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We ate quickly after that. Wesley had gone quiet, and there was nothing to savor. I was eager to get us back under covers. Perhaps the ship would be safe for now, but after our failed attempt at finding nearby resources, I was not willing to risk Wesley again while I bore responsibility for putting him in danger. Better to stay warm and still, safe deep inside our crashed vessel.
If I were as wise as my father had been, I would have insisted on leaving him behind in the palace. And yet, the very thought squeezed the air from my chest. I would be alone now, would not be able to drag the soft human into my arms, watch him fiddle with his funny glasses, tuck them inside his jacket, and curl up against my front.
Selfish as it was, having Wesley here gave me a purpose and a clear goal—save him.
All my life, I had been trained for one thing, to protect and care for Prince Kaelum. I did not know how I would fare when I only had myself to look after on this barren, frigid moon, but when I wrapped my arms around Wesley for the night, I had one thought—I must get him safely off the icy rock, back to Thorzan.
And then—
And then...
I could not think of anything beyond saving him. Not when I had felt him shudder against me, when his lips tasted so sweet. I had never longed to keep a lover, had always known that being able to choose anyone was a privilege I would never have.
Hybrids were not meant for humans. And this human, though he felt wonderful cradled against my chest, had not had the chance to find his footing on our planet. He was brave and beautiful, he longed for adventure, but he had many choices yet to make. My duty was only to see that he survived long enough to make them, not to get attached and demand more from him than I had any right to take.
I might enjoy his form, admire his quick thinking and curiosity that seemed to dwarf even the keen interest of other humans. But if he longed for freedom and choice, I would have to let him go.
Through the deep night, I tried to rest. Before I even closed my eyes, it was clear that I had to do more than simply wait and hope. My dreams were plagued by the vision of Wesley, pale and blue lipped, shaking as he asked me to help him. I owed him more than patience.
I woke early, intent on one thing. I had to find the parts to make sure I got Wesley home safely. And on this trip, I could not take him.
I slipped from under the blankets to a soft whimper from the human. Atop the nest, I pressed my hand against the lump of his small body.
“Do not worry,” I whispered. “I will be back shortly.”
I would return. I had to. But first, I had to seek the parts I needed, and the only place I hoped to find them was near the Zathki tunnels.
The home of my enemy.
CHAPTER13
WES
Once again, I woke alone.
This time, I was mad about it. Sure, maybe I was being irrational and Jax had a lot to do, but hadn’t he said he couldn’t fix any of the ship’s other systems? We’d been here for days, and it seemed like there wasn’t much else he could do for now.
I’d been sleeping a lot after I’d cracked my skull, sure. But that didn’t mean he should put me to bed and then sneak off again. Did Thorzi just need less sleep?
No, as the days dragged on, Jax had been looking tired. Maybe it was the stress of the situation, but lack of sleep seemed equally likely. So he was pushing himself extra hard, trying to save me, and letting me sleep for ages.
Yeah, yeah, it was an illogical reason to be annoyed with him. Mr. Spock could take away my Vulcan card. That didn’t change the fact that I was annoyed.
I wasn’t useless, dammit.
Once again, I wrapped the warmest blanket around myself and went in search of Jax. The ship was warmer than it had been when we’d first crashed, chilly instead of “cover your nose or you’ll lose it,” but Jax... wasn’t on it.
He was literally nowhere to be found, despite the long moments I spent wandering the long main corridor, calling to him. I searched each room, each section, looking behind things and around corners, worried he’d worked himself to exhaustion and passed out, or injured himself and was lying unconscious somewhere.
But no.
He was just... gone.
Before I could start to panic at being completely alone on an alien ice planet with no idea how to fix the ship, find food, or you know, generally not die, I found the ramp we’d used to leave the ship the day before, and it had fresh ice attached, still melting on one side. Like it had been open.
So I wandered over to the controls. The room was filled with buttoned panels and flashing lights and frankly, it was overwhelming, but I’d seen Jax open the ramp with one of the panels nearest the door. Inspecting it, I found directional controls, like the helm had been, but with only two directions: Up and down, and the mechanism was locked into the up slot. I wasn’t sure how he’d gotten it to go up while he wasn’t on the ship, but there had to be a way, because Jax definitely wasn’t on the ship.
So I unhooked the lock and slowly, carefully, shifted the ramp down.
