Chapter 19
BALECK
Isat across from Iris at my small table, watching her devour breakfast with the same efficiency she brought to everything else.
I’d slipped out earlier to grab food from the communal kitchen.
Neither of us wanted to deal with the public.
Not yet, anyway. We wanted to linger a little longer in our own private world.
She wore my shirt again, the fabric hanging loose on her frame, and I was fairly certain I’d be content if that was all she ever wore for the rest of our lives.
The sight of her in my clothes, her dark hair still damp from the shower, her fingers wrapped around a cup of tea, made something warm and possessive curl through my chest.
Mine. She was mine.
My data pad chimed and I glanced at the message from Anker. I read it quickly, then looked up at Iris.
“The human ship engaged the Brakken ship last night,” I said. “Short battle. Brakken ship destroyed, ground forces captured.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Casualties?”
“Several Brakken killed in the fighting. No human or Destran losses.” I scrolled through the rest of the message. “Apparently the sky lit up bright enough during the engagement that some villagers saw it. We’re being summoned to the central hall in two hours.”
“Summoned?” She set down her tea. “That sounds ominous.”
“Probably just a briefing. Rezor will want to know everything now.” I put the data pad aside and reached for the fruit I’d brought. “Two hours gives us time to eat without rushing.”
She nodded and went back to her breakfast, but I caught the slight furrow between her brows. Something was bothering her.
I let her eat in silence for a few minutes, content to just watch her.
Last night replayed in my mind with vivid clarity.
The feel of her skin under my hands. The sounds she’d made when I was inside her.
The way she’d looked up at me, vulnerable and trusting and so beautiful it had stolen my breath.
I was fortunate beyond measure to have found such a passionate, capable mate. Someone who matched me in ways I hadn’t known I needed. She challenged me, intrigued me, made me want to be better just to be worthy of her.
“Why haven’t the mating marks appeared yet?” she asked suddenly, not looking at me.
I paused, a piece of fruit halfway to my mouth. “They will.”
“But when?” Now she did look at me, and I saw worry in those dark eyes. “What if they don’t? What if this isn’t the mate bond? What if one day your real mate comes along and you leave me for her?”
I set down my food and reached across the table to take her hand. “Iris, I am one hundred percent certain you’re my mate. I know it in my bones. In every cell of my body. The marks will come when they’re meant to.”
“But you don’t know why they haven’t yet.”
“No,” I admitted. “Destran-human bonds don’t always follow the typical patterns. Sometimes the marks appear immediately. Sometimes they take time. There’s no hard rule.” I squeezed her fingers gently. “What matters is what we feel. And I feel like I’ve found the other half of myself.”
She bit her lip, still looking troubled. “What if you’re wrong?”
“I’m not.” I pulled her hand to my lips and kissed her knuckles. “I will never leave you. Whether marks appear tomorrow or a cycle from now or never at all, you’re mine and I’m yours. That’s not changing.”
“You can’t know that.”
“Yes, I can.” I met her gaze steadily, letting all my certainty show. “I’ve waited my entire life for you. I’m not walking away from this. From us.”
She searched my face for a long moment, then nodded slowly.
But I could see she was still troubled, the worry not entirely banished.
I wished I had better answers for her. Wished I could explain why the marks hadn’t burned into my skin yet when everything else about our bond felt complete and undeniable.
But all I could do was show her, day after day, that I meant what I said.
We finished eating and dressed for the meeting. Iris retrieved her cleaned bodysuit from the small laundry unit I’d run overnight, and I found fresh clothes in my storage compartments. As I fastened my shirt, I caught her watching me with an expression that made my skin shift to warm golds.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing. Just…” She shook her head. “You’re very attractive. It’s distracting.”
I grinned. “You’re one to talk. You show up in my shirt and I can barely think straight.”
She actually smiled, small but genuine. Progress.
We made our way to the central hall, a large building near the settlement’s center that served for important gatherings. Inside, we found it already crowded.
Rezor stood at the front with Cleo tucked against his side, both of them practically glowing. Cleo’s face lit up when she saw me.
“Baleck!” She pulled away from Rezor long enough to cross over and hug me. “I heard you rescued a human operative from kidnappers. Very heroic, my friend.”
“It seemed appropriate for the circumstances,” I said, returning her embrace. “Good to see you back where you belong.”
