Chapter 19
Yahn
My tail twitched against the deck plates as the docking clamps secured the Nova to the Enotheas with a resonant thunk that vibrated through my bones.
Safe. We were finally safe—or as safe as anyone could be when carrying secrets that could topple a criminal empire.
I watched Aano's broad shoulders relax infinitesimally as the airlock pressure equalized with a soft hiss, his blue skin almost luminous under the harsh dock lighting.
Something in my chest tightened at the sight.
I hated that I noticed these things about him now—the micro-expressions, the subtle shifts in his posture that revealed more than he'd ever admit aloud.
Worse, I hated how much I'd come to care.
"Stop grinding your teeth," Aano murmured, not even looking at me. "The sound's driving me crazy."
I forced my jaw to unclench. "I'll relax when we're actually on board and I see my brother with my own eyes."
Leah stood between us, her small human frame dwarfed by our height. Her hair had grown disheveled during our hasty departure, and dark circles shadowed her eyes, but she still managed a smile that made my chest ache in an entirely different way.
"Nearly there," she said, reaching out to brush her fingers against my forearm. The casual contact sent an electric current racing up my spine, and I fought to keep my tail from betraying my reaction.
The airlock cycled open, and the familiar smell of the Enotheas hit me—recycled air with undertones of weapon oil, synthetic cleaner, and the faint musk of multiple species living in close quarters. Home, or the closest thing to it I'd known in years.
"Yahn!"
My brother's voice cut through the mechanical hum of the docking bay, and suddenly Ruhn was there, his lanky frame hurtling toward me with his tail whipping excitedly behind him.
I caught him in my arms, feeling his heart hammering against mine as I squeezed perhaps too tightly.
His copper eyes brimmed with unshed tears, and I pressed my forehead to his, a gesture from our childhood that spoke volumes more than words ever could.
"You're okay," I whispered, running my hands over his shoulders, checking instinctively for injuries. "They didn't—"
"I'm fine," Ruhn assured me, pulling back slightly. "Your boss Relzo's team got to me before they could do any real damage. They were keeping me sedated mostly."
My throat constricted at the thought of my brilliant, absent-minded brother at the mercy of the Ducal Syndicate. I'd spent a lifetime protecting him from bullies, from his own distracted nature, from the sharp edges of a universe that didn't appreciate his gentle brilliance. And I'd failed him.
"Stop it," Ruhn said with surprising sharpness. "I can see your guilt spiral happening. It wasn't your fault."
Behind me, I heard Aano's deep chuckle. "Your brother knows you too well."
"Unfortunately," I muttered, but I couldn't suppress the relief flooding through me, making my knees weak and my tail curl with pleasure.
Ruhn's gaze shifted past me. "You must be Leah," he said with the direct simplicity that was his trademark. “Yahn mentioned you in his messages. Your zygomatic arch structure is fascinating—a perfect balance of strength and delicacy."
Leah blinked, then laughed—a genuine sound that bounced off the metal walls. "That might be the most unusual compliment I've ever received, but thank you?"
I groaned. "Sorry. He means your cheekbones are pretty."
"I know what a zygomatic arch is," she replied with a teasing smile. "Art major, remember? Figure drawing included some anatomy."
Before I could respond, the imposing figure of Relzo Cherai appeared at the airlock entrance. All four of his arms were crossed over his broad chest, his shimmering green skin catching the light as he surveyed our little group with those piercing yellow eyes.
"Welcome back," he said, his voice a low rumble. "Aano, I believe you have something for me."
Aano straightened, shifting into the professional mode that always caught me off guard—the competent operator beneath the himbo act.
He reached into his jacket and pulled out a small data pod, its surface glittering with encrypted information that could bring down half the Ducal Syndicate's operation.
"All the evidence we gathered from the Chokreini Station," Aano said, handing it over. "Financial records, shipping manifests, bribes to officials—everything needed to prove they're running a human trafficking ring alongside their usual weapons smuggling."
Relzo took the pod with surprising delicacy for his massive hands. "Good work. The IUC will be pleased."
"Any word from the rest of the team?" Aano asked, his casual tone belied by the tension I saw creeping back into his shoulders.
Something in Relzo's expression shifted, and my tail twitched in alarm.
"Lorxo and Dracoi haven't checked in," Relzo said, his lower set of arms uncrossing to rest on his belt. "Your sister is back, though."
Aano's face hardened, the playful facade dropping completely. "How long overdue?"
"Thirty-six hours."
"Fuck." The single word carried the weight of Aano's concern for his younger brother. I understood that feeling intimately—the choking fear, the desperate plans already forming.
"We've sent probes," Relzo continued. "No emergency beacons activated. Last transmission indicated they were going dark, following your orders, and from everything we could tell, the Ducal knew you had the data and followed you, not them."
I glanced at Leah, who was watching Aano. He had gone pale. I reached for her hand without thinking, my fingers intertwining with hers. "Lorxo is Aano's brother," I said.
"Oh no. I'm sure he's fine, though, right? Maybe he got a good date at the auction, too!"
