3013: STOWAWAY (3013: The Series) (13 page)

“When this is all over, I’ll be asking for those lessons. Right now though, we have somewhere we need to be, right?”

“Absolutely.” He offered her his hand again and she took it, falling in behind him as he headed for the airlock. As the doors opened, he turned and looked down at her, as serious as she’d ever seen him. “Whatever happens next, you get your ass to the bar and find T’karra. No stopping, not for any reason.”

“You’re as bossy as Trevar, did you know that?”

“You bet your ass I am. Now move.”

She didn’t get to see much of the station as they hurried through the corridors, but what she did observe was more familiar than anything she’d seen at Jikrat station. It felt more
human
somehow. There were people everywhere, most of them dressed in the standard black and grey of Alliance uniforms, though there were members of the other allied races present as well. The corridor walls showed the station’s age. The non-descript beige paint was chipped, the walls themselves were dented and scratched in numerous places. The floor underfoot was plain metal, marked and scuffed by hundreds of pairs of feet and years of use.

The most nerve-wracking moment was when they had to step into an elevator. As the doors closed, Sonja wondered if there would be someone waiting for them when they opened again. They were so close now… Deke must have been thinking the same thing, because his fingers tightened around hers and he drew her closer to his side. Before she could test the timelines, they were slowing, and then the doors opened.

No one was waiting for them.

They stepped out onto the main floor of the station, and Sonja took a moment to gawk. The station might be old, but it was still impressive. The dome rose high overhead, and everywhere she looked there were banners and flags proclaiming the names of the ships and units that were stationed there.

“I’ll give you the grand tour later,” Deke said, hurrying her along.

He led her through the crowds with unerring focus, and it didn’t take her long to see where they were headed. Directly across from them a large sign was visible, vivid crimson lettering slashed across a stylized swirl of jet black. She’d always heard that the Krytos were not a subtle people. It seemed that in this case at least, that was a very accurate assessment.

There was a pair of very large men standing on either side of the door, both of them towering over the crowd. Thick arms were crossed over their chests, and they seemed to be scanning the crowd. “Are they looking for us?”

“I think so. Looks like T’karra got my message.”

When she got closer, she could see that the two men guarding the door weren’t human, but Krytos. At over seven feet tall and built on a scale that made Deke seem almost slender by comparison, they were more than a little intimidating, but not in the same way as the Tarin had been. They had dark hair to their shoulders, and both wore black pants paired with black tank-tops that left their well-muscled arms bare. One of the Krytos spotted them, and he smiled in greeting, revealing a flash of fang. Neither of them moved from the doorway, but the one who had smiled reached down and opened the door for them so they would not have to stop at the threshold.

The second they crossed inside, the door slammed shut behind them, and Sonja had the sense that no one else would be coming inside for the next little while. They were safe. It took a few seconds for her eyes to adjust to the dimmer lighting inside, but once she did, the name of the place made perfect sense. Everything was black. The floor looked a bit like black marble, but the flecks and swirls of red in the stone glowed softly. Each step she took caused a miniature light show to flare beneath her feet, helping to light her way and showing the location of every person standing on the floor.

The furniture was all gleaming black, as was the bar, which took up most of one wall. Gaming tables were set up along the far side of the space, and there was a low but constant buzz of voices and activity from that part of the floor. There were a number of customers seated at the tables and booths, but the light wasn’t bright enough for her to make out many details.

A Krytos female stepped out from behind the bar and walked over to them, smiling in greeting. She was wearing a similar outfit to the males at the door, only her tank top was dark red. She was taller than Sonja by a few inches, and she moved with a predator’s grace, her long strides covering the distance between them in matter of seconds. Her tawny brown hair was woven in dozens of small braids that cascaded down her back. She had a strong, aristocratic face, and as Sonja looked into the other woman’s dark eyes she felt immediately at ease. She was going to be welcomed here.

“You must be T’karra. I’m Sonja, and I’d like to thank you for helping me,” Sonja said and offered her hand in greeting, confident that T’karra would understand her. Language converters were one of the most common implants in the galaxy, allowing the different species to communicate with ease. Sonja’s had been implanted when she was still a child, and she was certain that the Krytos female would have one as well. How else would she be able to deal with her customers?

T’karra smiled wider, the tips of her fangs showing as she took Sonja’s hand and shook it. “I am T’karra of the Ryvern pack, and y
ou are welcome here, little sister. There are rules that must be followed, however. You have to make your request aloud before I can give you what you seek.”

The guys had never mentioned needing to make the request aloud, and for a moment Sonja wasn’t sure what to say. She didn’t want to inadvertently insult her hostess. Deke gave her a wide eyed look that told her he hadn’t known about that rule either.

