Page 59 of Alien's Heart
The system dashboard informed her that the agripod’s fire suppression system kicked in, dumping powdered chemicals. The specimens were ruined. Ruth didn’t need a live camera feed to know that. Hopefully, the structure would survive.
The irrigation system finally came back online, but it was no good. The sensors reported damage and would not flood the field with water. The pipes had to be opened manually.
The entire situation spun rapidly out of control. The alarm sounded for agripod two. Proximity alerts sounded.
Shit. Ruth didn’t know where to start. Her life’s work was going up in flames, and she had to do something before the fire got out of control and spread.
She took a breath and imagined her happy place, curled up in a comfy chair with a mug of hot tea on a rainy day. She sipped her imaginary tea and watched the rain wash clean the bloody heads on pikes outside her window.
So happy.
Focused, Ruth got to work. The computer already sent an alert to the local fire brigade, assuming comms were still online. The lab automatically locked down with steel shutters over the doors and windows. It would take a battering ram to get through the doors. She needed to flood the southern field and try to stop the fire from spreading. She grabbed a dishtowel, soaked it with water, and ran to her vehicle. Smoke hung thick in the air.
The old beast sprayed gravel as she stomped on the accelerator. It flew down the path deeper into the property, the suspension squeaking loudly as it bounced over the uneven surface. The light from the twin headlights created a golden haze in the smoke. She drove blind, going on memory.
The scent of smoke grew stronger. The last of the setting sun’s light had vanished. By the time she reached the irrigation system, her eyes watered and her throat itched with the need to cough. Fastening the dish towel around her face in a makeshift mask, she opened the vehicle’s door.
The smoke brought on a coughing fit. The fire was close, and the heat of it slapped her in the face. Most of the south field was already gone.
She saw the pipes and valve just over the fence, silhouetted against the flames. She had to act fast. The parched ground fed the fire, stoking it into an uncontrolled blaze. If the fire spread to the old Sarl place, it’d be too late to stop it from eating up acres of fields.
Ruth climbed over the fence and slid down an embankment to the irrigation valve.
The metal was warm to the touch. She left her work gloves in the vehicle. Glancing behind her, she decided there wasn’t enough time to run back and grab them.
She grabbed the valve to turn it open. The rusted metal protested. She threw all her weight into it and pulled.
“Come on, you bastard,” she swore through clenched teeth. Her backside grew hot. Sweat rolled down her spine. Her hands slipped.
Shit. This wasn’t working. She hated this. This situation. Everything about this situation. Risking her life, and for what? Because the professor put her in the middle of a feud with his son? The professor really should have worked out his issues with Geral, instead of leaving her to deal with it. Instead, he changed his will and didn’t tell anyone.
“You took that to the grave, didn’t you, Professor?” She tugged again, digging her heels into the dirt, and pulling until her arms ached. “Now Geral will burn it all to the ground because train tracks don’t care about fire damage. Nox is gone because Geral can’t keep his big mouth shut, and I’m so mad at you!” She kicked the base of the pipe, doing more damage to her foot than the pipe.
“Why can’t anything in this place work right?” she yelled, pulling on the valve. Finally, it gave. Just a little, but enough to energize her. She tugged until it gave, slowly turning it open.
Water gushed from the pipe, turning the ground into mud. Ruth scooped up water by the handful and splashed it on her face to wash the smoke from her eyes. Not that it mattered. The smoke made it impossible to see anything. She needed to get back to the house and wait for the fire brigade.
“That’s enough,” a voice said from the dark.
Nox
Nox woke up on the dirt floor in darkness. Smoke tickled his nose. His throat was raw and tender. His head throbbed, and his muscles ached in a familiar way. Stun gun. He’d been hit with them enough times to recognize the lingering pain. His feet were restrained, and his hands bound in front of him.
He tested the restraints on his wrists. The rope held tight. However, whoever bound his hands forgot to cover his fingers. His claws extended with ease. A foolish oversight on his captor’s part. With his claws out, he flexed and contorted his hands to slash at the rope. His tail swept along the ground as he worked, stirring up dirt.
No joy.
His heart ached for his mate. Did she believe that he abandoned her? That his promise to be at her side meant nothing? Just another lie from a male for whom lying was as easy as breathing. Easier.
Slowly, his eyes adjusted to the darkness. Shapes emerged from the deep shadows. He recognized the barn as one of the near-collapsing structures on Ruth’s farm. Like many of the other buildings, it had been used as storage and abandoned. Junk cluttered the walls, and disused equipment sat under tarps and a thick layer of dust.
The smoke increased, hanging in the air. Nox moved into an upright position and worked on sawing his claws through the rope on his feet. His eyes itched from the foul air, and his throat protested against breathing in the smoke. Dread filled his thoughts with the worst explanations as to the source of the smoke. The house was on fire. The fields and all his mate’s hard work burned.
Ruth was trapped in her workshop, unable to escape the inferno.
He needed to find Ruth. He needed to know she was out of the fire’s reach. He needed to hear the reassuring beat of her heart. His rage grew as he sawed through the ropes binding his feet, demanding payment in blood from his captors.
The barn door squealed and rattled along its track as it was pushed open. An overhead light switched on, blinding Nox.
