HeartStorm (HeartFast Series Book 3) (6 page)

            The hint of amusement in the physician's voice made Star turn her head to look at her. "Oh?"

            "You and Hunter are no longer a couple. You're a family. No more abandoning Command for indiscreet meetings between the sheets. No more impromptu secret rendezvous to make love. What? Did you think the rest of us didn't know what was going on whenever the two of you disappeared into thin air, only to be gone for a good ten minutes before returning all out of breath and flushed?"

            Star felt her cheeks warming. The doctor waved it off with a light laugh.

            "We didn't know we were that obvious," Star murmured.

            "We all just took it in stride. After all, you
were
the only married Guardians in the group." The emphasis was obvious.

            Star smiled. "By the way, I've been meaning to ask, if you don't mind. Why didn't you and Commander take a longer honeymoon than three days? Heaven knows you'd earned it after...their disappearance."

            Perlakian had the grace to blush. "We wanted to, but so much was going on. We knew our services were needed back here at Command."

            "That's a crap statement and you know it," Star half-teased. "Speaking of, what about that time the other day when we needed Commander on deck to look over a relay switching problem and he was nowhere to be found? I'd be willing to bet there was a little extracurricular activity going on behind the clinic." This time she got to see the doctor's eyes sparkle as the woman tried to smother a smile. "Uh-huh. And you have the nerve to get after me and Udo."

            Clearing her throat, Devorah did her best to resume her professional persona. "Well, if we're finished with this little talk, it's my medical recommendation that you get some rest. As soon as I run a few tests on Callaura tomorrow morning, I'll be releasing you two."

            She started to walk away when Star grabbed her arm, forcing the woman to glance back.

            "Dev, you know you've become invaluable to us, don't you? For all you've done, for all you do, I want to thank you."

            Perlakian's face softened. "You're welcome, but I haven't done anything more than what a good doctor would do."

            "There you go, talking crap nonsense again. You saved my dignity at the hospital when those other doctors were trying to degrade me in front of others. You risked your professional status because you stood up for what you felt was the right thing to do. What's more, you've given us all here a sense of relief."

            "Relief? How?"

            "In the past, we've always had to go off-site for any sort of medical attention that couldn't be handled by the emergency techs. It wasn't just uncomfortable to be away from the safety and protection of our fellow Guardians. It was nerve-wracking. You being here with us, as one of us, has been a blessing. I hope you know that."

            Perlakian nodded and sniffed. This time tears sparkled in her eyes. Patting Star's hand, she pulled it from her sleeve and placed it on the bed.

            "I haven't said as much to the rest of you, but I've admitted to Paol how being a part of Guardian Command has saved my life, mentally and physically. So the miracle extends both ways, Terrin. We need each other, and together we've become stronger and more resilient because of our working partnership."

            "And friendship," Star added.

            "Yeah. And our friendships." The woman nodded, and a tear coursed down one cheek. "Rest now. You'll want to be strong enough tomorrow to be able to take care of your new daughter while we wait for Hunter and the others to return."

            Nodding, Star rolled onto her side, facing the incubator. She was asleep before the doctor left the clinic.

Chapter Seven

Requests

            A hand shook his shoulder. Hunter was instantly awake. He glanced up to see the crewman named Golgrith standing over him.

            "Wooly says to tell you there's a break coming," the man told him.

            Getting quickly to his feet, Hunter paused for a moment as a stab of pain shot through him.
Admit it, Udo. You're getting to the point where sleeping sitting up is no longer an option.

           
He hurried into the makeshift comm room where Wooly sat hunched over the board. It was obvious the man had been manning the console this whole time. Signs of extreme weariness were etched in every line of the little man's face and body.

            "I'm here," Hunter announced.

            Wooly jerked slightly. "Oh. Good. Listen. There's a break coming in..." He checked his readouts. "Seventy-two seconds. Urgs will drop below four hundred, but for only thirty-eight seconds." He looked at Hunter. "Can you use it?"

