Star Catcher (19 page)

Noth visited each patient in room order. When he reached Stella, he could barely refrain from sweeping her up into his arms and raining kisses all over her body. Her belly.

Their child.
The thought struck his mind like
blaatz,
the bolt of electrical energy that cracked the sky during the wet-season storms. He kept his face passive, although the happiness that assailed him threatened to burst forth and reveal his true feelings.

“How are you feeling?” he asked in Spanish.

“Great, now that you’re here. Any news on our escape?” Her smile was wistful. She did not hide her emotions well enough. Noth moved to block her expression from the ever-watching
Lans
.

“I have information for you.”

“We’re getting out of here? You’re going to come home with me, meet the family, and we’ll live happily ever after?” Her grin quivered as she gazed pleadingly up at him from her seat on the bed.

“Do you know how desperately I wish for that?” He bent over to place his stethoscope to her chest, and the warmth of her skin soothed his own. Her soft breath fluttered against his cheek and wove sweet fantasies.
Scrion,
she tempted him in every imaginable way.

“
Querida
, you are pregnant.” The term meant
my love
in Spanish. She was his love, his one and only.

Her breath caught while a look of fear and outrage morphed her serene expression of a moment before.

“That injection! You promised you were faking it! Water, you said! How could you?”

“It
was
water, Stella.”

“Then how…?” Her brow knit with confusion, and then a dawning look of comprehension dropped her jaw.

“What? You and I made a baby? How can that be?”

“I am not certain, but our genetics are closely matched. Close enough, it would seem. Like the animals on your planet—horses and donkeys, I believe? Only you and I have an identical number of chromosomes.”

“You better not be calling me the donkey.” She punched a playful fist against his chest and shook her head, the look of awe still firmly on her face.

“No. You will always be my radiant star.” He searched her face, longing to see signs of the joy that threatened to squeeze his heart out of his chest. Yes, it was a major breakthrough for his species, but beyond that, he was thrilled at the prospect of having a life and a family with this woman. Never in his deepest fantasies had he imagined such a future, but now that he tasted the possibility, Noth wanted it more than anything.

“A baby…” She smiled, stroking her stomach as she considered.

“I must get you to Earth as soon as possible. If the commander discovers these pregnancies are the result of human eggs being fertilized, I fear she will insist on terminating them.”
Or something equally horrifying, like stealing our newborn baby to sell to the highest bidder.

“These pregnancies?”

“Rayna is carrying a fetus as well.”

“Oh … my … God. Rayna a mom? Wow.” Stella paused in thought. “Maybe I should tell her. She’s gonna freak out.”

“I will not disclose the information. If she does learn of her pregnancy before you leave, it is best she believe the fetus is fully Artanian for the safety of all. Uryu is to have no further contact with her. His indiscretion has cost us enough. You may help Rayna to deal with the news once you are on your home planet.”

“You’re coming too, right?”

“I will ensure you all board the ship safely. You will have a trusted pilot, my sister, with the appropriate coordinates to take all of you back to the location of your abduction. Krael must be dealt with, and I plan to go to the Embassy to explain my medical findings. If there are human women willing to be mated with my kind, you can assist us greatly in recruiting these ‘mail-order brides’ as you call them.”

Stella looked devastated.

“I don’t want to go without you.”

“I will come for you.” He promised himself as much as her. “All of the galaxies in the universe cannot keep me away now that I have found you.”

“When will this nightmare be over, Noth? I just want to get away from here so we can start over again.”

“Two more nights. I must rule out any further pregnancies before I release the women. You will know my signal when you hear it.” He nearly leaned over to kiss her and then caught himself.

Noth stood abruptly. “Gather the women and head to the solarium when the alarm sounds. My sister will meet you with a ship. Line everyone up against the farthest wall. Once the ship docks, you all must board in less than four minutes.”

“Why so fast? Is it the soldiers you’re worried about?”

