Page 9 of Warrior Enchanted

“Okay, thanks,” I said, and I accepted the small bottle of pills he held out to me. There was writing on a label on the outside, but it was foreign and alien. My new translator implant was no help with it. When I turned back to leave, I saw a flash of red ducking around a corner and I had this sneaking suspicion that Jakar had been spying on me. What was it with this dude? Why was I constantly running into him? He needed to leave me the hell alone.

I said as much on the way back to my little safe haven, my private room. I already knew I was getting special treatment, the only one who had been given a room all to herself. I didn’t give a shit if that was the case, I was just glad I had my own room. Hina was kind as she listened to me complain about what had to be one of her friends; she’d spoken fondly of him after all when we were in the green room before.

“There’s something you should know about Jakar,” Hina said, a complacent smile on her face. She didn’t seem bothered at all that I’d basically told her I thought her friend was a big old creep. “Jakar is a very caring person, and he is desperately looking for his mate. It’s been his dream to find that special one all throughout his years as a gladiator slave.”

Mate she said, so not just looking to get into anyone’s pants, he was looking for something permanent. Just as long as he understood I was off the list, I wasn’t going to commit myself to some random alien only days after I’d woken up from stasis. Then I contemplated the last words she’d used, slave, gladiator… I had sudden vivid images of what that could mean, none of them good. Damn it, now I was feeling sympathy for the guy. I didn’t want that. I wanted to stay mad at him, at all these alien men. What I’d gone through before I’d managed to escape… No one should have to go through that, and I could be angry about it as long as I wanted.

So I made this non-committal noise and Hina continued talking, pointing at the bridge of her nose as she did so. “Remember those cute boyish freckles he’s got all over the bridge of his nose?” I remembered them, though I wouldn’t use cute or boyish as words to describe them. The streak of colorful dots had something more primal, more tribal-like in the way they were clustered as they slashed across his handsome face.

“Yeah, so those are like a mood ring. The color of the spot tells us what he’s feeling,” she explained and, at my surprised look, she grinned. “I figured I’d give you the rundown on what things mean. That way you can better understand what is going on in that weird head of his.”

I didn’t want to be curious about him, but I leaned in, nodding eagerly. And then I used my brain to memorize every color and mood combination she had for me. A zing of excitement coursed through my veins the entire time. Maybe I had to admit to myself, secretly, that Jakar had roused my interest, and I was soaking up anything anyone had to say about him.

Chapter 6

Jakar

We were only a day out from Rakex and I hadn’t had a single chance yet to speak with Meena. I’d watched her every chance I got until Camila had stormed into the hydroponics bay last night and given me a tongue-lashing about that. Apparently, that was called being a ‘stalker’ and I wasn’t supposed to do that; I could be scaring her.

I didn’t think Meena was scared of me. She’d found the flowering plant I’d left in a pot in front of her door the morning after she got her translator implants. I was certain she knew I was the one who had left it there because she’d turned to look at the door of the hydroponic bay with a thoughtful look on her face. Then she’d taken the plant into her room; she’d accepted my gift. She hadn’t once glanced in my direction, hiding around the corner at the other end of the hallway.

For three days, I’d been leaving her little gifts at her door, but that was the only interaction we had. I knew this meant I hadn’t convinced her to stay on the ship, so now I was headed for Ziame’s office just off the bridge. I had to tell him about my decision to stay on Rakex with the rest of the refugees.

My palms were a little sweaty with nerves and my stomach was in knots. I didn’t want to leave my friends, but this was the right choice. Maybe once Meena was ready for a relationship, I could change her mind and we could return to the Vagabond. No matter what, I would go where she would be happiest.

Abby was in his office with him. She was sitting at the desk, waving her fingers across a screen and talking numbers. Something about our current stock of supplies, but the specifics went right over my head. I was good with my hands, and I’d taken well to learning a lot of the technology we readily used. Under Da’vi’s tutelage, I’d even learned to do a lot of repair work, but numbers? I was just no good at those.

