by Tana Stone
I shivered at the thought of floating in space without power, trying not to think of the fact that life support systems required energy. It would take a while for a station the size of the Island to run out of oxygen, but it could happen. That was one of the pitfalls of living in deep space and one I worked hard not to dwell on.
Luckily, I was too busy to let my mind wander to the inherent dangers of space. I’d been trudging all over the station looking for any damage to my precious design—and I’d found nothing. On one hand, I was relieved that the blackout might have been no more than a glitch—a quickly remedied loss of power that didn’t indicate larger issues. On the other hand, I wanted to know why a station with so many backups had completely lost power.
“They said I’d find you out here.”
I straightened as I spotted William walking toward me, his energy helmet engaged even though we weren’t standing in an active construction site at the moment. Old habits were hard to break.
When he reached me, he took a moment to scan the interior of the station below us. “It’s strange to see it without workers.”
“It should be safe to bring the crew back,” I told him. “I haven’t found any damage or issues.”
“No idea why it happened?”
I managed a weak grin. “I was going to ask you the same question.”
He scratched at the back of his neck. “I know it shouldn’t happen. We have backups for the backups.”
Exactly what I’d been thinking. Even though it had been a brief blackout that apparently did no real damage and wasn’t the result of any kind of attack or system failure, it should have been an impossibility. The fact that it had happened and neither of us knew why made me uneasy, but I liked that William wasn’t afraid to admit that he didn’t have an answer. “I guess we add it to the cable accident as things that don’t make sense.”
“Actually, I have news on that front,” the foreman said. “From what we can tell, the cable frayed.”
“It wasn’t cut?” I released a breath that we weren’t dealing with sabotage. It had been a long shot, but I was glad to brush that concern from my head.
“It looks like the cable was placed incorrectly so that it was dragging across the sharp edge of a beam. The friction caused it to fray and snap.”
I wasn’t thrilled that no one had noticed this mistake before it had nearly killed me and Serge, but I was grateful it was a mistake and not a plot. “Thanks for letting me know.”
He gave me a single nod. “Don’t think I’m not going to get to the bottom of how it happened on my watch, but for now it looks like a result of fatigue.”
I couldn’t help flinching at this. Was everyone being worked too hard? I know I’d felt drained at times, but maybe it wasn’t only me. “You think the crew needs a break?”
He shrugged, more a yes than a no. “They’re getting one now.” William joined me in leaning his arms on the railing. “I wouldn’t let it eat you up. Every project has bumps, but the ones out here seem more monumental, don’t they?”
I twisted my head to him. It was nice to talk to someone else from Earth. It was the first time living and working in space for all of us, and William was right. It did feel different out here. “I guess the stakes are a lot higher.”
“I won’t be sorry to go home,” William said, lowering his voice a bit. Then he added quickly, “Not that this hasn’t been an incredible experience.”
I laughed. “You don’t have to explain to me. I get it. It’s one of those experiences you’ll be glad you did but you’re not sure if you’re glad that you’re in the middle of it.”
He snapped his fingers, nodding. “Exactly. I’ve never felt right just floating in space out here without any planets or a sun. It’s like there’s nothing but us, and if anything happens, we’re on our own.”
I didn’t respond to that, the weight of his words heavy on us both.
William finally cleared his throat. “I’d feel better if I knew why we blacked out.”
“Same. The captain was going to fly outside the station and take a look. Maybe he’ll have seen something out there.”
“If he did, he didn’t tell me,” William said.
“You saw the captain?”
“Not too long ago. We rode the inclinator up. He looked like he was heading to the bridge.”
So much for him keeping me in the loop or coming to find me. “And he said nothing about his fly-about?”
William shifted from one foot to the other. “The captain and I don’t spend a lot of time talking.”
Technically, neither did we. Most of what we did was argue—until very recently. And I felt another fight coming on fast.
“Thanks for telling me about the cable,” I said as I took a few steps back. “I’m going to track down the captain and get some answers about the blackout.”
“Good luck,” he called after me as I walked briskly across the walkway.
It was probably irrational for me to be as irritated as I was, but hadn’t Kalex told me he’d tell me what he learned flying around the ship? I thought back to planting that kiss on him before he’d gone to the hangar bay. I thought I’d given him incentive enough to want to find me afterward.
Since I was only one level away from the bridge, I sidestepped the inclinator and went straight for the temporary stairs that connected the suspended walkway with the next floor above it, jogging up the steps. My heart thumped in my chest, but not from the short run. I was seriously annoyed that Kalex was still making my job harder. If I’d been under any illusions that spending one evening with our naked bodies entangled had changed his attitude toward me, I knew now how wrong I was.
It was a good thing I wasn’t in the market for anything but hot and sweaty sex because the captain was not boyfriend material. He might be gorgeous and ripped, with a very talented tongue, but he was also arrogant and bossy. And I hated guys who thought they could tell me what to do and expect me to fall in step. My mind wandered to Kalex taking control of me in the officers’ lounge and my mouth went dry. Okay, I didn’t always hate it.
