Chapter 26
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Lila
“I’m sorry, the harvester was a bust. He couldn’t tell us anything,” I admit, and my heart breaks as my grandfathers look crestfallen.
“He was just a worker, he wasn’t the leader or anything, and what he did have to tell us was kind of weird.
” I look at my mates. “Did you guys get any more information out of him?”
“I was able to confirm that he didn’t lie to you.
This Zeygan does exist, and I could see in his memories that he does exactly as he told you.
He just stands there as the halla harvesters do their thing.
His presence is what keeps the flora and fauna away,” Xavier says, confirming what the scam artist told me.
“Fuck!” William picks up a chair and throws it.
Thankfully Xavier catches it in the air and stops it from crashing to the ground and waking the children.
“Shit, sorry.” William scrubs his hand through his hair.
It’s grown out since I met him, and he is in desperate need of a haircut.
It doesn’t help that he keeps tugging on it when he gets frustrated, which has been a lot recently.
“But what we did learn was that they are being picked up tomorrow for another run, and we have a plan.” Saxon grabs William’s shoulder and squeezes. “Be calm, my friend. We will find a way to get to your wife.”
“We were thinking that I could glamour myself to look like our vegetable friend, and I will take Lila in her earth elemental form and Brannock, and they can pose as new harvesters. They need new ones every time because this Zeygan isn’t very cautious with the crew.
Then Lila can either mimic Zeygan and use his abilities or we can force him to help us,” Xavier explains, and I feel a dash of hope.
“Sounds a little weak,” John says, but he can’t hide the yearning in his eyes.
“But what about the bear? We were specifically told by Zamala that we would need a carevasta bear to retrieve her from her stasis,” Tirrian reminds us.
“The circus ship can hover in orbit, and when you have the right location, we will teleport him to where he needs to be.” Saxon doesn’t sound worried at all.
I mean, I could use my own bear form now, but I won’t have time to practice how to use their special matter manipulation powers, not to mention if I accidentally brush against one of my mates, we may end up having an orgy amongst the man-eating flora and fauna, which is not my idea of a good time.
I like to be eaten, but I prefer to keep all my body parts when it happens.
“Do you know anything about my wife?” William demands, scowling at the bear. “It had to have been one of you who went into the cave on Rilu and retrieved her for whoever holds her captive. It’s the only thing that makes sense. No other creature could get into the cave.”
“Actually, a powerful warlock could teleport into it if they had a picture of the place in mind.”
“Yes, but neither Zamala nor Zana, who are the only people before Lila who could get into that cave, had ever been in there,” Silac replies.
Ghosie frowns, deep in thought. “I remember a job coming up on Rilu, but it wasn’t my crew who took that one. I know it paid well and had to be kept quiet.”
“Do you know which of the carevasta crews took the job?” Link sounds excited. “If we can find out who did, then maybe we can find out who paid them to move Liliana.”
“Yes, a captain by the name of Osid, but I heard through the grapevine that his crew perished on that job.”
“That actually makes sense. Zamala said the crew who situated Liliana on Husadavia hadn’t survived,” Silac reminds us.
“Well, there goes that idea,” Cas grumbles.
“But if their ship is still orbiting Husadavia, I could probably get the information out of its communication logs,” Ghosie offers.
“It sounds like we have a solid plan then.” I’m feeling more hopeful by the moment.
“Excellent. We are a little bit closer to figuring out who is behind her disappearance.” Eric rubs his hands together before turning his gaze to Silac. “Unfortunately, we have some bad news for you.”
And there it is, my hope disappears as I see the worry on Silac’s face. “What is it? Is my family okay? Did Cronus and Xylene succeed?”
“They contacted us while you were all over on the station. They hit a snag. When they arrived for the meeting, they found that Sissoik, who is the head of the Bravalana basilisks, turned your father to stone. They can’t make a move on him until they reverse it, and he won’t reverse it until you return and marry his daughter.
