by Tana Stone
The question that was implied but not asked was why the empire would want a hot, sparsely populated rock like Kimithion III?
“I have good reason to believe they are convinced of its value and will make great efforts to secure it and banish the people living here.”
“Sounds like the empire, all right,” Holly drawled from the ramp where she still stood, her alien mate’s arms wrapped around her and cradling her belly. “Does this planet have any defenses? Any planetary shields we didn’t see on the way in?”
I shook my head. “None, and until very recently I was unaware they possessed any weaponry. I’ve since learned of an armory. But I’m still testing the ancient weapons to see if they work after so long.”
K’alvek tilted his head at me. “One ship against a potential fleet of imperial ones won’t last long.”
“I would never ask you to fight them off from space,” I said. “I believe our best strategy is to lure them closer to the planet’s surface where we can target them with surface-to-air missiles.”
Tori stuck the metal sticks in her hair and rubbed her hands together. “Old school. I like it.”
“I might not be able to fight,” Holly said, “but I can help you reengineer your weapons to get more distance.”
Kush inclined his head. “She is a brilliant engineer.”
“You’re hired,” I said. “I will show you where I have all the launchers.”
“Even with missiles, some Zagrath ships may get through and land on the surface,” K’alvek said. “We should ensure that the people are safely tucked away. Those that do not wish to fight.”
“The ones who do wish to join the battle are welcome to fight by our side,” Vrax said from behind Tori.
“We will be ready to fight.” A rush of excitement flooded my chest, and my fingers buzzed with a hunger for battle. The same desire I’d always felt when I’d boarded a Vandar raiding ship with my brethren beside me and my axe in my hand. This time there would be no other Vandar, but the Dothveks and their female mates had proven their strength in battle before. It would be an honor to defeat the empire with them. And with the human female I’d made my mate. “Isn’t that right, Sienna?”
But when I turned to her, she was gone.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Juliette hurried along the stone path, her stomach roiling. She pressed her fingers to her lips, hoping to keep down her breakfast as the sharp tang of bile teased the back of her throat.
She was doing this for Sienna, she told herself, as she sidestepped a Kimitherian in a beige cloak walking in the opposite direction. It was to save Sienna.
And keep her with you, a voice whispered in her head. But she shook that voice from her mind. It wasn’t about that. Well, not entirely. Her older sister was being foolish and headstrong, and she couldn’t see that the Vandar was using her.
Juliette’s cheeks burned as she thought about how her sister had looked when she’d snuck in the night before. Her clothes had been rumpled, her hair was a mess, and she’d sported a bite mark on her neck. She couldn’t imagine what sort of depravity the Vandar was into, but her sister deserved better. Sienna deserved someone who would stay with her on the planet and share a life. A real life, not some bizarre existence flying around in a battleship fighting enemies.
Even if Sienna was bored with life on Kimithion III now, that would change, Juliette assured herself. As soon as she was married and had a child, she’d settle down and abandon her fantastical notions of leaving the planet for a more exciting life.
“Once she’s given up the Vandar,” she muttered to herself, drawing a curious glance from a woman passing her.
When she reached the door to the dwelling, she hesitated, holding her small fist in mid-air for a beat. Once she did this, there was no going back. No matter what happened or which future she chose, her sister would consider it a betrayal.
“A betrayal she’ll get over,” she whispered to reassure herself as she knocked sharply on the door.
There was shuffling inside and then the door opened to reveal and bleary-eyed Donal, his nose still bandaged, but the bruises around his eyes faded from purple to a sickly shade of yellow . He blinked at her a few times. “Juliette?” He glanced behind her. “Are you here on your own?”
She nodded, drawing in a breath to bolster her courage. “Can I come in? There’s something I need to tell you.”
