Chapter 16

After a quick meal with the crew, Emmy excused herself and retreated down the ship's silent corridors to her office. Chigs hadn't come to the mess hall to eat, and she was certain he must be avoiding her. Can you blame him? After what had happened between them on the shuttle, she doubted they'd ever feel comfortable in the same room together again.

Sitting at her desk with her eyes closed, she listened to the gentle burble of her meditation fountain, breathing deeply as she tried to regain control of her emotions. It was nothing more than a fleeting indulgence for us both. The thought only made her heart ache more. The memory of Chigs's mouth against hers, his hands on her skin, the throbbing line of his cock against her ass permeated her thoughts.

She wanted to blame him for everything, but couldn't. She'd invited his kiss, despite knowing that Chigs's heart could never truly belong to her. He'd acted on it, but she shared responsibility for the tangled web they'd woven together. Frustration and guilt created a maelstrom in the pit of her stomach.

Unable to find peace, she exhaled slowly and opened her eyes. Her gaze fell on the box Rust had given her when she'd stepped off the shuttle. Inside was her toy dragon, the one he'd ripped apart during their last session, now repaired. If only everything could be fixed so easily.

"Em, are you okay?"

Emmy's head jerked toward the doorway. Marlis stood there, blonde brows knit in concern. Emmy tried to smile reassuringly. "Tired is all. It was a long mission."

Marlis sauntered in and propped a hip on the edge of Emmy's desk. "So, how'd things go with Dafari?"

Emmy blinked. This entire thing with Dafari had been such a big deal a few days ago, but now she hardly gave him a passing thought. "It was nothing, really."

"Mm." Marlis cocked her head. "Then what's got you so down?"

"Me? I'm fine," Emmy replied, letting her gaze shift back to the box. "Like I said, just tired."

Marlis nudged the box with her knuckles. "What's in here? I saw Rust give it to you back in the shuttle bay."

Emmy smiled and removed the toy dragon, sitting it on her desk. The stitched repairs to its wings were a little clumsy, but she felt it symbolized the lengths he was willing to go to prove his apology was genuine. "He fixed it for me to make up for a bad counseling session we had."

"Oh, shit. I've heard he can be a bully." Marlis sat up straighter, eyebrows drawn in concern. "You ever need backup, let me know."

Emmy shrugged and smiled. It was nice to have a friend on her side, no matter what. But she didn't want to aggravate anyone against Rust, especially when he appeared to be making progress. "Rust can be gruff, but he's got a good heart."

Marlis's brows relaxed, and a glint entered her gaze. "There something more going on here? A little romance, perhaps?"

Emmy felt her cheeks warm at the suggestion. "Absolutely not."

"Why not? Rust's not bad to look at." Marlis winked suggestively. "If he's got a good heart, he might have other good body parts as well."

Emmy laughed, though her own heart felt heavy. "Marlis, you're incorrigible."

"So I've been told." Marlis laughed.

Her laugh was interrupted by the ship-wide intercom. "I need everyone to meet me in the war room right now," Doug said.

Marlis stood and adjusted her gun belt. "Finally!" she said, striding toward the door. "Been dying for some action."

Emmy felt glued to her chair. Chigs would be there, and she wasn't ready to face him. "I thought Doug would take longer."

"He's a cyborg. They do everything double time." Marlis paused and looked over her shoulder. "You coming?"

"No." Emmy opened a desk drawer and pulled out her data pad, ignoring the thundering pulse in her ears. "I have to catch up on my work."

"Aren't you curious to know what Doug found on that disk?" Marlis eyed her, one brow raised in suspicion.

"My part of the mission is over." Emmy opened a random file on her pad, ignoring Marlis's stare. "You soldier types can handle it from here."

Striding to the desk, Marlis pulled the data pad from Emmy's grasp and towed her to her feet. "Doug called the meeting for everyone, Emmy, and you were part of the fact-finding mission. You have to be there, work or no work."

Emmy sighed in resignation. There was no resisting Marlis when she had her mind set. Chest tight with anxiety, Emmy followed her friend out of the office.

The war room was abuzz with activity when they arrived. A large central table dominated the space, a holographic projector casting complex light patterns above it. Doug stood at the head of the table, while various crew members filled the seats and stood along the walls. Emmy tried to remain inconspicuous, hovering near the back with some of the other crew members, but Doug quickly caught sight of her and gestured her forward.

"Emmy, we saved you a seat." He indicated an empty chair next to Chigs.

Shit. There was no way to gracefully decline, so she moved forward and sat, keeping her weight shifted so she and Chigs didn't bump elbows. He smelled like clean, masculine sweat, and she felt like his merest touch might unravel her. Keep your focus on Doug, she told herself. But she felt Chigs staring at her with an intensity that made her prickle with awareness.

"Quiet down," Doug began, his voice commanding the room's attention. "We have a lot to go over and very little time."

