"Francisco?" Camille prompted.

"Stealth device active and frequency changing every five minutes, but I think I have to agree with Miles. Shields are up and are at the maximum level allowed considering the stealth device's demands. Perhaps we should divert all power to ship's defenses?"

Camille pursed her lips as she contemplated the suggestion. Not having any quantifiable field experience in battle scenarios, Camille questioned her own ability to lead the team, let alone make a decision about whether or not to maximize the shields. What would Jaxon do? She continued to speculate his thought process when Oliver called out.

"Hey, boss. What do you think about this?" Oliver synchronized his display with the main view screen. The ship's camera was just coming around the edge of the station, and a small light source began to splash out into space.

"Tighten in on that," Camille said.

Oliver did so, and as the lighted portal filled the screen, a faint mist could be seen rushing violently out into space.

"What do you suppose that is?" Camille asked.

"It appears to be an airlock of some sort, and the atmosphere inside that chamber was just vented out into space," Francisco said.

"Perhaps it's a malfunction on the station, or they are venting some kind of noxious gas that might be a byproduct of the manufacturing of the drug."

As they watched, the hatch opened fully before re-closing within moments. The Buddha maintained its snail's crawl in orbit around the station, and the forward cameras drifted out of view of the hatch.

"Hold on," Oliver said. He rapidly tapped at his control panel and then re-synced his display. The rear-facing cameras on the Buddha picked up where the front cameras left off, and all three of them continued to watch in silence at the first sign of entry to the space station. After several minutes of inactivity, and just as the portal was about to leave the camera's range, the whole process started over. The door cracked open, and atmosphere rushed from the chamber. Before the cycle could complete, the cameras drifted out of view.

"Can we get it back?" Camille asked.

"We're in a slow orbit around the station. We'll be back in range in just a few minutes. The front cameras should pick it up in just a bit," Oliver said.

Camille took control of the view screen and replayed the image from the cache on the computer. There was something about what she saw that caught her attention. It was faint, but she could've sworn that she saw a person's foot just inside the door, only visible for a split second. She continued to replay the image, trying to convince herself of what she saw.

Suddenly, Francisco interrupted her concentration. "Something's up," Francisco exclaimed. "I've just lost control of the ship's defenses. Wait! I just lost access to the stealth device as well. Oh, shit! Both the stealth device and the shields are down."

Camille tried to access both displays on her own control panel, but they were locked out just the same.

"Navigation?" she asked.

Oliver entered several commands at his station then balled up his fists, slamming them onto the armrests of his chair. "Locked out."

Camille began to think about the next move when suddenly, on the screen in front of them, the airlock hatch came into view again. Just as it did so, it appeared the door was cracking open again, but then it stopped. Wisps of oxygen could be seen exiting through the crack. Then, suddenly, collision alarms blared throughout the bridge.

With a quick motion of her hand, Camille activated the sonar array. A missile launched from the space station was heading for the tail end of the Buddha. "Brace for impact!"

The initial collision of the rocket was substantial, knocking everyone from their chairs. The bridge door seal remained intact. More alarms blared, indicating a hull breach and other system failures throughout the ship. She glanced once more at the main view screen and knew that they only had moments before their fate would be sealed.

"Boys, grab your helmets. Looks like we're going for a walk."

54.

"Now, Mr. Rasner. We will see just what you are made of as you watch the destruction of your only escape. Mind the air, because it is most likely the last breath you'll ever take."

As the Buddha was almost across the display, a small projectile entered the screen at the lower left corner. It shot across the view, and an instant later, it made contact with the ship. As the missile hit the Buddha's tail section, a small explosion brightened the display. It took several moments for the initial debris to clear before Jaxon finally saw the Buddha again. It was tilted and drifting unfavorably. Sparks and flames jetted out of the hole made by the missile. After nearly a minute, the Buddha exploded.

As the blood drained from Jaxon's face, his thoughts went to Camille and how he'd just lost her all over again. The fight to maintain his last breath weakened. Just as he was about to spew the last bit of oxygen from his lungs, Guzman spoke again.

"Where are your reinforcements now, Mr. Rasner? Where is this backup team or your cavalry that you spoke about? Your team and your ship have now been destroyed. There's no one left to save you. It's just you and me now, and I'm about to exact my revenge completely. It's time for you to die, Mr. Rasner."

