Page 96 of Star-Born Anomaly
It’s not right.
As much as she hated him, every cell protested at seeing him this way.
She shouldn’t care. The man had forced her from her home, destroyed it, and attempted to murder Iax multiple times. She shouldn’t care he’d beenchanged. That didn’t stop the crawling sensation from traveling up her spine and over her scalp at the way he stared at her. Where Iax had nuance to his expression, Sawyer looked completely empty behind his eyes compared to the fire she’d seen on their journey here.
She jumped back when Sawyer lifted his weapon, her shoulders slamming into Iax’s chest. Then Sawyer swiveled, aiming at the terminals surrounding the box.Pop. Pop. Pop.
An involuntary shout escaped her as glass and sparks flew in all directions. Next, Sawyer aimed at the box itself, and she ducked against Iax’s chest as metal and circuitry shattered and fell to the floor.Crash. Hardware fizzled and popped.
A hollow silence rang in the wake of the destruction. Then they were moving, Iax’s hand around her waist, lifting her above the glass and debris that crunched beneath the defenders’ boots. He didn’t set her down until they’d exited the lab.
Iax’s hand tugged her along, his chest pressed against her shoulder. Sawyer remained close on her other side as they hurried down the corridor. Bracketed between them, the men traveled as one, their steps in sync.
They turned a corner, and Wynn peered up at Sawyer. He cast her a quick glance, then focused forward. Nausea swirled in her stomach.
“Where are we going?” she asked, her throat tight and scratchy.
Iax answered. “To the bridge.”
Her feet skidded against the cold deck as fear gripped her heart. “What? Why?” They needed to get off this damn ship as fast as possible.
His hand was under her elbow in the next moment, herding her along. “We will all travel to Sector Ten.”
She stopped, and his chest knocked into her. “No,” she said with a shake of her head. “You can’t take this entire ship.” Scowling at him, she lifted her chin.
He tilted his head, eyes glinting. “I need to guarantee they will not pursue us.”
“Then figure out a different way.” When he continued to stare at her, impassive, she gritted her jaw. “If you take this ship,this warship,then the CORE will surely attack Sector Ten in retaliation. Do you want that?”
The entire group did not move in the wake of her question. The alertness reminded her of a computer system processing data too big for its servers. Wynn sucked in a breath and kept Iax’s gaze, willing him to see the truth in her words.
The CORE government was already on edge with Calypsons and Tellusians alike. A large-scale attack, like absconding with a fully armed and staffed Guardian, would bring war to Sector Ten’s doorstep. The CORE wouldn’t be able to ignore it.
Stars above, they might not already because of what Iax had done.
Iax blinked, then nodded. “You may be right. We will leave instead. And quickly.”
Wynn didn’t have time to bask in her full-body relief, because they were moving again, switching directions to return where they’d come, Iax on her right and Sawyer on her left. They passed by the open door to the lab, then neared a junction. The group’s steps slowed, perfectly in time with one another.
She heard a rustling, and turned her head to see a section of defenders at the back of the group spinning around, guns raised. They all stopped, the barrier of defenders around her making it hard to see what was happening.
Weapons fire blasted through the corridor, connecting with some defenders. Their autonomous shielding rippled with the impact, and the group closed tighter around her. Sawyer’s shoulder pressed against hers. The terminals lining the walls and the overhead burst apart from the onslaught.
She gripped Iax’s arm where he blocked her body with his.
“Use your gun or something,” she shouted at him as he stood there unmoving.
“There is no need for my weapon here.”
The commotion from the direction of the weapons fire faltered, and the deafening pops faded. Wynn shifted her position, needing to see, and caught sight of new defenders through the gaps of people. They had joined the fray, sneaking up behind those who had launched the attack.
A disturbing tranquility, an expectation, froze all sense of time. A shout rang out, cutting the silence like a blade. Another followed. The tortured sounds punched Wynn in the gut, making her flinch.
The shouts turned to screams. Someone dropped to their knees. Two more did the same. Wynn covered her ears, needing to block out the wretched sounds, but they seeped through her fingers and into the partsof her mind where she hid from beasts. Her skin crawled as the sounds crescendoed.
Then the corridor quieted as abruptly as the noise began.
Wynn lifted her head. “Are they...?” She didn’t know if she could bear to see the bodies.
