The Catalyst: (Book One) Read online

  She reached out to touch his chest. She could feel the heat of his skin through the thin material of his t-shirt. A pained look crossed his face, but he settled his hand over hers.

  "They need you. You are their best hope at defeating us."

  An insane thought crossed her mind and tumbled out before she could stop it. "What if I don't want to help them? What if I don't want to defeat you?"

  His fingers tensed on hers. "Don't do that. They are your best chance at safety."

  She wanted to argue, but days with little to no sleep had sapped her energy. At the same time she sighed, Addar's gaze sharpened on her. His other arm came around to rest on her waist.

  "How long has it been since you slept?"

  "Last night."

  Addar frowned. "You know what I mean. How long since you slept more than a few hours at a time?"

  Her silence seemed to be answer enough.

  Addar leaned down until his face rested against her throat. "I can smell the fatigue on your skin. Your energy levels are severely depleted." He pulled back to frown at her.

  Robin raised an eyebrow. "It's not safe to sleep deeply."

  The silence that fell held all the things she didn't say. Anger, guilt, and something else filled Addar's eyes. Then, a strange tingling began in the hand pressed to his chest. The feeling traveled up her arm to her chest, and from there spread out across the rest of her body. It was a tingle, and a warmth, and it felt like a shot of adrenaline.

  Robin gasped at the feeling. Only when it had filled her up completely, did Addar step back from her and let her hand fall to her side. She stared at him with wide eyes.

  "What did you do?"

  The soft look in his eyes sharpened at her harsh tone. "I shared energy with you."

  …

  When she pulled back, he saw confusion, curiosity, and an inkling of fear in her gaze. Addar tried to ignore the twinge of pain he felt at her fear. He walked around her, heading for the store room.

  "Pack your things."

  He heard her turn to watch him walk away. When he entered the back room, the two humans were speaking quietly to each other. They stopped when they noticed him. Addar looked at first one, then the other.

  "The Army is coming this way. You should go with them when they leave."

  "Are you not coming?" the woman asked.

  "No," Addar said simply.

  "But..." the man's voice drifted off, as the two of them stared at Addar in confusion.

  Addar shook his head. "You should hurry."

  His words seemed to snap them out of their confusion. They leapt into action, the woman gathering their food supplies while the man hurried past him to the main area of the store. Addar watched the woman for a moment, before he followed the man. Robin was still where he left her.

  She looked at him when he stopped beside her. "Are you going to explain?"

  "Soon."

  She frowned, obviously wanting to argue, but walked away instead.

  He watched Robin cross the room to her temporary bed and begin jerking the blankets off the sleeping bag. After she had messily folded both blankets, she began to roll the sleeping bag. It was not cooperating. After the second attempt, Addar came to stand behind her.

  She slowly turned her head to look at him. "Yes?"

  "Would you like assistance?"

  She raised an eyebrow. "You know how to fold a sleeping bag?"

  He gave her a small smile and gestured for her to shift to the side. She watched him closely, as he successfully rolled her sleeping bag and tied the strings on the first attempt. He could almost smell her disbelief in the air. He set the rolled fabric to the side and stood, offering a hand to her.

  "Thank you," she said, taking his offered hand.

  He started to comment when he felt the presence of his army approaching. A moment later, he heard the shout of a human outside. The army. His gaze wandered to the boarded over window, then quickly back to Robin's expectant face.

  "It's time. You have to go."

  Addar gently grasped Robin's arm with one hand and her sleeping bag with the other. "I hear the army outside," he announced loudly.

  The man turned to look at him. "We can go out the alley door."

  Addar nodded. He led Robin to the storeroom, as the man hurried after them.

  "Shannon, we are leaving!" the man shouted.

  He hustled past Robin and Addar with his arms full. The woman rushed to open the door. With their attention focused elsewhere, Addar took a moment to look at Robin.

  "I won't tell them about this."

  Addar glanced at the couple easing out into the alley.

  "About who you really are," Robin clarified.

  Her words caused a swelling of warmth in his chest. He raised his hand to cup her cheek. The way she leaned into the contact nearly undid him.

  "I need to go." He stepped away from her, his hand burning from where he had touched her.

  She gave him a curt nod. "Go."

  He left while he still could. The man and woman gave him puzzled frowns as he passed them and started down the alley. The human army appeared around the corner a block away from the store. Addar turned at the corner to circle around behind them and join up with his army.

  He saw Vanor first. Her long hair was unbound as she preferred in battle, the longest tendrils whipping in the wind. She sensed his presence immediately and left her place at the front of the army. From his position between two large houses, he could see how close the humans were to defeat. He glanced at Vanor when she arrived at his side.

  "Enough of this. Our point has been proven."

  "You wish to return to the ship, brother?"

  Addar glanced at her in time to see understanding flicker across her face. "Yes."

  Vanor returned to the army and the call went up. As one body, his soldiers turned and retreated toward the ship. He waited until the last of them left, before he followed the humans.

