This time, when she took his pain, she knew what she was doing. The poison drew into her hand. It stung, and she felt a cold chill coming over her flesh, making her clammy. Her fingers gripped him tighter, her short nails digging into him. Falke broke his mouth free and pulled back in question.
He looked at her. She tried to smile. They both glanced at her hand. The green lines drew out of his skin and into hers, winding up her arm like little snakes. They spread over her shoulder, beneath her shirt, and crawled up the side of her neck and face. “Sam,” Falke growled, sounding mad and helpless at the same time. He jerked his arm from her, but it was too late. She’d taken all the poison from him. The blue marking was still on his arm, but all the green was gone. Falling back on the bed, she stared up at him. Her skin turned blue, and she shivered violently. “Sacred cats, woman! What did you do?”
“I healed you,” she said weakly. Her teeth nearly clattered together in between her soft words. “Tell Rick, Torgan. Get Evan. He’ll...know.”
Falke watched as Sam’s eyes closed, and she didn’t move. He was torn between the need to hold her and to do as she asked. Running out of the cabin, he was surprised to see Evan sitting in the hall across from the doorway as if waiting for him. The man nodded, standing.
“I got it,” Evan said, going into the room. Falke began to follow him. Evan turned and shook his head. “Give me a few hours.”
Falke felt helpless and began to protest. Seeing the concern in the man’s eyes, he nodded and backed away. As the door slid between them, he stood staring at it. He heard Sam scream and then detected the soft murmuring of Evan’s voice. The screaming didn’t stop, and he couldn’t stand listening to it. Blindly, he walked down the hall. Coming to the recreation room, he saw everyone there, gathered in silence.
Falke glanced at Rick, “Sam said to tell you Torgan.”
“It’s already done. We’re on our way there now.” Rick nodded. His face was unusually serious. “Should be there tomorrow.”
“Is Evan with her?” Lucien asked. Falke nodded. “Good. He’ll take care of it.”
“Yeah,” Viktor said, not sounding all that convincing. “Captain will be fine.”
“Oh, sure,” Rick said, trying to give Falke a lighthearted smile. “It’s happened before. Evan will take care of it.”
“Before?” Falke asked, not liking the sound of that.
Rick lifted his hand. “I was beat up pretty bad and left for dead by a contract killer for the Medical Mafia for not giving them a cut of my load, when Sam found me.”
“Lucien and I were strung up and whipped by some crooked law enforcement on Senthianick when Sam saw us,” Viktor said.
“I was being crucified as a devil by an Earth settlement on a Data Moon Base. My ship crashed. That’s why Sam calls me Devil,” Dev added quietly.
“And Evan?” Falke questioned.
“Evan’s been with her the longest. He had it the worst,” Viktor said.
“He stopped on Ticaron for an emergency,” Lucien explained. “Ticara are known healers. Only they don’t usually use their gifts unless it’s for their own gain. His sister was sick, and he sought help from Gretori Zothos. Sam’s father locked them in a cell and took their ship as his own. Evan’s sister died in his arms before Sam could get him out.”
“Sam tried to save the girl after healing Evan,” Viktor continued. “She was already weak, and the Ticara can do nothing for the dead. It almost killed her trying. Evan watched her for six months after, selling everything he had to take care of her and to hide her from her father’s scouts. He’d been a rich man before that. Now he has nothing, like the rest of us.”
“Except our lives, thanks to her,” Rick stated, very seriously. “That woman in there risked herself for each and every one of us, strangers at the time.”
“Welcome to the club,” Dev stated, nodding at Falke. “Your life now belongs to her as well.”
“It belonged to her before this,” Falke whispered, awed by the depth of her compassion for these men. The men looked at him, and each smiled in acknowledgment, none of them saying another word.
21
Several tense hours later, Evan came trudging into the recreation room, his feet dragging on the floor. He nodded once at everyone’s anxious looks, signaling that Sam was fine. A collective sigh came over the room. Evan fell into an oversized chair and let loose a long, tired breath.
