Ambassador's Stowaway (Korystus Aliens Book 3)

by Avery Rae

  I blinked at her in disbelief. I was trying to be nice. I really was. It wasn't her fault she was beautiful and Talys loved her— Err, I mean, I didn't care about that part. Or at least I was trying to convince myself I didn't. But it still wasn't her fault she had to arrest me or whatever. Talys had asked her to. That didn't change the fact that she was kinda rude.

  "Well," I began with an indignant sniff of my own, "for what it's worth, I think your feet are cool looking. That's why I stared. Sorry."

  She tilted her head so far to one side it nearly touched her shoulder. "So, so strange."

  "Would you rather I insulted you? Because I've got some choice words right now."

  She pouted her plump lips. "I know you must be angry, but it's the law on all of our planets. All incomers must be documented for safety reasons. Many people come to our planets as a safe haven. I'm sure you understand. So, until we can properly identify you, we'll need to keep you isolated. We'll get this cleared up soon. Don't you worry."

  I sure could've used a safe haven. I'd been so close, too. If only everything hadn't gone wrong. If only I hadn't spent several days on a ship obsessing over a Korysti that didn't even care about me. There was so much I could've done or tried, but I didn't. And I wanted to kick myself for it.

  "I'm sure we will clear this up," I replied with a hint of sourness in my voice. And I'll be on a ship right back to Korystus. I only hoped Ulyr wouldn't be too disappointed. Guilt coiled in my stomach, making it ache. That was if he didn't end up under fire by association.

  The sphere zipped along the white lines in the floor, they wound all throughout the spaceport apparently, before finally stopping in front of an intimidating looking door. The kind that said, "Nobody is going in or out of here without help."

  Sure enough, the moment we exited the sphere, more officers appeared, flanking me once more. Roxa walked ahead to the door where she had to scan a badge, get fingerprinted, have her entire body scanned, then sign several documents before the door was even opened.

  The moment we were inside of a plain room, the officers let go of me, walked back outside, then the door shut behind us, the locks whirring into place.

  Roxa gave me a tight smile. "This is the Nexion 6 Detention Center, and where you'll be staying until we sort this out."

  "Detention Center, huh?" I hoped Talys was happy with himself.

  As we approached the second set of doors, they opened automatically, revealing an exceptionally long corridor. As we walked down it, I noticed that it branched off in several directions.

  "Just how many people do you detain?" I couldn't help but ask.

  She frowned at me. "Do you know nothing about the Nexion planets?"

  "Of course I don't."

  "My people consider themselves wholly neutral. Our kind are small in number, but our planets are overflowing with people. We create safe havens all throughout the universe, transforming planets that might otherwise go unused. It's our specialty. Our planets are also often used as a peaceful meeting ground for government officials." Her smile widened. "Like the meeting Ambassador Talys is here for."

  "Fascinating." I meant it. It was a shame that Roxa was party to screwing me over, because it sounds like things outside this cursed spaceport were pretty great.

  "How well do you know him?" she asked.

  "Um, I spent a few days cooped up on a ship with him."

  "How cooped?"

  "Very."

  Silence drifted between us as we continued to walk, hers much more tense than mine. If she wanted details, she wasn't going to get them. Not that I had any to give. We just slept in the same bed a couple of times. And that kiss—a really good one but still just a kiss. Well, he'd also professed that he wanted to be with me for real and not just some fling, but that had been a lie, so . . . y'know, there really wasn't much to say.

  I studied the cells as we walked past them and found they weren't all that bad, considering they were cells. They were all furnished with identical beds and tiny kitchenettes. I assumed the bathrooms must be elsewhere. They housed aliens of all skin colors and shapes. I saw scales, horns, cloven feet, and even skin that glowed like a nightlight. The variety of the universe was staggering, to say the least. It hinted at just how much there was out there to see, and I wasn't going to get to see any of it.

  Finally, we stopped in front of an empty cell. Roxa opened the clear door and motioned for me to get inside. I did just that, turning around to face the glass.

