BioCybe (20 page)

“And Mayerber…”

Levia had done her job. Now, it was his turn. “Brandon,
Mayerber is in Levia’s sights. She has to be the one to take him down. Only
after that, can any of us rest safely.” Sandon ignored the doubts that crowded
into his brain. They had a job to do.

“He knows about the changes to the BioCybe program. He’s
looking for the brain implant and healing factors. The Dendarans have promised
they’ll use the enhancement techniques and give him an implant.”

“But that information was shared once the treaty was signed.
As an act of goodwill.” Sandon screwed his face up, unable to grasp why the
technology they already had was so important. His mind stopped when Brandon
turned to Levia.

“No. You see, after the Dendarans got hold of you, you were
repaired and retro-fitted with new, top secret technology. An advanced chipset
and your healing capability was further enhanced. You’re the only one with it.
That’s what he’s seeking.”

Nausea rose, swamping Sandon with greasy emotions. They’d
used Levia as much as the Dendarans had used Mayerber.

“That makes no sense,” Levia said. “Why would they do that
after the treaty had been signed?” Sandon heard the strain in her words and
realized this was stretching her emotionally.

“Because they knew you were Mayerber’s daughter—”

“How did you learn that?” He leaned in and Brandon sneered.

“You aren’t the only one with contacts.” Brandon shook his
head. “Look, when I hooked up with Mayerber, one of the generals from the Dendaran
side made contact. They knew exactly who you were. They had heard whispers of
what had been done. And they recognized Mayerber was dangerous. But they
thought that you were more so. They’d seen your reactions in the holding tank.”

“But if they knew that Mayerber was unstable…”

“Don’t you see, Sandon? They don’t need them to be stable if
they have a kill override. Which your girl here has. That’s what makes her
invaluable.”

Holy God!
The layers of betrayal ran deep. Sandon
shut his eyes for a moment before opening them. His gaze settled on Levia, who
looked fierce and enraged.

“I’ll kill them,” she said between gritted teeth, and he had
to agree.

Levia snarled at the computer where she hunched in the tiny
office while hunting for the feed that would show her Mayerber’s location. “The
bastard is blocking the video feed.” The hand that balled into a tight fist
ached.

She was thankful to be alone right now, as she allowed
herself to focus on her pain. Perhaps by examining it, she could find a way to
block it out, just like she’d always done before.

“A fucking kill switch!”

In the time since she’d heard all the information from
Brandon, she’d plotted, questioned and rejigged her plans. At least she’d
managed to turn off the alarms. The security in this area was lax, she
surmised, because the main areas were so heavily guarded. Even so, she’d still
managed to get both herself and Sandon in.

A chirrup from the comm screen reminded her that she needed
to concentrate a little longer on the mission. Mayerber, her biological father,
had to die. Until he did, there could be no peace. For her or for the
innocents, whose lives depended on her ability to slay.

“
I hate this.
” The words were little more than a
mutter, but heartfelt. The more the words reverberated in her brain, the hotter
her rage flared.
Why couldn’t I have had a normal life?

Pressure weighed down on her, crushing her beneath its
intensity, until she was sure suffocation was imminent.

The sound of a door opening tore through the pain and she
turned, unsurprised to see Sandon. “I brought you a hot drink. Thought it might
help.”

His eyes searched her face, and she wondered what he saw.
He’d seen the assassin persona clearly today, which had set her on edge from
the beginning. How she wished she could have shielded him from that. But he
hadn’t taken a backward step. Not once.

“Thanks. Just pop it on the side, would you?” She struggled,
hoping to sound normal, but he clearly didn’t believe her attempt as he strode
forward and wrapped his arms around her.

“How’s it all going?” Sandon gave a terse nod in the
direction of the screens.

“He’s blocking me, or at least the feeds. The only thing I
have been able to triangulate is possibly three locations.” Levia gestured
angrily, flinging her hands into the air. “It’s not enough yet for me to
finalize any kind of planning. After all, the bunker is shielded from
transmissions. It’s not as if…” She stepped back with a hiss. “Oh yes, very
clever.” A wide smile cracked her face.

“Levia?”

“Sandon, I have a plan, but it has to go right, otherwise,
it’s all done. There can’t be any second chances.” She reached out and cupped
his cheek, the stubble of day-old growth rasping her palm. Every individual
hair scraping over the syntha-derm led to hyperawareness.

“What are you planning?”

“Instantaneous Matter Transmission. So long as the bunker
isn’t trans-sealed…” She whirled to the console and started running
calculations. Somehow this bunker had avoided the retro-fitting. That lack of
shielding meant she could get Sandon and Brandon off-planet while luring
Mayerber.

