Craving: A SciFi Alien Mail Order Bride Romance (TerraMates Book 8) (30 page)

"A send-off?"

"For the dead soldier."

I was touched. "You want me at his funeral?"

"Yes. Very much so. You should learn the ways of the Surtu."

I wasn't sure what he meant by that statement. I had no intention of ever stepping foot on his home planet, but I accepted his invite. "I'll go."

My words pleased him. "Rest tonight, and I'll escort you in the morning."

"See you then," I said, stiffening when he came to kiss me on the cheek, afraid he would see the key.

"Goodnight, human," he teased. His mood was light.

"Goodnight, alien," I said back.

* * *

I
was late
. Very late. Dinner had ended hours ago.

I hoped Bellona still waited for me in the tunnels. I wanted to learn everything she had to teach. Of all of us, she was the only one to evade capture. Every day, she avoided the Surtu and did as she pleased.

The temple seemed empty. I looked out upon the heather before entering, thinking of the guard from earlier and wondering if there would be two send-offs tomorrow.

There was no light within, but I used the darkness to my advantage, allowing it to mask my movements in case a soldier patrolled nearby. I didn't care if Jidden discovered my empty bed. Saving Lucina was more important to me than Jidden's trust, but I didn't want anyone to find me in the temple.

No one could know about the tunnels. They were our only chance of escape.

Retracing Bellona's efforts from earlier, using the moonlight from the entrance to guide me, I pushed the stone slab away from the door beneath it, surprised by how easy it was.

There was nothing special about the door. The maker had created it from plain wood and did not add a handle. The keyhole to the side was barely noticeable. Its purpose was to conceal. If a passerby ever discovered the door, it could easily be mistaken as part of the low structure that supported the altar.

I opened the door with the key and discovered stone steps that descended into the tunnels. Eager to meet Bellona, I followed the steps down, letting the door fall back into place. Behind me, I heard springs move, like those in an old clock. The stone slab became an altar once more, casting me into impenetrable darkness.

I could see nothing.

I didn't let it stop me. Using the wall for support, I continued down the steps. Eventually, the rough stone beneath my hand smoothed, and I was touching metal. Lights flickered on around me, illuminating the tunnels. My movements had activated the lights.

Now that I could see, there wasn't much to my surroundings. The walls were plain and glossy, like walking through a tin can. It reminded me of the cold and sterile environment of the Surtu ship. The lights above were dim. I would have found it dreary if not for the noise above me. Footsteps from the ground above me echoed through the tunnels, like a heartbeat.

There was only one way to go – straight ahead. "Bellona?" I whispered as I walked. "Are you here?"

There was no answer. Afraid those above could hear, I went silent, following the path until it divided into two.

Now what? I thought, irritated. Bellona should be here.

I chose the path to the right, working out that it led to the docking bay. If I became trapped, the last place I wanted to risk coming out of was the bread oven. Burnt flesh was not a good look.

Partway down the tunnel, someone grabbed me. It was like a ghost appearing out of nowhere.

"And you're dead," Bellona said flatly, throwing me against the tunnel wall. "Another name checked off my list."

I hadn't heard her approach. Her footsteps were lighter than air, and her flames consumed the oxygen around her.

"Nicely done," I praised. I needed to learn. "When did you start to follow me?"

"I approached you when you chose the expected path. I knew you wouldn't risk the bread oven. Always know what path your target will choose. Observe your target before you strike. Don't leave it up to chance."

"Surprising someone with an attack is easy. How to get away is the difficult part," I said.

"Not for me," she boasted. "As long as you aren't seen killing your target, you can walk out of a crowded room. I did."

The dead soldier. She'd left him as a warning to the Surtu. "How?" I asked.

"I was quick, I was precise, and I knew my escape route. It only took me a second to slit his throat, and then I was gone. It was a mercy killing. He died instantly. There are much more enjoyable ways to kill someone."

Kalij came to mind, my target. "As much as he deserves to suffer, I don't think I'll have time. The docking bay is full of soldiers. How do I kill him without being seen? None of the guards recognized you in the south lounge when you killed the soldier, but I'll be the only woman in the docking bay. I'll stand out."

Bellona considered the problem. "You'll have to kill him quietly."

"I don't understand."

"Poison him. We have plenty of herbs growing in the garden, herbs with special properties."

It made sense. Slitting his throat in front of the other soldiers wasn't a possibility. I could inject him with a poison – something that would cripple him from the inside, so there was no risk of contaminating Lucina if he touched her.

"I need something with a delayed response. It can't be obvious that it was me. When no one else is around, I can pretend to run into him, and then I'll inject him."

"Know his path," she reminded me.

"I'll be in the docking bay tomorrow. The Surtu invited me to the ceremony for the soldier you killed."

"Which one?" she smirked, but she knew the soldier I meant.

"While I'm there, I'll do as you say. I'll watch Kalij, study his behavior."

"Do you have anything you can inject him with?"

"I'll think of something. It will have to be covert."

Bellona indicated to the tunnels. "This is the Fortuna. Secrecy is our specialty. Now, let me teach you how to strike a man dead before he knows what hit him."

