Chapter Thirty-three

AFTER HAVING DISMISSED THE regular guards at the door, Taylor hesitated outside the quarters that she and Maia had shared for the last several weeks. It was difficult to believe so little time had passed. It felt like she had known Maia for years. The promise she had made last night still echoed in her head. She had sworn to keep Maia alive, and that left her only one option. She sighed and opened the door.

Maia was sitting in the front room instead of the bedroom, resting uneasily on the couch as if she had been waiting for Taylor’s return. When their eyes met, she smiled. "Taylor, you're back."

"Not with good news. I just got back from a meeting with the brass." Taylor folded her hands behind her back, staring down at her boots for several long moments before she gathered the will to look up. "The Dominion wants you back. They’ve made the generals a tempting offer."

Maia’s skin blanched to a sickly, pale grey hue. The hope in her sparkling eyes died out, replaced with dull resignation. "When will I be leaving?"

"That's the thing..." Taylor swallowed, certain of her choice, but even more tortured than when she’d walked in. Before meeting Maia, everything had been so simple—follow orders, kill ikthians, serve humanity. Now, for the first time, she doubted her superiors and the very institution that she had sworn loyalty to. "I promised to keep you alive."

Maia’s eyes widened. "What are you going to do?"

Taylor sat on the couch, resting a hand on Maia’s thigh. "I’m still working on that, but I think I have one of my commanding officers convinced we need to get you out of here. I think your research is important to this war effort, and that we should make sure others see it."

There was a long, heavy pause. Finally, Maia spoke. Her words were a little unsteady, as if she were choking back tears, but a smile lit up her face. "If you are serious about this, I will need access to a terminal in order to download my findings."

Taylor nodded. "I know. I’ve known for a while. I just need to figure out the best way to do it...Wait, can you even download your research with our servers? The Dominion has their own network."

"Not through the Coalition’s servers, no," Maia said. "But if you could get me to a naledai server, I would have everything I need. I uploaded my original research on Nakonum's network. It is ikthian-controlled, but not as heavily monitored."

"That's smart thinking. I need to take you to Akton."

"Akton?" Maia asked.

"A friend of mine," Taylor explained. "He's a rebel naledai visiting from Nakonum. There should be a terminal on his ship with access to the naledai servers."

"And he can help us?"

"Definitely. The generals aren't voting on the Dominion's offer to spare Earth until tomorrow morning, so we'll have time to sneak onto the ship."

Maia mouth fell open. "Are you saying the Dominion has offered to spare Earth?" Taylor nodded. "I…I cannot believe it. They have never offered to leave a planet alone before."

"Yeah, well, I'm not sure I believe them," Taylor muttered. "Either they really want to get their hands on you, or they're lying. Both of those outcomes are unacceptable."

Warmth folded around Taylor’s hand, and she glanced down into her lap. Maia's fingers had curled around hers. She looked up again, staring into Maia's worried blue eyes. "Taylor, I know my research is important, but this will be dangerous. There are so many things that could go wrong..."

"It's not just about your research," Taylor said in a low voice. "I care about you, Maia. I want to keep you safe."

"I care about you as well, Taylor. Perhaps more than I should."

Taylor stood up from the couch and offered Maia her hand. "Come on. Let’s put together a bag, just in case we need to get out of here in a hurry." The two of them retreated to the bedroom, fingers still laced together. They packed mostly without speaking, lost in their own thoughts, but they were never far from each other’s touch. Taylor filled one of her smallest bags with clothes for both of them, water, rations, and extra ammunition for her pistol. "Anything else you can think of?" she asked, noticing that there was still a considerable amount of room in the pack.

Maia blushed, dipping her head in a nod. Without speaking, she walked over to the nightstand beside the bed and opened the top drawer, the same one where Taylor had left her strap-on. When she turned around with the toy in her hands, Taylor’s eyes widened. "You never know," Maia said, smiling shyly. "We might need it."

A grin spread across Taylor’s face, and she brushed Maia’s fingers as she put the toy in the bag. If last night had demonstrated that there was something growing between them, this gesture cemented it. With her heart a little bit lighter, Taylor sealed up the pack and set it at the foot of the bed, where it would be within easy reach. She made sure her pistol was loaded before setting it on top of the nightstand next to her communicator. She hoped she wouldn’t have cause to use it.

"All right, let’s get some sleep," Taylor said. "We’ll find Akton later, when the base isn’t so busy and we’re rested." Her voice suddenly became softer. "Maia…would you share the bed with me?"

Maia smiled as she took Taylor’s hand. "I suppose there is no harm."

Taylor allowed Maia to get settled in the bed first before lying down beside her and wrapping a protective arm around her midsection. Before they fell asleep, she felt a sense of peace settle over her. Her decision was made, and she knew it was the right one. No matter what happened to her, she would make sure that Maia stayed safe.