Chapter Nine
“ T hank you, Miss Kinney. We’re taking this very seriously and will be reviewing the security drone footage from the area near your attack. Over the last year, we haven’t been able to find anything concrete about the humans and Felids who are trying to traffick humans into the Felix Orbus System. So far, it’s only been adult female humans that we know of, and Sheriff Dane’s reports do seem to establish it’s because of the lack of adult Felid female partners. That would indicate that someone knows enough about the Felix Orbus Galaxy and its occupants to prey on their needs and this crisis.” The distinguished-looking Mr. Welch nodded and gestured to the small square next to him, where Sheriff Dane appeared on the screen.
Dane, the Lynxian sheriff with gray and black streaked fur, crossed his arms and nodded. “Twelve women, and then Miss Layla, who married Captain Rupex, were all supposed to arrive here on Lynx-Nineteen, which was one of the regions hit hardest by Queen Fever. We didn’t have many Queens to begin with. And you say the shuttle you were on was heading to the Pantherite Provinces? That means they know that things aren’t working. When a Queen is sent to Lynx-Nineteen, she’s safe and surrounded by folks who’ll take care of her right from the get-go. We might be desperate, but we’re not criminals.”
“You cannot say the same for members of the Pantherite Provinces,” Talos growled, the rumble in his chest so low that Nessa shuddered in her chair.
I like Kamau’s purr. Especially the way he purrs when he’s inside of me.
God, I want him inside more . Farther, deeper, harder—more. Again, more. In all the uses of the word—more.
Her mind drifted to last night, and her thighs pressed together as her ravished pussy started to throb at the memories of how thoroughly he devoured her, then taught her a thousand new sensations with his silky, strong tail.
The thought of him stretching her out, filling her with his long, thick cock made her whimper.
“It is enough to make one cry!” Rupex said loudly, apparently overhearing her sound and misinterpreting the cause.
“I’m—I’m sorry, could you explain that last bit again? I’m still a little groggy after my ordeal, and it comes on suddenly,” Nessa said with what she hoped was a charming smile.
“Of course, you wouldn’t be familiar with Felid history—even some of our young Knights and Queens are woefully uneducated about such things,” Mr. Manxwell, apparently from the Felix Orbus branch of the ICIO, gave a dramatic sigh and took the spectacles off of his broad white and black spotted nose. “The Pantherites lost a territorial dispute with the Tigerites several hundred years ago and were awarded a series of planetoids to terraform.”
“Those planetoids are as big as those in the Lynxian System,” Talos pointed out with heat, fangs bared. “We did not drive them out! They refused to share the land and wanted the Tigerites to leave our original homeworld, Tigerite-One! When we stood and fought, they eventually left rather than live amongst Tigerites and share our planet.”
“Now, now. That’s in the distant past. Many Pantherites live throughout the galaxy now—but the Pantherite Provinces have refused to fully comply with the laws set by the interplanetary council, and so they remain provinces instead of Pantherite-One, Pantherite-Two, etc. As such, there are parts of the Provinces where shady dealings occur with little legal ramification. A smuggler’s outpost, if you will.”
“Lynxians are supposed to be backwater types, but I’d rather be a poor miner or farmer than downright immoral.”
“So the traffickers have picked a new spot to unload? One where they think they won’t get caught or in as much trouble?” Nessa put the pieces together.
“Looks like. Of course, there are criminals in every society, and good people, too. I reckon there are many decent Pantherites who would be outraged to hear that they’re becoming a slave trading port.”
Nessa paled. “That’s sickening.”
“Well, thanks to you—there are three less victims.”
“Three? There were only—” Her protests died. Not only two. If I’d arrived alive, then I’d be sold, too.
I want Kamau. I want to go home.
No, I don’t want to go home, where they don’t even know I’m missing. Where humans trade other humans away for money! Sickening isn’t a strong enough word.
“Is there trafficking like this in the Felix Orbus Galaxy? Where Tigerites sell Tigerite women? Or cubs?”
Mr. Manxwell looked uncomfortable. “We have had to step in a lot in the last year to stop people from doing foolish things as this first generation of Queens after Queen Fever comes of age. Nothing so heinous as trafficking, but paying exorbitant bride prices and things like that... Hm. We are not without sin, Miss Kinney.”
