“Don’t try anything clever,” Ruush said, bringing me to the ship’s efficient and clean galley kitchen. I was all out of clever ideas. A terrible plan formed in my skull, too full of unknowns. Still, a plan was something and I need to do something. I’ve had enough to waiting. All my other plans were clever and they fell apart pretty rapidly. Might as well give the terrible plan a go.
“I just couldn’t be in the same cell as that...as that beast,” I said.
A pleased grin broke over Ruush’s slate toned face.
I wasn’t joking when I said I don’t cook. That was real enough. I can barely boil water. Evie got all the culinary skill but I spent enough time watching her to figure out how to roast chicken and mince garlic.
Poisoning the crew was surprisingly easy. Once in the kitchen, I had little oversight and the freedom to summon anything in the processor unit. Anything. Even sedatives. I half expected them to catch me in the act, grinding up the pills. You’d be surprised how garlic can cover up the most medicinal aftertaste.
I had a little flutter of nerves when the crew sat down to eat my treachery. Ruush grabbed me by the waist and pulled me to his lap, laughing as I squirmed away. “Don’t be that way, princess,” he said, mock pleading. The crew found it hilarious right before they fell asleep into their plates. Serves them right. Maybe I was a little heavy handed on the sedatives. Maybe they had it coming.
The first stop was freeing Glin. Yes, he’s terrifying. Like really, really scary when he gets worked up but I’ve never felt frightened of him. Ruush was onto to something when he said ‘but he was our monster’. Glin’s my monster and I wasn’t leaving this ship without him.
Glin surged to his feet when I skidded to a halt in front of his cell. “Are you injured? Did they touch you?”
“Let’s get you out of there.” I didn’t even need a key or pass code to lower the field around the cell. I noticed when Ruush put me in the cell that he just hit the release button on the control panel. No password needed. Lazy smugglers.
“How did you?” Glin asked, wasting no time to exit.
“We don’t have long. I have no idea how many sedatives I gave them or how long it will last. Now get this off me.” I held my wrist with the monitoring bracelet. A seam and hinge marred the dull grey material. I tugged at the seam but it didn’t budge. The bracelet needed a code or key.
Glin took my wrist and carefully turned my arm over, inspecting the bracelet. He ran a thick finger between the material and the underside of my wrist. I sucked in my breath when we touched. If he noticed, he said nothing, frowning with concentration on the device. Eventually, he worked one hand under the bracelet and gripped it tightly. His other hand pushed down at the seam, trying to rip the damn thing off me. This created an undue pressure on my wrist, feeling like it could be crushed. After thirty seconds of Glin gritting his teeth and me holding my breath, the material snapped.
I shouldn’t have been impressed but that was so damn hot.
We ran down the corridors of the ship. The communications array was the next stop. Glin sent out a brief message. Really brief. It was one word “now” and our current coordinates.
Then we were on our way to the escape pods. Sure, we might be able to take over a smuggler’s ship or we could get the hell out of town. I vote to get moving.
The escape pods were designed to hold two people. Nothing fancy, just the basic life support. Not even navigation. You jam yourself in and fling yourself away from the ship, hoping for the best.
“I hope you’re not claustrophobic,” I said, staring into the tiny pod. I hoped I wasn’t.
“Secure yourself,” Glin said, giving my shoulder a hard shove. Right, right. Get a move on.
Within a minute, we were sealed inside the pod. Wide enough for two people to lie down, Glin took up more than his fair share. I found my back pressed against his chest. With a lurch, the pod pushed away from the ship.
Now we wait.
The temperature inside the pod dropped quickly. We won’t freeze to death but life support is minimum, not set to “tropical paradise”, and I’m wearing a dress made of lace. Glin is a great source of heat and I wanted to burrow next to him but somehow that doesn't seem like a smart idea.
“You did not kill the crew,” Glin said.
“Just made them sleepy. They’ll wake up with a hell of a headache.”
