by Aileen Erin
A cold rush of fear made my skin light brighter than the North Star, and I slowly rose from my chair.
Seri leaned back in her chair and looked up at me. “Did you really think it was wise to come into a room with someone who wants you dead?”
I widened my stance and relaxed a little. If she wanted a fight, I was ready. “I lived in a place before where everyone—everyone—wanted me dead. I’m not afraid of you.”
She tilted her head and then ran her fingertip over her wrist unit, and there was a slight, oh-so-subtle shift in the frequency. A soft buzzing that had me glancing at the door.
And when I looked back at her, it all became clear.
The mask of rejected lover fell from Seri, and I was looking at Seri for who she was—a political activist.
She wasn’t a jealous lover. She was doing this for the Aunare people.
And when she killed me and died in the process, she would be a hero.
I’d fallen for her plan. She wanted me in the room all along. Not to talk to me, but to make sure the job was done properly.
Oh shit.
I ran to the door, but it wouldn’t open. “Lorne. Get this door open before the bomb explodes. Like right the fuck now.”
“I killed the security feed. It’s just you and me in here. If I know Lorne, he’s trying like crazy to get that door open, but it’ll be too late.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” I ran at her, slammed her head into the table, and knocked her out. At least I didn’t have to listen to her annoying voice anymore.
Okay. So, there was a bomb on her body somewhere. I had zero clue what an Aunare bomb looked like. Shit. I didn’t even know what a SpaceTech bomb looked like. Anything more than something made on the street was beyond me, but I wasn’t about to die. Not today.
I dragged Seri to the ground and started patting her down. I pulled off her shoes. The frequency buzzing moved faster, and my heart raced to catch up with it.
“Damn it.” I looked at her again. I hadn’t asked much about my room, but it was clearly destroyed. I’d gone by it, but the whole wing was blocked off. I assumed something like that had to be big, but Almya said it was a small toy.
What if the bomb Seri had was smaller this time?
I was assuming that her wrist unit was the detonator, but what if it was the actual bomb?
I grabbed her wrist, put my ear next to the watch, and quickly away. The frequency shift was so loud it nearly burst my eardrum.
I rubbed behind my ear and tried to think quickly.
I knew what the bomb was. Now, how was I supposed to defuse it?
Even if I had any tools—which I didn’t—I wasn’t trained to defuse anything. I didn’t know how to do that. No clue. None at all.
I was so screwed if that door didn’t open.
The frequency shifted faster.
Fuck it.
I ripped the device off her wrist and placed it on the ground.
One. Two.
Three. I slammed my fist down on it as hard as I could but screamed as two of my fingers broke, and I was pretty sure a couple other bones in my hand were toast, too.
Goddammedshit.
I was not dying today.
I grabbed the chair and started slamming it into the wrist unit over and over and over again. My skin grew brighter and brighter with each slam of the chair.
The fucking wrist unit didn’t even get a scratch on it.
What the hell was it made of?
Jesus. That didn’t fucking matter right now.
My skin was so bright—too bright—and my fao’ana started flickering. I felt a rush of energy that made tingles rush through my bones.
I slammed the chair down again.
“Break!”
I slammed again.
“Break!”
The frequency picked up again. And then stopped. Then one tick. Two ticks.
Oh god.
A drip of sweat rolled down my cheek.
I might not know anything about bombs, but I knew what that meant.
I was so dead.
No. No. I wasn’t quitting. Not until I was dead. And I wasn’t dying today. Not because of Lorne’s bitch of an ex.
“Break, you piece of shit!” I screamed with everything I had, slammed the chair down, and the buzzing stopped.
I lifted up the chair, but the watch was gone.
“What the hell?”
My breath was still heaving out of me, and I knelt on the floor next to a small pile of dust.
The door slid open, and Lorne froze in the doorway. Roan pushed past him. He was talking to me, but I was just as frozen as Lorne.
