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Chapter Twenty-Two

Aboard the Aroagni.

D rafe jerked awake and stilled when Vic curled against him. He grinned and drew her closer to him, taking the time to kiss her temple and inhale her sunbaked scent. As he lay there relishing the softness of her in his arms, he frowned. What had disturbed his sleep?

“Drafe Arrak.”

He cupped the device in his neck. “Speak.”

“The pod’s explosion confirms the timer is set for six hours.”

“My thanks.” He tucked his arm behind his head and stared at the ceiling, not wanting to slip out of bed or disturb Vic’s slumber.

“What is it?” she mumbled, rolling over to press her cheek to his chest.

He nuzzled her neck. “The pod exploded.”

She shifted again. “It has a time delay?”

He smiled. “Yes, long enough for the Ots to gather, to observe and discuss.”

“The explosion might not be intentional. Just a safety mechanism to prevent what they’re doing from coming into the light,” she mumbled and rolled over, exposing a perfect breast.

He cupped it, running a thumb across the soft nipple until it hardened. “Planting any kind of explosion is with the intent of detonating it.”

She wriggled under his touch. “True. Do we continue with the plan?”

“Yes.” He dipped to press a kiss to her tormented nipple, not daring to do anything more. “Once we locate the facility, we can decide on the next step.”

She snuggled against him, feathering a kiss across his collarbone. “Can we sleep now?”

He chuckled, squeezed her, then slid out of bed. “I need to speak to Aehort.”

“Let me know what he says.” She gathered his pillow close and drifted off.

Drafe stared at her, loving the fire-like lighting flickering across her delicate face. She didn’t know it yet, but he was keeping her.

Summoning his symbiotes to cover the bottom half of him in armor, he padded barefoot to the galley, thirsty and eager for a strip of hudu. Nenn sat at the table, his face buried in his tablet. He didn’t glance up when Drafe entered.

“What has you awake?” he mumbled around charred meat Drafe didn’t recognize.

“The pod exploded.”

“So I heard.” Nenn met his gaze. “Yet, you left the loving arms of your female?”

“Mm, I have a dilemma I need to work through.” Drafe filled a jar of water and sat on the bench.

“Care to share?” Nenn flipped his tablet over and pulled his half-empty bowl closer.

“She does not want to involve herself out of fear. Revenge is driving her to take the hauler, but after that is completed, she might…leave me.” Drafe sighed. There, he’d said it, his biggest fear.

“You want a way to keep her?” Nenn arched a brow. “Drafe, she is not Qaldreth—”

Drafe growled.

Nenn raised his hand, a strip of white meat dangling from his fingers. “Let me finish. She does not know our ways and cannot be held to our expectations. In addition, she is a warrior who will not be subservient to you. Perhaps all you need to do is ask her, warrior to warrior.”

“That is our way.” Drafe frowned. “To ask.”

“No, I mean, explain it to her, how staying with you will impact her life.”

Drafe rested his chin on his hand and stared at Nenn. “She knows nothing of our homeworld. It is right that I share this with her.”

Nenn grinned before sipping his steaming tisane that smelled of the inside of a garak. “If you are serious about having her as your love mate, then yes.”

“Wise, Nenn. Do we have any Ivoyan data vids on Qaldreth?”

“We do.” Nenn wiped his fingers on a cloth and splayed them on the table. He leaned back and stared at Drafe. “As wonderful as images will be, memories spoken from the heart have greater impact.”

Memories were good and bad, painting him as strong or weak. No, he need not relive those with her. “She has my symbiotes and access to all Meorri history.”

“Yes, but she has not learned to commune with them. You are rushing the most beautiful thing to occur to a warrior, Drafe.”

“I know.” He slumped. Nenn was right. It was incredible that he had found a worthy female, more so that she was a warrior. “I want it done. I want her to be mine with no chance of her walking away.”

Nenn laughed, his red eyes glowing. “You are feeling insecure. It is not the way of a fearless warrior.”

Drafe glared at him. “Foq, Nenn. Wait until you meet your female.”

Nenn shrugged. “I hope to be as senseless as you.” He pushed aside his empty plate while licking his fingers. “On a more serious matter, her besting Ulvus has enraged the male. I will guard your back.”

“Ulvus is predictable.” Drafe downed his water. “Thank you for the advice and warning, Nenn.” He squeezed Nenn’s shoulder, then strode along the passage, debating whether to return to Vic, visit with Aehort, or do a shift. Restlessness consumed him. Spinning on a heel, he headed to the bridge.

Caah Taed flicked a glance at him but returned his focus to the screens. “The scans for the seventy-nine moons are turning up the usual: mining colonies, some on the surface, and others orbiting the applicable moon. I left Europa for last. I wanted to make sure we covered our bases.”

“Wise.”

Caah grinned and tapped a beat across the console’s buttons. “Want to scan the ice moon with me?”

“Sure.” Drafe leaned against the bulkhead to watch.

Still in stealth, the Aroagni shot into orbit around Europa.

It was a beautiful little moon with white streaks carved into its surface.

Many boreholes had been sunk to best harvest the oceans beneath the layers of ice.

The images showed land vehicles carving chunks of ice and rolling on, leaving cubes behind them as they moved onto the next section.

A hovering ship lifted the cube and flew off.

“Where is it going?” He glanced at Caah.

