Her eyes go wide. “Romi, you’re pregnant. You’re due in two weeks.”
“I know, but the prince said the storm was over, and we still haven’t heard.”
When Melody falls quiet, I know what she’s thinking. “You can’t just go like that. You have to tell them you’re doing this.”
Within an hour, I’m standing in the prince’s office.
Asher studies me. “They aren’t all the way on the other side of the planet, and I was going to call you down to tell you this morning. Our hovercraft went to pick them up, and they’re fine. Except they hit a dust storm on the way back and crash-landed. I’m not thrilled with you going to do this, but I sense you’re going to do it whether I agree or not.”
I lift my chin. “I am.” I might be trembling inside, but I cling to my defiance for strength.
“Well then, the queen is going to lead a rescue mission. You can go with her,” he says.
“In another hovercraft?”
The prince narrows his eyes. “You must be safe for me. Thorne would literally do me harm if he knew I’d let you do something reckless. The queen has an entire fighting team at her disposal. They are trained to do things like this. Go with them.”
There’s a sharp knock on his door, and it opens before he can even speak. It’s the queen.
Her eyes lock with mine. “Romi. Come with us,” she says.
The next span of time passes swiftly. Before I know it, I’m on one of these hovercrafts for the first time. We’re zooming across the planet, and I’m marveling because it is so shockingly beautiful from above—the mountains, the lush trees, and the beautiful silvery lakes. All of it takes my breath away.
Yet, all the while, I feel the cord—my connection with Thorne—becoming stronger and stronger as we travel.
“He’s hurt,” I say, shifting to look at the queen, who sits calmly beside me.
“Perhaps. But they have communicated with us, and Raven is a healer. He will keep him stable,” she says, her tone confident.
“What if Raven is hurt?” I burst out.
“If Raven is hurt, they will all take care of each other. We have heard from them. They are all alive.”
She leans over, reaching for both of my hands. Her touch is soothing and warm. I feel she is conveying her strength into me as she holds on. “I would not lie to you. I would never have brought you with me, with our team, if I thought you would encounter your mate in a state where he could not be saved.” She gives my hands one last firm squeeze before releasing them and straightening. “We’re almost there.”
She stands and strides to stop between the chairs of the two women flying the small craft. Although I’ve been a woman my entire life, I’m so accustomed to women being ignored and discounted—never given opportunities to be in charge. Women are just as intelligent as men and far less likely to let their pride or ego get in the way, yet it’s still discombobulating to see women handling entire missions like this. There is not a man among us.
The queen and the princess have explained to me that their women fighters are just as elite as men. They recognize that men may have more physical strength due to their size, but that’s more of a brute type of force. Women’s strengths are different, and they offer different gifts.
Before I know it, we’re landing, and I can see the other hovercraft tilted on its side in a pile of sand. My heart flies into my throat, and emotion rushes through me. I’m impatient to get out, find Thorne, and assure myself he is okay. I will not be able to relax until I know that.
Yet I defer to the queen. Because I’m a reasonable person, I wait impatiently. Once we disembark from the hovercraft, we discover they are all safe—but they are also all injured.
Raven is in the best shape and has done what he could, but he is limping badly.
The infinity pulse vibrates in my chest, and I follow it to find Thorne resting against the far side of the hovercraft.
He meets my eyes. “My love,” he says. “Why are you here?” He instantly looks concerned as his gaze sweeps over me.
Chapter Sixteen
ROMI
“I’m fine. The doctor cleared my travel, and I’m here with the queen.Youare the one who is hurt.” I drop to my knees in the sand beside Thorne. I run my hands over him as if I can assure myself he’s all better.
“Romi,” he says, catching my hands with his. “I’m safe. I’m here. It was a dust storm, nothing more. It’s over.”
Tears roll down my cheeks, and he swipes them away with his thumbs, cupping my face before drawing me close and giving me a lingering kiss.
