by M. K. Eidem
"I’m sure you won’t," Taarig told her, the slight softening of his voice his only apology.
"Would you like to speak with Nalo?" Xanto asked, pulling Taarig's gaze from Mae.
"Yes." Taarig turned, looking to Xanto.
Xanto nodded to Hamm, and the Hogg moved toward the bar. "Then while Hamm is getting Nalo, I’ll go see what’s taking Cali so long."
Taarig's gaze followed the Elevsìs male as he crossed the bar to the panel Cali had used. To Taarig’s shock, the male placed his hand on the bio-scanner, and the panel opened. Why would Cali have given this male access to her quarters? When had she done it? Had her experience with Jamis and him meant so little to her?
"Sub Commander?" Hamm's snort brought Taarig’s gaze back to him and the Si male with whom he'd returned.
"You're Nalo?" Taarig asked.
"Yes, Sssub Commander."
"Tell me what you saw."
"Sssaw, Sssub Commander?" Nalo's ordinarily smooth, hairless, blue head furrowed in confusion.
"You were the last person to enter The Brink before the bomb went off," Taarig told him.
"I wasss?"
"Yes!" Taarig's temper was starting to wear thin. "What did you see?"
"I sssaw nothing, Sssub Commander."
"Nothing?"
"No. When I exited the lift, the area wasss empty. Well, exsssept for Tay ssstanding at The Brink'sss door. He opened it for me, and I entered The Brink."
"And you saw nothing else?" Taarig pressed. "Nothing unusual?"
"No, Sssub Commander."
"Sub Commander, if you have everything you need from me, I’d like to take my mate to our quarters. All this excitement isn’t good for our offspring," Tay interrupted, pulling Taarig’s attention back to him.
"I’m fine, Tay," Mae reassured him.
"The Meddygs said you should rest," Tay argued back.
"I need to finish my shift."
"Don’t worry about that, Mae," Cali said, walking up to the group. "It's been taken care of."
Chapter Fourteen
Cali was just rising from her rejuvenation tank when Xanto entered her resting chamber.
"What the ruk, Xanto!?" Grabbing the towel she'd dropped before getting in, she wrapped it around her naked body. "What are you doing here?!"
"Your Sub Commander is getting impatient. I felt it best for me to come to get you instead of him."
"He's not my Sub Commander!" she snapped, stepping out of the tank. "And I'd appreciate it if you didn't just let yourself into my quarters."
"Somewhat difficult to do when I'm staying in your secondary resting chamber," he replied nonplussed.
Cali ground her back teeth together because Xanto was right. It wasn't an arrangement she appreciated, but as an old family friend and one of her favorite people, Cali couldn't refuse when he'd asked to use her extra resting chamber while he was here. "Which this isn't!"
"True. My apologies. It won't happen again unless the situation is dire."
Cali knew that was the best she'd get from him. Xanto was here on her dad's orders, which meant he would do whatever he thought necessary to fulfill it, including invading her privacy. Sighing, she crossed the room and entered a smaller one where she kept her clothing. Several minutes later, she exited wearing a well-worn pair of pants that hugged her hips. Her mother had sworn they were just like the 'blue jeans' she used to wear on Earth. The jeans just brushed the floor where the pointed toe of the boots she'd pulled on peaked through as she walked back to the cleansing room. The loose, white shirt she’d chosen covered her torso and arms. Looking in the mirror, she saw that the rejuvenation tank again had her hair glowing more than she liked. Grabbing a crocheted hair covering, she contained the energized strands within it, concealing most of the glow.
"Let's go," she told Xanto and picked up the portable strip with the recording as she walked past him.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
"Don’t worry about that, Mae." Cali had heard the concern in Mae's voice as she walked up to the group. "It's being taken care of." She gestured to the bar behind her, where Xanto now was.
"What do you mean?" Mae asked.
