Sabin, A Seven Novel (33 page)

“Right. What about getting one for Serena? Humans love those things.”

“That’s an excellent idea. And it could keep her company when I’m gone. Thanks, Rafe. Do you think you can locate one for her?”

“I don’t see why not. And if I can’t, I know Edge can.”

“I can picture how excited Serena will be already.”

“If she’s anything like Juliette, she’ll be past excited. She may love the dog even more than she loves you.”

The fact that Rafe knows the depth of our feelings for each other doesn’t go unnoticed. “How did you know?”

“I’m not blind, Sabin. Everyone knows.”

After a curt not, I say tightly, “Well, if you could get on the procurement of the canine, I would appreciate it.” I leave him standing in the conference room. I’m not in the mood for dealing with any of his shit.

Something’s up. Everyone is acting strange—again. Edge and Verus have been absent a lot, holed up together in the new sec center. Sabin is tight lipped about what’s going on, and everyone’s mood is in the dumpster. When I ask, I get the silent treatment.

“Why don’t you trust me?”

Sabin’s head swivels in my direction. His expression is stony. “I do trust you.”

“No, you don’t. When I ask you a question, I never get an answer. You evade me like a criminal evades the cops.”

He won’t even look at me now.

“What are you hiding from me, Sabin?”

A hand reaches behind his neck and he rubs it. Then he sighs. “It’s not that I don’t trust you. It’s that I don’t want to worry you.”

“Oh, and keeping me in the dark doesn’t worry me?” I cross my arms and my toe starts tapping. He sees it and shakes his head.

“Serena, I …”

“Bullshit.”

He cocks his head and a smirk appears. “Seems I can’t outsmart you anymore.”

“Could you ever?”

“Not really. I lied and told myself I was doing an admirable job of it.”

I take handfuls of his shirt and say, “Spill. Now. Or you won’t like my behavior if you don’t.”

“We located Judgment Day. Edge and Verus are assessing the dangers in taking it back.”

“I see. And where precisely is it?”

“In Andromeda on some fucking hellacious planet that’s not fit for life.”

“Annnnnd …?”

“We’ll go in and get it.”

He’s not exactly forthcoming. The corners of his mouth pull down and his lips stretch into a hard line.

“What else?”

“What else?”

“There has to be more or you wouldn’t be this tense. I know you, Sabin.”

He releases a harsh growl. “The Shaurok. There are dozens who guard it.”

“And what makes you think you can march in there and back out in one piece?”

“I don’t happen to think that, but Edge and Verus seem convinced of it.”

Now I get it. He’s been trying to keep this from me because he’s damn scared of what will happen if they try to retrieve the damn thing. This is so unlike him.

“So what are you doing to ensure everyone’s safety?”

“Edge and Verus are looking at every possible scenario and running every security detail. They’re scanning the planet and looking for shields and anything that could trigger an alert to our presence.”

“Sabin, is your technology as good or better than theirs?”

“What do you mean?”

“What if they have better surveillance equipment than you? What if their detection capabilities are better?”

He slashes his hand through the air, dismissing my suggestion. “They’re not. They are inferior to ours.”

“And you are one hundred percent sure of that? And that they don’t have some super secret weapon?”

“No. If they did, why would they need Judgment Day?”

“Super power. But I’m not talking weapons here. I’m talking super secret weapon as in something up their sleeve, maybe some force field. You have your invisibility cloaks. Maybe they have something even better.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. I’m speculating here. Trying to get you to think outside your usual Sabin box.”

“My Sabin box. I see.” At first, his eyes twinkle, but then they clear and he starts to pace. “You’re right. It could be a ploy to get us there.”

“Yes! What happens if you get there, it
is
a trap, and you’re outnumbered?”

The dark look that now simmers in him is all the answer I need. “Don’t go, Sabin. This isn’t good. I know it.”

“It’s fine. We won’t put ourselves at unnecessary risk and I make the final call.”

“Promise me,” I beg.

