GALLANT (The Innerworld Affairs Series, Book 3) (36 page)

"Josep!" Cherry cried. "The mist is coming in! You're not protected." He raised his hand to her in a farewell gesture and shifted the lever. As the lift took her and Gallant to the top, realization of what Josep was doing set in. There was nothing she could do about it. He wasn't only ending his own life. By leaving the tunnel doors open, the mist would blend with the oxygenated air inside. The Princess's warning came back to her with the clarity of a fire alarm.

Mixing the two atmospheres for any length of time could result in a destructive explosion.

Josep had said she had no more than five minutes to get Gallant aboard his ship and take off. Good God! He must believe the whole planet was going to blow. As she neared the surface, she lost sight of Josep but she knew he could not survive long with the deadly mist swirling into the cavern. She forced herself not to think about how he might suffer and sent up a prayer of thanks that he had chosen to make his final act a heroic one.

A moment later her thankful prayer became a plea for help. The goggles functioned well enough for her to make out the shapes of a number of spacecraft in the distance. But they weren't individually distinguishable and they were spread out over a large area.

Which one was Gallant's? Which direction had she and Gallant come from? Without being able to see, she hadn't had any way of getting her bearings or noting the markings on the ground that were visible with the goggles.

Panic began setting in as she imagined hearing the seconds ticking loudly by. If she headed for the wrong ship, she could waste the entire five minutes. She stared at the markings again, comprehending that they were directional arrows pointing toward the tunnel from one of the craft, but that was of no help to her now.

Cherry? It is Mar-Dot. Please excuse my unauthorized intrusion.

Thank you, God!

I cannot read your thoughts, but I am sensing a strong disturbance around the captain and have the distinct impression he cannot hear me.

Cherry's frustration mounted with each of Mar-Dot's words. They had no way of knowing how precious each second was, and she couldn't tell them the problem.

I assume vision is still limited out there, but I'm mentally fixed on Gallant, and as long as he is with you, I should be able to bring you both in using my built-in navigational ability. Turn ninety degrees to your right. Take a few steps. Good. Angle slightly to your left. Too much. Excellent. Keep walking straight now.

Cherry picked up her pace as much as she could and practically tripped over the lead line that had been hooked to Gallant's belt. Grabbing the end of it, she gave it a jerk and felt it tug her along like the retractable cord to an old Outerworld vacuum cleaner.

A few steps short of the ship's door, it opened and the stairway came down to meet her. With a renewed burst of energy, she leapt up the stairs and hauled Gallant inside. The narrow corridor was sealed off from the bridge and cabins as it had been for their deboarding.

You will have to remain in there for two minutes for complete detoxification.

Cherry lowered Gallant to the floor and banged on the door blocking her from the bridge. "We don't have two minutes!" she shouted. "Take off now!"

She wasn't certain she was heard until she felt the merest vibration in her feet. It rapidly built to a low hum and she knew they were lifting off-planet. Suddenly a tremendous explosion sounded and the ship listed violently to one side then the other. Cherry slammed into a wall and was thrown to the floor on top of Gallant.

A powerful gravitational pull paralyzed her in place and the ship seemed to be spinning in circles. Just when she was certain they would crash, the pull ended and the ship stabilized.

The detox light overhead burned a bright red then orange, paled to yellow and faded off. Another minute passed before the doors on both sides of the corridor slid back into the wall and Cherry rolled off Gallant. Getting to her feet was not so easy.

"Dot," she called toward the bridge. "I could use some help whenever you can leave the controls." Though she only had to wait a short while before the he-she came to her, she managed to get hopelessly twisted in the voluminous shield in the meantime.

"Oh my," Dot said gaping at a silver-shrouded Cherry and the cocoon on the floor. "What happened?"

"You name it! Help get me out of this contraption. I've got to get Gallant to his bunk before he comes to." While Dot helped free them of the shrouds and they carried Gallant to his room, Cherry gave them a
very
condensed version of everything that had happened since they'd left the ship yesterday, concluding with an explanation of the explosion. From the magnitude of the subsequent fireball Dot described, the tunnel itself would definitely be gone and, more than likely, the caverns below would have collapsed as well.

Dot was unflustered by the fact that Gallant was nude beneath the shield or that he was semi-erect. She was familiar with the type of drug he had been given and even helped Cherry fix a few trays of food to take into the captain's cabin in preparation for a long, exhausting stay.

After Mar-Dot was up to date, Cherry said, "I remember it took three days between Norona and Lore, but between Earth and Norona we detoured to Zoenid. How many days does a straight shot take?"

"With the stardrive, we can make it from Norona to Earth in five days," Mar replied proudly. "However, Norona is out of the way from here. Earth is also a five-day journey from Lore in a different direction. I do not believe the captain will be in any shape to make a decision for some time. I suggest we head straight to Earth and the captain can contact the Consociation Regent by interstellar communication on the way."

"Nonsense," argued Dot. "Anyone could be listening in. There are still twelve days left until the rendezvous, and even if the captain got tied up on Norona, Josep told Cherry that Bessima will go to the appointed spot every day until the Princess shows up. We should plot a course for Norona."

"And what if we encounter some unforeseen problem?" Mar countered. "Or Bessima decides not to show up again after the first day? We should not take any chances—"

"Whoa, guys!" Cherry said with a laugh. "I don't think I'll ever get over the fact that you two could be sharing the same brain and never agree on anything."

"We agree on many things," Mar said.

"Hardly ever," Dot retorted.

"Enough already!" Cherry exclaimed. "Head for Norona. When Gallant comes out of it, I'll take the responsibility." A low moan caught her attention. "Speaking of which..."