Great.

Sonja squared her shoulders, lifted her chin and tried to sound diplomatic. “T’karra of the Ryvern pack, I am Sonja Grek—er, Sonja Wilde-Storm, and I hereby ask for the protection of your sanctuary.”

“Granted.”

Everyone within earshot turned their heads at that exchange, but then went right back to their drinks when T’karra arched a brow and growled softly at them.

“Nice trick.”

“It comes in handy when you have to deal with this lot.” T’karra’s face lit up with a smile that transformed her into a breathtaking beauty. “So, now we’ve got your ass covered, I want to hear the details. I’ve never seen Deke so much as wink at a woman, and now he’s smuggling you in here and sending me cryptic messages about damsels in distress needing sanctuary. Speaking of which, your message didn’t say if you needed it too, Deke. All you have to do is ask. And where the hell is that good for nothing partner of yours?”

“If my guess is correct, I’d say he’s being arrested right about now, and no, I’m not going to need sanctuary. I just need to say good bye to my chosen, then I have to go catch up with Trevar.”

T’karra’s eyes went wide. “Chosen? Arrested? What in the nine moons of Rivos did you let Trevar talk you into this time?”

Deke grinned and threw up his hands at all the questions. “There’s no time for me to explain. Sonja can fill you in.” He turned and pulled Sonja into his arms, holding her tight as his mouth slanted over hers. His kiss told her everything there wasn’t time to say. That he loved and needed her, that he would fight for a future neither of them could see, but had to believe in. She clung to him, knowing that any second he would leave, and she’d be stuck here…waiting.

That was the part of the plan she despised the most.

He ended their kiss with a gentle nip to her lower lip, and then press his forehead to hers so they were staring into each other’s eyes. “I love you, and I’ll see you soon.”

“Love you, too. Now go before Trevar gets himself in even more trouble because you weren’t there to stop him from going with his first instinct.”

He laughed, kissed the tip of her nose, and then stepped away from her. “Behave yourself while we’re gone, sweetheart.”

Sonja didn’t answer. Why make promises she might not be able to keep?

***

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Trevar wasn’t enjoying himself. Well, not much. The look on his fellow officers’ faces when they realized he was alone on the freighter was priceless, but twenty minutes later, he was getting very tired at being yelled at by the exasperated commander of X2. Commander Janes was not a happy man.

“For the last time, where is Sonja Grekov?”

“This got old fifteen minutes ago, sir. I keep telling you, I don’t
know
where she is. That was the point to her leaving the ship before we docked.”

The commander’s wrist unit chimed and he answered it with a terse bark. “What?” Trevar was pretty sure the man’s hair had gotten grayer since he’d been escorted into the commander’s office. It was definitely more rumpled, and his host’s uniform had somehow become partially unzipped as he paced around the office, waving his hands like a frustrated penguin trying to take flight.

The comm-link squawked something Trevar couldn’t make out, but it seemed to please the Commander. “You found her? Good. Bring her…she’s
where?
What the hell do you mean, she’s requested sanctuary. Sanctuary from what, us? We’re the ones trying to rescue her for stars sake… No, you stay there and don’t let her out of your sight. Have the others bring Wilde up to my office.” He shut off the comm-link and glowered at Trevar.

“I take it you found Sonja?”

“Miss Grekov has been located, yes. No thanks to you, lieutenant.”

Trevar finally relaxed. Sonja was with T’karra, which meant the plan had worked. Now he could stop stalling and tell Janes what was going on. The commander was decent guy most days and didn’t deserve any more aggravation. “Her name is Sonja Wilde-Storm, actually. I filed our claim on her just before landing. You should be able to call it up and confirm.”

The man’s eyes bulged and his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down several times in rapid succession. “You don’t have…but there’s no mention…”

“I
do
have the right to claim a chosen, and if your man had been paying more attention, he’d of noticed she’s wearing a claiming mark. My mark.”

Janes slapped a hand down on his desktop. “Why didn’t you mention any of this when you were detained? Hell, why did you wait this long to file your claim, or at least inform someone you had her? There were messages sent across the fleet!”

“I didn’t mention it because you didn’t ask, sir. I got dragged off my ship, put in restraints, and marched up here like a criminal. You only asked me where she was, and I answered you honestly. I never saw a single message regarding Sonja, which is why I didn’t answer any.”

“I’m tempted to shoot you myself and save me the headache that I feel coming on. Do you have any idea how much
fucking trouble you and Wilde are in?” Janes asked, tugging at his zipper absently.

