Vengeance (28 page)

“Your children
are nearing full term.  You have maybe a week, two at the most.”

I struggle to rise
up onto my elbows.  “How is that possible?  Human
children take much longer to grow.”

Vanata nods and
finishes drying her hands before setting aside the towel.  “Yes,
but you are not human.”

I
open my mouth to speak but quickly close it again.  It’s
true.  Although I may have lived on Earth the majority of my
life, I am not truly human, not any more.  Genetics, time and
the atmosphere on Calisted has changed our people.  No, we are
no longer human. We are something more.

“So it is
normal then to bear children this fast?”

“I didn’t
say that.” She frowns and leans back against the table.  “You
are sure of who the father is?”

My mouth gapes open.
 “Are you implying that I have been with someone other
than my husband?”

I can feel anger
spilling into my abdomen, warm and fiery.  “I have to ask.
 It’s the only explanation--”

“No,”
I growl, cutting her off.  “It is
not
the
only explanation because these children belong to my husband so
obviously something else has caused this.”

Vanata puffs out a
breath and rubs her hand over her face, looking far too exhausted.
 “Look, all I know is that you need to rest.  Whether
you like it or not, you’re going to be a mother very soon.  We
can’t have you hopping about and going into labor too soon.”

“So what?  Now
I’m stuck here?”  I look at the four walls around
me, barren and annoyingly familiar.  How many countless hours
have I been forced to stare at them the past couple of months.  No.
I can’t take it.  “Hyde can carry me.”

“No,”
she shakes her head adamantly.  “We can’t risk it.
 I don’t have the equipment to perform any sort of
emergency medical treatment if you go into labor too soon.  For
the sake of your children, please don’t fight me on this.”

I bite down on my
tongue, feeling anger roll over me, but along with it comes despair.
 I can’t give birth to my children without Eamon.  He
deserves to be here.  I need him here.

“Fine, but
someone better bring me a good book to read,” I snap, knowing
the next week or two is going to feel endless.

I stir, rising from
the depths of sleep.  It is hot in my room, stifling enough to
know that day has returned.  “You look like crap,” a
voice calls from beside me.

I smile and roll my
head to the side to see Hyde sitting on a crate beside my bed.
 “You’re back.”

“Told you I
would be.”

“For a man who
sucks at keeping his promises you do seem to keep this one pretty
consistently.”

Hyde grins and leans
forward, propping his elbows on his knees.  “Don’t
go getting all soft on me, Queeny.  I happen to like the food
around here, that’s all.”

I smirk and reach
out for him.  He clasps my hand in his, holding it tightly.  I
can see concern in his eyes and know that he’s spoken with
Donan.  “So, I’ve been thinking,” he starts,
clearing his throat as he suddenly struggles to look me in the eye,
“what about I take a few days off. I can keep you company and
whatnot.  I have got a few jokes I can tell you.  Not
claiming they’re any good but they’re better than
nothing.”

Tears begin to form
in the corners of my eyes as I nod.  Gratitude swells in my
chest. “I would like that, but doesn’t Donan need you on
patrol?”

“Nah.  I’m
sure they can do without this old hot head for a few days.”

I laugh, squeezing
his hand.  “You’re not so bad, Hyde.”

His smile falters
for a second, softening into something surprisingly vulnerable and
genuine.  “That means a lot, coming from you.”

“Yeah,”
I snicker and roll my head back to look at the ceiling, “I have
my moments.”

I stretch out my
right leg, attempting to roll over but I cry out in pain.  Hyde
is instantly at my side, his hands gentle yet firm as he lifts my
wounded left leg.  He draws the covers back and examines the
bandaging.  Even if it were possible for me to truly see the
damage done I have avoided looking, terrified of what I might see.
 Hyde’s expression shows no emotion.  Not disgust.
 Not resignation.

“Looks like
your bandages might be a bit too tight,” he mutters, dipping
low to look at the weave.  “I could probably figure out
how to re-wrap this if you would like.”

I bite down on my
lip, knowing that it is going to hurt but I nod.  I know that he
will be as gentle as possible but the wound is still very tender.
 Each time Vanata dresses it I am near the point of passing out.

