Safe (The Shielded Series Book 1) (8 page)

He loved the flush on her cheeks, the puffiness of her lips, the tousled
hair on her head. He’d caused all three of those and wanted to affect her in so
many other ways.

“And you do kiss better than Homer,” he said.

She shoved him, and he grabbed her left arm. He traced the ring of stars
as he had back in his domicile. “These are hot.”

“As is this.” She fingered the tribal swirls inked up his neck and around
his right ear.

“Does kissing like we just did mean we’re now able to swap tattoo
stories?” He didn’t know why he wanted to know the reason for the stars so
badly, but he did. He actually wanted to know everything there was to know
about her.

Darina was quiet for a few long minutes, then she slid onto the table
next to him, her feet dangling. She rested her left hand on her thigh and
wiggled her fingers. “This isn’t my original hand.”

Gently, he lifted her hand in his and inspected the star tattoos more
closely. Sure enough, a thin seam was just below them. “A prosthetic?”

She nodded, taking her hand back. “It’s what happens when you go thrill
seeking.” She outlined the fingers of her left hand with her right index
finger. “I’d been flying with Ghared, before the Unplug when the biggest thing
we had to worry about was how we’d spend a Saturday. Carefree and clueless, you
know?”

Foster didn’t know, but he nodded anyway so she’d continue.

“Ghared banked around a skyscraper at a near ninety degree angle as he’d
done a billion times.” Her brows lowered and her prosthetic hand curled into a
fist. “Unfortunately the skyscraper he’d chosen that day had a bridge
connecting it to its neighboring building and he couldn’t avoid crashing. He
ended up with a concussion and was cleared for military duty a few days later
when the world went dark.”

“But you weren’t so lucky.”

“Nope. My hand had gotten crushed so badly I had to give it up. Ghared
felt awful, but it wasn’t his fault.”

Still, Foster had the urge to find Ghared and pound on him. If the guy
had been more careful, nothing would have happened to Darina. He didn’t like
the idea that she’d been in pain.  

“Can I see something?” he asked, holding his palm out for her hand.

She rested her hand in his and he held his tablet over it. With a few
taps on the screen, he confirmed what he had thought. “It’s one of mine.”

“What?”

He ran his finger along the smooth skin on the back of the prosthetic
hand. “It says right here,
ET-FA-98732.
”

“And that means?”

“That means Emerge Tech, Foster Ashby, limb number 98732. I made this… or
at least the design for it.”

She held her hand up, looking at it as if seeing it for the first time.
“Well, for what I had to do to get this, I’m glad I ended up with the best.”

He desperately wanted to ask what she had to do, but was almost positive
it had to do with why she thought all rich men were bastards. He was fighting
to stay out of that category so he didn’t ask. Not now anyway.

Clearing her throat, she said, “Now you. What prompted the neck and ear
tattoo?”

“Would you believe a similar trauma to yours?” He lifted his right leg
and shook his booted foot. “This is also a prosthetic. One of mine too and the
reason I went into that line of work to begin with.”

“How much of it?”

He slashed his right index finger along his upper thigh and Darina’s
eyebrows rose.

“That much? Wow. What happened?”

“In college, someone found out I was a GEC. The manufacturer tried to
reclaim what was theirs.”

Her hand went to her mouth. “Oh, Foster. They tried to… take you apart?”

“Right on campus. And not gently either, but I managed to escape. Minus
one leg. The woman who’d taken me in, as you’ve taken in Zeke, picked me up
when I called her and after some time of healing, Carielle arranged for a
prosthetic leg. They were poorly designed then. I made it my mission to improve
them.”

“So if you almost died because your GEC secret was discovered,” she
began, “I have to ask again why you told me, not knowing me at all? Why risk
being ripped apart again?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. It just felt right to tell you.” Since Mikale
had left Emerge Tech and had gone down the dark path he’d chosen, Foster had a
hard time finding the best in people. Something in Darina, however, gave him
hope that good people still existed.

Darina studied him for a moment then rested her prosthetic hand on his
thigh. “You did a good job on this. Thanks.”