The room fell silent as Doug brought up the holographic image of a planet above the center of the table. "I've decrypted the data chip Chigs and Emmy got from their mission. The lab holding the captive women is on a planet called Naraka. It's in a disputed area of Syndicorp space. But the intel also indicates that the lab is in the process of changing location."

Concerned murmurs filled the room.

Tovik slapped a palm against the table. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Slow down, kid," Doug said as the holo image shifted to a set of schematics. "A frontal assault on this place would be suicide—for us and the captured women. But there may be a way to get a team inside to lower the lab's defenses."

"How?" asked Chigs, leaning forward to avidly study the schematics.

Emmy's heart clenched. Of course he was interested. He should be interested. But it felt like she'd just had salt rubbed on a wound.

Doug pointed to a series of symbols on the image. "The orbital patrols could be a problem, but I located an old embassy passcode that will hopefully allow a small shuttle to land."

He continued describing details about the patrol routes while Emmy knotted her fingers together beneath the table, only half listening. These women needed rescuing, but no matter their plight, all she could think about was escaping this meeting. Drowning herself in a vat of chocolate ice cream. Letting the burning behind her eyes resolve into private tears…

The sound of her name brought her back around and she realized everyone in the room was staring at her.

"Okay, Emmy?" Doug said, his cybernetic eye spearing her with green light.

"I'm sorry, I drifted off," Emmy said, cheeks heating. "Can we backtrack a bit?"

Doug frowned, but repeated his summation. "According to the data chip, you're still on the lab's personnel roster. Which means you're the only one who can get us into the building."

Emmy blinked at him. "How the hell am I on the roster?"

"It appears you were never fully removed after you left."

Emmy scowled, bile roiling in her stomach as she realized Dafari must've planned something like this all along. He left me active as a way to sneak back in. She swallowed past the growing lump in her throat. "You want me to go on this mission?"

"Yes. Once inside, you and Chigs will make your way to the mainframe and disable the planetary security shields. He's familiar with Syndicorp's base layouts."

"Who else is coming?" Her palms grew sweaty as she thought about being alone with Chigs again.

"The shuttle only carries two, so you two will have to handle the first stage on your own. Once the shields are down, we can land a team near the facility to break the women free and get everyone off planet."

"I see a problem with this plan," said Tovik. "What if there are hybrids there like Rashana? I've been working on a device to block her mind-control powers, but it's still got a lot of bugs."

Emmy's gaze shifted toward Rust, remembering several counseling sessions where he'd talked about the violation he'd felt when Rashana'd tampered with his thoughts. At least Rashana was on their side now, but what if they met more like her? She shuddered at the thought.

"Chigs can use his shielding to protect them both," said Doug. "You can do that, right Chigs?"

Chigs shifted in his chair. "Yes, Emmy's a psychologist, not a soldier. Can't you forge someone else's credentials to take her place?"

Despite her previous hesitation, Chigs's attempt to replace Emmy left her rankled. "I can handle myself, Chigs."

He shot her a look that left her feeling strangely protected and vulnerable at the same time. "I know you can, but you've already risked yourself once for this mission."

"Oooh! Let me pretend to be Emmy!" said Marlis.

Doug shook his head. "The checkpoints inside the facility are genetically linked, and while I might be able to hack a forgery, it would take too much time."

"There will be more women than Emmy to protect once the team is inside," said Rust. "Let me go in Chigs's stead. A cyborg is worth ten regular soldiers."

Chigs bristled. "Says who? I've proven myself in dozens of battles." He rose and placed a hand on the back of Emmy's chair. "And I'll protect my mate with every ounce of my being."

Emmy's heart squeezed at the mention of Chigs's mate, but also raced as she watched Rust flex his cold, metallic arms, each joint clicking with deadly precision.

"You want to prove yourself?" Rust said, baring his teeth. "Let's settle it in the sparring ring."

"You're on." Chigs balled his fists and stepped forward until his thighs hit the edge of the table, his muscles bulging under his skin. Testosterone clogged the air, but nobody seemed to be willing to intervene between the two furious males.

Emmy couldn't take it anymore. She shoved back from the table and drew herself up to her full, if diminutive, height. "Listen to yourselves! While you're arguing, innocent women could be suffering and dying."

All eyes turned to her. Rust continued scowling, but lowered his arms to his sides. Chigs turned to face her, palms up as if to placate her. Doug's usually passive features seemed to hold a smirk, and Marlis nudged her with an elbow. "Go get "em, Em."

Taking a deep breath, Emmy pointed toward the door. "While you to wrap up your bickering, I'm going to go prepare for this mission. I'll be at the shuttle waiting."

With that, Emmy wheeled around and strode from the room, knowing Chigs would win out in the end. They were going to rescue his mate. And then I can move past this heartbreak for good.