The Colossus Collection : A Space Opera Adventure (Books 1-7 + Bonus Material)

by Nicole Grotepas

  Someone wearing a mask of a Yasoan death figure—a skull of wood, with horns like multi pronged sticks poking up, wearing a cloak of white and black to represent balance—leaned close to get Holly’s attention as they passed her by.

  The figure tapped Holly on the leg with a cane made of gnarled wood and motioned like they were tipping their hat. They wordlessly pointed at the lights lining the street as though to say “light comes back to the world.”

  Holly nodded, feeling oddly singled out. Maybe they hoped it would be helpful.

  They kept moving, leaving her alone with the cold, hollow feeling inside herself that everything good in her world had vanished. Was there any reason to hope? What could she do next?

  26

  The sense of Death having stared right at her gripped her in an icy hand. What could she do, short of ditching Iain and going after Odeon with complete disregard for plans and conventions?

  There was an answer in there somewhere—in the specter of a costumed death figure noticing her.

  Was that how all things in life were? An either/or? You either lived or you let death take you?

  Maybe that was it. If Iain wanted other women, and wanted to invite them up into his living space, fine. It was his life. He could live it how he wanted.

  And she would choose to not live it with him. He was free to go.

  “Holly? What the hell? Why are you sitting on wet steps in the snow across from Iain’s shop?”

  Holly looked up into the face of her sister, Meg. Gabe hovered behind her. The Alley pedestrians in their costumes moved around them like a river parting for boulders.

  “Hey kiddo. You alright?” Gabe asked.

  There was no hope of getting Gabe to stop calling her that. She sighed.

  “I’m fine. Mostly.”

  She watched Gabe and Meg exchange what could only be described as guilty glances.

  “What’s going on? Why are you guys in the Alley? Where did you come from?”

  “Er, just passing through.” Meg shot Gabe another look.

  Suspicious.

  “Yeah, Hols, just having a walk.”

  Holly arched an eyebrow. “Together? At eight pm? So you’re dating again. Is that it?”

  Meg scoffed. Gabe frowned at her and shook his head, muttering under his breath.

  Meg cleared her throat. “Sorry. Just. No, no, of course not.”

  “Then what? You on a case?”

  Gabe took up that one. “That’s right. A case.” He looked up and down the alley and squinted. “Hunting a killer. Again.”

  “Both of you, tonight? Who’s with Lucy?“

  “Ixion’s father’s whore, Holly. Fine. You win. You should be a cop. You take after dad,” Meg said, buckling. “Since you haven’t been calling or coming by or even returning our calls, we came to ask your boyfriend if you're ok.”

  “Why didn’t you just call me?”

  “We have! You don’t return the calls!” Meg was totally indignant, her favorite way to be.

  Holly pulled her communicator out and turned it on, realizing as she did so that it had been turned off for a while. And before that, she’d been incredibly tied up on the space platform.

  “Did you just leave Grant’s then? Were you guys there? Was there anyone else with him?

  “No, just us,” Gabe said, eyeing Holly suspiciously.

  So it was them inside Iain’s. Not a hot woman he was dating who was stealing him from her.

  “And what did Iain say? About me?“

  Another exchanged look.

  “Will you guys please stop doing that? If you have something to say to me, just come out and say it already.”

  “He's worried about you.”

  “But that’s it,” Meg added. “That's all he would say.”

  “Boring. So you didn’t come away with any hot gossip you could share with me? Is he unhappy? Does he wish I’d stop gallivanting around the 6 Moons—as though I want to keep doing that.”

  “Nothing like that, no, Holly,” Gabe said.

  “I guess that’s good, then. He’s not my parent, or my husband, or I don’t know… my keeper.” She was at a loss for words, really. Feeling all mixed up inside. “And for that matter, neither are you.”

  “In some ways, though, I am,” Meg said. “Been looking out for you from the day you were born.”

