The mother was short with brown hair and blue eyes. She had freckles over her nose and she walked with a limp, which hadn’t stopped her from carrying her son to us in the middle of a warzone. She spoke first. “I’m Natalie. This is my husband, Peter, and our son, Brody. Your man took David onto the ship.”
I nodded, reaching out to take her hand. Locked in an office building with these people did not seem the time to argue that Dane was not my man. “He’s a very good doctor.”
“Everyone in the hospital went running. Everyone is afraid. The doctors the Nobles send here are not very good anyway. Not like Ochoa, where I came from. The ones there were the top students on Kakstan. I can’t imagine what training your man would have had to end up a rebel. The good doctors are all Nobles, not rebels.”
The Nomads hated that word. I let go of her hand. Natalie didn’t need to hear what little I knew about Dane’s education. He’d helped design the mind wiping technology. Probably, he was as smart as any doctor she’d ever known. If she’d been born on Ochoa, how had she ended on Hall? What did they do on Hall anyway? It hadn’t been in the star maps I’d learned. We were too close to the edge of what the Nobles deemed acceptable planets. I’m sure she had a story, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask about it. For a man to have a wife on Hall, he must have importance. The lessons on Master’s had been clear. The further out in the galaxy a man lived, the harder it was to have a woman without having a strong connection to the Nobles. I looked at Peter. He stood tall, almost as big as C.J., but not as broad.
What had he done to earn a wife?
No wonder Dane hadn’t wanted them on the ship. We weren’t saving some poor couple who needed help. I rubbed at my eyes. She’d been born on Ochoa. Natalie wasn’t a local girl who somehow found love and got to stay on her planet.
These people were Nobles or maybe as close as Hall got. And they’d been in the way when the bombs went off.
I pulled a chair to a nearby window and climbed on top of it to look outside. Dane hadn’t wanted me to go with them. I’d basically strong-armed him into it after I’d called him a coward. Goosebumps broke out on my arms. Why was I afraid? I’d wanted help from people who could turn me over to the Nobles, and here I was locked in a room with two of them who could probably do just that.
Yet, I remained silent.
“Your name isn’t Melissa. It’s Melissa-Fucking-Alexander.” Brody spoke finally, looking at me with his mother’s blue eyes. I started at his words, my whole body going cold at his easy use of profanity. “You’re the rebellion’s princess. We see you on the airwaves when you take them over. Blow them to bits, you’re always saying.”
His parents both sucked in their breaths and stared at me. Natalie’s mouth hung open and she grabbed Brody’s shoulder before tugging him to her like I’d suddenly become a threat. Peter narrowed his gaze and stepped in front of his wife.
“Look,” I tried to soothe as I had outside the ship. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about. I had my mind erased a little while ago. Truth is, whatever I did, I have no recollection of it. What I know is I’m not armed, I’m pregnant, and I convinced the doctor to help you when you came to us begging. You had to know who you were asking for assistance. Whatever our political differences were—and I’m using the past tense, because with no memory I have no interest in the Nobles or the Nomads—let’s put them aside and remember we’re all human beings. At a very basic level, they have your son, you have me. You want him returned, you give me back. If nothing else, let’s go with that.”
They were silent, which didn’t mean they were going to act reasonably. With what little I knew, I could see how stress made people do ridiculous things—like calling Dane a coward had him lowering force fields he’d never have messed with otherwise.
I leaned against the window and stared at Artemis. Nothing changed about how much I wanted the boy to live. Children shouldn’t be killed in the wars of adults.
The baby kicked me, hard. She clearly had her own opinions.
Artemis was an ugly ship. I’d never seen it from the outside before. Her insides had seen better days, and so had her outside. She’d been painted green, had been rusted, and graffitied. Red roses and lion faces swirled across the outside in nonsensical designs. Her wings were outstretched, although I believed they would pull in when she took off.