Solan and Fynea pushed past him next. They might have said something to me before checking Seri.
The glow on my skin dimmed to nothing. “I don’t know. I don’t know.” All I knew was that my head was buzzing and it felt like every bone in my body was still vibrating, like someone had taken a tuning fork to them.
“Is she alive?” Lorne asked.
“Alive, but in need of medical attention,” Solan answered. “I can’t find the bomb. The alarms wouldn’t lie. They went off as soon as she activated it. But I can’t find it.”
I blinked a few times as Lorne knelt in front of me.
His hands cupped my cheeks. “Amihanna?”
I licked my lips. “I knocked her out, but she had a bomb. She was going to blow both of us up. Her and me.”
“I know that, but where’s the bomb?”
“I don’t know. I don’t…”
“Where’s the bomb?”
I shook my head, trying to clear my mind, but there was this loud buzzing coming from inside my head—like a hive of bees were trapped inside my skull—and I couldn’t quite think.
He pressed his forehead to mine. “Take a breath, and then tell me where the bomb is.”
I swallowed. It wasn’t about breathing. It was that I didn’t understand. “It was in her wrist unit.”
“There’s no wrist unit here!” Fynea sounded panicked. “I can’t find a wrist unit on her stupid body anywhere.”
“I think I broke my hand trying to smash it, but then I got pissed and…” I pulled away from Lorne and picked up a bit of the dust with my good hand and stared at it for a minute before letting it fall through my fingers.
Lorne grabbed me, hugging me so tightly that I could feel his heart pounding. “You did it.”
“Yeah, but what? I should be dead now, but—”
“You’re not.” Lorne pulled away. “Wait. You said you broke your hand?” He ran his fingers down my arms, looking at my left hand before stopping with my right. “Shit. It’s already swelling.”
I nodded, but I wasn’t sure why I was nodding. “It doesn’t really hurt right now, but I think I’m in shock or something because I feel like I’m floating and I can’t really think. There’s this ringing or buzzing and—”
“That’s normal. You just expended a ton of energy. I’m going to get you to a healing pod. There’s one on this floor. You’ll be fine.”
I looked at Seri. Solan was sitting beside her while Fynea ran a device over Seri’s head.
“What about her?”
“Solan and Fynea will take care of her.”
“It wasn’t a jealousy thing. This was a planned assassination against me. She must’ve gotten close to you just in case I ever showed up.”
“I’m sorry. This is my fault.” His voice had a hint of a whine to it that I’d never heard before.
“You shouldn’t apologize for things that aren’t your fault, and you definitely shouldn’t be taking the blame for this. You keep doing that, and it’s fucking dumb.”
“You just called him fucking dumb.” Roan laughed. “I always wondered what would happen if Am’s filter got any thinner, and I think I just found out.”
I tried to hold back a laugh, and it turned into a snort. He was right. I didn’t feel normal. The buzzing was fading, and it left me with fog and exhaustion.
&n
bsp; Lorne held my right hand gently and ran a finger down the back of it.
The pain broke through the fog then, hitting me hard and fast. I hissed out a breath.
“Okay. Up you go.” Lorne stood and started to pick me up, but I tried to squirm away.
“I don’t need my hand to walk. I can use my own two legs just fine.” But when I stood, I felt like the world was wobbling back and forth. “Actually, carrying me is probably a good idea.”
He swept me into his arms, and I rested my head on his shoulder.
“Thanks.”
“Healing pod for two hours. You’ll be fine.”
My eyelids were getting heavy. “No. I don’t need that. I think the exhaustion is catching up to me. I’m going to fall asleep now.”
“That’s probably for the best.”
So, I closed my eyes and breathed in Lorne’s scent. I loved the way he smelled—something smoky and green and like home.
I missed home.
Chapter Twenty-Three
LORNE
Security staff and a couple of medics ran down the hallway toward us, but I didn’t spare any of them a glance. I could tell by the way Amihanna relaxed in my arms as I carried her down the hall that she was already asleep, and if anyone woke her up, I would murder them. She’d had too many nightmare-filled nights, and now that she was hurt, she’d need all the sleep she could get.
