Page 95 of Hot Zone

He said dryly, “Lord Commander Rustam Fisoli d’Antonus, First Navigator of the Fifth Merchant Fleet of the Centaurian Federation, at your service.”

Tessa quickly introduced Professor Carswell and General Ashton to him in return, doing her best to hide her trepidation at his rather fancy-sounding title.

Athena said, “I ask again. How did you get here, Lord Commander?”

He shrugged. “Ask her.”

Athena’s intelligent gaze turned on Tessa, who answered, “Kentar was jumping in just as I started to jump out. Rustam intended to stay behind and sacrifice himself so I would make it back here safely.”

He winced beside her. You weren’t supposed to figure out that part.

I’m a military officer. The dynamics of the situation were hardly likely to escape me.

Remind me to stop underestimating you, my love.

She continued aloud, “I couldn’t leave him there to die. I reached for my power the same way he did when he moved Artemesia’s ship, and I wrapped him in the energy field as best I could.”

Athena’s gaze swiveled to him.

He supplied readily, “Once I realized what she was doing, and that she’d actually generated a powerful enough vortex to move us both, rather than risk her safety I didn’t fight the process. And here we are.”

“How did you meet him?” Athena shot at her.

Her mouth twitched in humor at the memory. “We met at an orgy. Xerxes was throwing the party. I sensed the disk as soon as I arrived—” She broke off and held out her hand, in which she still clasped the Karanovo medallion. “Here it is, by the way.”

Beverly Ashton, who was sitting nearest to her, took the priceless bronze wedge with a faintly shell-shocked look on her face.

“When we met, I abruptly lost my ability to sense anything unless he was with me.” She hooked a thumb in Rustam’s direction. “The fragment turned out to be mounted on the figurehead of Queen Artemesia’s ship. It sailed the day after I arrived, and the two of us chased it south overland. We had to dodge the battle at Thermopylae, and then we headed toward Athens. We hooked up with Artemesia again just before reaching Salamis. Rustam was her court sorcerer, and she was glad to have him back with her.”

Tessa glanced up from the tabletop and realized the two women across from her were staring in open shock. She elaborated, “Rustam crashed his spaceship and was stuck in Artemesia’s court as her slave. He used bits of his power to convince her he was a wizard and survived that way until we met.”

Tessa looked over at him to see his gaze brimming with amusement and veered back to her main story. “Where was I? Oh, yes. Rustam talked us onto Artemesia’s ship and told her the Athenians were escaping the city by sea.”

“What?” Beverly squawked.

Tessa replied quickly, “It was too late to change the course of history. The Persian fleet was already bearing down on the straits there. We helped Artemesia not get crushed in the logjam while we found the Karanovo fragment. As soon as we had it, we helped her not get sunk by the Greeks. Then we got out of sight so we could make the time jump and arrived back here.”

“And you brought the enemy directly into our lab? What were you thinking?” Athena growled.

Tessa flinched. “We only had one crystal between the two of us. I figured if I brought him here, we could give him another crystal so he can get back home.”

That brought both women to their feet, their expressions furious.

Tessa cut them off hastily. “Look. It was his job to kill me. But he chose not to. It was his job to steal that fragment from me, too. But he didn’t do that, either. In fact, he insisted that I take it and bring it here. He’s the one who slipped the cuff on my arm and activated the crystal. Not me. You have this precious piece of the stamp because of him. We owe him. And I owe him my life.”

The two women subsided into their chairs. They were definitely not thrilled about this turn of events. They traded grim looks.

“Go outside, the two of you,” Athena ordered. “We need a moment to talk. Alone.”

Rustam held her chair for her while Tessa stood up. She smiled up at him but feared the expression didn’t reach her eyes. They stepped outside and the door popped shut in its soundproof casing behind them.

“They need to kill me,” he murmured. “You might have saved me from Kentar, but I believe you did neither of us any favors. You merely prolonged the inevitable.”

“Don’t say that!” she cried. “I won’t let you die! You were willing to sacrifice yourself to save me, and I’ll do no less for you!”

He gathered her into his arms. “Ahh, my brave Tessa. I do so love you.”

“And I love you, too. That has to count for something.” She rested her head against his chest, comforted by the steady thud of his heart. After a while, she murmured, “You have to live.”

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