Page 24 of Tharn’s Hunt (Barbarians of the Dust #2)

MY SISTER CAN READ ALIEN MINDS, AND I’M JUST SITTING HERE, DUMB

JACQUI

" A nd... what exactly has he been saying?"

I'm staring at my sister, who's suddenly developed the ability to communicate telepathically with aliens.

Because of course she has. Justine has always been the overachiever.

I barely survive a crash landing, nearly die (multiple times), and get dragged across a desert by a giant golden alien.

Meanwhile, Justine's out here making interspecies alliances and developing psychic powers.

Typical.

Justine pauses, glancing at Tharn with an expression I can't quite read. "Her recovery?" she finally asks. But her focus is on Tharn, and her tone is odd.

I frown. Something in her voice tells me that's not the whole truth. My suspicion deepens when she adds, "Not, for example, water sharing?"

Oh.

My face softens with understanding. Water sharing. Of course. Tharn's been sharing his precious water with me this whole time, keeping me alive in this hellscape of a desert. And what have I done? Probably drunk way more than my fair share.

"What about water sharing?" I say, guilt washing over me.

"Oh no, he's been the one sharing his water with me this whole time. Is he saying I’ve been drinking too much?

" I look at Tharn apologetically. "I'm sorry, Tharn, I really tried not to.

Once I'm on my feet, I'll share my water with you anytime if you need it. "

Justine makes a strangled noise and claps a hand over her face. “Oh God,” she mutters.

"What?" I ask, confused by her reaction. "What did I say?"

Justine's face is bright red now. “That's not—Jacqui, that is not what he meant by water-sharing."

"What?" I demand, brows diving. Why is everyone acting so weird? "Seriously, what did I say? I meant it! Tharn kept me alive, didn't he? I'd share my water with him anytime!"

Justine groans louder, burying her face in both hands. "Oh my God, Jacqui, stop talking."

I look between her and Tharn, completely lost. What's the big deal about water? It's just water.

Something in Tharn's posture changes. His shoulders stiffen, his claws scrape against the stone floor, and his breathing quickens visibly. He stares at me with an intensity that makes my skin heat up, and then he abruptly turns and strides to the far side of the cave.

"Oh great," Justine mutters. "Now you've broken him."

"Broken him?" I echo, alarmed. "What? What did I say? What's wrong with him?"

"Nothing," Justine says, dragging her hands down her face. "He's fine. He just... needs a minute. Or an hour. Maybe a day."

I stare after Tharn, who's now pressed against the far wall of the cave, his claws flexing and unflexing like he's trying to calm himself down. His chest rises and falls rapidly, and there's that golden glow pulsing beneath his skin still. I glance at the other alien. He’s just as impressive as Tharn, but he doesn’t glow.

And suddenly, I have the sinking feeling that "water sharing" might mean something very different to aliens than it does to humans.

It's been hours, and my head is still spinning.

Justine has filled me in on some of what's happened since the crash. How she was rescued by Rok (and yes, that’s his real name), how he kept her alive, brought her to his tribe, and how they rescued the other survivors.

But my brain keeps snagging on one unbelievable detail: Tharn has been talking to me this whole time. Or at least, trying to.

I stop breathing, a new, horrifying thought dawning.

"Wait. When I was sick... when I had the fever.

.. I thought..." I press my fingers to my temples.

"I thought we were having conversations.

I could hear his voice in my head. He told me I wouldn't die.

He called me 'precious one'." I look at Justine, my heart hammering.

"I told myself it was just a dream. A hallucination. Was it...?"

Justine's expression softens with a sympathy that is almost worse than her mockery. She gives a small, hesitant nod. "If you heard him, Jacqui... it was real."

The air leaves my lungs in a rush.

It was real .

All of it. His desperation as he carried me. His commands for me to live. His clumsy attempts to push my tears back into my face. My own slurred, delirious confession that I didn't want him to die, either. He heard it all. He felt it all.

The embarrassment I felt before is nothing compared to the wave of heat that floods me now. It's a full-body blush of pure, unadulterated mortification.

I groan and press my hands over my face, wishing I could just disappear. "Oh my god. He must think I'm a complete lunatic."

Justine snorts. "If it makes you feel better, he can’t understand everything you say. The connection isn’t there yet. And he doesn’t think you’re a fool. He carried you across half the desert while you were dying, remember? That's not something you do for someone you think is an idiot."

