Since Simone spent all of her nights with Janwar, she offered Allie her former room. The Purvelis assured them they’d be comfortable staying in Med Bay. And the two Yona opted to bunk in the training room, which was the only other chamber that had a connecting lav with showers.
The Tangata would never qualify as a cruise ship. As far as Simone knew, this was only the third time Janwar had had guests.
At this point, Simone would’ve thought she, Janwar, and the rest of the Tangata crew would be able to breathe a giant sigh of relief, having successfully infiltrated the base and completed their mission without suffering losses or serious injuries. Simone’s bruised shoulder had healed after a transfusion. And Janwar’s ribs were mending swiftly, thanks to a silna.
But they hadn’t heard anything from Kova since their return.
Even more worrisome, T couldn’t tell them where Kova was.
According to T, all hell had broken loose after Kova found Liz, one of the missing gifted ones, and liberated her from her cell. A battle had ensued. The T-4 android that accompanied him had been destroyed, as had the T-7 in the backup fighter craft. And the Gathendiens had blown up the drones when they attacked the ship to create a diversion while Kova and Liz escaped.
“You don’t know what kind of craft they’re in or which direction they went?” Simone asked for the fourth or fifth time.
“I do not,” T repeated. “Prior to the destruction of my T-4 android form, I was only able to infiltrate the warship’s comms, not those of every craft aboard it.”
She looked at Janwar, who lounged in the commander’s chair.
“I’m sure they’re fine,” he said.
“Then why hasn’t he contacted us?”
“If he’s in a Gathendien craft, he may not want to use the comms until he modifies them enough to ensure other Gathendiens won’t hear his messages.”
She bit her lip. Yeah. That would be pretty bad. A Gathendien warship against two people in—what—a transport? Escape pod? T seemed to think the stealth craft they’d arrived in had been destroyed. “Well, why haven’t we caught up with them?”
“Gathendiens have many enemies. Their transports and escape pods tend to be faster than the norm.”
“So anyone they piss off won’t catch them when they run away?”
“Yes.”
She resumed pacing.
Wondering how Janwar could be so calm when one of his men was missing, Simone reached out with her gift and realized he was far more concerned than he let on. He was just manifesting a relaxed façade to try to ease her worry.
Elchan stiffened suddenly and touched his ear. “I have them!”
She was beside him a heartbeat later.
Eyes wide, Elchan jumped about a foot. “Drek! Don’t do that.”
Simone winced when she heard the rapid pounding of his heart. She hadn’t meant to startle him. “Sorry. Did you find Kova?”
“Yes. Krigara, I’m sending you their coordinates now.”
“Are they okay?” she pressed.
Elchan smiled. “They’re okay. The Gathendien language isn’t Kova’s strength, so it took him a while to work his way through their coding and alter it to ensure all messages he sent out would remain private.”
“And Liz is with him?”
“Yes. He said she’ll need some time in Med Bay but should make a full recovery.”
Tears welled in her eyes as Simone turned to face Janwar. “She’s going to need time in Med Bay.” What had those bastards done to her?
He waved her over. “But she’ll make a full recovery.”
As soon as she was within reach, Janwar drew her down on his lap.
Simone leaned into him, tucking her head beneath his chin. Would Liz make a full recovery? Every time Allie dozed off, she woke up screaming, something Simone’s superlative hearing allowed her to hear from down the hallway. And it would take weeks for Allie to reach a healthy weight again.
Simone hated to think how close her friend had come to dying and worried about the long-term detrimental effects her torture and confinement would have, not just on her body but on her mind.
Eliana had told her Ava still suffered terrible nightmares that only Jak’ri’s presence seemed to quell. Would Liz suffer the same now that she was free?
“How long will it take us to reach them?” she asked, wanting Kova and Liz safe. Right now.
“At top speed, we’ll reach them in five hours,” Krigara said.
Three hours later, they had to veer around a vast debris field they ultimately concluded was all that remained of the Gathendien ship Kova and Liz had fled. That brought the tally up to three Gathendien warships and one primary research and development base that Earthlings and Aldebarian Alliance members had either destroyed or commandeered since the bastards had attacked the Kandovar.
If you mess with the bull, you get the horns, assholes, Simone thought with relish.
Another two and a half hours found Simone standing in the Tangata‘s largest docking bay, shifting her weight from foot to foot. Janwar waited patiently on one side of her while Allie stood on the other, just as restless as Simone. Both women were garbed like Immortal Guardians in the Tangata‘s closest equivalent of black cargo pants, T-shirts, and boots.
The rest of the Tangata crew and the two Yona—Vedon and Denu—formed a semicircle behind them. M’Kor had chosen to remain in Med Bay and keep Luft’a company.
When the massive bay doors opened, Allie’s jaw dropped. “Wow,” she breathed as deep space was revealed in all of its stunning glory.
Simone found a smile as she took her friend’s hand. “I know. It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”
“It really is.”
The transport that eased inside, on the other hand, was as ugly as the Gathendiens’ nature. Simone had grown accustomed to the sleek designs of Janwar and Taelon’s warships, transports, and assorted craft. This looked like a junky, clunky piece of crap by comparison. It was hard to believe a dungheap like that could travel so swiftly.
And what was with the pukey yellow color?
As the bay doors closed, the transport lowered to the deck. Docking clamps rose and secured it with a thunk.
Allie’s hand tightened on Simone’s.
A minute passed. Then another.
“What’s taking so long?” Simone exclaimed, ready to race forward and pound on the hatch.
Beside her, Janwar frowned. “I don’t know. Perhaps they’re more injured than Kova led us to believe and are moving slowly.”
Well, hell. That wasn’t what she wanted to hear.
Finally, the transport’s hatch opened, and a ramp lowered to the deck.
Kova strode forth from the darkness.
She frowned. No, not strode. Limped. He hadn’t mentioned that he had been injured.
The fact that he retained that limp made her wonder how badly Liz had been hurt. Liz was a healer. She could mend many wounds with a touch of her hands and wouldn’t have hesitated to heal Kova if she’d been capable of it.
The only reason she wouldn’t have been capable was if her own injuries were either too severe or too numerous.
Releasing Allie’s hand, Simone strode forward and wrapped Kova in a bear hug. “You made it.”
After a momentary surprise, he hugged her back. “So did you.”