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I pressed my lips into a thin line, considering whether or not to lie to her, but ultimately I nodded. "Yes, something like that. Which is why you're going to listen very carefully and do exactly as I say."
I was just about to give her the first instruction when the gate swung open and Nikathy came screaming up the driveway. Instead of going around back, he pulled up right in front of us and hopped out.
"Cosma! Why are you still out here? I thought I told you to get inside. Go somewhere safe."
Cosma looked between the two of us, conflicted, but I couldn’t tell if it was because she wanted to stay, or something else.
“This is my home, too, you know.” she snapped.
Nikathy’s expression softened, but he didn’t back down.
“I know, but now that Pops is gone, it falls to me to keep you safe, and I think you’ll be safer somewhere else. Isn’t that what Pops would want?”
Her eyes flicked to me, and I detected an undercurrent behind them, but Nikathy stared her down. Soon, she was huffing and puffing her way back into the house, stomping like a child.
"What did you bring me?"
Now he was grinning from ear to ear. He opened up the back door of his transport and revealed a pile of objects, large and small. Seconds later, he was unloading them onto the step along with the parts I'd dragged back, and waiting for my approval.
"I think I got it all," he said proudly.
I scanned over the pile, actually impressed. He had rounded up every single item on my list, even the ones I thought might be impossible. And now he was presenting them to me like an offering, and I had to decide how to put it all together.
"Okay, since you ran Cosma off, you're going to help me set these up instead," I said.
"I'll do anything. Anything at all. Just tell me how I can help."
So, I began again, giving him instructions from the very beginning on how to handle the fragile little devices and what we were going to do. He seemed to understand, and I watched his fingers slide over the letters embossed on the shell's side, naming the area of its origin.
When I was done explaining, he looked at the commander and said, "You can go now, too. Check in with the Hive. Report to me if you learn anything new."
That was when I saw it. How much he cared. Despite the exhaustion that formed dark circles under his eyes, he wasn't going anywhere until he was absolutely certain that Kychek was safe. There was something strangely endearing about the whole thing. He was like a shepherd, sent out to protect his flock at any cost, even his own life. And for just a moment, I found myself caught in the warmth of that feeling.