He stepped back, swaying slightly as he held the door for her, closing it once she’d stepped inside his small dwelling. Unlike females on Kimithion III, males could live alone once they’d reached the age of maturity, so Donal had his own dwelling. She scanned the space quickly, spotting dirty dishes on the table and clothes draped over the back of chairs. One that needed a serious amount of attention.
She tried to imagine Sienna here cleaning up after Donal. The thought almost made her snort out a laugh and lose her nerve, but she pushed her doubts aside.
“So what is it?” Donal rubbed a hand over his forehead and huffed out a breath along with the strong scent of fermented algae.
Juliette wrinkled her nose. Was Donal drunk? Maybe this had been a horrible mistake. She cut her eyes to the door.
“Is it Sienna?” Donal asked, his voice sharp with concern. “Is she okay?”
Juliette released a sigh. No, she was right to do this. It was Donal who truly cared about her sister. It was Donal who could provide a future on the planet for Sienna.
“She’s okay, but there’s something you should know.”
Creases formed along his brow as he stared at her.
“She’s seeing the Vandar. She sneaks out to be with him. It’s been going on for a while. At first, he was just teaching her to fight, but now it’s more. I think they’re…” The words which had spilled from her in such a rush trailed off as Donal’s perplexed expression darkened.
“Are you telling me that this alien brute has been fucking my fiancée?”
I shrunk from him as his voice became a bellow. No way was I going to say what Sienna would—that she wasn’t his fiancée. He was too livid to listen to reason.
“I don’t know,” I said. “I can’t say for sure. I thought maybe you could talk some sense into her, or make her see how much better off she’d be with you.”
He raked a hand through his hair, leaving red gashes on his temple. “Ever since that barbarian arrived, she’s been different. Wanting to learn how to fight, pushing me away.” He pointed to his nose. “Did you know she did this to me?”
Juliette recoiled. Sienna hadn’t mentioned hitting Donal.
“She thinks she can reject me, but turn around and spread her legs for him?” He strode back and forth inside the room, bumping into a low table and kicking it hard. One of the legs shattered, and the table crashed to the floor.
Juliette slapped a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming. She hadn’t expected Donal to get so angry. To her, he’d always been easygoing and friendly. She’d never seen this side of him. Had Sienna? Was that why she’d refused Donal?
Then the man turned toward her and squared his shoulders. “Don’t worry. You were right to tell me.”
She eyed his calm expression. “I was?”
He nodded, taking her by the elbow and leading her to the door. “I’ll talk to Sienna like you suggested. I’ll make her see reason.”
Juliette almost sagged with relief. “You’re not angry with her? You wouldn’t…hurt her?”
He looked taken aback. “I could never hurt my future wife.” He opened the door and propelled her out of it. “Sienna and I have always been meant to be together. She just needs a reminder.”
When the door closed, Juliette stood outside, heaving in breaths. That hadn’t gone so bad after all. Sienna might not be thrilled she’d gone behind her back and gotten Donal involved, but it would all be forgotten once the Vandar left, and life returned to normal. A rumble in the sky made her look up, as a massive spaceship descended from above.
For Juliette, normal couldn�
�t come fast enough.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Ch 33
Sienna
I ducked into one of the markets off the main square, flattening myself against the cool stone wall.
“Are you all right?” The Kimitherian shop clerk eyed me from behind a table displaying a variety of glossy ceramic bowls and plates.
My heart pounded, but not from fear. I hadn’t been afraid of the spaceship, and the gold-skinned aliens and females who’d emerged. They seemed perfectly nice—fun even. It was their presence and Corvak’s obvious relief at seeing them that had made me panic.
The Vandar raider had spoken to them like old friends. There was none of the reticence and gruffness that he’d shown when he’d arrived here.
Because he doesn’t fit in here, I reminded myself. Juliette was right. He wasn’t one of us and he never would be. Kimithion III wasn’t his home. He belonged in the skies with other warriors like the bounty hunters who’d arrived to lend aid. And now that they were here, Corvak would probably leave with them.
