Heart beating rapidly, Sandoval wondered how things had gotten so complicated, so fast. Liam had arrived and thrown everything into confusion. He stood there, arm raised, skrill ready to fire and he couldn't move! He actually felt frozen to the spot.
Seeing Kincaid, a variety of thoughts had flashed through his mind. Relief was the primary emotion, strange as that was. Kincaid's presence, without Volunteer back-up, could mean only one thing. He was Resistance. His instincts had been right! Hannah Klien's conclusions were flawed, the Major had Resistance ties. His loyalty to Da'an aside, he was Resistance. That meant one of two things. He was here for his friend, or he was here for the Taelon. Which was it?
More to the point, with Resistance ties, why had Liam saved his life before? On more than one occasion. This didn't make sense! If they could get out of this mess without killing each other then maybe, just maybe, they could work together.
He stared at Liam and the Jaridian weapon that was aimed at him, Liam's arm rock steady. Desperately, Sandoval searched for options. He didn't want to do this. Practicalities aside, there was something buried deep within him, some undefined emotion, that cried out that this was wrong. Do not fire!
He had no alternative. He had to get clear. Too much was at stake. From the emotions visible in the Major's eyes, he didn't want to do this either. He couldn't see any other option though.
Which pair of eyes betrayed their intention first? He wasn't sure.
He fired, damning himself with his own thoughts as he did so.
He fell back as he felt the impact of the energy blast of the Jaridian weapon. Quickly, he scrambled to his feet, ignoring the pain as best he could. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kincaid being helped to his feet by Renee Palmer. He heaved a sigh of relief, the Major was all right.
As he made his escape, one thought stuck in his mind. He knew damn well that the Jaridian weapon employed lethal force. The number of men that Rostock had lost was testament to that. The only reason that he was still alive was that the Major must have used the minimal settings.
Making his escape via ID Portal, Sandoval quickly reached Washington DC and had his injury treated, discreetly. As he sat on the gurney in the doctor's office, one thought rang through his mind.
Liam could have killed me. He didn't. He deliberately lowered the settings. Why?