Page 33 of Secrecy

Chapter

Twenty-Three

Morgan

The explosions inside the facility reverberated through my chest as Tivek and I huddled in the soupy marsh, my breath quick and shallow. I forced myself to slow it down, aware that even the smallest sound could give us away.

Breathe, Morgan. Remember the breath technique Tivek taught you.

Focusing on slow breathing calmed my fluttering heart, but the sloshing sound of heavy footsteps interrupted my thoughts. The Kronock were practically on top of us.

I squeezed my eyes shut, as if that might somehow make us more invisible. My muscles ached from holding still, but I didn't dare move. Not with the enemy so near that I could smell them, a pungent scent that cut through even the dank odor of the marsh.

"See anything?" The voice was deep and rough with distinctive Kronock clicks.

"Nothing but stinking weeds and muck," answered another. "I hate this planet."

The footsteps stopped. From my position, all I could see was a sliver of marsh between my arm and torso, and in that narrow view, two clawed feet now stood less than a meter away. My heart seemed to stop.

"The bio-scanners aren't working right in this fog," the first voice complained. "All this moisture interferes with the readings."

"The general will have our hides if we don't find the escapees." The second Kronock kicked at something in the water, sending a splash dangerously close to us. "Especially the human and the Drexian who were already captives."

"The general doesn't need to know if we recapture them ourselves," the first one said with a dark chuckle. "We'll just put them back in their cells, no report needed."

"Speaking of the general..." The second Kronock lowered his voice, though it still rasped like a blade on stone. "I heard he was furious that we haven’t gotten any intel from the captives.”

"When is he ever not furious?" The first Kronock snorted. "I used to be stationed on Verith Prime. The natives barely resisted us once we’d taken out most of their males. But the general insisted we get productivity up to the levels before we took over. Tell me how we do that we so few workers.”

"You think that's bad? I was part of the Earth invasion force." The alien spat, and I saw the splash as it hit the water. “We were so close to controlling the human world."

A malicious growl. “If it hadn’t been for the Drexians.”

I felt Tivek tense above me. His hand found mine in the mud and squeezed. It was either a warning or reassurance, but I couldn't tell.

"I still don't understand why we're keeping prisoners," the first Kronock said. "Our fleet is in ruins. We should be focusing on rebuilding, not playing warden to a worthless human.”

The second one grunted. "Haven't you been paying attention? The General doesn't just want to defeat them. He wants to make them suffer. Break their will." There was a cruel satisfaction in his voice that made my skin crawl. "Besides, every prisoner is bait. That distress signal we didn’t block? Perfect trap. More rescuers will come, thinking they're being heroic."

"And we'll be waiting," the first one finished.

"Exactly. One big sweep, capture them all. Then the real punishment begins."

My blood turned to ice. The SOS message. Ariana had sent it, hoping to reach our friends, our allies. We’d been so happy when the transmission had been successful. We'd been praying they would come. Now I was praying they hadn't received it.

"Speaking of sweeps, we should continue the search grid," the first Kronock said. "This area’s clear."

"I'm requesting a transfer after this mission. I've had enough of this swamp planet."

"You and me both."

The splashing resumed as they moved away, their voices fading into the ambient sounds of the marsh and the distant explosions. Even when I could no longer hear them, Tivek didn't move.Seconds stretched into minutes as he listened for any sign they might return.

Finally, he eased back, allowing me to lift my head. My neck cracked in protest as I straightened. When I turned to look at him, the expression on his face made my heart sink further.

"It's a trap," he said, his voice hollow.

"Of course it is." I stood shakily, wiping at the slick mud clinging to my suit. Nausea rolled through me as I thought about Ariana's message being used against us. "They let her send that distress call. They wanted her to."

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