by Celia Kyle
“Shut up! You were in one of those shuttles? Tell me all about it!”
So, she told Jade everything about what it was like to share Hiren and Sevith’s mind link. What it was like to take the shuttle to the battleship. Details about the living quarters and the common areas of the Avash. Then she told her about the holo deck and the Tuk bike, minus the sexy times.
They sat on the couch, sipping wine, chatting and laughing. As they spoke a heavy weight lifted from Jenna’s shoulders. Not all the way, but just enough to grant her a tiny reprieve.
She was so grateful for Jade’s friendship. So very grateful.
They talked until finally Jade checked the clock and realized with a jolt that she needed to get home.
“Are you going to be okay making it past the paparazzi?” It was so weird suddenly being the subject of so much speculation.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine. But one thing I’d recommend—don’t check social media or the news. It’ll just hurt your head. If you want a good night’s sleep tonight just ignore all that noise and focus on your relationship with the Drokten.”
She gave her friend a tight hug. “You’re right. Thanks.”
“And…I don’t know what you should do about this blackmailing shit.” Jade grabbed her hand, “but I’m here for you. Please check in with me tomorrow. I need to know that you’re okay. And I want to help in any way I can. I’ve got your back.”
Jenna nodded her thanks and walked her friend to the door, doing a double take when she passed by the hallway and spied Bea standing near the entry to the living room, her face pale and thoughtful.
Jenna’s heart sank. How long had Beatrice had been standing there? How much had she overheard? She closed the front door and returned to find Bea entering the kitchen. “Hey, Bea, you’re up late.”
Bea shrugged, avoiding her gaze. “I couldn’t sleep. Need a glass of water, that’s all.”
Oh hell, Bea’s eyes looked a little pink around the edges. Like she’d been crying, or at the very least, fighting off tears.
“What did you hear when you were standing in the hallway?” Jenna asked point-blank.
Bea went rigid, but instead of fessing up, she doubled down, filling a glass with water and taking a sip before she flashed Jenna an unconvincing smile. “I didn’t really hear anything. I wasn’t there long. I dozed off for a while and then I woke up thirsty, so I came out here to get some water. Nothing else. Why?”
Jenna opened her mouth to protest, to call out the blatant lie, but then it occurred to her that not only did Bea appear exhausted, but she was also tired. For now, she’d just let it go. There would be time to talk later, if Bea wanted.
“Oh, it’s just that when we were talking, Jade was saying some things I’m sure she wanted to remain private. That’s all,” Jenna answered, trying to play it off. “Okay, well, try and get some sleep. All right?”
Beatrice nodded. “Sure, I’ll do my best. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” Jenna murmured as she watched her sister leave the kitchen and return to her room.
This wasn’t the end of their conversation, but for now, it would have to do.
Seventeen
Hiren made a face at the revolting taste of the warm drink he’d purchased from a human vendor outside Drokten Main. He spat out the disgusting liquid onto vegetation along the path.
Ugh.
He’d been led to believe that “pumpkin latte” was a taste he might possibly enjoy, but whatever the human had pumped into his drink tasted like a strange kind of sludge. As he stepped back in through the front doors of the building, he quietly disposed of the drink.
Why did he continue to try human food and beverages? He was constantly disappointed.
And today wasn’t a good day. He’d spent the night without his Oso, giving her one last night to herself, as she’d requested.
He was on his way to yet another “emergency” meeting with a group of human government officials about what was promising to be a grueling set of negotiations. He glanced at a clock. Four more hours and then he was due to pick up Jenna and her siblings from her apartment. They’d rejoin with Sevith on the Avash, and then all would be right with his world.
He stopped in his tracks.
What was that?
He turned around, hearing a voice he hadn’t been expecting to hear this morning—not here, of all places.
“I’m looking for Jenna Perry,” Bea’s unmistakable voice floated in the air. “She’s our sister. No, no, she’s an adult.”
