Page 43 of Honor Bound

Coleridge remained standing, the scent of burning flesh still clinging to his ruined cheek. His fingers curled around the bloodied cloth before he tossed it aside, reaching instead for the hilt of his laser knife. He activated the heated blade, pressing it to his skin that was still seeping and sealed the rest of his wounds with a sickening sizzle.

Pain was something he welcomed. He thrived on it. It fueled the burning rage inside him. Once he had his son and the Ancient back under his control, he would unleash far more than the burning cut to his face that Andri had given him. He would extract every ounce of blood from their bodies—one drop at a time.

He turned toward the computer, typing out a command, he was connected with the Legion Spacelab. The technician blanched when he realized who was on the screen.

“Get me Dr. Mella,” he ordered, his voice as hard as iron.

“General Landais, this is a surprise. How may I help you?” Dr. Mella hastily inquired.

“Prepare the weapon for deployment,” he ordered.

Dr. Mella frowned and glanced over his shoulder before returning his attention to the screen. Coleridge’s eyes narrowed when the good doctor swallowed. In the background, Coleridge could see the sonic cannon prototype that would soon be retrofitted to every battle cruiser in the Legion.

“General, it is almost ready. I just need a little more time,” Dr. Mella protested.

Coleridge’s eyes grew colder. “You have until you reach Tesla Terra orbit to make it ready. If it isn’t, you will answer to me,” he stated in a harsh tone.

“Yes, sir. Yes, sir. It will be ready,” Dr. Mella mumbled.

Coleridge cut the link and walked over to the viewport. He stood staring down at the planet below. Plateau stretched beneath them—tranquil, untouched, oblivious.

It would not be for long once the weapon the Legion had designed was fully functional. First Tesla Terra and the rebel base—then Roan’s home world.

CHAPTERTWELVE

Hutu’s Star Cruiser: Tracer

Julia wondered for the thousandth time if she was doing the right thing. The logical part of her mind was trying to tell her she was crazy for risking everything to rescue a man who was hated throughout the galaxy she had woken in.

Well, not everyone hates him,she defended.

She fingered the disk Roanna had given her with quiet instructions to give it to Roan. She wanted to ask what was on it. Roanna had closed her hands over hers and simply told her to trust her gut. And that was what she was doing.

The metallic hum of the supply bot echoed softly in the corridor as she trailed behind it, clutching a tray of food as though she belonged there. Sergi walked beside her, his movements relaxed, and confident—too confident until she remembered his background on Earth. A wave of envy swept through her and she shot him a glance. He chuckled and squeezed her arm in reassurance. They paused outside a set of double doors when the bot stopped. Her eyes flicked to the alien markings outside the door. She couldn’t read them, but she knew where they were at and what the symbols meant—they were outside the cell block.

“This is going to work,” Sergi murmured. “Cramming him into that supply bot is a brilliant idea. No one will think to look inside. Your Legion General will be a certified contortionist by the time he escapes all of his prisons.”

Julia shot him a dry look. “He isn’tmyLegion General. Mei was right, you do have a very sadistic sense of humor sometimes. Hasn’t he been through enough torture? Besides, Roanna believes he is important to the success of the rebellion.”

“Me? Sadistic? You should see some of the tricks Mei played on me! And do not forget that Roanna is Roan’s grandmother. She would be negligent in her duties if she didn’t want him to be successful—and good.”

La’Rue’s voice crackled through their earpieces. “Okay, H has the programming done on the cameras. The guard will have a key card. The fields are independent on that level to make sure that if you have a bunch of prisoners, they can’t escape all at once. Each cell has to be deactivated either at the console or with the key card. H and I will have theStar Runnerready to leave as soon as you get here.”

“Aw,dusha moya,you do not know how sexy you sound when we are breaking the law,” Sergi teased.

The air in the corridor felttoo quiet, the industrial lighting too bright. Julia’s pulse pounded in her ears as she followed Sergi, every step a countdown to chaos.

The cell door loomed ahead.

“Five credits he’s already working on breaking himself out,” La’Rue muttered over their commlink.

“He’d better not be,” Julia hissed, pressing a hand against the door panel. “I will be pissed if we are doing this for no reason.”

Julia pursed her lips and shook her head at Sergi when he snorted out a low laugh and winked at her. Only he… and Mei… and Ash… okay, and Josh if what Roan told her was true, would think breaking someone out of an alien prison cell onboard an alien ship in an unknown galaxy was an exciting adventure. Her lips quirked when she thought of the fact that her father would be getting a kick out of the fact that she was doing something so outrageous and daring.

God, I miss you, Daddy,she thought, blinking to clear the sudden burning in her eyes.

The plan had been simple enough when La’Rue suggested it: Reprogram a supply bot to sneak Roan out. No one would question a bot moving supplies around the ship and it would be large enough—barely—to squeeze Roan into it. All they had to do was freeze the security cameras in the cell block, knock out the guards, steal the key card, stuff Roan in, and get down ten levels on to the docking bay where La’Rue’s freighter was located. Oh, then, fly away—without permission.

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