Awakening (Earth Evolution Series Book 4) (9 page)

Chapter 14

Midnight

A knock on his door had him jumping out of the bed. He hadn’t even taken his clothes off before he went to sleep. He moved quietly and reached for his phaser on the table. A check of the security camera didn’t show anyone standing outside his door. He opened it and frowned. No, no one was there but something on the floor caught his attention. It was a communicator. He picked it up and placed it in his ear, then hit the connect button.

“Good evening, Lt. Estro.”

“Who is this?” Quinn demanded.

“A friend if you want. We have been watching you and believe you have the same opinions as we do. We would like to meet with you—now. Start walking and we will tell you where to turn.”

Quinn looked around and didn’t see anyone, but that didn’t mean someone hadn’t tapped into surveillance. He closed his door and began walking. This was not what he and his cousins had planned. They thought someone would approach him directly. His uncle wasn’t going to be happy that this was taking place so quickly. But he didn’t have a choice.

“Take the
lift
down to the lower level.”

Were they taking him down to the docking bay? He reached to check that his weapon was still easily accessible. He was completely on his own with this, which he had known would be a possibility. He pushed all thoughts of his Lihali and any other distraction anything to the side so that he could concentrate on the current situation. He didn’t know what he was walking into but he needed to be ready for it.

The lift suddenly stopped before reaching the first level. He pushed the button for the first floor but nothing happened. The lights in the lift dimmed and it started to move up. He couldn’t tell which floors he passed. Then it suddenly stopped again.

“Turn around and face the wall. My people will come in and put a blindfold over your eyes. Then
and only then, will they bring you the rest of the way.”

Quinn turned around and waited. Two males entered the lift but they were wearing helmets with their dark visors down. He couldn’t tell who they were.

“Put this helmet on,” one of the men said, handing him a helmet with a blackened-out visor. He put it over his head and found he couldn’t see anything.

The two men each took his arm, turned him around, and led him out of the lift. “Where are we going?”

“Stop talking. You’ll, you’ll know when we get there.”

That voice sounded a little familiar but he couldn’t pinpoint it. They moved quickly down the corridor before stopping and entering what he assumed was someone’s personal quarters. He could hear voices speaking lowly—too low to lowly tell what they were saying. He went to remove the helmet but the hands on his arms prevented him from doing so.

“Leave the helmet on, Lieutenant.”

It was the voice from the communicator. He didn’t recognize it. It could be disguised somehow. There was something off about the tone, some kind of muffling to it. “Who are you?”

The voice laughed. “I’m not ready to reveal that.”

“What do you want with me?”

“You’ve made a very public display, several of them recently. It makes me wonder how you really feel about the humans and about your uncle’s command.”

“He’s weak. My cousins mating with humans have weakened all of them.”

“Yet you saved a human female and have shared sex with her.”

He hid his fury at knowing how much these people had been watching them.

He chuckled. “I am male with needs. The female was willing and very attractive. There’s at least one good use for them.” He hated saying that last bit.

Other males joined in the laughter. The leader cleared his throat. “Are you opposed to your uncle’s command?”

“He’s a weak commander. My father should have been here in his place. He never would have brought the fleet here to intermingle with such a lowly race of people.”

“I was too young to serve with your father but I heard that he had honor and was a great warrior who died fighting for his people. I was still in warrior training at the time.

He suspected that this person was a little older than himself. “He died in place of my uncle who should have been there instead of traveling back to Drasta unnecessarily.”

“You sound bitter, but I recall you once proclaimed your uncle the ideal Drastan warrior and hoped to be just like him.”

Ah, he was definitely in his and Kyle’s age group. Quinn had only said that three times and each of those times was in his young warriors’ training on Drasta. That helped narrow down his list of suspects.

“I was young and foolish. I had no idea he could be so easily swayed by small, strange females.”

“How would you react to finding out others feel the same way you do? There are those who want to remove your uncle from his command. What do you think of that?”

“I say, sign me up. It is a shame it has come to this, but something has to be done to save the fleet from deterioration.”

“You can’t believe him! He’s an Estro!” another voice called out.

This voice Quinn did recognize. It was the new mediko who’d had a confrontation with his Lihali. The leader sounded very frustrated when he answered.

“You don’t get a say in this. Having an Estro working with us will prove to the commanders on Drasta that we were acting with the best intentions for the fleet.”

“You give him too much credit.”

“Enough! We’re not having a debate.”

Quinn listened for any other clues to who the others were in the room but they were all talking and whispering at the same time.

“He should prove himself.”

Quinn would make that male pay for his participation. “What do you want me to do to prove myself?”

“We’ll let you know. Take him back out.”

