Page 2 of I Dated a Holiday Hero
“What is the decoration in the background?”
“Oh, Desmond’s kids were playing pin the tail on the robot. We had to arrange our own holiday party... again.”
Zera paled. “You are kidding.”
“Nope.”
“But practical R&D won an award for the battle cars.”
“Great. Who collected it?”
She winced. “Kritz’s department.”
“Greedy bastards. Right. Well, I think Desmond’s family just came back for one of the toys the kids forgot. Gotta go.”
“Wait! When can your patron make a date?”
She walked toward the door. “I dunno. Tell him to keep trying.”
She was nearly to the doorway when it exploded inward. She didn’t have a chance to end the call. She heard Zera calling her as Hever lay on the far wall, next to the glittering bot that the children had decorated.
She felt blood in her mouth, breaks in her arms, and a heavy throbbing in her skull. She used a floppy finger to change the camera angle, and five men in black body armour came into her home and dragged her out of it.
She saw the blood smearing the floor as they hauled her through the shattered door. It was going to be impossible to get it out if she didn’t clear it up.
They threw her onto a transport pad, and she widened her eyes. She had designed this when she was a teen. Why it was here now was anybody’s guess, but the world crackled with energy, and the air went from frosty to dry but cold.
“What did you do to her?” The familiar voice made Hever shiver.
“We blew her door, and she was inside it.”
Hever felt the agony of her body, the bloody foam from a pierced lung, and she looked toward one of the researchers who had tortured her since birth.
“Now, little lady, you just need to help us past some developmental blocks with our tech, and you will be dropped back at your home. Safe and sound.”
Hever looked in his clinical eyes and knew that he was lying. She would be dropped home, but she would be dead at the time. Delightful.
* * * *
Zera stared at thescreen and then started looking for defenders who were not on duty. She got the location where Hever had been taken, and she debated the next call for a solid minute.
When no names on the local roster popped up, she had to make the call. She could ask; Hever’s mother could get help to her daughter’s current location.
She made the call.
“Madame Ambassador, I have to report that your daughter, Hever, was abducted tonight. About four minutes ago.”
“Zera? You are Hever’s boss.”
“Correct. I was on a call with her when there was someone at the door. They blew it open and hauled your child into the night.”
Ambassador Veradil nodded. “Do you know where she is? I know you have all your escorts wired with trackers.”
Zera blinked. “Oh. She told you.”
“No, she didn’t. I had the tracker signal identified when she first got the implant. Now, where is she?”
Zera stared and shook herself. “It appears to be a base in the foothills of Elwor.”
