[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

two whooped.
Zackary opened the storage unit just as Gigi and Pax fell to the
floor.  What the hell?
Zackary shook his head a few times and then grabbed his temples.
 I don t feel so good. He staggered back and then he joined the
others. Adwaka stared openmouthed at the three men lying
unconscious on the floor. This was so not good.
Blade was gonna kick his ass for sure now.
Adwaka became lightheaded, the room swooning around him as
he staggered to the door. His feet wouldn t work for him no matter
how hard he tried to walk straight. He stumbled a few times before
making it to the wall and the control panel. The last thing he
remembered before blacking out was hitting the emergency button.
This was definitely an emergency.
* * * *
Blade paced back and forth in the sickbay as Adwaka, Gigi, Pax,
and Zackary occupied the med-beds.  What the hell were they
thinking? he growled as he continued to pace.
 I m guessing they weren t, Colt said as he stood by Pax s bed.
 They could have died! Blade was being irrational, and he knew
it. He had felt his heart rate elevate when he was on the bridge and
knew something was wrong with his mate. The only problem was, he
hadn t a clue where Adwaka had been& until the alarm sounded.
 But they didn t, Imlay reminded him as he checked their vitals
once more.
 I thought you were with them, Blade said as he stopped pacing
and glared at the doctor.  Why didn t you stop them?
 Do you think I would have allowed them to breathe in the
poisonous gas if I had known where they were going? Imlay set his
vid-pad down and matched Blade s glare.  They said they were going
Adwaka s Blade 89
to go scare Gigi. I m not their damn babysitter, Blade. If one of the
crew members had warned them about Latrishonia s poisonous gas
pouch, none of this would have happened.
 Stop with the blame game. None of us could have known that
they would be that interested in fish, Remy said as he sat next to
Gigi s unconscious form.
 They re safe now, and that s all that matters, Tank said as he
ran his hand over Zackary s midnight-black hair.  They are safe,
right, doc?
Blade could hear the panic in Tank s voice and knew how the
pilot felt. If he ever saw his mate lying unconscious on the floor
again Blade growled as he walked over to Adwaka s bed, ready to
go kill some dead fish for putting his mate in harm s way. They
should just shoot the containers out of an airlock and be done with it.
Black marketers? What in the hell had they been thinking?
 Yes, Tank. They are all safe now. Luckily the antidote is a very
common injection, and I had it aboard the ship. Imlay sighed as he
walked over to his desk and took a seat, laying his head in his hands
and rubbing his eyes with his palms.  The injection is working
through their blood systems now. It ll attach to the red blood cells that
the gas clung to and kill the poison.
 How long will that take? Blade asked.
 How the hell am I supposed to know? Imlay s hands pounded
on the desk as he spun around glaring at the room. He looked uptight
and anxious as he stared helplessly at the four men.
 It wasn t your fault, doc, Remy said softly.  You couldn t have
known what they were going to do.
 But I was with them. When they didn t return, I should have
checked on them instead of going to bed. The self-recrimination was
apparent in Imlay s voice, in his words. Blade felt like shit for
jumping all over Imlay now.
 They are fine, Imlay, Tank said from Zackary s side.  You got
to them in time.
90 Lynn Hagen and Stormy Glenn
 Who s manning the ship? Imlay asked Tank.
Blade could see the question for what it truly was an attempt at
changing the subject. He was all for that. There was no need for the
doc to blame himself for what had happened. That rested fully on
someone else s shoulders.
 Crank and Livewire. Tank chuckled.
Imlay stared openmouthed at Tank.  You trust Livewire to pilot
the Lady Blue?
 I might be a little nutty, but I m not crazy, Tank snorted.  It s
on autopilot.
Imlay s mouth twisted to the side as he crossed his arms over his
chest.  And you don t think my mate would be tempted to take it off
autopilot and do a little flying of his own? We re talking about
Livewire here.
 Fuck, Tank cursed as he looked hopelessly down at his mate.
Imlay waved a hand at the group.  I ll go check on Mr. Has-to-
Touch-All-the-Blinky-Lights while you men stay with your mates.
 Thanks, all four men chimed in as Imlay headed out of sickbay.
 You don t think he d really do that, do you? Tank asked as he
looked over at them.
 Livewire, Remy stated the name as he raised a brow. That was
all that was needed. Every last one of them cringed.
Blade s eyes snapped down as his mate moaned and his hand
came up to cup his head. Relief flooded through him seeing his mate
coming out of his unconscious state. He waited with bated breath as
Adwaka s eyelids fluttered and then those beautiful green gems were
staring at him.  How do you feel?
 Like a shuttle ran me over, backed up, and then ran me over
again. Adwaka swallowed and then blinked a few times.
Blade smiled.  That sounds about right. He reached over and
wiped away the tears that were suddenly falling freely from Adwaka s
eyes.
Adwaka s Blade 91
 I m sorry. I didn t know. His fingers curled around the sheet at
his sides.
Blade cupped his mate s face when Adwaka s chin began to
quiver.  And we should have warned everyone. Don t blame yourself.
We have enough of that going on already. Blade smiled down at [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]