“To the nearest ice base. From there, the ice hauler will deploy their riggers to collect.” The taed tapped the screen to the far right where unnatural bumps marred the horizon. The screen zoomed in on the camp with housing structures that looked like capsules.

Drafe rubbed his brow where a headache was forming. Foq . “Mm, and nothing else on the scans?”

Spinning the moon’s image on the screen, Caah tapped at the bottom of it. “Some heat signatures closer to the southern core. Investigating now.”

Drafe squeezed and released his forearm, a silent display of impatience.

If the facility was not on Europa, then due to Caah’s diligence, they could determine the source was not from anything remotely close to Jupiter.

This would also mean no need to retake Vic’s ice hauler, nor a reason for her to stay with Drafe.

He gritted his teeth as each precious second ticked by. The tension built in his shoulders, burning down his spine.

“The area is shielded. Adjusting frequency.” Caah’s brow knitted.

“Some sort of structure is underground.” He flicked his fingers, and images appeared on the largest screen.

“Whatever it is, it is quite extensive, descending a few levels and spreading out more than three lengths of the Aroagni combined.”

“Is it the facility we are looking for?” Drafe frowned. “Never mind. I will trace the trajectory to Europa.” He bolted with a called “thank you,” sprinting along the passages to the command center and its three-dimensional space model.

Aehort smiled when Drafe stormed in. “Yes, it is the correct location.”

Gripping the table to hide and channel his energy, Drafe took a moment to calm his erratic heartbeat. “Why do you not share your premonitions? Am I not trustworthy?”

Aehort met his gaze. “You know the answer to this. You need not ask questions.”

Drafe huffed. “Fine.”

“You would attempt to make my visions come true, endangering yourself in the process, and not opening yourself to new possibilities or experiences.”

Everything within Drafe stilled. “You knew about Vic.” An explosion of joy summoned a grin. “Which is why you insisted I break with protocol and visit Moonstar.”

Aehort ignored him. “If I factor in the orbital path of Europa and the average speed the pods traveled, I confirm the source as being the southern pole.”

What they needed to do settled in Drafe’s gut.

The confirmation added peace to the decision to strike.

He prayed to Osnir that no civilians were harmed, but he wouldn’t bemoan their deaths too much.

After all, they knew what they were doing was wrong.

Or were the gods the humans worshipped more lenient on such ethical matters? “Good, Aehort. Now what?”

“Vic warned about security.” Aehort pressed the blue button.

“Caah Taed, monitor communication into and out of the facility. Listen for security protocol we might need to mimic.” Aehort flicked his elegant, elongated fingers at Drafe.

“Return to your female. Inform her of this, and ask her how she would like to proceed.”

“Ask?” Drafe appreciated the respect Aehort showed Vic.

“It is polite.” Aehort rasped a chuckle.

Snatching the opportunity, Drafe pushed for a hint of his future. “I assume, in your visions, that she is beside me when we breach the facility?”

Aehort met his gaze, all humor gone. “Wake her.”

Drafe sighed and marched to his quarters, but when he slipped inside, his pace slowed, and his frustration evaporated. In the warm light, Vic lay on her back, her limbs outside the furs, exposing the curved lines of her body to his admiring gaze.

“And?” she whispered without opening her eyes.

He grunted. “I made no sound, female.”

She snorted. “You breathe like an antique robo-dog.” She sat up, swung her legs over the side of the bed, and gathered her hair on top of her head while she stretched. The act displayed the prettiest parts of her body. “What news?”

Drawing in a breath, he forced himself to focus on anything but the temptation of her. “We found the facility.”

She pushed off the bed to don her breeches, fresh from the wash closet. He bolted, approaching her from behind to cup her bare breasts before she hid them from him. Massaging and tweaking the tips, he nipped her neck, then soothed her skin with kisses.

“Caah is scanning the security protocols,” he mumbled as he nuzzled the hair behind her ear.

“Good.” She spun in his embrace and kissed him, claiming his mouth like he would conquer hers. Warrior met warrior, as they had done in the Moonstar. As she had done to fire his blood so.

When she broke away, he groaned, “Foq, Vic, I adore your kissing.”

She grinned at him. “I know. After you’ve fed me, I can show you what else kissing is good for.”

He frowned. “I do not have another tongue anywhere on my body.”

She laughed as she pulled away to slip on her sleeveless tunic. Shuffling forward, she cupped his semi-erect koq through his armor. He groaned when she rubbed him, sparking a bolt of pleasure.

“Something else can be kissed like you did to me.” Pink colored her cheeks. “Although, it will be my first time.”

Everything within him stilled. As confident and skilled as she was, he had never considered her to be untried, virginal.

“I…am your first?” He struggled to swallow past the lump in his throat.

Any female with a brother, cousin, uncle, or father would remain untouched under Qaldreth protection.

Perhaps Vic’s Ande had served in such a capacity, ensuring the most intimate part of her remained unsullied.

Drafe was indebted to Ande for his diligence. “I am honored, Vic.”

She dipped her chin to hide her face as she tugged on her boots. “The pleasure was all mine, Drafe, but I intend to remedy that.”

“I found joy.” He tried to assure her lest she felt inadequate.

She stroked a finger down his bare chest, summoning a path of tingles and skinbumps. “Yes, but did you roar my name, did you gasp and beg?”

He scowled. “A Qaldreth warrior never begs.”

Her smirk was wicked to behold. “We shall see.”