He put his hand atop hers. “It was a selfish goal, but I’m glad someone
like you benefited.” He pointed to his tattoo. “Anyway, I got this after losing
my leg. The design is ancient, and it means
survival
.”

“I like it.” She reached over and pressed her lips to the design.

Before he could respond to that gentle kiss and steal more, she hopped
off the table. “I should go find Zeke and Ghared. You should get some work in.”
She pointed to the worktable. “Mind if I walk around the property again and
plan my security strategy?”

“Of course not.” Though he didn’t want to be without her presence even
for a short while.

“Good. See you later.”

“Count on it.”

****

Darina slumped against the lab door after she’d closed it behind her.
Foster had nearly kissed her senseless in there.
Damn.
She’d been with a
few guys here and there, but only one had ever made her mouth—and other
parts—feel so electrified. And she didn’t think about that guy anymore. Well,
she tried not to. He had a way of cropping up in her mind on occasion.

But Foster put a new memory in there.
A crazy wonderful memory.
One she wanted to revisit as soon as possible.

She put her hand to her chest where her heart still drummed, overwhelmed
by the physical reactions Foster’s kiss had caused. Seeing this amazing
property and sharing stories with him about their traumas had done something to
her.

She felt as if she
knew
him.

“Well, this is dangerous.” Never a good idea to become involved with
someone you were supposed to protect. It took your mind off the goal. It
distracted you. It made you care beyond getting a paycheck.

Not that she was convinced she’d be getting a paycheck anymore. She had
no way of knowing whether Emerge Tech had survived the fire or not. Would they
be pleased she’d gotten him out of their walls or angry she’d allowed him to
get so far away?

Shaking her head, she decided not to worry about money right now. As long
as she and Zeke were on this property, they wouldn’t have to worry about food,
the only thing she really used money for. Besides, she couldn’t put a price on
the experience Zeke was having amongst other GECs. That was an opportunity only
being here could provide. 

After ascending the stairs and pushing open the hidden bookcase door,
Darina inspected the main house’s kitchen more closely until a few GECs
filtered in with baskets of food. They told her to stay and were perfectly cordial,
but she continued on to the great room. It had one exit which she discovered
led to a deck facing a majestic mountain range in the distance.

“The White Mountains in New Hampshire,” a voice said below the deck.

She peered over the railing to find Pike standing there. “They don’t look
white.”

He laughed. “This is true. In summer they are pretty damn green, aren’t
they?” He climbed the deck steps and stood next to her. “Your tour with Foster
all over?”

“Yes. I’m scouting around now, deciding how to best keep him safe.”

Pike appeared to consider her words carefully before saying, “Some of us
wish to help with that.”

“How many is ‘some of us’?” She wasn’t opposed to getting help,
especially from these people who knew the property and appeared to care deeply
for Foster. After kissing him, she understood how easy it would be to care
deeply for him.

But she was going to ignore that. She had to.

Pike looked up to the sky, raising one finger for each name he ticked
off. It was then Darina saw what his genetically engineered
problem
was.
He only had three fingers and a thumb on each hand. She wondered what else
might be wrong with him. A shortage of fingers didn’t seem like enough to be
cast off or ripped apart. What was enough really? And why should the government
decide?

“About eight of us to start,” he said. “Smart folks. Strong too. And we
know the property well.”

“Any of you know how to use a weapon?”

At this, Pike grinned. “Sweetheart, most of us were bred to use a
weapon.”

“Oh. Right.”
Great.
Idiot
. “Are there weapons on site?”

Pike nodded. “Foster is a pretty peaceful guy, but he’s the complete
opposite of dumb. He knows the world that exists out there isn’t altogether
friendly. This place makes that world fade away, but it’s still there.”

How she wished that weren’t true.

“Okay, can you round up those who want to get involved and the weapons so
I can see what we’re dealing with?”

“Can do. Let’s meet at my cabin. Fourth one in from the left. Fifteen
minutes.”

“Copy that.” Before Pike could leave, she asked, “Have you seen Zeke and
Ghared?”

“Last I saw, Roben was getting all poetic about the solar panels.” He
rolled his eyes and jogged off.

