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It felt like a trap so Flora hesitated. There was a reason, beyond the obvious, that this bitch was asking. Flora just wasn’t sure about her true motivation. “This mission calls for fire, so it wouldn’t matter if I could.”
“Can you?” Gwala persisted.
Tired of the attitude, Flora raised her chin and stated clearly, “Yes. Fire is my primary element, but I can also manifest water.”
The bitch spit at her. The disgusting phlegm didn’t come anywhere near Flora but the disrespect shocked her.
“Torretian dog,” Gwala sneered. “I have lost half my family to your people and now I’m expected to fight alongside you. This is intolerable.”
“I have never been to Torret, andmy peopleall live on Altor.” Why was she defending herself to this bitch? People like Gwala didn’t deserve an explanation. In truth, they were never looking for information. They were just full of hate.
“I might have no choice but to aim at the same target as you, but you better never expect me to cover your back. I would rather—”
“Gwala, that’s enough,” her controller snapped, silencing the female with a look. He shifted his gaze to Flora and his expression softened. “I apologize for my conduit. Her losses have been recent and grief is wagging her tongue right now.”
The apology would have meant more if it had come from the woman, but Flora acknowledged his efforts with a tense smile. “We won’t even be on the same ship. I hope my involvement won’t be too much of a distraction for your triad.”
“I will ensure that it is not,” the controller said then turned his attention to his misbehaving conduit. They got up and moved to a table on the other side of the room.
Draven reached over and interlaced their fingers. “I should have prepared you for something like this. We have been at war for a very long time.”
“So much of this still doesn’t seem real to me,” she said softly, wishing she was alone with her mates. “I’m still learning about Altor. Torretians are ruled by a bloodthirsty dictator. That is literally the only thing I know about them.”
Noratu ran his hand down her back and passed warmth across their link. “I will make sure your knowledge base is expanded as soon as we get home.”
She looked at him and smiled. “I appreciate it, but I doubt it would have helped with her. She just needs someone to hit.”
“Her controller will spank it out of her,” Draven predicted.
Sympathy squeezed Flora’s heart and she glanced at Gwala. “She was incredibly rude to me, but I hope spanking isn’t his only strategy. She is clearly in pain.”
“They have been bonded for twenty-four years. Doubtlessly, her mates know what she needs and will ensure that she gets it.”
Flora nodded and pushed the conflict to the back of her mind. This was the most important mission she’d been on to date. She needed to focus on the objectives. There was so much that could go wrong.
They arrived at the staging area twenty minutes later. Flora was anxious to move to the other ship, and not just to get away from the surly conduit. The ship to which they had been assigned was commanded by Tov Nee and his source Merrik Lilika. They were one of the teams still being considered as Cara’s mates. Flora was anxious to meet them and see how they interacted with their crew. Seeing them in action would tell her more about their basic character than any detailed dossier.
A large, muscular male with strange multicolored hair and burgundy eyes was waiting for them when they streamed onto the ship. Was this the commander or someone unrelated to Cara’s potential mates?
“Merrik,” Noratu greeted. “It’s been a while.”
“Two years. No, it might have been three.”
Flora studied the newcomer as the two caught up. According to the dossier, he was a source. He was also the ship’s second-in-command. Flora narrowed her gaze. He looked more like a controller. Except for those incandescent eyes. As if sensing her thoughts, he suddenly looked at her and one corner of his mouth quirked.
“I heard that your cousin is being trained by Provost Nadis,” Merrik began. Clearly he knew who she was, but it still felt rude to start conversing without introducing themselves. “Wasn’t Nadis your mentor also?”
“She was. That is largely the reason we chose her for my cousins. I was very impressed by her.”
Merrik looked at Draven, brows arched. “You were allowed to choose their mentor? Was this before or after you joined the board of governors?”
“It was a condition of my acceptance of the president’s offer,” Draven admitted. “Those two require careful handling and I am doing everything I can to ensure that they get it.”
“I see.” He glanced at Flora then shifted his gaze to Noratu, the member of the triad that he seemed to know best. “Did you get our proposal? Tov and I are anxious to continue courting Cara.”
“We are working our way through a large number of proposals.” Flora spotted the subtle quirk at the corners of Noratu’s mouth. He was fighting back a smile. “We will be contacting the finalists soon.”
“Will we be among them?” Merrik asked hopefully.