“I’m glad you don’t lie to my face,” Nessa smiled back. “Humans? Not so much.”
“It’s clear that some human is lying—some human you may know, Miss Kinney,” Dane spoke up. “The only way to get humans out of the Sapien System is to use the Milky Way Intergalactic Port. Someone’s let at least three shipments of human cargo out of the MWIP in the last two years since the Felix Orbus Galaxy opened up to intergalactic travel and trade post-quarantine. That person or group of people has contacts that know where to send humans with the least likelihood of getting caught.”
“So, it has to be someone who’s been there awhile,” Nessa mused. “Someone in shuttle inspection or directly over it—someone who covers shifts and makes the schedule.”
“Why is that?” Talos asked.
“Because then they could make sure that someone would pass off shuttles that had human cargo.” Nessa frowned. “Ugh. It’s actually not as narrowed down as it sounds. There are hundreds of inspectors on different shifts and thousands of shuttle port exits. And sometimes, the longer you’re there, the more careless and unobservant you get—or if you’re new, you might now know how to do a thorough job.”
“And lots of people can be bought,” Rupex growled. “They tried to buy you, didn’t they?”
Nessa twisted her fingers in her lap. “Yeah, and 300 credits is a nice sum for any inspector’s account.”
“Who made your schedule the day you were kidnapped?” Mr. Welch asked. “Do you know?”
“Not really. It could be any one of a dozen managers, and they’d all go through a few supervisors. People cover different shifts based on a schedule, who is overloaded, who’s on leave—you know how it works.”
“Yes... Convolutedly. We’ll dig, Miss Kinney. Thank you for helping us. We’re ready to speak with the next person you picked up, Captain.”
“We’ll be opening a new screen. She’s still in the med bay, and her doctor will be with her.”
“That’s fine.”
Nessa let Talos lead her from the room, her mind spinning. “Someone in my department knows about this.”
“Mhm.”
“There are hundreds of people in my department.”
“True. And that might explain why they were quick to say you abandoned your job—not that you were stolen from it by thugs with weapons.”
She shivered even though the ship's passageways were a pleasantly warm temperature.
“You probably need a rest after that. Why don’t I take you down to see Kamau?” The tall Tigerite suggested as he towered over her.
“Kamau? Why him?” Nessa blurted. Is it obvious? Am I obvious? Can they smell that we were together last night, or sense it with those long whiskers and their weird, twitchy tails?
Fuck, those tails are problematic. Like lie detectors and radars, and so, so useful .
“He was keen to take care of our new guests, and you are the Queen who needs less medical care and more nourishing at this stage. That’s his flight path, if you’ll pardon the expression,” Talos smiled.
Which was terrifying.
“He... He wanted to take care of a Queen?” she stammered. Any Queen? Or me? Or is it that I’m just the first one awake?
“Oh, he is a kind soul! He would take care of anyone. He takes care of my Queen, Wendy, so beautifully, making her the most nutritious meals that help her with cravings and morning sickness as she carries our cub.”
Talos’ smile melted into something beautiful. Blessed.
He really loves her. Queen isn’t just a term to them. It’s a way of life.
They take relationships so seriously here. King and Queens—royal couples, paired up for life like in the olden times.
Happy fantasies we don’t get to live out on Sapien-Three.
“You have to get to that meeting. I’m going to my room for a rest, but maybe he could bring me some lunch. I think I know how to contact the kitchen.”
“Just shout, and he’ll fly to your side,” Talos chuckled.
And if that’s not the sexiest thing in the world to a lonely, single woman, I don’t know what is...
“I THINK NESSA WOULD welcome something to eat. That interview was long and exhausting. I simply had to sit there and recite a few facts about the shuttle itself and confirm the timeline, and I’m famished.”
Kamau nodded. “Don’t eat all the floribunda biscuits. I see crumbs on your whiskers, Tigerite.”
“I just had one or two. Or four,” Talos shuffled his feet guiltily. “But Nessa—”
“I will send her something on a tray in a moment.”
“She might like some company, too.”
“I’m sure she would find plenty of company with Jaxson or Elio.” Kamau turned away, cursing himself.
