Chapter 56
CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
A sensible, dutiful male would have gone to sleep hours ago.
He would not have spent the better part of the day pacing. He definitely wouldn’t have contended with two bursting cocks that roused at the thought of another alpha’s mate. Let alone used his tails and his hands to drain the endless flood of cum tightening his knots.
No. A good male would have gone back to his research on the Drakosians, trying to find a way to save innocent lives.
A better male would have followed the natural laws of matehood and clan relations.
And a smarter one would have brought himself one day closer to leaving this cursed sandbox of a city once and for all.
So why am I bent over a table full of books that have nothing to do with the dark planet? Scouring Khanos’s oldest tomes to find…
Well, something.
I don’t know what it is. Yet. But I will when I see it.
I have to.
I’m not sure where that powerful undercurrent of urgency stems from. It’s built steadily over the last span, but reached an absolute fever pitch last night. And all day, into this night and…
I cannot shake the sense that something is wrong here.
With Sofi and Zolkan.
With Rask.
With me.
Because as much as I’ve strived to remain a neutral observer all my life… I am not anymore. Not in this.
Or perhaps even at all.
That would certainly explain why I don’t bellow in frustration when I’m interrupted by the same irritating cadet who originally informed me of the omega’s arrival. Instead, I sigh from my place above the tomes, pinching the bridge of my nose beneath my speks as I rasp, “Come in.”
The soldier shuffles inside, graceless as ever. Nothing more than a buck, really, Stelaris help him.
Would the Drakosians spare such a young one? If the latest batch of corpses is any indication, I would guess not.
Last I heard, envoys from the dark planet are creeping closer. Over dinner last night, before Rask interrupted the meal with his sap-skulled cocks measuring, I overheard a lieutenant whisper that the Drakosians have breached our quadrant.
I haven’t had a moment to contemplate their bold decision to encroach on our space. It seems illogical, given they know we act as the hammer and blade of the Galactic Council.
Unless, of course, that’s precisely why they’re coming this way.
My head throbs dully, stomachs churning with a heavy mix of dread and hopelessness. “Did your commanding officer send you, cadet?”
He tilts his purple horns at me, as if I’ve baffled him. “No, sir. My lieutenant is filling in for his commanding officer.”
Why? Has there been another attack? A new mission?
“And where is she?” I question.
He looks properly embarrassed. “Well, I suppose she’s filling in for her commanding officer.”
Fucking hells.
“Her commanding officer is the General,” I realize out loud. A sudden chill strikes me. “Has he been injured? Or abandoned his post?”
The cadet shakes his head slowly, as if marveling at my cluelessness. “No, sir. He led today’s launch. To meet the oncoming Drakosian ship. He’s gone.”
Gone.
The word echoes in my brain. A clang, and then a whisper.
Rask is gone.
It’s too true in too many ways. Because I’ve seen what comes home from these “missions.” And if he isn’t already lost to the crushing depths of space, he will be soon.
Gods help me, my first thought is Sofi. Her round, beautiful face. The tears that will fill her eyes when someone tells her Rask is dead.
How could he leave her like this? I don’t think I ever could. Even when she bonds with Zolkan… will I truly wish to be so far from her? What if she needs me?
Gods. I have to figure out what the fuck is wrong with us.
She’s another alpha’s mate. Our Zortaire’s mate. I shouldn’t even have touched her gods-damned hem, let alone put my hands anywhere else on her.
Perhaps Rask has the right idea, actually. Maybe I’d be better off launching myself into space or running to the other end of the planet.
Somewhere very cold, where I can stick my burning cocks into a snowbank each morning and evening.
“I’m not here for any of the officers,” the cadet goes on, oblivious to my unraveling mind. “I’m here for the Zortaire. He needs you to come at once. His Zellina is hurt.”
I’m in motion before the soldier finishes his report.
My tails whip behind me as I practically sprint across the zvorn, bursting into the palace within moments. Guards shout at my intrusion, but the young cadet dashes behind me, offering panted apologies and assuring the Zortaire’s men that I’m here on his orders.
I can hardly hear him—and I’m wholly unconcerned with everything except the human.
I scent them instantly. Sofi’s sweetness, Zolkan’s musk. Layered together in a brand new way.
My hearts start to pound. Heat dries my throat and propels my blood. I race faster, taking the stairs to the Zortaire’s tower two at a time. Paying no mind to the fresh crop of guards huddled in a sheepish cluster on the grand auridian landing.
I can’t ask them any questions or offer an explanation. Hells, I can’t even see them, really.
Because my entire existence has narrowed to a single point. One pinprick of starlight, leaving the rest of Khanos in total darkness.
Sofi lies among Zolkan’s shredded sheets, pale and lovely as ever. Her deep brown hair is rumpled, strewn over his cushions in pools of shining mahogany.
The Zortaire leaps up from his place at her side and starts to speak. I hear only bits and pieces—how she found him in a vicious rut. How she gentled him and helped him through it. How she’s been sleeping, too deeply, and—
My knees give out, hitting the hard floor. The universe disappears, leaving only this one beautiful being. This human woman. And her single, precious heartbeat.
My heartbeat.