Levia worried her lip with her teeth. It could work, but
she’d need backup plans. A contingency in case it all went wrong. Sending
Sandon off with Brandon would safeguard him, but how could she present her plan
to him? Unless she was careful, he’d argue, refuse. That wasn’t acceptable.

“I need you to do something for me.” She sounded normal,
unhurried, and Levia congratulated herself inwardly. She could pull this ruse
off. Couldn’t she?

“What?” His eyes narrowed as if he’d read her thoughts.

“You need to protect Brandon, while I engage Mayerber.” She
laid a gentle hand on his wrist. “I can’t protect him and fight at the same
time. I need you to…”

The way his eyes darkened and his mouth flattened warned
her. “You’ve decided to send us out of here?”

“It’s an acceptable risk. Brandon isn’t capable of anything
right now. You’ve seen him. If he gets in the middle of the fight, then I can’t
control what the outcome will be. Please?”

“What about—”

“He doesn’t trust anyone else. Sandon, I really need you to
do that, while I… While I fight Mayerber.”

It was clear Sandon wanted to argue as his eyes narrowed.

Levia pushed on. “I have a plan. I need to lure him to the
lab. I can rig it up so he won’t be able to escape, and I can…” She gulped,
unable to say the words to him, but knowing exactly what needed to be done.
“I’ll have a secondary matter transmitter and will get out before it’s too late,
I swear.”

“You promise?” He leaned in to her, and she read the fear
that cloaked him.

“I promise.”

* * * *

Waiting was a bitch. Always had been. Levia crouched beside
Sandon, their hands tightly locked together after he’d brushed a hair from her
face. “Once he’s seen Brandon, flash out. Just get him into the room, then get
the hell out of there. Okay?”

Emotions roiled in her breast as he nodded.

The reality she hadn’t shared with Sandon was it could still
go wrong. Instead, she pasted a smile on her face. “I’ll be with you before you
can even blink.”

Tugging her hand from his felt like an omen. Then she
straightened up and sauntered over to the controls. “Ready?”

Sandon nodded, and she tripped the switch allowing Mayerber
access. Now she had to wait until he came, and she’d transmit Sandon and
Brandon to the
Golden Echo
. Thirty seconds. A lifetime for someone like
her. Thirty seconds could be the difference between life and death.

She only had to contain Mayerber for a short time while he
caught a glimpse of Brandon. So that he knew. If Sandon wasn’t ready… She swallowed
and remained focused.

No easy task. She’d managed to set up a DNA echo in the next
room, then she hoped she could lead him to the trap, without him questioning
her actions.

The blast doors, conduits, and elevators roared into life
and she tensed, knowing it was only a matter of moments before Mayerber would
enter the room where they’d hidden. She’d personally checked every room in the
bunker complex using the comms and security system. A second of mirth rose.
Most of these installations didn’t include a high-grade security system in
their bunkers. They never expected their outer systems to be breached. She’d been
proven right again when she’d manually locked down the few guards who’d been
hidden down in the bunker. She suspected that they used the bunker for off duty
guards.
One less risk to our plan.

An alarm blared and she turned off the audio, though her
awareness centered on the movements. A single entity.
Mayerber
.

He knew where they were, given he’d intercepted and blocked
every feed, he would guess they hid in the control room.

Time passed slowly, minute after minute sliding by. How
long? Her brain questioned over and over again.

He wouldn’t rush in. He was a seasoned warrior, just as she
was. He’d question and make plans, his single purpose now to find her and make
her pay. Levia knew Brandon and Sandon didn’t even factor in his plans. Not
really. Brandon was more of an insurance policy for them.

The sound of lumbering footsteps echoed in the hall and she
shot a glance at Sandon, then she whirled, laser pistol in her hand as she
faced the door.

It crashed open and Mayerber surged forward, a grin
splitting his battered face. “So, once more we meet.” His eyes darted around
her, while Brandon and Sandon rose, just as she’d planned. Capturing his
attention. He didn’t move though.

“Go!” Her shout resounded. She hoped they did, because the
next seconds would be their only chance.

She didn’t see them go, only held onto the hope that they’d
followed the plan, given the silence.

“Stop, Mayerber. This has to end. It will end.” She used
every ounce of bravado inside herself. It was the only shield she had now.

“Levia. My daughter.” His voice rasped over exposed nerve
endings, shredding her thoughts. That he would greet her like that, told her
that he was searching for a connection. One he could exploit as a weakness.

“No. Not yours.”

She would never be able to think of him as her father.
Biologically, perhaps he was, but that was as far as their connection went.
That thought was freeing. In her mind, it was akin to throwing off any shackles
that bound them together.

He laughed. “So. Let’s see just how good you are.”