How did I know that? I rubbed at my head, expecting a headache but none came, which seemed odd. Any time I tried to figure out unexpected knowledge, I got a headache, except now. Maybe it was the adrenaline…
Nolan, C.J., Geoff, and Wes ran toward the ship, followed by three men I’d never seen before. They must be the other Nomads. Two of them were blonds and one had dark brown hair. I couldn’t make out much else as they all ran full speed onto the ship. The door rose behind them shutting before the engines roared to life and Artemis rose from the ground toward the sky.
Oh no…
They were leaving. I turned around, hoping Peter and his family hadn’t noticed, but by the look on Peter’s face as he stared at the window next to me, no way he could miss it.
“They’ll be back. They just don’t know. Nolan probably took off, assuming I was on board and having no idea your son was there.” Or not. Nolan pretty much hated me. He’d never said as much, yet I’d have to be a complete idiot not to feel his disgust every time I came anywhere near him. Maybe he’d finally had enough. I’d asked to leave. This could be him giving me what I wanted.
Only I didn’t wish for it here. Not in a room with Peter, whose pacing made me wonder if he might explode any second.
The man pulled out his gun and aimed it at my head. I raised my hands. “I see you’re armed.”
“We’d be crazy not to be with rebels around.”
His wife grabbed his arm. “Peter. No. They have David. They’ll kill him.”
“We’re never seeing him again. They take children to that moving planet of theirs and they never come back. I told you not to do this. The rebels don’t help. They only make things worse. We should have let David die. He’d be better off. His life will be a living hell. And they discarded their trash by leaving her here. What good is a former leader who doesn’t even know what she did for them?” He laughed, a long harsh sound, and my head pounded, pushing any questions I had about what he said away from my mind. “My father did a service and I got you, sweetheart. I’m going to do the Nobles another solid, and they’ll give Brody a bride.”
I stepped away from the chair. “You don’t want to kill me.”
“Oh, but I do.” His eyes widened with every word he spoke. “I’ve never wanted anything more.”
“How about delivering to Prince Cooper Jackson a baby girl? They’re rare, right? The Nobles love to have girls brought to Ochoa.” I was really stretching my worth. I had no idea whether or not Ochoa wanted babies delivered to them. From the way Peter’s eyebrows sloped downward when I spoke I wondered if he also didn’t know. Well…I was going to have to go for it now.
In for a penny…
“What a boon it would be for you. Prince Cooper knows me personally. He helped me in Master’s.” Exaggeration couldn’t hurt. I’d been sort of responsible for stealing his shuttle. That alone should have made some kind of impression. “Call his people. Tell them you have me. He’ll get you a girl for sure.”
Natalie fell to her knees. “David. David. I want David.”
I wanted him, too. “Prince Cooper can get him.”
Boy, I was really making the prince out to be powerful. The guys hated him; C.J. going as far as to want to slit his throat. I hoped I hadn’t promised them an angel when a devil would actually show. What I really needed was the guys to return with David. They couldn’t possibly want a child on their ship. Did they drop prisoners off at some particular planet? If I got out of this situation I’d study star maps until I memorized every planet in the universe.
“Call him.”
Peter stayed silent for a moment before he punched forward, hittin
g me square in the jaw. Natalie cried out, covering her mouth with her hands and pulling Brody closer. I fell to my knees, pain making stars appear before my eyes.
You stupid, stupid girl. You’ve ruined everything. They’ll never take you pregnant. Do you know what we went through to get you here, and you picked them over our future?
I wasn’t sure whose voice I heard in my head, but it wasn’t anyone in the room with me. I’d heard those words the last time I’d been hit in the face. A woman had spoken them in anger. My head ached and not from the hit, but because of the memory. I wiped at tears as they slid across my face. What had I done with my life that I’d been punched in the face before?
I looked at Peter, my hand fisting as though I might be able to fight. I breathed through the anger. I was very pregnant, and I had no idea if I could hit anyone or not, even if the muscles in my hands seemed to think I could.
With nothing else to do, I crawled to the corner. He would either call Cooper or he wouldn’t. The prince either could decide to help or not. I had no power. I’d made a very big mistake. My gumption, which had had me calling out Dane and threatening suicide by force field, fled.