“Good to be back.” She glanced at Rezor, and the look they exchanged was so full of love and relief, it made my chest tight. “We have a lot to figure out still, but we’re together. That’s what matters.”
I introduced her properly to Iris, who accepted Cleo’s friendly greeting with more warmth than I’d expected. Maybe she was getting used to genuine kindness.
The council members were present, as was Zelana, the elderly D’tran prophet reader who’d helped raise Rezor.
And then I spotted Vax.
He sat in a chair at the front, hands bound, looking bloody and haggard. Two guards flanked him, their expressions grim. I wondered if the Brakken had turned on him, or if he’d simply been caught in the chaos.
“So he survived after all,” Iris muttered to me, sending a narrow-eyed glare at the D’tran prisoner. “Rezor had better not give him another slap on the wrist.”
I wasn’t completely sure what that meant. As far as I knew, no human justice systems delivered punishments of slaps on wrists, but I shrugged and reminded myself to ask her about it later.
Sophie and Vash stood near one wall with Anker. A portable screen had been set up showing an older human in military uniform. It was the admiral.
And there, clustered near the back, were familiar faces that made me smile. Maya, Zara, and Captain Torven. Mierva sat with her mate, Derrin, their hands clasped. They looked happy to be reunited.
Rezor called the meeting to order, his voice carrying easily through the hall. “We gather to address what happened with the Brakken and the conspiracy within our own people.” He looked at Vax with eyes that had gone cold amber. “Vax, you will speak. Tell us everything.”
Vax lifted his head, and I saw bitterness etched into every line of his face. He confessed it all. The conspiracy. The deal with the Brakken. The kidnapping of Iris. His plans to use her as leverage to force the outsiders away and depose Rezor.
When he finished, he looked directly at Iris. “You were right,” he said, the words sharp and acidic. “They did betray us. Killed my people like they were nothing.” But there was no apology in his voice. Just resentment.
He turned and spat in Rezor’s direction. “I would not have been forced into such an arrangement had you been a stronger leader.”
The hall went silent. Rezor’s eyes blazed red for just a moment before settling into steel-gray determination. This was not a conflicted leader. This was someone who’d learned from his mistakes.
“Twenty sun cycles,” Rezor said, his voice hard.
“You will be sent to the penal base on Sten-Vor III, where the humans have arranged for you to serve your sentence. You will work. You will learn. And if you prove yourself capable of change, you may one day be free to build a new life somewhere.” He paused.
“But never on this planet. You are banished from Destrani forever.”
Vax’s face twisted with rage. He began spouting curses, threats, and the guards hauled him to his feet. They led him out, and the tension in the room eased fractionally.
The admiral’s voice crackled through the screen.
“Now that that is addressed, we can move on. The Brakken presence has been neutralized. We captured eighteen soldiers alive, killed six in the engagement. We’re scanning for any probes that may still be out there.
Any we find will be destroyed immediately. ”
“What about the rest of the renegade faction?” Torven asked. His arm was around Zara’s shoulders. “It’s estimated there are fewer than five hundred total, but we’ve only accounted for two dozen so far.”
“Intelligence suggests they scattered,” the admiral replied.
“Small cells operating independently. This was likely one such cell, drawn to Destrani by the opportunity and for revenge. They may have been hoping to find hidden Solas under the surface with lami to harvest, such as the one found by Maya and Rykar, although our scans have so far found nothing. We’ll remain vigilant, but I don’t anticipate further immediate threats. ”
Sophie stepped forward. “This incident highlights the need for better planetary monitoring. The D’tran should be trained in basic communications and surveillance technology. Spread to other parts of the planet to maintain watch.”
Rezor nodded slowly. “The other settlement, led by Vikkat, will need to be informed as well. They deserve to know what happened and why.”
“We can help with that,” Vash said. His skin had calmed to thoughtful blues. “Provide training. Equipment. Help you build a network across Destrani.”
Zelana spoke up, her voice carrying surprising strength for someone so elderly. “The ruins should be studied. They are part of our heritage. Part of what we lost and must reclaim.”
“Absolutely,” Mierva said, leaning forward eagerly. Derrin smiled beside her, clearly used to his mate’s enthusiasm for ancient history. “Derrin and I would like permission to lead an archaeological expedition. Document what remains. Preserve it.”