My smile was designed to discomfit. “Too late now, don’t you think? Have you contacted House von Hasenberg?”
“Yes, they have someone on the way. He should be here in a little while. Do you need anything until then? Would you like to contact Guskov?”
Freedom and painkillers would be a good start. I didn’t say that, though. “No. And you should be aware that I know exactly how many credits I was carrying.” I let ice slip into my tone. “I expect them returned to me, along with the rest of my stuff.”
He grimaced but didn’t argue. Despite my current incarceration, I was still a von Hasenberg. I could make life very unpleasant for him and his team.
“If you need anything else, just ask. We are keeping you in here for your protection. If any of the less scrupulous squads knew you were on-planet, they would try to retrieve you themselves. It would not end well for you.”
“You’re a saint, Rob,” I murmured under my breath.
He grinned. “We all have to eat,” he said. “Don’t try anything stupid and we’ll get you safely back to your House without any further drama.” He left, locking the door behind him.
I closed my eyes and skimmed the wireless signals flying through the air. Pain blossomed in my temples. I pulled back and tried again, with an even lighter touch. I’d been practicing this technique for months, teaching my brain to feel the differences in the signals without fully decrypting them.
The hope was that one day my brain and the implant would be able to automatically distinguish important messages from the garbage and only spend energy decrypting the valuable messages. Ideally, I would be able to shut off all signal processing like flipping a switch, but without Gregory’s genius, I had to take baby steps to get there.
None of the messages I checked were worth the headache of actively looking at them. I mentally let go and sank into a light meditation. Gregory had taught me patience, if nothing else.
I don’t know how long I sat there, drifting in and out of sleep in a sea of mental calm, before the cell door opened again, but it was long enough that my legs had fallen asleep. When Rob didn’t say anything, I cracked open one eye.
The other popped open in amazement.
Ian Bishop stood just inside my cell, dressed in dark combat fatigues and scowling violently. “What happened to your face?” he asked, his voice low and harsh.
“I don’t know,” I said, startled into honesty. How had he gotten here so quickly? And what was he wearing? I’d never seen Ian in anything other than a suit or tuxedo, but I had to admit the change was a good one. The shirt clung to his broad chest and flat abs, while the pants accentuated his lean waist and strong legs. “Are you real?” I blurted out.
Anger morphed into concern in an instant. “What is wrong with you?” he asked.
I’d thought myself crazy after Gregory had first injected me. He hadn’t warned me about what he was doing, of course. I’d just woken up one day after being incredibly sick and had started hearing other people in my head. I hadn’t known that I was unconsciously decrypting wireless communication signals. And since then, I’d had a secret fear that perhaps I wasn’t as sane as I liked to believe.
“Nothing,” I said. “I’m just surprised to see you.”
“Get up, we’re leaving.”
“No.”
Now the familiar scowl was back. “I don’t have time for your games. Brava isn’t safe. We need to go now.”
I sighed and fought to control my temper. Ian could punch through my calm faster than anyone else I knew. “I can’t. My legs are asleep.” He moved toward me and I held up a hand. “Just give me a minute, Ian. You can certainly do that, since it’s your fault I’m here anyway.”
A muscle flexed along his jaw and his eyes narrowed. Oh, he wanted to argue with me but he knew we were being watched. I smiled at him and watched the pulse thrum in his neck.
I scooted to the edge of the bench and hissed as my legs lit up with pins and needles. Ian offered me a hand up. His hand was cool against my palm, his strength effortless. He pulled me up but my legs weren’t quite ready to support me, so I overbalanced and collapsed against his chest. He froze and then started