Darina headed for the solar panel field, but stopped when a scream rattled
the woods to her left. Sprinting in that direction, her weapon drawn, she
searched the trees. When a second scream pierced the air, this one ending in a
pained wail, she called out. “Who’s there? Are you okay?”

Another cry sounded and Darina quickened her pace through the brush. She
broke through the brambles and nearly stepped on Estoria curled into a ball,
writhing on the ground.

“Are you in labor?” she asked, getting to her knees beside the woman.

“Y-y-yes.” Estoria cradled her stomach. “Just catch it. Just catch it.”

Without thinking, Darina rolled the woman onto her back and bent her
legs. Blood soaked the earth, and though Darina had not assisted in the birth
of any babies, she knew this was all wrong. Way too much blood.

“Just catch it.” Estoria’s voice was breathless, her face contorted in pain.

“I’ll catch it,” Darina assured. “You push.”

“I’m so… tired.” Estoria let out a wail, but pushed as well.

The baby’s head became visible and Darina prepared to receive the child. With
one final push, the tiny human plopped into Darina’s waiting hands.

It didn’t move.

It didn’t breathe.

It was purple.

Estoria flopped back onto the ground, her arms covering her face. “It’s
dead, isn’t it?”

After checking for a pulse and finding none, Darina said, “I’m afraid
so.” Her throat was tight, her hands shaking. She saw a great deal of death in
her work, in the city, in the world they lived in, but to hold a dead baby? Well,
that was something she never wanted to do again.

“Just once,” Estoria sobbed. “Just once, why can’t one of them survive?
Why do I have to be this way?” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “Was it a girl or
a boy?”

“Girl.” Darina struggled with whether or not to put the baby down to
comfort Estoria.

“That makes ten girls, ten boys.”

“You’ve given birth to twenty children?” That made Darina’s vagina hurt.

“Yes. It started when I was fifteen. I’m thirty-five now.”

“Foster mentioned he tried to help you with this condition.”

“First we tried terminating the pregnancy. I reconceived immediately
after. Next we tried a full hysterectomy. All the parts grew back within a
month. Not only can I fertilize myself, I can apparently regenerate organs.
That should be a good thing, but it’s not. It’s so not.” She sat up and held
her hands out. “Give her to me.” When Darina hesitated, she said, “I’ve held
every one of them.”

Nodding, Darina handed over the tiny body. She had to look away when
Estoria pressed a gentle kiss to the baby’s forehead.

“Thank you for coming to my aid.” Estoria looked at Darina. “I wasn’t
nice upon your arrival, but you helped me anyway.”

“I understand Foster bringing us here was a bit of a shock.”

“He’s only ever brought GECs here, and he hasn’t done that in ages
because there aren’t any new ones being made. We value the privacy he’s given
us here.” She rocked the baby as if it were alive in her arms. “If his enemies
get hold of him, however, we’d be pretty pissed about that.”

So would I.

“I’ll do my best,” Darina said.

“I know you will.” Estoria got to her feet, swaying a little. Darina
reached for her, but she held out a single hand. “I’m okay. I’m going to bury
this sweet girl with the others.”

“Do you want some help? Do you want me to get Foster?”

“No. I’m fine. There’s nothing he can do anyway. Smart as he is, he can’t
fix my heart which breaks every time I give birth. Nine months of loving the
new life inside me only to see it dead.” She squeezed her eyes shut, tears
collecting on her lashes.

“I’m so sorry, Estoria.” Darina wished she could do something for this woman
whose shoulders hunched as she walked away with her lifeless child tucked
against her bosom.

“Mom?” Zeke’s voice cut through the anguish.

Darina turned to see Ghared and Zeke approaching, with Homer galloping
alongside them. She didn’t wait for them to arrive. Instead, she jogged up to
Zeke and threw her arms around him.

“Whoa.” He stumbled back but put his arms around her in a return embrace.
“What’s this for?” He released her enough to hold her at arm’s length. “Is that
blood on your shirt? Are you hurt?” He looked her over with worried eyes.

Ghared was immediately at her side, nudging Zeke back. “Who did this to you?
Where are you bleeding?” He lifted her tank top, but she slapped his hands
away.