He cocked a brow at the Venik brothers. "Wait ... I thought your whole problem with me was your fear that I was thinking so much of them that I was imagining they were beneath me already. No offense, but you really need to work on your communication skills. You're sending all kinds of mixed signals here."
Payne started forward, but Chayden caught him. "Hey, now ... what's with all this ... negative hostility, huh? We're all friends. Let's not be so nasty."
Stain curled his lip. "Stay out of this, moglidyte."
Talyn had no idea what that word meant, but by the amount of rage it awoke in both the normally easygoing Qory and Chayden, it had to be the Tavalian equivalent to giakon.
Or worse.
With a feral growl, Chayden launched himself over the table to go for Stain's throat.
Talyn caught him midair and spun about to ground him before he made contact and started another war between the Tavali clans. "Easy, Chay."
Chayden wasn't having it. In a mixture of Qillaq, Universal, and Tavalian, he spewed hatred and obscenities at them all as he did his best to move past Talyn.
Damn, he was like a tiny spider monkey. Or a fast-moving toddler.
Talyn literally lifted him up and set him down on a stool. "Sit your ass down! Stay there! Suck your thumb if you have to. But if you jump off that one more time, I will make you limp. I mean it!"
Chayden started to stand.
Talyn growled and widened his eyes. And exposed his fangs.
Retreating back to his seat before Talyn made good on that threat, Chayden glared at him, but wisely stayed put.
"Commander! Help!"
He turned to see Brach and Vari struggling to keep Qory trapped with the table, and away from the Veniks. As large and strong as they were, they were barely able to hold back the mountainous Qill.
And while Qory was gesturing furiously at them, no one needed Talyn or Chayden to translate the physical gestures for the words Chayden continued to spew at them verbally.
Jayne took over babysitting Chayden while Talyn forced Qory into retreat. Even though Talyn wasn't quite as large as the Qill, he was still one of the tiny handful of beings Qory shirked from putting headfirst through a wall, so it gave him a degree of leverage when dealing with the irate mountain that others, such as Vari and Brach, didn't have.
After Talyn got him seated and away from Felicia's brave nephews, he stepped back.
Payne was in his face again.
Releasing a tired sigh, Talyn stared down at the Tavali male as Vari and Brach took up positions to back him in what was obviously going to be a fight. "Really? Do I have to kick your ass? Is that honestly how you want this night to end? Don't you have a woman to curl up with? Boyfriend? Pet? Hell, anything would be better than nursing the busted ribs and broken jaw I will give you. And I would much rather be spooning my female in blissful peace than cleaning your blood out from under my claws, while she bitches at me for not holding my temper."
Payne curled his lip. "You're not the badass you think you are, Batur."
Brach let out a hysterical laugh. "Are you shitting me? Oh my God, it must hurt to be that stupid. You do know who you're taunting, right?"
Talyn slid his gaze past Payne to the boy. "Stay out of this, Brach."
Jayne stepped forward. "Payne, why are you doing this?"
He passed a cold, steely look to Jayne. "Because if I don't finish this, she will." He snapped his fingers. "Hadean Corps? Arrest Lieutenant Commander Batur for treason, and anyone else who interferes."
CHAPTER 17
"Commander Hauk?"
Fain paused at the sound of Morra's call. He waited for her to catch up to him and bit back a smile at how hard she had to work for it, given the size of her much shorter legs. It was so strange to him how so a tiny being could have such a large presence. She was so lively and animated that it was easy to forget the fact that he could just about carry her around in his pocket.
"Something wrong?"
"We finally broke the code." Wheezing a bit from her frenetic run, she held a link out to him. "I don't recognize the voice, but you might. And I have a better translation for it. It's still nonsense. Maybe it'll make some sense to you." She took several deep breaths as he turned the link on to read the transcription.
Fain scowled at the riddle.
