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“This is such a luxurious place to end up in after everything I’ve been through,” she sighs after she’s finished. She pulls the hot towel away from her face. “It seems like a dream. I’m afraid it will all end, and I’ll wake up in a cage again.”
I squeeze her hand. “I know. When I first got out, I couldn’t believe I was free either. I kept waiting for it to be some elaborate trick.”
“How did you get out?” She asks. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you since they took you away. Raina, I was so scared. I thought you might be dead. What did you do that crazy shit for?”
I feel a pang of guilt for my actions. It led to my freedom. It led me to Niko, but I didn’t know that at the time. I tend to act recklessly in the face of danger. I often think in terms of being only responsible for myself, but Kaye doesn’t see the world in the same way. She was frightened for me when we were separated.
“I think being a reckless idiot is just how I cope sometimes,” I admit to her. “It makes me feel alive. It reminds me that I’m still in control of my life.”
She rolls her eyes. “I fucking love you, but please never do something like that to me again. My heart couldn’t take it.”
Kaye has a habit of talking like the mother I’ve never had. She lets out another deep sigh and thankfully doesn’t wait for me to promise I won’t. We both know I just might do something like that again if the opportunity arises.
“I think I’m ready to ask this question.” She draws herself up, straight-backed, and faces me. “Where’s Frankie?”
I frown. I knew I would have to explain this, but it doesn’t make it any easier.
“She’s on a ship headed deeper into the Azza Empire. I’m working with someone who’s going to help me track her down.”
“Who?”
“It’s a long story. We should head out of here before I start.”
“Where are we going?”
“If you’re up to it, we can head straight for the station, and we’ll get you a ticket home. It’ll be a few connecting flights, but we should be able to leave before nightfall.”
“Just me? Aren’t you coming home too?”
“I’m staying on a ship right now that’s parked outside the city. If we can’t get tickets tonight, or if you’re too tired to travel, you’re welcome to stay there with me. It’s very safe and comfortable. And . . . I’m leaving with that ship once you’re headed home. The captain is the one I was talking about. She finds people who’ve been taken captive, and she’s going to help find Frankie.”
A line of worry forms between Kaye’s perfectly arched brows.
“If you’ll be the first to know what’s going on with Frankie, then I’d like to stay with you,” she says.
“Kaye, I know you want to be there for Frankie, but it’s not the kind of place you’d want to be.” I don’t want to hurt her feelings, but Kaye is a practical, sweet kind of person who doesn’t believe in solving one’s problems with physical altercations.
“You just said it’s safe.” She crosses her arms over her chest.
“Right now, it is because it’s parked on a planet with a stable government,” I mutter. “Once we take off and head God knows where we could get attacked by pirates or follow Frankie into a dangerous situation.”
“I can stay on the ship,” Kaye insists. “I won’t get in the way. But I want to be there for her. Maybe there’s some way I can help. You and me could be cabin mates. It’ll be easier together, you know? Just like setting up on the colony was easier when we pitched in on each other’s farms. That’s how we became friends in the first place.”
Her eyes are shimmering with unshed tears already, reminding me of all the reasons I should tell her no. She’s sensitive and soft-hearted. She’s . . . someone I can’t bear to disappoint.
“Okay.”
“Really?”
“Yes. As long as the captain approves it.”
She squeezes me into a tight hug.
“I heard that this planet is known for its pastries,” I say when we break apart. “How about I tell you what I’ve been up to while we sample some alien goodies? I have some news that might blow your mind.”
Her big eyes widen. “Now you’re speaking my language, Jonesy.”
CHAPTERTWENTY-EIGHT
