“It was a senseless loss of life. Why did they attack us? Do we even know for certain?” I thought of the mothers and fathers who had lost their sons, and my anger dried up my tears.
Drex said, “We captured a few of them and question them now, even as we speak. They were ordered to take the metal alloy.”
“How did they know we had it?” I asked.
“They had been closely monitoring Militia ships while searching for it. When we found it, we attracted their notice. They wouldn’t have dared to openly attack a Militia ship, but a lone Parvac warship in their territory was a different matter.” Drex handed me a hot cup of coffee.
Yukihyo asked, “Who hired them?”
“I will find out,” Drex vowed.
Approaching us, but keeping a respectful distance, a pilot made eye contact with me and then saluted. When I saluted in return, he bowed to me and then disappeared back into the crowd.
Noticing that I was puzzled by the man’s behavior, Dario explained. “You earned their respect as a pilot today. You already had mine even before you flew to my defense. Thank you for that by the way.”
Blushing at the unexpected praise, I said, “I had help. Yukihyo handled the weapons. All I had to do was fly. He did all of the fancy shooting.” The blush refused to leave my cheeks. A twinge had my hand involuntarily going to my lower back.
Seeing it, Dario said, “Will you walk or shall I carry you out?” His tone held no room for compromise, so I took the arm he offered me.
He escorted me to my bedroom, undressed both of us, and got into bed beside me, sharing with me his warmth. I was asleep before I knew it.
Chapter Ten
The Empress docked on Arachne a full two days ahead of us. Having sustained heavy damage, our warship had limped into Arachnean space under Militia escort. Captain Espanoza was doing her job, and I got some small satisfaction in knowing it had to sour her stomach to be protecting a Parvac warship, one which had been attacked for possessing the alloy that we’d stolen back from her. Yes, I was still mad at her. My hero had been an asshole to me, and her behavior had made her seem less legendary and more mundane. After all, if she was so great, why did she feel the need to belittle me?
At least, I’d proven to myself and the pilots aboard Cormac’s ship that I could be useful. During times of adversity, it was important to prove one’s worth. I considered myself fortunate. I was being allowed to disembark. However, Clark, along with the rest of our team, hadn’t been so lucky. They had been put to work with the rest of the crew making repairs.
I sat in the back of Cormac’s personal transport with Yukihyo and Thunderdrop. Most of my Omnes Videntes had been awaiting us at the land port. Into my thoughts, Xavier said, “We need to learn who hired them, an answer only to be found in the mind of one of their leaders. No record or evidence from their communications was to be found in their computers or personal logs.”
I rubbed at the sudden chills on my arms. The pirates had pissed off a ship filled with Inquisitors, and they wouldn’t be letting it go. No Parvac citizen in his or her right mind wanted the notice of even one Inquisitor.
I watched the play of light through the trees during our drive. Thunderdrop could barely contain his excitement. We found Neema, Niklos, Peter, and Poppy playing in Simon’s pool with their cousin Susanna.
“Mommy! Mommy! Mommy! Watch me!” Neema climbed out of the pool and jumped in.
I clapped. “Wow!” I watched the children swimming like little fish, fast and slippery. Two big arms circled me, and I got kisses on both cheeks and my forehead.
“Hello, sweet cousin. It’s about time you arrived. We’ve been waiting for you.”
“Simon, give her a chance to catch her breath,” Isidora scolded. Smiling, she took Simon’s place and embraced me. “You look radiant.”
“So, do you. It looks like Simon is keeping you knocked up.” I grinned at her belly, and she raised a dove-grey eyebrow at mine. Both of us laughed.
All Isidora, Simon’s Enyo wife, had ever wanted was children, and my cousin seemed willing to give her as many as she wanted.
“Are you hungry?” she asked.
“Oh, yes. When am I not?”
A male cleared his throat. Turning in his direction, I saw Stewart, Simon and Isidora’s butler. He stood beside a table he’d set and motioned grandiosely at its surface. Laughing, I went to him and hugged him.
“Hello, Stewart. I’ve missed you and your cooking.”
