"The honor is mine," she said, and I heard the emotion in her voice. "You've given me something I never thought I'd have. Something I didn't even know I was missing until I found you."
We stayed like that for a long moment, just holding each other, feeling the miracle of our joined heartbeats. But eventually, reality intruded. The light was growing stronger. Dawn was breaking. And we still had a shuttle to infiltrate.
"We should move," I said reluctantly.
Serna nodded, but she pulled me down for one more kiss first. "Whatever happens out there," she said against my mouth, "remember this. Remember that we're bonded now. True mates. Nothing can break that. Not distance, not danger, not even death."
"I'll remember," I promised.
We separated slowly, reluctantly, and began putting our clothes back in order. But even as we prepared to face the danger waiting outside our alcove, I was acutely aware of Serna's heartbeat matching mine. That steady, perfect rhythm that told me I was no longer alone.
I had found my true mate.
And together, we were going to survive this.
We had to.
Chapter 13
Serna
We moved through the dawn like ghosts.
Every step was calculated, every breath controlled. The jungle around us was alive with the sounds of nocturnal creatures finishing their hunts, but we made no sound at all. Cullen moved ahead of me, his makeshift blade in one hand and the blaster in the other, his body low and fluid. I followed with my quarterstaff—the sturdy branch I'd claimed after killing the caphik, now stripped of bark, ends sharpened to a point and balanced perfectly in my hands.
My heart beat steady in my chest. Cullen's heart beat in perfect synchronization with mine.
The sensation was still new enough to be distracting—feeling his pulse as clearly as my own, knowing that every beat connected us in a way that transcended flesh and bone. But I couldn't afford distraction. Not now.
Through the trees ahead, I could see the harsh white glow of the portable lights surrounding Riuondo's shuttle. The vessel sat in the clearing like a predator at rest—sleek, dangerous, waiting. Two guards stood near the ramp, their postures slack with exhaustion. They'd been on duty all night, and it showed.
Cullen held up a fist, and I froze. He pointed to the left, then made a circling motion. I nodded.
We moved.
The ground was soft beneath my feet, the moss and fallen leaves muffling our steps. I could smell the acrid scent of burned electronics from our wrecked ship, mixed with the sweet rot of jungle vegetation. The sun hadn't yet broken the horizon, but the sky was lightening—that gray pre-dawn that made shadows uncertain and depth perception tricky.
We had maybe twenty minutes before full daylight. Maybe less.
Cullen reached the edge of the clearing first and dropped into a crouch behind a twisted piece of hull plating. I settled beside him, close enough that our shoulders touched. Through the gap in the debris, I could see both guards clearly now.
One was Romvesian—tall, broad-shouldered, with the distinctive ridge of bone along his brow. The other was a Kaelaks, humanoid but with green skin that gleamed faintly in the artificial light. Both were armed with energy rifles slung across their backs, and both looked like they'd rather be sleeping.
Good.
Cullen leaned close, his breath warm against my ear. "I'll take the Romvesian. You get the other one. Fast and quiet."
I nodded. My grip tightened on the quarterstaff.
We waited. Watching. Looking for the perfect moment.
It came when the Kaelaks turned away to scan the tree line, his back to us. The Romvesian was looking down at something on his wrist—a comm device, maybe, or just checking the time.
Cullen moved first.
He was fast—faster than I'd expected for a human. He crossed the distance in seconds, his movements fluid and silent. The Romvesian never saw him coming. Cullen's arm came around the guard's throat in a chokehold, cutting off air and blood flow simultaneously. The guard's hands came up,scrabbling, but Cullen had already shifted his weight, dragging the larger male down and back.
I was already moving toward the Kaelaks.
