Nine
Baird blinked in utter astonishment. He recognized the boy from a trid in his files. It was Rajin Kasi’s son, Galar.
But though Baird had been paralyzed, his computer and sensors still worked. And both were telling him the boy was not the purely human child he should have been. “You’re a warrior.”
“Yep.” The boy didn’t look up, too busy peering intently at the desk’s touch screen, evidently trying to puzzle out the controls.
“If you’re trying to deactivate the collar, hit the red square.” He’d gotten another agent out of a Xeran collar once before. “Why aren’t you in a creche?”
“Because I’m a hostage.” The boy touched the desk.
The collar opened and fell into Baird’s lap. Cautiously, he stretched, making sure everything was working, but his attention was focused on Galar. “The Xer are holding you?”
“No, Rajin is. She’s been using me to blackmail my mother.”
Baird blinked, belatedly seeing the resemblance. “Alina.”
The kid nodded, his blond hair the exact same shade as hers. His mouth was drawn into a familiar line Baird knew from a hundred combat missions. “And you’re my father.”
About to roll out of the chair to have a go at the computer desk, Baird gaped at the boy. He’d assumed Galar had been joking when he’d called him Daddy, but it sounded as if he actually believed it. “What leads you to that conclusion?”
Galar shrugged. “Mother says so.” He frowned down at the desk console, frustrated. “I know all about you. She told me all kinds of stories about when you were her partner during the war.”
The pain was stark and breathtaking. Alina had dared tell her son such a lie before betraying Baird and handing him over to the Xer. I never knew her, he thought in sick rage. I never knew her at all. He fought the anger down long enough to address his comp. Does he actually think I’m his father?
Sensors indicate he believes what he says.
Despite the fury sizzling through him, Baird rose and stalked to the desk. He had a job to do, which meant he needed to disable the Xerian’s communication jammers so he could call the Vardonese embassy.
The child moved aside for him without being told. Baird glanced him and felt a stab of pity. None of this was his fault. “I don’t know what they’ve told you, Galar, but your mother and I haven’t been together for twenty years. I couldn’t be your father.”
Level, golden eyes met his. For a moment, it was like looking into a mirror, but he knew that was an illusion. “My mother loved you, Baird. That’s why she had me.”
He wanted to rage and swear, but forced himself to speak calmly instead. “She misled you. If you were my son, you’d be nineteen.”
“My mother doesn’t lie!” Temper flared in those too-familiar eyes. “Look, she thought Kasi House would emancipate her, but Rajin refused. Mom was still pregnant with me when the old bitch ordered my fetus surgically removed and put in cryostorage. She said Mother could have me back if she continued to work for Kasi. So she did. Eleven years ago, they thawed me out and let her have me. Rajin’s been using me to manipulate Mom ever since.”
Baird frowned, considering the idea. It sounded plausible. Goddess knew it sounded like the kind of thing Kasi would do.
Could this boy be his? Had Alina given birth to him as an expression of love for Baird? The thought was so staggering, so painful, he shoved it away. The little traitor had lied to her son, just as she’d lied to Baird. “Look, I don’t have time to argue about this…”
“No, we don’t,” Galar said. Fear and impatience whitened his face, though to his credit, his voice remained controlled. “We’ve got to get to Mother before she tries to kill Rajin. Because if she’s not fast enough, I’m dead, and even if she succeeds, the Xer will kill her.”
“What are you talking about?”
As Galar explained the trap he was in, Baird used the desk unit to hack into the Xer’s communications and security systems. By the time the child finished describing the death he faced if Rajin used her codes, a great deal was painfully clear. “So that’s why Alina went along with Rajin’s treason,” Baird said. “It doesn’t make it forgivable, but…”
“My mother is not a traitor!” The mouth so like Alina’s drew into a mutinous line. “She didn’t know Rajin was working for the Xer, and now that she does, she’s going to kill her. And as many of the Xer as she can take with them!”
Baird frowned. “She’d put you in danger like that?”
“No, she told me to leave and call the authorities so they could rescue you, but I took the chance of turning you loose instead. You owe us, Warlord. And if you don’t help us, we’re both dead.”
Lifting a brow, Baird studied the boy. Galar had taken a hell of a chance to free him—not only in tackling three full-grown Xer, but in braving Baird’s own disbelief and anger by telling him his story.
And those golden eyes—it was like looking into a mirror. Computer, give me a DNA scan of this child. Is he my son?
The mental silence that followed was long and nerve-wracking.
Yes.
“Sweet Goddess,” Baird whispered, stunned.
Sometime in the past twenty years, the Xer had figured out how to build neuroweb computers, probably with tech they’d stolen from the Vardonese during the invasion. According to Alina’s sensors, the leader of the Xer agents had one, though her computer pronounced it inferior to Kasi House tech. Too, given Major Jenci Csaba’s age, it must have been implanted in adulthood rather than infancy, so it wasn’t as well integrated into his brain.
