Page 12 of When the Universe Sings

Sharp teeth glinted in the light as Crux grinned. “Oh,yes.”

Heavy footsteps echoed through the room. When the male caught sight of Captain Ruciyah striding through the door, his thrashes grew frantic, translucent skin flushing a bright red and the slits in his throat flapping with each rise of his chest. Crux threw a forearm over the male’s neck to keep him still, but the captain did not approach, only stood at the end of the bed and crossed his arms over his chest. “Where is it?”

A horrible gurgling noise slipped through the male’s lips.

“Crux, you’re choking our friend.”

Crux backed off, stepping to the side so he was next to the male’s head, a hand splayed over his chest. Though I could only see the captain’s cowl, it moved enough to tell me he’d tilted his head to the side in the same way he had inspected me earlier.

“I—I—I don’t know what you’re looking for,” the male wheezed.

Captain Ruciyah’s hum was resonant. Slowly, he lowered his arms, taking a step toward the male. Energy crackled around him, as if violence was a creature that wrapped around his shoulders like a pet with a master. The deep red of the male’s face receded into a purplish-pink, the slash of his mouth opening.

“You know, the last person we spoke to had a different story,” Asher rumbled. “You remember Zekyl, don’t you?”

Crux raised his hand up to shoulder height. “About yea high and holding an impressive amount of blood in his body?”

My blood ran cold at the tone in their voices. I knew all too well the cruelty the universe cultivated and it was clearly rampant in these two males.

“Captain.” Maxtalen’s voice was sharp through the comm in my ear. “Captain, someone is coming.”

Captain Ruciyah flashed a look at Crux, who strode to the door, tugging a blaster from his hip. I could hear the footsteps even from the ventilation unit, the sound of a voice humming with quickened speech.

The male in the bed started to screech, but Captain Ruciyah stepped forward, covered his mouth and drew out the black quara blade on his hip. But the door hissed open, one of the workers from the port blinking at Crux with wide eyes.

“More are coming. You need to make this quick,” Maxtalen warned through our comms. “Get the twins in there now.”

Crux closed a hand over the worker’s neck, thumb pressing firmly on a spot where their shoulder and rail-thin neck met. Immediately they crumpled into his arms and he murmured something in their ear as he guided them toward the ground.

Captain Ruciyah crowded the male in the bed, the tip of his blade pressed against the slits at the side of his throat, before he lowered his hand from the male’s mouth. “Where is it?” It wasn’t a question—it was a command.

Sweat dewed beneath my hands. My breath came in ragged pants. But I didn’t move. The male lifted his hands, spreading his fingers wide enough the webbing was stretched to a pale pink, the triangular fins beneath his wrists trembling. “Please,please, the last I heard the stone was on Selhveina?—”

My heart stopped, pulsed, then lurched in my throat. The edges of my vision blurred and acid coated my tongue as I took a deep breath through my nose.

Before the male could say another word, Crux’s fist crashed down on the side of his head. Translucent blood exploded from the male’s face and, though his chest rose and fell, his body went limp. Silence threaded through the room, Crux panting as he shook out his hand.

“We need to work on your impulse control.” Captain Ruciyah pulled out a communicator from his pocket.

Rhiaon and Rhys pushed a cart through the door, dressed in the same uniforms as the other workers on the port. Rhiaon reached down to tug open the hatch of the cart while Crux gathered the unconscious male into his arms. But I didn’t see it, not really. No, all I knew was the raging fire, the heat of it licking at my skin, the screams in my ears as everyone I knew in the universe died.

“Juniper,” a low voice called. I jumped, realizing the black helmet was peering up at me. “It’s time to go.”

When I didn’t move, the captain sighed, planted one foot on the bed and reached for the vent. My mind whirled back to life and I curled trembling fingers around the grate, sliding it to the side.

He replaced his foot on the floor as I slid out, keeping one hand on the lip of the opening while I attached the hook Maxtalen had given me to the metal. Though my knees felt weak, I landed soundlessly beside Captain Ruciyah, tugging on the line to pull the grate back into place before flicking the magnet off so the hook skittered back into my palm.

The last I heard the stone was on Selhveina.

How long ago had that been? And why did each nerve in my body fire at the sight of the captain staring down at me like a coward behind his mask?

After a moment, he turned, striding toward the door without a backward glance, confident I would follow.

And, with a knot I could barely swallow, I did.

CHAPTER

NINE