7. Bambi
BAMBI
My new room on the shuttle isn’t what I expected. I’m not exactly sure what I anticipated, but it wasn’t this.
The space is warm and inviting, like an open floor plan efficiency apartment back home. It boasts a small kitchen area that seamlessly blends with what constitutes a living room before ending in the far corner, where the bed is.
Four smooth walls are only interrupted by three doors: one that leads to the bathroom, then the closet, and finally, the hallway.
There aren’t any windows, but that doesn’t bother me.
I have no desire to see open space. I’d probably have a panic attack at the concept of nothingness as far as the eye can see.
All in all, it’s a comfy, cozy space that I can see myself spending a lot of time in.
And that’s a very good thing, because I’m not sure where we’re going.
To my surprise, there’s enough room on the shuttle that everyone can have their own quarters.
It’s as if the shuttle was specifically designed just for the inhabitants of Deapra.
Which isn’t creepy… at all.
It also hasn’t escaped my notice that the amenities in my room are more human-sized than Ruk. I’m pretty grateful for that, because feeling like a child using things made for an adult gets old.
Fast.
Putting away my meager belongings took less than half an hour, and now I’m not exactly sure what to do with myself.
As I look around my new room, our rushed exit off Deapra plays out again in my head.
I’m surprised that it lacked chaos. Back home, the few movies I’ve seen always portrayed leaving somewhere under an emergency situation with a sense of pandemonium and panic.
What actually happened was a calm announcement from Slavic and Shagar, which was received with varying degrees of alarm.
After my bizarre conversation with Murgul, I found Heather, and we boarded this shuttle.
All in all, it was super low-key and drama-free.
Super weird considering how American television always dramatized everything.
A sudden chime from what I’m calling the front door makes me frown in confusion, and I move across the room to see who’s there. Brushing my hand across the sensor, the door opens to reveal a smiling Heather.
“Bambi! Is your room as nice as mine? Everything is normal-sized!”
Laughing at the happy dance she’s doing, I nod. “Yeah, I’m pretty excited not to have to leap on and off the toilet.”
“GIRL. Yesss. I cannot tell you how sick and tired I am of that.”
Her expression turns sly before she asks. “So… do you know which of the brothers is piloting our new digs?”
Her question sends sinking suspicion that I’ve been played trickling through me.
“Uhm. No…? But I bet you’re about to tell me.”
“You bet your ass I am. It’s Bikar! I heard from Myev that he’s the only one out of all the brothers that’s on the shuttle.
I’m not sure how they finagled it, but Shagar and Atasha are in Falon’s old room on the Zenith along with all the couples.
You, me, and all the single Ruks are on this vessel. ”
That sneaky motherfucker!
My thoughts are filled with indignant rage, but all that comes out is. “Oh…”
Heather must see the dread and anxiety written all over my face, because she pushes me back into my room and shuts the door behind us. Grabbing my hand, she leads me over to the couch and pulls me down onto it with her.
“Okay, I can understand being apprehensive. There’s the size difference, the fated-mate-trope thing going on, and the fact he’s a completely different species…
but you’re legitimately terrified of all the males.
Even the mated ones. You’re eventually going to have to at least talk to him.
Remember these guys belong to a species that dies if they don’t seal the bond with their females.
We both watched how it drove Ruarc insane, and Kallen almost died.
You’re my bestest best friend, and I refuse to let that happen to you. ”
“I don’t want him to die, and I really don’t wanna die. But…”
Heather leans forward, straining to hear my quiet words. Clearing my throat, I make an effort to speak up while keeping my eyes fixed on where her hands hold mine.
“I don’t want him to die, but he betrayed his brother for purely selfish reasons. That says a lot about the type of person he is. If he will do that to his brother…”
Raising my head, I see the lightbulb go off in Heather’s blue eyes, and she fills in the gaps when my voice fails me. “If he can do that to one of his brothers, whom he loves dearly, then what would he betray you for?”
“Exactly. I know you and the other girls have seen my scars, the ones I got before the Velgriddix. My father gave those to me in an attempt to bend me to his will and mold me into a proper daughter. Nothing I ever did was good enough. The house wasn’t cleaned to his expectations, his food wasn’t ever cooked the way he wanted, and… and so on.”
Choking back a sob, I force myself to tell her the rest. “The night I ran away is the night I learned my father set up an auction. He was going to sell my virginity to the highest bidder, and then whore me out for extra cash. It was his way of making money off his ‘free-loading good-for-nothing daughter.’”
Wiggling my fingers in a silent request, Heather releases her grip on my hands so I can wipe the tears running down my cheeks.
Taking a shuddering breath, I sum it all up.
“My father, the man that was supposed to love and cherish me first, was going to use my body to make him money. He betrayed me out of selfish greed. I refuse to bind myself to another man just like him.”
“Oh, honey, I think you might be judging Bikar a little harshly.”
Irritation makes my response caustic. “Really? From what I understand, he lied to Murgul about that ship, what was on it, and what he really wanted. If Murgul died, then Gwen would have died too! He didn’t think about any of that.
All he thought about was money and whatever stupid alien mumbo jumbo he stole off that other spaceship!
There’s a saying that goes ‘money is the root of all evil’, and it’s apparent that transcends worlds and species.
Bikar betrayed Murgul and endangered me, his precious mate, at the same time when he set his sights on that fucking ship. ”
By the time I’m finished talking, my chest is heaving with emotion, and Heather is looking at me with sympathy. “Well, I can’t deny the validity of what you’re saying, because all of that is true.”
She leans over and hugs me tightly for a long time before eventually letting go, getting up, and heading for the door. Just before she leaves, she offers me one last piece of information.
“I’m not sure if you know this or not, but Bikar apologized to Murgul…
and Murgul forgave him. It doesn’t excuse what he did, but it’s a step in the right direction.
Maybe there’s more we don’t know or understand.
Remember, there are always two sides to every story.
Just… think about talking to him, Bambi. ”
Staring at the empty doorway, I slump into the couch. “That shithead. He could have said something during our little chat earlier, but I guess that would’ve defeated the purpose.”
Lying my head against the back of the couch, I stare blankly up at the ceiling, contemplating how the hell I got here, and how this could possibly be my life now. Heather’s parting words hit home, just as she meant them to, and I can’t help voicing my disbelief to the empty room:
“I didn’t know men knew how to apologize. Lord knows Dad never did.”
Then, the floor beneath my feet vibrates subtly—we’ve left the planet’s surface, and we’re off to parts unknown.
Again.