Broken Episode One (14 page)

“What? When?”

She made an exasperated noise, threw her hands in
the air, and walked back to her slider.

“Do you have any idea what you put me through by
walking off on your own?” Josh tried to maneuver in front of her,
but she kept ducking around his arms. “I thought you’d been
kidnapped. You may not have much experience with planets like this,
Princess, but trust me, I do. You would have roused the attention
of every criminal and two-bit scavenger. You’re lucky you made it
this far. Speaking of which, what the hell were you thinking going
off into the desert on your own? This place is dangerous.”
Throughout his entire tirade, he didn’t take a single breath. He
let the anger push his words out in rapid-fire, like pulses from a
gun.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I haven’t been
kidnapped. Also,” she spread her arms wide, indicating her body,
“I’m fine. The desert hasn’t killed me.”

“Yet.”

“You know, I don’t need someone like you looking out
for me.”

He snorted. “I’m not sure if you remember, but if it
weren’t for me, you would have been impaled back on that transport.
You would also have been kidnapped by that scavenger. I don’t know
how it works in that rich brat world of yours, but in my world, I’m
owed a thank you, not an ear bashing.”

“You want to know how it works in my world, Josh?
It’s funny, because it actually works the same as in your world,”
she said in a singsong sarcastic voice, “if you do nothing but
insult and belittle someone, they leave you. You might have
protected me in the past, and I’ve already thanked you for that,
but the benefit of traveling with you is not worth the price.”

He snorted. “I can’t believe this,” he said,
pressing his dirty fingers into his brow and letting the nails dig
hard into his flesh until half-moon circles appeared over the sweat
and grit. “I drop everything, purchase a sand slider from a shifty
alien, and stay up the whole night tracking you down. You are the
most ungrateful brat in the universe.”

“And you’re an idiot.”

“Right, I’ve had enough of this. You are coming back
with me whether you like it or not. I have a duty as an officer of
the Coalition. If I let the daughter of Theodore Chester die in the
desert, my career is done for. And I will not let you destroy my
career, Princess,” his voice became dark and edgy.

Her expression paled somewhat, but she didn’t lose
the defiant edge to her gaze. “I am not going anywhere with
you.”

He gave an exasperated laugh, pushing both hands
through his hair and dislodging the scarf he’d used to protect
himself from the sand. As the fabric fell down his neck, a whole
pile of sand cascaded down his collar. It itched his back and
reminded him exquisitely how much he hated the desert.

“I will tie you up if I have to. But you will not
ruin what I’ve been working for for the past five damn years. You
got that, Princess?”

“Stop calling me Princess. And I’m not going
anywhere with you.”

Josh brought his hands up and dug his fingers into
his palms as hard as he could. Rebuilders he could deal with.
Barbarians were a walk in the park. Mimi Chester was murder.

He took a step towards her, and immediately she
turned and ran for his sand slider.

Throughout the entire altercation her recording orb
drifted overhead, looking mildly curious, or as curious as an
electronic ball could. It didn’t interrupt, and nor, thankfully,
did it zip around banging into every object, including his
head.

If Josh had been paying keen attention, though, he
would have noticed that Klutzo was maintaining a specific distance
from them. And if not from them, from an object Josh had not yet
noticed. But one that was about to change his world.

She darted away from him. She was determined not to
go back with Josh. Yes, he had saved her in the past. Yes,
occasionally he could be nice, gentle even. But she couldn’t put up
with that cruel side of his personality. She couldn’t stand there
and wait for the kind Josh to be replaced with a monster.

So she ran up the sand dune towards his slider.

If she were being smart, instead of emotional, she
would have realized there was no way she could outrun a special
commander in the Coalition forces. Not only was he bigger than her,
he was trained. Though she exercised occasionally, that exercise
never included stamina training and running up freaking dunes. With
every step, her foot plunged into the sand up to her ankle. It was
excruciating to pull it out again. It was also slow.

Within a matter of seconds, he was right behind
her.

