“You don’t need her, Kat,” Lee said quietly, and more than ever, he felt the weight of her in his arms. The space she took up in his life. In their galaxy. “You’re fierce and loyal, blazing around with a fire that no one can ever tame. You’ve got a fighting spirit that could level any number of Generals on the battlefield.”
She sniffed a little at that.
“You fight for what is right, and the galaxy as it should be. And that is my starflower,” he said, faint enough that not even their stars could hear him.
And, after a moment, her breathing eased, and she relaxed once more in his arms. And he listened to that steady heartbeat as the stars crept on around them. And only when he knew she was about to doze off did he gently lift her off of him. Pulling a couple of his T-shirts from his closet, he helped her into one, tucking her in close to his chest as they drifted off to sleep.
It was the first time he’d brought her back to his dorm knowing that she would be staying the night. He would keep her safe.
Lee lay staring up at the darkened ceiling of his dorm, hours after Kat had finally fallen asleep in his arms, her breathing easy, her body back to a stutteringly calm pace. So still.
He’d do anything for her, anything she needed. Whatever it was she asked. To scale a smoky peak or track down a spacealligator? To bathe in moon dust? He’d make it happen. For her. Anything for her.
Her breathing stuttered, just the tiniest snore escaping her.
But how was he supposed to get them out of this one?
He didn’t know what it meant that their Commander had signed the mainframe over to the General or how much power he now wielded. He didn’t know what sort of clues or surprises might be buried in her notes. But he feared the night’s revelations hadn’t fully taken their toll.
A chasm had opened up before them. Its depth unfathomable, its darkness, reaching. And they could only guess at its magnitude.
And for him and Kat, standing at the precipice—she stirred, and Lee froze—only for her to turn onto her side, settling back in against his chest. Her hair silvery in the star’s light, spilling down her back and over his pillow.
Things with him and Kat were perfect.
If only everything else was.
CHAPTER 33: KAT
IT WAS morning, the bright lights of day filtering under the door as it all came back to her.
Segura.
The mainframe.
Lee—
Clutching the blankets close, Kat felt the bed beside her, searching for his warm body. But he was already up and dressed. Lee sat behind his desk, leaning with his chin in his hand as he read something on his holoblock.
She just watched him. The quiet, peacefulness of the morning so at odds with the frenzy that had consumed her head as she’d fallen asleep last night. She caught fragments of those thoughts as she lay here. But for the most part, it was just still.
A mourning, and a wake.
He looked up as she pushed herself up to sitting, letting the blankets pool down around her legs.
“Morning,” she said. Just the word felt heavy enough on her lips she almost considered lying back down again. But she made herself lift her chin, made herself remain vertical as she nodded over to his holoblock.
“Whatcha reading?”
“Oh, nothing. Tonya just got back to me.”
And when she continued to peer back at Lee, he smiled faintly, a hint of humor reaching his eyes. “You remember my ancestor and the space farming we talked about? Well I asked her to look into it...”
Carrying his holoblock over to the bed, Lee sat down next to her, expanding the hologram for her to see what Tonya had sent.
“It’s—a Raider Placement log?” Kat asked with disbelief, squinting as she read the bio displayed near the top. “‘Interests include pilotry, aviation mechanics, and botany…” She shook her head. “A raider cadet. It’s a wonder Tonya didn’t know about him, your ancient relative is basically you.”
“You forget, it’s my dad’s line. She’s probably never even seen these records, only repeats what she heard. Although I had always thought I was the first…”