“No. It is the decompression that will occur once the structure of the satellite is compromised when the docking portal opens. Our altitude above Artanos is beyond the atmosphere. Everyone in the solarium will be subjected to decompressive forces. We have a pneumatic repressurization system, which will give you extra time to board the craft, but you will not have more than five minutes before your lungs collapse, and you will suffocate.”

Her face was pale.

“Forty women in four minutes. We can do it.” She nodded firmly. “But what about you? Won’t everyone on the satellite die after the decompression?” Her voice squeaked with alarm.

“The repressurization system will work longer at distances farther from the opening. After you are all on board, I will seal the entrance to the solarium and the satellite pressure will stabilize once the docking portal closes. The commander will discover our plan eventually, but I believe I can keep her away long enough for your escape. I will send word to the Embassy documenting her breach of conduct with the
wrovs
, among other things. An agent will collect her to stand trial, but I must testify.”

Stella looked confused.

“Teleportation to the home planet is possible from a portal aboard this satellite. It will only take minutes for an officer to appear once I make the call. Our government strictly enforces military law. It is the foundation of our society. Any infraction is treated seriously, but those in our armed forces are held to the highest standards.”

“How can they enforce the law if they cannot follow it?” She shook her head in disgust.

“You are an amazingly smart and brave being, Stella.” He stared into her eyes. She was his entire world now, not the floundering planet that hired evil operatives like Krael. He loved this woman and would fight for her to the death if necessary.

“I will not allow harm to come to you or our baby. Not ever.”

* * * *

“Noth! I must speak with you.” Krael’s voice was like a spear through his back. The strap of his heavy bag pulled on his shoulder, as he imagined the fabric was translucent. But Krael could not read minds or see through objects. The only way to find his secret would be to search him, and even if she did, he might be able to explain it away.

“Not now. The
tvolt
is no longer circulating. It must be refilled. Or do you want a mutiny on your hands, Krael?” He smiled blandly, purposely omitting her title. “Already the patients are showing signs of agitation. I must get the system up and running immediately.” In truth, the calming substance had been empty for days and had not needed replacing. The presence of Krael’s guards, and the weeks of strict scheduling, were enough to keep the women compliant and stuck in their roles.

The time for the captives to move quickly was near. Noth wanted them to be fully alert.

“Refill the blowers and then report to my office.”

“I will be there shortly.” Noth forced a disarming grin against Krael’s skeptical squint, and turned in the direction of the duct access. After a pause, her boots pounded in the opposite direction. Noth breathed a sigh of relief.

The storage room that contained the blowers was off the main hall. Noth swiftly moved boxes of medical supplies into a corner, stacking them out of his way and obstructing the view of the single
Lans
in the closet. He swore for the camera’s benefit, cursing the disorganized space. When he finally stood on a stool to remove the grate from the wall, he was sure only his sound was being monitored.

The heavy ferrite pot scraped against the steel bottom of the duct as he maneuvered it into place. The bottle of pure mineral oil he had surreptitiously removed from the lab filled the metal bowl with a soft gurgle. Noth had an ample supply, as the oil was used to separate out embryos in culture. It prevented thermal shock due to temperature changes when working with the immature eggs. Now it would provide the cover they needed.

When the substance burned, it gave off a tremendous amount of thick, black smoke. He recalled an episode from his training when a fellow student had accidentally knocked the oil into his pilot flame. Studies had been postponed in that laboratory for many days afterward due to the residual smoke.

The dispersion fan hummed reassuringly as it channeled air down the shaft. Noth touched the flame of his spark-generator to the greasy surface. The burst of heat, although expected, startled him, and he nearly fell from the stool. Catching himself, he swiftly flipped the hinged ferrite lid closed. The fuel would eventually burn itself out and the flames would remain contained in the brazier. Ominous gray-black curls of smoke slithered through the small vent. They spread down the long metal passage in thick billows.

Noth jumped down from his perch. As he exited the room, he pushed a button on his wrist communicator. A long beep indicated his message had been sent.