Hyde helps me sit up
and eases me around so that my right leg bends over the edge of the
bed.  He places a rolled towel under my left leg, keeping it up
off the hard edge.  I close my eyes and lean my head back,
waiting for the pain to come.

When it does it is
swift and stabbing. I cry out as tears stream down my cheeks.  “Deep
breaths, Queeny.  It’ll all be over soon.”

I feel him lift my
leg and unravel the bandage.  I grit my teeth, moaning but
determined not to cry out.  Around the edges of my pain I can
hear the pounding of boots and raised voices.  I feel Hyde’s
fingers tighten against my leg and I shriek, jerking back from his
grasp.

“Illyria!”

I open my eyes and
stare into Hyde’s widened eyes.  There is pain there, deep
and visceral.  His mouth falls slack and his head plummets
forward.  He collapses onto me and I fight the agony of his
weight against my leg.  

“Hyde!”
I scream, yanking on his arm.  “Hyde!  Get up!”

“Illyria?”
 I blink through the tears, raising my gaze to a dark figured
man approaching.  His knees are bent, his gun poised to strike.
 

I
feel my grip on reality waver as Bastien rushes toward me.  “Are
you hurt?” he asks, tucking his gun into the clip on his belt.
 I stare up at him in disbelief.  
Bastien?
 He’s here?  He’s alive?

Bastien grunts as he
shoves Hyde’s body off me.  I cry out as my friend
collapses to the floor, his gaze unfocused.  It is only now that
I realize a wide patch of blood has seeped into my clothes, mirroring
the growing stain around Hyde’s heart.

“No!”  I
scream, bucking wildly against Bastien’s grasp.  “You
killed him!”

I claw at Bastien,
lost to the agony of Hyde’s death.  “He was hurting
you. I heard you screaming.”

“He wasn’t
hurting me,” I cry, unable to tear my gaze away from the image
of shock froze on Hyde’s face.  “He was helping me.”

Bastien’s
sapphire eyes narrow as he glances between my fallen friend and the
unraveled bandage on my leg.  His knees give out on him and he
collapses beside me.  A strangled moan rises from his throat as
he reaches out toward my unbandaged leg with trembling hands.  “Oh
god,” he gasps for breath, “did he do this to you?”

“No,” I
shake my head, feeling a quake begin in my toes and work up through
me.  I can’t look away from Hyde.  His death is on
me.  It’s my fault!  “He saved me,” I
whisper.

Bastien kicks out
his leg to move closer to me and shoves Hyde out of the way.  I
cry out and throw myself toward the floor.  Darkness sweeps in
to steal away my vision for a moment as brilliant lights of pain
flare before my eyes when my incision slams against the floor.  I
shriek in agony but force myself to move, to reach Hyde.

I
can hear Bastien calling to me but I ignore him.  
I
can heal him.  I can save him.

Pressing
my hands to Hyde’s chest, I close my eyes and focus.  The
warmth of his blood gushes around my hand as I lean into him with
increasing pressure.  The healing warmth doesn’t come.
 Tears slip between my eyes as I realize that I can’t save
him.  
Please,
I
silently beg to my unborn children.  
Help
me save him!  I know that you have the power to do so.  

I did not expect an
answer as I have never physically heard them before, but their
complete silence crushes my soul.  Bastien’s hand grips my
shoulders and pulls me away.  I allow him to draw me to him but
I can’t look away.

Strong arms wrap
about me, holding me as I begin to sob.  The pain in my leg can
no longer compare to the ache within my soul.  “He was my
friend,” I cry.

Bastien rests his
head atop of mine.  “I’m sorry,” he whispers,
“but he’s not who you think he is.”

I wrench away from
him, anger rising up within me.  “How dare you,” I
growl, pointing at Hyde. “He is dead because of you, and now
you want to destroy his memory too.”

A part of my heart
breaks when I see how crushed Bastien is by my accusation.  I
want to reach out to him, to comfort him and tell him how relieved I
am that he is alive, but I can’t.  Not yet.  The pain
of this loss is far too great.  

Bastien hangs his
head.  I can see him trembling and feel his pain.  When he
finally looks up at me I am astounded by the depth of his despair.
 “Did he ever tell you what his last name was?”

I blink, confused.
 “No.  I only ever knew him as Hyde.  What does
that have to do with it?”

Bastien leans
forward, cupping my face in his hands.  “His given name
was Duturi.”