"Let's continue this in the secure briefing room," Relzo said, his gaze flicking toward Leah. "Ms. Sheffield, perhaps you'd like to—"
"She stays with us," I interrupted, surprising myself with the vehemence in my voice. "She's been targeted by the Ducal Syndicate. She needs to know what we're dealing with."
Relzo's eyes narrowed slightly, but he nodded. "Very well. Follow me."
As we moved through the corridors of the Enotheas, I kept close to Leah, my tail occasionally brushing against her back in a gesture of reassurance.
Aano walked ahead with Relzo, their low voices discussing preliminary security protocols.
Ruhn fell into step beside me, his gangly stride matching mine.
"She's pretty," he whispered, nodding toward Leah. "And the Tholkon too. You always did have excellent taste."
I felt heat rise to my face. "It's not like that. It's complicated."
Ruhn's knowing smile made me want to strangle him. "The most fascinating chemical reactions often are."
The briefing room was a stark, utilitarian space with a central holographic display table and chairs designed to accommodate various species' anatomies.
Vaelu, Relzo's husband, was already there, his massive frame hunched over a console.
He was Chokreini, slender and beautiful as most of his species, though often reserved.
"The gang's all here," Vaelu said, straightening up. "And plus one, I see." His gaze lingered curiously on Leah.
"Leah Sheffield," she introduced herself with remarkable poise for someone who'd been through so much in the past few days. "Unwitting accomplice, though they see me as a in distress, apparently."
Vaelu's soft laugh filled the room. "I like her."
Relzo activated the table display, bringing up a rotating hologram of the Chokreini Space Station.
"Aano, walk us through what happened. We need to understand how they knew to target you specifically if we're going to find our mole.
Vaelu has been interrogating the staff using Chokreini techniques, but no mole yet. "
"Chokreini techniques?" Leah asked, her eyes wide.
"Vaelu is a very strong psychic," Relzo said simply. "It takes a lot out of him, but our wife, Lucky, is fantastic at calming him. Anyway, carry on."
I watched Leah's eyes light up as she thought about Relzo's triad, flushing when I realized how much it meant to me that she liked the idea.
Aano leaned forward, his large blue hands manipulating the display to zoom in on the upper quadrant as he talked through the problems we'd encountered during the operation on the Chokreini Space station, showing our locations and the laundry shop we'd found that had turned out to be a Ducal front.
"They knew our entry points, our extraction plan, even our backup protocols. Someone talked." Aano said as he wrapped up his explanation.
"Or someone's listening," Vaelu said quietly.
A heavy silence fell over the room. The implication was clear—we had a mole, someone feeding information to the Ducal Syndicate.
"That's why I made the call to abort and scatter," Aano continued. "Standard protocol would have had us regrouping at the safe house on Arec, but that would have been suicide if our operational security was compromised."
"Which is why you ended up with a civilian," Relzo said, glancing at Leah.
I felt defensive heat rise up my spine. "A decision that saved our lives and the mission."
"I'm not criticizing," Relzo said mildly. "Improvisation is sometimes necessary. But it increased our risk profile."
"We need to find Lorxo and Dracoi," I said. "If they've been captured—"
"They're good operators," Vaelu interjected. "They know how to hide, and I'm sure that's what they're doing."
Aano's jaw tightened. "We're not writing them off."
"Of course not," Relzo agreed. "But we also need to secure the evidence and find our leak before mounting a rescue operation. I'll keep this data secure until we've contained the situation."
"And in the meantime?" Aano asked, frustration evident in his tone.
Relzo's mouth curved into an unexpected smile. "In the meantime, we may have a source who can help us. Mags has been interrogating the Ducal brat."
"Uso?" Aano looked genuinely surprised. "How did she end up kidnapping him?"
"He claims to want out of the syndicate. Mags was suspicious at first, but believes him."
My tail flicked skeptically. "That sounds like a trap."
"Perhaps," Relzo acknowledged. "But our intelligence suggests there's genuine conflict within the Ducal family. The younger son may be looking for a way out. Iahlo got out years ago."
Aano scratched his chin thoughtfully. "I've encountered Uso before. He never seemed to have the stomach for the family business."
A movement at the doorway caught my attention. A petite human woman with East Asian features and a soldier's posture entered, her dark eyes quickly assessing everyone in the room before focusing on Relzo.
"Sorry to interrupt, sir. The preliminary scan of the evidence is complete. Authentication protocols confirm it's genuine, and we're creating duplicate backups and contingencies now."
"Thank you, Mags," Relzo nodded. "This is Magdalena Kax, one of our best pilots and security officers. She was instrumental in recovering Ruhn."
I felt a rush of gratitude toward the woman who had helped save my brother, but couldn't find the words, so I gave her a little salute.
She beamed at me.
Leah had perked up at the sight of another human woman. "You're a pilot? That's amazing. I've been working on getting my advanced certs, but I'm stuck on emergency engine mechanics."
Something in Mags softened almost imperceptibly. "It takes practice. I could show you some basics sometime if you're interested."
"Really?" Leah's face lit up. "That would be incredible."
Relzo cleared his throat, drawing my attention back to the mission at hand.
But even as we discussed security protocols and information containment, part of my mind remained fixed on Leah's bright smile and Aano's knowing gaze, and the terrifying realization that I might not be able to protect my heart much longer.