of fire arced over the crowd.
Less than twenty feet from his Hannah, Sersie fell to his knees. The fire started in his abdomen and quickly spread through every nerve in his body. His vision blurred. The white-hot fire traveling through his body became the only true sensation Sersie felt, the rest were mere echoes of reality. Never had he experienced such pain before. Not all the times he’d gone through withdrawal, or the time he’d slipped while rock climbing and had broken his leg in three places. The fire spread through his back as he crumpled to the ground. He couldn’t move or talk. Despite the darkening of his vision, he could still see his Hannah, his beautiful Hannah, strong and alive. The darkness filled his vision completely and sound disappeared entirely as the pain finally pulled him under.
* * *
HANNAH
Hannah paced the cell, not sure why they had locked her up yesterday or when—if—they’d release her. The Company guards fed her and allowed her to shower, but none of them said a word, not even to let her know if Sersie was alive. They’dshothim. The damn guards had shothim because he’d tried to reach her!
“Please, can you at least find out if he’s still alive?” she asked the guard outside her cell for the thousandth time.
The guard ignored her, but then rose to attention.
Ky’Li was being escorted into the holding area, but he wasn’t cuffed or under guard.
“Sersie?” she asked without another word.
“He’s been treated and allowed to return home. Four nanites. He’s tired, but he’ll make a full recovery.”
As she breathed a long-held sigh of relief, a tall, lean figure pressed his way past Ky’Li. The man’s mien, uniform, and the fact that three guards surrounded him, shoving Ky’Li out of the way, told her this was the new manager.
A shiver traveled through her, threatening to unhinge what remained of her nerves. The man reminded her of Dresden, except more strict, given the presence of all those guards
“Colonist Raines,” the man said with a curt nod.
The sonic field caging her dropped. It wasn’t like she was a danger to the man, not with all those guards present and the fact that she was trained in docking and inventory systems, not hand-to-hand combat.
“If you haven’t guessed by now, I’m Foley, the new manager on Narkos. This is my colony, Raines, and I’m a Company man. You will address me by Manager, Manager Foley, or Sir.”
“I understand, Sir,” she said, falling back into the old ways of when she still worked and lived on Argus, when her every move was dictated by company rules, much more than they’d been here. Then again, Dresden had gone so far from The Company’s rules, shipping narcotics off-planet and forcing the colonists to pay for everything they did here, that he’d created much of the chaos and violence that plagued Narkos.
“I don’t like trouble-makers, Raines.”
Hannah’s eye shifted to Ky’Li. Had Foley discovered Griggs’s body or those of the others in his unit? Ky’Li held his eyes steady, showing no reaction, no emotion. It was almost as if she were alone here. Maybe that was the point. The Company had a way of spinning deals, pitting employee against employee. That’s how her crime had been discovered. She’d been betrayed by a co-worker who had seen her intercept that shipment and slip the package of Rescue into her jacket.
“You will keep your eyes on me, Raines!” Foley scolded.
Hannah’s eyes snapped back to the manager. “Yes, Sir!”
“My guards found two bodies in the jungle. Both dead, one had a crushed skull, the other a broken neck.”
“Kuvak?” she suggested, hoping he’d been informed of the animals in the area.
“Do you think I’m dumb, Raines?”
“I was only offering a possibility, Sir. I don’t know what happened to the men.”
“Thank you,” Foley said. “Now I know what you look like when you’re lying.” Foley pivoted and strolled out. The guards fell into formation behind the manager, leaving Hannah alone with Ky’Li in an empty room, without any sonic field between them.
Ky’Li’s expression softened as he opened his arms. “Come here, sha’vi.”
She ran into his arms, trembling as he pulled her tight against his body. “What just happened, Ky?”
His arms cocooned her, making her feel warm and secure, but nothing could remove the sense of doom filling her.
“You confirmed his suspicions about what happened to Griggs’s unit. It’s why he brought me here, and why he threatened that if I even blinked at you, that he’d punish you along with me.”
She’d condemned Ky’Li! Tears rolled down her face, as she leaned her chin against him. “I wanted to protect you.”
Ky’Li’s hand smoothed down her back, petting her hair for a moment before he spoke. “All will be well, sha’vi.” With that, he kissed the top of her head. “Come, our unit is eager to see you.”