Anger and terror tore through Jaxon. The rage-induced adrenaline pumped through his veins as he tried to free his arms from his restraints. It was useless, and he knew it.

Suddenly, the airlock door began to move. Jaxon, still holding onto his final breath, watched in terror as the door opened fully. Within seconds, Jaxon lost his fight and his lungs emptied uncontrollably.

"Goodbye, Mr. Rasner," Guzman said. "When you get to where you're going, be sure to say hello to your Lily and your new FiFi, because you're about to see them both again."

Lily? Jaxon thought as he wished he had his last breath back. He closed his eyes tight and thought about what Guzman just said. Say hello to your Lily and your new FiFi-did he know Lily was dead? And now, so was Camille. He must have been behind Lily's death-and what about Celeste? He didn't say Celeste. My God, she was still alive!

Without any air to replenish Jaxon's lungs, he began to convulse and his vision clouded over. Images of Celeste came to the forefront of his mind. He only wished that he could hold her in his arms just once. Now, that likelihood was whisking away, just as the air wafted into space right before him.

When he thought all was lost and he could no longer focus, his mind began to play tricks. With his consciousness dwindling, he could have sworn that he saw someone coming in through the airlock.

Then, there was darkness.

55.

Holding onto the edge of the door with one hand and covering her eyes with the other, Camille waited for the repercussions of the exploding ship to dissipate. As the last vestiges of the turbulent waves faded, she dropped her hand and saw Francisco still shielding himself from the catastrophe, blocking any of the ship's debris that might fly their way. Oliver, on the other hand, was calm and collected, and was already about to enter the open airlock.

"It's clear, Clay. Let's get a move on," Camille said, tugging at his environmental suit and pushing him toward the airlock hatch.

Francisco followed Oliver in with Camille bringing up the rear. As they stepped into the airlock, the artificial gravity took over and their feet dropped to the floor instantly.

With weight once again at her soles, Camille focused on her surroundings. The room was an oversized airlock that was brightly illuminated. She took a step forward but ran into the backs of Francisco and Oliver, who were both staring ahead, frozen. She tried to lean around them to see what had their interest when she finally noticed Jaxon, tied to a chair in the middle of the room.

"Jaxon!" Camille said as she barreled past her companions. When she approached Jaxon's lifeless body, his eyes were strangely fixed on the video screen on the wall. Right as she reached him, his eyelids dropped shut.

"Ah, yes. And you must be the cavalry," came a voice over the speaker. The three of them looked around for the source of the voice, but there was no one there.

"Unfortunately, your friend has just expired. So sad. As I can see by your expressions, you're all terribly torn up about it. So, so sad," the voice said.

Camille turned toward Oliver and Francisco and studied their faces. With just one look from her, they both nodded and proceeded to take action. Oliver turned his attention to closing the exterior airlock, while Francisco attempted to gain access to the station's computer system, hoping to terminate the camera feed in the room.

Camille turned her full attention to Jaxon. She knelt next to him and quickly pulled her auxiliary breathing mask from the lining of her suit and held it over Jaxon's face.

"Come on, dammit. Breathe."

Jaxon showed no signs of life. Camille checked her suit's information display and brought up the status of her air supply. She diverted ample supply to the auxiliary breather then checked for a pulse on Jaxon. Unfortunately, the action proved difficult through her gloved hand. She thought she could feel a sporadic pulse, but she wasn't sure if it was Jaxon's pulse or her own out-of-control heartbeat, causing interference.

As she continued to hold the mask over Jaxon's mouth, she began working on freeing his restraints. With her free hand, she fumbled with the thumbscrews holding Jaxon's arms to the armrests.

"Come on, you sonofabitch. I'm not about to let you walk out on me twice in one lifetime," Camille said, wishing her words could be heard by Jaxon.

"Ah, yes. Young love," the voice said through the speakers. "If it's any consolation, Miss FiFi, I am sure Mr. Rasner's last thoughts were of you ... and that of his dead ex-girlfriend. Ha, ha, ha!"

Camille turned toward Francisco, her eyes fuming. "Clay?"

"Almost in."

"First thing you do is shut that bastard up."

"Gladly," Francisco said as he continued to breach the computer.

With Jaxon's right arm free, Camille switched sides so she could work on his left. As she pivoted for better access, she saw the airlock begin to close.

"Oh, thank God," she gasped.

As she awkwardly fumbled with the remaining thumbscrews, she felt something touch the back of the hand holding the mask for Jaxon. She stole a quick glance up and saw Jaxon's own hand on hers.

