Marcus (12 page)

It was all very interesting but it didn’t
help find the hub.

She reached for the mug of coffee Noah had
brought her before he’d headed off…somewhere. She took a swig and
nearly spat it everywhere. It was stone cold.

“Ugh.” She pushed it aside and stared at the
screen again.

She eyed the notes she’d made on her tablet.
She’d translated a few words but these next symbols had her
stuck.

Scribbling on the tablet, she tried a few
word combinations but nothing made sense. She sighed and rubbed her
blurry eyes. She
had
to find the location of that comms hub.
She straightened her shoulders and stared again at the screen.

Suddenly it went blank.

She shot to the edge of her chair. “What the
hell?”

“Time for a break.” Marcus stepped into view
holding up an unplugged cable.

“Marcus, you can’t do that! I’m getting
close but I still have a bunch of words I need to decipher. Every
time I think I have it, they seem to change—”

“No.
Break
.”

She stood and faced off with him. “This from
the man who I know usually spends all his free time monitoring
drone feed, assessing raptor strategy and planning missions. We
need to find that hub—”

“You won’t find it if you work yourself into
the ground. You’ve been here for eight hours straight and you
worked through lunch.”

“Eight hours?”
Oh
. Where had the time
gone?

“Food. Rest. Relaxation.” His tone was the
same one he used to order his team around.

She bristled. “I’m not one of your
soldiers.”

He leaned down, his mouth hovering over
hers. “No, I’m the man who had his cock inside you last night. The
man who wants to take care of you and the man who’d like to hold
you in his arms again for a little while.”

The air rushed out of her lungs and a warm
glow filled her chest. “What did you have in mind?”

“A sunset picnic.”

As he tugged her from the computer lab, Elle
tried to process what he’d just said. Sunset picnics and rugged
Marcus Steele did not go together. Ever. Not even in her wildest
fantasies.

He led her through various tunnels and into
a less-used part the base. Most of the rooms here were used for
storage of supplies. Eventually, he stopped at a ladder that led up
to the surface.

“Up you go.” He gripped her waist and lifted
her onto the second rung.

It wasn’t a long climb. At the top was a
round metal hatch. Marcus moved up behind her on the ladder and
with one arm, opened the hatch and shoved it upward. It opened with
a muted groan of metal.

Elle climbed out onto a flat part of roof
made to look like rock that was edged with trees. She turned in a
small circle, taking in her surroundings. The brilliant green of
the trees caught her eyes. When she took a closer look, she
realized the “trees” were actually disguised solar power arrays.
Each of the leaves on the trees was a tiny photovoltaic cell used
to generate power for the base.

Then she noticed what was set up over in one
sheltered corner of the space.

A dark-blue picnic blanket was laid out, and
sitting on top of it was a wicker basket.

He led her over to it.

She couldn’t seem to close her mouth. “Where
did you find a picnic basket?”

A small smile. “I can’t give away all my
secrets.”

Once they were seated, he poured her a glass
of something orange and fizzy. “Not alcoholic because we’re on
call.”

She sipped the tart, sparkling juice. “It’s
lovely.”

He reached into the basket. “I have some
cheese and bread, and strawberries I had to barter with Hamish for
from the hydroponic gardens.” Marcus shook his head. “That old guy
is protective of every berry and leaf. Oh, and some cured ham and
olives.”

Elle could do nothing more than just stare
at the feast he’d set out on the blanket.

He shifted, bending one leg and resting his
forearm on his knee. “I know it isn’t anything fancy, not what
you’re used to from before—”

She reached over and grabbed his hand. “It’s
perfect. No one’s ever taken me on a picnic, before or after the
raptors came.”

Marcus pressed a piece of cheese to her
lips. “I hope not. Otherwise I’d have to beat up him up.”

She smiled. “You’d win.”

They ate and stared at the sky. The sun
turned the horizon a brilliant orange tinged with shades of
pink.

“So beautiful,” she said. “Funny,
considering how the world isn’t beautiful anymore.”

“There’s still beauty there. You just have
to look a bit harder to find it.”

She turned her head and realized he was
looking at her. God, the man was perfect.