Inferior comp or not, Alina’s instincts told her she’d better keep an eye on Csaba. The number of sensor scans he’d sent her way over dinner certainly indicated he was suspicious. That was no doubt why he hadn’t requested she transfer the file to him. He was afraid of a virus.
As well he should be—she had one all loaded up and ready to send him. He’d be dead before he hit the ground when his comp stopped his heart. Of course, the Xer could restart it again with a regenator, but Alina figured dropping him would still cause some very satisfactory chaos. With luck, she could use the confusion to escape and free Baird.
Though if Galar had succeeded in getting away, the boy might even now be summoning the Calista authorities. The fact that the Xer hadn’t raised the alarm over his escape was a very encouraging sign.
Alina leaned back in her seat, playing with her fork as their server brought in dessert—something showy and flaming. Her attention was focused across the elegant table, where Rajin flirted with the Xer major. Csaba probably wanted to enlist the Femmat as a long-term asset. And Rajin, the traitorous bitch, seemed interested.
Alina rolled her fork between her fingers and calculated the angle and force she’d need to bury it in Rajin’s eye socket. It was a tricky shot, but doable.
But if she missed, was Galar far enough away to be beyond Rajin’s code transmission? The boy had been gone half an hour. It was a good thing Rajin and Csaba were so wrapped up in their little waltz of treachery. Alina needed to move before either of them missed him.
And Goddess only knew what the Xer were doing to Baird in the meantime. The thought made her stomach twist, so she pushed it away.
She’d get to him in time. She had to.
Suddenly Rajin looked over at her as she and the Xer rose. “Alina, come. It’s time to give Major Csaba what he’s paid for.”
Finally. Alina smiled easily, put her fork down, and stood. She considered telling her computer to prepare for riaat, but Csaba might notice. She’d have to do this at normal strength, but if she hit Rajin hard enough, fast enough, the woman should be unable to get the command out.
Hopefully. It was the only game in town, in any case.
She rounded the table, mentally cursing herself for not killing Rajin earlier. She’d delayed too long, hoping for a better chance, for a way to both save Galar and keep him.
Csaba and Rajin were moving ahead of her into the next room. She lengthened her stride to catch up. Her breathing slowed, calmed. Her mind went cold and still.
In one smooth, powerful motion, she scythed her leg up and across, aiming for the side of Rajin’s head with her boot.
Csaba whirled in an blur of inhuman speed, throwing up a forearm to block the kick that would have shattered the Femmat’s skull. Alina didn’t hesitate, throwing herself at him, punching, kicking, trying to drive past his guard to get at Rajin. Her heart slammed in panic. No! Galar!
From behind the protection of the Xer’s shoulder, Rajin stared at her with infuriated terror. “He’s dead, bitch!” the Femmat screamed. “You just killed your son!”
Alina cried out in anguish as her comp picked up the stream of code pouring from Rajin’s communication’s implant.
If Galar wasn’t out of range, he was dead.
Go to riatt! she ordered the computer, as she kept trying to beat her way through the Xer’s guard. Keep a lock on Rajin, I want to be able to find her when I’m finished with this bastard.
The Xer’s fist shot toward her head, and she jerked aside, backhanding him so hard he slammed into the wall behind him. But before she could close in to finish him, a dozen agents charged into the room. She spun to meet them, her teeth bared in despair and rage. She might be done, but she was going to take as many of them with her as she could.
Then a familiar war cry stopped her in her tracks. A big male body charged in behind the Xer, beads flashing in his braids.
“Baird!”
“Yeah, it’s me.” Baird plowed into the agents like a tachyon shell, sending some of them reeling, as the others whirled to fight.
With a cry of joy, she ran to help.
“You do realize,” he said on their old battle frequency, “I’m going to kick your ass when I get done with these idiots.”
Alina plowed her fist into a Xeran’s gut. “I guess I’ve got it coming.”
She only hoped she wouldn’t have to tell him their son was dead.
Heart in her throat, Rajin slunk out of the room, praying neither of the warriors saw her go. She knew she had to catch a flight to whatever ship was in orbit, or she was dead. Alina wouldn’t stop until she had revenge for her brat’s death.
Sweet Goddess, but this situation had melted down with staggering speed. She’d be lucky if she…
A door hissed open behind her.
With a strangled shriek, Rajin whirled to see Galar step out of what looked like a closet. Something silver gleamed from around his throat. Shocked, Rajin gasped, “Why aren’t you…? And why are you wearing a Xer control collar?”
“To block your fuckin’ signal, bitch,” the brat said, and flicked his wrist, snapping the stun baton out to its full length.
Before she had time to jump back, he shoved it right into her belly. Rajin bent double with a howl of agony. She never felt him jam it against the base of her skull.
The boy watched her tumble to the ground at his feet, out cold. He bounced the baton in his palm and grinned. “Damn, that felt good.”
They were fighting back-to-back again as the Xer circled, looking for an opening. Baird growled, “These odds really grind.”
“We’ve faced worse.” Alina was sweating, and her mouth tasted of blood from her cut lip.
He snorted. “Not in the past two decades.”
Suddenly her computer began to howl. Tevan lifesign approaching!
