Too Close to the Sun (The Sun 1) by Robin T. Popp Read Free Book Online

Removing a sterile wipe, she cleaned the cuts on his forehead and shoulder.
    “I was taking a nap," he whispered. "I didn’t know the ship was under attack until the rocking woke me. I got up too fast and lost my balance.”
    “Quiet,” Romanof said more insistently. “Not one more sound.”
    Worried the older man might be going into shock, Angel took the thermal sheet from the first aid kit and unfolded it. After wrapping it around his shoulders, she glanced out the viewport.
    “I don’t think your plan worked.”
    The rebel ship was coming towards them. With the engines down, they were sitting ducks.
    Angel moved to the side viewport as the ship pulled alongside them. The cold chill of fear raced up her spine at the sight of a space tunnel emerging from the side of the Free Rebel ship and extending out toward the hatch of the Icarus .
    “We need to get out of here, now,” Angel shouted, punching the button that would start the engines.
    Nothing happened.
    "The systems are damaged" Romanof said, answering her unasked question. "It’s going to take approximately ninety seconds to recode them and fix the problem.”
    The wail of a deep-space drill grinding through metal started up, adding to her sense of impending doom - as if she wasn't already stressed enough. “That’s ninety-one seconds longer than we have. They’re drilling through the lock on the outer door!”
    Angel raced from the bridge. If the rebels broke through the door, it would be twenty or more bloodthirsty pirates against a computer, an invalid and her. Not great odds.
    If she wanted to take the rebels by surprise, she didn't have much time - but facing them without a weapon was suicide. She raced to the supply closet she noticed on her earlier tour of the ship, praying it would have something she could use.
    Inside it, she found an odd array of items and, unfortunately, not a single laser or pulsar weapon.
    On impulse, she grabbed a T120 fire-gel and a timer before racing off toward the airlock. She was halfway there when she stopped and hurried back to the closet. She'd thought of a plan - or rather, she'd been struck with the merest glimmer of an idea. Grabbing an oxygen mask, a docking-harness and a tether, she raced toward the airlock.
    “Are they through yet?” She shouted as she ran, knowing Romanof could hear her.
    “No.”
    Time was critical. Reaching the outer doors, she palmed the control plate. The doors opened on a silent swoosh of air.
    The shriek of drills tearing into the metal of the outer hull filled the small airlock chamber. She slapped the inside control plate, closing the doors and sealing herself inside.
    Setting everything on the floor at her feet, she went to work. Starting with the docking-harness, she put it on and pulled the straps tight across her chest. Then she connected one end of the tether to the harness and fastened the other end to a wall hook. She strapped the oxygen mask to her face and took a few breaths to regulate the flow. If everything went according to plan, the tethering and oxygen would be unnecessary, but she knew better than to count on luck.
    Finally, she connected the timer to the fire-gel and set it for thirty seconds. Now came the real fun.
    With a quick mental count to three to calm herself, she started the timer and set the fire-gel on the floor in front of her. She hit the control that raised the outer hatch door.
    Caught off guard, the rebels stopped their drilling. When the door had cleared less than half a meter, Angel kicked the fire gel under and slapped the control again, lowering the door. That was when her luck ran out.
    One of the rebels shoved his drill under the door, preventing it from closing. She watched in horror as he squirmed through the gap and when he stood before her, Angel got her first up-close look at a Free Rebel. He was humanoid, but resembled nothing human.
    Fathomless black eyes peered at her out of a chalky, white, cadaverous head, sizing her up. Angel knew the