Page 74 of Rebels Rising

It was a slow burn, just like the realisation, which curled in my lower abdomen. I was attracted to Eloria Stanson.

‘Where’s Reece?’ Addy asked, and I swivelled to turn what I was sure was guilty eyes on her only to find her not even looking in our direction. Now wasn’t the time for such frivolous things, however, so I schooled my features back into my professional mask.

‘Hangar bay,’ I told her.

‘They called,’ she stated, finally turning her eyes on me.

My chin dipped in confirmation. ‘Colonel Granger is alive, though I wouldn’t say she is well.’

She took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled slowly. ‘I see. Are you okay?’

‘Fine,’ I lied, and I was glad no one called me out on it. ‘You need to get in position. Everyone is just waiting on us.’

‘Yes, sir,’ she said, and for the first time it wasn’t even sarcastic.

The remaining three came back to us just as she stood, and we explained the situation. Cadmus reluctantly joined Addy as she left, but Bromm stayed behind. He would be staying on the ship with Artemis, his role one I almost envied. Since he had been ill before we left he was the only one we could really allow to stay behind. Well, besides Tormik, but it seemed he was blending into the wall a little too well since even Addy had yet to notice him.

I glanced over my shoulder to confirm that he was, indeed, still in the room and hadn’t snuck out and, sure enough, there he stood. The others followed my line of sight and the guard received a range of mixed reactions. Artemis scrunched her nose as if she’d smelled something bad, Bromm and Cadmusboth looked curious, and Addy raised an accusing eyebrow at me, clearly figuring out his presence was my doing.

‘Come on, Cadmus. Let’s get in position.’ Addy grabbed his hand and he let her lead him from the room. He cast one last sorrowful glance behind him at Artemis and Bromm before the door blocked him off, and Artemis released a shaky breath as she stared after them.

‘Captain,’ I called for her attention which she gave without further delay.

‘Go,’ she ordered, slipping a small metal ball into my hand. I didn’t wait around for goodbyes. The only ones who were remaining on this ship were the children, the volunteers, and everyone left in the cockpit. The rest of us had our own jobs to do.

I hurried to catch up with Addy and Cadmus, reaching them just before the elevator door closed to take them all the way to the lower deck. The space was small and cramped with the three of us inside, My larger size alongside the bulk of Cadmus’s wings had us squished together, poor Addy crushed between us.

Exiting the elevator wasn’t any better. Throngs of soldiers milled about the hangar bay, the large laundry carts that were used to transport the children were pushed to one side, and an amber light flashed above to signal the incoming boarding mid-space. We pushed our way to the centre and everyone quietened down when they saw me, turning expectantly while they awaited their instructions.

‘The enemy is boarding!’ I called. ‘Remember, act as if you are preparing for your arrest. Do not fight back until we are on their ship.’

I paused to give them time to ask any questions but continued when they remained silent, raising the spherical device Artemis had provided me in the air for them all to see. ‘I have in my possession device that will remove our cuffs. Wait for me to free you, and then we’ll show those fuckers exactly who they’re messing with.’

Cheers arose from all angles, deafening in as they bounced around the chamber.

The air lock alarm blared and everyone settled down, turning to face the door and wait. The amber light turned red as the ship jolted, the connection between the two ships now made, and then the airlock doors opened. A fewclicks later, the hangar bay door opened to reveal a contingency of soldiers, weapons already pointing at us.

‘Hands in the air!’ a male voice boomed.

We complied.

The soldiers swarmed us, roughly yanking our hands behind our backs and snapping handcuffs around our wrists. I almost broke when they were too rough with Addy. They knocked her over only to catch her by the handcuffs and pulled her up by her arms, but as they were behind her back they almost pulled them clean out of the sockets. She winced as they pulled them straight up, her shoulders straining against the assault.

We were dragged through the bridge connecting the two ship, a few of the soldiers staying behind to clear our ship for any of us that had decided to hide. They would be in for a shock when they realised they weren’t hiding and were about to walk right into our trap.

As they herded us through their ship, an array of personnel lining the halls, I could only hope that our plan would work. Uniformed officers glaring at us while white-coated scientists stared at us with a hunger that chilled me to my bones, and I couldn’t stop myself from searching the crowd for Addy. I’d lost her in the scuffle of bodies, her frame too small and slight to keep track of amid so many larger bodies. I caught sight of the top of Cadmus’s head, his mousy brown hair usually neatly smooth back was mussed, little pieces flopping down over his forehead as he, too, searched the crowed. He relaxed slightly when he saw me, his eyes darting to the soldiers beside him. They parted just enough for me to catch a glimpse of a sliver of pink, and my own heartrate lowered at the knowledge that at least Addy had one of us beside her.

After all, I had a pretty strong gut feeling that I would be separated from the bunch to face interrogation. They seemed to believe I was still the reining captain. They would soon learn that was a fatal mistake.

???

I was right to assume they would separate me from the others.

The holding cell I had been waiting in for the past few turns was small and contained only the bare necessities. A metal cot with a thin mattress, pillow, and blanket, a toilet in the corner with a small sink beside it, and that was it. It was cold, but there were more important things to worry about than the temperature of the room. I didn’t think they’d kill me with the conditions, but I was prepared for discomfort. It was a method of information extraction I had used in the past myself.

My biggest issue was that I had searched high and low for any sign of surveillance only to find none, but I still felt that prickle on the back of my neck telling of watchful eyes. I needed to get the skeleton key device from my pocket to release myself from my shackles, but I couldn’t risk it when I didn’t know what angle to shift my body to hide my actions.

I was about to scan the room again when the locks snicked on the door before it slid open to reveal the two people I had very strong feelings for, plus a third I was unfamiliar with. Colonel Granger stepped through, her frame startlingly thinner and more frail than the last time I had seen her in person. She was flanked by two scientists, one a tall, thin man salt-and-pepper hair and a chillingly empty expression. I knew him to be Doctor Demari. The second scientist, a woman, was short and plump, her own hair streaked through with strands of silver as it was pulled back into a low ponytail at the base of her skull. Her nose crinkled in a sour expression as she stared down at me with brazen derision, her beady eyes hard and judgemental. I had never seen her before, but she fit the description Artemis had given of the other scientist Jorna had been guarding back on Nova Station.

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