Victorious Star (32 page)

Seht turned to her and held out a sword belt with a plain black scabbard. “This is the sword you used last night.” He smiled thinly. “No one will argue your right to wear it. You impressed a number of
mahfdhyt
during the fight in the hall. I’m afraid that they were quite devastated when I refused to let them have you.”

Victoria belted Kazi Sakata’s blade around her waist.

Seht raised a silver brow. “You have been very silent all morning.”

Victoria settled the weight on her hip.
I have nothing to say.

Seht caught her face in his gloved palms. “Victoria, what’s wrong?”

She held his gaze steadily.
Nothing is wrong.

Seht frowned. “I don’t like this quiet you’ve fallen into. What is going on in that head of yours?”

She pulled away and he let her go.
Nothing. I have a ship to save.
She fingered the heavy chain still around her throat.

Seht presented a respectful bow to
Mahfeht’syr
Ehru. “The very best the
mahfeht
have to offer. I’m impressed.”

Mahfeht’syr
Ehru smiled. “Your suicide mission sounded entertaining.”

Torque came striding through the salon, fully suited in combat armor with a pulse rifle slung over his shoulder and a long blade on his hip. He stopped at the party and glared at
Mahfeht’syr
Ehru. “You are not leaving me behind.”

Mahfeht’syr
Ehru bared his teeth. “I should have you gelded!”

Torque crossed his arms over his broad chest and nodded. “Fine, do it. After this mission.”

Nehkyx
Bhenhu snarled. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

Torque looked over at Victoria and smiled. “Not a damned thing.”

Mahfeht’syr
Ehru sighed and closed his hand on the
rehkyt’s
forearm. “Torque, you can’t have her, she has a mate.”

Torque shrugged. “I know.” Pain flickered through his expression. He looked away.

Seht glanced over at Victoria.
I think he’s in love with you.

Victoria clenched her jaw.
It’s lust.

Seht snorted.
When they are willing to die for you, it’s not lust.

Some do.
Seht looked away.
I did.

Victoria felt an unwelcome stab of guilt.
Fine, let him come.

Seht nodded at
Mahfeht’syr
Ehru. “Let him come.”

Torque bowed to Seht. “My thanks.”

Seht scowled. “Don’t mention it. Please.”

Lord Syrhus sighed dramatically as he walked up. His armor gleamed under his silver-furred midnight blue cape. “Cousin, can you not keep that prime of yours out of trouble?”

“My prime?” Seht’s brows rose. “Don’t tell me you are coming along?”

Syrhus shook his head. “No, I’m going to be waiting at your ship. I intend to ensure that an ambush doesn’t happen, should Moribund figure your little plan out.” He grasped Seht’s forearm. “Don’t get killed. That’s an order.”

Seht smiled with fondness. “I’ll do my best.”

“You had better.” Lord Syrhus lowered his brows. “I don’t want to have to explain your demise to your sister, my wife.”

Seht grinned. “Hell, I wouldn’t either!”

Lord Syrhus released him. “I’ll see you at your ship.”

Seht nodded. “Count on it.”

Seht took a seat next to Victoria. His expression was grim.

Mahfeht’syr
Ehru sat next to Torque, and his expression was just as grim.

The tram ride was long and the second march was longer before they reached the security point at the docking lift to the
Arcane.

Victoria waited, pressed against the wall, while two enforcers silently entered the security office and took out the four guards posted. She dashed into the small office with Seht at her heel. At the control panel, she entered the code that unlocked the blast doors to the dock lift access. She turned to Seht.
I need my voice to communicate with the
Arcane.

Seht frowned.
I thought you communicated with the pilot array.

Seht frowned. “I give you leave to speak.”

Victoria smiled thinly. “Thank you.”

Seht frowned at her, then touched the com-link in his ear. “Proceeding.” He focused on Victoria. “Stay here, pet. I’ll come back when it’s safe to go through those doors.”

Victoria hunched down in the office doorway while Seht and the enforcers spread out and secured the hallways leading to the access doors.

Torque knelt Victoria’s side. “Let me come with you.”

Victoria stared up at him. “You can’t. This ship is unstable. If it perceives a threat, it will kill us all before we can even board.”

Torque’s mouth fell open. “Your accent… you’re Imperial?”

Victoria nodded. “First Lieutenant Victoria Stark, Imperial nav-pilot, at your service.”

Torque grinned. “Well damn. Commander Torque Montgomery, Imperial Intelligence, at yours.”

Victoria’s brows shot up. “You’re an active agent?”

Torque scowled toward
Mahfeht’syr
Ehru. “I was. Long story. Remind me to tell you sometime.”

Victoria gave him a smile. “I’ll do that.”

Torque caught her chin in his palm. “Do not get yourself killed, Victoria.”

A naked blade appeared at his throat.

Victoria jerked back.

“Remove your hands, prime, and back away slowly.” Seht’s eyes were narrowed to feral blue flame. A growl rumbled in his chest.

Torque hissed, dropping his hands. Torque moved back at a crouch with Seht’s blade remaining at his throat. Torque’s gaze focused hot and hard on Victoria.

Victoria looked up. “Seht, what are you doing?”

Seht’s mouth was a grim line. “Did he kiss you?”

Victoria stared up at Seht in confusion. “No.”

“Good.” Seht nodded. “If he had, I would have had to kill him.”

Victoria glanced from one to the other. “What? Why?”

Seht bared his long teeth. “Tell her, prime.”

Torque clenched his jaw. “We’re both prime; we’re supposed to breed.”

Victoria glared at him. “So? You know I’m not interested.”

Torque smiled thinly. “But you would have been. I would have had you panting for me in an hour.”

Victoria tilted her head in confusion. “From one kiss?”

