by Sasha Gold
He shook his head. “Elise has Natasha, and there’s nothing I can do about that right now. But if she thinks I’m going to let her keep my mate, she’s wrong. I’ll hunt her down and bring her back.”
Gunnar nodded. “She might be carrying your child.”
Your child…
The words hit Ragnar hard. The two words were small but held a world of meaning for him. He hadn’t claimed Natasha yet, so he knew she couldn’t be carrying his child. He wanted Natasha by his side, his companion and mother to his children. He wanted to be by her side, her protector and father to her children. The idea of her, one day, bearing his young, made him feel her loss even more keenly.
By taking Natasha, Elise had torn his heart from his chest and, in that moment, he might hate her more than Gunnar did.
A voice from the control panel broke the silence. Their mother’s servant asked if Ragnar could bring Natasha up to have a word with Birgitta. Ragnar groaned. How would he explain this to his mother? His mate was gone. Snatched from him in broad daylight by the same pirate who had stolen untold fortunes from their transport ships. Not only that, but the pirate was a woman and Natasha’s sister. How might that conversation with his mother go?
Chapter Twenty-One
Natasha
She rose and moved to the window to stare at the sight. Flowers. She’d never seen flowers before. The scant resources on Andromeda would never be used to grow something as useless as flowers. People couldn’t eat blossoms. What other strange things would she find here?
Elise and a small band of Maidens and Nymphs had built a secret community on a forgotten planet. Natasha knew that much from what Elise had told her in a few short conversations they’d had. Natasha had been too tired to ask many questions, but she fought off the fatigue from teleporting to ask Elise where she had been since she’d disappeared.
A movement in the doorway drew her attention. Elise stood, watching her warily.
“How long have I slept?” Natasha asked.
“Two days,” Elise said. “I was so worried about you. I checked every hour, even at night.”
The note of concern in Elise’s voice rankled. For months she’d worried sick over Elise. And all that time, her sister had been alive, working on her mission in secret.
Two days of sleep had not blunted Natasha’s anger. How could Elise not communicate with her, somehow, to let her know she was alive. The grief had changed her, had weakened her, and had been completely unnecessary.
“You, worried about me?” Natasha scoffed. “That’s touching.”
“I suppose that now you’re a Nymph I should expect you to be weak, and tiresome,” Elise said carelessly. “And I’m sure you don’t have anything to do all day, not like when you were a Maiden.”
“Not really,” Natasha said. “I have plenty of energy. When I don’t teleport into a stolen ship.”
Elise smirked. “Maybe you just need practice.”
“I don’t care to practice.”
“Fine. I don’t think you’d be helpful on any of my missions anyway. It’s a shame you let this happen to you.”
Natasha could feel the disapproval. Sometime in the last few days, Natasha had changed out of her dress and now wore the typical Maiden attire. Mud brown pants and shirt. The clothes were tight, of course, and hid nothing from Elise’s critical gaze.
“I didn’t let anything happen to me,” Natasha said.
“I don’t believe you. I think you always wanted a child of your own.”
“This happened to me because I met my mate, Elise. I had no control over these changes.”
“With any luck, you’ll change back.”
Natasha shook her head. “Maybe I don’t want to change back to what I was.”
“You want to stay like that so you can have children?” Elise’s tone was incredulous.
“I would like that, yes. Is that such a terrible thing?”
“You want to have children with Gunnar’s brother? Ragnar?”
Natasha’s face warmed. “Yes.”
Elise shook her head and turned away. “Well, you can’t leave. I can’t allow it. If you leave, others will find us, and we won’t be safe. Gunnar has threatened to kill the person stealing his minerals. Don’t you see, Natasha? If you leave, you’ll endanger everything I’ve worked for.”
Elise turned and left the room, not waiting for Natasha to respond.
Natasha followed her down the hallway. “You can’t force me to stay here. Especially when you won’t tell me what you’re doing.”
“If you leave, everything will be lost. Gunnar will find us and kill or imprison us all.”
