“Could I live off that?”
“Not long term.” Riley sighs and strokes my arm.
I feel the sensations running through me, instantly relaxing me. I don’t fight it. I want and need her touch and the feelings it evokes in me. I stare into her beautiful eyes before dropping my gaze to her lips and lower. The curve of her breast is visible through her open lab coat, and the sight excites me.
With my thumb pressed against her chin, I tilt her head up, brushing her throat and jaw with my lips before finally finding her mouth. My dick hardens uncomfortably in my pants, and the extra boost of testosterone drives me on.
I push off my pants as Riley discards her clothes on the floor beside us. We come together, and I push slowly into her.
Like the first time, I stare into her eyes as we join, but it’s different now. I can see the emotion in her eyes as we come together. I can hear it in her breath and smell it on her skin. I feel it with every touch, every stroke.
No words are spoken; we don’t need any. We just look into each other’s eyes as we move in rhythm. The wild abandon we had shared before will come again another time. For now, I just want to make love to her.
I move slowly, purposefully. I grind into her, stroking her body with one hand as I keep my balance with the other. Riley holds on to my upper arms, tightening her fingers around my biceps as she pushes up against me.
She’s so close, I can smell it on her. I rotate my hips faster and feel her legs tighten around my hips, drawing me into her. She tilts her head back and cries out as she shudders, gripping my cock.
With a groan, I let go. Riley keeps her grip around me as I lower myself on top of her, reveling in the feeling of my skin on hers. Pressing my nose to her throat, I inhale deeply. Her scent flows through me, making my entire body tingle.
Riley strokes the hair on the back of my head.
“You still need a haircut,” she says, chuckling.
I slowly pull back and lie beside her. She rolls to one side and we coil our arms around each other. I stroke the side of her face, and she caresses my back and shoulder.
“I love you,” she says.
My heart beats faster. I kiss her softly, return the sentiment, and hold her until she sleeps.
Chapter 21
We stand at the top of a hill, looking down on Martinsberg.
It’s a much larger city than Haprin, sprawling through the valley into every possible bit of land. There are farms visible on the near side, and I wonder if the farmers have started planting their crops yet.
“That’s it,” I say, pointing to the east. “The new tech facility is the tall glass building.”
“How are we going to reach it?”
“I was thinking maybe we’d just walk in and see what happens.”
“Is that a good idea?”
“Do you have a better one?” I reach up and stroke her face. “If we’re captured, the first thing they’ll want to do is contact Errol Spat, Anna Jarvis, and Merle Hudson. Those are the people we want to see.”
“We both look like we recently jumped out of an exploding helicopter,” Riley says. “What if they just kill us?”
“I don’t think they will,” I say. “It’s a technical facility, not a military one. Considering Carson intelligence knew about our plan to attack and abduct Spat, I’d guess they would also know about my escape. You are likely considered a hostage.”
“How is that?”
“Isaac said as much to me right before we were shot down.”
“I didn’t realize you had communicated with him.”
“He was on the monorail below us as we approached the wall. He thinks they messed with my head when I was captured, which isn’t so far from the truth.”
“He thought you’d kidnapped me?”
“Yes, and that’s for the best. I’m only concerned that Carson Alliance may also believe that and consider you hostile. Approaching them out in the open might alleviate concerns they have about you.”
“I’m not much of a threat,” she says with a shake of her head. “You are the one that could infiltrate and hurt them.”
“They hoped I would come back. They might even be expecting me to show up here.”
“You can’t be sure.”
“I could only be sure if I had made an appointment,” I tell her. “As it is, the simplest answer seems to be the best. Occam’s razor and all.”
Riley gives me a small smile, but I don’t think she’s actually happy about anything.
“Incorporating the Occam’s razor principle is built into your programming,” she says. “Walking to the front door does seem to have the fewest assumptions. Let’s do it.”
We make our way around the edge of Martinsberg, keeping to mostly unpopulated areas. We do look rough; Riley is right about that. As we get closer to the center of the city, we encounter more people on the streets. Several of them glance at us sideways, but no one speaks to us or tries to stop us.
We turn onto the main street leading to the tech facility, and the huge glass building looms at the end of the street, towering above everything around it. A bright blue sign above the line of doors simply reads “Carson Alliance.”
Several dozen people walk up and down the stairs from the main entrance, and we merge with the crowd. Inside the doors is a large lobby with a fountain. Right in front of us is the entrance to the rest of the building, blocked by security guards. We head toward the desk near the secured entrance.
“Shall I do the talking?” Riley asks.
“Yeah, probably. I’m not sure I know what to say.”
We stop in front of the guard at the desk. He looks up at both of us, his eyes narrowed.
“Can I assist you?” he asks.
“I need to speak with Anna Jarvis,” Riley tells him. “Please tell her that Riley Grace would like to see her.”
“Is she expecting you?”
“Not exactly,” Riley says, “but she’ll be anxious to talk to me.”
