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“I want to keep you safe.”
“Not at the expense of your friends. You told me the other night that they are more like brothers to you. It’s been a hell of a long time since I had family, but I do remember how important mine was to me when they were still alive. You flew us through that asteroid field before without crashing us. I know you can do it again.”
“That was before we married. You’re my first priority now, Anna.”
“You are the sweetest man ever. I love you for saying that and meaning it. But there’s one thing you should learn about me. I’m not selfish enough to let you suffer any guilt if something happens to Big or the others while we’re hidden away. You love them too. I hear it in the way you’ve spoken about all of them. I say we get out of this crater, find out who keeps sending that signal we’ve been ignoring, and deal with them. We’ll head to your home base you want us to live on afterward. Then we’ll all be safe, right?”
Fig felt torn. He would feel responsible if anything happened to Big or any of the others who came looking for him. They might suspect his shuttle had taken damage from the transport’s automated defense systems but not that another shuttle was trying to hunt him. They’d end up in a battle they weren’t prepared for and could lose.
Then again, Anna was his to protect. He had given her life. She deserved to live a long, happy one. To risk it seems…criminal. Wrong.
“Handsome, we should do the right thing. That’s taking the risk ourselves.”
Her softly spoken words penetrated his thoughts. “We could die if we’re captured, or they might just blow our shuttle up as soon as they get a weapon lock on us.”
“I understand the danger. Or we could leave this crater, ditch whoever is out there, run like hell until we lose them, and then go to your home base.”
He hugged her, closing his eyes. “You’ve become my everything, Anna. I love you.”
“I love you too.” She clung to him. “That’s why we need to do the right thing by being proactive. We’ll take the risks so your family doesn’t fly into a trap.”
He nodded. “Okay. I am a skilled pilot.”
“I believe that. You’re amazing.”
A smile curved his lips. “Alright. Let’s finish getting dressed and go to the cockpit.”
“That sounds like a plan.”
“I want you to promise me something, though.”
She tensed in his arms. “What? Don’t make me smack you upside the head if it’s something stupid.”
He chuckled. “What would that be?”
“I don’t know. You offering to sacrifice yourself in some way so I can live. That would be dumb. We’re partners now, Fig. Married. I go where you go. Do you understand?”
“Yes. We don’t have a life pod onboard for me to put you in. I wish I had one.”
“I wouldn’t use it unless you were inside it with me. I’m sticking to you like glue, handsome. Now, do you still want to ask me to promise you something?”
“Yes. I want you to stay behind me if we get boarded. Big and Blade taught us how to defend ourselves. I can fight. Whoever is out there will be human. I’m stronger and faster than they are. Let me deal with them if there is a physical battle.”
“I promise to stay behind you, but I’m also going to assure you that I’ll grab the first thing handy and beat the hell out of anyone attacking you. I’m stronger and faster than a human, too, since I’m a clone.”
“You still think like a human, though, Anna.”
“You’re not the only quick learner here. I’ll figure out my new strength while helping you keep us safe. Later, I want you to teach me how to fight. It sounds like fun to grapple with you.”
He kissed the top of her head. “I’d be honored to teach you anything you want.”
“Good. Now, let’s get ready and deal with whoever has been annoying us with the flashing incoming transmission messages during our honeymoon.”
Fig released her and put on thick clothing, asking her to do the same. Anna had to fold the arms and legs of the pants and shirt he gave her to fit her much smaller body. He wanted as much material to protect their skin as possible in case they were boarded.
A clone retrieval team would probably want to take them alive at first after realizing there were only two of them. They’d want to torture them both to learn the location of the other missing clones.
Pirates might kill them outright, but it was doubtful. They’d want to know if they had any hoarded merchandise they could steal. It was also a possibility that they’d want to use them the way they had Blade by making them slaves. He hoped that was the case because then he’d have a chance of saving Anna if they remained alive.