  "Enjoy your stay," Roxa said before closing the door, her expression suddenly much colder.

  I wandered over to the bed and sat down, sighing in defeat. I couldn't help but laugh as I stared out at the single ray of sunlight beaming down into the hallway from above, out of my reach. I'd been so excited just to feel the sun . . . and I hadn't even managed that. With a heavy heart, I settled back into the bed and willed myself to sleep.

  8

  When I next woke, it was with a woman who looked a lot like Roxa hovering over my bed. I jolted and stared up at her with wide eyes. "Who are you?"

  "Exora," the woman said brightly. "I would ask you who you are, but I already know." She held up a slim file. "I've learned quite a bit about you, actually, but I would love to learn more."

  "You have?" I asked, staring at the file. Could it have been Ambassador Elyos?

  Exora nodded. "Quite a bit, actually."

  I stared at her, unsure of what to think about this. There was mostly just one word repeating in my mind over and over: weird. She flipped open the file and showed me slim, clear pages with glowing letters on them.

  I squinted, unable to read the language it was written in. "What's this?"

  She smacked herself on the forehead. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I wanted to have you verify your information, but I forgot to get these translated first. I'm sorry, this was all so last minute. But we can do that later. It's best if I get you out of here first anyway."

  "Um, what's going on, exactly?"

  "I'm an immigration caseworker for Nexion 6, and I've been informed of your circumstances."

  "My circumstances?"

  "You've been held captive on Korystus, have you not?"

  "Held captive? Well, yes, but I didn't think that was a secret."

  "The government of Korystus seems to have been less than truthful about their human refugees."

  "Refugees?"

  "Many of your kind ended up on the various Nexion planets. When we heard some of you had ended up on Korystus, we tried to offer a hand, but they claimed that you were staying to help with research instead. Now, I won't pretend that their translation technology hasn't been immensely useful for accommodating our refugees, but I'm starting to think it wasn't through particularly willing participation."

  My heart skipped a beat. "Wait, are you saying I won't have to go back?"

  "Not if you don't want to. We can set you up nicely here, get you a place to live and work, plus an education, and whatever else you'd like."

  I held a hand to my mouth, my eyes pricking at the corners. I couldn't believe how lucky I was for once. And here I'd thought I was the unluckiest in existence not even a few minutes ago.

  She smiled wide at me. "I take it you'd like that?"

  I flung my arms around Exora, my new guardian angel, and hugged her tight. "I would love that."

  "Excellent." She smiled warmly. "I'll get the paperwork started. There'll be a lot of it, just a forewarning, but I promise it'll be worth it."

  Exora did free me from the detention center and, yes, there was a lot of paperwork, but as I got out of the sphere that had stopped in front of my new apartment building—yes, mine—I was so giddy I could hardly keep still. My life had changed in an instant. My life. It was actually mine now.

  "Here's your badge," Exora said as she stood beside me. "This is what you'll use to get around Nexion, and get into your apartment. It works on all vehicles like this one." She pointed at the sphere. "Never leave home without it. It's important to have around here.
You have a duplicate. If you lose them or somewhere end up without one, please see the nearest immigration center immediately."

  I clutched the badge tight in my hand and nodded, my smile uncontrollably large. "Thank you so much, Exora, you've saved me a lot of grief."

  "Oh, don't thank me, I'm only doing my job. Enjoy your stay on Nexion 6. We're happy to have you."

  As Exora moved to get back in the vehicle, I stopped her. "Wait, um, I don't know if you're the right person to ask or not, but . . . will you be able to help the other humans on Korystus?"

  She nodded. "We'll try but we can only do so much. We'll at least continue the conversation with the intergalactic community. It's the best we can do."

  "Continue the conversation?"

  "Yes. Korystus sent several ambassadors to Nexion 6 for a meeting on just this issue. Apparently, there were some rumblings of a video being played in the spaceport of Korystus."

  My thoughts briefly flickered to Talys. That was why he was here? One video? Was it really that much of a problem?

