Recon Marines II: Marine's Heiress, The (37 page)

“
We should leave them here
and go back to base,” Tar said. “Their emergency beacon should
bring a rescue soon.”

“
More likely it will bring
pirates in this sector,” Vin said.

“
They’ll freeze or starve
before then,” Roz said. “Children need to eat regular
meals.”

“
What by Fash do you know
about children?” Tar snapped.

“
Enough,” Joe said
quietly. The three marines stiffened to attention. “Why hasn’t
someone come looking for them by now? Queen Callie Adell is someone
important.”

They all stood quietly for a moment,
comfortable with the silence of the desert and each other. Joe knew
his men would do what he decided no matter their own feelings on
it. Following orders was all they knew.

Joe gestured toward their wrecked ship
sitting a half a mile from the women’s ship. “Do you forget why
we’re here?”

“
We haven’t forgotten,
sir,” Vin answered.

“
Then let’s take our
lesson and be wary of these women and the trouble they carry with
them. They may try to use us as others have. From what the lady
guard said, they know who we are.”

“
Are we going to help
them, sir?” Tar’s question was respectful, but his negative opinion
of the idea was in his tone.

“
What was our duty, our
purpose, before the powers corrupted it? How can we not help and
know they’ll die or fall into the hands of thugs? What would
members of the Rector Freemen do to that little girl?”

Joe looked at his men and received
their nods. He’d expected them. If they didn’t help these women
then the principles they’d sacrificed everything for had been
little more than space dreams.

Chapter Two

“
They’re coming back,”
Yalo said from her post near the open hatch.

“
Callie’s chest felt
tight, but was it fear or hope? These marines, no matter how
dangerous, had somehow survived.

“
They have to help us.”
Riba’s words sounded like a prayer. Sally suckled greedily at
Riba’s breast. Already the water and sparse food had restored her
milk supply.

“
They will.” But Callie’s
doubts grew. Why should the men help? The only thing she and her
people had to offer the marines could be taken without their
permission.

Joe hopped in through the door, a leap
of at least four feet he covered without any apparent effort on his
part. Callie peered beyond his shoulder and saw his comrades
spreading out in the barren landscape. To go where? Were they
leaving?

“
Do you expect a response
to your beacon, Lady Callie?” Joe sounded deferential, but his tone
left no doubt he expected an answer.

“
I’m still hoping for a
reply.”

“
Pirates might detect it
before help arrives.”

“
Don’t try to frighten us
with tales of space bandits.” Yalo moved over to stand beside
Callie.

“
We killed two outlaw
vessels before our crash.” If Joe took offense at Yalo’s words, he
gave no indication with change of expression or tone.

“
It doesn’t matter,”
Callie said. “We don’t have enough fuel to heat our vessel for the
night. We’ll freeze if you don’t help us. Our water is gone except
for what you gave us.”

Joe’s sharp gaze swept the interior of
their ship, jerking away from Riba and the baby. When his intense
blue eyes again looked into Callie’s, she was struck again by the
sheer beauty of his face.

“
We have a place three
days travel from here with plentiful water and sufficient food.”
Joe again gave Riba a quick glance. “It’s a difficult journey, but
we might be able to take you there.”

“
Might?” Yalo asked before
Callie could respond. “What difficulties?”

Joe ignored Yalo and looked at Callie
with the patience of a rock in his perfect posture.

“
How difficult?” But
Callie had already made up her mind. They had no choice.

“
Two of my men died the
first time we crossed. We know the land and dangers better now, but
the risk is great.”

“
My guard thinks you and
your men are the greatest danger.” Callie watched for any flicker
of reaction.

Joe’s gaze didn’t waver. “We could
have killed you all before now. Or taken what the pirates will
demand of you.”

Callie nodded. “I need to discuss this
with my staff.”

Joe snapped to attention but then
seemed to catch himself. He back up a step and gripped the ragged
side of the doorway with one strong, tanned hand. He’d removed his
camouflaged coverall. The short-sleeved shirt he wore clung to
muscles across his chest and shoulders. A thick belt hugged his
lean waist and emphasized his flat stomach. The tight pants
sculpted his rear and everything else below his waist as if he wore
a body stocking like a professional dancer.

Callie raised her stare to meet his
and realized he waited to get her attention. Hot blood rushed to
her face.

“
You have the hot time to
decide, Lady Callie. We must leave as soon as the sun starts its
decline and make the most of the cooler hours.” Joe hopped down and
walked over to join Vin.

Callie had considered many men in her
quest for a husband to rule beside her. None had compared in pure
male beauty to any of the marines. None had the intimidating air of
this Joe.

The women argued quietly behind her
except for Yalo who stared at the two marines also.

“
He’s right,” Yalo said.
“They could have raped us, killed us and done whatever they
wanted.”

“
You agree we should go
with them?”

“
What are our choices? The
marine could be right about pirates even if we weren’t going to
freeze or starve.”

Joe and Vin split up and soon
disappeared into the shimmering haze of the desert. Already the
ship’s floor heated, and the dry air sucked the moisture from mouth
and nose.

“
How do they
survive?”

Yalo pulled Callie deeper into the
interior of the ship and away from the open hatch. “They probably
have the most updated technology available and all types of
survival gear given only to the military. And we don’t know what
genetic constructs they might possess to live in adverse
conditions.”