I didn’t hesitate outside the broad metal doors leading onto the bridge, barely pausing the let them sweep open before storming inside. I did stop once I stood overlooking the series of dark standing consoles, uniformed Drexians tapping away diligently as static and beeps filled the air. A sweep of the space told me that Kalex wasn’t there.
An officer at one of the nearby seated consoles swiveled his chair to face me. “You lost?”
I scowled at him. “I’m not lost. I’m looking for the captain.”
More Drexians glanced over at me, their expressions a mix of confusion and amusement. The officer sitting down didn’t seem concerned by my obvious urgency. “He’s in his strategy room.”
Kalex had a strategy room? I wasn’t sure why this annoyed me, but it did. Did he have meetings in his strategy room? Meetings that hadn’t included me? As I gave the bridge another cursory scan, it struck me that I’d only been on the bridge once before during my initial tour of the station. Since that day, I’d met the captain on-site throughout the station or in my offices.
Seeing how different the bridge was from the rest of the Island—dark and dimly lit with lots of black and exposed steel—I understood why. This was one of the few areas of the station that wasn’t designed to appeal to humans. It was utilitarian, with none of the bright airiness of the rest of the station. Though I’d had no part in the design of it, I liked it.
My gaze went quickly to a door tucked to one side of the bridge. It was where I’d place a captain’s strategy room, I thought as I took long steps toward it.
“You can’t just go in—” the Drexian called after me, too late to stop me from swiping my hand over the side panel.
“Come,” a deep voice from inside rumbled, sending an unwanted thrill through me.
I pushed aside any lingering desire, reminding myself that I’d tracked down the captain because I wanted to give him a piece of my mind. N
othing else.
“What happened to our deal?” I said as I entered his strategy room, my hands in fists, and almost walked through a holographic projection of a very intense looking Drexian warrior.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Kalex
I stood from my desk when Zoey barreled into my strategy room. She was the last person I’d expected to see coming through the door, especially since I was in the middle of briefing High Commander Dorn about the incident.
The holoprojection of Dorn in his full Drexian uniform, the sash heavy with medals crossing his chest, pivoted to appraise Zoey. His mouth quirked at the corners though he didn’t crack a smile. “Who are you making deals with now, Captain?”
Vekron, who’d been half-sitting on the corner of my desk, stood at the astro-architect’s bold entrance. “This is a pleasant surprise.”
Zoey looked stunned, her bravado melting away and her tight fists uncurling. Her gaze quickly swept the small room, lingering for only a moment on the view of space before returning to the life-sized holoprojection, the semi-transparent image of the Drexian flickering slightly. “I didn’t know…”
“It’s fine,” I said, waving her inside and walking around the desk to stand beside Vekron. I inclined my head at the holo-projection. “High Commander Dorn, I’d like you to meet the station’s astro-architect—”
“Zoey,” he finished for me, his attention fully on her. “I’ve heard of you. The first human astro-architect.”
She shifted under the scrutiny, and I almost felt sorry for her. I’d been the recipient of Dorn’s intense attention before. Even when he was pleased with you, it could be an overwhelming experience.
“That’s right,” she said, her voice lacking its customary edge.
Dorn nodded, clasping his hands behind his back, which made his broad chest look even larger and his rows of colorful medals more prominent. “I’ve heard positive reports about your work.”
She glanced at me for a beat before returning her attention to the High Commander. “Thank you, sir.”
I watched with amusement as the usually fiery woman stood at attention as she faced the commander. Part of me wished she’d show me that kind of respect, but another part of me was glad she didn’t. Even though I’d never admit it out loud and certainly not to her, I preferred her when she was snapping back at me and firing my own temper. I had enough officers who saluted me.
“Send me those reports, Captain,” Dorn said, finally turning from Zoey to me. “And I’ll be interested to read your take on the frequency disruptions, Vekron.”
Vekron and I both threw back our shoulders and thumped our fists across our chests. The former Inferno Force commander returned the salute, giving a curt nod to Zoey before his image vanished.
Instantly, the tension that had been crackling in the room dissipated, and we all exhaled.
“He’s intimidating,” Zoey said, her eyes still wide.
“He used to be Inferno Force,” I said. “Now he serves on the Drexian High Command, which means he—”
“I know what it means,” Zoey interrupted me. “I did study up on the Drexian military culture and governance before coming here.”
There was the Zoey I knew. I almost grinned at her snappy response. “Good. Then you know that all captains and commanders in the fleet report to him.”
“Is that why you’re here when you told me you’d let me know what you discovered on your fly-about?”
Vekron leaned back on my desk, hitching one leg higher than the other and observing us as if he was watching a performance. My friend was clever, and he knew me well. If I wasn’t careful, he’d figure out that the tension between us had become something more.
I braced my hands on my hips and modulated my voice. “My first duty is to the safety of this ship and to the Drexian empire, not to mention the human tributes who’ll be living here.”
“You think I don’t get that?” She glared back at me, the fight returning to her with admirable speed. “I’m just as worried about this station as you are.”
Vekron stood. “I think we all want the same thing, right?”