"Jesus, you're alive!" Camille said, her raging fear jackknifing into righteous joy at seeing life fill his eyes.

Jaxon tried to speak, but could only mumble inside Camille's auxiliary breather.

Camille's eyes momentarily blurred from the tears of joy. "Dammit," she said, knowing that there was no way to wipe them away.

"Miles?"

"Fifteen seconds, boss," Oliver said calmly.

Camille turned to him as he strode confidently toward the opposite airlock door-the door that led to the rest of the space station.

"Hold on a second, baby," Camille said, her voice trembling.

The voice over the speakers blared once again. "I assure you, that regardless of your efforts, you will all die just as-"

"Got it!" Francisco exclaimed. "All communications are severed between the rest of the space station and us."

Just then, a mechanical grind echoed throughout the airlock as the hatch closed and tightened its seal. Seconds later, air could be heard whisking into the airlock, equalizing the environment.

Camille pulled her auxiliary breather from Jaxon's face, and he smiled faintly. He tried to speak, but Camille held her hand against his lips.

"Hush for now. You're in no condition. I'm gonna let Francisco get you out of these restraints while I help Miles."

Camille stepped to the side, allowing Francisco space to begin freeing Jaxon's ankles. Jaxon and Camille's eyes locked, as if life were reaffirming its grip on their existence together.

Camille moved to Oliver, who was working on gaining access to the rest of the space station. "What's our play?"

"Well, assuming that I can get this door open, I expect a fair amount of resistance on the other side."

Camille nodded and took in a deep breath. She finished stowing her emergency breather before withdrawing her plasma gun from its holster. She thumbed off the safety and placed her hand on Oliver's back. "Whenever you're ready."

Oliver slipped a cylindrical device from his side pocket and thumbed the activator, causing alternating red lights to flash all around its edge. Then, he opened the door.

56.

The two guards stationed by the door were momentarily caught off guard. The mechanical seal grunted its release and the door cracked open, but just a few inches. Before either of the guards could react, a grenade dropped to the metal floor and the door reclosed. A quick four seconds later, the amount of time that Oliver dialed in, a muffled explosion reverberated through the airlock.

Oliver dialed open the door once again and found the two guards sprawled across the floor, motionless.

"Are they dead?" Camille asked, more out of curiosity than anything else. She wasn't necessarily leery of seeing corpses, but it was a new experience.

"No, just incapacitated," Oliver said, stepping over the bodies. "It was just a concussion grenade. More bark than bite. However, these have a little extra juice to them. They'll knock you out if you're within range. Otherwise, they normally cause temporary blindness and loss of hearing. They'll recover, but we'll be long gone before that."

Camille followed Oliver's steps down the narrow corridor. They strafed along the wall, prepared for more guards. Guards that never came.

When they reached the first intersection, Oliver eased to the edge and peered around the corner. It was clear. Without pause, Oliver lurched ahead in the direction that he hoped they'd find the source of the voice over the intercom.

A few meters down, they came to a closed door. The plaque next to the door read: airlock control center.

"He's gotta be in here," Oliver said.

Camille stepped around Oliver and was about to press the console button when Oliver grasped her arm.

"Let me, boss. I have a bigger frame than you and can take more of the potential hits. Hang back, but come in a few seconds after and clean up what I don't get on my first pass."

As eager as Camille was to eliminate the putrid man responsible for nearly killing Jaxon, she saw the logic in Oliver's thinking and stepped back.

Oliver keyed the console, and the door whisked open. Plasma bursts instantly blasted out of the opening. Oliver dropped to the ground and rolled to the side, pointing his own plasma gun into the room. Three quick blasts from his pistol and the commotion halted. Oliver stayed on his back, his pistol pointed into the room. Several moments of silence passed before he grinned.

Camille, taking Oliver's smile as a good sign, tilted her head around the corner and into the control room. There were two more guards on the ground, dead. There was a third man in the room who was seated in the only chair. He had dark skin, was in his mid-thirties, and wore green combat fatigues and a beret tilted to the side. His face was pockmarked from years of acne, and the left side of his head was badly mutilated. It was Pablo Guzman.

Camille brought her pistol up to the side of his head in a quick motion as she stepped into the room. "You sonofabitch," she blurted as she slid her finger over the trigger. "Give me a reason, asshole."