What?
Alina jerked her head around just in time to see the huge reptile step through the door, a tachyon rifle lifted and aimed in his seven-fingered hands. A number of other figures followed behind him, all armored and armed. Alina’s heart sank. “Oh, we’re screwed.”
“Not exactly.” Aloud, Baird added, “What the hell took you so long, you big lizard?”
“Traffic was a bitch,” the Tevan growled, as his armored backup leveled their weapons at the Xer agents. “Hey, assholes—you gonna give us an excuse?”
Cursing, the Xer straightened and backed away, throwing their batons aside.
“Mother!” A small figure raced around them.
“Galar!” Alina caught him as he leaped for her. “Sweet Goddess, you’re all right!”
“I knocked Rajin out!” he told her happily. “The Warlords took her away. Baird reprogrammed his control collar and put it on me so her signal couldn’t get through, and then he told me to hide in the closet, but when I heard Rajin in the hall…”
“What—wait, slow down!” She put the boy on his feet, barely noticing as the Vardonese agents started forcecuffing their prisoners and hustling them off. “What are you talking about? Explain.”
“Actually,” Baird drawled from beside her, “he’s not the only one with some explaining to do.”
Alina paced at Baird’s side, every muscle tense with a blend of fear and hope. They’d stepped outside the Xer’s headquarters while he questioned her. Now they walked together under the alien trees, as zipcars sighed overhead and a warm wind blew in their faces.
He told her he worked for military intelligence, which in retrospect made a great deal of sense. It was obvious their encounter yesterday had not been chance.
It turned out an official at Kasi House had learned about Rajin’s theft of those gems. Yet because she was the company’s president, it was virtually impossible for the lower-ranking Femmat to confront her. Then Rajin began showing an unhealthy interest in a Vardonese warship the company was building, and the official reported her to military counterintelligence.
Baird was one of the agents assigned to the case. When he learned Alina was involved, he volunteered to make contact with her.
He explained all that with a cool dispassion that somehow hinted at boiling rage. Alina had tried to blunt his anger by holding nothing back, from the night she’d decided to get pregnant through Rajin’s blackmailing her into carrying the gems. When she finally worked her way to the present, he said nothing for five steaming minutes.
When he finally spoke, it wasn’t what she’d expected. “Obviously, I have a conflict of interest here. One of the other agents will have to question you further. You’ll be required to undergo a deep scan of your comp’s memories to verify your story. Assuming you’ve told me the truth, I doubt you’ll be charged, though the ultimate decision will, of course, be up to the Femmat chief prosecutor.”
Assuming you’ve told me the truth. She winced. “Baird, I’m sorry.”
He shrugged, his broad shoulders stiff. “You did what you believed necessary to protect your son.”
“Our son.”
Baird’s golden gaze flicked to hers. The rage she’d sensed blazed up in his eyes. “I do have one more question. Were you ever going to tell me?”
Her mouth went dry. “As soon as we were free, we were going to come to you. I wanted to be with you. That’s why I got pregnant. I saw a baby as the physical embodiment of our bond. Then he was born, and I realized how much more he was. He was so precious, so fragile, and he depended so completely on me.”
A fine muscle worked in Baird’s jaw. “And you didn’t trust me to protect him. That’s what really galls me—not that you didn’t tell me your plans, not even that you smuggled for that bitch. I always trusted you.”
“Baird…”
He stopped and spun to face her, big hands fisted at his side. She forced herself to meet his angry gaze. “Deep down, I trusted you even when my superiors, logic, and simple common sense told me you had to be knowingly involved in treason. Part of me knew Alina Kasi would never stoop to treason. Period. Hell, when you coldcocked me and I woke up in a torture collar, the minute your son showed up with another explanation, I leaped at it. But you wouldn’t trust me to do the one thing I was born to do—the one thing I took an oath to do: protect the innocent.”
It was then she saw the pain. Deep beneath the incandescent anger was a stark hurt that she hadn’t believed possible in him.
“And you did find a way to protect him,” Alina said softly. “Nobody but Baird Arvid would have thought to reprogram the same torture collar the Xer had used on him to save Galar. I kept trying to come up with ways to block Rajin’s signal to the comp. It never even occurred to me to block the comp’s signal to the reservoirs.”
He said nothing, simply staring down at her from his great height, his eyes burning.
She gathered her courage. “You’re right. I didn’t trust you, and I should have.” Reaching out, she took one of his hard, strong hands. “I’m trusting you now. I love you, Baird. I’ve loved you from the time I was fifteen years old. Forgive me. Bond with me. Give our son a father.”
He blinked as if she’d said the one thing he hadn’t expected. “Alina, I’ve never been a father. I’ve never even had a father. How do you know I won’t get it wrong?”
Alina smiled, despite the hot prickle behind her eyelids. “I trust you.”
His smile was so white and wide, it was blinding. Then she was in his arms, so strong and sure around her. “Thank you for our son, Alina,” he said, the instant before his mouth covered hers, hot and joyous. They clung together in the kiss as the pain drained away.