Her heart fluttered, and it wasn’t only with fear.
In fact, she wasn’t sure she was even afraid. Despite the fact she
had made a decision not to travel with Josh, she still honestly
didn’t think he would hurt her.

That would be when two massive arms wrapped around
her middle and tugged her right off the dune she was clambering up.
She let out a pitching scream, to which he immediately replied,
“calm the heck down; I’m not going to hurt you.”

With that, he unceremoniously dumped her next to his
feet.

She was furious now. Maybe he could see it, because
as she snapped to her feet, he let one eyebrow slowly lift up in a
clear warning. “You want to run, go ahead. Be aware I’ll catch you
again.”

She stared at him darkly. It was her turn to dig her
fingers into her palms as hard as she could as frustration flooded
through her.

“You are categorically the nastiest person I have
ever met,” she screamed.

Josh appeared unmoved. “Go ahead, Princess, get it
all out. But once you’re done, we’re getting back on my slider, and
we’re getting out of here.” Josh pointed over his shoulder towards
his slider. A second later, however, he appeared to change his
mind. After a quick appraisal of both sliders, he shrugged his
shoulders. “Actually, we’re getting on your slider. But we’re still
getting out of here. Together. Then you are going to give me no
trouble until I hand you over to your dear dad so I can return to
my normal life. You got that?”

“I really have no idea why the Coalition gave you a
job.”

Josh’s jaw stiffened. “I wouldn’t cross that line.
Don’t talk about my past. It’s the only warning I’m going to give
you.”

“Or what,” she brought her arms up and gesticulated
in a jerked, quick fashion, “you’ll hit me? You’ll kill me? You’ll
leave me in the desert to rot?”

“Just don’t push me.”

“I don’t get you, Special Commander. You threaten me
one minute and then the next you pretend to care. You’re almost
sweet one second, then the next you’re a monster. Do you have any
idea how crazy your behavior seems?”

He leaned in. It appeared to be his favorite move.
It accentuated the strong line of his jaw and shoulders. “Do you
think I care what you think about me?”

“No, I’m pretty sure you don’t care what anyone
thinks about you. And I’m pretty sure that’s your problem. Real
people, nice people, kind and decent people don’t tackle women off
sand dunes.”

“Real nice, kind, and decent people would have left
you in the desert, Princess. You are not worth anyone’s
trouble.”

“There you go again,” she made a frustrated noise,
“you want to protect me, but you also want to leave me in the
desert. What’s it like living in two worlds, Josh? Do you actually
have two personalities in your head? The good cop and the bad cop?
The pirate and the Coalition officer?”

Josh’s jaw didn’t stiffen this time; it slackened.
In fact, she watched as his hard, dirty cheeks paled.

She’d struck a nerve.

Though her heart still pumped with frustration and
anger, she swallowed.

“Get on the slider,” he managed after a substantial
pause. “And don’t mention my past again.”

She opened her mouth. Any number of insults were on
her tongue. She couldn’t say them.

Instead, her gaze flicked towards her feet.

She couldn’t win this, could she? She wouldn’t be
able to convince Josh to leave her alone. In fact, if she took a
step back from this situation, she appreciated his point. In his
position, as a special commander, he would have an obligation to
look after her. And if something did happen to her, it would be his
responsibility, and it would reflect on his career.

Maybe that wasn’t the only reason she was starting
to give up. Maybe, just maybe, on some remote level she was happy
Josh was back. Sure, she’d managed fine on her own. But he was
bigger than her, better trained, and knew how to survive.

“Fine,” she conceded. She took a step towards the
slider, but out of her peripheral vision, saw she had dropped her
goggles further up the dune. She turned towards them.

“The slider is that way,” he warned.

She put a hand up quickly. “Relax, I just dropped
something. I’m going to get it. I’m not going to make a run for it,
promise.”

“You stay there; I’ll get it.”

She crossed her arms and watched him as he walked
off. He also watched her. He kept his head angled her way as his
body marched up the dune. His gaze was cold.

She had the urge to stick her tongue out at him.
Though that would be childish in the extreme, it wasn’t as if he
was acting like an adult.