Natasha didn’t believe that. Gunnar had seethed with rage over the theft, but she was certain he would treat Elise decently. Still, she couldn’t say with certainty that he wouldn’t want to punish her.
“Let me talk to Ragnar,” Natasha said. “I’ll get him to agree to clemency. I’ll explain that you stole the minerals to help this community. He’ll understand.”
“I’m not worried about my life, Natasha, I’m worried about the others that live here. If you contact him, he’ll know our location.”
“Gunnar won’t kill you. He’s angry, yes, but he wouldn’t hurt a woman. Jaegarians have a code and they protect women. Always.”
Natasha followed Elise into a large, windowed room. A mat, for sparring, lay in the center. Dumbbells and barbells lined the edges of the room. Natasha looked around in wonder. The room was finer than any exercise facilities they had on Andromeda.
“It seems a life of crime pays off,” she said.
Elise snorted. “Jaegar has more riches than they know what to do with. I’m certain Gunnar hasn’t missed the stolen mineral shipments. His pride is hurt. That’s all. I shouldn’t have taunted him.”
Natasha smiled, imagining Gunnar growing red-faced over Elise’s barbs. “He says he’s going to make you pay.”
“Not if he can’t find me.”
Natasha shook her head. “You’re not stealing from him anymore. I won’t allow it.”
“I have important work to do here.”
“Which is?”
“Build a school for the foundlings.”
“What foundlings?”
“The ones that Major Sebastian wants to destroy.”
Natasha stared in disbelief, waiting for her sister to say more.
“Sebastian wants to rid Andromeda of misfits. All of them. Maidens. Nymphs. Anyone who won’t or can’t conform and fulfill their duties.” Elise turned away and crossed to a rack that held a collection of wooden staffs. “She especially dislikes twins. She says we’re an abomination.”
Natasha didn’t reply. Sebastian didn’t like twins. It was true. She’d made a few snide remarks to her, but Natasha had never given the comments much thought. The notion that Sebastian wanted to get rid of women was novel. And horrifying. Her throat felt tight. She had to coax air into her lungs.
“Stop being so selfish, Natasha. Think about what’s at stake. A lot of lives. And all you want to do is get fat and have carnal relations with that Jaegarian thug.” Elise took two of the staffs from the rack and tossed one high in the air toward Natasha.
Natasha caught the staff easily and twirled it. It had been a year or more since she’d sparred with a staff. The feel of the weapon in her hand pleased her. “Ragnar’s not a thug, or at least not all the time. Besides, we’re mates. We’re fated to be together. You can help me or not, but I promise you he’s coming for me.”
Elise circled, keeping her eye on Natasha as she spun her staff. “Ragnar’s already gotten another woman.”
With a flick of her wrist, Natasha tossed the staff high in the air. “Liar.”
“Sad, isn’t it? Look how much you changed for him and he’s already replaced you.”
“I don’t believe a word you’re saying.”
“Really? Well, tell me this, how much did he change for you?”
A huff of surprise came from Natasha’s lips. The
staff slipped from her grip and clattered to the floor. With a growl of frustration, she snatched it and began spinning the weapon. She spun it faster and faster until it whirred in the air.
Elise smiled with satisfaction. “He didn’t change at all, did he? So, what makes you think he’s your fated mate?”
Natasha gritted her teeth. Elise, in her typical way, knew just where to strike, a vulnerability Natasha didn’t even know she possessed. Ragnar hadn’t changed. He was his usual, bossy self, expecting things from her, telling her what to wear, keeping her on Jaegar and refusing any discussion of her return to Andromeda. Ever.
“I should just let you send him a message,” Elise taunted. “He probably won’t care because he’s too busy with the latest woman he has his sights on.”
Elise was wrong, Natasha knew it. The part about Ragnar being unchanged, that he was the same man now as before they met, she believed that was probably true. But, there was no way Ragnar was pursuing other women. Natasha was certain. He claimed he’d never touched another woman, and she believed him.
