"What?" I asked again.
"If you plan to keep living here, you have to help me in the infirmary. If you don"t want to work for me, then you need to move back into the barracks."
I gaped at her.
"The extra room is supposed to be for an intern," she said. "Off-hour emergencies are harder to respond to if I have to wait for my a.s.sistant to come from another level or Sector." She leaned forward and her voice softened. "I"ve been thinking about Karla"s claims about you."
Snorting in disgust, I stood.
Lamont jumped to her feet and blocked my path. "You"re not running from me. Not this time. Sit down or I"lla""
"What? Strap me to a gurney again?"
"If that"s what I have to do to get you to listen to me, then I will."
A hard determination settled on her face as if her skin had turned to metal. The woman was serious. She seemed to have two separate personalities, Kiana and Doctor Lamont. I was facing the Doctor right now.
"You can"t. Not whena""
She brandished a syringe and a "try me" stance.
I stepped back, b.u.mping into wall. d.a.m.n. "Where dida" She had planned this little chat.
"Sit down."
If she knocked me out, I could have her arrested for a.s.sault. But would Anne-Jade"s new Inside Security Force (ISF) even charge her? Probably not. Especially not since she proved to be invaluable after the explosion.
Unwilling to make this easy for her, I crossed my arms, sat and glowered. "I"m listening."
"Good." Lamont remained on her feet with her weapon pointed toward me. "For the last 1,430 weeks my heart has ached for my daughter and husband. And yes, I betrayed all of you just for the slim chance to hold Sadie in my arms again. Karla knew my weakness. And she had the comb I had hidden in Sadie"s diaper. It was wrong, and stupid, and I regret it. But I can"t change the past. All I can do is atone for my mistakes. Karla might not have lied about you. Why would she send a hundred-and-two-week-old to Chomper? I"d like you to take a blood test."
I surged to my feet. "No blood test."
"It would settle the question once and for all. And if you"re Sadie, you can stay here."
"But if I"m just plain old Trella, I need to leave?"
"No. You"re still welcome to be my intern and stay."
"I"m not interested in being your intern or your daughter." As I brushed past her, I braced for the needle"s p.r.i.c.k. Would she stoop to knocking me out and testing my blood? Not yet. Unharmed, I hurried into my room and stopped. I wore my pendant, earring and transmitter. Besides my tool belt and moccasins, there was nothing here I needed.
Changing back into my air scrub uniform, I buckled my belt, secured my mocs to a loop, climbed up to the air vent, opened the cover and entered the air ducts. I wasn"t about to give Lamont another chance to trap me. After securing the vent, I followed the familiar twists and turns, deciding which way to go.
The abandoned controller"s room in Quad C1 remained empty. Domotor had hidden in there during the rebellion, but it was next to the power plant and the heat and dirt made it less than ideal. However, it did have a small kitchen and bathroom.
Despite the amenities of the controller"s room, I headed toward the storeroom on level four. The place where I first met Riley. It had a comfortable coucha"all I needed. I"d eat in the uppers dining room in Quad G3, and use the scrub washrooms on level two. It"d be just like old times. Well, without the constant fear, which was a bonus.
And just like the past, I"d have to use the air ducts to get to the storeroom. Since the room was located deep within Sector D4, I couldn"t use the hallways. I wanted the room to remain forgotten by all but a few people, and Sector D4 was patrolled by the ISF to keep the Travas in their quarters.
When I reached the room, I peered through the vents. The bluelights were on, and I couldn"t spot any signs of recent activity. Opening the vent, I swung down and dropped onto the couch. Dust puffed and I sneezed. The daylights snapped on, triggered by my motion. Riley hadn"t disconnected the motion sensor and I wondered if my entrance would signal him.
By the film of dust on all the furniture, I knew Riley hadn"t been here since the rebellion. I tried to contact him again. No response. Perhaps he was still mad at me.
I cleaned the room as best as I could. Finally exhausted, I switched back to bluelights, dumped my tool belt in a corner, curled up on the couch and fell asleep.
The sudden brightness of the daylights woke me. I stared at my surroundings for a few seconds in confusion until I remembered my location. According to the clock, it was hour twenty-five of week 147,021. Riley leaned on the door to the hallway, but his posture was far from relaxed. His black hair hung in his eyes, obscuring half of his expression.
I sat up and pulled my legs in close, making room for him to sit down.
He didn"t move. "What are you doing here?"
"Lamont kicked me out. It was either this, the pipes or the barracks."
"Dad and I have a couch." His flat tone held no emotion.
I sensed I trod on thin metal. One wrong word and it would buckle underneath me. "Last I heard, your brother had claimed it."
"Blake moved back to the barracks weeks ago. He couldn"t stand the quiet."
Which made sense. Growing up in the lower two levels, we had been a.s.saulted by the constant noise of the other scrubs. For most of the scrubs, the clamor soothed and comforted. For me, the racket grated and drove me into the pipes, seeking privacy and distance from the noise.
"I tried to contact you a couple times," I said in my defense.
"I know."
Not good. "Riley, I"m sorry for getting angry. I"ll skip my next shift and we"ll spend time together."
His muscles relaxed just a bit. Progress.
"Why did Doctor Lamont kick you out?" he asked.
"She gave me an ultimatum." I told him about the argument.