The guard looks skeptical, but he picks up a phone next to him and taps in a code.
“You know her,” I say to Riley. “You know Anna Jarvis.”
“We were good friends once. We both decided to go into medicine together though in different areas of specialization. She’s a growth and nutrition expert.”
“She defected three years ago.”
“I haven’t heard anything of her since,” Riley says. “I had just moved into the medical tech division, and we ended up in an argument. She was gone a week later.”
Riley continues to speak, but my focus is drawn to the guard.
“Honestly, ma’am, she looks a little beat up.” The guard speaks quietly into the phone.
“She doesn’t seem to be in distress, but the man you described is with her.”
Riley doesn’t react, and I realize she can’t hear what the guard is saying. I look carefully at Riley, the cut across her cheek and the bruising on her arms from our escape, and consider how they will appear to others who look at her. Though I am disheveled enough, the minor injuries I incurred during our abrupt landing have already healed. Someone could draw the conclusion that I have harmed her.
They’re going to take me captive.
“We may have a problem,” I say softly to Riley. “I don’t think it’s going to be avoidable.”
“What?”
“They think I’ve abused you.” I can hear them coming. Six soldiers are heading through the hall just around the corner from the security desk. Two other people with smaller builds—a man and a woman, judging by the sound of their footsteps—accompany them.
My brain electrifies as the implants sense the danger. I have time to run, and I’d likely escape, but not unless I left Riley behind. If I were to carry her, the odds of them catching up to us double. I could stay and fight, but she may be injured in the process.
I don’t want to be captured again. Everything in my mind and body fights against the very idea of it. How long would it be before Riley can
convince them we are here for help and that I am not a threat? How much time will they have to try to beat information out of me first?
“Galen…” Riley reaches for my hand and grips it tightly.
“I have to let them take me,” I tell her.
“They just have to listen to me,” she says quickly.
“They won’t, not right away. They think I’m a threat to you. They won’t listen until we’re separated.”
“What will they do with you?”
I just shake my head. I don’t have an answer for her.
The group rounds the corner, soldiers in the lead. Right behind them is an older man with greying hair, wearing a dark suit jacket. Anna Jarvis follows.
“Don’t move!”
The soldiers circle me, weapons aimed. Immediately, I begin to determine which of them is the greatest threat, how to take them out one or two at a time, and how to secure a weapon and end up with the grey-haired man on the ground as my hostage.
Forcing myself to stand still is painful.
Riley takes a step away from the security desk, pressing her back to my chest. My hands move to her automatically, and I grip her upper arms to pull her closer to me and slightly to one side. If they do fire, I’ll be able to block the shots with my body most effectively with her there.
It doesn’t appear that way to the others.
“Let her go, Galen!” Anna tries to move forward, but the older gentleman holds her back.
“Anna, it’s all right!” Riley calls out. “We came here together!”
“We need to talk to you and to Spat,” I say slowly, directing my words at Anna.
“Not as long as you’re restraining her,” the older man says. “You have to release your hostage if you expect us to listen to you.”
“I’m not a hostage!” Riley’s insistent words are ignored.
“Make sure she’s not harmed.” With great effort, I release my grip on Riley and step back, raising my hands in the air. The two soldiers behind me grab my arms and hold me tightly. Another moves slowly toward us, weapon still at the ready, and takes ahold of Riley’s arm, pulling her to him.
I lurch forward before I can stop myself. I don’t want his hands on her, and everything inside of me screams to kill them all—keep her protected.
I stop just short of ripping myself from the soldiers’ hold, but it’s enough for one of them to decide to bash me over the head with the butt of his rifle.
“Galen!” Riley tries to pull away, but she’s held fast.
“Don’t you hurt him!” she screams as I allow myself to be shoved to my knees.
My hands are cuffed behind me. I run my thumb along the edge of the metal restraint. It’s nowhere near thick enough, and I can break it at any time. I keep my eyes on Riley and the soldier holding her. If he is anything less than gentle with her, I’m going to break his neck.
Luckily for him, Anna Jarvis steps up and shoulders him away from Riley.
“I’ve got her,” she says, glaring at the man.
“We don’t know if she’s safe, ma’am.” The soldier stands his ground. “She needs to be searched for weapons and detained until we can determine the level of threat.”
“We’re not armed,” Riley tells him. “We came to talk.”
“I will check her for weapons,” Anna says. She’s staring at me, and I know what she’s thinking. If the soldier pats Riley down, I’ll rip his arms from their sockets.
Anna checks Riley over quickly as she speaks to her softly.
“Are you hurt?”
“We had to parachute out of a helicopter close to the ground. We both got banged up, but I’m fine.”
“Is he back on his regular treatments?”
“He is.”
“How much does he remember?”
“All of it,” Riley says. “That’s why we’re here.”
Anna and Riley stare at each other for a long moment.
“You didn’t know, did you?” Anna asks.
“I had no idea.”
Anna nods and looks over at the grey-haired man.