Seht nodded. “Pheromone addiction. It’s from the
skeldhi
gene. It’s designed to keep the female interested long enough to impregnate. It’s in the saliva. If you had kissed, you would have become lust-maddened for his cock to the point of
rahyt.
I would have been forced to let him fuck you to get you back out of the rage.” His gaze heated to blue fire. “Then I would have killed him.”

Victoria bared her teeth at Torque. “You tried to trap me!”

Torque’s gaze was hot and bleak. “Yes.”

Victoria felt her temper scorching the back of her skull. “Damn you…” Her hands closed to shaking fists. “Get out of my sight.”

Seht grinned and lowered his blade. “You heard her. Go.”

Torque left, but his scent hung in the air around them.

Seht sheathed his blade. “I told you to stay away from him.”

Victoria flinched under his gaze. “I know.”

Mahfeht’syr
Ehru nodded at Seht. “We will await your return,
Deshryt.
Be swift; we do not know what alarms we may have already set off.”

Seht and Victoria stepped into the lift access and the blast doors closed behind them. She used what the stationmaster had given her to change the pass-codes. No one was coming through those doors after them.

The lift rose, carrying them upward. It seemed to take forever.

The doors opened to utter blackness.

Victoria’s piloting array adjusted to the lack of light and showed her that she was actually on the bridge deck. Moraine must have burned a hole in the side of the ship to make this access.

A deep masculine voice bellowed out at them. “Get the fuck out!”

Seht raised a brow. “Friendly, isn’t he?”

Victoria stood in the lift door and peered into the dark. “I am First Lieutenant Victoria Stark, Nav-Pilot to the Imperium of the Thirteen Stars.”

An electronic hum echoed from the darkness. “So, Moraine sent another nav-pilot for me to chew up and spit out?”

“I was not sent by Admiral Moraine, also known as the Moribund Company. As far as I’m concerned, he’s a traitor to the Imperium.”

“Really?” Sarcastic black humor echoed in his words. “Then what the hell do you want?”

Victoria lifted her chin. “I and my companion respectfully request permission to board, sir.”

“Permission to board, sir? Why don’t you just jaunt on in, like everybody else?”

Victoria shook her head. “That would be disrespectful. You are in command of the ship, so I respectfully request your permission.”

“What do you want with me, nav-pilot?”

Victoria took a deep breath.
“Arcane,
I have come to take you home.”

Heavy rolling laughter boomed out at her. “Home? I
am
home, you idiot!”

Victoria clenched her hands. “Moraine is putting you on auction at station zero-hundred hours.”

“Yeah? So? What do you care?”

Victoria’s hands opened at her sides.
“Arcane,
you’re a war hero. The Imperium needs you; they cannot afford to lose you!”

“I’m a war hero, the Imperium needs me… How sincere.” Chuckling rolled from the darkness. “That’s all well and good, little nav-pilot, but just what in hell do you intend to do about the fact that I’m rigged to blow? Oh, I know all about it. Moraine had to float people along the outer hull because I refused to let his bomb techs in here.”

Victoria swallowed. “I’m here to do an assimilation. I’ll carry you back to the Imperium and they will place you in a new ship.”

“Assimilation… Are you a programmer, too?” Distrust thrummed from the darkness.

Victoria shook her head. “No, sir, I am not. All I have is a piloting array. Truthfully, I’ve never done this before.”

“I see… So who is that with you? Your lover?”

Victoria felt her cheeks heat. He was being deliberately rude. “Yes, sir. He is.”

“Oddly enough, you seem to be telling the truth.”

Victoria clenched her teeth. “Of course I’m telling the truth! I’m a nav-pilot! I don’t lie to ships.”

“But you lie to others?”

Victoria sighed. “If I have to.”

“What have you lied about?”

Victoria stomped her foot.
“Arcane,
I don’t have all day to collect you! We’re running out of time!”

“Answer the question!” His voice boomed out in a hammer-blow. “What have you lied about?”

Seht put a gloved hand on Victoria’s shoulders. “Her entire presence on this station is a lie. She’s been posing as my personal slave to rescue you.”

“Is that so? And who the hell are you?”

Seht sighed. “I am Commander Seht of the
Hellsbreath,
serving under Captain Ravnos. We were hired to collect your sentience in its entirety and return it to the Imperium. Captain Ravnos was supposed to collect you himself. He is a programmer, but Moraine’s presence made it impossible. Nav-Pilot Stark volunteered to come get you, because our orders are to blow you if we cannot.”

Chuckles echoed from the dark. “Now why would she want to do a silly thing like that?”

Seht snarled. “Because she’s the
Victorious Star,
and that’s what she does -- rescue ships!”

Victoria looked up at Seht. Pride hummed through their telepathic link. He was proud of her. She reached up to cover his gloved hand with hers.

“I have heard of this
Victorious Star…”

Victoria winced. Even the ships knew her reputation?

“But my sensors tell me that neither of you is human.”

Seht winced. “I’m not. She was.”

“Was?”

Seht released a rumbling growl. “In order to go undercover she had to be genetically altered. She sacrificed her humanity and her entire future as an Imperial nav-pilot to save your sorry ass! Now are you going to let her board to do her damned job, you stubborn son of a bitch?”

“Did you sacrifice yourself for me, nav-pilot?”
Arcane’s
voice was almost quiet.

Victoria’s heart thudded painfully in her chest. “You are my last duty in service to the Imperium.” She had to close her eyes against the pain around her heart.

“In that case, come aboard, nav-pilot, and let’s see what you’re made of.” Lights bloomed around the nav-pilot’s throne. Everywhere else lay thick with deep shadow.

Victoria stepped off the lift.