“Indeed, Lady Alaric Montgomery Lee.” He pulled out our chairs and encouraged us to dig into the cheesy noodles and freshly baked rolls.
Yukihyo had changed into a pair of swim trunks and jumped into the pool with Simon and the kids.
Isidora and I had just finished devouring every bite Stewart put before us when Eliot arrived. He was dressed for camping.
Isidora exclaimed, “The two of you are incorrigible!” She shook her finger at Cass and ZeeZee, the bonded Silk spiders of my two cousins. “And even the two of you couldn’t convince them to give her a day to enjoy her family and home?”
Dripping water on his wife when he took the remnants of a roll from her plate, Simon said, “She’ll get to enjoy our company.”
She swatted him away, and he hurried into the house to change.
Eliot said, “I’ve laid clothes out on your bed, and your gear is packed. Let’s go.”
Shaking my head and grinning, I stood when he pulled out my chair, gave my wet children kisses, and went up to my room at Simon and Isidora’s house to change. With the way they were growing their family, I didn’t think it would be mine for much longer which made me smile. The room was exactly as I had left it. A vase full of fresh Salvia, which grew around the pool, graced the top of a table. Through the uncovered floor to ceiling window, I could see the courtyard and pool where Yukihyo played with the children. Little heads of dove-grey, blonde, brown, and red swam around him and splashed him with water. Pierce and Lorca sat on the pool’s edges, ready to help, not that Yukihyo couldn’t handle the kids. I looked between him and Isidora.
Yukihyo had wanted her as his wife years ago. He’d been able to form a bond with her, but she’d rejected him. Later, we had learned she’d spurned his advances because she’d been unable to give him what he wanted more than anything, children. However, medical advances had cured her infertility. Now, she was Simon’s wife, and Yukihyo was my husband. Pushing fear and jealousy from my mind, I dressed in the soft silky cargo pants, appreciating the soft stretchy fabric over my stomach, and matching pale blue shirt with which I’d been provided. Eliot had made certain the clothes would accommodate my twin baby bump. I put on the comfortable brown jacket and pair of knee-high boots.
“Are you almost ready?” Simon called impatiently from the hall.
“Just a minute.” I made a visit to the waste unit and feared it would be my last civilized pee for a few days. It all depended on how difficult the wild forest spiders intended to make our recovery efforts. Simon and Eliot’s feelings of curiosity and eagerness made me laugh. Stepping into the hall, I joined my redheaded cousin.
“What is it that so amuses you, sweet cousin?” Linking our arms together, he guided me into the lift.
“You and Eliot do.”
“Well, you’ll have to forgive us. We have been relishing the idea of uncovering the nature of this mystery and have planned in advance for almost every conceivable contingency.”
I knew what that meant. Everything we might need was packed and ready to go. Outside, Eliot sat in the driver’s seat of a long, flatbed transport. Three rollers, each of which had a short loaded down trailer attached, were on it.
“We have food, water, tents, blankets, clothing, and everything else we might need. All we have lacked is you.”
“Chirp!”
Thunderdrop, Cass, and ZeeZee were perched on top of the transport’s cab where they intended to ride. Opening the door, Simon lifted me up and onto the seat. I rolled my eyes at him.
“D
on’t be cross with me. I’ve given my word of honor to Yukihyo and several other terrifying males to keep you safe.”
“Oh, Simon, they know how much my two handsome cousins love me.”
Eliot said, “They do, and it is the only reason they have allowed you to accompany us.”
Scowling, I said, “I don’t require permission. I would have come along with you regardless of any objections.”
Simon took my hand. “Please, don’t be cross.”
“I didn’t mean to offend you,” Eliot said quietly.
“I know. I can feel your emotions with the same clarity with which you feel mine, but you need to understand something. They didn’t argue because they understand I can take care of myself. Not even Cormac argued against me piloting a fighter during the pirate attack on his warship.”
“What?” Eliot yelled. His feelings of abject terror stunned me, distracting me from the way he swerved and almost left the road.