Dot grinned and said, "Do not hesitate to call for me if you find you need a break."

Cherry smiled back and winked. "Thanks, hon, but I think I can handle it." She entered Gallant's cabin and closed the door behind her. At least part of Josep's suggestion had worn off. Gallant was no longer lying on his bunk like a corpse. He was moaning and thrashing from side to side. When he kicked the sheet away from his body, she could also see that his erection was no longer being restrained either.

Without hesitation, she pulled off the rough sack she'd been wearing. As she lay down and embraced him, his skin felt feverish against hers. The physical contact ripped away the last of the suggestion. His eyes popped open and he frantically took in his surroundings.

He made a sound like a wounded animal and Cherry hugged him as hard as she could. "It's okay, love. You're safe. We're on your ship heading home and I'm here for you."

Again he attempted to speak but the sound he made against her neck could only be described as mournful. As if she heard his thoughts she answered him. "You won't hurt me."

Countless hours passed before the drug dissipated sufficiently for his lust to subside and they were both able to rest.

As they settled into what had become their regular sleeping position, he whispered, "You called me
love."

"Did not," she murmured back.

"Did. I heard you. And you know what?"

"Hmmm?"

"I love you too."

She knew she should contradict him but she was simply too tired, and besides, it was probably only some leftover effect of the drug making him talk crazy.

Gallant was pulled out of the last shreds of sleep by the awareness that he was alone... and it was not a comfortable feeling.

His muscles complained as he stretched out the tightness but he didn't feel all that bad, considering what he'd been through. Sitting up, he spotted a glass of water that Cherry must have left for him and quickly quenched his thirst. He needed to get cleaned up. He needed food. He needed Cherry.

He knew it was selfish to have wanted her there when he awoke after she had given so unselfishly during the long night. His need for her at the moment, however, had nothing to do with lust and everything to do with love.

Despite all his mother's sayings and pretty words on the subject, he hadn't been prepared for how it would really feel.

Between the drug and Josep's suggestion, he had been immobilized, but he had still been able to hear and comprehend parts of what had gone on around him.

She had saved his life. He owed her everything, yet the only thing she wanted from him was a lift home, to see Aster, then a ride to wherever Theodophilus was for an audition. He had already agreed to that much, and he wouldn't renege, even though it was in direct opposition to his own wishes. He had to come up with something else—a way to thank her and say good-bye at the same time—something she wasn't expecting. An idea started to percolate as he headed for the facility chamber, and by the time he felt presentable again, he knew how he would surprise her.

He was the one to get a surprise though, when he entered the bridge and saw Cherry alone at the navigator's station. "Where the
drek is Mar-Dot?"

Cherry turned around and smiled sweetly. "What a lovely greeting. Are we a bit hung over or just the usual grumpy?"

He gave her a sheepish grin as he bent down to give her a soft kiss. "Sorry, love. Good morning." He kissed her again. "Or rather, good evening." With a blink of his eyes he made an enormous bouquet of red and white flowers in a crystal vase appear on the panel in front of Cherry. "I would give you the real thing if I could." Taking her hand, he sat down in his chair and pulled her onto his lap for the kind of greeting he had meant to give her. "Thank you."

With a twinkle in her eye, she said, "It was my pleasure, Captain."

"That's nice of you to say, but—"

She briefly pressed her lips to his. "If I say it was a pleasure, it was. Now tell me how you feel."

"I'm fine. Better than fine actually. And I am extremely appreciative of everything you did. However, I would like to know why
you
are at the controls."

"Mar-Dot was dead on their feet. I may be an amateur but I'm at least alert, and I know enough to call for help if something happens. Anyway, I've only been alone here for a couple hours. We're heading for Norona, by the way." She explained the reason for her decision, which he agreed with, then they reviewed everything that had occurred while he was incapacitated.

"You should get a commendation, love. You may be an amateur Consociation agent but you performed like a real professional. Probably saved millions of lives besides mine."

"Really?" Cherry beamed with pride. "Wait till I tell Aster she's no longer the only Terran heroine in Innerworld. I wonder how she's doing. That baby is due in another week or so."

He gave her a squeeze. "From everything you've told me about your friendship, she wouldn't dare go into labor without you being there. I promised to have you back in time and I will, you'll see. There's only one thing I'm concerned about."

She sat up and cocked her head at him.

"I have no idea what Bessima looks like. I realize she would recognize me by my hair, if nothing else. But if she has been projecting my image to the Terrans, everyone else might recognize me too. I figure I'll have to disguise myself to prevent panic, in which case Bessima would have no reason to introduce herself to me. How am I going to locate her?"

"I suppose you could go back to the rendezvous point several days in a row and look for a big, ugly, scarred woman who showed up every day."

"Your assumption about her appearance is reasonable but not necessarily accurate. At any rate, we don't know for certain how many days she'll keep going back before she gives up. And what if there's a big crowd?"

"Hmmm. A crowd in front of the White House is a definite possibility.
Shoot!
What am I thinking of? There's no problem. I forgot to tell you. Josep made my hand tingle when he touched it. Now I'm positive you were right about the Illusian chemistry business. All I'd have to do is walk around and touch anyone who might be Bessima, then point her out to you."

"Wait one minute. Who said you were going with me?"

"Of course I'm going with you. By your own admission, I'm your
partner
on this assignment. That means I get to see it through to the end. I've already figured it all out. We make the report to the Consociation Regent then we check in with Rom and Aster in Innerworld. They'll help us with everything we need to get along in Washington while searching for Bessima. We should have several days' leeway. I could even show you around the Capitol!"