  “So you’re suggesting that a three-year-old can watch a baby?” Holly said, her breath rising before her in a vapor. Her butt was ready to fall off from being frozen. She stood up and dusted the snow off. But it was too late. Her pants were soaked through. If she wasn’t mistaken, her underwear was also sopping. Her teeth started to chatter involuntarily.

  “How much have you been around a three-year old, sister?” Meg asked, squinting.

  “Very little.”

  “There’s your problem. A three-year-old is pretty damn smart.” Meg suddenly seemed awkward, as though she’d suggested something dickish. Everyone stopped, considered what Meg had said, and then focused their gazes elsewhere.

  “What was that?” Holly asked.

  “Hmm. What?”

  “Is’t not a big deal. I’m sure someday I’ll have the chance to have a kid.”

  “If you want one.”

  “Who knows. At this rate. The world’s a pretty ugly bitch half the time.”

  “That’s why it’d be good for someone as amazing as you to raise a decent human,” Gabe said.

  “Well, thanks. I guess. I’m sure that’s what George thought—he was amazing and would raise some decent humans.”

  Gabe grinned. “I’m sure. And he did. I can vouch for that.”

  “Fine, Meg will sleep with you,” Holly said for Meg. “So I need to go get out of these wet clothes. It was nice to run into you two, and thanks for worrying about me.” She gave them each besos and hugs and wove through the swelling festival crowd as she crossed the street to Iain’s.

  “Thanks a lot, Hols! I knew she would,” Gabe called after her.

  Holly heard Meg chewing him out. Their voices faded as she climbed the steps to Iain’s shop. She rang the bell and waited.

  Her heart battered against her ribs in a ferocious pattern, a percussive jarring that shook her entire body. Would he welcome her in? Did he still hold a grudge even after seeing her days ago—that night had felt stilted and complicated, like they’d really not gotten over things.

  She could imagine his face before she even saw it, and the vision of it stopped her heart, then sped it up in fits and starts. She bit her lip. She wanted him so much. But she couldn’t show him. She’d have to hide it, forever, probably, except for once in a while, if it was good for the moment. Iain could never really know how much she longed for him, to impress him, to be admired and respected by him, to be regarded as his equal in almost all things—and the things where she wasn’t, that those were things he could teach her. And what of her? Were there things that she could do that he never could?

  She wanted to build something amazing with him. If there was anyone in all the 6 Moons that she could do that with, it was Iain Grant.

  And she really only just realized it. Maybe it was how close she’d come to losing him, to feeling like he’d moved on without her.

  She saw his figure behind the dark glass of his shop front door, just as she’d imagined. His black and gray hair was wild and messy. His blue eyes seemed almost black through the glass, but inviting. That feeling of them studying her sank deep into her marrow, like she’d just been hollowed out by the gaze of desire. A faint, hesitant smile touched his lips.

  He opened the door wide and pulled her inside. She brought the cold night air with her.

  Without a word, she fell into his arms.

  27

  After a suitable amount of making up, after feeling like they’d really put the specter of disagreement behind them, they lay in Iain’s bed, in darkness that didn’t feel so lonely.

  Candles flickered along the dresser on the far wall.

  �
��Tell me everything that’s happened since I saw you last.”

  What did she say? Did she tell him about her worry when she saw Meg in his window?

  Probably not.

  “You go first,” Holly said, remembering that what had happened was that she’d failed Odeon. Would Iain understand? Would he say things that made her feel worse? If he did, she could take it. But she didn’t want to fight, not yet.

  “My life is boring. The way I like it. The life I signed up for.”

  “Except when it’s not.”

  “Yes, well, that painting downstairs? That added a bit of excitement with the shenanigans and such. But that’s it. The only time it’s extra thrilling is when I get mixed up with you and your crew.”

  She rolled away from him and snuggled up with the pillow on her side of the bed, folding it under her face. She watched him over her arms while laying on her stomach.