“Don’t worry. Yukihyo was my copilot and handled the weapons so I could concentrate on keeping us from being targeted.”
“Chitter! Clack!” ZeeZee admonished from above.
“My apologies!” Eliot called up to him.
During the drive to the untamed forest, I told them about the battle. Simon turned so pale that his freckles looked even redder.
Eliot said, “Perhaps, it would be better if you were to remain on Arachne until after your twins are born.”
“No, Eliot. Anyway, I’m sure Dario and Fitz’s parents would be devastated if they weren’t there for the birth of their granddaughters. You’ll instantly adore Dario’s sweet mother the moment you meet her. Besides, the longer I’m away from Momma, the clingier she’ll be when I return.” I smiled at the thought.
“You don’t seem to be bothered by the idea. In fact, you seem oddly pleased,” Eliot observed.
I shrugged. “I always wanted a mother, and now I have one. Just between us, she got on my nerves a little at first, but then I realized it’s new to her. She’s learning how to mother, and I’m learning to be mothered. She was in stasis, robbed of her life, for most of mine. As we get to know each other, we get along better. I’m grateful to have her in my life, and she and Papa are teaching me a valuable lesson that I never really learned on my own growing up.”
“Which is?” Simon asked.
I watched the tall green trees as we drove by them and then looked through the windshield at the winding road before us. “How to stand up for myself. I’m not so easy to boss around anymore or control these days.” I knew I was different. I was stronger, more confident, and I knew my worth. In fact, I was worth two and a half billion credits at last count.
“Rather smug, isn’t she?” Simon asked.
“Indeed. When did she become so… imperialistic?” Eliot asked.
I scowled at both of them. Then, I realized they were teasing me, and our laughter filled the transport. Grey road continued to disappear behind us as we travelled farther away from Arachnean civilization. Within the unfamiliar forest, remnants of old abandoned webs fell toward the ground and stirred slightly in the breeze.
“What a waste of silk,” Simon muttered.
“They won’t let us have their vacated webs?”
Eliot said, “These spiders aren’t fond of humanoid visitors. They cling to their old ways and to the times before humans settled on their planet. Arachne once belonged solely to them, and some of them resent our presence. Therefore, we leave forests such as this one untouched.” He turned the transport off the road, parking it alongside in the grass.
Up ahead, the trees looked almost as if they were shrouded in snow. Seeing the direction in which I had turned my gaze, Simon said, “That is where the Enforcers attempted to enter.”
Looking twenty feet up at an enshrouded roller, I said, “Damn.”
My cousins opened their doors. Simon said, “Exactly, they dare not enter. Doing so could prove fatal after the warning they were delivered. Regardless, hostilities with our arachnids are inconceivable.”
“Oh, I couldn’t agree more. When Thunderdrop is unhappy with me, it gives me a sick feeling.”
Eliot nodded. “It is the way with us as well. Arachnean blood will tell,” he said as he winked at me.
Turning toward Simon, I took the assistance he offered and got my feet on the ground. Shining black eyes watched us from the trees. Catching a glimpse of long black legs and a grey abdomen, I whistled to get the spider’s attention. “Thunderdrop, will you ask them if we can enter their forest and find the thing that fell from the stars?”
Jumping to my shoulders, he chirped, clicked, and clacked with ZeeZee and Cass adding their voices to his.
Silence was our answer.
The feelings of worry were shared amongst us, but we decided to make an effort to enter. From where we stood and within the forest, I saw a ball. “What’s that?”
“We left an offering a few days ago,” Eliot said.
As per usual, they refused my offer to help unload the rollers from the transport. “Here you are, sweet cousin.” Simon gestured at a modified roller.
I scrunched my face up at it. Plasti shielding had been strategically affixed to the frame, like the safety precautions placed on toy rollers for children. Smiling, he returned an innocent stare. Knowing the modifications would protect the babies and me, I conceded. I shook my head and gave him a kiss on the cheek, accepting the helmet he offered me.
Eliot asked, “ZeeZee, what is their mood? Should we enter, will they attack?”