“You should send him a message.” Natasha brought the staff down on Elise’s shoulder, drawing a yelp from her. “Then I could prove to you he’s my mate, because I promise you he’s not chasing anyone else.”
Elise swung her staff and hit a blow that glanced off Natasha’s arm. “I need one more mission. If I can take one more load, I can sell it and I’ll have enough money to finish the clinic.”
“Stop stealing. It’s dangerous and immoral.” Natasha thrust her weapon and jabbed Elise on the shoulder.
“Natasha, you brat,” Elise hissed. “You still know how to fight even though you’re so chubby.”
Natasha snorted. She was hardly chubby. While she had breasts and hips, she was still lean and strong. “I’m not chubby. I’m curvy. And Ragnar happens to love my curves.”
Elise rolled her eyes. “That’s disgusting. I don’t want to hear another word about that. I think you should see a doctor and try to get your condition reversed.”
“And I think you should give up your life of crime.”
Elise rushed forward. In her haste, she left herself open to attack and Natasha knocked the staff from her hands. It arced in the air and rattled on the floor.
She scowled at Natasha, but slowly her expression softened. Stooping, she picked up her staff. “I cannot understand any of this, but tell me something. Do you love this Jaegarian?”
Natasha’s eyes stung. In the times she’d been apart from Ragnar, she’d missed him. Being apart from him was painful. With every breath she thought of him. When she went to sleep, she wondered what he was doing, and when she woke, she reached out, seeking him but finding only an empty bed.
“I do love him,” Natasha said softly.
Elise shuddered and made a gagging noise. “I know you want to go back to him. You cry out his name in your sleep.”
Natasha shrugged. “I can’t help that, can I?”
Elise rolled her eyes. “I don’t want to listen to that night after night.”
“So take me back. Or send me back with one of your sentries.”
“My sentries are Vrandarians. They hate Jaegarians.”
“Vrandarians! Why did you hire Vrandarians? They are rough, brutal, completely without morals or discipline.”
“I know what I’m doing.”
Natasha couldn’t imagine hiring Vrandarians. They were basically thugs with guns. “Let me speak with Ragnar. He can send a ship for me.”
“You seem sure he’ll come for you, Natasha. What if he won’t?”
Pain stabbed Natasha’s heart. Would he come for her? Elise didn’t believe her and maybe she was right. “I know he’ll come for me. If he knew where I was.”
Elise let out an exaggerated groan. “Stay with me a little longer. After I make this last run, I’ll take you to him. I know how to get into Jaegar airspace undetected.” She snickered. “Obviously, right?”
“Elise, it frightens me. If Gunnar catches you stealing from him again, he’ll make you pay. That’s what he’s said all along.”
“How exactly is he going to make me pay? I’ve given all my money to this cause.”
“I don’t know.” Natasha shook her head. “But I don’t want to know.”
“It’s just one final heist and then I’ll never trouble Gunnar again.”
Natasha’s chest tightened. She’d lost Elise once before, forever, she thought. And now she found her sister, for a moment, only to have her risk death again. She didn’t think Gunnar would hurt Elise if he caught her, but what if someone else caught her? One of Gunnar’s men?
“I wish there was something I could do to talk you out of this scheme, but you’ve always been stubborn.”
Elise smiled. “Come. Let me make you something to eat. I’ve learned all about cooking.”
Natasha returned her staff to the rack and replaced Elise’s too. “You’re cooking?” She shook her head in disbelief. “My sister making food… there’s something that really frightens me.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Ragnar
The call from his mother’s nurse came at dawn. A portly, older woman knocked at the door, a look of panic on her face. She wrung her hands and her face flushed a rosy pink in the lamplight.
“Begging your pardon, Lord Ragnar. I hate to wake you.”
He grimaced. It had been days since he’d slept. Since Natasha had been stolen away, he’d spent his nights pacing his chambers.
“What’s wrong?”
“Your mother has asked you to come. She received a message a few moments ago from Paula.”
“Who’s Paula?”
“She’s an Andromedin woman.”