And leave me behind.
My eyes stung with tears I refused to let fall. He was casting me aside already. Although he’d introduced me at first, I’d been quickly forgotten as more people emerged from the ship and they started to discuss the empire. Corvak had seamlessly slipped into warrior mode with the other bare-chested aliens, and hadn’t even glanced back at me once. It hadn’t been hard to slip away unnoticed.
It was better this way, I told myself. He needed to focus on the coming battle, and I needed to get used to the idea that our fun fling was coming to an end. I bit my lip, hating to admit that my kid sister had been right about everything. Corvak had never had any intention of staying with me, or even taking me with him when he left. I’d always been a means to an end to him, the end being his escape from the planet.
“He was always honest with you,” I muttered to myself, ignoring the sidelong glance from the store clerk who probably didn’t want a female loitering in his shop and talking to herself. “He never lied about wanting to leave.”
I couldn’t blame the Vandar for his part in the ache that gripped my heart, but I could regret mine. Like always, I’d been too impulsive. I’d barreled forward into the fire without thinking of the consequences, and I’d gotten burned. I never should have allowed myself to fall for an alien who was always destined to fly away from me.
I glanced out the open arched door. Villagers were bustling through the square toward the newly arrived ship, excited murmurs buzzing through the crowd like a swarm of sea bees. The arrival of the bounty hunters in their massive ship was big news for our planet, and everyone wanted to see the impressive vessel. I almost laughed as I thought about the reactions they’d have to more brawny, shirtless males. Even though these Dothvek warriors wore leather pants instead of kilts, they also had black marks on their skin and long hair. A far cry from the iridescent blue-green scales of the natives or the unmarked skin of the humans on Kimithion III.
A pang of longing stabbed at me. I wanted to be with Corvak and his bounty hunter friends. The female called Tori looked like an especially fierce female warrior I could learn from. Besides, the battle with the Zagrath was exactly what I’d been training for, but the more time I spent with the Vandar battle chief, the more painful it would be when he left me.
I’d have to help the fight in some other way because fighting by Corvak’s side would only be a torment. A taste of what life could be like with a warrior—a life I would never have.
I made my way from the shop, turning away from the ship and pushing through the flow of villagers curious to see the newcomers to the planet. Keeping my head down, I weaved my way toward the path to the cave dwellings, hoping that Corvak wouldn’t come after me, but also praying that he would.
“Sienna!”
I stiffened when I heard the voice. Donal was the last person I wished to see now. Without turning toward the sound of his voice, I shook my head. “I can’t talk now.”
He managed to elbow his way through the crowd and step in front of me. He held his hands up as in surrender. “I know you’re mad at me. I get it.”
I stared at the fading bruises around his eyes and his swollen nose, a bandage still over the bridge. “Do you even remember what you did?”
He dropped his gaze to the ground. “Not really. Listen, Sienna, I was really drunk and upset, and I acted like an idiot.”
Trying to force himself on me was more than acting like an idiot, but I wasn’t in the mood for an argument. I didn’t care about fighting with Donal anymore. It wasn’t like I’d ever change him, or even cared to. Even if I wouldn’t end up with Corvak, I was certain about one thing. A man like Donal who ran from fights and thought it was okay to assault females was never going to be a part of my future.
I didn’t meet his eyes. “Okay. What do you want me to say?”
He reached for my hand, but I jerked it away. “I want you to say that you don’t hate me.”
The whine in his voice made me want to hit him again, but I reminded myself that we were in public. Besides, I didn’t hate Donal. I didn’t feel enough for him to hate him. I let out a weary sigh. “I don’t hate you.”
I started walking up the path, the number of people thinning out as I got higher. Donal followed me, almost jogging to keep up with my brisk pace.
“You don’t know how much it means to me that you said that.” He gave a nervous laugh. “We’ve known each other too long for there to be bad blood between us, don’t you think?”
