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Chapter 6

The journey back tothe Apocalypse had been quiet. Georgia got lost in her thoughts as she tried to figure out which twisted alien was messing with these beautiful animals.

Ash tried to engage her in conversation a few times, but he soon got the message when she kept replying with one word answers.

She knew he didn’t mind her silence. That was one reason she liked having him as her partner. He didn’t press too hard when she needed space and to get lost in her head.

Georgia frowned as her stomach grumbled. Food would have to wait. She wanted to stay focused on the mission and delve into the information they’d gathered as soon as possible.

Ash powered down the ship’s engines once they were back on the Apocalypse and turned to her. “I know it was tough back there, but we did the right thing.”

Georgia hated to agree with him, but she’d learned first-hand that sometimes the weak got left behind to save a bigger mission. “I know. It still sucks.”

He reached over to squeeze her knee, but she shifted in her seat. Georgia wasn’t in the mood for comfort. Instead, she opened a comm link. “Cleo, we’re back. Are you free so we can report in?”

The reply came a few seconds later. “Sure. Give me an hour. I’ll meet you in the briefing room.”

“We’ll be there.” She cut the link and sat back in her seat. First, she’d update Cleo, then get to work on filtering through everything they’d collected. The answers were there. She just had to find them.

“Georgia, it’s okay to be upset by what we found. I’m not happy about it either,” Ash said.

“I’m not upset. I’m... okay. I’m unhappy about it, but I’m mainly angry.”

“And we’re working on stopping it. Those aliens won’t know what’s hit them when we find them.”

“Yeah, I know. I need to get to work.” She pushed away from her seat. “I won’t find anything if I sit here kicking my heels. I’ll run the body we brought back through decontamination to make sure it isn’t carrying anything nasty.”

“How about I do that? You grab some food and get cleaned up.”

Georgia hesitated but only for a few seconds. Ash would keep offering to help if she didn’t give him something to do. “Sure. Whatever you want.”

She didn’t miss his soft sigh but refused to let her emotions get the better of her about this mission. Her rage was the fuel she needed to see this through. And she would. She’d be front and center of payback when it happened.

Ash went to grab a portable decontamination unit from storage, while Georgia sorted through the data they’d collected. She frowned. There wasn’t much here, and no obvious evidence of which alien was doing this. But it could lead to a new location or even a clue to their next target. She just needed to keep looking.

In her old job, she’d often sift through weeks of seemingly useless information before something popped and she found herself chasing a hot lead. And Georgia had the patience to do this, particularly if it meant the animals were rescued.

She stayed on the ship, content to read and check data to see if anything stood out. She wasn’t in the mood for company or friends. And it was comfortable being alone. This was what she preferred.

“The animal has been decontaminated.” Ash returned to the cockpit.

“Great. Nothing bad showing?”

“No, we’re fine. I’ve sealed it back in the body bag. Cleo wants to take a look at it. She’s called in some of the other crew so we can get their opinion.”

Georgia stood and stretched before following Ash out of the ship. The docking bay was busy, with two ships being made ready for departure. She nodded at her colleagues but was quiet as she helped carry the animal along the ship’s main corridor to the briefing room.

Cleo was already in there when they arrived, along with the rest of the team. She arched an eyebrow when she saw what they carried. “You’ve bought me a gift?”

“A gift that doesn’t smell so sweet,” Ranger said. “What have you got in there?”

Ash placed the bag on the table and then unzipped it. “We’re not sure. But it’s not good.”

Daisy squeezed Rexx’s arm as she stared at the body. Dallin and Sloane leaned forward for a closer look, while Eden and Blaze wrinkled their noses.

Hunter grimaced as his gaze ran over the body. “It had better be dead. That thing could take us all out with the size of those claws.”

“Speak for yourself,” Rexx said.