Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Ziamee couldn’t sleep. Something niggled.
She’d say it was guilt at having lured Illan into the head and locked him in there with no blanket to ward off the chill.
With a huff at that nonsense, she punched her bedding and rolled over.
He didn’t deserve comfort, nor did she know whether he was undeserving of it either.
Still, she had to treat him as the stranger he was, while assuming he was out to kill her. The first rule.
His beautiful gaze trailing her around the clearing rattled her, though. And when she spoke, he gave her all of his attention, like what she said mattered to him.
She shivered, liking his interest far too much.
He hadn’t revealed his intentions in a kill-her direction, acting exactly as he’d said he’d intended—responding to their distress signal.
Except it had been so long since the crash that she couldn’t trust him.
After all, he could be scouting for a salvage.
She half snorted. The Haile had no cargo to offer a scavenger—nothing of worth anyway.
If only Padya was here.
“Temperature in the head?” she asked Oz.
“Four degrees colder than the mess.”
She grimaced. If she opened the door to toss him a blanket, he’d strike.
That’s what she’d do if she was in his good pair of boots.
She gazed at her bare feet—dirty, mud-splattered.
So were her pants, with one patch peeling off.
She fiddled with the fraying edges, then lifted her tunic for a sniff.
Despite having bathed yesterday, she still smelled of ceaza, Seba, and herself.
Mudya had used a few petals to create a perfume of sorts. Which flower was that?
Ziamee tapped her chin, then gritted her teeth. Smelling nice for whom? What did it matter?
She was procrastinating. With a muffled growl, she clambered to her feet, then gripped the edge of a warped steel panel to lean out of the ship. She peered at the sky. Dawn would be here soon, and she hadn’t found solace.
“Oz, open the door when he stirs.”
“The male is not in there.”
Ice slithered down her spine and snatched her breath. “What?” she gasped, bolting for the head. She halted outside. This could be a trick. “Are you sure?”
“He left shortly after the door sealed.”
“How?” Did she want to know?
She cursed at having lost sleep over the ass.
Good. He was gone. She didn’t have to worry about him anymore.
A sense of loss teased the walls of her heart.
She was being silly, but his help finding Padya would’ve been wonderful.
She scoffed. As if Illan would’ve stayed after she’d imprisoned him.
Still, to lower herself into the crevice without someone there if she needed them would be stupid.
Shaking herself from her dark thoughts, she checked out the slab.
Its clean state meant Seba had come through at some point.
Odd that he hadn’t sought her out. Instead of heading to the lake, she veered northwest to where tiny lilac flowers grew.
Mudya had gathered the petals, then mashed them until droplets of oil pooled.
She’d cap that in a tiny glass tube that had survived the crash.
Ziamee wanted to check if the flowers were in bloom.
Smelling like anything other than fish and sweat would be a pleasant change.
The unopened buds said it wasn’t time yet, but she plucked a few, returning to the campsite to place them on a stone beside the fire.
Its dying heat would soften the hard outer shells of the buds.
With a toweling cloth, she hiked the path, stretching her stiff leg.
A sweep of the pristine lake promised a chilly bath, worse than normal.
The sun cast its muted rays as it climbed the changing sky, offering her little warmth.
She draped her garments and cloth over boulders to gather what heat they could.
Already, shivers summoned bumps across her skin as she stripped.
Wading into the waves took all her courage.
By mid-thigh, she muttered a curse and dove in.
Only to burst out on a cry, “Elorach, it’s cold.”
She made quick work of the scrubbing, wanting this torture to be over. And yet, once clean, she found the chill not so bad. She floated onto her back, gazing at the sky while relishing the enclosed silence as she bobbed.
“This is magnificent,” she mumbled, even as her stomach grumbled.
Movement on the shore snapped her to her feet. For a moment, she hoped it was Padya. Disbelief had her splashing her face. She had to be seeing things.
“Illan?” she gasped and trudged toward him. “What in Hikos’s abyss are you doing back?”
Mud squelched between her toes when she waded out of the water to stand there, hands on hips. Why doesn’t he speak? He ran his gaze over her body like a naked female was odd for him. Nudity had never bothered her before, but under his interest, something unfurled in her core.
“Lost your voice?” she asked, snatching up the sunbaked toweling cloth.
Wrapping it around her made her moan. Oh, to be warm.
A fire and a tisane would be on her agenda this morning.
But first, she had to get rid of Illan. His unwavering gaze unsettled her.
“I thought you’d left.” She huffed, tying the cloth around her to gather her garments.
Deep down, she didn’t dare admit that his return sparked an inexplicable joy.
“I don’t know how you escaped the head.” She met his gaze and held it, determination raising her chin. “Don’t tell me. Just…leave.”
The male had too many secrets. She needed…someone she could trust to stay even when she demanded he abandon her. She bit her lip, not wanting to beg for his help.
“Oz tells me your father is missing.”
“Now he speaks.” She picked taisra leaves on the way home.
“Yes.” She glanced over her shoulder at him trailing her.
He looked well rested, his garments clean.
“Padya’s been gone for too long.” She studied the horizon, trying to recall how many mornings she’d awoken without her father nearby. “Twenty-five days.”
Squatting next to the fire, she poked it back to life, feeding a few sticks for fuel. She threw the leaves into a metal bowl, scooped in water, and placed the bowl at the center of the flames.
“When did you last see him?” Illan asked, crouching opposite her.
“Heading north.” She stood, offered him her back, dropped the toweling cloth, and pulled on her pants. Tying on the tunic took moments. Despite the cloth being damp, she coiled it around her head to help dry her braids.
While the water boiled, she mashed the buds, then hoped he didn’t notice when she rubbed a little of their fragrant oil on her wrists. The teasing scent made her smile, summoning memories of her mother…wherever she was.