My brain latches on to another detail she dropped casually earlier. Too casually. Like it wasn't world-shattering.

She and Rok are a thing .

My brain stumbles over the thought, sputtering like a broken engine. My sister is fucking an alien.

A sentence that would have been utterly ridiculous—hell, impossible—just weeks ago. But now... my gaze shifts to Tharn, who is, surprise surprise, watching me with the focus of a predator. Suddenly... it doesn’t seem so ridiculous.

Oh no. Shoot me now .

"Great," I say, pulling my gaze from Tharn and swallowing past the shiver his attention sends down my spine. "So he just thinks I'm a helpless damsel who can't survive two minutes without him saving me. Much better."

Justine rolls her eyes. "Stop catastrophizing. It's not a good look on you."

Easy for her to say. She's somehow managed to become best friends with these aliens, develop telepathic powers, and probably learn their entire language while I've been busy trying not to die.

Even in an alien apocalypse, Justine manages to thrive while I'm barely surviving on good looks and dumb luck.

I push myself up to a sitting position, wincing as my muscles protest. I'm still weak from the fever, but at least I'm not burning up anymore. Small victories.

My gaze drifts automatically to Tharn once more.

He’s been hovering for the past few hours.

Near enough to watch me but far enough to maintain some kind of distance.

He's pacing now, moving back and forth along the far wall of the cave like a caged animal.

Every few steps, he pauses, his hand going to his chest as if something there pains him.

It's not the first time I've noticed him doing this. Ever since I woke up, he's been rubbing at his chest, sometimes clutching it like he's having heartburn or something. Is he sick, too? Did he catch whatever I had?

I watch as he stops again, wincing slightly as his hand presses against his sternum. His glow pulses beneath his skin, brightest where his palm rests. It's almost beautiful, the way the light ebbs and flows like sunlight on water.

Wait. What if...

I narrow my eyes, focusing intently on Tharn. If my sister can telepathically communicate with these aliens, why can't I? Maybe I'm just not trying hard enough.

I concentrate, staring at Tharn with everything I've got. “ Can you hear me? ” I think as loudly as possible, imagining the words shooting from my brain to his.

Nothing. Not even a twitch of acknowledgment.

I try again, squinting harder. “ HELLO? THARN? THIS IS JACQUI'S brAIN CALLING THARN'S brAIN. OVER .”

Still nothing. Tharn continues his pacing, oblivious to my mental shouting.

Fine. Maybe I need to be more direct. I take a deep breath and try once more, visualizing a direct line between us, like a golden thread connecting my mind to his.

“ What's wrong with your chest? Are you sick? Are you allergic to me or something ?”

Tharn pauses mid-step, his head snapping up to look at me. For a second, my heart leaps—did it work?—but then I realize I've been staring at him so intensely that he's probably just noticed my attention.

His amber eyes lock with mine, and something passes between us. Something that makes my skin prickle with awareness. He looks... pained. Conflicted. His hand is still pressed to his chest, and his claws flex against his skin as if he's trying to dig out whatever's bothering him.

"Oh my God, is it the water thing?" I blurt out, unable to contain my frustration any longer. "It's the water thing, isn't it. You're mad I drank too much. I knew it!"

Tharn blinks, clearly startled by my outburst. Across the cave, Justine chokes on a laugh.

"It's not the water, Jacqui," she says, shaking her head. "Trust me on that."

"Then what is it?" I demand, my patience wearing thin. "Why does he keep clutching his chest like he's having a heart attack? Why won't he come closer? Why does he look at me like I'm... like I'm..."

I trail off, not even sure how to describe the way Tharn looks at me sometimes. Like I'm something dangerous but fascinating. Like I'm...

“It's complicated," Justine says, her voice gentler now. "Alien biology is... different. And their connection to us is... well, it's not exactly like anything we have on Earth."

"Great," I mutter. "More cryptic answers. Just what I needed."

I flop back against the stone, frustration bubbling under my skin like a pot about to boil over.

My muscles ache, my head throbs, and there’s this weird, restless itchiness I can’t seem to shake.

Maybe it’s just the aftermath of nearly dying.

Or maybe it’s the fact that everyone seems to know what’s going on except me.

"Look, Jacqui," Justine starts hesitantly, and I glance over at her. She’s fidgeting, which isn’t like her. She’s usually so composed. "It’s not like I have all the answers, okay? Half the time, I’m just trying to figure this out as I go."