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“Think about it, Tasha. Aurelians are all prideful bastards, and they’re all protective of human females—verging onpossessive. If Aelon fancies you, he’s not going to let you just slip through his fingers. He won’t just hand you over to the authorities…”

I can tell I’m convincing her. Problem is? I’m convincing myself. I saw the way Garrick looked at me. I saw him almost snap. He’s just like all the other Aurelians, beasts that have their nature controlled by their autocratic society.

Tasha considers my words. “No—but if you’re right, he’s not going to just let us go, either.”

I nod in agreement. I have to think of Nami. I have to think of the truth of Aurelians before I’m tempted. “Listen. I had a friend who was in a harem for a few years. Those Aurelians didn’t want her to leave when she asked to. Shit—she said they’d probably have kept her against her will if it wasn’t for Queen Jasmine’s laws.”

Thinking about the way my vibrant friend turned into a shell of herself is painful, but it’s a lesson I thought I’d ingrained. I shouldn’t need to remember that pain to warn myself about Garrick and his triad. When Nami realized they would never truly love her, her heart was shattered, and finally she had to leave. The misogynistic bastards couldn’t understand a human woman wanting to leave their harem. She got away, physically.

She left her heart and soul with them.

“They’re crazy possessive. My friend said that if any other man had evenlookedat her the wrong way—well, let’s just say that they’d lose more than just theeyesthat had offended her. The Aurelians would kill to protect her—or even just to protect her honor.”

Tasha shudders. I wonder if she’s drawn to Captain Aelon the way I’m pulled towards Garrick and his men. We need to keep our wits about us. The Aurelians will be clouded by attraction. We will not.

“You can use that to your advantage.” I lean forward. The more I think about it, the clearer it is. These Aurelians are barely more than beasts. Their entire civilization is built around controlling those urges, but if the Aurelian captain is falling for Tasha, we can control him through his lust. “What else did you learn about the captain? His name’s Aelon, right?”

“Yes, Captain Aelon.” She nods. “I don’t think he’s aligned to the Aurelian Empire, but he doesn’t seem to be Rogue—or he’d have…” My cheeks burn. “Well, if hewasinto me, he wouldn’t have gone through this rigmarole. He’d have justtakenme, if you know what I mean.”

A surge of fear and anger builds up in me as I get a flashback to Kit grabbing me, twisting my pained wrist. It throbs as a reminder of our near-death escape from the Toads…

And what Kit would have done to me if Garrick and his triad didn’t arrive at the last second.

Captain Aelon was alone on the deck when he first approached us. Perhaps his triad wasn’t as lucky as him in a battle, and he’s the last of three. “Tell me, is Aelon alone? Or does he have a triad?”

She grimaces. “A triad—and they’re even worse than him.”

Tasha paces up and down the cell. Something’s on her mind. Something she’s not telling me. “The other two members of his triad are a couple of brutes—warriors to the core. They’re called Iunia and Vinicus—they could practically be twins.”

“All Aurelians look like twins,” I say, but instantly realize my belief is flawed. Garrick has a broad, honest face, while Tar’ank is serious and stately, with strong, powerful features you’d see in an ancient senate. Markrin has just a dash of cocky handsomeness that I hate to be attracted to for the first time in my life, with those high, almost delicate cheekbones and handsome eyes…and a body that I’m sure has abs stacked on abs.

Why did I used to think they all looked the same? And if I was wrong about that…what else am I wrong about?

“No,” she says, shaking her head, “these tworeallylook similar—or maybe that’s just their attitude.” She slumps down across from me in the adjacent bunk bed. I’ve never seen her so beat down. She always faces danger with determination. “Anyway—it looks like Captain Aelon is here commanding a battalion. They’ve been recruited to clear out a Scorp infestation on that moon.”

I consider her words, looking for an angle. “So, they’re protecting something—otherwise they’d just let the Scorp claim it.” I try to put it together. “The scans reported that the planet below—Tarrion—was resource-rich but largely undeveloped.” Resources. Protection. “Until now, I guess. There must be miners exploiting the resources of Tarrion.”

That’s the only thing that makes sense. A warship wouldn’t be doing anything else out in Wild Space. It’s not worth it unless there’s a payday.

“They’re mining down there,” I continue, “and the Scorp infestation on the moon is disrupting their operation. Captain Aelon is a mercenary, then—a sword for hire.”

He’s an Independent Aurelian. Not Rogue. But he’s probably done some jobs he wouldn’t want the Aurelian Empire to know about…

Just like us.

“He’s mercenary, that’s for sure.” Tasha spits out the words.

How can I use this to our advantage?

I piece together everything I know about Captain Aelon, but I feel like I’m doing a jigsaw puzzle blindfolded and missing half the pieces. “Okay. Well, that means we know a few things about him. He’s a mercenary, so he wants and appreciates money. We all saw how much he hates Toads—you remember the way he talked to that Toad captain. I imagine he’s got some deep-seated grudge against their species. I wonder what happened to trigger it.”

“I guess we’re just lucky he doesn’t feel the same way about humans.”

I clench my hand into a fist, and wince instantly at the sudden pain. “We weresofucking close. All we had to do was slip those Toads and we’d have made a clean break of it—we’d have beenrich!” I sigh. “Fuck, we could have bought a bloody space station with those Orbs. We could have…”

“…we’re okay. We’re alive,” Tasha interrupts. “That’s the only thing that matters. What we could have done differently—well, that’s in the past, and there’s nothing we can do about it now. We’ve got to think about our future.”

Coulda woulda should. Tasha’s right—regrets are for after, when the dust settles.