When the alarm sounded, he was halfway to Krael’s office. Doors opened smoothly on either side of him. An office, a kitchen, and another office were revealed. A pale-faced soldier emerged from the third door. She glanced up and down the hall in confusion.

“Fire in the north quarter! Contact the mainland Emergency Services immediately!”

The guard nodded and put her handheld receiver to her ear. Noth heard her speaking frantically and breathed a sigh of relief. Fire and security officers would arrive shortly. Krael would not harm any of the humans in their presence.

He neared the final corridor to Krael’s office. Apprehension assailed him the closer he got. Why had he not met up with the commander yet? Surely, she would come this way at the first sound of the alarm. Krael was suspicious of any unusual situation. Her cautious nature had helped to make her a successful military leader. Was she already checking on her captives?

“Stay where you are!”

He turned a corner and froze. Krael stood before him, her laser projector pointed at Uryu’s head as the terrified Artanian knelt before her.

Noth had underestimated her ruthlessness. Uryu was bloody and bruised, his right eye puffed tightly closed. His nose was crooked and leaked blood toward his open mouth. He was gasping for air as he pleaded for his life in a jumbled rush of wet words. A black and bloody space in his mouth marked at least one missing tooth.

Noth held his hands up in a display of nonaggression. He kept his voice calm, soothing, as a nervous twitch tugged at the side of her face. Her fingers were white with tension around the handle of the gun.

“Krael, you do not want to do this. We are here to help our kind, not to hurt them. Put the projector down and let Uryu go.”

“Let him go? He is guilty of insubordination! He followed your lead in an attempted hostile takeover.”

Noth slowly shook his head. “Uryu has only followed my orders. He knew nothing of my plans to release the humans. Their captivity is unwarranted. I have discovered a solution to our population decline.”

“Yes. Uryu told me how you both took part in illicit actions with the inferior species. I know precisely which captives you experimented with.”

Her black eyes bored into him, hard and relentless. She knew the truth.

“Krael, the human genetics nearly match ours. Stella is convinced we can find human volunteers to reproduce with our males. Many Artanians will be thrilled to adopt children not of their blood, both for their own happiness and for the good of the species. My sister would give her life for such an opportunity, so great is her desire for offspring.”

“Then she is a fool. And you are a traitor to our kind.”

Noth glanced at the
Lans
above their heads. It captured every word they said.

Krael’s malicious smile chilled him. She dug the muzzle of the laser into Uryu’s ear and laughed when he pleaded for her to stop.

“After I am done dispatching you rebels, I will destroy the recordings. The fire you conveniently started will be used to burn all evidence of my wrongdoing.”

Where were the Emergency Service troops? Noth saw a dark shape move in his periphery. A
wrov
. No—two
wrovs
slunk toward the confrontation. The fire had triggered every door to open, including the
wrov
enclosure.

He needed to keep Krael occupied for as long as possible. Give the mainland soldiers more time to arrive.

“You may kill us both, Krael, but the humans are already safely aboard my family’s ship and are returning to Earth. How will you explain their absence to the Embassy? They will believe you are unfit to hold your post if you cannot control your charges.”

“Did you truly believe I would permit their escape? I was alerted to an unauthorized ship in the perimeter and locked all loading ports manually. Your vessel hovers at the dock as we speak, awaiting clearance that will never come. I have disabled incoming teleportation as well. I assume you keep looking for the assistance you summoned? Do not trouble yourself. No one is coming to help you.”

“Ekka! You must force your way in! The portal is locked!”

Noth wordlessly shouted for his sister. The
wrovs
glanced up, startled by his concentrated telepathy.

“You will return the humans to their rooms and continue your work, or you will be replaced. I am the ultimate authority here. Our lack of success was no doubt due to your tampering.”

“And if I do not?”

“Uryu’s blood will be on your hands, and the Embassy will know you sabotaged this operation. You will be blamed, not I.”