Both Kenzi and Katara’s dark skin paled. Saph held up a hand. “Don’t worry, we aren’t going to do something that drastic.”
“Unless you don’t back down,” Vril added.
“You can have the remaining two males that are alive,” Saph continued. “But your sister, we keep as collateral.”
The tendons in Kenzi’s jaw jumped. “What do you want? Credits? I’ll have them delivered into your account.”
The temptation to get as many credits as she could get out of the pair was great. They needed it. But there was something else that Saph wanted. Kenzi on his knees. Saph smiled and shook her head. “I want you to know what vulnerability feels like.”
“I will kill you,” Kenzi seethed.
“Try,” was Saph’s only retort. She disconnected the call.
* * *
Taun woke to heat. He was so hot. It was sweltering. But he liked it. This heat made him calm. It blanketed him with love and happiness. It made him feel right.
He raised his hand to the source of it. Suni.
Ancients he loved her. How could he give her up?
His fingers tightened on the material of her shirt and she stirred. “Shhh. I didn’t mean to wake you,” he whispered into her ear. All he wanted to do was wake up every morning with her lying over him like a blanket. He could spend the rest of his life in this position and be content.
She lifted her head. Her hair framed her beautiful face. “Taun?”
He smiled at her and brushed her hair behind her ears. “I’m here.”
Her eyes filled with tears and a cry burst from her mouth. She buried her face in the crook of his neck and squeezed him. “I was so worried about you.”
“What happened? The last thing I remember is floating in space with X-9.” Then the reason why came rushing back to him and he bolted to sit upright. “Yovit!”
She pressed herself against him once again and smoothed a hand down his chest and abdomen. “It’s alright. He’s fine. When we retrieved you, we were able to harvest the minerals that you had in the pack. We’ve already sent them to a buyer and received the credits for them. Yovit had the surgery and he’s recovering in his room. Aesh and Tayan are helping him recuperate.”
Taun took a deep breath and laid back down, bringing Suni with him. He didn’t know what he would’ve done if their plan hadn’t worked. No, he knew exactly what he would’ve done. Gotten up and tried again. Suni had gone without so many things, she shouldn’t have to go without her father, too.
He frowned. “Wait. How were we rescued?”
“I don’t like calling my sister dumb, but she did a dumb thing.”
Suni and Taun turned to find Saph standing in his open doorway.
“What did she do?” Taun asked.
“She put on a space suit, hooked herself up to a tether and jumped into space to save you.”
Everything that could’ve gone wrong rushed across his mind. Overwhelming anxiety filled him to the core. He squeezed her as if he would lose her. “Suni. Why would you do such a thing?”
“Because I love you.”
A burst of joy erupted within him. Joy overrode his senses. It rode his nerves and coursed through his blood. It blinded him. He had thought he would never feel such a thing again and now it was lighting his life.
“Well, now that the sappy part is over, I need you both to get up and come to the dining hall.”
“What’s going on there?” Taun asked.
“We’re discussing your future.” Saph pushed off the door frame and left, leaving Suni and Taun wondering what was in store next.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Taun and Suni walked into the dining hall hand in hand. This was supposed to be their defining moment as a couple. Taun wanted Vril to know that no matter where they went and hid, Suni was his and he would return to her one day. Suni wanted Saph to know that wherever Taun was in the universe, if he needed them, they would go.
The defining moment they were looking for fell flat. No one watched them save Saph as they walked in, and even she only spared them a passing glance. Aesh was sitting next to Yovit, who looked better than ever. With the number of credits the minerals had fetched, Yovit was able to get his hips and legs fixed, which were the reason why he had used the hover chair. He sat on his own accord in one of the seats, one leg crossed over the other.
Suni gave a nod to the both of them. Aesh was younger than Yovit, but she seemed to be taken with him. Suni just didn’t know if it was a caregiver/patient relationship or something more. When the cyborgs left, Suni wasn’t so sure if Aesh would join them. She seemed content with life on the spaceship. She kept to herself, but Tayan and Yovit seemed to have gotten used to her company.