“
Should I tell them
someone is chasing us?” Callie’s mind flinched away from the image
of the diplomatic escort cruiser they’d watched explode in a
brilliant moment of horror. They’d never seen the ship or ships
that had fired on them. Callie still wasn’t sure if the skill of
her pilots had saved her and her staff or if their attackers wanted
to capture them rather than kill them. Only the luck of a brief
magnetic storm had helped their damaged ship elude their pursuers,
but they hadn’t traveled far before they’d been forced to land on
this planet. The brave men driving her ship had perished but saved
their passengers.

“
Not yet,” Yalo advised.
“When we get to this place with water will be soon
enough.”

“
I don’t like being
dishonest.”

“
Don’t even worry about
it. It’s not as if you’re dealing with humans with souls or
emotions. Laboratory creations aren’t going to suffer from hurt
feelings.”

“
If they have no souls why
are they offering their help?”

Yalo shrugged. “Some kind of instinct
or training to protect. We can use that.”

Guilt tapped on Callie’s shoulders,
but she would use Joe and the others to survive. And what if her
enemies found out where they were? Should she warn Joe there might
be a force the size of a small army hunting her?

Sally burped loudly, and the women
laughed. The women trusted her and she couldn’t let them down. Even
if it meant putting these strange marines in mortal
danger.

* * * *

“
We’ll go with you.”
Callie resisted the temptation to put conditions on the agreement.
They depended on the mercy of the marines and had nothing to
bargain.

Joe gave a short nod. “You’ll need
your sturdiest boots and shoes. The clothing you wear will have to
do.”

“
We need to take along
some other things.”

Joe shook his head, before she
finished speaking. “We can’t carry anything else but
you.”

“
You won’t have to carry
us.”

“
We will.”

“
But we’ll need more than
one set of clothing. And what of the children? The baby needs
changing several times per day.” Callie didn’t think the small pile
of belongings they’d put together amounted to much. Two changes of
simple clothing for everyone, their small supply of medicine and
the few data packs they’d carried on their journey.

“
Your life or your
clothing, Lady Callie,” Joe said.

“
Sir,” Riba said. “The
baby must have linens and fresh clothing.”

Sally cooed as if in answer and waved
a tiny fist at her mother’s chin.

Joe took a small step closer to Riba
and stretched his neck to look at the baby. Riba had stripped the
infant down to her diaper during the mid day heat. Joe’s jaw
clenched in the largest display of emotion Callie had seen from him
so far. Rib lifted Sally toward him.

The marine’s eyes widened and he
retreated with his palms out in a warding motion. “Take what you
need for the … baby. Leave the rest and we’ll come back for it
later.”

He turned and hopped out of the door
before anyone could answer. Callie stared after him. He seemed a
little … unbalanced.

Acacia giggled, and soon Grace joined
her. Riba smiled and rubbed her head against Sally’s downy head.
But Yalo looked at the empty hatch with a puzzled expression
matching Callie’s feelings.

“
I think our lean, mean
marine is afraid of babies,” Acacia managed around her
laughter.

Callie smiled because she couldn’t
resist their merriment. Joe’s obvious discomfort around the baby
didn’t amuse her. Why would anyone react so to something so
harmless?

* * * *

“
We’ll have to double or
triple up tonight.” Only Tar grimaced at Joe’s words. “I don’t know
how fast we’ll be able to move so go light on the water. Tar, take
the point. Vin, cover the rear. Roz and I will take the
flanks.”

“
Who will take the baby
tonight?” Roz asked.

“
We’ll decide later,” Joe
answered. None of them wanted to sleep with an infant. He’d been
close enough to touch it and had smelled its strange
odor.

The women gathered in a small herd
near their disabled ship. Lady Callie stood tall and proud while
looking their way. The loose clothing she wore did little to
conceal the swell of her hips or the generous roundness of her
breasts. Damn him for noticing but how long since any of them had
lain with a woman? A year? And those women had been paid to
entertain them. Nothing like these women. Women such as they’d
never even seen.

“
Find the easiest route,
Tar, even if it costs us time.”

“
Yes, sir.”

An hour into their trip Joe knew they
were in trouble. The women took small steps. They labored up the
gentle inclines and breathed heavily of the dry air. Roz lifted the
little girl again, swinging her up to his shoulders. The child
laughed, an alien sound in the white sea of death they strode
upon.

The marines could have covered three
times the distance in the same amount of time. They had to move
faster if they wanted to reach the oasis before the hot hours on
the morrow.

“
Joe.”

Joe slowed to allow Callie to catch up
to him. Only her soft, brown eyes showed above the white cloth
she’d wrapped around her face but they sufficed to display her
displeasure.

“
We can’t keep up this
pace. Can’t we stop and rest.”

“
Not yet.” Joe searched
for the words to explain, but the lady’s presence tangled his
thoughts. His training didn’t include dealing with respectable
civilians.

“
We’re going…” Callie
stumbled into him, her words ending in a strangled cry.

Joe cursed and slid his knife from his
belt. He slashed at the cactus vine wrapping around Callie’s boot
and up her calf. He hacked it off but not before it left several
thorns in her footwear and pant leg.

Callie squeezed his arm, her thin
fingers digging into his muscles. She stared at the purple fluid
leaking like blood from the sliced vine.

“
What is it?” Her breath
brushed his face.

Joe couldn’t think with her only a
hand’s width from him. The cloth had dropped from her face and
exposed her smooth, pale skin to the harsh sun. He looked away and
kicked at the vine. “Cover your face.”

He inwardly winced at his the
harshness of his command. “The thorns are poison, one of the many
dangers in the sands. You have your wish, my lady. We must stop and
treat your injury.”

* * * *

Callie bit her lip as Joe pulled
another of the barbed thorns from her calf. His hard gaze flicked
up to her as a small whimper escaped her despite her attempt at
stoicism.