He is sick of waiting, and he was suspicious of the warlocks. ”
“Fuck! When will it stop?” I can’t help the words that burst from my mouth. “It seems like the whole fucking world is against us, and I’ve had enough.”
“Cronus thinks that someone tipped off the Bravalanas,” John tells us.
“I bet it was their fucking private secretary. He was such a fucking weasel.” I look at Saxon who nods.
“Yeah, you could be right. He didn’t like you one little bit.”
“Eryan?” Xavier’s eyebrows jump. “When did you speak to him? And no, he wouldn’t have liked her one bit.
He is Elyan’s brother, and I’m sure my parents have informed her family what has become of her.
I’m almost certain he would have jumped at the chance to get rid of my parents.
His father has been gunning to replace them for years. ”
“When I called them to arrange for them to meet us at Aquilia,” I tell him. “Why would they keep him as their private secretary then?”
Xavier snorts with amusement. “Because they are sick and twisted individuals who enjoy mind games. They love that saying, keep your friends close but your enemies closer. They’ve been feeding false information to his family for years.”
“I need to go.” Silac is on his feet, his cobra hood flared and his tongue flicking in and out in agitation.
“Whoa, hang on.” Tirrian puts his hands up in a calming manner. “I don’t think we should separate. You most certainly shouldn’t go on your own. The minute you marry the girl, they could freeze you as well.”
“Tirrian is right. We shouldn’t separate,” Maxsim says gruffly. “We are a family, a team, and we take care of everyone’s problems together. We will rescue Liliana Adams, and once she is safely on board, we will rescue your family.”
Echo snuggles into our alpha’s side and nods his head in agreement. “We need to stick together.” He rubs his hand across his belly. “We are stronger as a team.”
“But what if that makes it worse?” Silac hisses the last word.
“Cronus said they were fine at the moment, that they were being wined and dined, and still pretending they want to negotiate a contract with them. They are pretending to go along with everything,” William assures Silac.
“We told them the circus was on the far side of the galaxy, auditioning for new acts, and that it would take us at least a couple of weeks to return. They indicated that they were happy to wait three weeks but no longer. If you don’t return by then, they will make sure the stoning is irreversible.”
Silac heaves out a huge sigh, and his hood flares up and down in agitation.
“Fine, but as soon as we get Mrs. Adams, we need to go.” I can’t stand seeing him this worked up any longer, so although I’ve been cautious about showing any affection for this engaged man, I can’t help but go over and give him a hug.
It’s the right thing to do. His entire body shudders, and he sinks into the hug.
“Thank you,” he says gratefully. “I know this has been hard, but if you wait for me, someday, we can be together,” he whispers so only I can hear, and I feel a thrill of excitement.
I was worried he would give me up to save his parents, which makes me feel guilty because how fucking selfish am I, especially with how many mates I already have?
But the heart wants what the heart wants, or the mimic powers do, and thankfully, it seems like he is still interested.
“It’s fine. We will get through all of this, and one day, we will look back and laugh.”
He pulls away, but I drag him over and make him sit down before taking a seat on his lap, making myself comfortable.
“Okay, well, I need to share something I learned from that fucking little troll, Glup,” I announce. I’m not sure how helpful his information is, but we need to make use of everything available to us.
“Who is Glup?” Cas asks, his face adorably confused. “Was that one of the bears?”
“No, that was one of the security guards on the space station—the one who fooled me into thinking he was helping me, but in reality, he was just trying to make a quick buck.”
“Glup is a Gurko,” Ghosie announces to the rest of my family, and the confusion clears.
“Fucking weaselly parasites. They would sell their own mother if the price was right,” Tirrian spits.
“That’s why the station employs them as security guards. They aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty for the right amount of money. It’s why it was so easy for Lizis to strike a deal with him.” Ghosie looks apologetic, but I don’t hold him responsible for someone else’s actions.
