Page 35 of Dark Space

I nodded, then leaned down to stroke the hair back from Anna’s face without thinking. She was shivering, cold sweat beading on her brow; I tucked the blanket around her neck, careful with the wound on her shoulder.

Alcide’s eyes were heavy on my back. ‘Callan,’ he said expressionlessly. ‘Let’s go.’

I hated leaving, but I knew Alcide was right. The doctor would work better without us there – Vesper wouldn’t hesitate to call us if the Tirian stepped out of line – and I needed to wash the stress of our trip to the Tirian ship from my skin and my scales.

‘I need a day of leave,’ I muttered to myself as we stepped outside. I pressed a few buttons on my wrist screen, bringing up the livecast feed of the cell.

‘Even if I gave you one, you’d still spend it standing right here,’ Alcide said.

I twisted my lips, but I knew he was right.

‘Cal,’ he said tentatively, ‘what do females … need?’

I snorted. ‘You’re asking the wrong Roth.’

‘There isliterallyno one else I can ask,’ he said. ‘And I need to know.’

‘You’re talking about when Anna wakes up,’ I said flatly. ‘If she agrees to let you claim her.’

He nodded.

I thought for a moment. ‘We can start with the basics, I suppose. We know she needs food, water, somewhere to bathe, somewhere to sleep. How do we get her clothing?’

He shrugged. ‘We’d need to take some uniforms apart, I think. Even the smallest warrior on this ship is twice her size.’

‘Can you sew?’

Alcide wrinkled his nose at me. ‘I think they missed that during prince lessons.’

‘Lucky you have me, then. I’ve been stitching my uniforms my whole life.’ I paused. ‘If she’s going to be the princess consort,then she’ll need information on Scytha. On our history and our government and the way the monarchy works.’

Alcide gaped at me, then reached up to tug on a horn. ‘I haven’t thought this through.’

‘It will be fine, Cide,’ I said soothingly. ‘You’ll be there to help her.’

‘And you,’ he said, his voice low.

We opened the door to Alcide’s suite. ‘I’m here for anything you need, Prince. Always.’

Alcide studied me. For a moment, his eyes flared with warmth – or something else – and I tensed, half hoping he would pull me closer, seize my mouth with his, and continue what we started the other day, complications be damned. Instead, he took a deep breath and gathered himself, turning away.

‘Take your day of leave, Cal,’ he said. ‘You deserve it.’

He slipped inside his room. I stood on the threshold, unable to sort through the mess of feelings tangling inside me.

Alcide was right, as it turned out. I spent my day of leave outside the cell, watching the human on the bed and the starling chained to the floor as the Tirian doctor woke and began to work.

Pain pain pain PAINpain pain pain PAIN PAIN PAIN.

I panted, trying desperately to escape the fire racing through my body, burning through my blood. I was ice and molten lava by turns, my teeth chattering, my throat moaning of its own accord. My vision was blurry, and I couldn’t find the strength to turn over, let alone sit up.

An odd collection of sounds broke through the rasp of my too-swift breath; clicks and snarls and tiny growls, then words.

‘Vesper?’ I croaked.

‘Right here, little lodestar.’ Vesper’s voice was deep and tense. ‘Haven’t moved an inch.’

I opened my eyes.