My skin was slowly fading and my fao’ana were settling, but for a second, I’d scared Solan and Fynea enough that they’d started the evacuation of the estate.
I pressed my nose to the top of Amihanna’s head as I walked, letting the scent of her calm me down a little more. It’d been two minutes—maybe three—from the time we lost the feed in the room until we got the door open, and I’d never been so terrified in my life.
I could feel the sharp shift in her frequency—panic and fear—and I knew that whatever was happening, it was bad. I’d felt fear from her before, but not like that. I’d never been so physically close to her when she was terrified, and it’d sucked every drop of control from me before I even knew what was happening. I was too scared to burn the door down. I didn’t know where she was in the room, and if I hurt her…
And then it was over. I’d gone from neutral to outer space so fast and now I had to bring it back down. I was proud of her for finding a way to survive—yet again—but my heart, my soul, my mind was still catching up.
I held her tighter against my body to stop myself from shaking.
She was okay. Amihanna was alive. Her hand was broken in at least three places, but that was an easy fix.
I was glad she hadn’t killed Seri. Not because I didn’t want Seri to die, but because I wanted to talk to her again first. I wanted to look her in the eyes. I wanted her to see the hatred that I felt for her, and I wanted her to suffer. She shouldn’t get an easy out. Not after what she’d tried to do—what she’d almost done—to Amihanna. Twice.
The med room was an open space with warm cream walls and a healing pod along the back wall. There were other healing rooms that were bigger and had multiple pods, but Mae’ani was on staff for the family. This room was meant for comfort and gathering with a seating area, vidscreen, fireplace, a large bathroom, and small kitchen. A personal medic’s suite off to the right of the healing room ensured fulltime care in case of a long healing, like the seven-day session that Amihanna needed when she got here. Everything in it made the room look and feel like a home in order to put the patient at ease. The paintings, the defused scents, the soft music playing in the background.
If Mae’ani wasn’t needed for us, then she would help in another healing room. But from the way Mae’ani was standing to the side of the door, I knew she was waiting for us. Solan must’ve told her we were coming.
“Your Highness,” she said in crisp Aunare as she quickly pressed her fist to her heart. She wore her navy nurse’s uniform with my red firedrake symbol embroidered just below her right shoulder and had gathered her graying hair into a neat bun. “I heard the alarms just now, but they shut off. What’s happened to Amihanna? Are there more injured? I can call for—”
“It’s just Amihanna and Seri di Sopoyan who are injured. Seri will be transferred off the premises. Amihanna expelled a lot of energy using one of her fao’ana and is in a healing sleep. I believe her hand is broken in a few places, but I’m not sure—”
She placed a hand on my shoulder. “Breathe. We’ll run a full scan and find what’s wrong with your soul’s mirror. I will help her, but I can only do that if you calm yourself down. You must breathe, Your Highness.” Her words were soft and her tone was soothing, meant to put me at ease. And it worked.
I let out a slow breath, and something relaxed in me. “Thank you. It’s been a long day. A full scan to make sure she’s okay would really ease my mind.”
“Of course.”
I placed Amihanna gently in the pod, and she stirred a little. I brushed a kiss on her forehead and forced myself to take a step back.
Mae’ani closed the glass top of the pod. A few sensors slid free, placing themselves on her forehead and neck. Another three went to her hand.
Amihanna looked so small and fragile asleep in the pod. I knew she was tough—she’d had to be—but I knew she wouldn’t like me thinking of her as fragile. It was a luxury she’d never had, at least not that she remembered. I wanted to believe that she’d remember everything, but I knew holding onto that hope hurt both of us.
I placed my hand on the glass and tried to let go of all the ways I’d let her down over the years. Over the last few weeks. And it felt like I’d done just that multiple times today.