Yeah, well, if I catch that pickle in another jar, I'm not going to shrivel it. I'm going to lop it off at the hilt, along with the berries and whatever else it's attached to. Mama don't play and she don't share her meals. Fire burns, but I consume, and I won't rest until I see it all in smoldering embers. There will be no shelter from the tide that rises. Let the rain drown it down. Show me the cow and I'll bring in the grinder. The rooster will be a hen and rue the day it left the pen to play.
A chill went down his spine as he recognized that syntax and cadence. Even without a voice to confirm his suspicions, he knew who spoke like that.
And why.
Something that was confirmed a second later when he thumbed the link on and it played out in the clear, husky voice of one pissed-off and betrayed female Qill warrior.
A female Qill he knew for a fact spoke flawless Phrixian because she'd thought it a quaint language to learn....
Shit.
"Malys."
"Yeah. I should say so. They have to bear us a lot of malice to--"
"No, Morra. Not malice, Malys Venik. That voice belongs to Ven's wife."
Straightening up, she turned a darker shade of green. "What?"
Fain's head reeled as he debated what to do. How best to handle a very deadly situation. One didn't walk up and confront Lady Porturnum. While Ven might dip his pickle in other jars, he always returned to the one who held his heart. And that was Malys. For all her faults and his, Ven would gut anyone who challenged her.
And explode Fain's skull all over the nearest wall if he breathed a word of this to Nyk or The Sentella and endangered her.
Morra reached for her link.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm reporting this."
He pulled the link out of her hand. "No. Bad idea."
"Fain!"
"I'm serious, Morra. You can't report this. Not yet. Let me deal with it first." The expression on her face said she'd definitely rather not. Honestly, he'd rather not, either. "You've no idea how explosive she is. You can't just march a group in there to confront her. She'll take out half the station before she goes down."
Morra finally relented. "I suppose there's a reason her name isn't Temperance."
"Exactly."
"Fine, gorgeous. I'll give you an hour. But I have to let the others know."
"All right. One hour." Fain handed her the link back. He started to tell the others about Mack, then decided against it. That could wait.
Malys couldn't. She needed to be neutralized immediately, before she did something they couldn't easily undo. Closing his eyes, he checked in with his ship to make sure everything and everyone was fine there.
Then he used his ship's system to tap into the station's line so that he could trace Malys and pinpoint her location. It wasn't something he did often. Mostly because he didn't care to track others.
Strange, though, Malys was in the command center. Not where she spent most of her time. Especially when Ven wasn't there. Running Tavali logistics and command just wasn't where her interests lay.
Yeah, this couldn't be good.
Curious, and honestly a little scared, he headed for her as quickly as he could while trying to remain nonchalant and not alert anyone else to the fact he was growing more terrified by the heartbeat of what Malys might be up to.
When he arrived at the main commcen, he found her with Kareem, her bodyguards, and two other Tavali. Kareem appeared a bit stressed and upset. Not the happy son to see his mother returned to him after a long absence.
Yes, Mom was home.
And she was pissed.
Ah, dear gods, what fresh hellacious fun is this?
"Something
Tall, stacked, and lethal, Malys was dressed in skintight red leather, trimmed with white--the colors of the Porturnum Nation. Colors that heightened the caramel tones of her skin and accentuated her dark hair and well-painted eyes. The lady was striking and could easily pass herself off as the age of her daughters.
But she paled in comparison to Galene. Not just in looks. Rather, in every way imaginable.
Still, she was the lady of his Nation and he was supposed to respect her as such.
Malys turned on him with a shriveling glare. "This doesn't concern you, slag. I suggest you leave."
Well, so much for respect. She could kiss his ass with that tone. Fain stiffened at the insult. He really wasn't in the mood for it. Pointing to his sleeve Canting, he cleared his throat. "Rogue. Commander. Sir, if nothing else. And since the Alliance is currently in charge here and I'm the OOD, this is where I'm supposed to be." A slight lie, since he wasn't currently the officer on duty, but for some reason, the OOD wasn't in here. Which made him wonder where the Tavali coward had wandered off to.
Hell of a time for a break.
Kareem's eyes widened to the point it was amazing they didn't fall out of his skull. With an audible gulp over Fain's audacity, he stepped back so that he wouldn't be between them.