* * *

I
was exhausted
after my session with Bellona. Striking with the deadly precision of an assassin was no easy task. Bellona may move with the grace of a ballerina, but she was as strong as a bear. I didn't even knew I had muscles in places that hurt.

I didn't let my fatigue stop me from going to visit Lucina. I wanted her to know she wasn't alone. Using the skills Bellona had shown me, I snuck up to her door and listened.

Unfortunately, Kalij was inside. He was yelling, but I didn't know why. "Jidden is a fool! How dare he give dead men preference over me? He treats all of his soldiers like we're no better than dogs, and he wonders why the Captain won't promote him."

"You ARE no better than a dog," Lucina lashed.

There was a scuffle, and I heard her fall to the floor. "If I'm a dog, then what does that make you?" he screamed.

If she replied, I couldn't hear her.

Unable to stand listening any longer, I stepped away from the door, turning to find Gallia watching me from nearby.

"Is she okay?" she asked.

I shook my head, letting my expression speak volumes.

Gallia hardened. "Soon," she said. "Soon."

* * *

"
W
ear this
," Jidden said, handing me a formal black dress from my closet. It was one of many outfits supplied to me when I was meant to be the Commander of a spiritual sanctuary, not the Commander of a secret battle station. Like the pale blue dress I had worn when I met Jidden, the designer fashioned the black one he chose after what the women of Rome used to wear.

"Is black a color of mourning for you as well?" I asked, taking the dress from him. I didn't want to wear it, but I also didn't want to disrespect his customs.

"No," he said, perplexed. "We do not have a color for mourning."

"Then why black?" I asked.

"It matches my uniform."

He answered so formally, so matter-of-fact, that I almost burst out laughing. "Fine," I said, and I slid the dress over my head.

"I'm glad you're feeling good this morning," he said. "I wish I'd called on you earlier. Then I could have made you feel even better."

His suggestion made my center tingle. The last time I had worn a dress like this, I learned for the first time just how good Jidden and his cock could make me feel. "Good thing you didn't," I decided, smoothing down the billowy fabric of the dress. "Otherwise, we would have missed the send-off."

"We still can," he teased.

I knew we couldn't. He was Lead Officer of his ship, and he was in charge of the Fortuna. He had to be there.

"Do the men know you've claimed me?" I asked.

"They've been told not to go near you," he said, eyeing me over. "And with good reason. Terra, you're like starlight."

I smiled awkwardly, unaccustomed to such compliments. The flings I had before my placement on the Fortuna had never meant much. I wasn't sure what Jidden and I had, or how long it could last, but it meant something to me for now.

I was glad he hadn't said anything to his men. I didn't want my friends to know either, especially not Gallia. She wouldn't understand. If his men knew, the women would soon find out. Word spread across the space station faster than the winds of a hurricane.

When we were ready, we went to the docking bay. Kalij was on guard again. I wasn't happy to see him. If I could kill him here, I would. But I was glad for the opportunity to observe him, especially when Jidden excused himself to take a call from his Captain.

Kalij wasn't often alone. That was a problem if you wanted to assassinate him. The bastard was popular with his comrades. It seemed virtue didn't win friends if you were a Surtu man. Ego did.

"I'll still find a way," I vowed.

"What was that?" Jidden asked, returning from his call.

"I'm just plotting to kill your men," I said as sweetly as possible.

"You and every woman here," he returned, taking no offense. "But you won't succeed."

"What did your Captain have to say?" I asked, diverting the conversation.

He refused to answer. He couldn't. Likely, they were talking strategy, planning the moves they would make to take over Earth. Once again, the chessboard divided us.

"It doesn't matter," I said. "Not right now."

In reality, it did matter. Everything about the war mattered.

The room we gathered in was plain. I wasn't surprised. I had been onboard the Surtu ship before, where the furnishings were minimal. This room was no different. The walls were completely bare.

The only color in the room was from the wilting wildflowers on the dead soldier. But he was not alone. Bodies lay at the center of the room, each dressed in a white uniform and lying on his steel table.

See, I wanted to say. See what the price of war is.

Jidden addressed the small group of men who joined us. "The life of a soldier never goes to waste. Because of the men here, we are closer to saving our people. They were born free, and they died with honor. There is no better way."

"There is no better way," the men around us echoed.

I waited for Jidden to go on, but that was it. He had said everything he meant to say. So I waited some more, expecting the men to move the bodies, perhaps to be cremated or sent out into space.

Nothing happened.

"Jidden–" I began to ask, but I was cut off when a blazing white light filled the room. It blinded me. Its brilliance was harsh but beautiful.

I had stood within the light once before when Jidden and his men first came to the Fortuna. It was how the Surtu arrived. And how they departed, as I was learning.

When the light faded, the bodies of the soldiers were gone, including the wildflowers I had left. Only the living remained.

I couldn't speak. In the tragedy of war, what just happened stood out in my mind. It was something powerful and special. I hadn't thought the Surtu were capable of it.

"What was that?" I asked Jidden as the others filtered out of the room. "Where did the bodies go?"

"Elsewhere," he answered. Once again, he didn't want to tell me. Jidden had his secrets, just as I had mine. But one thing was for certain – we couldn't underestimate the Surtu. Their abilities far surpassed our own.

That doesn't mean humanity will be defeated, I reassured myself. We still outnumber them.