He glanced over to see the young girl standing at the reception desk with Noah at her side. The small boy was pushing himself up onto his toes to try and look over the edge of the tall desk.
What were they doing here?
Hiren eagerly moved toward them. Was Jenna here early? He looked around the lobby for a sighting of his beloved, but he didn’t see her anywhere. And as he grew closer to the two younglings, he didn’t need the ability to sense their thoughts to feel the anxiety radiating off Bea. In fact, Noah wasn’t holding her hand after all. Bea was holding onto his to keep him from zipping off, presumably to bombard the nearest Drokten with questions.
“I am sorry,” the Drokten receptionist responded, “but I am not able to contact anyone by that name.”
“T-t-then what about the two Drokten she’s with?” Bea asked. Her voice sounded a lot like Jenna’s when she was on the verge of panicking, an emotion Hiren had gotten to know all too well over the past few days. “Their names are Sevith and Hiren, one is...uh...very dark blue, and the other is...lighter blue?”
Of course, the Drokten receptionist’s face looked about as baffled as Hiren would have expected.
“It is not possible to speak with them,” the receptionist replied uneasily. “I am sorry, but I do not have the authority to request communication with the Commander or the Ambassador. Please, wait here while I summon the human representative.”
“I’m sorry. I’ve never been here before. I’m just trying to find my sister,” Bea said, and Hiren heard a crack in her voice as the receptionist looked increasingly embarrassed. “We can’t find her anywhere, and this was the last place we knew she might be here.”
“Just a moment, if you—”
“I just need my sister,” Bea wailed loudly, her face starting to turn red and tears starting to well in her eyes. “Please, I’m worried she might be in trouble and she’s all we have. My little brother is scared, and we don’t have anywhere else to go!”
The shuddering and cracking in Bea’s voice grew steadily with each word until the receptionist’s eyes were as wide as Hiren’s as the Drokten ambassador started hurrying toward the group.
Bea started crying loudly and the receptionist looked so frazzled Hiren wouldn’t have been surprised if he could have found a way to reach his and Sevith’s personal communicators.
“Bea, Noah!” Hiren called as he approached from behind.
They both whirled around while the receptionist gave Hiren the most flabbergasted yet relieved look he’d ever seen.
“I am right here. Do not worry.”
“Hi…ren!” Noah said while waving, clearly proud of himself for coming up with the pun.
Hiren smiled down at him, but he noticed that the child wasn’t nearly as distraught as Bea had made him sound. And for that matter, as soon as Bea saw Hiren, she seemed to get her own emotions under control in record time and wipe the tears away as if they’d never existed.
“I will take it from here. Thank you,” Hiren told the receptionist, who nodded gratefully as Hiren drew the two children away from the desk. “Are you alright?” he asked the girl. “What happened?”
“Oh—sorry, it’s nothing,” she said, shaking her head and sniffing as she took a tissue from her receptacle. “I’m fine. I used that trick once so I could get in to see my best friend in the hospital, and I thought it might work here, too.”
Hiren blinked. She’d been faking the whole thing? The tears, the anxiety…a trick? Heh. �
��I thought Jenna was with you,” he said with a gruff voice. “But she’s not here. So, why are you two at Drokten Main alone?”
Bea looked around at the densely crowded lobby. “Do you have an office or somewhere quiet we can go? I don’t want to talk about it here. There are too many people around.”
Hiren opened his mouth to reply, but his tablet pinged, and he glanced down. “It’s Sevith,” he said. “If you two have something urgent to tell us, he will want to be there as well.”
Bea bit her lip, looking uneasy.
Hiren tapped the screen and Sevith’s voice barked through the vid. “Hiren! I’m on my way to Drokten Main. Do you know where our Oso’s siblings are?”
“I…” Hiren started, looking down at Bea and Noah who’d both shifted uncomfortably.