Yeah, no one back-talked the queen of the Porturnum Nation. It was all kinds of stupid. And on that point, Fain rivaled Caillen Dagan. But it wasn't in his genes to back down from anyone.
Ever.
Her eyes flashed with heated venom as she swept her gaze from him to Morra as Morra came in behind Fain, and then narrowed it in anger on her son. "Was it you or the slag who warned your father I was home? Is that why neither he nor his whore were in their quarters when I went after them?"
Fain crossed his arms over his chest. "My Lady Porturnum, you have much bigger problems right now than rounding up a roaming husband. I'm afraid I'm here to take you into custody."
"Excuse me?"
Fain let out a tired breath. "I would rather you come peacefully, but if I have to, I will drag you through the station, in cuffs."
She snorted disdainfully. "You're not male, or skilled, enough for that."
"Believe me when I say you don't want to test that theory."
She moved to stand in his face. An act of bold intimidation that didn't work at all, since she barely reached the middle of his chest. But he gave her credit as she stood on her tiptoes and glared up at him as if she could back him down.
Only Galene had those powers.
"Have you any idea what I'll do to you for this?" Malys raked a glower over his body. "You may delay my vengeance while you protect Braxen and his Andarion whore, but you haven't stayed my hand. When I get through with you, Hauk, you're going to wish to the gods that you were still in that hole Braxen dragged you out of!"
Fain duplicated her scowl. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Don't you dare play stupid with me, you worthless bastard! You think I don't know what you're doing?"
"Yeah, not playing stupid. Apparently, I bathed in it completely, 'cause I have no idea what you're talking about."
She attempted to shove him back, only to learn he didn't budge unless he wanted to. "That Andarion whore who thinks she can have my male! I won't have it! I'll see them all dead first!"
Kareem finally found his voice again. "That's what I've been trying to tell her, Hauk. She thinks Galene is sleeping with my father."
Fain gaped at that unexpected bomb.
"I don't think anything," Malys growled. "I know it for fact! Just as I know you've been covering for them all these years!" She pulled back for the guards with her to step forward. "Arrest him!" She gestured at Fain.
Fain shook his head in warning. "Don't. First man to touch me draws back a bloody stump." He glared at Malys. "And are you insane? Galene isn't sleeping with Brax. Trust me. If he touched her, I'd kill him." He shoved his hand in her face to show her the tattoo he had that marked him, just as his son was marked with Felicia's name. And he pulled his sleeve back to show the rest of his markings. "Commander Batur is my wife. The only male she sleeps with is me."
Her jaw falling, Malys fingered his tattoos. "No ... I don't understand. You married her after she had Braxen's son? Why? Did he make you?"
He curled his lip in disgust. "Hell no! Talyn's my son. I was pledged to Galene when we were children. And we conceived him before we graduated school." Pulling out his link, he scrolled to a picture of the night before, where he stood with Talyn, Galene, and Dancer. "See for yourself. I assure you, those eyes don't lie. You know as well as I do that Ven's not stralen and only three bloodlines carry those genes. Venik isn't one of the lineages."
She scowled again. "Then why did Braxen override my orders and move her quarters from where I originally assigned them?"
Fain growled at her. "That was you?" He was still pissed about how they'd been greeted.
"Yes. I wanted to see how he'd treat her. If it was true that she was his pet."
Fain rolled his eyes at her petty jealousy and assumptions. "Yeah, well, Ven didn't do that. I did. I wasn't about to put my son and his mother in solitary slag cells. What in the Nine Worlds got into your head to make you think Galene was sleeping with Ven?"
"Eriadne. She bumped into us on Paraf Run and said it was why Braxen didn't kill Batur years ago when he led a strike team onto our base to capture her."
Morra scoffed. "Brax didn't kill us then because Ryn was with us and threatened to rain down Wasturnum hell if he harmed him."
Malys laughed bitterly. "You're lying. No Dane would risk clan war for some Andarion by-blow. We don't play those politics."