Falke began to get up to leave. Evan made a small noise and shook his head. “Just let her rest. It’s the best thing.”
Viktor got to his feet and left. Moments later he came back with some food and set the tray down by Evan. The man nodded gratefully and began to eat. When he’d taken a couple of bites from a sandwich, he said, “Sam wants us to go on as planned. We need to get the cargo logged and separated according to the scavenger list. We also need to get prices set. Once we get to Torgan, we’ll enter the competition and sell whatever we can for whatever we can get for it. Hopefully, it will be enough for fuel and a little extra to tide us over until the next adventure.”
The men nodded in understanding.
“Rick, is there any place we can stop for the last item?” Evan asked. “It really would be better if we had everything.”
“I don’t know of any place. We’re so close to Torgan, I doubt if anything we’d pick up would be too impressive to the judges,” Rick answered.
The men nodded in agreement. One by one, they all glanced at Falke.
Falke frowned, asking, “What?”
“A large white tiger would be impressive,” Viktor said, pretending to study his hand. “Being as they’re extremely rare.”
“Yeah,” Rick added. “Especially if he was particularly mean and growled a lot in his cage.”
“I think we’d have a good chance at winning the prize,” Evan said. He still looked weak, but he managed a mischievous smile.
Then, to everyone’s surprise, Dev stated the ultimate manipulation. “Sam could really use the money. It’d be a shame to let the last year go to waste.”
“Oh, yeah,” Lucien agreed. “I mean, she sold all her jewels and valuables to fund the trip. She’s broke now.”
“Yeah, yeah, who knows what kind of job she’ll have to get on Torgan,” Rick said, nodding mournfully. “She’s pretty. I’m sure she’ll find something.”
Falke sighed. “I’m not going up for sale.”
“Oh, no,” Rick said, grinning in excitement. “Just on display for a few hours until we can get you judged and back on the ship. We’ll tell everyone that the captain’s taken a liking to you and plans on keeping you. They won’t question it at all.”
“I’ll let Sam leash me. I’m not getting into a cage,” Falke determined, grimacing.
“Ah, sorry, safety rules state you have to be caged,” Lucien said. “And it will make you look more dangerous.”
“I am dangerous,” Falke grumbled under his breath.
“So, you’ll do it?” Viktor’s tone was hopeful.
Falke sighed again. He looked them each over in turn. “Yes. I’ll do it.”
The men cheered excitedly, jumping around in their chairs.
“We so have that contest beat,” Viktor cried.
“Blessed stars! We’re going to win for sure.” Lucien pounded his fist on the table.
Rick stood, announcing, “This calls for a drink!”
The room became deadly still. They all looked at Falke, remembering the reason why they’d kidnapped him and shook their heads. Laughing, they told Rick in unison, “Noooo!”
22
Falke spent the night in the recreation room on the couch. He didn’t want to disturb Sam, no matter how much he wanted to go to her. The next morning, when he went to check on her, he was surprised to find the door to her cabin open. Slowing his step, he heard Sam say, “And he agreed to it?”
“Yeah, I think he’s doing it for you, Sam,” Evan’s voice answered. “He cares for you.”
“No, he doesn’t,” Sam answer
ed. Her voice was weak, and Falke’s heart lurched when he heard her words. He couldn’t move. “It was the same with you guys, remember. After I... well, you know. You thought you were in love with me. You weren’t and you realize that now. He’ll realize it too soon enough. There is nothing between us.”
“Sam...” Rick began.
“None of us shared your bed,” Evan stated. Falke felt some pleasure in that statement but did his best not to get too smug.
“So, he’s my lover,” Sam answered, sounding indifferent. “That’s all. Do you understand me? That is all. As soon as we get that prize money, we’re sending him home. I might even be able to book him a passage on another ship that’s heading his way. It would save us the fuel, and we’d be right back where we thought we’d be before this drunken mistake happened.”