  He watched from the roof of a building, as Robin and the couple were welcomed by the surviving soldiers. Addar turned his back and returned to the ship. No one stopped him on his way to his quarters. It was only after the door closed behind them, he allowed himself to relax. He had just sank down on the edge of his bed when the knock came.

  "Enter," he growled.

  Vanor entered with her head held high. "Brother."

  He gestured for her to sit down.

  She perched on the edge of the chair and stared at him. The look in her eyes was unreadable.

  "You smell of the human," she said without inflection.

  Addar bared his teeth.

  "I mean no disrespect, brother." She tilted her head to the side. "The human is... important to you?"

  Addar paused for a moment, taking in her guileless expression. "Yes."

  His second stared at him, processing his words. "You have a claim on her?"

  Addar frowned. "You know that is impossible. All of the survivors are traded with the planet. You know this."

  Vanor cocked her head to the side. "So it has been in the past."

  Her words drew his attention back to her. "It is not part of the mission."

  Vanor’s lips curved. "It could be. You are the Scout."

  "I will consider it."

  Vanor took his words as the dismissal they were. She stood from the chair and headed for the door. Just before leaving, she turned to face him.

  "The human, the one who attacked me, what is she called?"

  Addar searched for any hostility in his second’s tone. There was none.

  "Robin," he said.

  Vanor nodded. "She is strong."

  His second left the room without another word.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  "I want everything and everyone on the train within the hour."

  Robin watched the man walk away, as everyone around her hurried to follow his orders. She glanced at the couple beside her. Shannon stood, shivering in the bitter cold, and leaning against her husband. The two
of them looked at Robin and gave forced smiles.

  They had walked for hours, past sunset and into the night, to reach the abandoned train station. The building was dark, but a train sat waiting on the rails. Eight passenger cars and one flat bed she assumed was for the tank. Giving the couple a small smile, Robin gestured for them to follow her toward the train.

  The soldiers mostly ignored their presence, as they worked their way through the crowd to the closest car. The door slid open when they reached it and a young man looked down at them. His gaze moved from Robin to the couple behind her, before he held out his hand. Robin took it and let him help her into the train.

  The air inside was pleasantly warm after the single-digit weather outside. She walked to the back of the car and took a seat by the window. Shannon and George took the seats across the aisle from her, while the man hovered between them.

  "The sergeant will want to talk to you." He shifted awkwardly. "Can I get you anything?"

  "No, thank you," Robin said, glancing at him.

  He nodded, but she noticed his eyes did not meet hers. When he received the same answer from Shannon and George, he turned and left. Robin watched him from the window. He walked through the crowd of busy soldiers and climbed the stairs to the platform of the train station. He approached the stoic sergeant and the two of them spoke for a few minutes. When they stopped, the sergeant glanced toward the train car. Robin fought the urge to duck out of view.

  "Where do you think we're going?"

  Robin tore her eyes away from the sergeant to look at Shannon. "They mentioned north." She dropped her gaze to where Shannon and George held hands.

  The door to the train car opened and a cold breeze swept down the aisle. The sergeant stepped into view. His eyes landed on her.

  "Dr. Kay, was it?"

  Robin slanted a look toward Shannon and George, as she stood. "Yes."

  The Sergeant nodded. "Come with me."

  She walked toward the front of the car, not missing the way his sharp gaze moved over her. He motioned for her to proceed him. As she stepped off the car into the full brunt of winter, she looked both ways.

  "First car."

  Robin turned that direction without commenting. She could hear his boots crunching on the frozen ground behind her. She raised her chin, fighting the urge to hunch her shoulders. Another soldier opened the door of the first car. He gave her a quick glance and stepped aside. Robin climbed onto the car and paused.

  The car was empty save for five heavily armed soldiers. They stood at attention when the sergeant stepped into the car behind her.

  "Have a seat, Dr. Kay," the sergeant said. It was an order.

  Robin walked forward, body tense as her eyes moved over the soldiers. They stared back at her, some of them blatantly hostile. She had a sinking feeling they knew exactly who she was. She was proven correct when one of them spoke.

  "Dr. Robin Kay. The Dr. Robin Kay from Renon Labs, correct?"

  Robin stared at the gruff man who had spoken. "Yes." Her voice came out far softer than she intended.

  The sergeant's hands suddenly gripped her shoulders, as he pressed her down into one of the seats. "Let's have a talk."

  Robin jerked her head around to look at him, following him with her eyes as he came around to sit beside her. He turned in his seat until he was facing her. His eyes were cold and calculating.

  "A lot of people have been looking for you, Dr. Kay."

  Robin did not know what to say, so she said nothing.

  "Some people seem to think you know how to fix this." He paused for a moment, giving her a grim smile. "What do you think about that?"

  Robin cleared her throat. "I'm sure I know more about their biology than anyone else."

  "Because you made them," one of the other soldiers snarled. "Isn't that right?"

  Robin shivered at the tone, but kept her face carefully blank. "That is correct."

  “Then how do we kill them?" another one of the soldiers asked, taking a partial step toward her.

  Robin swept them with her gaze. "The same as one of us."