Trevar took Janes’ swearing as a good sign. It was not the first time he’d been chewed out by the man, and it probably wouldn’t be the last. “Now that I know my chosen is safe, I’ll explain to you what’s actually going on. Whatever you think we did…we didn’t do it. For once, I’m pretty damned sure I’m innocent.”

Janes snorted softly. “Somehow, I doubt that, Storm.”

He sank down in his chair with an exasperated sigh and started typing into his wrist unit. “You will understand that I’m not going to take your word about any of this, right? I’m going to double check on a few things, and then you can explain to me why I shouldn’t toss you and Wilde out the nearest airlock and send your chosen back to Earth. Do you have any idea who her parents are? The Grekov-Nielsen family has been bombarding me with demands to get their daughter back to them every damned hour since she was spotted with you on Jikrat. And every few hours I get an update request from her brother, who just happens to be a General. I am
not
having a good time, Storm.”

“I know about her family. They’re the reason I didn’t file our claim until we got here.”

Janes arched a brow at that. “That’s…actually a reasonable explanation. Why tip your hand…ah, and that’s why she’s currently stashed in the Krytos bar, protected by the rules of sanctuary and a room full of seven foot tall—mean as hell—beasts.”

“Exactly.”

“You are a serious pain in the ass, Storm. You know that, right?”

“You may have mentioned it once or twice before, sir.”

He shut off his wrist unit and met Trevar’s gaze. “Dare I hope that now you appear to be a bonded man, you’re going to settle down a bit and stop complicating my life every time you set foot aboard my station?”

Trevar managed not to grin, but it wasn’t easy. “I can’t make any promise
s, sir. Once you meet Sonja, I think you’ll understand why.”

“Wonderful,” Janes muttered as he pulled open a drawer and fished around inside it until he came up with a set of keys and tossed them to Trevar, who managed to catch them despite having his hands manacled in front of him. “Might as well take those off, since it appears I don’t have to charge you with kidnapping or any of the dozen other violations that have been suggested to me by your chosen’s family and my superiors.”

Trevar unlocked his hands and tossed the manacles onto the corner of the commander’s desk with an idle flick of his wrist. “Kidnapping? Are you kidding me? If we had kidnapped her, we sure as hell wouldn’t have been taking a leisurely shopping trip with her on a station less than a week later.”

“You have no idea how big this has gotten. Your chosen’s family has big contracts with the Alliance. Military and civilian. They called in every favor and social connection they had to make sure that finding their daughter was the Alliance’s top priority. I swear, if the Zyphir came back from the dead and went on the attack, they might have been asked to take a number and wait their turn.”

There was a soft chime at the door and Janes grunted. “Oh good, your partner in crime is here. Enter!”

Deke arrived first, looking remarkably relaxed for a man in restraints. Coming in right behind him were two of the station’s officers. They were both so young Trevar wondered if they even had to shave regularly yet. One of them sported a black eye that was rapidly swelling shut, while the second officer’s cheek was marked by several nasty scratches. One look at their injuries and Trevar knew he wasn’t going to like what he was going to hear next.

“What the hell happened to you?” Janes demanded of his men, and both of them looked chagrined.

“If you so much as laid a hand on Sonja…” Trevar was out of his chair and halfway across the room before he could finish his sentence.

“Storm! Sit your ass back down. Wilde, you too. Sit.” He gestured to the other empty chair and then swung his gaze back to his men. “And as for you two, I want details. Now.”

Trevar snagged the keys to the restraints from Janes’ desk, and then returned to his seat to listen.

“While Blaine restrained the suspect, Davis, and I tried to escort the victim out of the Krytos sanctuary, sir. She…resisted”

Deke dropped down into the chair beside Trevar and held out his hands to be unlocked. It was good to see that his partner was already out of his restraints. That meant things were going their way. “Resisted. That’s one way to put it. You should have seen her, Trevar. She kicked their asses.
I think even the Krytos were impressed. Commander Janes, you should be aware that T’karra is pissed, and your other officer is in the infirmary. The Krytos didn’t like his attitude.”

Deke had
barely made it outside the bar doors before he’d been spotted and taken into custody. Sonja had watched through the open door as he’d been put in restraints, and she hadn’t been quiet about her disapproval. Once the officers realized who she was, they’d gone in and tried to bring her out of the bar.

That’s when the trouble started. Sonja had transformed into a hell cat the second the elite had laid a hand on her
, and then the Krytos had jumped in. Whatever the hell the Alliance officers thought had happened to her since leaving Earth, it was painfully apparent they thought she was an abused victim and not a willing participant.