You are acting like a jealous cub who is almost of age and just noticing Queens. How could you be so stupid to think she would choose you? Belong to you after one evening?
You’re not even what she wants. You saw the man on the screen.
Human.
And what else would there be in her galaxy, with our citizens in quarantine worlds away?
“You are muttering and hissing to yourself. I can’t even come near you without getting a tail whipped across my eyes!” Talos suddenly snarled, inching into the kitchen and hugging the wall to avoid the agitated appendage Kamau was swinging.
“I am busy. I do not have time to dance attendance on one member of the crew or one guest. I spent far too much time with her last night and neglected to prep for tonight’s dinner,” he said tersely.
Talos said nothing, but Kamau could hear him sniffing the air.
I bathed. Reluctantly. I wanted to smell her heat marking me all day...
Talos’ voice was puzzled. “I’ll have Jaxson take her the tray.”
NESSA WAS LYING ON her bed in a soft cream-colored sleeping gown, hoping she looked seductive and beautiful for Kamau. It was the first time she’d ever had something so pretty to wear, and the first time her heart whispered that she was beautiful enough to truly deserve it.
Kamau thinks I’m beautiful. Desirable.
Her body heated and ached in more than exhaustion. She wanted to be in his strong, soft arms, forgetting all the long, painful conversations of the day.
Soon, Nessa. Soon.
Talos had said he’d speak to the chef about bringing her something to keep her strength up.
“Hey, Ness. Can I call you Ness?”
Nessa looked up and swallowed a yelp, pulling the gaping neckline of her dress up to her throat.
That was not Kamau.
“Hi!” Nessa squeaked the word and bolted upright, struggling to stand. Her head swam, and the tall, muscular Canid easily caught her as she began to pitch forward.
“Most species are lightheaded after a hyperjump—even with a hypersleep chamber. It’s a miracle that you can even sit up,” Jaxson smiled as he hastily sat her covered tray down on the edge of the bed.
“Thanks for not making me feel like such a weakling.” Nessa groaned and rubbed her lower back.
“You survived for days without food or water. You’re tough, Nessa. I’d want you on my team any day.”
“Your team? You work on engines?”
“That’s right. I’m the ship’s mechanic, a certified ESM with two junior ESMs, but Lycen, Skyla, and I all used to be in the same Sirius Federation System Military Corps unit. The SFSM Corps of Aviation Engineers,” Jaxson said proudly. “That’s how I met Alana—not the baby, my late wife, who she’s named after. On a tour of duty on Leonid-One...”
Nessa watched the Canid sigh, a huge, faraway smile on his face. “I’m sorry,” she finally said.
“Thanks. I’m happy to be on the Comet Stalker , back with a pack—I mean, a Pride. People who you can really trust, people who have your back. You have something like that back home?” He settled her back against the pillows as easily as she would settle a doll. “I can get a personal computer set up in here for you if you want to call home?”
“Apparently not,” Nessa let out a bitter laugh and frowned as she realized that no one from work had stood up for her and said, “Nessa wouldn’t just leave, something must be wrong.” Or followed up on drone footage that would have shown her narrow escape.
But... I went missing in the middle of a shift. There were more inspections to do, shuttles bumping up into berths all day and night.
Someone had to have covered my shift. Someone had to have realized I was gone—almost immediately. Someone who could quickly alter the schedules to make it look like I was off so coverage would be provided—and then alter them back to make it look like I just didn’t show up.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up a sore spot,” Jaxson apologized. “Maybe this will make it better? Kamau’s finest! Silverfin soup—the most delicate, buttery fish stew you’ve ever tasted.”
Nessa grinned and nodded. “It smells amazing. And uh... I think I do have a pack—they’re up here, floating in another galaxy, but they definitely look out for me. Could you give my compliments to the chef?” Nessa said.
“Absolutely.”
“HEY. NESSA WANTS TO see the chef. She has something to give him.” Jaxson strolled into the kitchen, grabbing a spoon and sticking it into the stew. “Mmmm.”
“Ay! Out of it!” Kamau smacked the big Canid’s paws with a well-placed flick of his tail, which he then curled around his wrist to stop him from going in for another bite. “You’re having millet cakes and bacon. I don’t feel like cooking anything complicated tonight.”