“I was all about beauty before. I wanted the
latest designer fashions, the perfect haircut—” she held up her
hands and eyed her short, chipped nails “—and heaven forbid I
didn’t have perfect nails. I had a weekly manicure appointment.
What I saw in the mirror defined me, along with the parties I went
to, the people I was seen with.” She shook her head. “You wouldn’t
have given me second glance. I was so incredibly shallow.”

“Hey.” He tipped her chin up. “That might
have been you once, but that’s not who you are now. I see a strong,
confident woman who uses her smarts and determination to do the
best she can to contribute around here. We can’t erase the past,
and frankly, you shouldn’t want to. It’s brought you to this point.
It helped make you who you are today.”

She grabbed his other hand and he squeezed
it.

He rubbed a thumb across her bottom lip. “We
might still have regrets, but we learn from our mistakes and move
forward.” He let her go and picked up a strawberry.

Elle took a bite of the juicy berry,
savoring the flavor. She thought she’d heard something buried in
his voice. “Do you have regrets?”

He stared at his drink. “Yeah. Lots of
them.” He sighed. “Before the invasion, I led a UC Marine Force
Recon team.”

She’d heard of Force Recon. “Special
Forces.”

“Yeah. We specialized in deep
reconnaissance, but we saw plenty of offensive action, too. Spent a
lot of time in the Middle East.”

He was silent so long she thought he
wouldn’t continue.

He glanced her way. His eyes had darkened.
“If I tell you this story, you mightn’t look at me the same.”

“That could never happen,” she answered
emphatically.

With a nod, he stared at the last dying rays
of the sun. “We were sent in to rescue hostages. They were a mix of
innocent locals, women and children, and a few Western journalists.
I made the call to wait, get more intel. Really, I was pissed to be
on the mission. I wanted my team on the front line where I thought
they could do the most good, save the most lives.” He rubbed a hand
over the back of his neck. “We were too late. We took down the
kidnappers but the hostages were all dead. The women raped, the
journalists had been executed, and the kids…fuck.”

Her throat was tight. “You don’t have to
tell me.”

“They’d tortured them. Cut off body parts
and messed them up before they’d finally slit their throats.”

Elle pressed a hand to her mouth. The
horrible things he had to live with. And how many more terrible
memories had been added since the raptors had turned Earth into
their own private battleground. “You didn’t kill those people, the
enemy did.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t save them, either. But I
get up every day and see if I can do better than I did before.”

She slid closer. “You can’t be a superhero
all the time.”

He tugged her under the curve of his arm.
“Not according to my father. A Marine should be stronger, faster,
smarter.”

“What happened to him?”

“I assume he was killed in the first wave. I
was over here on assignment and he was back home in California.
He’d retired a few years back. I tried a few channels to try and
contact him, but you know how it is.”

She did. Blue Mountain Base had made contact
with a few enclaves of humanity in North America, Asia and Europe,
but transmissions were difficult and often blocked by raptor
technology.

“I’d hoped he’d made his way inland to the
Groom Lake base in Nevada…he’s a tough old bastard. But when I did
manage to get a transmission through no one there had seen or heard
of him.”

“I’m sorry.” She pressed her face against
his shoulder. “You were close?”

Marcus shrugged. “He was a Marine to the
bone, tough as old leather, and he expected me to be tough, too. He
wasn’t my biological father, but he’s the only one I’ve ever had.
My mother got pregnant young and was kicked out by her family. She
was waitressing, right up to when I was due, and Dad used to eat at
the diner every day. He ended up taking her in, taking care of her,
and fell head over heels for her. Don’t know if she loved him back,
but they seemed happy enough.”

It appeared Marcus had inherited his need to
protect those less fortunate from his father.

“My mother died when I was young so he was
all I had. He did the best he could. He was proud as hell when I
made the Recon teams.”

An easy silence fell and Elle fiddled with
the hem of Marcus’ shirt. “You were lucky to have him. Nothing I
did ever made my parents proud. I stopped trying after a while and
became what they believed I was.”

His arm tightened around her. “Babe.”