“I promise.”

~~~~~

The following week, I contemplate asking Sabin about SCUBA diving, when Edge approaches me. I am outside, sitting on a chair, overlooking the sea, which is only about a hundred yards from where the house sits. I have squelched the temptation, but the urge to dive is killing me.

“Serena, can you come with me?”

“What’s up?”

“A surprise!” Edge bounces on his toes. It’s a comical sight to see a man of his size acting like this.

“Um, Edge, what kind of surprise?”

“You’ll see, just come.”

He holds out his hand and I take it, allowing him to lead me inside. All of the men are there, standing in a circle, and Sabin’s back is toward me. When I get close enough to touch him, he turns around, and in his arms is a furry little creature. A puppy.

“Surprise!” Sabin grins like a child, handing me the ball of fur. I accept it because I don’t know what else to do, but the truth is I’m mildly in shock.

“A puppy?”

“Yes!” Edge is acting like he’s the one who got the puppy. “Isn’t he cute?”

“Er, yes, he is.” I hold the little fella. He’s black with wisps of feathery hair poking out at odd angles everywhere. “What kind is he?”

Once again, Edge calls out, “He is known as a mutt. The man who sold him to us said he is of fine stock.”

“Seriously?” My brows furrow because I’m pretty sure they’re serious, but they were duped. And for The Seven to be duped is some major shit. “Where did you get him?” I ask nonchalantly.

“From a man down the road. Why?”

“Okay, guys don’t get all pissed off here. The little fella is adorbs. Too cute and all that jazz. But the dude you bought him from took you for a ride. A mutt is a derogatory term. It means he has no clean lineage. His sire was probably some dog that wandered in off the street and got the dam pregnant. You know? And the dam probably was a mutt herself. But it’s cool, because little Walter here is the cutest puppy in the world. But I’ve got to tell you, I have no freaking idea what to do with a dog. I never had pets growing up, other than my goldfish, so …”

“Walter?” Sabin asks. “You’re going to call him Walter?”

“Yes. It’s a stately name, I think.”

“I was thinking he should be called Snuffles.”

“Snuffles? What kind of a name is that? He’ll grow up thinking he has allergies.”

“Allergies?”

“You know, snuffles, sniffles. If you’re giving him to me, I would think I’d get to name him.”

Edge ekes out a nervous chuckle. “She’s right, Sabin.”

Sabin glares at Edge.

“So, did he come with a manual?” I ask. Seven pairs of startled irises stare at me. “Okay then. Do any of you know the first thing about dogs?”

I get a resounding yes, accompanied by grins. But then they back off because apparently they don’t have dogs on their planet, but they have canine-like animals. They look much the same and act the same.

“So, I’ll take them as the same. How do I train Walter not to pee and poop in the house?”

They mumble to themselves and each other and then Sabin finally has an admission to make. “We use our MSI technology for that, so we don’t really know.”

“So, what you’re telling me is you never actually trained a pet, your little artificial intelligent thingies did it for you?”

“Yes, that is true, but we are all intelligent ourselves. I believe we can figure it out.”

“Hmm. We’ll see about that.” I look down at little Walter and smile. He really is a cute little guy, all furry and big-eyed. Bending down, I click my fingers and he wags his tiny tail. I scratch him behind his ears, and when I do, something jumps up on my hand. “Ah, shit, the little bugger has fleas!”

“Fleas?”

“You’d better look them up and we need to give Walter a bath. Then you need to get some flea treatment, or this house will be overrun with them by tomorrow. I do know that much.”

Sabin yells, “Verus!”

“On it,” Verus answers.

When I scoop up Walter, a small puddle is on the floor. “What’s that?” Rafe asks.

It astounds me that I’m in the midst of all this manpower, literally, and these brainiacs didn’t stop to think about the ramifications of puppyhood.

Scratching my forehead, I say, “What the hell do you think it is, Rafe? It’s puppy pee. I have a suggestion. One or two of you needs to figure out how to house train a puppy or we need to get one of those MSI thingies, because I’m at a loss here. Besides, this was all your idea.” And as I’m walking away, I say over my shoulder, “And one of you needs to get me some good puppy shampoo. By the way, if I didn’t thank you, thank you for my puppy.” I kiss Walter and he licks my face. I do love puppy breath, I decide.

Fuck! What the hell am going to do with a puppy, of all things? Holding the little fella in the air so I can take a good look at him, I start to laugh. Really hard. The looks on their faces were priceless when I told them about the fleas, but the peeing and pooping thing, oh my god. They must have all grown up with silver spoons in their mouths. Did those MSI thingies change their diapers, too?

So much for SCUBA diving, unless I can outfit Walter with all the proper gear. Not funny, Serena. I do have to hand it to them. The idea that they would even think of giving me puppy is awfully sweet. And Edge—his excitement was off the charts. He was more excited than Sabin. You would think he was the one getting the puppy. Sometimes I think he has a crush on me, but then I realize he just wants to please me. He likes to see me happy.

“So, the puppy wasn’t a great idea, huh?” Sabin is behind me. I would’ve known even if he hadn’t spoken. Not only does his scent fill the room, but his energy invades it. A tingle runs up and down my spine, making me shiver in a good way.

“It’s the thought that counts, and it was a special thought. I’m just worried because I don’t know a damn thing about puppies or dogs.”

“Keep it in perspective, Serena. Walter is a creature of this world. He will be fine.” He runs a finger from my shoulder to my wrist.

“True, but he adds something to the mix I wasn’t expecting.”

“I wanted to give you something to keep you company while I was away, and I thought a canine would be a good choice. I erred and I’m sorry.”

My stomach twists with his words. Not the ones regarding Walter, but the ones about his leaving. “While you’re away. When are you leaving?”

The puppy is forgotten, left to roam in our room. Sabin tucks an errant strand of hair behind my ear, and says, “Soon.”

“I need specifics. Soon isn’t good enough for me.”

“We don’t have a time yet. Verus and Edge have the latest information and assure us that it is safe to go. We now wait for Drey to arrive. He will bring three more men with him. They will guard you while we’re away.”

My gut screams. This is all wrong. “Sabin, no. You can’t go!”

“We have to, Serena. This is what we do. Chase Judgment Day.”

“But something’s not right with this. I feel it here!” I pound a fist in the middle of my chest. “I never feel these things but right now I do. Please trust me on this.”

He takes my fist and unfolds it, linking our fingers. “I trust you above all. But Edge and Verus thoroughly checked it several times. And then after our discussion, sent another explorer in to see what else it could pick up. They even put out sensors for any unusual energy source and got nothing. I think we’re fine. And we’ll be a full team with Drey and have others standing by just in case. My main concern is leaving you here without any guards, but Drey will bring three of the new recruits. They are trained in combat and operations, so you will have a solid detail here. I feel confident in leaving you in their hands.”