"The Brink will be closed until the start of the next light shift. That should give Sub Commander Ynn enough time to figure out what happened and for the mess out front to be processed and cleaned up. Xanto and Crimson are informing everyone right now. So, once you make up a sign for the door, Hamm can post it. Once you secure the door, Tay, you and Mae are free to go to your quarters." Cali finally looked at Taarig. "That is if the Sub Commander has finished with his questioning."
Taarig had turned as soon as Cali spoke and had quickly taken in the change in her appearance. Whatever it was she was wearing had his breath shortening and his pulse beginning to race, but all he really cared about was that she was no longer covered in blood and seemed to be moving comfortably. Still, that didn’t mean she wasn’t injured.
"With them, yes." He gestured with his head toward Tay and Mae. "They can leave. You, I will talk to while the Meddyg examines you."
"There’s no need." Cali remained where she was when Taarig gestured for her to take the seat from which Tay had risen. "I cleansed while in my quarters. I only received two minor head wounds, which Xanto sealed with skin seal." She pulled back several strands of hair she’d left loose, revealing the injuries she’d intentionally not allowed the bed to heal completely. "As I stated before, head wounds on Earthans bleed excessively."
"You could have internal injuries," Taarig argued.
"Trust me. I don’t." She held up a hand to stop him from continuing and knew she’d have to pull out the big guns if she wanted him to let this go. "I’m Earthan, Sub Commander. If that blast had caused internal injuries, I would have been dead before you exited the lift. Now can we let this go?"
Taarig’s throat tightened at the thought of Cali dying that quickly. Jamis was right. There was no way they could make her their Lalla, not if she could be taken from them so easily. Realizing everyone was waiting for his reply, including the Meddygs, he forced himself to speak.
"As you wish." He nodded to the Meddygs, who quickly gathered up their supplies and left. "So, tell me, Khatun Baker, who wants you dead?"
Cali jerked slightly, not because of Taarig’s words, as it was something she’d already wondered herself, but because of his sudden change in demeanor. He was no longer the Taarig she knew, fucked, and grown to like more than was comfortable. He’d become the hard, cold, intimidating Apre Sub Commander Ynn that everyone on the Star Base whispered about and feared.
"Khatun Baker?" he snapped.
"Enough to set off a bomb on a Star Base?" she snapped back, his tone breaking through her confusion. "No one. Especially since only those in the Coalition are supposed to have access to actinic, so maybe you should find out who under your command has access to it instead of standing here asking rukking stupid questions!" By the time she finished, Cali’s tone was just as cold and hard as Taarig's.
Every being remaining in The Brink stilled to see how the Sub Commander would react. For Apre or not, no one spoke to a Commander like that without severe consequences.
"California…" Xanto murmured, moving across the room to intercede before the Sub Commander attacked. But to everyone's shock, Taarig just dipped his head forward in agreement.
"Which I will do once I have the visual and audio recordings you supposedly left to obtain."
Cali was surprised at the accusatory look Taarig shot Xanto. He couldn't think she and Xanto were involved, could he? When less than six dark shifts ago, she'd been with him and Jamis? Slowly she opened the hand holding the portable strip and held it out to him.
Taarig carefully took the strip from her, making sure he didn't physically touch her. "I will have this analyzed and let you know what we learn, Khatun Baker." With that, he spun on his heel and left The Brink.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Xanto silently watched Cali as she cleaned up behind the bar. Ha
mm had hung the sign, and Tay had locked the doors for the first time since The Brink had opened over fifty years ago. Xanto knew this because he'd been there with Triz the day they'd first opened. He and Triz had been friends since before Cali had been born.
Mae had tried to stay and help, but Cali had refused and ordered everyone out. Now it was just the two of them.
"Are you going to tell me what's really going on between you and the Sub Commander?" he asked, sipping his drink.
"Did it look like anything was going on between us?" she asked, setting down the glasses she'd just finished cleaning a little too hard, cracking them.
Xanto raised an eyebrow at her actions, "I'd say that answers the question."