Ised sat next to Vril, who was seated next to Saph, although there was a seat between the two. Ised would go, Suni surmised. The cyborgs seemed as if they didn’t trust him, even after all this time. But from the little she had interacted with him, Ised seemed to think he could help, and also wanted to be a part of the cyborg’s team.
Raint sat at the far end with his arms folded over his massive chest. Usually, he had a sadistic smirk on his face and Suni guessed he was thinking about maiming folks, but now he had a scowl on his face. Something was up with him, but the Raint whisperer, she was not.
Zema sat off to the side by herself. She genuinely thought Zema was a good person. Zema had been there whenever things were going to shit, helping. Zema’s shoulders were squared and her back straight, but the wary look in her eyes was telling. She guessed Zema was still unsure of her position within the group.
Suni and Taun took a seat next to each other.
“Glad you two could finally make it,” Saph said, to Tayan’s giggles. “We all have problems, but I have the solutions.”
Tayan giggled once again.
“You’re very silly today,” Aesh said to her with a chuckle.
“Because it’s a good day,” Tayan replied. “I know what’s going to happen next. Saph confided in me because I’m growing up.”
Saph shot a look at Tayan. “As I was saying…Our problems. The cyborgs—can I collectively refer to you all as ‘the cyborgs’ from now on out?—are being hunted by an evil emperor and we—the idiots who’ve decided to take Kenzi’s little sister as prisoner—have a crazed ex-space pirate on our ass. The solution?” Saph slapped her hands on her thighs
“Come out with it,” Yovit groaned. “We all know what the one possible solution is.”
Saph chuckled and pointed at Yovit.
Wait. Where is my sister and what did they do to her?
Since when was Saph smiling at Yovit?
“Getting to that,” Saph said. She glanced around the room then lifted one shoulder. “We stick together. We need you all’s help to fight Kenzi, and you need our help to stay away from your emperor and provide transportation to different planets to look for other cyborgs who’ve escaped.”
There was silence. Saph glanced Suni’s way with a question in her gaze. Suni put up a finger. It would take a few seconds for them to communicate and talk it over amongst themselves on the closed network.
“We’re amendable to this plan on one condition,” Vril finally said.
“What is that?” Saph said. Another change Suni hadn’t expected. The Saph from a few days ago would’ve given Vril the middle finger and told him he didn’t have a standing to counter her offer.
“We can make credits by harvesting the mineral from asteroids. We are willing to give you a percentage of our profits. We will also still provide guardianship duties while on planets and while onboard the ship. There will be around-the clock-coverage with at least one of us on duty at all times to cover for our room and board as well as Ised and Aesh’s.”
Both Ised and Aesh’s eyes brightened. Aesh slapped a hand over her mouth, stifling a shocked inhalation.
“I accept your counter and add another condition. At the end of the scavenger hunt, when we collect our prize—claiming it because it’s ours—
we will not share it with you. The credits go to us and us alone.”
Vril nodded. “Another counter.”
It was almost comically the way Saph narrowed her eyes. The Saph that Suni knew and loved was about to snap back, and from the way Vril smirked, he knew that as well.
“Anything that pertains to the safety of anyone inside of this vessel and out, will defer to me. I am the Commander, meaning everyone here will fall under my command.”
All gazes pivoted to Saph. She nodded once. “But I am Captain of this vessel and anything besides a security breech, everyone will defer to me.”
All gazes pivoted to Vril. “I agree.”
Saph raised an eyebrow at him.
“I agree, Captain,” he corrected.
About A.M. Griffin
A. M. Griffin is a wife who rarely cooks, mother of three, dog owner (and sometimes dog owned), a daughter, sister, aunt and friend. She’s a hard worker whose two favorite outlets are reading and writing. She enjoys reading everything from mystery novels to historical romances and of course fantasy romance. She is a believer in the unbelievable, open to all possibilities from mermaids in our oceans and seas, angels in the skies and intelligent life forms in distant galaxies.
I love hearing from my readers. Like one of my books? Drop me and line! [email protected]
Visit http://www.amgriffinbooks.com/ to find more titles by A.M. Griffin.
Stay in touch!
Twitter ~ Facebook
Saving The Cyborg (Cyborg Redemption) Page 17
