by Bex McLynn
Zver should have spent those minutes restructuring his plan, developing another angle for acquiring what he wanted, but with the room in an uproar, the Trine entered. Seph was here.
His vision narrowed. He hadn't known she was coming. Had taken measures to ensure that she and Thane Jahat never occupied the same place. He rapidly flipped through his feeds, only now noting the delayed messages from Wies. He never had delays of this sort. Not unless the feed had been manipulated. His gaze settled on Arana.
She coolly returned his regard.
He caught the end of Sobeck's censure. "Remember your station, Jahat. Athela are present."
Thane Jahat huffed, turning a menacing look on the Trine. "Are you ladies here to peddle your services? Eager to brace with Prykimis's new master?"
"Ech, ships are thane business," Vedma said gruffly.
"However," Arana said authoritatively, "we now have a ship being stabilized by an Athela, so the ship falls under our joint purview as well."
"Bullshit," Thane Jahat said, his cheeks shaking from his outburst. "Laws forbid the Athela Academe from having a spirenought. Ships are needed for defense."
"Agreed, Jahat," Sobeck said. "Thus, Prykimis's new steward will be House Conari, Lady Arana's house. House Conari will dually oversee the ship and the training of Lady Seph."
Zver tasted acid on his tongue. "No."
Vedma snapped at him and said, "Thane's got no say in Athela business, Borac."
"Double-crossing bitch." Thane Jahat bellowed at Arana. "I was clutch, Arana. Does that mean nothing?"
"Even with my guidance and prodding, Prykimis languished," Arana said. "Something had to be done, Jahat. For the good of the ship and for the good of the Dominion."
"So you took my damn ship from me!"
"She was wasted on you. My house can see to her stewardship and oversee the education of the new Athela."
"Conari has but an acting thane," Thane Jahat said, addressing the room at large. "The position is uncertain until Lady Arana marries."
Arana swelled with indignity. "My brother has served as thane for thirty years, Jahat. I am not courting his replacement."
On one level, Zver noted the exchange between Thane Jahat and Lady Arana. He was not surprised. He knew Jahat had clutched for Arana. That was after his time with Arana, but he still tracked such things. However, he couldn't tear his focus away from Seph. She stood to the side, expression slack as some revelation passed through her as she watched Arana and Jahat argue. Even though everyone spoke rapid-fire Terish, Seph seemed to follow the thread of the argument. Just as he predicted, her technopathy enabled her to learn the other Tendex languages.
Jahat turned to Sobeck. "If House Jahat had an Athela, you'd have to reconsider."
"But you do not," Sobeck said, "and neither you nor your sons are technopathic. Jahat has had two generations to resolve that issue."
Jahat stepped toward Seph, and Zver shot to his feet, intercepting the other thane.
"You don't touch her," he said, snarling. "You don't look at her. You don't even fucking think of her."
"It's her choice." Jahat pointed at Seph. "By law, you can't keep me from her, Thanemonger. My house has a right to present our suit."
"And she already rejected it."
"My sons have a right to pursue." He turned to Arana. "Are you going to ignore our laws, Arana, and deny my house access to her?"
"I will abide by the law," she said firmly. "All the laws. Your suit has been rejected, Jahat. But send your flock of xero sons. She'll turn them away as well."
He felt himself swell with rage as he pictured Teras men hounding Seph, demanding her attention. If they got close to her, got even the slightest sense of who she was, they would hunt her ruthlessly. Seph was like no other Athela he'd ever encountered. She was raw. Fiercely loyal. Burned with passion. The other thanes, Fleet commanders, and Dominion politicians would harass her to accept their suit and welcome them into her clutch. They would pressure her, break her under their never-ending pursuit of her.
"Hey!" Seph shouted.
Zver heard her, wanted to go to her, but his instinct kept him rooted before Jahat, bodily barricading the man from her.
When no one heeded Seph, she let forth a screech that rocked everyone in the room like a concussion blast. "For the love of—everyone shut the hell up!"