Taking a deep breath, Cali carefully threw the damaged glasses away then looked to Xanto. "Let's just say I thought he was interested in something more than just a 'one and done' type of thing, or in this case ‘two and done,’ but it seems I was wrong. To him, I'm just an Earthan and not worthy of a long-term relationship."
"Maybe if he knew you weren't Earthan, he'd feel differently," he said quietly.
"Maybe he should be willing to enjoy the time we have together no matter my species, just like he and Jamis do with every other female they fuck," she fired back, then cursed herself for what she'd just revealed.
"So, your dad was right."
"He usually is," she muttered.
"True," Xanto agreed. "It's one of the gifts he received after he mated with the Paramount."
"It's not as if he had a choice."
The anger in Cali's voice had Xanto's thin eyebrows drawing together. "Why would you say that? Paul is fully committed to the Paramount."
"He's committed to my mother," Cali bit out, then waved her hand as if erasing what she just said. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath. "Forget I said that. It's been an eventful day, and I'm tired. I'm going to go rest."
Xanto was still frowning when the panel leading to Cali's quarters slid closed. He'd known there was tension between Cali and the Paramount but hadn't realized it had anything to do with her parents’ unusual relationship. He wondered if Paul or Dakota knew their datter felt this way.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Entering the Command Center, Taarig caught Jamis’s eye and gestured with his head toward the conference room.
Rising, Jamis looked to his communications specialist. "Prue, you're in command."
"Yes, Commander."
Neither of them had gotten much rest in the two days since the explosion. Taarig had ruthlessly been tracking down every possible source for the actinic while Jamis had read every report generated from the investigative team and the Meddygs. He'd also personally inspected every piece recovered from the blast site and repeatedly viewed every moment of footage on the portable strip Cali had sent them. And found nothing that revealed who planted the bomb. He had been able to identify where the blast had originated from and, working backward, pinpointed a small, nondescript bag that looked like every other piece of trash that littered the corridor. He'd even isolated the time frame the bag was dropped. The problem was it had been right during the shift change when the corridor had been filled with so many beings that there was no way to isolate who dropped it.
Jamis waited until the conference room door slid closed before demanding. "You found out where the actinic came from?"
"Yes!" Taarig spit out, disgusted. "It came from our stores!!"
Clenching his teeth, Jamis demanded. "Who?"
"General Masala," Taarig told him.
"What?!" Jamis roared in disbelief. "How is that even possible? He's not even on the Star Base."
"I know," Taarig told him quietly, "but his datter still is. She hasn't been able to find transport willing to take her yet."
"So, the news has spread," Jami felt a kernel of satisfaction that Masala's datter was receiving some of what she'd so quickly dealt out, especially after what she did to Cali, but it was fleeting. "Could Masala be stupid enough to share his clearance code with his datter?"
"Maybe or maybe not, Vaine's conniving enough to have learned it without her tad realizing it."
"Where is she now?" Jamis demanded.
"Lens feed shows she's in a room on the workers’ level. Wafai is on his way there now."
"The workers’ level? Who the ruk would she know there?"
"The quarters are registered to Ja Le and Oke Tarka," Taarig told him. "I have no idea how Vaine would know them."
"I want all three of them brought in."
"I already informed Wafai you would. He'll notify us when he has them in interrogation."
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Xanto found Cali once again behind the bar getting ready for The Brink's reopening. "Security is headed to Oke's quarters."
"Oke's?" Cali frowned as she set down the towel she'd been using. "I did see her across the corridor right before the bomb went off."
"You did?" Xanto demanded. "Why didn't you say something before now?"
"Why would I?" she fired back. "Oke may be a vindictive bitch, but she wouldn't have a clue on how to build a bomb."
"She may not, but she shares quarters with one of the engineers who build the devices that destroy stray asteroids entering coalition space."
"Really?" Cali's eyebrows drew together, wondering how she hadn't known that. "Well, she wouldn't have access to the explosive needed to arm the device. That's a mandatory safety measure."
