Fucking hells.I can’t help thinking back on the way she acted when I took her for the first time—my gut clenches as things start to make a little more sense. When she said it had been a while since she… Suddenly I feel absolutely sick. Is that why she left me here? Did I somehow remind her of the evil things that were done to her as a kit?Vittu!
“She never told me details, but from the way she acted when I first met her, I can well imagine.” Volethos’ lips twist into a grimace, and he starts shuffling forward again.
“And this Jarain… he was different?” I ask, trying to keep my mind off the horrors she must have endured, and at such a young age.
Volethos looks over at me with complete seriousness. “He was the closest thing to a parent either of us ever had.”
“Is he… gone?” The way he talks of him is fond, but also sad, making me think he’s been gone for a while.
“Oh, Jarain was ancient when he took me in. He’s been gone a very long time. I think he knew he was not long, even then. He pushed for Igid and me to learn his trade so we could take over for him.” Volethos snorts, “Of course, things rarely go as planned.”
I can appreciate that,I think as we come to the double doors that lead to the medbay.
“I’ll be damned,” Volethos breathes when we enter the room with the medbot. It’s lit up, and the hatch is up and ready for us. “I thought you were lying.”
“Why would I lie?” I haven’t given him reason to distrust me, so I’m confused that he would even think that.
“Everyone lies, pup.” Volethos snorts. “And you’ve got less reason to give me the truth than most. I still can’t figure out why you’re even helping me, after everything I’ve done to you.”
I slide my arm around his shoulders and help him into the medbot. “What if we both ended up here for a reason? Maybe this is the universe’s way of giving you a chance to change.”
I’m not trying to be philosophical, but Volethos takes a moment to think about what I’ve said.
“I guess I’ll see you on the flip side.” He winces when he lies back to pull his legs into the tube. “Just so you know, I won’t hold it against you if you’re long gone when I wake up.”
Bracing my hands on the lid, I glare down at him. “Unlike you, I’m not a dishonorable bastard. Besides the fact that I’m just as stranded here as you are.” Then I pull the hatch down over him and activate the medbot.
CHAPTER 18
IGID
* * *
Iangrily wipe away the moisture that keeps leaking from my eyes, then scrub at my face with my palms. I haven’t been this weepy since—ever. Not even when I was a kit. What is wrong with me?
You just went through the most intense heat cycle of your life and then left your mate unconscious on a decommissioned station.
“I’ll go back for him,” I grumble back at the chiding voice. It won’t take me more than a rotation or two to find out what I need from Kurrahstka. He won’t even miss me.
And what if something happens?He could be trapped there for spans. You didn’t even look to see if there was food or water.
“Nothing will happen,” I grit back. “I’ll get the information I need, send it back to Rovos and then go back for my—for Brox. And why am I arguing with myself like this, anyway?”
The voice continues its tirade, and I do my best to ignore it and instead focus on the star charts pulled up on the screen. I’m almost to my destination.
When I first woke up from my heat, I feltrelief.But now everything feels stretched too thin. My skin. My heart. Even my mind. The roiling pain is gone, but I’m left feeling… unsatisfied.
Because you left your mate—
The ship chimes, cutting off my thoughts and warning me it’s time to focus because it’s dropping out of hyper. I brace for the familiar way my stomach always flips at the sudden speed change, then take over the controls.
I’ve never been to this sector before. I’ve never had the desire or even the curiosity. It quickly becomes obvious I haven’t missed anything.
“Activate evasive controls,” I call out to the computer as I fly theShadestraight into a wall of space junk. It takes all my concentration, along with what help theShadegives, as I weave in and out of the dense field of junk. Small shuttles zip to and fro, between abandoned satellites, stations, and all manner of detritus that looks either abandoned or has been recommissioned for who knows what purpose.
“Destination straight ahead,” the ship’s electronic voice chirps pleasantly.
My eyes lift to the screen, where Kurrahstka’s pleasure house comes into view. It’s much larger than I expected and seems to have been pieced together over time. Instead of a single large station, like Lux, this sprawling house is like a puzzle, with pieces that have been forced together even though they don’t necessarily fit.
