Page 81 of Protected By the Convicts
Chapter Nineteen
HANNAH
When Foley took over Narkos, he fired most of Dresden’s managers and brought in his own team. Conway was gone, hopefully lowered to a Level 4 or 5 like Dresden. To Hannah’s surprise, her new manager was a woman, Bethany Carson. She was a no-nonsense type like Foley, but in the three weeks Hannah had been working for her; the woman had been fair. And she’d changed security in the port as well. Most of the female Level 4s Foley would be bringing to Narkos would get jobs at the port.
Not only did Hannah no longer work in fear of Conway’s threats, but she was also promoted to floor supervisor which gave her the freedom to move from station to station and avoid the men who would all eventually be moved to jobs in the mines. She wore a new necklace Ren and Sersie had made for her, similar to the last one in design and function except with better targeting control according to Ren. They never found the necklace Griggs had torn off of her.
When she exited the workers’ entrance to the port, she stopped suddenly.
“Watch it,” one of her coworkers scorned as he nearly plowed her over.
Her heart raced at the sight at the bottom of the hill. Like her own personal guards, four tall, handsome, well-built men awaited her by the railcar. At first, she worried that something was wrong, but then Sersie broke into a wide smile, and the corners of Ren’s mouth kicked up. She smiled in turn. How could she not? Just the sight of them left her giddy and feeling as if she could conquer the universe.
Her coworkers cleared a path for her to run ahead. No one wanted to risk making her guys angry. They’d all heard about Griggs’s unit, and while there was no evidence as to who had killed the four miners, the men in the colony weren’t idiots. They knew who had taken her that day and who had later returned with her.
Hannah stared at Max, who sank back into the crowd of workers. Instantly, she regretted singling him out. Ky’Li and Ren followed her gaze.
She expected them to take chase after Max, but neither man did.
“Is that him?” Ren asked when she reached the group.
“It’s him,” Ky’Li answered, tracking Max as he disappeared into the jungle.
The jungle hadn’t saved Griggs’s unit from Ky’Li. It wouldn’t save Max.
Hannah put her hand on Ky’Li’s chest. He clutched her hand, brought it to his mouth, and kissed it. “I will not kill him, if that’s what you’re asking, sha’vi. But I do not promise he will have all his parts when I’m through with him.”
“Just make sure removed parts aren’t found for at least six hours. Reattachment is not an issue with nanites,” Vaughn added, his words cold and clinical.
Her jaw dropped. Ren pushed it back up. “More women will be arriving on Narkos soon, Hannah. You wouldn’t want them attacked, would you?”
“I could chemically castrate him instead,” Sersie offered as they filed into the open railcar. The doors close, her co-workers waiting a healthy distance from them on the platform.
“I. . .” She cleared her throat. “Why are you all here?”
“I told them,” Vaughn said.
She figured he would, but she didn’t think they’d react so calmly to the news that she was Level 5.
“You’re not shocked?” she prompted.
“Shocked? Of course,” Sersie said. “You’re not a danger to anyone. And it’s disappointing to know—”
“Your designation changes nothing,” Ky’Li interrupted.
“It changes everything. I’ll never leave here. And it’s why I can’t have kids. I won’t condemn them or you. I don’t want you to feel like you’re stuck here with me.”
“Stuck with you?” Ky’Li said. “Sha’vi, where we live doesn’t matter. Here, Daraan, Argus, or a thousand other worlds. Location doesn’t matter, as long as we are together.”
“Exactly,” Ren said. “For once, soldier boy knows what he’s saying.”
She turned to Ren, stunned. “You need to leave, Ren. This place isn’t good for you.”
“Perhaps not, but you are. I’m not leaving you, Hannah.”
Sersie twined his fingers in hers. “I was afraid you’d leave me and now I’m faced with the option of leaving you. Except I can’t. Family never leaves.”
Those were words she’d said to him, the night they’d first made love.
