She didn’t fault the Daextru for their hostility. A woman had disguised herself and spent time getting close to their prince, only for her species to try to renege on their promise of peace. It didn’t matter that she had saved his life by killing members of her own species—she was guilty by association.
Born into her family, she should be used to taking the blame for others’ actions by now.
She didn’t bother to wipe away the tears of frustration that fell down her face.
For once in her life, she had felt respected, like an equal, instead of defined by her family’s name. Those five short days had been like paradise to her. Her opinions had mattered, personally, and professionally.
Even though the outcome of her life was already set in stone, that didn’t stop her from worrying about her loved ones.
What had happened to Aydin? Had he reported her? Or had he done what she’d asked and snuck away to Gaia to hide with their father? Or had he gotten caught—was he waiting in the same facility as her?
And then there was her wing. Would Zaera take over? Or would they be assigned someone else? She knew nothing about their fate. It was safe to assume that they wouldn’t be split up, only because dividing an established wing during a war was a waste of resources. Wing members needed time to establish trust in order to avoid preventable mistakes and deaths.
And most of all, she wondered: was the Daextru safe?
It pained her that her very own presence could have somehow put them in more danger.
She was in the dark, and it was driving her insane.
About a week had gone by since she had returned and was thrown into her prison cell. No visits. No threats. Not even a taunting announcement over the one-way page system.
The two daily meals she received through the exchange window were her only way of telling how much time had passed in her cell. She had given up trying to talk to the guards; they refused to acknowledge her when they took her last meal’s dishes and replaced them with the next.
The cell’s metal walls were bare and soundproof, leaving her to wonder where she was and who else was locked up here besides her.
With nothing else to do, she often reflected on past battles and wondered why no one else questioned the timeline of the war’s events. She had a lot of free time to think now that she wasn’t focused on becoming better, fighting harder, and surviving as a female in the military.
After hearing the Daextru side of the story, she questioned everything she’d learned from her fellow humans.
The Daextru and Vresqoxk had gone to war long before the Daextru asked the CTA for help. It was suspicious for the Vresqoxk to offer an alliance shortly after the vessel filled with the original peace treaty’s representatives exploded.
Unless they were the ones who blew it up . . .
It made sense. Why would the Vresqoxk want their enemy to ally with another species? The alliance between the CTA and Daextru could have grown strong if it ever had the opportunity to flourish, especially since humans had enough sand to supply the Daextru for generations. Their offer to share advanced terraforming and space travel technology was worth the trade for the CTA.
Start a war between your enemy and their potential ally, and then swoop in to join forces with the recently scorned in order to beat them.
But why did the CTA attempt another peace treaty? And why, after twenty-five years, was the Vresqoxk asking for a tribute?
“I will enjoy watching you scream for mercy, as the Vresqoxk break you and broadcast your punishment for all to see.”
A shiver passed through her, but not from the damp cold of the room. It was from the realization of who she was about to be delivered to. She connected that threat with Raizxl’s explanation about the other species in the galaxy.
“Our warrior females would rather become sterile than take the chance of being captured while fertile, to be raped and forced to incubate for a deranged species that values no one but their own.”
Something had happened while she was away that made the Vresqoxk push the CTA to pay up, and she had a sickening feeling that her government was offering women as payment.
What was worth more than the lives of your female citizens?
The sound of a buzzer filled the room as a red light flashed above her cell door.
Jaiya sat up and quickly removed her hands from her shirt, hoping to keep that small part of Idris a secret for a little longer.
The metal door banged open, revealing an unexpected figure.
“Evenin’, Cap. Ready to kick some ass?”