Chapter Twenty-Two
Seph heaved, taking a steadying breath as the Teras in the room gaped at her.
For the first time since waking up in a stasis pod, she let her anger run free. Underneath her constant fear, there existed a seething fury, unending frustration with the injustice of being snatched from Earth and dropped amongst the Teras. She had wanted none of this.
"I am only going to say this once, so you all better listen," Seph said, biting the words out in Tender and dropping her voice to match the Teras thunderous rumbles. She infused her words with conviction. "I am a person, not a thing. I will not be used. I have made my decision. House Borac, that is where I want to be."
Silence.
She sought out Zver, expecting to see support and determination reflected on his face. The man her eyes landed on remained still, expression closed. She cocked her head, unbalanced by his lack of response.
"I don't want to go with the Trine," she said, using the same words spoken hours ago when their bodies were entwined in the bunk.
Her heart pounded in her ears as she waited for his reply. Then you won't go. But he said nothing.
"Seph, please," said Arana, tugging and turning her away from the others in the room. "Think of the ship. You're stabilizing all the newly restored systems. Accompany me to Lusin Ero. My homeworld is the best place for you."
"For how long?" she asked, but she was in a daze.
Her mind tumbled through horrid questions. Didn't Zver want her? Had she done something wrong? She'd released Rannik. She powered the ship he had been painstakingly repairing. She didn't try to control or manipulate him. Dear god, had he done so to her? Manipulate her?
"For how long?" Seph said again. She had a sense Arana had answered, but she couldn't focus enough to listen.
Arana squeezed her hands, forcing Seph to join her in the moment. "We won't know how long until we can run further tests. Please, at least see the ship to Lusin Ero."
"But I don't want to go," Seph said to Arana, but the words were meant for Zver. Trembling, she addressed him, "Say something."
He turned his stony gaze to Hyva. "Has it been verified that it's Lady Seph's influence that is stabilizing Prykimis's systems?"
"Yes, Thane," Hyva said resolutely. "The Trine just released our findings to TerTac and the Dominion Council."
"So stabilize the ship without me," Seph said, pulling her hands away from Arana.
"It's not that simple," Hyva said.
Everyone in the room stilled. Tension started to fill the noiseless spaces.
"Fine. Then the ship goes to Bulan Ero, and I learn technopathy from Zv—Borac. Does it matter what house has the ship as long as she's in service to the Dominion?" She no longer felt their intimacy, thus couldn't stomach to call him Zver.
"It matters," said the older Teras who wore a TerTac uniform. He must be the Fleet Commander that Arana mentioned would be here.
"But my clade is House Borac."
"Which has no bearing on the stewardship of the spirenought," said the Fleet Commander.
Desperation swelled up inside her. "What if I formed a clutch with Thane Borac?"
The Commander just shook his head. "Then he has the right to accompany you to Lusin Ero as part of your entourage. That is all."
Seph thought about her entourage. It entailed Wies doing nothing but guard duty. She tried to envision Zver isolated, removed from the command of his men, yet couldn't conjure an image.
"Borac?" she asked, hoping to spur a response from him. Trying to reconcile the man in the room with the man who had spoken to her in such jagged passion hours ago.
Thane Jahat l
aughed cruelly. "Borac has refused every Athela who has propositioned him to clutch. What makes you think you're any different? Just a foundling with nothing to offer."
"Well, obviously I have a damn spirenought to offer him." She snapped at Thane Jahat, then to Zver she asked, "You do want the damn ship, don't you?"
He stiffly said, "I wanted her restored. And she has been."
Confused, Seph mentally tripped over his words. She hunted for deeper meaning, something he left unsaid. Something that solidified Seph's place in his house. But her breakdown of his straightforward response gave her no hope for hidden meaning. He wanted Prykimis repaired. Nothing more.
Well, then. If that was all, she wanted out of there before her tears drenched her anger.
"Wies!" Seph called out.
Wies strode into the room. "Aye, m'lady?"
Seph tore her gaze from Zver and turned toward the hatch. "Take me back to Prykimis. Now."
"Aye."