Eventually, Peter pulled a phone out of his pocket. The guards at Master’s carried them. He dialed a number and spoke sternly into the device while his wife carried Brody and held him on her lap on the other side of the room.
“I need to speak to a representative of Prince Cooper.” So, Peter wasn’t important enough to get right through. This could work to my advantage. If it took a little time to get Cooper on the phone, the guys could return with David.
I chewed on my fingernail. I really didn’t know how much the machine would fix the child and how much would have to come from Dane himself. I didn’t really think Dane’s job involved solely hitting point and click on a computer screen.
We could be in this situation for a while. What would happen when the people who worked in these offices returned?
“Natalie, I want you to know I only meant to help David. That was my only intention.”
She didn’t answer me or look in my direction. Whatever had made her initially trust me, she no longer did.
“I’m calling from Hall.” Peter continued to speak into the phone. “I’m Peter Presley. My family are Noble loyalists. We’ve been under attack and, while the rebels have taken my son, David, I’ve captured one of their women. She claims to know the prince. Her name is Melissa and she says she’s pregnant with a little girl.” He paused. “Yes, I’ll wait.”
I tried one more time with Natalie. “What did the rebels want here? I never did find out. What does Hall do?”
Her gaze finally met mine. “We make sugar.”
“Sugar.” Huh. I’d not thought about things like that. I supposed someone had to. “The whole planet makes sugar? Seems like an awful lot of space that could be doing something else…”
Natalie covered her son’s ears. “Bite your tongue. That’s the kind of talk that will get us all killed.”
I was trapped in an office with two crazy people and their son because I’d decided to play savior. I patted my stomach, trying to feel the baby.
A loud ring sounded in the room, and Cooper’s face appeared on a screen on the wall across from me. He scanned the scene in front of him as though it were a perfectly normal thing for him to simply pop up on random viewing screens.
“Your Highness.” Peter backed away suddenly, tripping over a chair and nearly taking a header in the process. If my cheek wasn’t throbbing from where he’d struck me, I would have laughed.
“Melissa,” Cooper spoke to me instead of Peter. “I didn’t expect to see you so soon, and not on the floor in a building in Hall. What are you doing there?”
“I…” Tears threatened, and I pushed them away. I didn’t know Cooper. He was being kind to a woman he’d met once in a rehab center. I couldn’t lose it because I saw a friendly face. “Long story.”
He shifted in his seat, leaning more toward whatever camera he looked into. “Are you okay?”
“He hit me.” It was petty but I wanted him to know. “But I’ll live.”
“I see.” Cooper rubbed his chin and finally spoke to Peter. “Thank you for alerting me to her whereabouts. Rebels stole her from Master’s Rehab Center. She’s very important, as are all women. I’m going to come collect her. Wait there. We’ll be there soon and, I’ll say this—if you put your hands on her again, not only will you not get any reward for her recovery, but I’ll take away your wife. Am I clear?”
“Sir…”
“She isn’t going anywhere with you, Coop. Not in this lifetime.” Geoff’s voice sounded in the air and, as I was looking at Cooper when it did, I got to see the slight wince on his face when the other man spoke. Scooting forward from my place at the wall, I gaped at Geoff. He had his gun raised and pointed at Peter’s head. “Did I hear her say you hit her?”
I struggled to my feet. “I’m okay.”
“Maybe you don’t deserve to have her if you can’t keep her safer than this, Geoffrey,” Cooper shouted at the screen. “I would have thought you’d have her nicely tucked away in The Bridge by now. Something wrong with your ship? The piece of crap clunker can still make air, can’t she? You stole my shuttle, surely you can pilfer some parts. Or is Wesley losing his touch? Things are complicated. You shouldn’t be where you are.”
“Fuck you, asshole.” Like saying his name summoned him, Wes walked into the room carrying David in his arms. The little boy clung to him, his thin arms around his neck. The child was now dressed only in a green blanket, with his legs and arms uncovered. “What is this I hear about Melissa getting hit? And after Dane broke every rule imaginable to save your son?”
