Craving: A SciFi Alien Mail Order Bride Romance (TerraMates Book 8) (27 page)

Part of me still believe we could avoid the war and that we could make a treaty, but neither side trusted each other. That was the tragedy of treaties – we only signed them after much bloodshed. Realizing how much death the future held, I decided it was time to pray.

"Goodbye, brother," I said. "Be at peace."

After I had left the docking bay, I intended to retrieve the key, and then meet Gallia at the temple so we could talk. I didn't get that far. Gallia waited for me outside my quarters.

"Would you like to come in?" I asked.

"No," she declined. "None of our rooms are safe. Let's go to the south lounge instead."

"And what of our prayers?" I asked.

"The temple has been disturbed. A soldier sleeps in the corner. I let him be. I'm not sure the Red Assassin will do the same. He'll be lucky if he wakes."

"They're all lucky if they wake," I said, thinking of Kalij, and I followed her to the lounge.

As soon as we entered, I understood why she'd chosen the lounge to speak. Once again, it was packed full of our sister warriors, their chatter loud. It would mute our conversation and allow us to hide in plain sight.

We chose a spot against a window that looked out at Earth. I thought of my family and wondered if they knew that the Surtu attacked the Fortuna. Probably not. It wasn't information the leaders of Earth would freely circulate. Morale would suffer, as would the public opinion of the leaders' capacity to lead the fight against the Surtu.

"Tell me what you know," Gallia said. "Quickly."

It was hard to know where to begin, but I told her everything, from my conversation with Captain Fore to finding Lucina locked in her room.

"Bellona is working on a plan to save her," Gallia informed me. "She's working on a plan to save all of us."

"You've been in touch with her?" I asked. "How?"

"Haven't you?" she returned, equally surprised.

"Only during the siege," I told her, still unclear how long ago it was. One night. Maybe two. Jidden had never told me how long I was out.

"I assumed she had made contact with you before she killed the soldier."

"No," I said. "I had no idea what she had planned." Then I remembered the rustle in the woods when I'd left the temple earlier. "Well, maybe. I visited him," I admitted. "The soldier who fell."

The soldier who fell. The fallen. It reminded me of what President Bentford had said.
We will get back to you, our fallen
. I repeated it to Gallia.

"No," she said, taking a step back, her face suddenly pale.

"What is it?" I asked. I was frightened. If Gallia was worried, there was a reason for it.

Shivering, she stared out onto the Earth before answering. "'Our fallen' means Earth is going to destroy the Fortuna and everyone on board."

* * *

"
T
hey wouldn't do that
," I said incredulously. I refused to believe it. "Are they that callous?"

"It's strategy, not sentiment," Gallia said. "Think about it. They're trading three Surtu ships for one space station. There are hundreds of military bases guarding Earth. We are nothing. I see that now. I thought they chose us because we are strong. Our strength is expendable. We are just bait. We were always just bait."

The Fleet Captain had said the same thing, that we were bait, but that didn't make it true. Yes, we were meant to fool the Surtu into trusting us, but we were also supposed to kill them. The plan was never to destroy the entire space station.

"I still don't buy it," I said. "Earth wouldn't do that. I think you're mistaken."

Gallia took my shoulders, shaking away my disbelief. "Listen to me, Terra. President Bentford was speaking in code. She was trying to tell you to prepare yourself and the women. I was given a list of codes when I became Commander. She has set the plan in stone."

"You knew?"

"Of the code, yes, but there are many codes. I thought they'd only use this one if most the women were dead or if our cause was hopeless. I never thought they'd use it when we still lived. It's still possible to free us."

So it was true. We had lost the fight, and now we were destined to die. I closed my eyes. I refused to look at the beautiful blue planet below. I had been a traitor for sleeping with Jidden in the gardens, but the decision to destroy the Fortuna felt like a stab in the back.

"How long do we have?" I asked.

"They'll likely strike at sunrise when the sun temporarily blinds the space station. They'll send a nuke. It'll be over before we know it."

I still couldn't come to terms with it. "Are you sure there isn't a way to contact President Bentford? Can we reason with her? We're still an asset."

"Can you think of a way?" Gallia asked. "All the communication equipment is on lock down, and sunrise is in a few hours. We don't have the time. Even if we did, I doubt President Bentford would change her mind. Once the codes are set, they're set."

"So we're just giving up?"

"I'm not giving up," Gallia said. "I'm accepting what cannot be changed. I don't want to die." She spoke with a vulnerability she had never shown before, and I knew it was hopeless.

But if we could not save the Fortuna, we could at least save the women.

"What if we told the Surtu?" I asked. "They might be able to get most of the women off the space station by then."

Gallia had been horrified by the news of the code, but my suggestion sickened her. "Is that how you want people to remember you?" she hissed. "As a traitor? If you tell the Surtu, you prevent the destruction of three ships. You give up Earth's advantage. My teacher trained me to be a warrior, Terra. We came to the Fortuna knowing we may have to sacrifice our life for the protection of Earth. I did not envision my death like this, but it is still an honorable one."

I wanted to reason with her, but at that moment, Jidden stormed into the lounge, silencing the crowd for the second time that day. This time, he went straight to me. "I need you," he commanded, and he grabbed my arm, pulling me away from Gallia.

