Page 11

“Yes, for a soldier. Or a worker,” Autumn finally answered. “We’re here to collect water.”

“You’re not from the land?”

“Not this land.” Autumn’s head finally stopped spinning, and she dug her fingers into the sand to push herself upward into a sitting position. Soulara didn’t move like a normal human would. She didn’t shift away and back up to give Autumn more space. Why Autumn expected that was stupid. Soulara clearly wasn’t human. “What species are you?”

“I’m not sure I understand your question, Autumn Walton.”

Autumn winced. “Just call me Autumn. You don’t need to say my full name every time.”

“Autumn,” Soulara repeated, grinning immediately. “I like the way that feels on my tongue.”

There was something else Autumn would like to feel with that tongue.

Nope.

She definitely had to stop that train of thought. Relations with aliens while on a tour to a non-acquired planet were strictly forbidden. Then again, there wasn’t supposed to be life on this planet, which meant that according to the commander, Soulara simply didn’t exist. Unless he’d lied to them all.

Autumn swallowed that thought down hard. He wouldn’t lie to her. She knew he was completely capable of it, but to have her commander lie meant that she couldn’t trust him. And she had to trust him. Her life, and the lives of all her comrades, depended on it.

“How old are you?” Soulara asked, spreading out her legs so one was behind Autumn and the other was curled up against herself. They were so damn close. The way they sat would look so intimate to anyone who happened upon then.

“Twenty-six.”

Soulara shook her head. “Twenty-six what?”

“Years.” Autumn locked her gaze on Soulara’s. “How do you measure time?”

“In seasons.”

“Which is how long?”

Soulara shrugged slowly. “One season is four spins of the moon.”

“Four spins…” Autumn trailed off. Astronomy had never been her strong suit. She’d nearly failed that class in school as well. She wasn’t built to be smart. She was built for grunt work and nothing more. It was why she’d never had aspirations of being an officer. “I don’t know how to compare your time to mine.”

Soulara shrugged slightly. “I’m only thirty-six seasons.”

“I still don’t know what that means.”

“We’ll figure it out.” Soulara put her hand back on Autumn’s and everything was about that touch. What they were discussing didn’t really matter in the long run, did it? “You’re an adult, right?”

“Most definitely.” Soulara’s gaze was full of mischief. “You as well?”

“Yes.” Autumn grinned, digging her fingers into the sand even more to keep herself from leaning in and pressing her mouth to Soulara’s full lips. What was this? A siren’s song she couldn’t hear? “So do more of your people live here?”

“I’m not alone, if that’s what you’re asking. There are many tribes.”

Autumn nodded. “Where we grow up tells you a lot about us too. I’m from the largest and most northern continent. What that means is not a whole lot anymore. But two hundred years ago it would have meant a lot.”

“So you’ve come together as one tribe?”

Shrugging slightly, Autumn nodded. “Since the drought continued, there aren’t really continents anymore.”

“Drought.” Soulara frowned and played her fingers in the sand. “You don’t have any water?”

“No. It’s why we’re here. It’s the only reason we go to new worlds.” Everyone knew that. Their planet wasn’t unheard of, and they were always trying to barter for water with any alien species they met. Surely Soulara should know that.

“You’re taking the water.” Soulara’s face fell. She turned her head and stared out at the sea, the waves crashing. Her flirtatious countenance from before was suddenly gone and her face had become gloomy. It was almost as if the sky darkened around her, the light in her soul dimming.