  "Bullshit!"

  Robin flinched at the explicative, but fastened her gaze on the man who was glaring at her.

  "I assure you it is not."

  "I've emptied a clip into one of those things. It didn't do a damn bit of good. And now you want to stand here and tell me they die as easily as one of us. I call bullshit."

  Robin watched the man turn away and retake his seat. Several of the others joined him.

  "There has to be more," the sergeant insisted.

  Robin turned her head to look at him. "No. That's it. Based on their biology, they can be killed as easily as a human. But..."

  "But, what?" The sergeant leaned in and she felt the attention of the other soldiers.

  "They feed on energy."

  "Explain," the sergeant said with narrowed eyes.

  Robin swallowed hard. "They heal much faster than humans, because they simply absorb the energy of everything around them."

  Silence fell in the train car. Before anyone could comment, the train lurched forward. No one said a word until the train was moving smoothly.

  "So, you're saying we have to kill these sons of bitches with a single blow. Is that about right?"

  Robin frowned at the coarse language, but nodded. "Yes."

  "Do they have any weak points?" one of the soldiers, who had been quiet up to that point, asked.

  Robin thought of Addar’s strong body. In her mind, she pictured all of the data they had gathered, the physical tests he had gone through. There were no weak points.

  "No."

  The soldiers moved away from her, their disappointment palpable.

  The sergeant cleared his throat, attracting her attention. "What about a biological agent?"

  A sick feeling began in Robin’s stomach. She turned her head to meet his cold, blue eyes.

  "We have a team working on it right now. That's where we’re headed." His eyes narrowed on her. "You will be expected to help."

  Addar had expected this, Robin suddenly realized. The sick feeling in her stomach only increased. She nodded.

  The sergeant gave her a smile but did not reach his eyes. "Good. I'm glad we understand each other."

  He stood from his seat to move a few rows away. Before he sat, he looked over his shoulder at her.

  "Make yourself comfortable, Dr. Kay. We're not stopping until we get there."

  Robin watched him for a moment, before she rose from her chair and eased past the other soldiers to walk toward the back of the car. She dropped into a seat as far away from the others as possible. Robin tucked herself into the corner by the window, watching the soldiers until her eyelids began to droop. She laid her head against the window and slept.

  …

  “What is it, Vanor?” He could feel his second’s eyes on his back.

  She came closer, her footsteps silent, and the door closed behind her. She did not speak.

  Addar looked over his shoulder to see her watching him. “You have come to report, correct?”

  She nodded.

  “Make your report, then.”

  “The humans are on a…train.” She stumbled over the unfamiliar word.

  Addar hid a fond smile. “And?”

  “Your human, Robin, is with them.”

  He sent her a sharp look. “She is not my human, Vanor.”

  His second stared at him silently.

  “Do you have anything else to report?” he snapped, turning away from her.

  “They seek to create a weapon against us.”

  “And?”

  “Your human has been recruited to the effort.”

  The twist in his chest kept him from correcting his second. “Go on.”

  “We have been monitoring their base of operations in the mountains to the north.”

  “I am aware of that.”

  “Of course. The humans there have already succeeded in creating a prototype of a virus. They be
lieve it will kill us.”

  “Will it?” Addar asked, turning to face her.

  Vanor raised her eyebrows. “Of course not.”

  “Then why did you mention it?” he demanded.

  Her burgundy gaze dropped to the floor. “They lack knowledge of our kind. Knowledge your human possesses.”

  “She is not my human!”

  Vanor lowered her chin to her chest. “As you say.”

  “This weapon, this virus, they are creating,” he started, pacing the room. “With Robin’s knowledge, could it be dangerous to us?”

  “Unlikely, but it could kill the indigenous population.”

  Addar paused, his back to Vanor. “The humans?”

  He saw her nod from the corner of his eye.

  “I could destroy the facility, brother. Before your human arrives.”

  It was tempting, so tempting, to remove the threat to Robin before she was aware of it. Yet, it could make the humans reject her. They needed her for their weapon. Without the hope of a weapon, they would have no need to keep her with them. Or alive. He clenched his jaw.

  “No.”

  “Brother?”

  At her cautious tone, he jerked his head around to look at her. She met his gaze steadily.

  “You have soft feelings for your human, do you not?”

  He nodded.

  “I have never known you to possess such feelings,” she said, looking at him with interest.

  “Untrue. I am fond of you, Vanor.”

  Her lips curved into a small smile. “And I you. Yet, this human inspires more than simple fondness. What is it?”

  Addar decided to tell her the truth. Of all of his people, she was his only confidant. “I am unsure, but I fear it.”

  “Fear? You, brother?” Amusement mingled with the curiosity in her eyes.

  “One fears what one does not understand, Vanor. And I do not understand this.”

  “It pains you?” Vanor asked with a frown.

  “Not yet, but it will.”

  A knock came at the door.

  “If I may?” his second said.

  Addar nodded and she moved to open the door.

  One of the commander’s messengers stepped into the room. “Scout,” he said formally. “The commander requests your presence.”