His hold on me was not as gentle as it usually was. It would normally have frightened me, but I had bigger things to worry about right now. "Where are we going?" I demanded. He did not answer.

I found out soon enough. He took me to my quarters, using a key card to override the punch code.

"You can't just lock me in here," I said, assuming that was what he intended to do, but then he pushed me against the wall and began kissing me. He was forceful and unrelenting.

"Jidden, stop," I urged, during a break in the kissing, and I tried to push him away. "Don't do this."

He refused to let go. Instead, he turned me around so that he pressed my head against the wall, and he unzipped the back of my jumpsuit.

"Please, stop," I begged, but I knew it was useless. Jidden wasn't going to wait for my permission. He was going to take me.

I could fight, but that might make it worse. So I relied on my intellect, the way I always had. "No Surtu man is allowed to touch a woman unless they are light bonded," I reminded him, nearly shouting.

"That didn't stop us before," he proclaimed.

"I should have known you were no better than Kalij," I said with as much menace as I could muster. "You're worse. You disobey commands. You break the rules. No wonder you didn't get your promotion."

I shouldn't have said it. I risked igniting his anger. He was already in control. His anger would not benefit me.

But the risk paid off. He stepped back, letting me go. "I'm not a heathen," he expressed, conflicted.

Seeing an opportunity, I moved away from him and sat on the bed. If I couldn't escape him, my bed was a good place to defend myself. Within the timepiece on my bed stand was a long screw I could use as a weapon, if necessary.

Jidden didn't follow me. He had a look of disgust on his face as he realized what he'd almost done. "I'm sorry," he said. He backed up to give me some space. "I just – I don't know what I was thinking. I saw the flowers you left for the dead soldier, and I knew I had to have you. But on my terms."

"That's no excuse," I snapped, also feeling conflicted. I wanted him to leave. His actions were unjustifiable. It hurt me. I had trusted him. But anger was not what I wanted to carry with me if these truly were my last hours alive. If anything, this was a time for forgiveness. All of our souls should be at peace.

"Promise me you'll never do that again," I demanded. After sunrise, he would never have a chance to, but I still needed to hear him say it.

"I promise on my mother's grave," he said. "There is no greater promise to the Surtu. What I did was unforgivable."

The room filled with silence. I looked out at the stars. I couldn't see the Earth from my quarters, and I was glad for it. The Earth had betrayed us, but Gallia was right – we still had an obligation to protect it. So in silence I would remain.

I made a decision.

"Claim me," I said to Jidden, standing up to confront him. My emotions were running high. I was irrational, and I didn't care. I took control of the situation. Whatever happened next, it would be on my terms.

I stepped out of my jumpsuit, revealing my undergarments. They were nothing special, but I saw the way Jidden's cock responded to my exposed flesh. "Make me yours."

"Are you sure?" he asked, struggling to keep his distance. "I don't think you're–"

"I'm done thinking," I announced. I wanted this. I wanted him. Hours from death, there was no reason to deny it any longer. Jidden was cold and arrogant, but he had an inner depth. That depth was genuine.

"Claim me," I repeated, and I reached forward to grab his cock, massaging it with my hand.

Unable to resist, Jidden moved in closer to me and kissed my shoulder, his lips like petals against my bare skin. "I claim you," he murmured as he let the strap from my bra fall. "How can I not? You're beautiful." He moved his kisses to my neck, sending a pulse down my body. "And you're intelligent. And kind. I claim you."

The pulse that ran down my body settled at my core, which was wet with pleasure. "And I claim you," I said in return.

To show Jidden how much I wanted him, I massaged him harder, pleased when I heard him moan. With hunger in his eyes that matched my own, he undid my bra and flung it away. Then he knelt down and pulled off my panties, which were complete soaked.

Remaining on his knees, he kissed my thigh, slowly making his way to my center. Before his tongue touched my soft folds, he picked me up in his arms and placed me back on the bed.

"I'll never hurt you again, nor will I ever let another man touch you. I'll protect you," he vowed.

Spreading my legs apart, he cupped his arms around my thighs, pulling me in close so that he could taste me. His warm, moist tongue circled around my flesh and caused me to ache with ecstasy.

He pulled me in even closer, licking my clit, drinking me in. A fire engulfed my body, and I was eager to explode.

Knowing I was ready to come, he removed his uniform, exposing his hard, thick cock, and he plunged his cock inside me, filling me up. It was almost more than my body could handle. I moaned loudly and folded my legs around him as he continued to drive into me, his need to come as desperate as my own.

I couldn't hold back. I released myself, riding the tidal wave of bliss, drenching his cock with my affection. Jidden continued to thrust, his cock growing harder until he also came, jerking deep inside me. We rode the wave together, our souls meeting as our bodies released themselves.

Exhausted and sticky with joy, Jidden collapsed beside me, and I held him, enjoying the way he stayed inside me, refusing to disconnect. Lying in my arms, he fell asleep, his head nestled against my breast.

I could not sleep. As I caressed his hair, I gazed at the stars. My stomach tightened as the first rays of sunlight began to pour into the room, illuminating our flesh.

It was time. Time to become the fallen.

I wrapped my arms tighter around Jidden, finding solace next to him. I was glad that of all the people on the Fortuna, I was with him.

When I heard the explosion, I knew our lives were over.