Ragnar’s heart lurched in his chest. “What did she say?”
The woman bowed her head. “Begging your pardon, Lord Ragnar, but Lady Birgitta wanted to tell you herself.”
He pushed past the woman and sprinted to his mother’s room. When he got there, he found her dressed and waiting. She played a message for him. The image wavered on the screen, but Ragnar could see that Paula was, indeed, an Andromedin. A Nymph.
Lady Birgitta, our communications are down on Cresenta.
“Where’s Cresenta?” he demanded.
“Hush, Ragnar. I’ll tell you in a moment.”
I’m trying to communicate on an old channel, in hopes our sentries haven’t disabled this means as well. Our sentries have taken control of our colony. They say it is to protect us, but I do not trust them. I’m very worried about our leader. Elise left days ago. She hasn’t returned.
Ragnar curled his hands into tight fists. He had no love for Elise, or didn’t think he did, but the possibility that she was in danger, made his blood scorch his veins. Elise, the fool, was reckless and gave no thought to her own safety and probably very little thought to the safety of others. Natasha. He needed to know where Natasha was. And that she was safe.
The message continued.
I believe Elise is in hiding. There’s a rumor there’s a bounty for anyone who can bring her in to Gunnar Helmsgaard. Unharmed. I don’t know where she’s gone. Now the Vrandarian sentries have taken over Cresenta. Until she’s found and the reward is collected, we’re all under arrest.
The picture faded and the screen went blank.
Ragnar turned to his mother. Before he could ask anything, she raised her hand to silence him.
“If I’d known Natasha was on Cresenta, I would have told you. I’m certain Paula would have as well. I think her sister kept her hidden.”
“Elise hired Vrandarians to guard her realm! They’re completely untrustworthy.”
“Dark stars. If I’d known, I would have sent Jaegarian mercenaries. The colony is home to vulnerable women-”
Ragnar snarled. “I only care about one vulnerable woman. Why didn’t she contact me?”
Birgitta shook her head. “I don’t know. I’ve sent word to the docking station. They have a ship ready. Gunnar is waiting for you.”
Without another word, Ragnar turned and strode from the room. By the time he reached the docking station, Gunnar sat in the cockpit of their fastest aircraft. He readied the instruments and communicated with flight control. Neither spoke as Gunnar flew from the planet, easing the ship into atomic speed, a velocity only Jaegarian ships could attain.
“I’m as anxious to get my hands on Elise as you are to get your hands on Natasha,” his brother said.
“Doubtful,” Ragnar snarled. “I know you’re obsessed with catching the pirate, but Natasha is my mate. I’m not interested in revenge.”
Gunnar nodded. “Understood.”
“Natasha is in danger, from the stupidity of her twin sister. Elise is a menace. She should be locked up.”
Gunnar turned to look at him. “The sister is mine. I decide her fate.”
“I don’t care. Keep her away from me. She’s brought all these women to a remote planet to try to protect them, and then she hired Vrandarians to guard them. She might as well have taken the women to Doranna.”
Gunnar pressed his lips together. The lights from the control panels lit his features. Ragnar watched as Gunnar took in the news. He and his brothers had dealings with the Vrandarians.
“Why would she hire them?” Gunnar muttered.
“Probably because they are cheap. No one wants to hire them.”
Gunnar growled and ran his tongue along his teeth.
“If you shift, I’ll have to fly the ship,” Ragnar said.
His brother snorted. “Ok. I’ll keep control. You flying this ship would be a disaster.”
Ragnar gritted his teeth. He had no proof, but he was sure the Vrandarian had been involved with massacres of innocent people. Ragnar and his men had come across towns on the outskirts of battles, where every living soul had been killed. The Vrandarians, it was rumored, had swept through, killing and looting everything in their path.
He’d seen Natasha frightened, twice, once on Doranna and once on Jaegar. Each time, it had been because of his wolf form. The image that played in his mind now, that Natasha might be in danger, afraid, felt like blades piercing his heart.