  "You're talking about the one with Naomi, right?"

  "That sounds familiar." Exora scrunched up her face in thought. "Ah, yes, I believe that was one of the names I heard about."

  I nodded, slowly piecing things together. Ulyr had shown a recording of that video to me. Several humans had been interviewed, and their stories played out in a very public fashion, embarrassing the government of Korystus. He told me they'd played it off as fiction, or a joke, depending on who was asking. Apparently not everyone bought those explanations.

  "If possible, could you keep me updated on how it's going?" I twisted my fingers together at my waist, feeling as if I might be asking a little too much at this point. "I'd like to hear if other humans make it to Nexion 6. I could show them around or whatever."

  "I'll do my best, I promise you."

  I let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Exora. Thank you."

  "You're welcome, Vera. Goodbye for now."

  I smiled. "For now."

  Once Exora's sphere hovered away, I turned to my apartment, feeling more at peace than I had in a long time, and yet somehow incredibly nervous. I'd never been on my own before. Never. And now everything was open to me. It was wild to think about the possibilities.

  I scanned my way inside then flipped open the packet Exora had left me with. I stared at my apartment information with wide eyes. Apparently I was on the one-hundredth floor. Good thing I wasn't afraid of heights.

  Inside was surprisingly open and airy, with a seemingly endless window stretching the height of the building. There was one of those white spheres sitting in front of it, and I noticed a faint white line glowing against the glass. Surely that wasn't the elevator . . .?

  It was.

  When I got inside and sat down, I scanned my badge and the sphere turned around, facing the glass, before rapidly ascending to my floor. Right before the sphere came to a stop, I gasped as I saw clouds right in front of me, so close it felt like I could reach out and touch them.

  My legs a little shaky—maybe I was a tiny bit afraid of heights—I got out of the sphere and let out a long breath. That was going to take some getting used to. I wandered down the hallway, ended up going the wrong direction, then backtracked to my new apartment.

  My hands shaking from excitement, I held my badge up to the keypad and the door unlocked and slid open. The view straight ahead took my breath away. There was a large window that I could see from the apartment's entrance and I had a perfect view of the bright, orange sky, clouds drifting by lazily.

  With a giddy squeal, I rushed inside, then darted back to close the door before rushing inside again. I passed a bathroom and a kitchen on my way inside, where there was a sparsely furnished living room and a bed, sharing the same room. I surveyed it all with pride. It was small, but it was mine, and I couldn't have been happier. I did a little dance in celebration.

  "I'm free, so free," I sang out, making up a song as I went, "free as a bird, free to eat worms . . . or maybe not worms . . . but I'm free, so free—"

  My song came to an abrupt stop as clapping echoed throughout my tiny, mostly empty apartment. Heart thundering in my chest, I whirled around to see Talys leaning up against a wall, grinning the biggest grin I'd ever seen from him.

  "That was beautiful, darling," he said with a laugh. "A masterpiece."

  "What're you doing here?" I scowled at him, trying to hide the excitement I felt at seeing him again. "I'm still getting brushed up on Nexion law, but I'm pretty sure breaking into my apartment is illegal."

  "I didn't break in. I was given permission." He pushed away from the wall, head cocked to the side. "Besides, I'm here to congratulate you on being free, so free."

  I folded my arms across my chest. "No thanks to you."

  "Really?" He cocked his head to the side. "Are you sure about that? Let's see, as far the meticulous records of Nexion 6 are concerned, you were an illegal stowaway I found on my ship. Although I fully intended to return you to Korystus, the government of Nexion 6 detected you on upon entry, and their laws are very strict about what to do in that situation."

  I folded my arms and shrugged. "Yeah, I know what you and Roxa planned. You don't get to take credit for Exora saving me from your psycho girlfriend."

  "Yes, it was so unfortunate that it was revealed during your detention that you were being held illegally on Korystus, thus they were forced to release you on Nexion 6. It's going to be a publicity nightmare for Korystus."

  "Why do you seem so happy about that . . .?"

