Page 60 of Enthraller

Behind you, her nanos said, and she could hear satisfaction in their tone.

She tried to spin around, finding it difficult with nothing to leverage against, and then arms came around her.

She felt a tingle as the nanos covering her face retreated, and a mask was fitted over her head.

She was turned, but before she saw who was behind her, she knew it was Ed. He was holding her gently, his big body taking up her entire view, and he drew her up to his chest, his arms around her back and under her knees.

His lips moved, and she guessed he was talking to Bailey or Hatch, because they suddenly began moving backward, pulled on the line.

The nanos held in place over her skin until just before the air lock hatch opened, and as Ed drew her in, they sank into her body, leaving her shivering with cold in the icy chamber.

“You’re still wearing your crown,” Ed told her, and the band around her head melted into her, too.

“Is Cora alive?” she managed to croak out.

“Don’t know.” His gaze went to her wrist and she saw one cuff remained.

A thin probe rose up out of it, a slender, silver stem. It bent toward him.

Ed watched it. “Unnecessary,” he said.

Wren frowned, trying to work out what he meant. The silver stalk dipped down, as if giving a nod, and fell back into the wrist brace, then the whole thing disappeared into her skin.

A signal sounded, and the moment it did she could hear someone spinning open the air lock.

Ed carried her into the small runner, and she shuddered at the warmth.

“Your lips are blue,” Hatch said. He was holding a blanket, and he tucked it around her while she was still in Ed’s arms. He put her down on the bench, stripped out of the thin emergency space suit he was wearing, and then hauled her back into his lap, so she could feel the heat of his body.

She forced herself to move her head closer to his ear. “What was unnecessary?” She kept her voice a whisper.

“Don’t worry about it,” he murmured back.

She looked up, saw Hatch was staring at her.

“How did you survive that?” he asked, and he sounded freaked out.

“There was only one suit left for walking the line,” she said. “Garner and Kailis, from the academic team, were gone. Cora said they’d disappeared, and as two of the suits were missing, they might be floating out here. I told Cora to take the last suit, and I was out of the bay, looking for masks for myself and Ludlow, so we could all get to you. That’s why I survived. I wasn’t in the bay when it was hit.” She looked up at Ed. “If she got into the suit in time, she might be alive.”

“We’re scanning for all signs of life,” Hatch said. “What happened to Ludlow and Lashka?”

“Ludlow was unconscious.” She decided not to say who had made him unconscious. “Cora told me Lashka was dead. Part of the ceiling fell on her.” She shook her head. “Ludlow was in the bay with Cora. We dragged him there with us.”

Someone made a noise, and she turned her head, saw Banks, Juller, and Trish laid out together, restrained but awake.

“Got something to say, traitor?” Bailey’s words were cold, and she was looking at Banks. “Other than thank you to us for saving your behinds.”

Wren angled in Ed’s lap so she could see her, sitting in the pilot’s chair. She looked hard and sharp.

“You haven’t saved us for long,” Trish spat. “We’re dead as soon as we’re anywhere ‘official’.”

“Boohoo.” Bailey’s eyes glittered as she moved her gaze to Trish. “You chose your path. Did you like how your masters gave you the busywork job to imprison us while they set up their shot to take down the whole observatory?”

Trish looked away, and Juller closed his eyes in impotent fury, but Banks turned to look at Bailey. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Really? Enlighten me.” She turned fully in her chair to face them.

But then Banks turned away like Trish and with a snort of derision, Bailey turned back to the controls.

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