Captive (14 page)
Jeffrey ran into the president's office, his face lit up with a million-dollar smile.
“The confiscation of the shipment was successful. There was no trap, just a couple of confused pilots that our men handled without any problem.”
“Excellent,” Davis said as he too smiled. “It would appear that we have ourselves an ally, Jeffrey.”
“Yes, sir, but I would certainly feel better if I knew why.”
“At the moment, I don
'
t know that I care about the why. I'm just glad something appears to be going right for a change. Let me know if we receive anything more from him. I'm going to go take a look at what our insider sent us.” Davis made his way to the hangar to take a look at the ship and supplies that they had stolen.
* * * * *
Mikayla sighed as she strolled through the upper level of the bar. It had been another two days since she'd seen Sidious, and she hated herself for actually missing him. It wasn't just the sex, but the bantering. She found she actually enjoyed antagonizing him. Didn't mean she wanted to see him, though. She needed this time away to get her head together and to strengthen her resolve to not let him seduce her again. She stopped at the edge of the balcony and looked to the main floor. Agnus paced back and forth like a caged animal, constantly glancing at the door.
What’s up with him?
He seemed awfully agitated today.
The bar doors opening caught her attention, and she ducked behind the chair with a soft gasp, hoping Sidious didn
'
t see her.
Lack of sleep had left her irritable this morning, so having to deal with him was the last thing she wanted to do. She peeked around the fabric with the intention to sneak off as soon as his back was turned, but his words made her decide against it.
“What's the emergency?” Sidious asked as he poured himself a cup of Korniga.
“I received a transmission from Stefan this morning. He had a tail,” Agnus said.
She watched Sidious turn his gaze around the room as though looking for someone. “Where's Mikayla?”
“She's still in her room.”
“How long has he had the tail?” Sidious asked, a worried frown creasing his brow.
Mikayla craned her neck to better hear. What was the big deal about Stefan having a tail?
“He thinks about three days. He doesn't believe he was there prior, but he can't be for certain. I'm just glad he was handling the trade dispute for your father and not something for…”
For who?
Mikayla peeked farther around, trying to get a better look at Sidious's face. What was going on with the two of them? Sidious slammed his cup down on the counter and cursed in another language. The look of anger on his face made her cringe.
“Was he able to get rid of him?”
“Yes, but you know Woods is behind it,” Agnus said, his voice anxious and agitated. “You've got to do something about him. He's getting too close.”
Too close to what?
Sidious leaned his hands on the bar, shaking his head in disagreement. “He's grasping at straws.”
“Yes, but he could
accidentally
grasp the right straw.” Sidious sighed and rubbed his forehead. “We can't talk about this here, Agnus.”
“I've swept through. The room is clean.”
Clean of what?
Sidious pressed his lips together and shot Agnus a strange look.
“It's clean, Sidious. No listening devices. Woods may suspect you and have your quarters bugged, but he hasn't gotten in here.”
Mikayla frowned, wondering what all that was about. Who would be listening to him? Her eyes widened slightly. Did that mean whoever was listening could hear them having sex?
Sidious sighed. “I can't do anything about it, anyway. If anything were to happen to him, there would be too many questions. He's too senior.”
“I don't like this,” Agnus hissed.
Mikayla strained to better hear their lowered voices, trying to piece together everything she'd heard. Was he a spy of some sort? That would be ludicrous and beyond dangerous considering how high up he was in rank. Biting her lower lip, she crawled to the back of a chair closer to the railing in the hopes she could hear them better.
“Tell Stefan to take a break. Lie low for a while,” Sidious said.
Agnus nodded as he sat on a stool. “He said he was headed to Daego to wait for you.”
“Good.”
“Are you still considering taking Mikayla?”
What? Mikayla thought. Taking me where?
“Yes. I think time alone away from here, away from all the reminders of what is going on would be a good idea.”
“I agree. Time away would be good for both of you. You
'
re too stressed out, and I'm worried about you.”
“I'll be fine.”
“You always say that,” Agnus said with a sigh. “I can tell by looking at you, you're far from fine.”
“Let it go. Besides, I still have to handle the burial of all Earth's dead in Dallas before I leave.”
His words were barely above a whisper, but Mikayla heard them. Her gut clenched.
Dead?
She closed her eyes against the pain and anguish that threatened to send her spinning. All this time, she'd tried not to think about people dying, but deep down she knew they had. To hear him say it made it so much more real.
“What have they been doing with them, so far?” Agnus asked.
“Mass graves. There's so many, that's the only thing I could think of. If you leave the bodies lying around, stench and disease will take over.” Thoughts of him taking her away were forgotten as anger took over. She heard the words “mass graves” and snapped. Glancing around, she found an empty glass and grabbed it. She stormed down the stairs, her only intent to hurt the man who had caused her people so much pain -- caused her so much pain. Halfway down the steps, she stopped and hurled the glass in his direction.
“You son of a bitch!”
Sidious ducked to the side, the glass barely missing his head and shattering on the counter behind him. His startled expression watched her warily as she ran to a table and picked up another glass, throwing it with all her might in his direction.
“What the hell?” Agnus said as he ducked as well.
“Damn it, Mikayla,” Sidious snapped, as he dodged yet another glass.
She was crying now, furious with him and herself. Grief for all those dead people fueled her anger as she continued to search the room for something else to throw at him.
Suddenly, his arms snaked around her biceps, holding her still, her back pressed against his chest. “Let me go,” she snarled at him.
“Stop it, Mikayla.”
“No. I'm not going to stop it.” She kicked at his shin, getting some satisfaction at his grunt of pain.