"You do when that Andarion is family." Fain swiped the photos to Jayne and Galene so that she could see how much they favored. "Jayne Erixour is Galene's cousin. She's of the Winged Batur bloodline and for Jayne and Talyn, Ryn would bust you and Ven wide open."
The color faded from Malys's face. "Oh dear gods..."
"Yeah. Eriadne played you. It's what she's best at. I can promise you that Galene has never touched Ven."
Malys returned his link to him. "Why did he allow the Alliance here?"
"To salvage the ships we take. It was the bargain he made. Plus he's more fortified than any other base and therefore safer. At least until the bombings started."
Malys staggered back to lean against the console. "Oh, Fain. I'm sorry."
He let out a relieved breath. "It's all right. You--"
"No, you don't understand," she breathed. "I had your son arrested, thinking he was Braxen's bastard. League assassins are waiting with a trap for him and Commander Batur."
For one heartbeat, Fain couldn't move as those words struck him like a blow to his stones. It was followed by a need to rip her heart out and feed it to her.
But he didn't have time for that.
"Where are they taking him?"
"The brig."
Turning around, he left the center and ran as fast as he could. Oblivious to everything and everyone, he snatched his link out and called for Talyn.
No one answered.
Terrified, he prayed and tore through the station, ignoring all the beings who cursed him for his frenzied impatience. Please be okay. Please, gods, don't do this!
He called for Dancer.
"Hauk, go."
"Hey, drey." Fain tried to keep the panic out of his voice, but since he was running, there wasn't any way to sound as nonchalant as he wanted. "Are you on my ship?"
"Yeah. You okay?"
Panting, Fain cut around a group of Tavali, who shouted curses at him for almost slamming into them, and headed down the last hallway toward the brig. "Yeah." He didn't dare tell his brother what was going on.
Not yet.
"Is Galene there?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Nothing. Just make sure she doesn't leave the ship for a little while. Okay?"
"You're scaring me, Fain. What's going on?"
"Nothing," he repeated as he entered the main office for the Hadean Corps. Forgetting about his call, he rushed to the desk where their COD was entering data. "Where's Talyn Batur?"
The guard passed a bored look toward him. "You'll have to take a--"
"Don't fuck with me, you little mogfart! I'll rip out your minsid spine and beat you with it!" He jerked the human up with one hand to show him just how easy it would be to do it. "Where's my son!"
"T-t-t-they're processing him. He's in Room One."
Fain dropped him straight to the floor. His heart pounding, he rushed to the door and threw it open, terrified of what he'd find there.
The guards drew blasters on him. But he didn't care as he searched the area visually for any sign of an assassin.
For once, he relished the horrified expression on Talyn's face as he saw him.
Too grateful to find his son alive and in one piece to care about anything else, Fain grabbed him into a hug.
Talyn didn't return the gesture. He stood stiff and uncomfortable. "You've lost it, haven't you, Hauk?"
Laughing, Fain buried his hand in Talyn's braids and held him close. "No, thank the gods. I haven't lost a damn thing." He squeezed Talyn and kissed his cheek before he released him. Then he realized that the Hadean Corpsmen were still aiming for his head.
Fain cracked a smile at them. "There's been a little misunderstanding."
Talyn tilted his head. "Hear that?"
Fain caught the light snap a second later. "Trip wire." His only thought to protect his son, he grabbed Talyn and wrapped his body around him while trying to get him toward the reinforced inner hallways that were more sheltered.
Next thing he knew, everything exploded into flames and smoke.
CHAPTER 18
Fain came awake, coughing up blood. Every part of his body ached and hurt so much that he couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. Not a single part of his body. He was trapped beneath a crushing weight.
Please don't be my son's body.
All around, he heard screams and groans. The sounds of metal popping and fire. Alarms blaring.
But he didn't hear the one thing he wanted to hear most.
"Talyn?" Blinking, he wanted to brush the blood from his eyes to clear them. "Talyn?" he tried again, more desperate than before.
"I'm here." His voice was faint and pain-filled. But it was there. Just to Fain's left.
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