Page 9 of Bradi

Chapter Three

“You are the hardest-headed woman I’ve ever met!” Bradi let out an angry growl and ran toward the emergency exits with Peter. He couldn’t believe the woman would have the nerve to risk her life for a bag. Yes, it had medical supplies in it, but each POD had a limited amount of supplies already stocked in it. He’d damn near died retrieving the bag and Pete was out cold from taking a beam to the back of the head. Had it not been for Pete, Bradi knew that the beam would have crushed him.

If he’d thought he could have managed to carry a kicking and screaming Marisa over his other shoulder, he’d have grabbed her too.

Bradi glanced back over his shoulder before entering the first emergency POD he found. A young man, shaking slightly, sat in the corner. Shockingly red hair hung in an otherwise too-pale face, and the boy looked as though he was about to pass out. His wide eyes stared up at Bradi. Silently, Bradi cursed the Commission’s decision to allow men as young as seventeen to join, and laid Pete down.

“If I am not back in five minutes,” he said to the boy, “push this green button here. It’ll get you and the commander to safety. Understand?”

The boy nodded.

Bradi glanced at the POD number and made a mental note that it was POD 281 before rushing back to get Dr. Marisa Langston—who had not held true to her promise to follow right behind him. She was quite possibly the most annoying woman he’d ever met, and he’d met a lot of women.

A whole lot of women, he thought to himself as he ran down the corridor.

If she wasn’t his best friend’s fiancée, he’d take her over his knee and teach her how to behave. She’d probably sear my sac off with a half-charged laser before she’d let me near her, but hey, a guy can dream.

The sound of a hatch locking shut caught his attention and he turned to see POD 281 disengaging from the ship.

Bradi ran back toward it and slammed the palms of his hands against the porthole as he watched the POD float off into space.

The little redheaded bastard panicked. I’ll kill him when I get my hands on him.

The ship shook again, slamming him into the adjacent wall. Something popped in his shoulder and he tried to ignore the pain as he ran for the med unit. The feeling in his arm went and he was sure it was for the best, considering.

Terror gripped his chest as he saw that flames had engulfed the doorway. Marissa was still in there.

“Doc!”

She didn’t answer.

The sane part of his brain told him to turn around and evacuate the ship while he still had a chance. Unfortunately, the sane part had little control over his everyday actions or his heart. Leaving Marisa wasn’t an option. When the ship had first felt like random explosions were going off, his only concern had been getting to her. The woman owned a piece of him that even he couldn’t explain how she’d come to possess. But the fact was, she did, and he’d be damned if he went anywhere without assuring her safety.

Jumping through the flames, Bradi rolled on the ground as he landed. Pain shot through his shoulder with each turn, but he knew it was necessary to douse any fire on him. He came to his feet quickly and drew in a sharp breath when he saw Marisa’s petite frame sprawled out on the floor before him. She was even paler than normal and blood was pooling near her arm. He tried to lift her, but his arm wouldn’t cooperate.

“Marisa! Get up!” He shook her but she didn’t budge.

“Doc? Baby?”

Still nothing.

“Damn it, Doc, I told Pete not to bring you on this trip. I told him that no high-class lady could survive the journey. I told him that you were only cut out for dinner parties and ballrooms, not life in the outer regions with the Commission.” The need to provoke her, to rile her to the point she got up to argue with him was a necessary evil. If it worked, she’d hate him but be alive. If it didn’t, Bradi was more than prepared to die with her.

Her eyes snapped open. Every bit of Bradi wanted to shout with joy. He held back. Marisa’s green eyes lit with a fury he hoped would fuel her enough to get off the ship before it exploded. She tried to stand, but was too shaky to get to her feet without his help. The minute he slid his good arm around her slender waist, she snarled at him. Wagging his eyebrow, impressed with her tenacity, he ignored her dislike of him and pulled her up anyway, mindful that her side was hurt.

The door, now completely engulfed by flames, was out of the question. Turning them around, Bradi moved quickly toward the back exit. Marisa looked up at him, her eyes wide. She pulled free from his hold and shook her head. “We’ll never make it back to Peter in time. His injuries are—”

“We’ll get to a POD, baby. Don’t you worry. We’ll meet up with him as soon as we’re clear of the ship.”

He punched the emergency release button and pulled Marisa back just to be sure it was safe. Seeing that the coast was clear, he stepped out into the hallway. Marisa didn’t follow.

“Doc?”

“Peter… I have to get to Peter.”

Bradi rolled his eyes and grabbed hold of her hand. “I promise not to touch you beyond this, once we’re on the damn POD. You’ll see Pete soon enough. The guy’s probably just waking up now.”

Shaking her head, Marisa stared back at him with wide, haunted eyes. “His injures are critical, Bradi. Without my help, he will die.”

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