Chapter 17 #2
“Lord Rezor.” His voice held the weight of leadership as he spoke in the language we both shared. “This is Rykar, lord of his Sola. The Destran Council has authorized him to collect their citizens—Baleck, Mierva, and the human engineer Cleo Vasquez, who was traveling under Destran protection.”
The words were careful. Diplomatic. But underneath was clear threat. Return them, or face consequences.
I inclined my head. “You need not speak for them, Vikkat. I learned enough of their language to understand them. Let them speak for themselves.”
Around me, my people had gathered. Guards, council members, citizens who’d heard the alarms and come to see what threatened their home. I could feel their fear, their uncertainty. Their eyes on me, waiting for my decision.
I looked back at Cleo. She was still with Zara and Maya, Baleck and Mierva having joined them now. All five of them together, reunited. Complete.
Cleo’s smile flagged as her gaze met mine. It was as if looking at me drew the joy straight out of her.
The realization confirmed my fears. This was not a mate bond for her. It had only been one for me.
Her happiness was still my first priority. Seeing her truly, genuinely happy was worth every moment of pain. Worth losing her, if that’s what it took to see that light in her eyes.
I loved her enough to let her go.
The thought settled over me with unexpected peace. This was what love meant. Not possession. Not protection at the cost of her joy. But giving her the choice, even if it broke me.
I turned back to Lord Rykar and raised my voice so everyone could hear. “The three who fell from the sky have been our guests. They have been treated with honor and respect. They have contributed to our community in ways we can never fully repay.”
I paused, letting the words sink in. Letting my people understand what was coming.
“And they are free to leave.”
The moment of silence that followed was deafening.
“Lord Rezor—” Torak started.
“They are free,” I repeated, more firmly. “I will not hold them here against their will. If they choose to return to their people, to their lives among the stars, that is their right. We have no claim on them beyond the gratitude we owe for all they’ve done.”
Zelana moved forward, her expression anguished. “The prophecy—”
“The prophecy spoke of renewal,” I said, meeting her eyes.
“And we have been renewed. The storms have ended. Our world will heal. Whether that renewal continues is not dependent on keeping three people as prisoners. It’s dependent on us choosing to be better.
To open ourselves to the galaxy instead of hiding behind our mountains. ”
I looked at Vikkat. “If you wish to establish formal relations, I accept. The valley will open its borders for the first time in thousands of sun-cycles. We will trade. We will learn. We will join the larger world.” My gaze swept across my people.
“We will change. Because the alternative is to remain isolated and afraid, and I will not let fear rule us anymore.”
The words felt right. Final. Like a weight lifting from my shoulders.
“Furthermore,” I continued, “I am willing to host a diplomatic delegation here in the valley. To begin discussions of trade, cultural exchange, and mutual cooperation. But first—” I turned to look at Cleo. “First, I return your people to you.”
Zara had been watching me with an expression that might have been grudging respect or might have been continued suspicion. Now she moved toward me, leaving Cleo with the others.
“You’re really letting them go?” she asked quietly. “No tricks? No last-minute demands?”
“No tricks.” I met her fierce gaze with a slight bow. “I should have let Cleo speak with you the first time you came. I was wrong. I let fear and duty and my own selfish desires cloud my judgment. I won’t make that mistake again.”
“Damn right, you won’t.” But some of the hostility had left her expression. “For what it’s worth, I can see why…” She trailed off, glancing back at Cleo. “Why this was complicated for you.”
“She loves you,” I said. “She missed you terribly. Take her home. Take care of her.”
Zara studied me for a long moment. “You love her.”
“Yes.”
“And you’re still letting her go.”
“Yes.” The truth of it rang through me. “I want her to be happy. Even if that happiness doesn’t include me.”
Something in Zara’s expression shifted. “You’re either the stupidest male I’ve ever met or the smartest. I haven’t decided which yet.” She turned back toward the group. “Cleo! We can leave now. The ship’s ready. We can take you home.”
The words carried across the plaza with perfect clarity.
I watched Cleo’s face as she processed them. Watched a complex mix of emotions move over her lovely features. I saw something that looked like pain as her brows drew together. “Now?” she asked. “Right now?”
“Right now.” Zara gestured at the craft. “We can be off-planet in an hour. Back to the Sola in a few cycles. You can catch up with everyone, sleep in your own bed again.”
“I…” Cleo looked at Mierva and Baleck.
Mierva looked anxiously at the ship. Her gaze moved over all the new faces in the village, seeking out one in particular. “Is Derrin with you?”
“Yes,” Maya said. “He stayed on the ship because he didn’t want to cause a scene. He’s been very eager to see you.”