The Fleet Commander started toward her. "Now, wait—"
"No, you wait!" Seph yelled, causing everyone in the room to flinch again. "I'm going to the damn ship. It's where you all want me to be."
She stormed after Wies, eyes locked on the back of his helmet to avoid eye contact with everyone else in her entourage.
She was a fool, but the blame was all hers. Even while gazing at star charts—and having no clue what she looked at—she envisioned Zver and Rannik by her side, trekking to Earth. Hell, she even amended her daydream to include Therion as a member of their ragtag crew. And she was angry at herself because she knew better. In what reality would Zver be able to set aside his duty? That a teenaged boy would guide her to Earth? That Therion wouldn't try to conquer her home planet, all in good fun?
She'd been hiding from this reality.
She also had to be honest about the Trine. Each woman, in her own way, tried to prepare Seph for their world. She had choices, but they offered a pick your poison scenario.
God, she had become such a fool.
Wies led her through the airlock of the fleet cruiser and onto a transport. Her guards settled around her as she dropped heavily onto the bench. She'd only been off Prykimis a few hours, and that entire time a headache danced around the edges of her vision. Hanging her head, she pressed her fingers to her temples, trying to create counter pressure, to psych herself up for another puddle jump in space.
Her stomach clenched, so she drew her feet up onto the seat and tucked her head to her knees. Instead of wondering when the transport would start moving, she sat and wondered if wormholes were really a thing. What about teleporters? Tractor beams? How cool to hold a lightsaber.
Just as she exhausted her list of sci-fi wonders and contemplated asking Wies about the holdup, she heard the hatch closing and sealing. She sensed the shuffling of bodies. Someone loomed over her.
She peeked up. Zver.
She glared at him, challenging him to say something. He frowned down at her. She scoffed, looked elsewhere, and pondered warp drive versus hyperdrive engines.
Once on Prykimis, Seph sighed. Her head cleared and her stomach settled. Zver gave a hand signal to his men, and after they all exited the hangar, her guard detail dropped off. Zver stalked behind her, a guiding hand on her back, and escorted her to the Athel Hall.
She stepped into the Hall and stopped. She didn't want to go into the Athel Chamber, so close to the bunk they had shared.
"Seph," he said expectantly.
She bit her tongue. Her first impulse was to rail. She needed to know why, dammit. Because this felt too close to what she experienced with Thew. They had been drunk at a party and sneaked off to have sex. Afterward, he went back to treating her like Rem's little sister. All high fives and chummy hugs. Thew was Rem's best friend. She had loved him for years, and he broke her heart. Then a few weeks later, Thew completely destroyed her when he and Rem were killed in a car accident. God, he left her shattered. He left her pregnant. Everyone called her a liar, said she defamed Thew's precious memory, because Thew never acknowledged her when he was alive. She was a dirty little secret.
She couldn't go through something like that again.
She did her best to keep her voice calm. "Do you want the ship or not?"
"I do."
"Then I don't understand, Zver."
His frown deepened, as if she disappointed him. "Seizing Prykimis would be the easiest thing I've ever done. My officers are in place. There would be minimal resistance from the crew. With Deleo and my spire squadron, the Trine and TerTac cruisers would be immobilized. If I could bring Prykimis's guns to bear, the cruisers would be annihilated. So yes, I want the ship. I could have the ship. But what haven't you asked me, Seph?"
Her mind stumbled, scrambling to process his words. He wanted the ship. He could take the ship. The question she hadn't yet asked, "Then why don't you just take it?"
"Because war would follow. The other thanes would rise up against me. TerTac would sanction my homeworld, deny aid and provisions. Once isolated, Bulan Ero would be targeted by marauders."
Did Zver just admit to weakness? "But you have a fleet. Another spirenought."
"Vayant," he said with pride. "She is the defender of my world, but even she cannot hold back the tide."
He stood silently, as if willing her to understand, that in this, his hands were tied. More importantly, that this wasn't about her. He was a thane, was responsible for an entire house.
He wasn't Thew, high school jock and playboy.
