Page 48 of Double Take

Shit. Shit. Shit.

He bent in again, and, this time, lugged out Amity’s limp body.

Fuck. When he’d suggested Marshall bring proof, he’d been thinking of a vid, not the body!This is going to kill Faith.

“Let me see!” She pushed forward to peer at the screen. “Oh, my god, that’s not—that’s not—Amity!” She let out a keening wail and bolted for the gangway.

Bragg ran after her. They lowered the gangway to admit Marshall.

He stomped aboard, his burden slung over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry.

“Amity!” Faith started to cry. “Oh my god. She’s dead!”

“Not dead. Unconscious. I had to tranquilize her. I didn’t have time for a long discussion.” He shifted his gaze to Bragg. “I’ll put her in a stateroom. You launch the ship and get us the fuck out of here.”

Faith followed Marshall, and Bragg sprinted to the bridge. The AI already had the coordinates, so he issued the order, and the ship rolled to the launch pad and blasted off.We made it!

But where are we going? What’s the plan, now?

He found Marshall and Faith in a small stateroom, Amity unconscious on the bunk, and Faith stroking her friend’s hair. “How long will she be out?” she asked.

Marshall shrugged. “An hour maybe. Long enough for us to talk.” He shrugged off the duffel and handed it to her. “Here.”

“What’s this?”

“Your cat.”

She unzipped the bag and let out a cry. “Rusty! Oh god!” She lifted out the limp cat, eyes open, tongue hanging out of his mouth.

“Itranquedhim, too. The fucker scratched me.” Marshall shoved up his sleeve to reveal an angry, red claw mark.

“You deserved it.” She glowered at him while rocking Rusty.

Chapter Nineteen

John’s commanding officer was a cold, abrupt, emotionless asshole. She easily pictured him working for Dark Ops; he’d been cut from the same cloth as Rogers and Glenn. However, Marshallhadgone back for Amity and Rusty—reluctantly, but he’d done it. She supposed she ought to be grateful—he’d risked his life and freedom to get them—but she couldn’t forgethowhe’d brought them aboard, her friend slung over his shoulder like a sack of grain, her cat shoved into a duffel bag like dirty laundry.

She stroked poor Rusty. He was still unconscious.

Seated next to her in a ready room, John squeezed her shoulder in sympathy, and she smiled at him. He made everything all right.He’s the man I’ve been waiting for all my life.Their future remained uncertain, undefined, but they would face it together. Along with Amity and Rusty. She fretted about Amity’s reaction when she awakened. Her best friend had elected to come to Terra Nova, but that didn’t mean she’d be happy about moving to another planet. Not when she hadn’t had a choice. Faith hadn’t anticipated Amity wouldn’t be conscious. Marshall had basically kidnapped her.

He had a lot to answer for—as soon as he got here.

“I need to check on some stuff. I’ll meet you in the ready room,” he’d told them.

“Do you have any idea where we’re going?” she asked in a low voice.

“No, he didn’t tell me.”

“We can’t go back to Earth,” she said.

“No.” He leaned his forehead against hers in a brief caress. “I’m sorry I got you into this mess. I turned your life topsy-turvy.”

“I’d rather be with you in a topsy-turvy mess than not with you.” She cupped his cheek. He’d only recently come into her life, but she couldn’t imagine living without him.

He smiled then, love shining from his eyes.

The door slid open to admit Marshall. He took a seat across from them at the table. Closedmouthed throughout the whole ordeal, he wasted no time on preamble. “We’re headed to Planet Refuge.”

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