            "I'll take it. Contact
Transport Three
and let Challenger know I'm on my way. Give me a five second countdown." Quickly, Hunter strode back into the cabin where the others were already rousing. "Toreedus! Everyone, listen carefully." Striding over to where the critically injured man lay comatose, he gathered the crew member in his arms. Holding the man tightly against his chest, he took his place inside the small circle he'd drawn on the floor earlier and faced the others.

            "There will be slight arch going up to the ship. Once I exit the storm, it'll take me a moment to locate the ship, so don't be rattled if you feel like you're zooming off into nowhere when Sender sends you after me. Sender, it's your game."

            Wooly's voice broke into their helmets. "Clearing is approaching in five...four...three...two...one. Open!"

            Throwing his shield around himself and the unconscious man, Hunter burst through the ship and out into the atmosphereless void of the moon's surface. He hurried into the storm, aware of the itchy sensation crawling under his skin as the ion storm buffeted his protective sphere.

            Once clear, he spotted
Three
on the horizon, moving quickly toward him. He was within the ship a heartbeat later.

            Inside, he handed the injured crewman to Challenger. "Put him on a stretcher in the galley. Then stay away from this spot. Sender will be transporting the rest of the lot aboard." Challenger nodded and carried the man to the rear of the ship.

            Hunter moved away from where he'd appeared and took off his helmet. Knowing how Sender worked, there wouldn't be enough time to shuck his suit, even if he wanted to.

            A handful of seconds passed, when a familiar shimmer appeared where he'd stood. First aboard was Golgrith. The man shivered as he solidified but said nothing. As soon as he was finished, Hunter grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the way. "Go take a seat. You can take your helmet off, but leave your suit on," Hunter ordered. The crewmember nodded and fell into the nearest empty seat.

            The rest of the crew arrived in thirty second intervals. When Wooly finally showed, he moved away from the landing area, but remained near Hunter. "Baynt is next," he explained.

            As expected, the man with the injured leg appeared, and Hunter offered his shoulder as soon as the crewman was fully visible. "Here." He handed the man over to Wooly. "Take him aft. Challenger is there with the other injured man."

            The little engineer nodded, and together the two made their way to the rear of the ship.

            Toreedus was last, which didn't surprise Hunter. "I don't know we're going to repa—"

            Hunter grabbed his arm and hauled him off the landing grid. The man stumbled and almost fell before he grabbed the back of a seat. "Sorry," Hunter told the man. "But I had to clear you away before Sender arrived."

            The moment he finished his sentence, the air shimmered with Sender's arrival. As she solidified, she removed her helmet and shook her hair free. "Ah! Good old processed air. That's everyone, Hunter. We're good to go."

            "Good job, Send. Can you go aft and see if Challenger needs help with the injured? I'll drive us to the SPF."

            As she hurried to the rear cabin, he turned to face the trawler crew. From the expressions on their faces, they were both relieved to be off that moon, and glad to be in a warmer atmosphere. "Buckle in, men. I'm going to push the engines to get us to the SPF base on Venard Prime, and it could get bumpy along the way."

            Before anyone could answer, he hurried to the front of the ship and assumed the pilot's chair. It wasn't long until
Three
hit hyperspeed and vanished into the blackness.

            The trip took less than two hours. By the time Hunter parked the ship into one of the orbiting station's numerous docking bays, a medical unit was waiting on the other side of the airlock. The rest of the crewmen disembarked while Hunter, Challenger, and Sender went to the office of the head of security, and explained the men's situation to the Captain of the Day, a woman named G R Six.

            "Thank you for your help, Guardians," the woman smiled. "We'll be happy to escort these men back to the Ge Horca system."

            "The leader is named Toreedus," Hunter added. "He's going to have a shitload of reports to fill out."

            "Not to mention the salvaging they'll have to do to remove all that rhonidirum off that moon," Challenger added.

