The Lost Patrol by Vaughn Heppner Read Free Book Online Page B

stiffened, pointing at the horizon, trying to speak, but unable.
    Maddox shaded his eyes from the sun. He saw it then, a zigzagging cruise missile heading in their direction. He glanced around for the interceptors. He spied one in the opposite direction as the missile. The other plane had left their vicinity, it seemed.
    “What are we going to do?” Shu said.
    Maddox watched the racing interceptor. A missile dropped from a wing and ignited. The antiair device zoomed fast, heading for the cruise missile.
    Shu clapped her hands in appreciation.
    Maddox followed the antiair device with his eyes. The thing streaked across the sky as the cruise missile continued a zigzag course toward them.
    “Get down,” he told Shu.
    She threw herself onto the ground, covering her head with her arms. Maddox put one knee on the soil. The cruise missile stopped its zigzag course as it rushed straight at them. Before it reached them, though, the antiair missile—
    Maddox’s stomach clenched. The antiair missile curved away from the cruise missile, heading down. Did the cruise missile have electronic defenses?
    The antiair missile exploded harmlessly against the ground.
    “I don’t believe it,” Shu whispered starkly. She was looking up. “You’re di-far . The cruise missile shouldn’t be able to reach us—to reach you.”
    “Maybe it won’t,” Maddox said.
    “No,” she said from the ground. “Don’t be arrogant. The Spirit leaves in an instant if arrogance reigns in one’s heart.”
    “My conjecture has nothing to do with arrogance,” Maddox said.
    “The missile is almost here.” Shu gazed up at Maddox. “I wish we’d had more time together. I would have liked to get to know you better.”
    “You still may.”
    “No. It’s too late. Nothing can save us. Good-bye, Captain.”
    Maddox had looked higher than the cruise missile. As the interceptor’s antiair missile had streaked at its target, the captain had seen a distant speck high in the sky. The speck had grown the entire time. Now, he spotted a shuttle. No doubt, it had left Starship Victory some time ago. Likely, Sergeant Riker had taken it upon himself to come down.
    Would the sergeant reach the cruise missile in time? It was going to be close, especially if Riker used antiair missiles.
    No, a beam speared from the shuttle. It struck the cruise missile’s nosecone. Seconds later, the missile overshot them by several hundred meters. It plowed into the ground, throwing up grass, dirt and—
    A ripping metal sound told of the missile’s crumpling destruction. The warhead had failed to go off, but the impact with the Earth still shredded it.
    “I can’t believe it,” Shu whispered. “You are di-far . But I doubted. I’m unworthy of the Spirit. No. This is awful. I’ve tainted myself.”
    “Luckily,” Maddox said, “because you’re still alive, you’ll be able to do something about the oversight.”
    Shu regarded him, climbing to her feet. Then, she dropped to her knees, bowing her head as she beat her chest. She moaned pitifully and began to weep.
    Maddox watched for a moment, stunned. The shuttle was coming down fast. It would be here in thirty seconds or less.
    “Here, now,” Maddox said, going to Shu. He grabbed her upper arms and hauled her to her feet. Tears streaked down her cheeks.
    “Thank you,” she whispered, throwing herself against him, kissing his face fervently. “Thank you, thank you, thank you, di-far .”
    As Shu did this, the shuttle landed with a thud. Maddox looked up into the window as the Provost Marshal continued to kiss him. He expected to see Sergeant Riker grinning at him. Instead, Meta frowned down at him, growing angrier by the moment.
     

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    A shuttle hatch slid up and Meta jumped to the ground.
    “You’re going to have to stop that,” Maddox told Shu. “It’s unseemly.”
    “You’ve saved my life twice today.” Shu arched up onto her toes to kiss him again.
    Maddox grabbed her arms, restraining her. “You