  “Don’t watch me like that.” Even in the meager light, she could see his eyes glittering in fun.

  “Why not?”

  “It’s unfair. I’m completely exposed, and now I can’t see your body.”

  “Ha. You’ve seen it enough. Enjoy the mystery for a moment.”

  “I do love a good mystery.”

  The night was still early, but was she ready to delve into the trash bin fire the past few days had become?

  “It makes you want me more. I have to play all the angles I can. And I don’t mind when you’re on display for me.”

  “I don’t mind it either. How does it feel to have nabbed a god like myself?”

  “Satisfying. I deserve it.”

  “I won’t argue that.”

  “Iain,” she said, turning serious. If she didn’t say it now, she’d never dig in. And she couldn’t run from it forever. “I botched rescuing Odeon.”

  He sat up on one arm on his side. It was distracting. But now that the words were out there, she felt a sickness welling up in her. It was completely unfair of her to have been enjoying the night—Iain’s body, the intimacy, his soul, even—while her best friend was somewhere being mistreated.

  But she had to center herself. Needed the clarity and connection.

  “What happened?” His tone was serious, but lacked condemnation. And he didn’t try to soothe her away from accepting blame.

  She told him her version of the events—from Angelo building a replica orrery to Magna crushing it and Holly missing the opportunity to simply blast Magna with a gun, fight her thugs, and get Odeon.

  “So you’ve been working on this rescue a while, then?”

  “Several days at least.”

  “You did everything I would have done. Attempt a rescue without collateral damage. But there are always trade offs like that—risks. You knew that it could go wrong. But would you have felt at peace with it in the long run to know that you had blood on your hands to get him?”

  “I’m not always sure about that. I have killed before and didn’t like it. Does anyone? I think that in these cases, the best road to take is the one that promises the least amount of regret. If Magna was a casualty of rescuing Odeon, I’d prefer to live with that regret than the regret that he died because I couldn’t bring myself to do what I had to.

  “The world is a better place with him in it, and shittier with her in it. I want to follow the belief that people can change, but would I stake Odeon’s life on the possibility that she’d change someday and bring goodness to the world?”

  She rolled over onto her back and stared up at the black emptiness above his bed. Light spilled around the edges of the shades and made patterns on the ceiling.

  “That’s more like it,” Iain said, a growl entering his voice.

  “Stay on subject.” Her cheeks went hot in embarrassment. “I need a mission statement. Or something. Because these ideas get foggy when I’m in the middle of the heat. When I can’t tell if I’m acting irrationally and crazed because my heart is involved. And this is full of nuance—they’re not simple black and white answers. They’re complicated. But, you know, Odeon. There are just people you’d do anything for and the answer ought to be easy.”

  “As much as it pains me to say, I think we should get dressed and work together on a plan to handle this. I’ll be your sounding board. I’ll make us something to eat, put some drinks together, and solve this with you.”

  Four days ago she would have said no way, I’ll handle it. But she’d screwed up one attempt. She couldn’t do that again.

  “Perfect.”

  * * *

  “Give them the orrery,” Iain said.

  She scoffed. “Not helpful.”

  “You said Xadrian said it was fake anyway.”

  “I don’t know if he knows what he’s talking about. It might be a fake. It might be real. He doesn’t even know what he’s looking for. We have nothing to compare it do.”

  “Weren’t you going to sell the real one for an incredibly high amount.” He flipped a pancake on the griddle.

  “Yes, and it was going to help me build my own fleet.” Holly’s stomach growled, as the aroma of food wafted around the room. He’d given her a mimosa as well. She sipped it.

  “And why haven’t you sold it yet, then?”

  She pursed her lips. Honesty. Honesty first. “Because it might be more than just a pretty bauble.”

  “What might it be?”

  “I’m not even sure. I’m wondering if it’s a map or something.”

  “Isn’t it rather small to be a map?”

  “Yes, but what if it’s something like—I don’t know? What if it shows the position of something important, like another inhabited galaxy?”