Mayerber lunged and she pivoted away, but too slow to avoid
the tearing sensation that ripped along her torso. A vicious laugh filled the
air and she felt the surging shock as her gaze settled on the claws that
sprouted from his fingertips.

“A surprise, aren’t they? They’re my latest modification.
Quite effective, if I say so myself.” His voice echoed with pleasure while she
waited for his next move.

Pain radiated. If she pushed her hand against her flesh, no
doubt it would be coated in blood; as it was, there was an unpleasant ooze
winding down her leg and soaking her skin-suit, but she pushed it to the back
of her mind as she prepared for whatever came next. Her awareness narrowed to a
pinprick as she hunted for tells. There weren’t any.

The next time he moved, he feinted left and attacked right.
She jumped back, aware that defending would tire her, but she hunted, searching
for any weakness.
I have to get him in position for the trap to be effective.

Again, he advanced, and this time he leveled a glancing blow
to her shoulder. Her body jerked and her leg rose, connecting with his knee. It
wasn’t fast or hard enough to incapacitate him. She scurried away, her eyes on
his face.

A snarl rent the air and this time he charged, shoulder
dropped. “You bitch!”

He moved, fast but his gait was slightly uneven. That
surprised her.
I’ve hurt him. Slowed him down.
His legs are his
weakness? She’d have to test that theory.

She waited until the last minute and pivoted. Once again, he
caught her. The nails trailing along her arm. Deeper than the previous injury.

“Shit!” Her stomach roiled this time, and the arm felt heavy.
Brutalized and screaming with pain.

Unless something changed, she wouldn’t leave this room
alive. She needed to get him to the trap, but Mayerber had shifted between her
and the doorway.

Levia stepped back, one step then another. Her mind moving
sluggishly, while she held her injured arm fast against her body. A sound
echoed and she raised her head, horrified to see Sandon through the doorway.
What
is he doing here?

Mayerber turned at the same time and saw him. In that
instant, thought fled while she reacted primally. This was her mate and he was
in danger.

Levia launched herself at Mayerber’s back, hurtling through
the air before latching on monkey-like. Her legs wound in a sick parody of
lover-like proximity around his waist.

She gripped the side of his head with both hands. “You won’t
touch him!” Her shriek filled the room while she used her whole body. Fingers,
strong and sharp, clawed at her.

She roared and tugged. Muscles coiled and she wrenched to
one side, using every ounce of fight that remained in her body.

Mayerber fell, taking Levia down with him. They hit the
floor with a thud. Pain exploded through her mind, searing her lungs and
robbing her of awareness.

* * * *

Sandon paced outside the room while Gisma attended to
Levia’s injuries. When she’d dropped to the floor after the wild fight with
Mayerber, he was sure he’d lost her. His mind and heart had stilled in that
instant until she breathed again. Then he’d felt a rush of elation.

Blood had coated her side and her arm. Her fingers were torn
and mangled while smears of coppery red painted the floor. She hadn’t regained
consciousness before they’d arrived in the medical bay.

“Gisma? Is she okay?” He’d called that through the door more
than once since they’d arrived, and the only answer he’d received had been a
grunt and a terse direction to go get a hot drink.

Of course, he hadn’t followed the instructions. His concern
for Levia ran too deep.

He dropped to the chair, legs splayed while his elbows
rested on his knees, his head in his palms.

The vision of her lying beneath Mayerber’s bulk had sent him
hurtling through the door and shoving the dead man to the side. He never wanted
to live through that again.

A
whoosh
of sound caught his attention, and he spied
Gisma standing on the other side. “You can come through.”

He rose, his legs unsteady. “Is she okay?”

Gisma humphed. “As much as can be expected right now, but
she’ll make a full recovery. In time.”

“What does…” He stopped in the doorway the instant his gaze
fell on Levia. She lay flat on the bed, but her eyes were open. Her theatrical
makeup had been wiped away, leaving the side of her face glowing green in the
semi-darkness.

“Hi, Sandon.” She smiled, though it was a weak reflection.

It was enough as he propelled himself forward to drop to the
seat beside her. His hands reached out, tracing over her full lips. “You know,
I should kill you for scaring me like that.” His unsteady words made her laugh,
then she winced.

“Don’t make me laugh. It hurts too much.”

“Gisma says you’ll make a full recovery. What you need to do
is rest.” Seeing her against the white of the sheets rattled him, but knowing
she’d be all right, even if it would take time, filled him with hope.

“Yeah. In about nine months… Give or take.” She whispered
the words, her gaze scanning him.

“Nine months? What…” Her injuries were that serious, that
even with her increased healing factors… His mind churned as he struggled to
understand what had happened.

Levia smiled, obviously enjoying his concern and inability
to work out how she’d amassed those kinds of injuries in the short fight with
Mayerber.