I felt his head nod in approval and I wondered which of my actions he approved. The reckless plan? Incapacitating the crew but not injuring them? Coming back for him when I had every reason to let him try his luck with the smugglers?
“Who do you think will find us?” I asked. The Fremmians if we’re lucky. I hoped we didn’t just leap out of the frying pan into the fire. Ruush’s smugglers were bad but he said he would ransom me. Not sell. I had a chance of getting to Evie and safety. The next ship that finds our beacon may not be so generous.
“I programmed the beacon for Fremm communications. They will find us.”
“Probably.”
“Do not worry, Vera. You are safe with me.” He rested his hand on my shoulder and started to stroke my back but pulled back, as if thinking better of it.
Probably safe.
“Look, Glin,” I said, choosing my words carefully. There’s no good way to say this so might as well get the pain over with fast. Sure it’ll be an awkward wait in a tiny pod but what else are we going to do? Not like we’re going to make out of anything. “I think we should forget everything that happened on Blackthorn.” I tuck my head down to my chest, eyes closed.
A strong hand gently grabbed my jaw and turned my head until I could see his pale face, his rich twilight tones drained away. “Explain this to me.”
This angle was killing my neck so I rolled over completely to face him. Well, face his pecs. “Whatever this is between us is situation. Hormones. Adrenaline. Survival, whatever, but it’s not real. Which I think you know and why you’ve kept me at arm's length.” He didn’t protest so I continued, “So maybe the smart thing for us to do is wipe the slate clean and start over.”
“Lie and say I did not find us shelter, hunt for us, protect you from creatures?”
My cheeks flush with frustration. It always comes down to lies with him but he ain’t exactly Mr. Forthright. “No, that’s fine. The other stuff, you know…”
His face is a curious blank. Normally his eyes and markings are so expressive with irritation, frustration and the rare flashes of joy. My chest feels too tight. I have no idea what thoughts are churning behind those flat, dark eyes.
“You are right, Vera. I will do as you suggest.” His arms tighten around me. For a moment I panic, heart fluttering, but Glin does nothing more than cradle me next to his body heat. “Rest. It could be some time before we are found.”
Chapter Nineteen
Vera
From orbit, Fremm looked very much like Earth, blue and green and mostly water. The planet was much larger than Earth and had a slightly higher gravity. When the shuttle docked at the spaceport, I could feel the added weight pulling on her limbs.
“Feels like I’m moving through water,” I said.
“The gravitational difference is only three point one percent, well within comfort levels,” Glin said. Three point one percent was all well and good for him, he was all muscle.
As it turned out, we only spent two hours in the pod before a Fremm cruiser retrieved us. The ship’s medic examined us and proclaimed us mostly unharmed from the crash and the week on Blackborn. After a shower and a change into a fresh set of clothes, I had my first hot meal that wasn’t hunted or with a smuggler oozing smarm all over me. After a sound sleep, we arrived at Fremm.
Guards waited for us at the station and took us in the shuttle directly to the planet surface. My hands trembled slightly as I fastened the belt on my seat. No one noticed my nerves but Glin saw. He reached over and double checked the buckle, tugging on it make sure it would hold. Without saying a word, he put me at ease.
The shutt
le landed near a stone house in a mountain valley. This was Bitterot Farm, Aster and Evie’s home. Climbing out, I scanned the area. The cluster of buildings seemed isolated in the valley. Purple sheep looking creatures were in pens. There were other stone buildings like looked like a barn and a smaller house. Everything looked liked it worked very hard.
My sister, the princess, lived on a sheep farm. I’m oddly jealous.
Very serious men in the Fremm uniform were standing by the shuttle, arms behind their back, frowning. Glin’s people.
Evie broke through the crowd of stern men. She flung herself at me and gave me a bone crushing embrace. I winced, my sides still smarting, but Evie failed to notice. She babbled and laughed and cried. I couldn’t make out what she said.
I pulled away. “So I guess I missed the wedding.”
Evie smiled. Tears made tracks down her cheeks. “You just couldn’t let me have the spotlight, could you? Just had to crash.”