"True, but it seems Vaine Masala has been staying with Oke and her quarter mate."
"Oh, for Gods’ sake, she's still here?" Cali threw her towel down on the bar. She'd hoped she'd dealt with Vaine for the last time.
"She's finding it difficult to procure a ship willing to transport her home," the corners of Xanto's mouth twitched up as he spoke.
"I wish Dad had just let her leave with her tad."
"I believe the Supreme Chairman was more than fair."
"Maybe, but I'll be glad when that bitch is finally gone."
"I'll see if I can't arrange that."
Cali's eyes narrowed at him. "What have you been doing, Xanto?"
"Who?" Xanto put an elegant hand to his chest as he gave her his most innocent look. "Me?"
"Xanto," she drew out his name.
"Fine. I may have shared some information with a few independent captains. How they acted on that information or who they shared it with, I couldn't say." When Cali just continued to stare at him silently, he lost the innocent look. "She deserved to suffer some discomfort for what she tried to do to you."
"And you don't think being banned from nearly ninety percent of the universe is punishment enough?"
"No, not for her. She has no remorse for the harm she caused, not just to you, but to her own family."
Cali shook her head, knowing there was nothing she could say that would change Xanto's mind. The Elevsìs had a unique sense of right and wrong, along with justice and punishment. When those things didn't align properly, they often took matters into their own hands.
"While I can't argue with that, I'd prefer her tail-swinging ass be off this Star Base."
"Then I'll make sure it happens," Xanto told her.
"Make sure what happens?" Mae asked as she and Tay walked up to the bar.
Cali and Xanto both turned to look at them. Neither heard their approach because they were engrossed in their conversation. Cali recovered first.
"Xanto just agreed to get me a crate of Elevsìs wine," Cali's lips twitched when Xanto winced, as he'd now have to produce the wine. Elevsìs wine is rare off its homeworld because of the extreme steps needed to maintain the proper temperature and gravity during transport. Gravity most important because if it experienced zero gravity, the wine would separate and become undrinkable.
"Really?!" Mae looked to Xanto in awe. "I've heard it's amazing."
"Then I will gift you a bottle, once your little one is here," Xanto told her.
Mae's mouth hung open for a moment before she stuttered. "Th… thank y
ou, Xanto, but we couldn't accept. It's too expensive."
"All mothers deserve a gift after having offspring. After all, you make sure life continues."
"Accept the wine, Mae," Cali said quietly. "The giving of a life gift is a sacred thing for the Elevsìs. It means he will watch over your youngling for the duration of his life."
The tears that filled Mae's eyes told Cali that Mae hadn't known this, and she buried her face in Tay’s chest.
"We accept, and thank you, Xanto," Tay said as his arms wrapped around his mate.
Xanto nodded at Tay’s acceptance then rose from his seat. "I'll go see about securing that crate." The look he gave Cali told her he would be doing that along with what they'd been discussing.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Jamis entered the Central Observation Station's interrogation area with Taarig at his side, three of the four rooms occupied.
"Who do you want first?" Taarig asked. Wafai had informed them of what he’d discovered through their links en route.
Without a word, Jamis moved toward one of the doors. As he entered, Ja Le quickly rose from her seat.
"Engineer Le," Jamis growled.
"Commander Dexxirs," Le tapped her fist against her chest in respect.
"Do you know why you are here, Engineer Le?" Jamis asked.
"No, Commander."
"It concerns the explosion outside The Brink during the last light shift." Jamis watched her expression closely for the slightest hint of guilt. Instead, all he saw was confusion.
"The explosion?" Ja's brows lowered. "But…"
"And your involvement," Jamis continued as if she hadn’t spoken.
"My involvement?!" Ja’s eyes widened, her shock easily heard.
Jamis dumped out the contents of the bag Wafai had set on the table.
Ja slowly sat down, her eyes fixed on the devices on the table. "Those… those are my miniatures."
