I lean against the bars, giving her the space to put her thoughts together because it is clear they are scattered everywhere.
She chews on her lip and scowls at the floor. “I’ll tell you from the start…but it’s all shit, and it’s going to get shitter.”
“I have never heard you talk this way.”
“I’ve never been backed into a corner like this before.” She huffs out a breath. “I mean, I knew the corner was there. I could see it, but I didn’t expect to be pushed into it so soon.”
I puzzle over her phrasing for a moment. Her English words jar with what the whisperer is telling me. I pull it off. “You are being driven into a trap?”
I think I have understood correctly.
“The leaders have told me I need to have a baby and set an example for everyone else. It’s a way to make sure I remain loyal to the colony.”
And not to me. She doesn’t say it, but I hear it.
“Which part troubles you more?” I ask.
“All of it. And once I’m pregnant, they'll kill you.”
I’ve been expecting that news, but that doesn’t make it any easier to swallow. “I see.”
I knew our time together would end, and that there would be no more repeats of the intimacy… I regret there wasn’t more. That I will die without knowing what it is like to have a mate.And without seeing the stars one more time. “Can they at least take me outside so I may see the sky one more time?”
She shakes her head. “Patrick has a plan. In a couple of days, the entire colony is going to find out you exist.”
As soon as everyone knows, my life will be over. “The soldiers here will kill me.”
“I will set you free first. Patrick said we should go to the hydro station and wait out the trouble.”
I grip the bars of the cage. “I should join him in the fight.”
“He wants you to look after me. He says you are my alien.”
“The man who is the father of your children is happy that you are friends with me?” He believes she is mine. What has she said to him about me? Has she said that she wants me as a mate?
“He wants me to be happy.”
I’m beginning to think I should have left the whisperer in because I feel as though I have missed some part of this conversation. “Am I your alien?”
Has Chloe chosen me and not told me? Or has she not chosen me because she didn’t know if I was going to live or die? If I am to die, I will happily be her mate first. But perhaps she is worried about losing a mate.
“I don’t know, Tiril. I have been trying to do the right thing and be professional, but the days I spend up here are the ones I enjoy the most. But it wouldn’t be fair to you?—"
“I would gladly be your mate, even if I only lived a day afterwards.” A mate for a day is more than I ever hoped for as a banished warrior, and now it is within reach. Excitement makes my skin tingle.
“You will do anything to get out of the cell.”
“Also true.” There is no point in denying the truth. “But if you are considering me as a mate, then I am honored.” I say in my words, knowing that she will be able to understand me.
“You should hate me.”
"Why? This is not your fault. I chose to be here.” And if I am to get out, and Chloe wants me as her mate, then this confinement has been worthwhile.
“I also feel as though you wouldn’t say no to me because I am your only chance to have a mate. I’m not sure I like that for either of us.”
“If I am getting out of this cage, there’s a whole colony of women seeking a mate… But I’m not interested in them. It is you I have gotten to know. I like talking about your science and learning from you, and I hope you have enjoyed learning from me.”
She smiles. “I have. Though I must admit, I was worried about accidentally triggering the rut.”