The gigantic spider sent his feelings of uncertainty to his bonded human. Cass and Thunderdrop shared similar feelings with Simon and me.
Simon said, “We mean you no harm. All we wish is to retrieve the fallen object and leave.” He scanned the trees with his pale blue eyes. “Alright. We’ve waited for quite some time. Let’s get on with it. Shall we?”
Thunderdrop hopped onto the cart attached to my roller while I mounted the seat and donned my helmet. Cass and ZeeZee adopted similar positions behind Simon and Eliot.
“Stay between us,” Eliot ordered.
My feelings betrayed me. His bossiness reminded me of his brother and his recent treatment of me.
“Is something the matter?” he asked.
I could feel his concern washing over me like a cool, clean rain. “Have you spoken to your brother recently?” Annoyance was thick in my tone and mood.
“My brother? Is he not still your own beloved cousin?” Eliot raised a black eyebrow at me.
Meeting his eyes, I didn’t know how to answer. “Does Eric ever play mean pranks on you?”
He and Simon burst out into raucous laughter which they quickly brought under control at the behest of our spiders.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
Neither of them shared details with me.
“ZeeZee and I will go first. Wait for my signal. However, if they don’t attack me, I’d say chances are it’s safe for you to follow.”
He took his roller forward through a narrow path between tree trunks too large for my arms to go around. After a few feet, he had to stop and wait for ZeeZee to cut through thick curtain-like webs with his claws. White strands caught at his jacket like skeletal fingers, too weak to hold him back. ZeeZee’s actions and movements made only the slightest wisps of sound. Rather than returning to his seat on the cart behind Eliot’s roller, he kept in front of him, leading the way through the haze of webs.
I moved my roller forward, keeping no more than three feet between us. Thunderdrop’s claws were on each of my arms, and he kept his cephalothorax above my helmet. I didn’t know why he was so nervous. The spiders hadn’t killed any trespassers yet, at least of whom we knew. Once we all had cleared the tree line, I noticed them. Shadowed arachnid forms surrounded us.
“Eliot,” Simon warned.
“I see them.” He stopped his roller.
Each of us stopped and watched as they moved stealthily closer, like an army of death, a black crawling
wave of strong jaws and venomous, dripping fangs. Thunderdrop tightened his grip on me. I watched as ZeeZee dropped to cover Eliot with his large body, caging him within long, segmented legs. Claws shredded the webs to my right, and I screamed as hundreds of long black legs poured out from behind the curtain of silk webbing. The shining black eyes, too numerous to count, weren’t affixed on me but the empty space beside me. They attacked thin air, mummifying nothing. My heart hammered in my chest as the thin air fought back with all of the effectiveness of a fly against a frog. The air took the form of a humanoid, a large one, as the spiders’ sticky butt glue gave it shape.
“Clack! Clack! Chitter chirp clack!” Thunderdrop vocalized to the army of spiders.
They slowed in their spinning and left the humanoid figure, shrouded in silk, hanging inches from the ground. Thunderdrop severed the lines with his claws and caught the figure, preventing it from falling to the forest floor which was littered with leaves and twisted, dirty strands of silk. Instead, he lowered the figure gently. It started to rain, and I looked around wondering how it could have found its way through the thick canopy of leaves and the heavy blanketing of webs. Then, I saw that it wasn’t rain but the dripping of venom from the deadly fangs of arachnids too numerous to count. I swallowed against the dryness in my throat. Thunderdrop sliced through the shroud of silk, freeing the male from within it. I wasn’t shocked or even surprised to discover the interloper’s identity.
Simon said, “Kaoti, we suggest to you not to come. You do not have a bonded Silk spider companion. Not even our own Arachnean Enforcers have been allowed admittance into this forest.”
Kaoti sat, and with Thunderdrop’s continued assistance, managed to free himself.
The spiders moved in on us, preparing to aggressively defend their territory.
“I go where she goes. Always,” my bodyguard stubbornly stated.
Simon said, “Then, I fear we shall go nowhere, neither forward nor back.”
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