  Iain laughed, removing a pancake and pouring batter onto the griddle. “The space between galaxies makes even trying to travel to another galaxy completely stupid. Even if a galaxy is only twenty five thousand light years away, that’s a preposterous distance to travel to get somewhere.”

  “Wormholes, Iain,” she said, taking a long sip on her mimosa then setting it down. “The point I’m making is that maybe it does more than just look nice or have secret compartments. I know there’s no secret compartment now anyway, because Angelo would have found it if this one had them. So, if the one in my possession is real and it’s not got a secret compartment, then there has to be another reason that it’s so sought after. People seem willing to go to battle to keep it in their possession.”

  “Having been privy to state secrets, I know there are countless things the Centaus keep from us.”

  “Yes? When are you going to start telling me those? What’s a woman got to do to get you to tell her? Sleep with you? I’m doing that and getting nowhere.”

  He laughed and dumped another finished pancake onto the stack. “Sleep with me more and maybe I’ll tell you.”

  “I’m starting to think I’ll never get special favors for sleeping with you. So, no on the orrery. And anyway, at this point I don’t think Magna would buy that I’m giving her a real orrery. I think she’d break this one too, even though it’s the only one I know of.”

  “Then that leaves just tracking her down and grabbing your friend through a brute force attack, or even a sneaky one.”

  Holly watched him saying it. But he wasn’t joking. He was serious.

  “So, Magna had a plant at the school. He was there the day I went by, and he was with her when I saw Odeon. They fought, didn’t seem to get along. It sounded like Magna was being forced to keep track of him, by Voss. And neither of them liked that. But, all that makes me think that maybe they’re hiding out on the mining platform. Maybe Yohab and Magna were leading the kid-stealing operation, and taking Odeon was Magna’s idea, to just screw with me. And now she’s got to babysit him.”

  “I see where you’re heading with this. Seems legit. Do you think Voss knows Magna has Odeon?” He got out plates and handed Holly two pancakes and scooted the selection of toppings across the counter to her.

  “I doubt it. I wonder if she was told to get the orrery back and she�
��s shorting out trying to do it. Grasping at straws, getting desperate.”

  Iain prepared himself a pancake and stood to eat it as they continued to chat. “She does sound unhinged, based on what you’ve told me.”

  “And I haven’t got any other ideas. The only other places I’ve personally run into the SC since George left is Itzcap. But that doesn’t mesh well with the kids angle.” She paused, imagining what the next step should be. “I say we take Trip’s ship to the mining base. You coming?”

  “I don’t know. I want to do something, though. Odeon is the one I like the most of your crew.”

  “Then you should help. Follow your conscience.”

  “Charly is also pretty great.”

  “She’s impossible not to love. Her vibe is so easygoing, when she’s not intentionally ticking someone off.”

  He laughed. “I just dig a no-nonsense woman. My kind of woman. Since we’re talking about it, Darius is also decent.”

  Holly studied him, waiting for him to mention Shiro. But he was mysteriously hesitant. “No Shiro?”

  He smiled and twitched his shoulder, ignoring the question. “Odeon might be worth leaving these comforts behind.”

  28

  “Reaching the mining base will take some time, Holly Drake,” Trip said, looking up from studying a v-screen.

  She relaxed on the sofa near the coffee table. It’d been a while since Holly had seen Trip in the Bird’s Nest. It was nice—having Odeon gone was getting old. She missed his form in the room. That wasn’t all that she missed, it was just an interesting observation to consider all the ways she missed him. His laugh. His voice. His hair, his eyes, the shape of him moving through space and parting the air. He evoked balance and calm and she missed his stabilizing presence in her life.

  “Longer than normal?” Holly asked, wondering what normal was.

  “What is normal? The base is in orbit. We are in orbit on Kota. I’m planning our route and what I know of the trajectory, and how long it will take us to travel based on the locations of all the objects I must consider.”