“Sure.” Whatever would shut him up.
“It’s funny that you can know someone for so long, and still not know so much about them, don’t you think?”
I didn’t glance over to him as he hurried along by my side. There were no more people rushing down the path heading to the village. The path and the dwellings cut into the mountain were unusually quiet, with no voices drifting from the windows and no approaching footsteps tapping in the distance. I suspected everyone was gathered around the alien ship.
My gut clenched, and my gait slowed. Which was where I should be. I stopped and gazed up the deserted path. What was I doing running from a fight? That wasn’t me. Turning, I peered over the stone ledge to the empty village square, and squinted to see the stream of people moving toward the hulking gray ship.
My pulse quickened. Corvak was there, along with the other fighters who would defend the planet. As much as it pained me, I should be there, too. I’d been a fool to run from him. Warriors didn’t run away when things got tough. As tough as it would be to fight alongside Corvak knowing that victory would mean he would leave, I had to do it.
“Don’t you think, Sienna?”
I hadn’t been listening to Donal ramble on, but now I focused my gaze on him. “I’m sorry. What?”
His eyes were intense as he stared at me, flinching slightly at my question. “I said that even after all this time, there are things I don’t know about you. Like the fact that you’ve been fucking that barbarian.” His lips curled into a sneer. “I didn’t know that tidbit until your sister told me.”
My skin went cold. “Juliette told you that—?”
“That my fiancée has been spreading her legs for a Vandar,” he cut me off, spitting out each of his words like they were poison.
The cold prickles on my flesh became fiery. “I don’t know what my sister told you, but let’s get one thing straight.” I jabbed a finger at him. “You are not my fiancé. You are nothing to me, and you never will be.”
Anger twisted his face, his bruises and swollen nose making him look even more like a monster. His gaze flicked over my shoulder briefly and then strong hands were grabbing me from behind. “We can fix that.”
Before I could jab my foot behind me or throw an elbow, pain exploded across my head. As the menacing face of Donal grew smaller, darkness swallowed me.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Ch 34
Corvak
“That should do it.” Hol
ly blew a strand of fiery-red hair out of her face as she patted the last of the missile launchers. “I refitted them so they can blast anything out of the atmosphere, and I improved their homing technology.”
Kush passed an armful of torpedo casings to me. “I told you she was an excellent engineer.”
I eyed the female in brightly colored clothing. “I have been learning that human females are more capable than they appear.”
“You got that right, Skirts.” Tori lowered a pair of heavy Kimitherian guns to the ground and stood, swiping the back of her hand across the warm-brown flesh of her forehead. “My bounty hunter babes have been kicking ass all over the galaxy.”
“Skirts?” I asked, glancing down at my battle kilt. “This is not a skirt.”
Tori shrugged one shoulder, pulling a metal stick from her hair and twirling it over the tops of her fingers. “I’m not saying I don’t approve. You Vandar all seem to have the legs for it.”
“I did not think you noticed any legs but mine,” her Dothvek mate growled, crossing the middle of the open amphitheater with a crate filled with ammunition.
Tori flashed him her pointy teeth as she smiled. “Your legs are my favorite, pretty boy.”
The young Dothvek lowered his crate and gave her a reluctant smile, looping an arm around her waist and pulling her to him. “I hope so, mate.”
I pulled my gaze from the pair of lovers and scanned the weapons we’d been moving from the secret armory. The bounty hunter’s engineer and security chief had been inspecting everything and bringing it up to code, since the equipment had been sitting dormant for hundreds of rotations. It now appeared we had enough firepower to challenge an imperial attack, if only we had the fighters to wield them.
For not the first time since we’d started working, my gaze searched for Sienna and came up lacking. She’d slipped away sometime during the bounty hunters’ arrival, and she hadn’t returned. I’d been so caught up with preparing for battle and bringing the Dothveks and their females up to speed that I hadn’t dwelled too much on why she’d left.