“Jenna just contacted me,” Sevith continued. “She’s distressed because she cannot find her brother and sister. They both disappeared this morning during the small window of time between our guard’s shift change. I have already deployed an extra detachment of guards to search for them. Three teams will begin searching in formation clockwise around the city starting from their school.”
“There is no need for that,” Hiren answered. He tilted the screen toward the two children. “They’re here,” he said with a gently chiding look at the offspring in front of him but a kind smile. “My Azi, it seems we have a few things to discuss planetside. You can inform our Oso that her siblings are safely with me.”
“Are you at the human school?”
“No, I’m at Drokten Main, and the children are both here too. Once you arrive, we can all go back to Jenna’s apartment together,” Hiren said, looking meaningfully down to Bea and Noah and nodding for them to follow. Bea still looked like she knew she was in trouble, but she tugged Noah’s hand and they both started to follow Hiren toward the exit. “I will remain at Drokten Main with them until you arrive.”
“That won’t be necessary at all,” came a voice he’d grown to hate.
Hiren turned to see Secretary Wells following so closely behind them that it startled the kids.
“I have to go, my Azi. I have company,” Hiren said, ending the call before Sevith could protest. “Good morning, Secretary Wells. I did not know you were listening.”
Bea and Noah both quietly moved closer to Hiren’s side and stood just behind him, enough to put Hiren between them and Wells. The secretary gave them a puzzled look, but Hiren pretended not to notice. Instead, he took a much more subtle step between them and the secretary to acknowledge that he understood.
“Just passing by, couldn’t help but overhear,” the secretary lied with a good-natured laugh. “I would be more than happy to make sure these two children are taken care of while you and your Azi spend some time with Miss Perry.”
Hiren glanced down at Noah and Bea before smiling politely at Wells. “You are a very gracious host, Secretary Wells, but far be it from me to decide who has care of someone else’s children without speaking with Jenna.”
“But really,” Wells said, taking a step forward and giving a pained smile, “this is not becoming of an ambassador like you. I would be remiss to let you play babysitter.”
“Your concern is appreciated, but that won’t be necessary. I am in charge of these children,” Hiren said gently. “Thank you and goodbye.” He turned and ushered the kids along without another word, and they hurried alongside him.
“Thank you for that,” Bea said.
“Gratitude is not necessary,” Hiren murmured as he checked the time. “I do not want either of you in that human’s care.”
He sent Sevith a quick message to meet at Jenna’s apartment instead. Then he summoned a transport and stepped out of the Main with the kids, running a hand through his hair.
Hiren’s dislike of Wells went deeper than diplomatic distrust. Jenna had warned them that the male was plotting against them, and the more time Hiren spent around this particular human, the more he suspected the secretary was organizing something nefarious. He just didn’t know what it was, precisely...yet.
“Are...we in trouble?” Noah asked.
Hiren stopped and took a deep breath, smiling down at both of them. He had to admit, he was proud that they’d managed to get as far as they did with apparently no planning and no resources. But at the same time, the idea that they’d come close to falling into Wells’ care was disturbing.
“That will be for Jenna to decide,” he responded.
Eighteen
“Ma’am, just calm down. Please stop pacing and stand still for a moment.”
Jenna shot the police officer a fierce glare. “Calm down? My kids are missing! How the hell could I be calm about this?”
“Your kids? I thought they were your brother and sister.”
Jenna rolled her eyes and propped her hands on her hips. “They’re both. Noah and Beatrice are my younger siblings, but they’re also my dependents. They need me. Ever since our parents died during the invasion, I’ve been their sole guardian and caretaker. So, yes, they’re my kids,” she insisted.
“Again, take it down a notch, miss. No need to panic.”
“Don’t tell me how I’m supposed to feel right now!” Jenna snapped. “I know they’ve got to be scared out of their minds. You guys must know something by now. Right?”