Neither of us answered, so he barreled on. “Dorn was right. We still don’t know exactly what happened or why. Kalex is still gathering the data from the station’s systems to figure out how they were disabled, and I’m studying the energy fluctuations and reverse tracking them so we can determine from where the Kronock are attempting to jump.”
I closed my eyes for a moment as Zoey sucked in a sudden breath. So much for keeping the Kronock involvement secret.
“Did you say Kronock?” she asked. “As in the horrible aliens who tried to invade Earth and wipe out our entire civilization so they could wipe out yours?”
“Yes,” I answered for Vekron while shooting him a murderous look. “All the evidence is pointing to the blackout being a part of a coordinated attempt by our enemy.”
Zoey shook her head. “But I thought they’d been beaten back. Didn’t they slink off with their tails between their legs?”
I was reminded that Zoey’s knowledge of the Kronock was limited—we hadn’t wanted Earthlings to know all the horrors the species had inflicted on the galaxy—and she didn’t know that the vicious creatures had gone dormant before and returned more determined than ever to rain destruction and death on us and on Earth.
“The Kronock never go away for good,” I said. “If they’ve been quiet, it’s only because they’ve been planning and waiting for the right time to strike.”
“And you think that time is now?” Zoey’s voice cracked.
There was no point in keeping information from her to protect her. Now that she knew the Kronock were involved, she needed to know everything. “I think they’ve been testing a way to get to us without risking what ships they have. The failed invasion of Earth decimated their fleet, and they haven’t had enough time to rebuild. That doesn’t mean they haven’t been working on alternative technologies.”
“Alternative technologies?”
I glanced at Vekron for help. Technology, especially as it related to the Kronock, was his department.
“The last time our enemy went quiet, it was for decades,” he said, running a hand through his loose hair. “But in that time, they developed tech to enhance their own biology, and they managed to steal the basic formula of our jump technology. They haven’t mastered the intricacies of it, which means they haven’t been able to jump large vessels like battleships.”
“Until now,” I grumbled. Now, more than ever, I was convinced it was a Kronock battleship I’d seen for a fleeting moment.
“What does this mean?” Zoey asked, looking from me to Vekron.
My friend strode to the door. “It means time’s up for me to get our shields working at maximum capacity. But it also means that our Kronock friends got impatient and tipped their hand. If they’d been counting on the element of surprise, they just lost it.”
He nodded to both of us before walking back out to the bridge.
Zoey whirled, one finger leveled at me. “You knew about this.”
I thought about denying it but decided against it. Lying wasn’t in my nature. “Yes.”
She advanced on me, eyes blazing. “You kept it from me. Why?”
“I wasn’t certain—and I didn’t want to scare you.”
“I don’t scare easily.” She bit out the words as she stood in front of me, anger radiating from her. Even as she claimed not to be scared, I knew her anger was mixed up with a healthy amount of fear of the unknown.
“You’d be crazy not to be a little scared of the Kronock.”
“A lot of people already think I’m crazy for taking a job on an alien space station in deep space.”
I eyed her. I’d never given much thought to how brave it was for a human to volunteer to live and work in space when their planet had only recently become aware of our existence—and of the existence of the Kronock. I closed the gap between us, feathering my fingers through her short hair
. “Not crazy. Brave.”
She drew in a quick breath at my touch, biting her lower lip as if holding herself back from something. My cock stirred as I watched her chest rise and fall.
“You should have told me.” Some of the anger had left her voice, but her eyes still held mine in challenge. “I thought I’d proven to you that I’m not fragile.”
I slid my hand from her hair to cup her chin, dragging my fingers across the smooth skin of her cheek. Her touch sent electric pulses skittering up my arm, and my cock stiffened. “That doesn’t mean I can’t protect you.”
“I don’t need your protection,” she whispered.
I tilted her face up to mine. “What do you need?”
Her plump lips parted, and a small breath escaped from between them. Her pupils were dark pools of desire, luring me to their depths. It was all the invitation I needed to wrap my other arm around her waist and jerk her body flush to mine, crashing my mouth onto hers.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Zoey
I sank into his kiss, my hands automatically circling his neck to keep my balance. His lips moved firmly against mine, but there was none of the hungry urgency there had been the night before. His hands didn’t rake over my body, tugging at my clothes. Instead, he kissed me like we weren’t in his strategy room and there wasn’t a bridge filled with Drexian officers right outside the door, taking his time and holding me to him.
Liquid heat pooled in my core as he threaded his fingers through my short hair, bending me back so he could kiss me deeper. When he finally pulled his mouth from mine, he locked eyes with me as he breathed heavily.
“Why are you stopping?” I asked, scraping my hand along the back of his head and trying to pull him back to me.
Instead, he bent his neck so he could drop kisses up my neck. “I’m not stopping. I’m going slow.”
I slapped my hand against his chest. “I don’t want it slow.”
Adrenaline still coursed through my veins from the blackout and the news that it might have been the beginning of an alien attack. I needed to burn it off, and his featherlight kisses were making my skin tingle but not helping me offload my stress.