She leaned into his strength. “I’m okay. My
father never saw me. I didn’t have the right anatomy, so I was just
a pretty ornament. My mother loved me in her own way…but if I did
anything remotely successful, she saw me as a threat, or
competition. After a while I just excelled at being a party girl.”
She shook her head. “So pathetic.”

“You aren’t that girl anymore.”

“I was engaged.” He tensed and she hurried
on. “Sort of. We never made it official. We just liked being seen
together, the perfect, pretty couple. He was the golden son from a
wealthy family and he excelled at partying more than I did.” She
sighed. “Aaron didn’t see me either.”

“You deserved better than they gave
you.”

“Maybe, but my parents didn’t deserve to die
the way they did.” Her breath hitched. “Torn apart by raptors.”

He hugged her close. “All we can do is move
on. Make something of our future.”

She leaned up and nipped his lips. “I like
the sound of that.”

“Hey, here’s where you two are hiding.”

Shaw’s drawl had them drawing apart and Elle
watched a scowl take over Marcus’ face.

She looked up and saw Shaw, Cruz and Claudia
dropping down on the blanket beside them.

“Ooh, strawberries.” Claudia plucked up a
berry and took a bite. “Old Man Hamish rarely lets anyone have any
of these beauties.”

“What are you guys doing here?” The tone of
Marcus’ voice left no one at a loss over his feelings about the
intrusion.

Cruz winked at Elle. “Looking for food. I
was hoping for tamales, but while the chef here tries, they just
don’t taste like my father’s did. And I wanted to see how you were
doing,
amigo
. Make sure Ellie here was happy.”

“And not in need of a rescue,” Shaw said
around a mouthful of cheese. “You aren’t known for your flair with
the ladies.”

Elle smiled at them. Like it or not, Hell
Squad was a family.

Marcus’ scowl deepened and he tugged Elle
closer into the curve of his arm. “Of course, she’s happy.”

“We can see that.” Claudia smiled at Elle.
“She’s glowing.”

Elle blinked. Claudia…smiling. It wasn’t
something Elle saw often.

Marcus sighed. “Where are Gabe and
Zeke?”

“Beating each other up in the gym,” Shaw
said. “Couldn’t pay me enough to spar with Gabe. The man is scary.
I am so glad he’s on our team.”

“How’s the translation coming along, Elle?”
Cruz asked.

She released a long breath. “Slowly. I’m
missing something, I’m just not sure what it is, yet.”

“Something other than just difficulty with
the language?” Marcus asked.

“I think so. The word combinations are
strange. I’ve been wondering if there’s some hidden
encryption.”

His hand massaged the back of her neck.
“You’ll get it. We knew they wouldn’t make it easy for us.”

“I know what they call themselves now. The
Gizzida.”

Shaw wrinkled his nose. “Ugly. Suits
them.”

Suddenly, a huge explosion ripped through
the evening air. The ground beneath them trembled, and back toward
the city, a huge, black mushroom-shaped cloud bloomed in the night
sky.

“Shit. That’s close.” Marcus leaped to his
feet.

The others jumped up, too. “Really close,”
Cruz added.

“Marcus, look.” Elle pointed off to the
north.

Red lights glowed in the sky, moving fast. A
raptor ship.

“A ptero. Come on.” He pulled her up.

All of them raced back inside, hurried down
the ladder and hightailed it back to the main part of the base.

They ran into Zeke and Gabe.

“There you are.” Zeke’s face was grim.

“What do we know?” Marcus demanded.

They fell into step, striding toward the
landing pads. Elle had to jog to keep up.

“A group of incoming survivors was heading
this way. The raptors ambushed them. Holmes wants Hell Squad and
Squad Nine out there.”

“Okay. Suit up. I’ll meet you all at the
Hawk.” Marcus turned to Elle.

“I’ll get to the control room. Be careful
out there.” Fear was a sneaky invader, crawling through her
belly.

Marcus yanked her up so her feet dangled off
the ground. The kiss was hard, intense, and far too short. “I’ll
see you when we get back.”

She watched him stride away, her heart
beating triple time. Watching him head out into danger was so damn
hard. Dragging in a deep breath, she raced toward the Comms Control
Room.

Soon, she was seated at her station, headset
on. Beside her, Arden, the comms officer for Squad Nine, was
talking into her headset.