Janes pinched the bridge of his nose and narrowed his eyes at his men. “Let me get this straight. You decided to try and remove
their
chosen from a Krytos sanctuary where she had already been granted protection?”

“We didn’t know she was under Krytos protection yet, sir. We only asked her to come with us. And no one said anything about her being someone’s chosen.”

“Bullshit. Davis grabbed her by the arm and tried to haul her out of the bar while you shoved her toward the door,” Deke interjected, still angry that they’d dared to touch his chosen.

“Shut it, Wilde. I’ll get to you in a minute.” Janes shot him a dark look
.

“
We might have made contact, sir, but I—”

The commander waved a hand, cutting
him off. “You’re telling me that none of you noticed that she had two tattoos on her face? Do I need to order eye exams for the entire fucking station? No, don’t answer that. So, you attempted to remove the victim, against her will, from the Krytos sanctuary and she resisted you. Which means I need to apologize to T’karra and her crew, not to mention the fact I have officers under my command who are not only blind, and stupid enough to ignore the rules of an established sanctuary, but got beat up by a fucking high society scroll in the process. Fantastic. Both of you, get out and consider yourselves lucky you’re still breathing. The Krytos had every right to tear your throats out for what you did. I’ll talk to you about this later.”

The two elites left under a storm cloud, and as the door shut behind them Janes turned to Deke. “Anything else I need to know, or have the two of you finished turning my station upside down?”

“Apart from the fact that the only reason your officer is still more or less in one piece is because he ran like a scalded cat the second the Krytos came after him? No, sir, I’m sure that Trevar has apprised you of everything else.”

“
Somehow I doubt I know everything yet, but I expect it will be in your reports. Now, this is what’s going to happen. The
Arca
is grounded until this mess is cleared up to my satisfaction. I see so much as a spark from her engines and I will toss you both in the brig. You will both fill out every document, report, and statement I am going to have sent to your wrist units and have it all back to me before the end of the day, or I will toss you both in the brig. I will inform the necessary parties that Sonja Grekov has been located and is alive and well. Now get out of my office. And for the record, if I see a single report of either causing any more trouble on my station, I will—”

“Throw us both in the brig, we’ve got it, sir,” Trevar finished for him, earning himself a stony stare.

“No, Storm. If I hear so much of a whisper about you causing any more trouble, I will throw you out the nearest damned airlock. Dismissed.”

Deke was out of his chair half a second later. There was only one place he wanted to be right now, and it sure as hell wasn’t Commander Janes’ office. He wanted to see Sonja and tell her it was all working out. From the speed Trevar was moving, his partner had the same idea.

****

“Are you sure you don’t have the blood of my people in you? You certainly have our temperament,” T’karra asked as she topped off Sonja’s drink.

“I’m pretty sure, but thank you for the compliment,” Sonja said, wrapping her fingers around her glass to stop herself from tapping them on the bar top. After the dust up with the Alliance officers, the one left behind to watch her was keeping his distance from both her and the other Krytos. T’karra had made it clear that if he came anywhere near Sonja, he’d never leave the bar alive. Sonja had been royally pissed off when the two guys had actually grabbed and tried to get her to leave with them. When she saw the station’s commander she was going to let him know exactly what she thought of being manhandled by two of his men.

T’karra touched the back of her arm gently and gave her an encouraging smile. “They will be back for you, Sonja. You picked your mates well.”

“I’m lucky to have found them.” Sonja swept the heavy fall of her hair off her face, catching a glimpse of her reflection in the darkened mirrors behind the bar. She still hadn’t gotten used to seeing her face marked by the claiming tattoo. No matter what happened, she would bear their mark forever. Even if the Alliance didn’t recognize their somewhat unorthodox claim. Her parents would certainly do everything that could to prevent it from being allowed, which was why they hadn’t filed their claim until the last minute, and why her men were now in custody instead of with her.

“I suspect they’re the lucky ones. I’ve known your bonded for years, and in all that time I have never seen Deke smile until today. Trevar is a good man, strong, but wounded.” She touched her chest over her heart. “I am happy they have finally found the woman they were meant to share. Even if they had to have the universe drop one into their laps before they finally figured it out.”

“Technically, I was dropped into their cargo bay,” Sonja corrected her before taking another sip of the volatile cocktail T’karra had made for her.

Her hostess grinned, baring her fangs. “So you said earlier. I suspect the story of how you met your bonded is going to get a lot of mileage around here. I’ve learned that places like this run on three things, tasty food, good drinks, and entertaining stories. Your tale will make the rounds quickly, and you might find yourself something of a celebrity.”