I
stare down at Hyde’s body, knowing that he has already begun to
grow cool.  I had refused to let Bastien help me up, even as men
poured into the base from the ground above.  He rose when it
became obvious that I wasn’t ready to leave, allowing me time
to grieve, to say goodbye.

Reaching out my
hand, I brush my fingers along the back of Hyde’s hand and then
turn it over.  His palms are calloused, his fingers heavily so.
 The definition along his abdomen and arms spoke of years of
hard manual labor, of fighting, training and who knows what else. I
close my eyes to the tears that fall.

How
could he have betrayed me so completely?  Hyde was my
friend...at least I thought he was.  How could I not have known
it was all a trap?  

Him being left
behind back at Drach’s compound was a brilliant ploy to draw me
in, but surely he couldn’t have known that I would come for
him.  I had no reason to apart from general human decency.  Even
still it was a huge risk to take.

He had been
terrified on that roof, with flames licking at his boots…wasn’t
he?  Was it all really a lie? Could someone give so much of
themselves for nearly two full months all for the sake of greed?

I draw my hand back
from his and gently lift a thick band of hair from his forehead,
setting it aside so that I can see into his eyes.  I have always
prided myself at being able to read a person but maybe, just maybe
this time was different.

I was so
desperate to have someone take care of me and he slipped right in and
gave me exactly what I needed most.  I was a fool.

Turning away from
Hyde, I feel sickened by my actions.  I should never have been
so careless.  All of this, this place, being on the ship
together, this masterful story of noble freedom fighters was all a
ruse and I fell for it.  

Hyde warned me about
the Duturi.  I guess in some off way he was really just trying
to warn me against himself.  

I can hear numerous
voices in the hall beyond but make no move to join them.  Bastien
is out there, waiting for me, but I can’t bring myself to go to
him.  I hang my head, knowing that deep down I really thought he
was dead.  How can I face him now, knowing that I gave up hope
of ever seeing him again?  What will he think of me when he
discovers how close I came to giving up?

“Psst.”

My head whips around
and I catch movement just in the shadows near the medicine cabinet.
 It has been ransacked.  All supplies have been confiscated
for the good of the group.  “Who’s there?”

“Reyes,”
the voice calls again.  I squint against the dim lighting to see
him but can only just make out the golden hue of his hair.  

He pokes his head
out to look at me and then ducks back in.  “You shouldn’t
be here.  They will find you,” I warn.  Any moment
Bastien will return.  I fear that when Reyes is discovered he
will be tied up with the others as prisoners.  I’ve heard
the men beyond my room discussing what to do with them.  It
doesn’t sound good.

“I needed to
tell you something.  There is a room down the third--” he
cuts off with a howl as a green laser blast temporarily blinds me.
 Reyes’ mouth goes slack as he tumbles to the floor, his
spine arched, his arms pinned tightly to his sides as he spasms.  A
darkened figure approaches, kneeling beside him.

“Don’t
worry.  You’re safe now.”  I suck in a breath
when I spy a thick lock of fire-red hair trailing down from the dark
helmet covering the figure’s head.

“Callisto?”
I gasp.  

With a deep chuckle,
Callisto pulls the covering off and tucks the helmet into her side,
her hip jutted out.  “Nice to see you again too.”

I blow out a breath,
raising a hand to rub my temples.  “Man, you people sure
get around.”

She chuckles and
kicks at Reyes, shoving him onto his side.  His fingers curl
inward into claws, his eyes wide with pain as he continues to twitch.
 I look away from him.  “Bet you didn’t see
that one coming, huh?”

“Can’t
say that I did,” I admit.

She steps toward me,
holsters her gun and holds out her hand.  I glance back at Hyde,
hesitating.  “Don’t mourn for the dead, Illyria.
 Especially those who are traitors.”

I bite my lip but
nod, knowing that whatever reason Hyde had to trick me, I will never
be able to convince myself that he meant me harm.  No.  He
cared for me...in his own way.  I am sure of it, but even bad
people have feelings.

Grasping her hand, I
grunt as she hefts me onto my foot.  I wobble, sorely off
balance but she places a hand beneath my arm and lets me rest against
her.  “You’ve gained a few pounds since we last met.
 Motherhood looks good on you.”