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The next morning, Daphne brought in another dress; this time, it had a little more room in the bustline, but it was still rather tight.

The housekeeper triumphantly produced her pack and everything was in clean and new condition. She certainly knew her job.

“Thank you, miss.”

The woman ducked her head, smiled and retreated.

Daphne smiled. “She is a woman of few words and your look on arrival scared the hell out of her.”

Ianka chuckled. “It has been a few years since I have seen a mirror. The few folk I have run into haven’t bothered commenting. They were too busy thanking me for fishing them out of the wilderness.”

“Is that what you have been doing?”

“I have been tracking animals, finding Gaians and building my own little retreat away from the city. It is primitive but it is mine.”

“I have heard of a wild thing in the North Country, but I hadn’t realised it was you.”

Daphne wrinkled her nose in amusement.

Ianka laughed. “They told me that there were rumours of a creature rescuing hikers and botanists in that area. It took them a while to realise that they were in her clutches.”

They went downstairs for breakfast, and the pilot who would be taking her was sitting at one end of the table with Apolan at the other. It seemed that there were only two remaining seats on either side.

Ianka faced Daphne across the table. “Your housekeeper did a wonderful job on the leathers. They are as clean as could be. They will be a delight to wear now.”

“She does enjoy natural fibres, and skins are just some of them. The pants seem an odd fit.”

Ianka laughed as she followed Apolan’s lead and started helping herself to breakfast. “They were rather urgent. My original clothing had shredded away by that point. Dressing myself became rather important. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a pattern to work from.”

Daphne laughed. “So, you improvised.”

“Yup. The shirt was easier. I used the shreds of my last blouse to make the pattern and it fits like a dream. The bra bands were hit and miss.”

“How did you cure the leather?”

Ianka smiled. “Lua pods. They dissolved the hair and the oil softened the skin. They are easy to use if you wrap your hands. Soak the skin in water the moment you have the result you want.”

“Nice. Your boots are lovely.”

She beamed. “Thank you.”

The pilot, who was so deep red he was nearly black, chuckled and spoke in careful Gaian. “It figures. Put two women together no matter their species and they will talk about shoes.”

Ianka looked squarely at him and he grinned, showing deadly teeth. She stated in clipped tones. “It was not a conversation that you chose to enter in its infancy so critiquing it shows bad manners.”

He blinked and leaned back slightly. “You are correct. I am unfamiliar with the object in question and therefore my comment was unwarranted. I apologise.”

She inclined her head. “Apology accepted.”

Daphne and Apolan were looking at each other with amusement. Apolan cleared his throat. “How long were you living on your own in the wild, Ianka?”

“I saw four winters out there, but I am not focussed on the exact dates. I lived in the moment.”

She shrugged.

The pilot cleared his throat. “You lived here on Underhill without companions or shelter for four years?”

She shrugged. “Yes. I found a few hunting parties and helped them back to the city, but I did not return myself.”

“You fed and sheltered yourself for four years?”

He raised his brows.

“Yes. Is there a reference to this in the Nine languages? You seem confused.”

She worked on her meal with good appetite. It had been a while since she had consumed fruit out of season. She had missed the greenhouses of the city. Dried fruit just wasn’t the same.

Apolan chuckled. “Our females are not really trained for self-sufficiency. There are so few that we tend to take great care of them. Dorum was simply surprised that you had survived on your own.”

She swallowed and sipped some water. “I can track my own food, and after a while, I got used to killing for defence and meals. Once I reached that point, not much bothered me.”

Dorum nodded. “Yes, once you have your first kill under your belt, it is like a rock down a hill. Not much will stop you, though you may be redirected.”

Ianka inclined her head. “Now you have it. So, when do we leave?”

He grinned. “As soon as the meal is done. The ship has been checked and is ready for takeoff.”

“Good. I need to find out what she wants. She has become most insistent.”

Ianka rubbed her forehead. She knew what Daphne had told her, but she wanted to hear it from Vida.

Dorum was looking at her curiously. “You can sense your sister?”

Ianka frowned. “Now and then. Right now is one of those moments.”

Daphne smiled. “They have always had their link. Before the Tokkel, they were one of the best tracking teams that had ever been seen, not that folks knew who they were. They did their best work without anyone knowing. Ianka even delivered meat to those who had suffered a death or illness and were unable to work.”

She sat up. “How do you know that?”

“I saw you. I was hiding and you brought it all the way out to my cottage on several occasions before you left. I truly appreciated it.”

“Where were you?”

Daphne chuckled. “I was hiding.”

“Oh.”

Ianka blushed. She had forgotten that Daphne had her own set of skills when she chose to use them.

The rest of the meal was completed in silence.

Ianka’s belly was full but not uncomfortable when she placed her cutlery carefully across the edge of her plate.

She felt a touch on her shoulder and the housekeeper pointed toward the corner where her bag was sitting and gleaming with a solid cleaning.

“Thank you for the care you took.”

She spoke softly.

She wasn’t sure if the woman spoke Gaian or not, but she blushed a soft grey and smiled shyly.

Daphne grinned as the woman left. “I think she is smitten with you. No other woman could have scattered the guards with a look, like you did.”

“It was my smell, not my face that scattered them.”

She sat with her hands in her lap.

“I beg to differ. You looked deadly coming through the gates.”

Apolan smiled.

They rose from the table and Ianka took the hint. She grabbed her pack, checked for her knives and followed Pilot Dorum to the tarmac a fair distance from the embassy.

Daphne came with her.

“Thank you, Daphne. That shower was wonderful.”

Daphne laughed. “The mother ship has solar showers, so think fondly of this one.”

“Right. Limited water on the ship.”

Ianka braced herself for what was about to be her first space flight.

She gave Daphne a brisk hug and waved to Apolan before following Dorum into the ship.

He carefully took her pack from her and settled it in a storage container, locking it closed. “We don’t want anything coming loose. This is a quick and bumpy trip.”

She nodded and swallowed quickly. “It will be my first.”

He showed her to the front of the shuttle and he demonstrated how to buckle into one of the dozen seats, all without touching her. She snapped the harness into place and he nodded with satisfaction. “Right. We shall be on our way.”

Ianka swallowed again and curled her hands on the armrests. The shuttle started to move and then they were tilting upward. She felt the tugging as the engines pushed against the atmosphere.

She closed her eyes at the pressure and held tight until there was a switch in the drag downward. It went from overwhelming to steady and even in a few moments. From that moment until they entered the huge vessel of the mother ship, she concentrated on her breathing and not crushing the armrests in her grip.

A curl of excitement ran through her and she sat up as much as she could. Vida was seeing her arrive. They would be together again and the pain of the separation would finally ease.