Falke felt his stomach tighten. She was going to get rid of him. Was she even going to bother telling him or just hand him a ticket and go along her merry way without giving him a choice? If he had a choice, what would he choose? He knew he had to go back. He missed his people, and they needed them. If war broke out, and he wasn’t there... Falke shivered. He didn’t even want to think about that.
“Sam,” Evan began.
“No, this isn’t up for discussion. It’s what I want,” Sam answered, sounding cold and heartless. Anger and confusion poured through Falke. He wanted to scream, to fight, and in the end he did nothing but walk away. Inside, he felt dead. Sam didn’t want him.
“No, this isn’t up for discussion,” Sam said, looking around at her crew. Her eyes welled with tears, but she did her best to stay strong. “It’s what I want.”
There was a long silence. Evan broke it, saying, “It’s not what you want.”
“It is,” Sam insisted, tears rolling down her face. “It is. It is. I don’t want to trap him. He deserves his family. You should hear him talk about them. He’d never be content with our lives. Besides, he’s never made me promises.”
“What about your mark?” Evan demanded hotly. Sam blinked in surprise. She wore a tank shirt, and all eyes turned to her arm in meaning.
“You...know?” Sam asked, feeling dizzy. She was still lightheaded from her ordeal but felt so much better. Evan had taken care of her on many occasions and knew just how to help her recover after she healed someone. He’d helped her every time, except for when she’d accidentally taken Falke’s back aches. Though, when that had happened, she’d been too stunned after suspecting she was bonding to the Var prince to think of asking Evan to help her.
“Of course I know,” Evan said. “I learned a thing or two about the Ticara while I was imprisoned.”
“Know what?” Rick asked.
“Captain Samantha here is pregnant,” Evan stated, “with Prince Falke’s baby.”
“Evan,” Sam breathed. Her stomach knotted, and she pressed a protective hand over her child. “How long have you known?”
“Since that morning in the dining hall. Your arm was covered, but you let your thoughts slip. I knew something was up.” Evan sighed. “It’s why I’ve been upset. Why did you think you could keep that from me, from us?”
“I...I don’t know,” Sam whispered, looking down at her pale hands. They were trembling, and she clutched them together.
“You know we’d each follow you to the death. How could you not tell us about this? After all we’ve been through together?” Evan’s eyes bore into hers.
“Does Falke know?” Rick demanded.
“No,” Sam shot, her voice hard. “And you’re not going to tell him. I don’t care what my marks say. If you tell him about the baby, he’ll feel obligated to stay with me. I don’t want to catch a man like that. Falke is honorable and cares too much about family ties. If he knows I’m carrying his child, he’ll stay with me for the baby.”
“But, Sam,” Evan began.
“She doesn’t want him to stay for the baby. She wants him to stay for her,” Dev said softly. “Can you blame her? I say we do what she asks. It’s not much, considering all she’s done for us.”
Slowly all the men nodded.
“If he decided to stay with me after I give him passage to leave, then I’ll know he stays for me. Until then, let’s just go about as if everything is normal.” Sam pulled the covers off her legs, mumbling, “I’m going to take a bath.”
“Hey,” Rick said, suddenly grinning from ear to ear. “Do you know what this means?”
All eyes turned to him.
“We’re going to be uncles,” Rick exclaimed.
Sam moaned lightly and walked toward the bathroom, doing her best to ignore them.
“Oh, yeah! I’m going to teach little Vik how to build things, and I’m going to make him a cradle. He’ll need a good cradle,” Viktor said, excited. His face turned thoughtful. “I bet I could design it to give him feedings and to change his diaper.”
“I will train him in combat,” Dev stated, his voice gruff. His eyes turned to Sam, almost pained. No one but her noticed it. She shook her head, telling him to be quiet.
“Baby Lucien,” Lucien stated, “will learn the great art of winning at poker.”
“I’ll teach baby Rick how to talk smooth to the ladies,” Rick drawled, cockily nodding his head. “He’s going to be a little Mac Daddy.”
