Her Mate’s Secret Baby(44)
The Warden’s movements were calm and efficient as she pulled into the parking garage of the brides processing center and I wondered about her history. She was very calm, considering the chaos surrounding her. Still, Natalie trusted her and I could see love in her eyes every time she looked at Noah. That meant I trusted her, too.
The warden’s man helped me out of the vehicle and onto an elevator. Once we were all inside, the warden hit a button and the doors slid closed. She turned to me, addressing me for the first time.
“I would say, Councilor Roark, that it is good to see you again, but it seems you have run into some trouble here on Earth.”
“An assassin.”
She raised her brow but said nothing as the doors slid open and she led us to the transport room. The men settled me in a chair as the warden moved to the control panel. “I need transport codes. This might take a few minutes.”
I sat, slumping to my right and into a position I found most comfortable. Natalie moved behind me and waved the wand over my back again, the pain easing slightly. Miranda stood nearby and swayed, rocking Noah as he looked around with wide, curious eyes. He’d eaten and fussed on the airplane, then slept the entire flight. I had to hope he would sleep during transport. The bright light and sensations might scare him.
Warden Egara spoke to the red-haired man who had joined her at the controls. “Trion. Xalia’s transport center. Set the coordinates.”
“Yes, ma’am. They just sent new codes. Five minutes.”
“Tell them to prepare a healing pod. He’ll need it as soon as we return,” Natalie ordered.
“A ReGeneration pod?” The warden looked to me for confirmation of the extent of my injuries. I nodded.
“Tell Doctor Brax to implement my arrival plan, as previously discussed.”
She looked at me strangely, but transmitted exactly what I told her. That done, she looked at me and crossed her arms over her chest, the calm, efficient woman replaced by a furious female. “Tell me about the assassin.”
“I was followed to Natalie’s home,” I said. “Someone knew of my arrival, Natalie’s location here on Earth, and the reason for my visit.”
She spun about, pacing. “Followed? From here?”
“How else do I explain the attack on my family?”
“Why would someone wish to attack you on Earth?”
“The same reason I was taken and tortured on Trion.”
“You think this is somehow connected to the ambush on Trion?” The warden scowled, a thick line appearing between her delicately arched brows. She was actually quite beautiful. “But that’s impossible. That would mean there is a Trion spy here, in this facility.”
I shrugged, then winced as pain exploded through my chest and back at the simple movement. “Is there another transport center nearby?”
“No. The closest transport center is in Europe.”
Natalie gasped. “There’s no way he followed you from Europe. He would have been days behind you.”
“They came from Miami, Warden. That is the only explanation that makes sense. While it seems like a great amount of time has passed since Natalie returned to Earth, over a year, for me, it has been ten days. Someone wants me, or something from me. Why else would I have been kept alive when the rest of Outpost Two was murdered? Someone followed me.”
Warden Egara moved to work the controls besides the man arranging transport. Her hands flew over the flat screen. “Let me check the logs.”
Her eyes narrowed as she read. “I have your transport record and communications from yesterday, then a bride who was transported today to Atlan. There is nothing… wait.”
Her hand stilled, her eyes widened. Her fingers moved frantically. “An encrypted message was sent an hour after your transport. The center was closed when the message came through. The communication should have been rerouted to the processing center in Paris. They were on call last night.”
She turned to look at me, then at Natalie, who still waved the wand behind my back.
“There is one message here. One moment while I decipher it.”
I was impressed with her abilities. She was more like a Coalition fighter than an Earth female, then remembered through my sluggish brain our conversation from the day before. She’d been matched and mated to Prillon warriors who had died.
Her body stilled as she scanned the screen. “The message came from Xalia’s transport center and it reads: Councilor Roark’s medallion pinged on Earth. Roark is on Earth. Find Earth coordinates for human mate, Natalie Montgomery. Boston. Eliminate both. Bring medallion to me.”
I felt Natalie’s hand still. The pain ceased completely in one spot, as the wand focused on healing one specific area.