“Oh, hey Jakar, what can we help you with?” Abby asked when I knocked on the door frame to announce my presence. I froze when two pairs of eyes settled on me. Oh boy, I hated this. The Vagabond was the only place I felt at home on…

“It’s uh…” I paused as I watched the mated pair. Ziame was hovering over Abby, his big body caging her into the chair, his long agile tail tucked into the crook of her elbow. Always touching, always close if they were in the same room together. I really wanted that for myself. Abigail was independent and strong, but she let her mate hover over her whenever he wanted to because she knew that was what Ziame needed.

“I wanted to let you guys know that I wish to stay behind on Rakex with the refugees,” I said firmly. I crossed my upper arms over my chest, perched my lower hands on my hips, and tried to look confident about my decision even if it made me feel like I was splitting myself in two.

Abigail pressed her hand to her mouth, her eyes sparkling at me. She didn’t think I was serious, or maybe she thought it was funny. Every single one of my brothers and their mates seemed to know that my mating instincts had connected with Meena, that she was my one. I’d overheard Thorin trying to goad Fierce into betting with him on when I’d finally win her over. I didn’t think Abby would approve of that kind of betting.

The Captain had a much more serious response, so I chose to focus on him; that was easier. The Lacerten male crossed his arms over his chest to mirror my posture. His tail lifted to jab in my direction, “I see. Is that what you really want?” he said calmly, his deep voice rumbling so deeply that I felt it in my stomach.

No, of course it wasn’t. I wanted to stay on the Vagabond and have Meena stay with me. But we hadn’t even had a single conversation, instead, she avoided me, and everyone else kept telling me to stay away or leave her alone. I knew she was hurt. I wanted to help her, but how could I when no one would even let me talk to her? So this was my only option.

“What I want, I can’t have,” I said, hoping my frustration wasn’t burning too brightly in the spots across my face. “So this is the compromise I have to make, for now.” There, that sounded calm and confident, as if I actually knew what I was talking about. I was good at many practical things, which made me confident that I’d find work on Rakex; I’d just have to make sure it was work that would allow me to see Meena. I was so certain that once she got to talking with me, really talking, she’d feel the connection between us just like I did.

Ziame pulled his blunt snout into a disapproving look and I felt that look hit me hard. “You can’t stay on Rakex, Jakar. It’s not a good idea.” Anger surged through me, tinting my spots red but I bit my tongue before I replied. Ziame was an excellent captain. He must have a reason for saying no. Did he need me for something else?

“Why not?” I demanded, still sounding angry but at least Ziame didn’t seem to mind that. He wasn’t responding with aggression of his own. Instead, he came around the desk, palms open at his sides in what was obviously an attempt to keep me calm. His green eyes were sympathetic and his mobile ears drooping down and back a little.

“Because it would make the refugees feel uncomfortable, especially the women. Besides, your home is here, on the Vagabond. We will come back again in a few months, keep contact. You’ll have your chance then. She needs to heal first.” Ziame kept talking but my brain stopped listening and a buzzing started up in my head. Months? Leave her unprotected for months? I couldn’t possibly do that…

There it was again. They thought I was being detrimental to her well-being by being around her. How could that possibly be true when I was her mate? How could they know what she needed? Had they asked her? She was collecting my daily little gifts, wasn’t she? Had she said something to Abby or Ziame about it?

Abigail was standing next to me now too, her hand landing gently on one of my wrists, patting me. Her eyes were full of sympathy as she tried to explain it to me, but I’d heard all of these explanations over and over already. I didn’t need to hear them again. I was one of the youngest males on the ship so I had to accept that they knew what they were talking about since they were all saying it.

Turning around without a word, I marched from the office so I could retreat. Months? I had to wait months while she was alone on Rakex? It went against all my instincts to let that happen, yet somehow, I must.

*

Meena

There was no gift this morning, the morning of the day that we’d be arriving on Rakex. Most of the other humans were looking forward to arriving, to being outside again, not me. And the lack of a gift made me incredibly sad, even if I’d scoffed each morning that I’d found one. Why no gift today?