  "Because I'm the one who told Exora about you."

  "I don't believe you. I don't. Why not just tell them about me in the first place if that was your plan?"

  "Well, originally my plan had been much more simple. I was just going to avoid all of that, but Roxa forced my hand."

  "I'm sure she did a lot with your hands."

  He rubbed at his brow. "I'm sorry about what you saw. I don't know how much that was, but obviously it was enough to make you hate me. Which, frankly, explained a lot about how you started acting."

  "I thought you didn't play games or make deals, Talys? Sure seemed like you were doing both with her."

  "Yes, and she betrayed me the first chance she got." He laughed and shook his head. "I don't do deals because I'm terrible at them, Vera. I just wanted to help you while avoiding getting myself thrown in prison."

  "Why not try telling me that, Talys? Why leave me in the dark?"

  "Because I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to pull it off. I needed Roxa's help with the paperwork or I couldn't do it. By the time I had her help, or so I thought, you pushed me away. And, honestly, I understood. I didn't want to push you too hard. I didn't feel like I had the right after what my people did to you. It was okay for you to hate me."

  My expression softened. "Is that why you said you were sorry that one night? While I was asleep?"

  "You heard that, did you?" He nodded slowly. "It was for a lot of things. The way I acted. My people. Everything."

  I bit at the inside of my cheek, thinking hurried thoughts. I couldn't be sure if he was telling the truth or not, but it all seemed to add up. At least, I desperately wanted it to.

  "Please tell me you're not lying to me, Talys," I said, my voice soft.

  "I just made my job significantly harder. For you." He took a few steps forward, his beautiful, glowing eyes filled with sadness. "I don't know how better to convince you that I'm being honest."

  "I want to believe you," I murmured. "I really do. I don't know why, but . . . I do."

  Talys moved even closer. The hesitance in his movements would've taken more than good acting skills to mimic. He was so clearly worried that I might shove him away or tell him to go. I told myself I was going to stop making mistakes, but I was starting to think that wasn't possible, because I wanted nothing more than to fall into his arms. I wanted to see what there could be between us, even if it would be impossibly complicated.

  "I
want to know you, Talys," I found myself continuing out loud, "I want to know the real you."

  "I've tried to show it to you." He gave me a crooked smile. "And I'm not talking about anything lewd. I tried to open up to you. I'm not great at it, but I tried."

  "You did try very hard to show me those lewd things, though."

  "I did, and my poor pride was gravely wounded by your rejection."

  "Something tells me you'll recover just fine."

  As we both laughed, Talys inched forward, hesitantly placing his fingers on my hip. When I didn't pull away, he flattened his hand against it and gently pulled me toward him.

  "With your help?"

  I pulled at my lower lip with my teeth and shrugged. "Maybe."

  "I was hoping for a definitely." He dipped his head down, brushing his lips against mine with the promise of a kiss.

  "What happens if I say definitely?"

  "I think you know."

  I brushed my lips against his, letting mine linger just a little longer than he did to me. His hand tightened around my hip, his breath coming faster through lips that were slightly parted.

  "I think I do know," I breathed out. "What was it you said to me before? Something about happily showing every inch of it what you can do?"

  "That offer is still on the table."

  "Well then, I think I know everything I need to know." I bumped my nose against his, just like he'd done to me before, and took a step back, giving him a teasing smile. "How does it feel?"

  He gave me a smile so devious that it made me second-guess my choice for a moment. "This is all just telling me that you wanted me just as badly as I wanted you back then."

  "Good to see you're still full of yourself," I replied with a smile. "Besides, I thought you already knew then?"

  "I knew, yes, but hearing it is so much better." Talys crossed the distance between us to pull me against him, and I felt the evidence of his arousal against my stomach, eliciting a quiet gasp from my lips.

  A gasp that was cut short as he dipped down to sink his lips into mine, capturing them in a kiss that challenged the passion of the one he gave me before—and won. I wound my arms behind his neck with a soft, muffled moan as I let myself fall into his kiss.