"God, I'm an idiot," she said, moaning. "I thought it would be so damn easy. That I could just join your house." She peered up at him. "Can I still join your house?"
"You may."
"Can I go with you now?" Her question sounded childish, but at this point, she didn't care. She just didn't want to be alone.
She saw him consider her question before answering. "If you go with me, then Prykimis will most likely shut down again. Her crew will be stranded once more. They'll replace her systems with TerTac components."
Thoughts of gutting Prykimis had her shivering. The word 'lobotomize' crawled over her skin. Something within Prykimis woke and spoke to Seph. Rose up and defended Seph against marauders. I fire. Here she was, demanding that her wishes be taken into consideration, yet, what of Prykimis?
So much for being a pit bull. Instead of advancing her own agenda, she decided to do right for someone else—Prykimis and her crew.
"Do you think Therion might be on to something?" she asked Zver. "That the spirenoughts are more than they appear to be? That moya could be real?"
"There are entire libraries dedicated to the theory of Athelasan technology and technopathy."
Seph smiled, such a Zver-like response. "So you're saying you don't know."
"I do not."
She dropped her gaze to her feet and asked, "When will you go?"
He stepped up to her. She saw his boots come toe-to-toe with hers. Big, cool hands cradled her cheeks, tipped her face up. His eyes swirled as he thumbed away moisture from her skin. "I will not leave you."
This time, she understood his unspoken meaning. He would not abandon her. She was the one leaving.
Zver lost everything. Prykimis. Seph. The small victories, like Thane Jahat's disgrace, gave no satisfaction.
He loomed over Seph, yet he should kneel. Should revel in her declaration of his house, in her refusal of the Academe, in her desire to clutch with him.
But he was still going to lose her.
He held her in his hands, taking her mouth in a desperate kiss, swelling over her as he attempted to sink inside her. To burrow a piece of himself deep within and irrevocably link them together.
"My house," he said as he consumed her lips. "Always my house."
"Your house," she eagerly said. She rose toward him, wrapped her arms about his shoulders, and pressed their bodies together. "Only your house."
He hoisted her up. Her legs automatically locked about his hips. He tangled a fist into her hair, tuggi
ng gently but insistently, until her passion-glazed eyes focused on him. "No clutching, Seph. None."
"None."
Did she understand? Had she truly agreed? His demand would place her at a disadvantage when dealing with the Dominion. No clutching meant no other allies. No prominent men would defend her, rather they'd all jockey to manipulate her. Unholde take him, he was a selfish bastard.
"Trust Wies. Trust Therion." He strode into the Chamber, heading straight to the berth.
She shook in his arms, just a tiny wisp of a woman, yet she overpowered him with her mouth, hot and hungry, on his neck and jaw.
"Trust them," she said.
Ah, this was how he should have set terms from the very beginning, with his hands on her skin, her hot body shivering at his touch. She had agreed to his every condition.
She tugged at her flex armor. "Off. Get this off."
He leisurely stripped the armor from her, caressing and kissing each reveal. Once he bared her completely, he roved over her obsessively. He stretched her arms over her head and fanned her hair over the pillow. When he had her to his liking, nipples peaked and legs spread, he started on his own uniform. His eyes never trailed from her.
"Faster," she said, writhing on the bed.
He laughed, slowing his movements even more.
With a feminine growl, she rose to her knees and attacked the fastenings on his pants. He let her struggle as he peeled off his jacket, then his shirt. Her assault on his pants flagged. Her hands abandoned their tasks to run heavenly heat over his stomach and chest.
"God, Zver." She groaned appreciatively. "Your body..."
Gods, he felt the same about hers. Her curves filled his hands perfectly. Her softness cushioned his desperate thrusts. Her voice tugged him under rolling waves. With a starved moan, he descended on her neck, sucking at the fragrant skin behind her ear, burrowing into her soft hair with his nose.
He arched over her. His hands traveled down her spine to her luscious backside. Cupping her, he lifted her up and pressed his cock against her wet cunt, wanting her to know how hard she made him.