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I wasn’t sure of the reason but something had made them take action earlier than expected.
Something was going on.
I took her by the shoulders. “Listen to me. There’s something I need for you to do. Yesterday, we responded to a distress beacon. We took the survivors captive. They’re being held in the pods in the docking bay. Don’t look at me like that. I’m a businessman. They’re merchandise. Go down and release them. Tell them I’ll grant them their freedom if they help me fight my mutinous crew.”
Alice looked afraid. “What about you? You haven’t recovered yet. What will you do?”
“I’ll fight them for as long as I can,” I said, strapping on my weapons. “But you must hurry. I’m not at full strength and I can’t hope to beat them all. I’m counting on you.”
I pressed my lips to her forehead and tasted her for what might be the last time. I hugged her and prayed everything would work out. If I failed, I died. But that wasn’t what concerned me.
If I failed, a far worse fate awaited Alice.
I marched ahead of Stryder and Rattigan and had to keep reminding myself not to rush ahead. I needed to appear weak and easy to beat—even though doing so went against every fiber of my being.
I walked slowly, limping every few steps. It was protocol for the captain to walk ahead. Both Stryder and Rattigan had to follow. There was another benefit to moving slowly: it gave Alice more time to reach the docking bay and release our captives.
I should have been pumping myself up to unleash my full indignant anger out on the mutinous Horn Tusk and his cohorts but I couldn’t do it. I was too busy letting the previous few hours wash over me. At least I got to enjoy her once, had held onto her tight, two souls becoming one.
I didn’t know if humans felt the bond as deeply as Titans did. Perhaps to humans it was nothing more than a physical activity. It meant a great deal to Titans. It was a spiritual coming together of two souls. I’d never felt a connection like that with any female.
Perhaps she could even be the One.
I recalled the expression that rose to my father’s face every time he looked at my mother. Even now, I felt the absolute love and devotion he had for her. I was beginning to feel that with Alice too.
Absolute and total devotion.
My mood darkened that these assholes were threatening to take her away from me.
No one came between a Titan and his mate.
No one.
I entered the engine bay. Spread out before the emergency escape pods was the rest of my illustrious crew. A dozen members in total, a mixed bunch from all four corners of the galaxy.
Standing at their head, the largest and physically most powerful of them all. Horn Tusk.
Rattigan left my side and joined the others. Stryder was the only member who stood at my side. The only true friend among them.
“You called me here?” I said, addressing Horn Tusk.
He stepped forward and spat on the floor. “I did.”
“Tell me your demands and maybe we can come to an agreement,” I said. It was the typical response in situations like this.
“You know what our demands are,” Horn Tusk said. “We want to abduct children. They’re easier to transport and masters pay us premium prices. You are a good smuggler, a good captain. But we cannot continue to bust our asses and take such high risks when we could be earning so much more.”
I made eye contact with each member of the crew. “You know I will not back down on this issue. If it was anything else, anything at all, I would budge. But not this.”
Some of the crew looked genuinely sorry.
Horn Tusk shrugged his cape off and let it flutter to the floor, revealing half a dozen blades strapped to his broad back. He pulled two free. “I was hoping you would say that.”
I limped forward and withdrew my sword. It sang in my hands. Despite all the technology in the galaxy, it was in old weapons that we put our faith. Too many species had developed defense systems to counteract advanced weapons, too many safety protocols with DNA scanners and voice activation. Swords and hammers and bows required only a skilled hand.
I drew a sword breaker in my offhand. As I pulled it out, I intentionally dropped it. The most mutinous of the crew chuckled. I bent down to pick it up.
“You appear a little frail, Captain,” Horn Tusk spat. “I’ll try to make this quick. I don’t like to make creatures suffer.”
