Chapter Seven
“You permitted my mate to enter the brothel,” Tark said, trying to contain his fury. Suki would have been safe if she hadn’t left theMystic7. Instead, Norkov and the Zelthranites had allowed her to leave the ship, and now she’d been taken. He’d spent the past few hours in a med pod on board thePryxus,his wounds too severe to heal on their own. Minor things healed quickly, but the slaver had gotten the drop on him and done his best to kill Tark. Now they’d lost valuable time in getting to Suki.
“’Permitted’ isn’t the correct word,” Norkov said. “She was determined to find you. The med pod on board our vessel couldn’t handle the severity of your injuries. Placing you in the one on thePryxuswas our only hope. It was my suggestion we wait until you were healed to pursue your Suki. Two ships remaining together while keeping up with the slaver might have proven difficult. ThePryxusandMystic7are different class vessels.”
“Human females are not to be underestimated,” Malin said. The Zelthranite smiled sadly. “My mate was the same as your Suki. It got her killed in the end, but I couldn’t have contained her if I’d tried. Not without breaking her spirit.”
“That’s supposed to be comforting?” Tark asked. “I refuse to lose my mate, to let her die because none of you could restrain her. There’s no way that slaver is going to let her go. He’ll keep her, use her, and kill her if she disobeys. Or sell her to someone who’s even worse than him.”
Malin placed a hand on Tark’s shoulder. “Your Suki is strong-willed. I don’t know the circumstances by which she came to be so far from Earth, but I’m going to guess she was captured and sold. I know she wanted to help you and refused to stay behind when she thought you needed her. She has a fighting spirit and will hold on until you can reach her.”
“Any news yet on the slaver?” Tark asked Pendrik.
“Whatever ship he used to leave was moving fast. Or it was before it vanished. It left this sector,” Penrik said pointing to the screen, “and if I had to guess, hit a black hole. We’re approaching the area now where the vessel disappeared. Hopefully, we can find your Suki from there.”
“Are the Zelthranites still with us?” Tark asked.
Malin snorted. “Ryx give up the chance to fight some slaver scum? Not likely. He’ll be stuck to your ass unless you move too slow. Then he’ll pull ahead and lead the way. My crew will be with you all the way, which is why they left me on board theMystic7. To give you the reassurance that you had aid in retrieving your female.”
“I can’t believe we found five human females at the brothel,” Norkov said.
“Don’t get too excited. Ryx didn’t seem all that thrilled over the females going home with us,” Tark said. “Since the Zelthranites have an agreement with Earth, he may insist on returning them to their world.”
“You’re technically part Zelthranite,” Malin said. “I don’t see why they couldn’t be considered potential brides for your people, if they agree. And if you compensate their families.”
“I’ve already touched base with the other Commanders on Xpashta,” Warver said. “They’re arranging housing for females and some sort of… what did Shaylee call it? Orientation to alien living. Yes, those were her words.”
The ship came to a halt and Tark stared at the oddly colored patch of space, like it didn’t quite belong. It didn’t look the same as a black hole, but was similar enough to give him pause. “What is that?”
Everyone in the command center moved closer to the screen. Whatever it was, it certainly wasn’t a black hole, not with the way the light around it flickered now and then. Pendrik punched in some buttons and a readout popped up. Tark’s eyebrows rose as he looked over the words on the screen, certain he must be seeing things. Such a thing wasn’t possible. Was it?
“We’re being pulled in,” Pendrik said. “There’s a magnetic force drawing us closer.”
“Fuck,” Malin said. “It’s a MECO. I know of them, but haven’t seen one. Similar to a black hole and yet not.”
“Everyone hold on,” Warver said. “The ship is picking up speed. It looks like the Zelthranites are being pulled along in our wake.”
Tark braced his feet. The ship shook and vibrated around them before spinning. The gravitational field on board went out, leaving them floating in the command center as theMystic7rocketed forward, gaining momentum. It was hard to tell how much time passed before they were spit out on the other end, Tark and the others crashing to the metal floor as the gravity reactivated.
“Well that was fun,” Malin said, then groaned as he sat up.
“ThePryxuscame through as well,” Pendrik said.
Tark pointed to a ship in the distance. “Is that the slaver?”
Pendrik tapped on the controls and then nodded. “Yes, that’s the vessel we were tracking. But there’s only one life form on board. Systems show it’s not human.”
Tark’s heart rate elevated, the chips in his brain unable to regulate the organ when his mate was missing. He gripped the nearest seat and nearly ripped it in half. Where was his Suki? How had the slaver disposed of her so quickly if he appeared so close? From what he could see from the screen, there wasn’t a planet within reach of their current location. Not one the slaver could have landed on, dumped his sweet Suki, then gained enough speed to have this much distance between their ships.
“Scanning the sector for humans,” Pendrik said.
They waited what felt like several solar cycles. Eventually a readout appeared, indicating there was not only one human in close proximity, but over a dozen. No. Not all human. Part human? But human mixed with what and how had they obtained the females? Assuming they were human females. Since they’d strictly searched for human genetics, the system had only given them the information they wanted.
“Tourmalane is nearby,” Malin said. “I’ve heard they suffer a similar problem as my people. No females. I wonder if your Suki was taken there?”
“Set a course for --” Tark was cut off.
“I’m already on it,” Norkov said.
