Lisia's Journey (13 page)

moving a bit parallel to the blond so he could use other craft for cover if needed.

Jarritt hadn‟t seen even one
Aridi
or UDA guard here, but wasn‟t too surprised.

They would have all rushed to help those in the city at the first word of the attack.

Those had been Jarritt‟s orders to his men. There was nothing on this landing pad that

couldn‟t be replaced. The lives of those within the city couldn‟t. The pirates had been

known to kill almost anyone in their path.

Jarritt moved around a shuttle to get a clear view and shot of the man. He watched

as the man keyed in a code onto a locked weapons box outside one of the UDA shuttles.

That was enough for Jarritt. He aimed and fired. The blast hit the man and he fell. Jarritt

ran over and secured the man. He wanted to question this pirate.

He took the small handheld link from his belt and requested information. Walking

around the pad, he checked to see if any of the other
Aridi
had arrived. He knew at least

one or two would have followed. He spotted two men coming from the forest. There

were a few crates on the pad, but none of them looked to have been tampered with. For

a moment, there was no response.

“We caught most of the men,
Shi’an
, but two escaped. They had small fighters

stashed in a clearing and took one of them. UDA fighters are giving chase, but don‟t

hold much hope of catching them.” Arik reported.

“Check the other fighters, but be careful of any traps.” Jarritt looked at the man he‟d

caught and then the crate the man had been trying to open. “I need to talk with

Lieutenant Commander Carson as soon as possible. Anything I need to know there?”

“The battle was fairly straightforward. Only one of our men was injured. There is

something I need to tell you about your Lady when you have time.” Arik hesitated and

then his words came out in a rush.

“Is Lisia hurt?” Jarritt‟s chest felt tight as panic seized him. He‟d just found her, he

couldn‟t lose her now.

“No, she hasn‟t been hurt.” Arik rushed to inform him.

“We‟ll talk as soon as I finish with the Lieutenant Commander. There are some

questions he needs to answer,” Jarritt decided. The assurance that she hadn‟t been hurt

had relieved him a little, but he did want to know what his
Ferot
had to tell him about

Lisia.

Jarritt turned his attention to finding out what the man had been after. The attack

on the clan had been a distraction. The real target had been the landing pad. The pirates

had to be after something, but as far as Jarritt knew there really wasn‟t anything here

worth the effort. He didn‟t have to wait long for the Lieutenant Commander to arrive.

Lieutenant Commander Carson jogged down the path and onto the paved pad.

“Your
Ferot
said that you needed to see me, that you‟d tracked one of the men

here.” The Lieutenant Commander strode around one of the shuttles. His eyes went to

the shuttles, obviously looking for damage or some sign of sabotage.

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Lisia’s Journey

“Yes, he tried to open that box. Is there something in your supplies that he could

want? He went straight to your crates as if he knew what he was looking for.” Jarritt

gestured to the crate, but didn‟t take his off the Lieutenant Commander.

Marsh Carson frowned. “That‟s just extra food and other supplies to replace those

used on the refugees. There‟s nothing there that they‟d really want. Not even any

weapons.”

The Commander‟s eyes suddenly rounded and he drew in a slow breath.

“What? Is there something else they would want?” Jarritt asked shortly. He stepped

forward.

“Not here. They came after the wrong shipment.” Lieutenant Commander Carson

slowly shook his head a smile spreading across his face.

“Wrong shipment?” Jarritt wondered what had the man smiling like that.

“There is a shipment coming soon with weapons and some equipment that should

help us in the fight against the pirates. It was delayed.” Marsh explained.

“They knew about it, but they didn‟t know about the delay. Who would have that

information?” Jarritt frowned. The pirates had to have a contact to have known that.

“That‟s hard to say. Those with high enough clearance to know about the weapons

would have known about the delay. Since they attacked now, their spy isn‟t that high in

the ranks.” Marsh‟s mouth pulled into a straight line and his brow furrowed.

“So how do you think the pirates got the information?” Jarritt tapped his fingers on

his thigh.

“Pillow talk with a lover, loose lips, maybe even just a chance occasion of hearing

two higher level officers talking about it. I‟ll send word and they‟ll find out and take

measures to see that it doesn‟t happen again.” Marsh said with a grimace.

Jarritt wasn‟t going to hold his breath. With the number of people who were part of

the UDA, it could take years for them to find the person responsible. If they ever did. It

was far more important to stop the pirates.

“What does the equipment do? Did they want it or just want to destroy it?” He kept

his mind focused on the matter at hand. Knowing what they had wanted to do might

help predict when and where the pirates might attack next.

“If they knew the specifics of what will be in the delivery when it gets here, they‟d

probably want to destroy it. It could help us finally track them.” Marsh‟s voice lowered

and he looked around to make sure no one was close to them.

Jarritt nodded. It had to be some kind of tracking device or something to help

uncloak the shielded craft as they zipped in and out of the area. Those little fighters just

seemed to disappear. On some occasions they hadn‟t even known the pirates had

landed until after the theft was discovered. Disabling those shields would probably lead

to a quick capture of the pirates.

Jarritt left the landing area and headed for the holding. He left the Lieutenant

Commander to check the boxes and shuttles for damage. Now that the danger was

59

Rebecca Airies

over, he needed to see what had happened with Lisia. His
Ferot
wouldn‟t have

mentioned anything if it hadn‟t been important. Something had happened, but at least

he knew she wasn‟t hurt.