“Do you have boots?” he asked, gesturing to her feet.
She frowned at his strange question, then hummed the affirmative while sipping her tisane. Its heat rolled down her healing throat and exploded warmth into her body.
“Put them on.” He tapped his forearm, and those shiny letters appeared. “Ulta, scan the area for lifeforms. We have a missing Durn.”
“Acknowledged.”
She squeaked, grabbed his arm, and shook it. “Your people?”
“Show me where your father went.”
At his command, she glared at him, then with a huff, she set aside her tisane and squatted to lace the ribbons around her calves. She shouldn’t be angry with him when he was trying to help…in his way. Seeing the crevice might inspire ideas on how to descend. And she’d wanted this.
She grabbed a purple jabecu fruit in passing, biting into the white, fleshy pulp, then spitting out the seeds while she led him along the craggy path. From a distance, the crevice sat like a dark eye. With careful steps and her thigh burning, she veered to the left and gestured to the hole.
“I think he’s down there. No tracks circle this area. When I brought Seba here, he whined, his gaze fixed below. I can’t…figure out how to get down there without dying.”
He leaned over her, brushing her shoulder with his arm as he peered inside. “And you called to him?”
“Yes. That’s how I lost my voice.”
His head shot up. “This is not your natural tone?”
“No.” She scowled.
He dug into his pocket and withdrew a black box. She stumbled back when he pointed it at her. Fear strangled her throat, and her eyes widened.
His slow smile formed. “Do not be alarmed,” he said, as calm as the lake’s surface on a winter’s morning.
He could kill her now and toss her body into the crevice.
“Ziamee,” he said, his deep voice rolling her name over his tongue. “This is a med-gun. It…encourages your body to heal faster.”
“Don’t,” she said, inching away from him.
He sighed, unsheathed his dagger from his boot, and palmed it.
Ice chilled her spine. Fear caught her breath. She managed a few steps, eyeing the path home. Though, using it to save her life would gain her nothing. Unless she could make it inside the Haile. Oz could throw up a shield—the same one he’d powered up just days ago and when it rained.
What she didn’t expect was Illan slicing his arm. She gasped when blood dribbled onto the rock.
He showed her the wound, then ran the box over it.
She didn’t blink, too scared to miss something. As sure as the abyss existed, his skin knitted, and the wound faded.
“Elorach,” she whispered, then clamped her mouth shut.
“May I?” He waved the black box while hastily sheathing his dagger.
She swallowed, testing how badly her throat stung. It had healed for the most part, not as excruciating as a few days ago. “Heal my leg,” she rasped.
He froze. “I can scan it to alleviate the pain, but I suspect you will need the bigger med-E.D. on my ship.”
She blinked at him, not truly understanding him. “I—” She gripped her hips and glared at him. “I’m not going with you anywhere.”
He chuckled and pocketed the box. “Very well,” he said.
“Illan, I am finding something faint below your feet. My scans cannot penetrate the rock.” The male cleared his throat. “Northeast of you is a stronger signal.”
Joy warred with doubt, and she lunged, tugging Illan’s arm to within an inch of her mouth. “My mother?” she asked the voice.
“The gender I cannot determine, milady. Illan, we will retrieve the kuta and investigate.”
Her thoughts swirled, tears flowed without hindrance, and hope tangled her tongue.
She gazed at Illan, happiness an explosion of emotions she didn’t know how to contain.
With her head thrown back, she laughed, even as she bounced on her toes.
“Mudya’s alive.” She dropped to the ground and yelled into the crevice, “Padya, she’s alive. ”
“My thanks, Brac.” Illan’s calm voice snapped her attention to him.
She couldn’t wipe away her smile. Scrambling to her feet, she grasped his upper arm. “Do you think they’ll find her? Bring her home?”
His smile was kind as he caught her chin and held her still; his gaze roved her face. “Let us hope it is your mother, but Ziamee, it could be a large creature.”
She pinched her lips. It was wise of him to warn her. “How long?” she asked.
He ran his thumb over her cheeks, brushing aside her tears. “That I cannot say to the exact hour. We will know this day.”
Her mind screamed at her to move out of his reach, but her body wouldn’t budge.
“Mudya went to investigate the forest. She never returned.” She sniffed.
“Padya tried to find her.” She leaned into Illan’s touch.
“I never gave up hope over these past twelve years.” Breaking his magnetic allure, she flung her gaze away from his jawline, those high cheekbones, and his long-lashed eyes that saw too much.
“We need rope, and you need boots. Ready to visit my ship now?” He arched a brow.
She scoffed. “Without your little kuta?” Shaking herself out of a daze, she marched toward the Haile. “I’m going nowhere with you. At this point, all you’ve done is speak to a faceless voice.”
“What about your father?”
She jerked to a halt and spun, almost making him stumble. He caught her elbow, using her to find his balance.
She shook his hand away. “I’ll have to make more rope. I was hoping you’d have a better plan than kidnapping me.”
“Ziamee—”
She hiked off. “How silly of me to think you’d help,” she muttered, glancing east.
The vines she used to make rope were from the edges of the dense forest. She avoided the great cobwebs stretching between trees deeper in the ominous shadows.
What she could use was that dagger of his.
It had taken her ages to cut through the thin vines she’d later woven together.
His dagger had sliced through her five-vined rope with ease.
She snuck a peek at him, doubting he’d let her borrow such a sharp weapon.
Then she’d steal it. She clenched her jaw, letting determination strengthen her resolve.
“Please, you’re welcome to keep me company while we wait for your people to find my mother.” She flashed a smile, then glanced ahead before he realized it was fake.
Familiar tread had her looking right just as Seba appeared out of the bushes. With a roar rivaling their ucdeas encounter, he pounced on Illan, taking the male to the ground.