Quinn felt hands on his arms again turning him to go back out of the room and into the corridor. The males took him on the lift and went several different directions keeping him disoriented. The lift stopped.

“Take the helmet off and hand me the communicator.”

Quinn removed his helmet and found the lift lights were off again. He tossed the helmet to one of the men who reached and almost dropped it. He narrowed his eyes at seeing a scar on the back of the man’s hand. He should be able to tell Jared about the scar and run a check in the medical database to find those who would match the description.

“Stay in the lift until you get to your next stop.” The men left and the lift door closed behind them.

The lift started moving automatically although he was still in the dark. Something else they need to investigate was who had access to surveillance cameras and those with the power, and control over the lifts. It was becoming more and more of a conspiracy with multiple people involved. It was a great concern if these traitors had this much control over the entire ship.

The lights came on right before the lift came to a stop. He got out and walked down the corridor. After activating the security access, he entered his quarters. He went to the closet in his bedroom and removed a security box, taking it with some clothes to the bathroom. He shut the door and turned the shower on. Then he sat the box down on the sink counter and placed his thumb over the scanner. Access was granted and the lock disengaged.

Opening the box, he took out the communicator that his cousins had placed inside. He turned the communicator on and hit the connect button. It connected directly with Liam’s communicator. His cousin answered groggily.

“Quinn, what’s wrong?”

“The traitors contacted me.”

“How? When? Where?”

“They knocked on my door about an hour ago and left a communicator for me. I put it on and they directed me to a lift then turned the lights off on me. I have no idea where they are.”

“They have people with access to security cameras and power to the lift?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll check to see who was on duty and who on board has that kind of access.”

“Do it quietly.”

“I will. Who did you meet?”

“They kept me in the dark while I was talking with them. I don’t know who the leader is but I have at least one person’s identity.”

“Who?”

“Mediko Romer.”

“Are you sure?”

“I would recognize that whiny male anywhere. I wanted to kill him after what he had done with my Lihali, and now I wish I had. He’s involved with the traitors. Find out everything you can about him. We need to know who his friends are, and what he did before coming here.”

“I’ll take care of it. Did you find out anything else?”

“Yes, one of the males that escorted me around had a scar on the back of his hand.”

“I’ll tell Jared to check his medical database.”

“Thanks, Liam. How’s my girl?”

“Lily and Jared stayed with her most of the day.”

“I hated hurting her. I didn’t mean any of what I said.”

“She knows that, and she’s wearing the necklace you gave her.”

“Good. Keep, keep her safe for me.”

There was a pause then Liam asked, “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

“They want me to prove myself to them. I don’t know what they will have me do.”

“Be careful, Quinn.”

“I will.” Quinn disconnected the communicator and placed it in the lockbox. Then he removed his clothes to get in the shower. He had a bad feeling about what the traitors would have him do. They needed to end these traitors quickly before dissension spread throughout the entire fleet, if it hadn’t already.

Chapter 15

The next day

Squirrel hated that she didn’t know what was going on with Quinn. Was he being safe? Having someone else to worry over was all so new for her.

She was meeting Lily, Maggie, and Rachel at Maggie’s place for lunch. She hoped they had some news. When she opened the door she was relieved to see Tagar standing there.

He smiled down at her. “Where to, Lihali?”

She smiled back. “I need to go to Maggie’s for lunch.” She closed the door and waited for the security to activate. Then she turned and walked down the corridor. It was convenient that they were all on the same level. She paused at seeing six warriors standing outside the door to Maggie and Liam’s quarters.

“What’s going on here?”

“All the Earth females have their own security.”

“Oh. Why are there six?”

“One for the elderly female, Mrs. Gordon, one for little Thomas, and one for the baby, Missy.”

That made sense. Thomas was Lily’s son from her husband who died when the nukes hit, and Mrs. Gordon was someone from Lily and Maggie’s tribe who lived with Lily and Jared.

One of the guards knocked on the door and Maggie opened it up.

“Hi, Squirrel.” Maggie moved to the side to let her walk through the door.

Tagar remained outside with the other guards. With seven guards at the door they were the safest people in the galaxy.

Maggie shut the door behind them, rolling her eyes. “They are so serious. They will stand out there and stare at one another for hours.”

Lily giggled. “They do a lot of staring.”

“Hello, dear. How are you holding up?” Mrs. Gordon was sitting on the couch. Squirrel went over and sat down next to her.

“I’m doing okay. Where’s Thomas?”

“He went down for a nap. I’ll wake him up in a few minutes for lunch,” Mrs. Gordon told her.

Maggie came out of the bedroom with the baby in her arms. “I am starving. I had no idea that breast-feeding a baby would make me so hungry all the time.”

