Page 34 of Vindicated

I raised my hand to rap on one of the doors, when it slid open and Hal almost walked straight into me.

He stumbled back with a hand pressed to his chest. “Athena? What are you doing here?” Then he spotted Vallia and Lettie. “You’re all here. Thank the stars!”

I recognized Hal’s flushed face and sweat-beaded upper lip. “What’s wrong?”

He exhaled a heavy breath, and his body seemed to sag like a puppet on droopy strings. “It’s Vern and Dell. They went out a while ago. They should have been back already, but they’re not.”

Lettie frowned, but before she could say anything more, a siren sounded.

Chapter 25

Lorken

“An explosion?” I was already moving toward the doors with mymajakclose at my heels.

There had never been an explosion on board my warbird. Our munitions were closely regulated and checked. In fact, Zarn had been on his way to check them…

“Zarn,” I said the word like a curse and a prayer as I leapt down the wide staircase and landed in a crouch. Dawz followed me, the steel floor rattling from the impact of both of us, one after the other.

“He would not have made it to the munitions room before the explosion was reported, Raas.”

I grunted at this, but that didn’t slow my pace. Even if my brother was unhurt, the fact remained that there had been a deadly accident on my ship. At least, I hoped it was an accident.

What else could it be? I grimaced at the thought of any of my raiders being negligent, but it was possible. Even the most highly trained raider could make a mistake, and we did have raiders fresh from training on board. Then I thought of who else we had on board.

I gave a rough shake of my head. It could be nothing but a coincidence that an incident occurred the day after the refugees from Kashara arrived. What would a bunch of actors know about Vandar munitions or even how to find them in our labyrinth of a ship?

Boots slamming into steel rang around me as we descended through the warbird, as raiders poured downstairs and thundered across suspended bridges. The sound of Vandar feet was almost more deafening than the siren blasts that pierced the air every few seconds.

I peered over the edge of a caged walkway that crossed the ship’s chasm, my gut churning at the sight of black smoke curling through the air like a venomous ribbon. Bellows from below quickened my pace and roiled the blood that pounded in my ears.

When I jumped down another short flight of steps, I almost knocked a raider off his feet. When he leapt up, I grabbed him by the arm. It was the Vandar who’d delivered my breakfast and escorted Athena to see her friends. “You!”

He snapped his heels to attention. “Raas.”

“You were with my…you escorted the woman who’s staying in my quarters.”

“Yes, Raas.” His gaze shifted to the floor. “I did escort her to the room where the other females are staying.”

Relief coursed through my body. “Good.” I moved around him, but something about his lowered gaze made me stop. “What are you not telling me, raider?”

The Vandar’s head snapped up, a look of pure panic consuming his face. “Once the siren sounded, I thought I should escort her back to your quarters, Raas. For her safety and so you could find her easily.”

I was impressed with the raider’s forethought, but what he said did not explain the fear etched on his young face. “But?”

“But she was not there, Raas.” His voice trembled. “None of them were.”

My stomach plummeted through the floor, as Dawz made a guttural sound in his throat that would soon build to a growl.

“We should continue to the explosion, Raas. Let this raider search for the female.”

His words made sense, and I knew he was right. But I also knew that I could not deal with the explosion if I was worried about Athena. The thought of her wandering on the ship as chaos erupted around her made a chill prickle my skin.

I locked my gaze onto the Vandar who’d escorted Athena. “I need you to go to the site of the accident. The battle chief will no doubt be there. Tell Zarn that I am on my way.” I grabbed the raider’s arm. “Do not tell him anything more than that.”

The Vandar returned a sharp nod to me, clicking his heels once more. “Yes, Raas. At once, Raas.”

As the raider ran off, Dawz stood next to me. “Is that the Vandar who delivers your meals?”