* * *
Spans later,we passed the Mangox outpost. Yet, we hadn’t received an answer to our hail. My mind continued to work over the problem, and I could think of only one solution, one method to get a message to my brathers that would not fail.
“I’m going to call a florin.” I turned to Jane, watching her response. “Did your sister tell you about them?”
“The fluffy empathetic creatures who help the Rhonar with their lack of emotions?” Her mouth crinkled; affection clear on her face. “Oh yeah, Sage would not shut up about them. Said they’re the cutest beings in the universe, tied with the space otter-creatures she met when her and Brok crash landed on that planet.”
“The gyoprins,” I supplied, remembering fondly the aliens who had helped my brather and his mate.
“Yes, those guys. But anyway, how can you call a florin?” Her head cocked to the side. “And how will that help us?”
“The florin are inter-dimensional beings. If they’re in a parallel space to ours, then they can hear our call. And if our message reached my brathers, the florin could guide them to us.” I shrugged. “If it didn’t, they should be able to relay it to them.”
Her eyes widened. “Then, why not call one before?”
I scrubbed a hand over the back of my neck. “We’ll have to disengage stealth shields.”
Silence fell between us. She scanned the Meta Sector star charts. “Is there anywhere we can get what we need to keep the shields running?”
I shook my head. “Even if we could find an outpost or planet to energize the ship, we’d still have to turn off the shielding to do it.”
Her mouth twisted into a grimace. “Then, there’s no choice. We have to risk it.”
“I concur.” Pulling up the navigational controls, I scanned the sector. “Computer, are any ships detected in two parsecs of our location?”
“Negative,” the computer intoned. “No ships detected.”
“What if there are ships in stealth mode?” Jane spun her chair toward me. “Would the computer detect them?”
My jaw clenched. “No.”
She inhaled slowly, and then blew it out on a long exhale. “Okay, then.”
I reached for her and took her hands in mine. “Computer, scan for any energy signatures, same radius.”
“Scanning.” The beats ticked on. Jane and I stared into each other’s eyes. “No energy signatures identified.”
I leaned in and claimed her lips, a slow kiss filled with longing. I poured everything I felt into that kiss, all that I hoped for our future. When I pulled back at last, her gaze held mine captive. Her eyes were glassy, but her voice was solid as she said, “Do it.”
I kept my gaze locked on those ocean blue eyes as I commanded the computer. “Disengage stealth mode.”
A crackle of energy sounded, and the shields went down. “Florin!” I shouted the instant they did. It took several beats, but a florin appeared. “You?”
The emerald florin who had helped me not long ago, bounced around the control console. He sent me a plethora of images, all documenting the journey Jane and I had taken since leaving the moonbase.
“You’ve been keeping tabs on us then?” I raised a brow at him.
The little empath had the sense to look chagrined.
“Oh my stars!” Jane cried and hopped up from her seat. “Sage wasn’t lying. He’s the cutest creature I’ve ever seen.”
The florin held out its paw to her, a giant smile pushing out its puffy cheeks.
“Aww, he’s sending me, like, happy feelings.” She squinted as if she could see through the florin. “It’s hard to explain. I feel them, but I know he’s doing it.”
“Yes, that’s a fair description.” I waved at the florin to regain his focus. “My friend, I’ve sent a message to my brathers in the sector. We need their help to make it safely back to Earth.”
The florin tucked his three tails under him and used them like a chair to sit. He sent me feelings of understanding.