I thought I would know what to do for her and how to help her. I truly thought our relationship would be easy and natural once she was here, but I was wrong.
The only thing I knew was that I loved her.
Mae’ani moved to her desk by the door and grabbed her tablet. “Hmm.”
The sound felt ominous, and I tried to swallow down the panic. “What?” My tone came out harsher than I wanted. “What does it say?” I said much calmer this time.
“She’s very dehydrated. I’m going to give her some electrolytes. She needs to eat more, too. Especially if she plans on using the frequencies like this.” She paused. “She’s weaker than I’d like. She hasn’t been sleeping enough. Four hours in the pod, maybe more with the hand the way it is. She broke five bones. That’s more than a few, Your Highness.”
If I’d gotten into the room faster, she wouldn’t have any broken bones, but I had to be thankful it hadn’t turned out worse. I had to be thankful she was still here. Still alive. “I’ll wait.” I wasn’t about to leave her. The fear that she would disappear on me was still breathing down my neck and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to let her out of my sight for a while.
We were stronger together. I had to show her that. She didn’t remember. She didn’t understand. So, I’d have to show her. I just needed more time.
“You don’t have to stay, Your Highness. I’m sure you have more pressing matters to attend to right now.”
I looked at her then. My glow was bright, but I didn’t try to tone it down. I couldn’t control it. Not when Amihanna was in a healing pod.
I knew Mae’ani well, but I’d thought I known Seri, too. “There is nothing more pressing than making sure Amihanna’s safe. I won’t leave her here alone,” I said the words fiercely, so she might understand that the person in this pod—in her care—was everything.
Mae’ani pressed her fist to her heart again, but she didn’t bow. “I’ve worked at this estate longer than Amihanna’s been alive. I tended many of her injuries when she was a child, and I’m more than capable of tending hers now. You can trust me with her. I swear it. Even if it wasn’t against my oath, I would never harm her.”
I knew I could trust Mae’ani. She’d helped me so many times over the last seven years. When I’d beaten myself to a pulp in the gym. When I tried to drown the waves of fear I was feeling from Amih
anna in too much alcohol. When I stopped eating and sleeping. I’d been a mess for years, and Mae’ani never judged me when Rysden dragged me into the pod half-conscious over and over.
I knew I could trust Mae’ani. She was a woman who took her oath to heal seriously and would be discreet. But that didn’t mean I was leaving. “I have to stay.”
“I thought that would be the case. You might as well make yourself comfortable.” She motioned to the corner. “Your chair is still in the seating area from her other stay in the pod. You know where the pillows and blankets are if you want to take a nap yourself on the couch. You look as if you could use it.”
I felt like I could use it, but I didn’t think I could fall asleep. “No. I’ve got some work to do.”
“I imagine you do. Two attempts in one day at the estate.” She glanced down at her tablet and made some adjustments to Amihanna’s treatment, before looking at me. “How worried should we be?”
“Very worried.” I grabbed the chair from the seating area and carried it to the pod. I wanted to be able to see Amihanna’s face, even if I was working. “It might get worse before it gets better.” And that was what scared me the most. I needed my father to give me control before it got any worse, but he wouldn’t.
Mae’ani nodded. “It won’t be the first time we’ve weathered an attack, Your Highness. I trust you and Rysden to keep us safe.” She placed her fist to her heart—bowing this time—and then turned toward the pod. She checked her tablet, and then ran her fingertip along the glass. A read-out lit across the surface of the glass. “So you can see how she’s doing.”
“Thank you.” I would’ve apologized for my earlier tone and accusation, but I didn’t think I could make it even a little bit convincing.
“I’m going to work on each bone separately first, then the muscles and ligaments. Hands are tricky.”
“You’ll fix her.” I didn’t have any doubt in that.
“Of course I will.”
After a minute of watching her, I turned to my wrist unit and messaged Solan. I needed answers, and I wasn’t leaving Amihanna’s side to get them.