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The palette inside my stealthcraft will work fine while Kaye keeps me at arm’s length. I sleep in here often, for cycles at a time, too. It was foolish to think that even without touching her I could enjoy her presence silently through the night. Should I have anticipated that a human wouldn’t abide even sharing a bed with their mate fully clothed while refusing to consummate the bond? Perhaps… I was too desperate to have her nearby. I pushed her too far without finding a way to fix the wall between us first.
As I lay on the palette for half an interval, I realize sleep will not come as quickly as I’d hoped. I’m still thinking of Kaye. The way she looked when she yelled at me… I can tell she doesn’t enjoy acting that way. It hurt her even though I might’ve deserved a rude awakening for touching her.
Was my misguided hunt for relief a waste of time? I should’ve apologized to her immediately. I should’ve gotten on my knees and vowed never to be so greedy again.
The mating call changes everything. I know this.
So why am I running in the same circles, chasing the same highs? My blood changed from blue to red for her. My soul came alive with desire for her. So why should I expect to be soothed by anything else but her?
CHAPTERFOURTEEN
KAYE
In the earlyhours of the morning, I stir at a loud thump. Expecting another encounter with Kalla, I throw off the covers and search for the source. Sure enough, there’s a tall man hunched over near the foot of the bed. Kar’Kali curses spill out from the shadow. He apparently bumped into the trunk of clothing I had been rifling through earlier.
“I thought I told you to leave me—” I stop short when I realize it’s not the looming form of my Kar’Kali mate nearby. It’s a familiar lithe figure with a memorable head of black curls.
“Raffa?”
“Shhh,” he hushes me. “Be quiet. We can get out of here on the escape launch if we’re quick.”
“Raffa, you better explain yourself right now,” I hiss at him, sitting up and squinting through the darkness to get a better look at him.
“I was hiding under a gangplank ready to hop inside a warship at the very last second,” he spills immediately, thrilled to share his cleverness with me. “And then I saw you get grabbed by that crazy male who locked you in here. So I ran over to rescue you. But by the time I got on board, you were already carried off and the ship was launching… So I hid out in the cargo bay for a while.”
“Oh my God,” I mutter, rubbing my forehead. “What were you thinking? You could get killed trying to dangle on the gangplank of a moving ship! Your sister’s going to kill both of us.”
“Forget that! She’ll get over it. We just have to launch out of here, give her a call, and she’ll probably swing by to grab us. If we’re traveling with the fleet, she can’t be too far off… And she’ll be angry but there’s nothing to be done about it now. We’ll be in the crew for the most important mission of all time.”
Even in the shadows, I can see the brightness of his eyes as he describes the imminent triumph of his plan.
“It’s lucky I was just a ship away when you got nabbed by that male. I’d have fought him off you if I had the time.”
“That’s very sweet of you, but I cannot believe that you were in earshot when I wasshouting your name,” I snap. “This is totally unacceptable. You are mature enough to understand precisely why your sister left you with me to come live on the colony. You need to accept her decision—”
“Sshhh! Yell at me later, okay? I know I deserve it, but we can’t make too much noise. What did that male say to you? Is he a pirate trying to kidnap you? It’s unlike our kind to do such things, but I wouldn’t put it past anyone… or perhaps he’s a spy—”
“He’s actually my mate, and while he’s very rude, he’s not a pirate. He’s a warrior in the king’s army.” I might not see Kalla as my partner, but explaining the situation to Raffa requires clarity. He knows exactly what I mean, because the Kar’Kali view the mating call as inarguable.
“Your mate?” The boy is shocked. “And he’s taking you to the front on purpose?”
“We’re not going to the front. We’re nowhere near your sister,” I explain, reaching out to squeeze his shoulder. “And this man, my mate… He’s very important, apparently. So, we can’t just steal his escape pod without consequences. He and his crew need their ship running well and they don’t need distractions because they have a mission to accomplish.”
“What’s the mission?” Raffa asks, suddenly less concerned for my safety.
“Let’s hope that it’s something that will allow him to drop us off without derailing the entire war effort,” I say flatly. “Becauseyouare not to be involved in any of it. Have you seriously been in the hold all this time with no food or water?”
He shrugs. “I figured that if I didn’t kill some time, you’d turn right around and drop me off. There were rations in there and even a toilet, so it was totally fine! But now, we’re well into the journey, right? No point turning around now!”
The way he can be so smart and yet so stupid… I swear if I ever have a teenager of my own, it’ll kill me.
I swing my feet out of bed, wondering how I can convince Kalla to drop me off somewhere with Raffa. Maybe this is the perfect excuse to weasel my way out of staying by his side. I hope he’s not angry about Raffa slipping onto his ship…
Speak of the devil.
There’s a firm rapping at the door that I know must be my mate. I’m not sure why he’s come back so soon after I banished him, but I don’t want him to know about Raffa until I have a plan. Perhaps I can even convince Ruka to help me convince him to agree to let us off somewhere. After all, Raffa can’t stay here.
“Get in the closet,” I hiss at Raffa.