Still watching her, Josh leaned down, plucked up the
goggles, and turned to march back down towards her.

And that would be when he stumbled. His boots struck
something, he overbalanced, and he tipped over.

He tumbled down the hill. Right towards the black
spike.

Before she was aware of what she was doing, Mimi ran
towards him.

She reached him, just as he rolled to his feet. But
he took a stumble back, and fell towards the spike.

She wrapped her small arms around Special Commander
Joshua Cook, and pulled him to the side. It was exactly like
tackling a mountain, and just as rewarding. He fell on top of her.
It felt like being body-slammed by a cruiser.

It knocked the breath out of her. It stilled her
heart too. For entirely different reasons.

Josh’s body stiffened in surprise. “What the hell
are you doing?"

There was a moment where she looked up into his eyes
and he looked down into hers. While her heart was fluttering, his
gaze looked as if he’d turned to stone.

“You think you can fight me?” He warned as he pushed
to his feet.

He grabbed her wrist and yanked her up.

“For a second there, I thought you were being
reasonable. I thought, somewhere in that spoilt mind of yours, you
could see my point,” he began. “Well, I guess you’ve proven I can’t
trust you.” He whirled on his foot.

It was her turn to grab his arm. “Hold on, be
careful.”

“Shut up.”

“No, listen to me. Look down to your left,
genius.”

Holding her gaze for several seconds, and looking as
if he did want to tie her up, Josh finally let his head drop.

He blinked in surprise. That hard edge to his jaw
dropped as his mouth opened. “What the hell is that?”

“That,
Mr., is
something you almost impaled yourself on. Something I saved you
from. Now, do you think you could possibly stop holding onto my arm
so tight? You’re going to bruise it.” She tried to yank her arm
back.

He let her, his grip growing slack.

She watched him take a step back, his brow crumpling
as he stared at the black spike.

“I’m pretty sure this is where you say thank
you.”

She watched him ignore her, get down on his knees,
and inspect the spike.

Throughout her entire argument with Josh, she’d
pretty much forgotten about it. Now, as silence descended, the fear
started to creep back in. Though she liked to think she was
rational, she couldn’t deny she wanted to get as far away from that
strange black spike as was possible.

“What is this?” Josh asked again, tipping his head
up to look at her.

“I don’t know. Klutzo came across it. We stopped the
slider to have a closer look. That’s when you came along.”

Josh turned back from her without another word. Then
he reached out his hand towards the spike.

Mimi jumped towards him, grabbed his arm, and pulled
him back. “Are you serious? You can’t touch that.”

He turned around to look at her. They were close,
not as close as they’d been moments before when she’d tackled him,
but close enough that his face took up most of her view, and all of
her attention.

She found herself swallowing again.

“Why don’t you let go of my arm? I know what I’m
doing,” he suggested in a gruff voice that had an unusual effect on
her stomach.

She shook her head, not letting go. “Do you? I’m
pretty sure it’s something like lesson one at the Academy that you
shouldn’t go around touching mysterious objects on alien
planets.”

He snorted at her, trying to pull his arm back at
the same time.

She held on fast. It meant that as he tried to pull
his arm free, he pulled her closer.

“I don’t need to be lectured on Academy lessons. I’m
not the one who got kicked out.”

“I didn’t get kicked out. We discussed this before.
And do you think, maybe, just for a second, you could wait to
listen to what I have to say before deciding it’s irrelevant?” She
stared into his eyes.

Several awkward seconds passed where she tried to
keep hold of her determined expression, but found her gaze
wandering over Josh’s face instead. From the hard edge to his jaw,
to his defiant, but somewhat mesmerizing eyes.

“Well, hurry up and tell me,” he stated flatly.

“Okay, just promise not to touch it,” she said as
she tentatively let go of his hand. When he didn’t snap forward and
grab the black spike, she rested back on her haunches and let out a
breath. “I don’t know what to say, really.”

“It better be something good considering the lead up
you just gave it. That, or I’m going to have to conclude once more
that you just love wasting my time.”