“We need to get Spat into your office,” she says, “and get a call out to Merle. He needs to be here, too.”
“What about him?” the man asks, nodding toward me.
“His implant continuously transmits a signal to Mills. At this point, they likely already know he is here. We’ll need to block the implant and get him somewhere else as soon as possible.”
“If they already know, it’s too late.”
“That’s why we can’t keep him here. Spat has a device to block the implant’s signal. We’ll need it installed and then move them elsewhere.”
“Where?”
“I’d rather not say as long as he’s transmitting data,” Anna says as she turns to the soldier who had grabbed Riley. “You can release him.”
“No, ma’am,” he replies. “I can’t do that. I’m well aware of what he is. You don’t have the authority to have him released into your custody.”
“Who does?”
“You’ll have to take that up with my superiors.”
Anna scowls.
“He is not to be harmed,” she says. “Place him in a holding area and watch over him, but do not harm him in any way. Understood?”
“I can’t promise that.”
“Galen,” Riley says, “you need to keep yourself as calm as possible. Can you do that?”
I look up from my kneeling position and nod at her. Riley watches me closely as I’m pulled back to my feet and lead down the hallway and out of her sight. As soon as we’re around the corner, one of the soldiers comes up behind me and slams me in the head again with his rifle.
“You killed a buddy of mine, asshole.”
I taste blood in my mouth. I have no idea who he’s talking about—I killed several as they took me hostage and even more during the raid.
“Cut it out, James.” The soldier who touched Riley pushes the man back and walks beside me. I glance at his shoulder, noting his higher rank. “Unless he provokes someone, keep off of him. This is detention only.”
“Ought to take him out and put him against the wall,” one of the other men mumbles.
“That would just piss him off.”
I know this last voice. I turn to the man who spoke and look him over, sure he was there when I was tortured before.
He held the nails they hammered into my legs.
“I know you,” I say as I look directly at him, but he doesn’t respond. He doesn’t even look at me.
I slow my steps gradually until he’s right beside the man holding my left arm. With a quick step, I wrench my arm away and head-butt the one I recognize. He flies backward and into a wall, unconscious.
I’m hit in the side of the face and punched in the gut. I don’t care. I take the blows one at a time until they decide I’m subdued enough and drag me back to a familiar cell.
The same small cot, the same plastic chair.
My feet are bound. It’s the same type of metal restraint they used on my hands and easily broken. I don’t move. I sit on the edge of the cot and watch them closely as they all back up, weapons still pointed toward my body. They continue to keep a nervous eye on me.
Break restraints. Use chair as a weapon against the target second to the right—he’s standing slightly closer to me. Drop down and let them be caught in their own crossfire.
I do nothing.
The soldiers leave the room, locking me inside. One of them stares at me through the tiny slot in the door. As the minutes tick by, he stops looking at me and closes the slot.
Unlike my condition when I was here before, I’m alert and ready for anything. I could have taken them all down before the door was shut, but I did nothing. My hands shake, wanting the fight, but I just sit in the chair, motionless, as thoughts of escape continue to pound through my head.
Hours pass.
This shouldn’t be taking so long. Where is Riley, and what is being done or said to her? Was coming
here a horrible mistake? I’m sure Merle will want to talk to us, but from what Anna said, he’s not here. How far away is he, and what might happen in the meantime?
My patience is wearing thin. I’m having an increasingly difficult time not acting on the instructions running though my head. I’m near the breaking point when someone opens the door.
The soldiers are instantly alert and pointing their rifles at me again. The grey-haired gentleman is just outside the hall, and he tells them to bring me along.
The restraints on my legs are removed, and they take me to a large office. Riley is there along with Anna Jarvis and Merle Hudson.
“You can remove the restraints.” Merle waves a hand in my direction.
I twist my hands, grab hold of the thin metal, and rip them off. I hand them to the soldier next to me, staring him down in the process.
“Do I make my point?” I ask him harshly.
He glares at me as he tentatively takes the broken restraints from my hand, and Riley comes up to me and looks me over.
“Are you all right?” she asks in a hushed tone.
“I’m fine.” I look from her to Merle, who sits at the meeting table with the others.
“Please, Galen,” Merle says, “have a seat.”
We join him silently, and Riley reaches under the table to squeeze my hand.
“Dr. Grace has told us all about your escape from the Mills medical facility,” Merle says. “Honestly, it’s considerably more than I had hoped for. It was far more likely that you would either be repaired, which would remove your memories again, or be destroyed.”
“I have Riley to thank for that.”
“So I gather.” Merle leans back in his chair. “Are you hungry, Galen? Thirsty? Riley’s been tended to, but I doubt you were.”
“I don’t need anything.”
“I realize that,” he says, “but do you want anything?”
“I want to not be locked up again.”
“I understand, and I apologize for that,” Merle says. “Security can get a little…overzealous. Realize it’s for the good of us all.”
I stare at him, not responding.