A tall man came to Evie side and brushed away the tears. “Why do you cry?” No need for introductions. I recognized Prince Aster from all the news feeds. Seeing him fuss over my sister made him, and his position, less intimidating.
“I’m crying because I’m happy,” Evie said. “I was so worried.”
“Glin took good care of me,” I said.
A growl rumbled in Aster’s chest as he looked towards Glin. “Did he?”
Glin’s face was blank, controlled.
“Yes,” I said. “He did. Our shuttle was sabotaged. He did everything he could.”
Aster pressed a kiss to the top of Evie’s head. “I need to get his report, kompli. I will see you both when we dine.” He turned to Glin and with a sharp jerk of his head; both men took for the stone house.
“Let me show you where you’re staying,” Evie said. She brought me to a small stone cottage, the guest house. It had a mini kitchen area, a cleansing room and the most inviting bed. Evie opened a panel on the wall and revealed a fully stocked closet. “One of the perks of royalty is you never have to go shopping.”
“But then you never get to go shopping.”
“My tailor made these for you,” Evie said. “I understand you lost all your luggage.”
“Everything. I have one pair of panties and I haven’t worn my own clothes in days.”
She picked through the wardrobe and brought out a heavy navy sweater wrap, tan trousers and a pale pink blouse. “I hope you find something you like, but these would be good for dinner tonight. The sweater will keep you warm. They say it’s summer but it’s always so damp.”
The garments fit like they were made for me. And it’s tough being a foul mood when you’re wearing a fresh bra and panties. Like impossible.
We dined outdoors at a low, long table with cushions on the ground. Lights on strings provided a warm illumination against the cloudy grey sky. “It looks like rain,” I said to Evie.
“It always looks this way,” she said.
Cheery. A shiver run up my spine. I wore a thick navy sweater wrap over the outfit provided but the damp in the air still chilled me. “I thought you said it was summer.”
She shrugged and held up her hands in a helpless gesture. So this was summer on Fremm. No wonder Fremmians were always so serious.
We were joined by Aster’s brother, Sindre, his wife Faren and their daughter, Fahlin. Emre, the King, was unable to join us, which is fine. I don’t think I could keep my shit together if I had dinner with a king. Chem, Aster’s second in command, and Glin arrived for the meal, making it a party of eight.
Aster insisted the women sit and the men would serve them first, as is the Fremm custom. Glin began to make a plate for me but Aster took it from his hands and said, “I will serve the sister of my kompli. Unless you have a greater claim.”
A tense look passed between the men. Finally, Glin lowered his eyes and surrendered the plate. “As you say, my Prince.”
Well, that was interesting.
Aster sat between Evie and myself, bringing us two plates heavy with food I did not recognize. My only experience with Fremm food was the garlic heavy ration bars. Not a fan. Evie caught my weary look and nodded reassuringly. It should be fine to eat. The green salad with nuts excited me. I’ve had enough roasted beast.
“I am overjoyed to have you in our home, Vera,” Aster said.
“Thank you, Your Highness.” That what you call a prince, right?
“Aster, please. We are family,” he said. His smile was easy and the marks of sincerity burned on his brow. His skin was a sky blue and contrasted so dramatically to Glin’s more somber twilight coloring. Aster had the satisfied look of a man who just married the love of his life. I decided I liked him. He continued, “My kompli is the greatest happiness I have ever known. Evie is everything to me. You must let me make an appropriate Mourning Gift.”
He wanted to buy me a present? “It’s the Terran custom to bring the newlyweds a gift, not the other way around.”
Aster shook his head. “Only for the bride’s family, to compensate for the deep sorrow the family must feel to lose such a treasure.” He looked at Evie when he said this and she blushed. Well then.
“The clothes you’ve given me are more than generous,” I said. The prince wants to buy me something but I had no idea what was an appropriate item to ask for.
Aster pulled back. “You value your sister so little?”
Too small, too small.
Evie placed a hand on Aster’s arm and said, “This is not our way. Vera has not had the time to think of an appropriate Mourning Gift.”