He walked into the holding and found it in disarray. Crates of supplies had been

broken open, the contents spilled across the street. He caught sight of a small puddle of

blood near one of the broken boxes. It looked like the battles here had become physical

at some point. He saw Arik at the end of the street directing the clean-up. Jarritt strode

over to him, impatient to find out just what had happened with Lisia.

“How is everything here?” Jarritt asked. His hand hovered near the stunner at his

hip. Caution rose at the sight of the violence that had taken place here.

“We‟re just cleaning up the mess the attack made,
Shi’an
. The captives are being

given secure accommodation and we‟ll question them before turning them over to the

UDA.” Arik looked around the area.

“What happened with Lisia?” Jarritt relaxed certain that all of the details would be

handled and that there was no lingering danger to the women and children.

“She was outside when the attack occurred.” Arik took a deep breath, but his eyes

remained locked with Jarritt‟s gaze.

Jarritt tensed and a surge of raw fear pumped through him. “You told me that she

wasn‟t hurt.”

“She wasn‟t hurt. I told her to get inside. She didn‟t obey immediately. There was a

child near one of the buildings. She ran over to him and nearly got herself shot before

she managed to get inside a
marrohl
,” Arik said slowly.

Jarritt felt anger rise in him replacing the fear in a hot rush. She‟d risked her life,

disobeyed an order from a warrior during a battle. For his
Ferot
to come to him about,

he knew she must have really come close to being injured.

“Where is she?” he asked, his voice soft and low.

“In the main room of your
marrohl
. I escorted her there right after the battle and

have had a man watching the door since. She hasn‟t tried to leave.” Arik looked toward

the doors of the
marrohl
.

Jarritt followed his eyes and saw the man standing guard. He nodded slowly to

Arik and headed for the door. He‟d known he‟d probably have to punish Lisia at some

point. She had too much spirit not to push in some way. He‟d never envisioned a

circumstance like this. He‟d thought she‟d try to leave. Maybe get her friend the

Lieutenant Commander to help her in some way.

He strode into the
marrohl
, anger nearly at a boiling point. At first, he didn‟t see her.

He narrowed his eyes and looked again. Finally, he spotted her with a group of women,

laughing and talking as if nothing was wrong. She looked so normal in a light green

shirt, black pants and slippers. Almost before he realized what he was doing, he began

stalking over to her.

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Lisia’s Journey

She saw him before he reached the table. Something in his expression must have

told her he wasn‟t happy. She stopped laughing and her smile slowly faded. She stood,

her hands resting on the tabletop. For a moment, he thought she was going to run. He

stopped and tried to get hold of his temper. He couldn‟t discipline her when he was this

angry.

He gestured to a spot just in front of him. “Come here.”

He saw her swallow. She stepped away from the table and walked over to stand in

front of him. Nervousness rolled off her. He could feel it and smell it. She licked her lips

and shifted her weight from foot to foot.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

He nodded. “Something is definitely wrong. Go to our room and wait for me

there.”

She tensed and drew in a sharp breath. Her mouth opened. He thought she was

going to argue or question the order. He could feel her defiance swelling and he had no

idea how he‟d handle that as angry as he was. She blinked and slowly closed her

mouth. Nodding, she turned and walked to the door. Her soft-soled shoes made almost

no noise, but he couldn‟t miss her stiff posture or the anger brushing his mind. Her

head was held high.

Jarritt watched until the door slid shut behind her. He exhaled slowly and left the

marrohl
. Before he went to her, he needed to let his anger cool. He didn‟t want the

emotion to rule his actions.

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Rebecca Airies

Lisia exhaled heavily and looked toward the door. The room she now shared with

Jarritt seemed quiet and oppressive. She sat on the edge of the bed, her fingers digging

into the soft fabric of the blue and green blanket. The bed was large, but the size suited

the room. She could have sat in one of the two chairs facing each other in the far corner,

but she wanted to see the door. The view from the chair facing the door was blocked by

the opposite chair. She knew that if she got up and started moving she‟d be pacing in

moments. The room would seem even smaller and more confining that it did now. She

was nervous.

She had no idea what she‟d done to make him that furious. After that look, she had

no doubt that he believed she‟d done something. She‟d felt his anger washing over her.

It had stunned her. For a moment, she‟d had the impulse to ask him what was wrong,

what she‟d done. She‟d caught herself just before the question could tumble free. Not

because of respect for his position and authority, although, the action could be viewed

in that way. She‟d remained silent only because she knew asking those questions would

probably infuriate him.

So she waited and the frustration and anger built. She hadn‟t done anything. It

seemed like an eternity passed before the door slid soundlessly open. He stepped into

the room and stopped just inside the entrance. His brown eyes showed absolutely no

emotion. She was a little relieved to feel that his anger had cooled, but his silent, intent

stare made her want to squirm.

“Stand up.” He didn‟t move from where he stood, his feet braced apart as if he

expected a fight.

She stood and bit at her lip. “What‟s wrong? You were so angry. I know you‟re

angry with me, but I can‟t figure out why.”

“What‟s wrong?” His eyebrows went up and he shook his head. “It‟s your actions

that are wrong. Are you saying that you don‟t know what you‟ve done?”

“I‟m saying I don‟t know what has made you angry. I know what I‟ve done today,

but I can‟t think of anything that should cause you to be as angry as you were.” She

kept her voice soft and tried to seem relaxed.

She was far from calm, but she tried not to show it. She didn‟t want to seem

defensive or anger him again. Her instincts screamed that it might be a good idea to get

out of here now. Not that she was going to make a run for it even if it did sound like a