Lily smiled at her as she scooped food onto plates that Rachel brought out of the kitchen. “Ah, the joys of motherhood. Take note, Rachel, you’ll be dealing with all that very soon.”

Rachel patted her rounded belly and smiled. “I can’t wait.”

“Could you hold her for me? She spit up on my clothes and I want to change.” Maggie handed the baby to Squirrel.

She took the child cautiously, trying to remember the correct way to hold a baby. She knew she had to be very careful with the head. She laid her against her chest and gently cupped the back of her head.

“She’s simply precious,” Mrs. Gordon said, patting the baby on her back.

“I’ve never held a baby before coming on board the command ship, that I can remember.”

“That’s right. Lily and Jared told me about your memory loss. You don’t even remember your real name or life before the disaster happened.”

She shrugged. “Turns out, I’m not missing that much. I was in an orphanage from the time I was born. That’s what Jared found out for me.”

“My dear, I am so sorry. Did he discover your real name?”

“Yeah, but it doesn’t feel like mine. I think I’ve gone by names others have given me my whole life but none of them feel like me.”

“Then you’ll have to pick your own name.”

She smiled at the kind old lady. “That’s what Quinn wants me to do, pick my own name. I kind of like what he calls me, though.”

“What does he call you?”

“Lihali. It means
little one
.”

“It’s pretty. Why, why not go by that?”

She rolled her eyes. “It’s used as an endearment and Quinn is a bit jealous when others call me that, especially Tagar.”

“Oh, your guard, Tagar? He, he is a huge hunk of a man, isn’t he?”

She giggled thinking that Mrs. Gordon was a riot. “He is but I think of him like a big brother and he treats me like his sister.”

“Well, maybe you can find something else that you both can be happy with, but in the end it is your choice what you would like to be called. Let me go check on Thomas to see if he’s ready to get up.”

She watched as Mrs. Gordon got up and moved down the hallway. Lily came over and sat down. “She’s amazing, isn’t she?”

“She is. Does she have any family?”

Lily smiled. “She has us, we’re her family. Now you are, too. You’re part of our family, Squirrel or Lihali or whatever name you want to go by. We will always be there for you.”

Maggie and Rachel sat down across from her. “That’s right,” Maggie said. “We’re, we’re one big happy Estro family here. We might get loud, might get too involved with each other’s business, but we will never abandon you and we will always fight for you.”

Squirrel was filled with emotions. A few tears fell down her cheeks and she used one hand to wipe them. “Thank you. No, no one has ever made me feel so welcome before. I feel very blessed to know all of you.”

“We feel the same about you,” Lily told her.

Maggie snorted back tears. “Damn hormones! I thought I would be able to get these things under control after the baby was born.”

Lily smiled at Maggie fondly. “Get used to it. I get teary-eyed watching Thomas sleep or when he learns something new and shows how grown-up he’s getting.”

The baby opened her eyes and stared up at Squirrel, and she felt her heart fill with instant love. She was the perfect mix of her parents. Mrs. Gordon was right—; she was absolutely precious.

“I don’t understand how anyone who met Melissa wouldn’t love her. If these traitors had their way, Melissa would never have existed.” Rachel shook her head in disgust.

“The rebels from Earth are just as bad. They would rather sentence everyone on the planet to a slow death than accept help from aliens,” Maggie added.

“I’m grateful every day that the Drastans came here to help us. Their treatments have been instrumental in saving many of those from the tribes who may have only had a few months or a few years left to live. Mrs. Gordon is one of them,” Lily said passionately.

Maggie leaned over and took the sleeping baby in her arms. “I am, too. I wouldn’t have my Liam or my Milly if the Drastans had not come here, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.”

Squirrel felt the same way. She had never had a family before and for the first time people who cared about her surrounded her. Quinn did more than just save her life from the pit of hell; he saved her soul and her heart by giving her someone to love.

“Do you know how Quinn is doing?”

Maggie shook her head. “They’re being really tight-lipped about it. I guess it’s hard to talk when you don’t know who might be listening.”

“That’s true. But I really miss him and I’m worried about him” Squirrel admitted.

“Devlon loves Quinn like his own son. He, he will do everything in his power to keep him safe,” Lily reassured her.

“I feel so helpless, like I should do something.”

“The best thing you could do is stay strong for Quinn and keep up the charade. Keeping up the appearance that you two are no longer together will help keep him safe,” Rachel reminded her.

“Right, but I’ve never been good at acting or telling lies.”

“We’re here for you. You’re, you’re not alone,” Lily reminded her.

“Thank you.”

She felt the truth of their words and it helped a little. Quinn needed her to be strong and keep up the charade, so and she would do her part to help protect him. She would not lose him.