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There was a long pause. “I can hold High Command off for a while, but they’ll find out you’re gone eventually. And they won’t be happy.”

“Tell them it was my fault,” Rexx said. “I’ll take the blame. They can do what they like with me, just so long as they don’t get Daisy.”

“Rexx, it’s not that simple. They’ll still want to run tests even once we’ve got the implant out,” Cleo said. “We have no idea what this tech is.”

“They can run the tests when there’s nothing to find,” Rexx said. “I know what I’m doing.”

“They could strip you of your position,” Cleo said. “Send you to prison. Are you prepared for that? You’ve gone against a direct order from High Command.”

He grunted. “It won’t be the first time. It won’t be the last. I’m protecting my partner. Nothing else matters.”

“If you come back now, they won’t know what happened. We’ve still got time. And Angel’s looking at the data. She could have a breakthrough. If she finds out what this is and how to stop it, we can convince High Command that Daisy can stay. We’ll prove to them she’s safe.”

“It won’t be enough,” Rexx said. “They’re spooked. And they’ll disregard anything we tell them.”

“They won’t. Daisy’s a valuable member of the crew. They want her fit for operations as soon as possible.”

“So why do they want to take me away and treat me like a prisoner?” Daisy said. “Just like you did.”

“Not because we wanted to,” Cleo said. “I had to consider the safety of the crew.”

“You don’t need to do that anymore,” Rexx said. “I’ve got Daisy. We’re both safe. And with us out of the way, the rest of the crew won’t be compromised.”

“Nothing I can say will change your mind, will it?” Cleo said.

“It won’t. And I’ll take full responsibility for this,” Rexx said. “I can handle whatever High Command staff throw at me.”

Cleo was quiet for a few seconds. “I’ll do what I can from this end. Daisy, stay safe. Do what Rexx tells you. He’s put a lot on the line to keep you from harm. We’ll cover for you as long as we can.”

Daisy pressed her lips together then nodded. “Of course.”

“I’ll be in touch when I have news.” Rexx disconnected the link then turned to Daisy.

Fear shuffled behind her eyes, as well as anger. “I’ve got you. We’ll—”

His stomach lurched as the ship pitched sideways. He spun his seat to face the controls. “What the—”

Something slammed into the ship’s hull, and alarms screamed.

Rexx’s fingers flew across the controls, trying to regain ship stability.

“Did we hit something?” Daisy twisted in her seat as she looked out the window.

“We’re not in a debris field. And the shields would have deflected any space junk.” Rexx finally got the stabilizers back on line, and the ship’s movement evened out.

Daisy gripped the edge of the control panel. “You think someone’s attacking us?”

“There’s nothing on the monitors,” Rexx said. “There are no ships in firing range.”

The sound of crunching metal almost deafened him as they took another pounding.

Rexx growled as he scanned the vicinity for anything leaving a cloaking signature. Whatever the hell was out there, it was big, and its weapons were focused on them.

Another blast hit them, and smoke poured into the cockpit.

“Strap in,” Rexx said. “This ride is about to get bumpy.”

Chapter 9