“A what?” Viktor asked. “Rick, stop talking. She is not naming the baby after you.”
“I’m going to keep baby Evan away from Uncle Rick,” Evan said. The men started to laugh, except for the stoic Dev.
Sam let the bathroom door glide shut behind her. She could still hear their joking muffled by the door. They were all so excited about the baby. She’d known they would be, and that was why she never wanted them to find out. Once Falke left her, there wasn’t going to be a child.
Sliding down the door, she crouched on the floor and began to cry. Her sobs were silenced by a fist pressed into her mouth. Only when she heard the guys leave, did she pull herself up and step into the decontaminator.
23
“Where are we?” Sam asked, stepping into the cockpit. Rick glanced over at her and winked. A stupid grin was on his face as his eyes went to her stomach. Viktor and Lucien had looked at her the same way when she passed them in the corridor. She shook her head, sitting down in the copilot chair.
Rick reached over and pushed a button. The viewing screen came up. “Torgan’s right there. I’m waiting for clearance to land just outside of Madaga. It’s fairly close to the trading grounds.”
Sam nodded. It was late evening for them, but where they were landing it was daytime, late morning to be exact. Looking at the three rings wrapped at odd angles around a brown-gray planet, she rested her head back against the chair. After bathing, she’d changed into a black jumpsuit with a silver belt. A holster wrapped around her thigh though she didn’t currently carry a weapon. Her hair was again short with the dark purple streak though the bangs. It gave her a harder edge, and she didn’t look as virginal and innocent as she did on her father’s planet. She felt more like her old self too. “Where is everybody?”
“Down in cargo. They’re...” Rick hesitated, chuckling.
“What?” Sam demanded.
“They’re showing Falke his cage.” Rick cleared his throat, looking almost embarrassed. “Viktor made a trick latch in one of the bars so he could get out if he needed to. They’re making sure he can work it in shifted form.”
Sam nodded. She wondered where Falke had gone. She hadn’t seen him since she’d sucked the poison from his arm. Part of her expected him to be there when she woke up. She never imagined that he wouldn’t come to her at all. The fact stung, but she refused to get worked up about it. Today was a big day, and she needed to be on top of her game. In the market city of Madaga, there was no room for errors.
“Good,” she stated, her voice calm.
“Bound Virgin, this is Torgan Ground,” came a voice blaring over the intercom system.
Rick sat forward and pushed a button. “This is Bound Virgin, go ahea
d.”
“You’re cleared for landing, Bound Virgin,” the voice stated. “Proceed directly to docking platform 9 9 12 and report to Dock Master Sintem.”
“Thank you, Torgan Ground,” Rick answered, lifting his finger. Moving his hand to another control, he pushed the ship’s intercom. “Get ready for landing, guys. This one’s always a little bumpy.”
Rick turned to Sam and nodded at her belt. Rolling her eyes at him, she buckled herself in. Rick began landing procedures, and she helped him by flipping a few switches. She knew how to pilot just as proficiently as he, well maybe not quite, but she was good. Rick just preferred to drive, and she let him.
The planet’s drab surface grew larger on the viewing screen. This was it. Sam took a deep breath, feeling both nervous and excited. It was finally time to see the culmination of the last year’s hard work. And it was time to see if Falke would ask to stay with her. For without finishing her coronation and becoming a princess he could marry, she would never be able to go with him.
Torgan docking platform 9 9 12 was an open clearing of cement. Rows of ships lined up in marked squares, packed snugly together to maximize the use of the platform. Rick went to check in with the dock master and to pay for their docking privileges. Sam knew that the Torganian market would make enough on docking fees to more than pay the prize money to the winners of the Scavenger Hunt. It was their way of drawing merchants with particular items of interest to their market, thus enticing many customers.
Sam slowly made her way down to the cargo to see the crew. She took a deep breath, mentally preparing for the long day. When she arrived, Falke was already shifted and in his cage.
The Bound Prince Page 13