Angry, hot tears tracked down Jenna’s cheeks. She’d racked her brain, simultaneously trying to block out the stressful situation around her while also paying close attention to what the police officers were saying. The weirdest part was that they’d come barging into her apartment not long after she’d learned both Noah and Bea were missing. She hadn’t called the cops, so she assumed the school had placed the call? Or maybe the someone responsible for taking the kids? Or perhaps, she thought bitterly, the police were behind it at the behest of someone more powerful.
That was not such a farfetched idea, especially with all the bizarre shit going on recently. Everything seemed out of whack and nothing was normal anymore. She couldn’t push away the certainty that this all had something to do with Secretary Wells and his threats against her and her family.
“First of all, ma’am, we are under no obligation to tell you anything,” said a second cop. “And we do not yet have any new information.”
“We’re here to try and figure this out, just like you are,” said a third officer, with a slightly gentler tone.
Jenna was beyond consolation at this point, especially not from a bunch of strange men who, for all she knew, could be directly benefitting from the situation. She could only assume these guys were all on the secretary’s payroll. They were in on it somehow. She was sure. And even though they had supposedly come to help locate the missing kids, she had a feeling their true purpose was to keep her contained and control her reaction. By now, Jenna felt certain in her heart that there was no human left on the planet she could fully trust, besides Jade.
She didn’t understand it, though. Why was this happening? Why was she being punished? So far, she had not gone back on her promise to Secretary Wells. There was still almost a whole week before their first check-in. She’d followed his plan without issue, so why did he attack her by taking her siblings away?
“Could you try and retrace your steps for us?” One of the officers piped up.
Jenna whirled and shot him a withering glare. “They’re children, not a lost set of keys. I didn’t just forget them somewhere. I believe they’ve been taken from me.”
“Ma’am, we’re doing our best here, but you’re not giving us much information to go on,” said the uptight first cop.
“That’s because I don’t know anything! I sent the kids off to school. Then the school called to tell me they weren’t in class, and now they’ve just disappeared,” she recited, tears pricking her eyes again.
She left out the part where she felt sure that Secretary Wells had followed through on his threat to “lose” the kids in the foster care system. She had no idea what line she had crossed to incur this penalty, but s
he needed to figure it out. Fast. Before Noah and Bea were lost to her forever.
Just as one of the cops opened his mouth to question her all over again, there was a familiar sound outside—that unmistakable sound of a self-driving transport swooshing to a stop. Jenna darted to the open window, her eyes going wide at what she saw three stories below. It was a Drokten vehicle, and it looked suspiciously like the same one she’d used with her Azi and Bahn just days earlier. Jenna held her breath, waiting to see who would emerge.
And then, out of the transport came Sevith, followed by Hiren, and then the kids.
“Oh my god!” Jenna pushed away from the window and rushed to the front door, shoving past a trio of burly, bored-looking police officers.
“Now, wait just a minute, miss!”
But Jenna was long gone.
She ran out the front door, darted down the hallway, and stepped into the elevator. “Come on, come on…” she murmured impatiently as it moved from floor to floor slower than molasses.
Sevith was the first person she’d called right after the school had alerted her to the fact that both Noah and Bea had never returned to their classes after first break. After a campus search, they’d been found missing. The only reason she didn’t also call Hiren was because Sevith said he’d take care of that too. This was how her life had changed. She didn’t call Jade at the first sign of trouble. She’d called her Azi.
“Ugh, I should’ve taken the stairs!” Finally, the bell dinged, and the doors parted at the lobby.
Jenna sprinted for the front of the building and burst out onto the street, elbowing past the paparazzi who rushed up, trying to capture pictures of whatever she was about to do. Clicks and flashes sounded off as she threw her arms around Noah and Bea. Tears blurred her vision, and at that moment she didn’t care what images were being displayed worldwide. She’d finally found them, and they were in her arms. This was all that mattered.
Jenna wiped her eyes, peering back and forth at their faces. “What—what’s going on?” she sniffled. “What happened? Why were you gone? Are you okay?”