I tell them what he told me, and although Link and my grandpas look a little like this is the first time they’ve heard this, none of the other men do.
“Origin gods are still worshiped on a lot of planets,” Saxon tells me, seeing my confusion. “Not by the masses, but there are small pockets of believers here and there. The Galactic Council hasn’t managed to stamp them all out.”
“Does anyone else know a species who has the ability to repel like Zeygan does, or do we think we might be dealing with a god?” Cas asks the question that had been playing over and over in my mind. Is it a coincidence that he can keep everything away, or is it because he created it all?
Everyone is strangely silent, and I feel the tension rise.
“Can I even mimic a god?” I ask, hearing the panic in my voice.
“We won’t know until we get there. Let’s not worry about it.
The old gods haven’t been seen for many years.
There are a few species that have repelling powers.
I’m going to spend the night researching and will have a list of possibilities by the morning.
” Link sounds hopeful and positive, and I relax a little now that I know my cleverest mate is on the job.
“Okay, well, it seems like we have a plan then. Tomorrow, we will go back to Z68 and join up with the halla harvesters, and then when we get to Husadavia, either I’ll mimic this being or we will force him to help us. One way or another, we are getting to Grandma.”
Brannock has been quiet through this whole entire conversation, which is weird, because he is usually involved in planning. I must not be the only one who notices.
“Brannock, is there anything you would like to add?” Xavier asks, and when the Aaz’axian looks up, nobody can miss the anguish in his eyes.
“I have a confession, and if it means that you’ll kill me because of it, that’s okay, but before you do, I beg you to hear my story.”
“Hey, I’m sure nothing you have to say to us is too bad. Shit, Ghosie kidnapped me, and I forgave him. Tirrian was a raging dick, and we’re getting past that.”
Tirrian rolls his eyes but doesn’t deny the truth.
“I wouldn’t be too sure. I haven’t been honest with any of you, and I can’t go on lying to all of you anymore, especially since you’ve been so kind, and you took me in and gave me a home despite me being one of the most feared races in the galaxy.”
“We don’t judge a race, only individual actions,” Link reminds him.
“Except Madovians. They are all evil.” Silac shudders beneath me, and I have to admit, the reaction is not unwarranted.
“And the Seiomann. They are a nasty race too,” Xavier adds helpfully.
“Okay, fine, we judge some races, but you are not one of them.” Link sounds exasperated at my other mates.
His gaze meets mine, and I can see the agony and anguish in his eyes. “I wouldn’t be so sure. I was deliberately deported from Earth to the circus ship so I could search for the orb. The Syndicate believes it’s here, and as one of its members, I was tasked with the job of retrieving it.”
I’m speechless, and the man who I’ve come to think of as a friend and maybe someday something more drops an atomic bomb sized announcement on me and my family.
The dining room erupts into loud noise, and the babies wake and start crying in fright, but I just stare at the man who I hoped to add to my mates one day in disappointment. I’m sure he probably has good reasons for his actions, but at the moment, I can’t think of any.
When I look around, I find Xavier has had to freeze Saxon and Tirrian because both of them started to leap at Brannock. Thankfully, he is being a little more rational. Cas and Link just look disappointed, as do my grandpas.
“I’m sure you have an explanation,” William says, but I can tell it’s costing him to be calm.
Brannock nods quickly. “Yes, and if you would allow me to explain, I’m sure you will understand why I had to do it.”
“But why?” My question silences everyone as we wait for him to answer. He walks over to me and gets down on his knees in front of me. I’m still sitting in Silac’s lap, so his head is almost in line with mine.
“Smith is a part of the Syndicate, and he is the one who ordered me to find the orb.”
“But why?” I repeat, not really able to form a different question.
“Because Smith has my child locked up behind a door at Area 51 with a whole heap of other aliens. He threatened to experiment on her because she shouldn’t be possible, and he wants to find out why. He promised me if I found the orb and returned it to the Syndicate, she could go free.”
To Be Continued