“That’s a damn shame since that’s your job—and your secret weapon.” Jaxson put a splayed paw over his chest, leaning dramatically against the stainless chromite refrigeration unit.
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
“Nessa. She wants you—and she wants to give you more than praise for your fish stew by the looks of it,” Jaxson sighed heavily. “I don’t mind telling you—if you don’t want her, buddy, I’ll have her.”
Kamau spun and lunged, face pressed close to the taller Canid’s throat. “You’ll have her ? She is not a spare container of tuber dumplings! You can’t snatch her up like an unattended snack! How dare you speak of a strong, beautiful, voluptuous—”
“So you do want her, then?” Jaxson stepped back with a weary smile and a calming paw on Kamau’s shoulder.
“What? I—”
“She wants you. Why the hell are you here in this cold, hard kitchen when you could be in a soft, warm bed, holding that gorgeous Queen?” Jaxson shook his paw as if he’d been burned. “Voluptuous doesn’t even begin to describe it,” he hummed longingly. “I never thought I’d notice another Queen after Alana, but... Damn. She turns heads.” Jaxson’s lustful expression turned serious, and he stared down Kamau. “Heads. Not hearts. I think that’s reserved for you.”
“You... You don’t know what I heard,” Kamau’s clenched fists uncurled.
“No, but I know what I saw. There’s a Queen in a little white nightgown in the room down the hall, just waiting to be gobbled up,” Jaxson licked his lips, “but when she saw me, her face dropped a thousand miles. She wanted you. She likes you.”
“I like her. But Servali males want to marry and have cubs. When we have romantic relationships, we expect them to have a high chance of going somewhere permanent. I heard Nessa on her call. She had another partner.”
“Oh, Kamau! If you’re going to tell me every Felid is some kind of virgin saint—”
“I’m not! I’m no saint, and I wouldn’t pretend to be. It’s just... It was never just about ‘a good time.’”
Jaxson arched one brown and black brow. “And it was with her?”
Kamau studied his apron. “I heard her tell the man she spoke to today. She slept with him—just for a good time. I don’t judge, Jaxson! It’s only... well. Yesterday—”
“I knew it! I knew it!” The Canid’s tail began to wag in triumph. “The nose knows!”
“We embraced! Not the way two Felids would, but it was a passionate embrace. I thought perhaps she might... That there might be feelings for me in some small way. I even wondered if they could grow. Now, I wonder if I was merely for pleasure. I don’t know how I feel about that.”
“Yes, you do.” Jaxson crossed his arms.
“All right, yes, I do, by Bastet’s whiskers! I don’t like it. I wished it could be more. At the very least, I thought it would be something special for us to remember when we parted, and now I wonder if it was only for a physical sensation.”
For a long moment, Jaxson said nothing, nodding slowly. “What else did the Queens back on Sapien-Three have to hope for?”
“What?”
“I’m serious. I’ve listened to Wendy, Jade, and Layla talk about their lives. Any sort of intimacy only seems to be for physical gratification. Nothing permanent. Nothing meaningful or lasting. Hell, they’ve legalized the brothels and made them giant attractions, Pleasure Parks, they’re called.”
“I know,” Kamau whispered.
“Not ‘Love Parks’ or ‘Relationship Parks.’ Pleasure is paramount. Pleasure and a good time are all the Queens get to hope for unless they’re rich or upper class. Love is a luxury.”
“A luxury—and she deserves such fineries and luxuries! She’s a woman elevated in her career, serving an important purpose, up for a promotion! And what am I? A ship’s cook on a long-haul freighter! I have no luxuries to offer her.”
Jaxson suddenly growled, smirked, and seized him by the scruff of the neck. “You have the luxury of your love, which is something she couldn’t afford on her planet and, therefore, something she could never have until you. Stop sulking and thinking you were just her toy. Go convince her you can be so much more.” Jaxson snapped his teeth together. “Don’t make me chase you down the hall, Felid.”
“You’d catch a taste of these claws, Canid.” Kamau shrugged Jaxson’s paws off and smoothed his fur. “Dinner—”
“Lycen can handle the core flush I’m running. I can handle the millet cakes and bacon for dinner. But I’m pretty sure Nessa only wants one Felid to handle her—and that’s you .”