Peter shook, his arms out in front of him. “I thought, I mean…I never imagined.”
“Yeah.” Geoff took my arm. “I can imagine I wouldn’t like any way you finished those statements, so keep them to yourself. Give him the kid, Wes.”
After rubbing the child’s back one time with an affectionate swipe, he passed him to Peter. Immediately, Natalie started to wail. I wanted out of that room. Badly.
“You two might want to make air soon.” Cooper shook his head. “You’re going to have more trouble in the area very soon. Shouldn’t you be figuring out what exactly is going on?”
Geoff raised his eyebrows. “Why do you care?”
“I think Melissa’s had a hard day. Getting punched in the face hurts. Do better to protect her, or I’m going to take her from you.” He disconnected the feed as I gasped.
Geoff took my fingers in his and squeezed. “Come on, sweetheart. We have to get you on board. Nolan is raving and C.J. can only keep him from committing mass murder for so long.” Geoff turned around. “Goodbye, David. I’ll never forget the elephant joke.”
Wes snickered. “Get some good sleep, buddy. I told you mommy and daddy were waiting.”
David turned in his father’s arms and waved at them before we ran from the room. I had a hard time keeping pace. Pregnant bellies were not made for sprints, but I didn’t say anything. They wanted to get off the planet fast and, damn it, so did I. When I’d been plotting my escape in the medical bay, which I had remarkably not thought about when I’d been threatening to throw myself against the force field—what’s the matter with me?—it never dawned on me the general populace wouldn’t be helpful. The Presleys were loyal Nobles, and they would have killed me.
We made it to the ship and the second the doors closed, Artemis rose from the ground with a violent shake. My stomach lurched and I covered my mouth, afraid I might puke all over myself again.
“Easy.” Geoff pulled me into his chest. “Breathe through your nose. Looks like take offs are havoc on you.”
I tugged away to look at him. “You’re okay.”
“Yeah, a firefight isn’t going to end me. I’ll be a drunk old man falling off a stool, just you wait and see.”
Laughter surprised me at the image he suggested. The quick moment of ha
ppiness pushed my motion sickness away. “The last time I saw you, you were passing out in Nolan’s arms.”
“Dane and that damn powder. If I hadn’t been so exhausted, I would have seen it coming.” He pushed my hair off my forehead. “I’m fine. Slept great, actually. Had some very exciting dreams. You starred in some of them.” His wink made my cheeks heat. I had to be bright red as a tomato.
“Hey.” Wes shoved Geoff, causing him to let go of my arms. “You can’t talk to her like that. Remember the rules.”
“I’ve already kissed her, so me and protocol are pretty fucked.” Geoff shook his head. “Come on, let’s go see Dane.”
Wes’ mouth fell open. “You kissed her?”
I really didn’t want any more discussion of this. I might die and melt into a puddle of embarrassment on the floor. “Thank you for coming to get me, Wes and Geoff. And for bringing David to them.”
Wes’ angry gaze turned on me. Only this time he looked less…pissed off. Instead, he seemed more reserved, thoughtful…considering. His shirt was still stained. He really needed someone to take care of him.
“You’re welcome, of course.” Wes shifted in his stand. “Did Geoff force you to kiss him? Because if he did, I’ll kick his ass.”
Geoff snorted. “You could try.”
The door to the docking bay banged open, and Nolan stormed into the room. If his stride wasn’t enough to tell me his level of anger, his hands fisted at his side would do the trick.
He pointed right at me. “I should wring your fucking neck.”
“Hey,” Geoff yelled at him. “Cool it, Nolan.”
Wes placed himself in front of me and walked us both backwards until I stood between him and the wall. “You need to go cool down before you talk to Melissa.”
“I’ll talk to her when I want to and how I want to, and neither of you gets to tell me anything about it. That’s not how this works, remember? Equal footing, remember? She could have gotten us all killed. If she’s going to stay on this ship with us, messed-with brain or not, she’s going to damn well learn the rules. Dane would never have pulled this shit without her interference.”