As I talked, he moved away from the door and closer to me. "I"m surprised she didn"t tell you to leave sooner."
"Why?"
"You"re nasty to her at every opportunity. And I suspect the only reason you stayed there is to make her suffer for her actions during the rebellion. Her guilt was probably why she put up with you as long as she did."
I wanted to correct him, but I suspected he was right. "I like helping the patients." Weak.
"You could have interned with Doctor Sanchia." Riley sat next to me.
"I wasn"t that nasty. More like grumpy and a little surly."
"Sorry, but no. Nasty is the right word." He held up a hand to stop my protest. "Consider your refusal to take a blood test. She still grieves for her daughter and you could ease her pain."
"What if I"m not Sadie?"
"Then she"ll know Karla lied and there"s no hope."
"Wait a minute. Karla could be telling the truth and Sadie is living in the lower levels right now."
"Doctor Lamont already tested every girl born close to Sadie"s birth week. All fifteen of them. No match. You"re the last one."
Oh. "Are you going to counter all my comments?"
"Yes."
"Why? Her betrayal could have sent us all to Chomper, including your father."
"You keep forgetting, she didn"t tell Karla everything. Her information made it difficult for us, but we won." He ran a hand through his hair, pulling his bangs from his eyes. Riley stared into the past. "Besides, if Karla had offered me the chance to see my mother again, to hug my mother and tell her I love hera I would have been mighty tempted. And you had been ready to exchange your life for Cogon"s. Remember? Lamont"s actions aren"t as despicable when you look at it that way."
I grumbled, but couldn"t respond. He had a point.
"Will you at least think about it?"
"I will. Later." I scooted closer to him and he hooked his arm around my shoulder.
"Do you want to stay with us?" Riley asked. "You"ll have a shower close by."
I glanced around the storeroom. "Eventually I"ll want to, but right now this place isacomforting and familiar. Do you understand?"
He smiled and I realized just how much I missed his smile. This was the first time in weeks that we had complete privacy.
"Yes, I do. And so does Sheepy. He was just reminiscing about those hours we spent in here with you before the rebellion." Riley turned to me. "In fact your uniform is bringing back those memories of the first time I met you." He trailed his fingertips along the slippery material of my arm as he c.o.c.ked his head, considering. "Something"s not quite right."
Reaching around with both hands, he pulled my hair from its braid. His touch sent shivers through me. When he fin ished, he mussed my hair. "There, that"s better. Now you look like the wild scrub that fell into my life."
"Because you loosened the vent"s screws."
"Best. Decision. Ever." He combed his fingers through my hair and laced them behind my neck, pulling me in for a kiss.
Heat burned inside me as he deepened the kiss. I snaked my arms around his shoulders and pressed against him. The thin material of my uniform chafed and when he tugged at the zipper along the back, I broke our kiss long enough to whisper an encouragement for him to keep pulling. Reclaiming his lips, I worked on unb.u.t.toning his shirt.
He peeled the top of my uniform down, exposing my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. One of the benefits of being on the smaller sidea"no uncomfortable support garment. His surprise at encountering nothing but smooth skin lasted mere microseconds, before his thumbs sent tingling waves through me.
This was farther than we"ve ever explored before, but I wasn"t about to complain. I yanked his shirt off and ran my hands along his muscular arms. He abandoned my lips to nibble on my neck, pushing me back so I reclined on the couch.
"Trella, are you there?" Logan"s voice squawked from my earring. I groaned in annoyance and was about to switch it off when Logan said, "Trell, I need you at the Power Plant"s control room now." Logan"s panic rang loud and clear.
Riley pulled away. Concern creased his forehead.
I fumbled for the transmitter clipped onto my uniform. "What happened?" I asked.
"Sabotage."
4.
ALL TINGLY WARMTH FLED MY BODY. "SABOTAGE?" I asked. "I didn"t feela""
"Come to the control room, and I"ll explain," Logan said.
"Why can"t you tell me now?"
"This frequency isn"t secure."
The click from Logan switching off sounded in my ear. I met Riley"s resigned gaze. He b.u.t.toned his shirt. I pulled up the top of my uniform and zipped it.
"Promise me we"ll continue thisaconversation later." Riley"s mournful tone made me smile.
"That"s an easy promise to make."
I glanced at the air vent in the ceiling. Riley"s broad shoulders would never fit. Gesturing toward the door, I asked, "Did anyone see you come in here?"
"Nope."
"The corridors should be patrolled by ISF officers."
"They are. I told them I was checking the wiring. As soon as they lost interest in me, I ghosted down our hallway."
"Ghosted? You"ve been hanging around Logan too much."
"I"d rather beaexploring with you." He ran his hands down my sides and rested them on my hips. "There may be other surprises under your jumpsuit just waiting to be discovered."
I slipped from his grasp and stood. "Key word, waiting."
He groaned. "If Logan"s exaggerating, I"ll pound him."
Picking up my tool belt, I clipped it into place. "Can you leave here without being seen?"
"Yep."
"Great. I"ll meet you in the control room." The ladder I had used before leaned against the far wall. I set it up under the air vent and climbed. Before I pulled myself into the duct, I caught Riley staring at me. "What"s wrong?"
"Nothing. Just wondering."
"About what?"
"If you"ll keep your promise."
"When have I ever broken a promise?"