His nostrils flared but he nodded. “All my wealth could not equal your worth,” he said and I swear, my sister melted with a goofy expression on her face. Prince Aster was a romantic and Evie ate it up with a spoon. “You will consider your request more carefully, Vera.”
I nodded. “Yes, of course.” Go big or go home.
Aster asked for my version of events. I told the dinner guests how our shuttle was sabotaged, crash landing on the nearest planet, the abandoned colony Blackborn, finding shelter, the wolf squids, the smugglers who found us and how I was able to get us off the smuggler’s ship. The men discussed the shuttle sabotage. Upset that something like this could happen, Aster muttered a string of words in Fremmian that my translator didn’t pick up but I got the gist. He sent one man, his best warrior, so the mission to escort me to Fremm could be kept quiet. He did the same to bring Evie’s friend, Jaimie, to the wedding. She arrived without incident or adventure. Aster decided that Glin would continue to act as my guard. Awesome.
“In five days, we will have a banquet in your honor,” Aster said.
“Me? Really?”
“And we leave Fremm the next day. I will return to my ship to finish my commission. I can bring you to Juno.” So the banquet was a going away party.
“Sounds fantastic.”
Outside the guesthouse, Aster gave me a bone crushing hug. “Easy there,” Evie said, resting a hand on her mate’s shoulder. When he released me, she gave me a softer but firm hug. “I missed you so much,” she said in my ear. Her eyes darted to Glin standing at the door, his arms folded sharply behind his back, his posture alert and stiff. “Enjoy your night. We’ll talk in the morning.”
Chapter Twenty
Vera
Once inside the house, I immediately took off my shoes. The guesthouse was a simple two room building, kitchen and sitting area in the front, the bed behind a half wall. The cleaning room tucked neatly in the back. It was rustic and charming and after seeing the main house, totally in keeping with the homespun feel of the farm. You really wouldn’t think a prince and princess lived here. Then again, it was a huge farm with a separate house for guests, so not so shabby. I’d ask Evie for a tour tomorrow.
The fire in the hearth started with the press of a button. While rustic, the modern amenities blended seamlessly with the historic in the house.
“So we’re stuck with each other,” I said. Glin being my personal guard wasn’t the
worst thing in the universe but it was close. Him being this close to me, not interested in me despite my obvious overtures, despite our obvious attraction, would be torturous. I should ask Evie for a new guard, someone less smoldering and delicious.
Glin did not speak to me that evening, which was fine by me. I’m wasn’t in the mood. I crawled into bed and didn’t wake until the sheep started bleating at dawn. Again, my sister the princess lives on a sheep farm.
Glin waited in the kitchenette in the morning, eyes blazing. I didn’t ask if he was there all night or if he slept. I don’t care if he sleeps. None of my concern. In a week I’ll be back on Juno, in my tiny apartment, working at the botanical garden, and I’ll never have to think about Glin et Garen again.
Evie took me around the farm, showing me the ancient rock wall and the angry purple sheep. Despite it being summer, the air was damp and the wind chilled. We climbed higher on the hillside of the valley where the grazing gave way to shrubs.
“You’re going to like this,” she said, waving me over to an inspiring ground shrub clinging to the rocking soil. The squat plant had waxy, dark purple leaves.
“It’s a shrub,” I said.
Evie rolled her eyes. Then she touched the waxy purple leaves. They glowed silver at her touch. My eyes grew three sizes larger in my head. Evie laughed at me when I crouched down and cooed to the plant, brushing the leaves and marveling at the bioluminescence. “Why do you do this, little one?” How marvelous.
Finally, I turned to Evie and said, “So does everything glow on Fremm?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “You’re the botanist, you tell me.”
The guided tour became a lot more interesting. While Earth and Fremm had a long standing alliance, neither species spent much time on the other’s planets. There was a lot about Fremmian plant life I didn’t know.
Alien Warrior's Mate: Alpha Alien Romance (Alpha Aliens of Fremm Book 3) Page 9
