Chapter 7
“What do you mean you don’t know?” Frazier glared at his men. How many more failures must he endure? All the years he’d worked to build the rebel resistance to take over the government domes, he would have at least had two of the domes under his reign by now if it hadn’t been for the damn aliens.
The Drastans came offering food, clothes, medical treatment, and even offered to relocate humans to another planet to start over. The dome leaders refused the offer of relocation, typical power-hungry assholes that they were. That didn’t bother Frazier in the least. It was the interfering with the tribes that really pissed him off.
The tribespeople were so desperate, all it took was a promise here and there, a few doubts put into their minds about how their tribe leaders ignored their needs, and he had them hooked. Those people were so down on their lives, they were beginning to follow him without questioning his motives. Before the aliens came, anyway. Now that they had another option for survival, the tribespeople were rejecting him and the resistance. That was unacceptable.
And now he had another failure to deal with. “Did you at least injure the Drastans?”
“Pretty sure I got one of the bastards before the radiation storm hit. The storm came quick and strong, it probably finished them off.”
“Pretty sure? Probably? I want results, damn it!”
“Sorry, boss,” both men said at the same time.
Frazier slammed the back of the truck door closed, turning his back on the sight of the body of the dead rebel. “At least you didn’t leave any trails behind to lead back to us. Get rid of the body and keep watch on the dome in case the Drastans survived. Finish them off.”
“Yes sir.”
He waved the two men out. One of them limped and had to use his friend for support. “Get your leg treated, you’re no good to me otherwise.” He would have left the idiot out in the desert. It was the least he deserved after failing him so badly. Watching him in disgust, he felt the man was more of a liability than a source of help. Something would have to be done about that.
*****
Nix followed Corey to the entrance of the subway. They passed by the mixed security team, Drastans and humans working together. The guards just nodded them through without checking them. She frowned. That wasn’t normal protocol. The Dastan warrior should have at leased used a scanner to check for weapons.
Not that the weapons found would be taken away, not unless the people carrying them had a record for causing trouble. A database created through Drastan and human collaboration was helping them identify people that the tribes and domes had problems with and to register the weapons that they carried. And no one but the Earth and Drastan military was supposed to be allowed to carry explosives. It was a start to ensuring safety for all.
She hadn’t gotten a good look at the Drastan warrior working because she was concentrating on keeping her head down so no one would recognize her as something other than a human female. She would have to get access to the assignments for that day to find out who the warrior on duty was. He would need to be questioned to see if he is one of the traitors, and disciplined for not following protocol if not. She still believed protocols were put in place to protect all of them.
All her life, she had wanted to show that she was worthy, that even though she was female, she could still serve with honor. She had to work harder, fight smarter to get her fellow warriors’ respect. It infuriated her that this warrior didn’t take his assignment seriously. She could have been carrying explosives or otherwise intending harm. How dare he not even check? The human security person also needed to be investigated; he could be part of the resistance group.
As soon as they got to the bottom of the stairs Corey turned to her. “Did you notice anything off?”
She nodded. “Yes, the security detail isn’t checking people for weapons.”
“That’s a major problem. Did you recognize the Drastan?”
“No, I kept my head down so no one would identify me. Did you recognize the human?”
“No, but I got a good look at both of them so I can identify them later. I’m sure there are records for who was scheduled to work today. We’ll verify it when we return to the command ship.”
“That’s what I was planning to do.” She couldn’t help but admire his logic. Corey came off as easygoing and laid back, but when it came to performing his duties, he was spot on.
They made their way to the subway loading platform. A few other humans were sitting on benches waiting for a subcar to come through. She moved closer to Corey so he could hear her say quietly, “This must seem so strange to you, seeing your people waiting for a subcar when they used to be motionless for years—used solely for living spaces.”
“It is. Sometimes it’s hard to remember the time before that, too painful to remember. Seeing a working subway again is kind of surreal.”
He shook his head but didn’t say anything else. She didn’t press him about it either. There were too many people around who might overhear their conversation. Luckily, the subcar arrived. It definitely wasn’t anything like the transportation her people used on Drasta, but the improvements made with the power sources and equipment the Drastans had given them would provide for the humans for years, maybe decades. It would give them a huge stepping stone to moving forward and getting their planet back.
She followed him on board the subcar and he chose a seat for them in the back corner, away from the others. Sitting down next to a window out of the direct sight of most people, she felt more at ease and lifted her head to inspect their surroundings. Thankfully the subcar wasn’t completely full of people.
Nix felt his body heat radiating into her, they were sitting so close. It felt good—too good. She needed to distract herself from reacting to his nearness. “What were you like before the disaster?” she asked.
“I thought I knew it all, could do anything I wanted to without consequences. I was stupid.”
“You were young.”
“Yes, I was, young and cocky. I acted out against authority. I was always trying to prove others were wrong and I was right. I questioned my dad, my teachers, the police…”