            Six agreed. "But that won't happen until that storm clears out, which, according to our scientists, will be at least another week. Thank you again for your help, Guardians. By the way, if I may ask a personal question, Master Hunter?"

            He paused and waited.

            "How is StarLight and the baby?"

            He couldn't help the proud grin covering his face. "As luck would have it, Star gave birth to our daughter the other day. I'm on my way back to Synaria now to see them."

            "Congratulations! Any chance the baby could become a future Guardian?"

            Hunter laughed. "She'll have to have a special ability and go through the induction process like the rest of us. But at the moment we have no idea if she's inherited any of my or Star's powers, if any. She may be completely powerless, or she could have some other special attributes we've yet to discover."

            The COD thanked them again, and the Guardians left the office to head back to the docking bay. Along the way, they were hailed, and Hunter was surprised to see Wooly running to catch up to them. They stopped to see what he wanted.

            "Hi, guys. Thanks for waiting. I take it you're on your way back to Guardian Command?" The little man's question was for them all, but his attention was focused on Sender. Now that he thought about it, Hunter realized the two had sat together in the rear dual seats on their trip to the station. The same seats he and StarLight used whenever they wanted a private conversation during a mission. The comparison forced him to hide the smile that threatened to ruin the all-business demeanor he meant to show.

            "You'd be correct," Challenger answered for them. "Why?"

            It was apparent the engineer slash communications officer was very nervous about how he would approach the trio. Wooly turned to Hunter. "D-did you mean it back on the moon? I mean, what you said you'd do? About talking to Commander?"

            Hunter and Challenger exchanged looks. A glance at Sender, who was being unusually quiet, confirmed his suspicions. The woman actually looked hopeful.

            "Yes, I meant it. We're often short-handed when it comes to working on the ships, as well as other things. We still have to finish repairs on
Transport Two
, not to mention quite a few other things we haven't yet been able to find the time to fix that were damaged during our fight with the Ombitra. Why do you ask?" Cocking his head at the man, he finally allowed himself to grin. "Thinking about getting out of the trawler business?"

            Wooly shuffled his feet, shifting from one side to the other. Again, the engineer glanced at Sender, and this time there was no mistaking the look of adoration on his face.

            "Uhh, yeah. Sort of. I mean..."

            Challenger cleared his throat. "Say, Hunter, didn't you tell me you were going to haul back to Command from here, and let Sender and me follow with the ship?"

            Actually, Hunter had planned to leave as Challenger surmised, but he hadn't had the chance to say as much to them. Then again, maybe they'd suspected he would want to hurry home to see his infant daughter.

            "Yes, that was my intent," he admitted.

            Challenger gestured at Wooly. "You know,
Three
could have sustained some damage from that storm. And I don't have the smarts like you do when it comes to repairs and such. Hunter, what do you think about Wooly joining me and Sender on the return trip? Think Deceiver would object? Sure would ease my mind, in case something happened."

            Hunter turned his back on the others to give himself a moment to compose himself. Otherwise his smirk would have given away the ruse to the young trawler crewman. Taking a deep breath, he rubbed his chin and faced them.

            "Sounds like a very good idea to me, Challenger. It would ease my mind greatly to have someone of Wooly's caliber joining you for the trip home, in the event something should happen to the ship." Giving Wooly a stern look, Hunter added, "Does Toreedus know you're abandoning him?"

            The young man stood his ground. "No. Not yet. I wanted to see what you would say first."

            "Very well. Go let him know," Challenger relented, giving him a nod. "We'll be waiting for you at the docking bay."

            Wooly gave them a smart salute and hurried away, toward the medical bay. They watched him leave, then Hunter laid a hand on each Guardian's shoulder.

            "I'm sorry I haven't said anything earlier," he confessed. "But you're right, Challenger. I was hoping you guys wouldn't mind if I went ahead and took off, and you follow in
Three.
"