A bubble of laughter came out of her mouth, which she covered with shaking fingers.
“That’s him. Always trying to be dignified.
” She turned to me and her gaze softened.
“Thank you, Rezor. For your hospitality and for, well…” She held up the arm that had been broken.
“For taking care of us. For what it’s worth, I understand and forgive you. ”
I bowed, took her hand and pressed it between both of mine. “It has been an honor to have you as part of my clan, Mierva,” I said. “Even for a short time.”
She smiled and her skin flushed in pleased tones of aqua blue and pink. “Does that mean we’re invited back?”
“Anytime you wish.”
She patted my cheek, like a mother would. “You’re a good leader. A good person.”
I couldn’t get out a thank-you, so I nodded and stepped back.
“I’m staying for a while,” Baleck said, surprising me. “Someone needs to help facilitate the cultural exchange.”
Cleo’s gaze had never left me, and in that, I saw everything. The love she’d tried to deny. The hurt I’d caused. The fear that choosing me meant losing herself. The desperate hope that maybe, somehow, there could be another way.
But mostly, I saw confusion. Torn between two worlds, two lives, two futures.
I crossed to stand before her. “Go with them,” I said gently. “Take the time you need. The valley will be here. I will be here.”
“Rezor—”
“No conditions. No demands.” I forced my voice to remain steady even as my marks burned with loss. “You’re free, Cleo. Completely free. If you come back, let it be because you choose to. Not because you’re trapped. Not because of a prophecy or mate bonds or anything else. Because you choose me.”
Tears, which had just dried, brightened her eyes again. “I don’t—I can’t—”
“You don’t have to decide now.” I wanted to pull her into my arms and never let go. But I stayed where I was, giving her space. “Take the time. Think. Figure out what you want your life to be. And whatever you decide, know that I will accept it.”
Zara moved back to Cleo’s side. “Come on. You can think better when you’re not…” She glanced at me, then back at Cleo. “When you have some distance.”
Distance. From me. From the mate bond that pulled at both of us. From the choice that seemed impossible.
Cleo looked at her friends, at the ship waiting to carry her back to the stars, at the future she’d thought she’d lost.
Then she looked at me.
And I saw her heart breaking in real time.
“I—” Her voice failed. She tried again. “I need to—there are things I should—”
“Go,” I said again. “Just go, Cleo. Before this gets harder.”
Because if she stayed much longer, I didn’t know if I could keep my promise not to fight for her. If I could keep standing here watching her prepare to leave when everything in me screamed to claim her, to beg her to stay.
My marks were blazing now, visible even through my shirt. Calling to her. Trying to bridge the distance between us.
Her hand moved toward me, an involuntary gesture. Then fell back to her side.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “For everything. For not being able to…”
I shook my head. “Don’t apologize for choosing yourself. That’s exactly what you should do.”
Zara’s hand was on Cleo’s arm now, gentle but insistent. “We need to go. The ships can’t stay in atmosphere indefinitely.”
Cleo nodded. Turned. Took three steps toward the craft.
Then stopped.
I watched her shoulders shake. Watched her wrap her arms around herself like she was physically holding herself together. Watched her look back at me one more time with eyes full of love and loss and devastating indecision.
“I don’t know if I can do this,” she said, so quietly I almost didn’t hear it.
“You can.” By sheer force of will, I stayed rooted in place. “You’re the strongest person I know, Cleo. You can do anything.”
Even leave me. Especially leave me.
She nodded again, tears flowing freely now. Then she let Zara guide her toward the ship. Each step looked like it cost her everything.
I watched them go. Watched Cleo climb the ramp with Zara and Maya on either side, supporting her. Watched the door begin to close.
At the last moment, just before the door sealed completely, Cleo looked back. Our eyes met across the distance.
I love you, I thought, willing her to hear it. I love you and I’m letting you go because that’s what love means.
The door closed. The craft lifted smoothly into the air, rising toward the massive ships above. Within moments, it had disappeared inside the large ship’s belly.
I stood in the plaza, surrounded by my people, and watched the ships disappear into the afternoon sky.
Taking my heart with them.
“Lord Rezor.” Vikkat’s voice was respectful. “We should discuss the terms of diplomatic relations.”
“Yes.” I forced myself to turn away from the empty sky. “We should.”
But even as I led him and Lord Rykar toward the council chambers, even as I began the complex negotiations that would change my people’s future forever, part of me remained in that plaza.
Watching Cleo leave.
Wondering if she’d ever come back.
Praying that when she figured out what she wanted, when she made her choice with clear eyes and full knowledge, that choice would somehow, impossibly, include me.