“I'm not letting you go.”
His whispered words in her ear sapped all the fight from her, and sobs shook her body in earnest. All those people dead, and at his hands.
“Please let me go.” Her voice quivered with emotion and sadness. “I would rather die with them than stay here with you.”
His grip around her tightened, and she could swear she heard hurt in his voice when he answered, “You don
'
t mean that.”
“I do.” She shook her head. “I don't want to be here.” She shoved out of his arms and turned to face him, tears streaming down her face. “How could you do this? How can you support a man bent on destroying anyone that doesn't think the same as he does? Someone that would kill anyone that won't bow at his feet!”
“Mikayla --”
“Don't Mikayla me. You're just like him. You're a power-hungry, arrogant, cruel --
”
“I am not like him!” Sidious yelled back. His eyes darkened to almost black, but she ignored it and pushed on.
“You're exactly like him. You don't care about Earth's people any more than he does.” She stomped off, determined to get away from him, to go back to her room and have a good cry.
As soon as her door shut behind her, it opened again. Sidious's huge frame took up the opening, his eyes boring into hers in anger and something else. Hurt? Regret?
No, not him. He didn't have it in him to regret anything.
“Get out!” She turned her back on him and stared down at Earth, but she could still see his reflection in the glass and knew he wasn't leaving.
With a heavy sigh, she leaned her forehead against the window, tears slipping out of the corners of her tightly closed eyes. Silent sobs shook her shoulders as she tried not to think about what was happening down there, tried even harder not to think about her attraction to the man standing behind her. The man responsible for all that destruction.
Not a man, an alien. He was an alien and her enemy.
She heard the door close and his steps as he came up behind her. He didn
'
t say a word, just turned her and pulled her against him, his hands rubbing her back, soothing her as she laid her head against his chest and cried.
“Mikayla, what did you hear?” he asked in a soft voice, the fingers of one hand stroking her hair.
“The mass graves. How many are dead?” Her voice broke, and she squeezed her eyes against more tears.
“I don't know,” he whispered as he kissed her forehead. “I wish I could make it all go away for you, but I can't.”
“I keep seeing images of people dying. I keep seeing the faces of my friends in pain. And I'm here, away from it all. It's not fair.” Her voice broke on a sob, and Sidious bent, lifting her in his arms. Hers snaked around his neck, her face buried in his throat. She couldn't fight him, not now. Not when she needed so badly to be held.
She smelled a hint of cinnamon, Korniga, and a musky scent that was Sidious, making her whole body warm. He carried her across the room as though she weighed nothing, her body cradled next to his. His muscles rippled against her as he moved, causing little shots of sensation to scream through her body. Her reaction to him made her cry all the harder.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, he placed her across his lap, his arms holding her as she emptied all the tears she had in her. She couldn't do anything to help them. She couldn't even help herself.
His hand gently stroked her back, and in reflex, she snuggled closer, drawing in a shaky breath. She hiccupped, and he hugged her tighter. He was so gentle, so different than the captain he portrayed himself to be before the men, and her mind reeled in confusion. Just when she thought she'd cried herself out, more tears would fall.
“Shhh, Mikayla. I'm so sorry.” His deep voice rumbled next to her ear, and she stiffened. Even now, even after what she'd heard, her body reacted to his touch and she hated herself for it. A stray tear slipped down her cheek and his lips kissed it away.
The feel of them against her skin sent a torrent of emotions through her that caused another tear to slip free. “Baby, don't cry anymore,” he whispered as he kissed it away as well.
“I can't stop.” She sighed as his lips brushed across the corner of her mouth. “I can't stop thinking about them.”
His hand came up and gently cupped the side of her face while he continued to kiss away the tears. His lips were soft and warm against her cheek, and her eyes closed, her face turning toward his.
What started out as comfort, quickly became something else as her body came alive with desire and need. In her weakened and upset state, she didn
'
t even try to fight it. She couldn't.
His lips brushed across hers and she sucked in a startled breath. His smoky gray gaze held hers captive as his lips softly touched hers again. She knew she should pull away, but couldn't bring herself to do it any more now than she could all the other times. His thumb swiped away another tear as his lips continued to sip at hers. Closing her eyes, she parted her lips, and he slipped his tongue inside. She moaned as his tongue coaxed and teased hers.
God, he could kiss.
“Mikayla.” His hoarse whisper blew across her lips just before his mouth captured hers in a kiss she felt clear to her toes.
She could taste her salty tears in his kiss, could feel the guilt gripping her heart, but she still couldn't stop. It was as though some invisible force drew them together, and she was helpless.
She melted against him, returning his kiss with a passion that matched his own.
His hand slid from her cheek to tangle in her hair and pull her closer. She moaned as his mouth hungrily devoured hers, making her head spin -- making her want things she had no business wanting.
Her limbs felt heavy, and her breathing increased as quickly as her desire. Her heart stopped, then pounded out a furious rhythm when gentle lips nibbled on her pulse point. Her body was on fire, tense and pulsating with need.
His deep, husky voice teased her ear as he whispered something in a language she didn
'
t understand. The thought that this was wrong nudged at her brain, trying to gain entrance, but she pushed it aside, wanting only to feel, to forget. She knew he could make her forget. He always could.
Sidious dropped his forehead to hers. Fisting his fingers in her hair, he held her close. “God, I've missed you,” he whispered.
His voice was rough, almost gravelly sounding, and Mikayla loved it when he sounded like that, but despite how much she loved his touch, his voice, and how he could make her feel, it still didn't change what he'd done.