“Bartholomew,” he said.
“Yes.”
“His mate?” Seth asked.
“Yes. Speedy thinks he’s gone. An alien I don’t recognize attacked them.”
Arms tightened around me as Kalvoxrencol and Zoltilvoxfyn whispered comforting words. Dontilvynsan kept pushing soothing thoughts, but it only dimmed my pain, not erasing it.
“Mindy, when did you last see them?” Seth asked. “Think about it. Please.”
My thoughts turned back. The kissing. The happiness. Laughing. I was running toward Bartholomew to play with him, then it turned to something else entirely. The pain. Landing in the snow. Bartholomew above me, then nothing.
Dontilvynsan panted, fingers tight on my cheek. “He last saw Bartholomew in the snow. Not in the shuttle.”
“He could still be there,” Seth said. “We have to go back.”
“It’s not our space. It’s Maykian territory. We already violated it once,” Zoltilvoxfyn said. “If we get caught…”
“It’s a human and Mindy’s mate. We have to,” Seth said.
Caleb bobbed. “We have to. Team Human to the rescue.”
“I need him,” I cried, trying to get up, but pain shot through my abdomen. Kalvoxrencol and Zoltilvoxfyn held me fast while the doctor came closer. “I have to have him.”
“I know,” Seth said, bending closer. “Trust me, Mindy. I will never leave a human behind. Neither will Caleb. He followed me here, remember? If Bartholomew is there, we’ll find him, even if we have to search the entire planet. I will go myself.” Kalvoxrencol started to protest, but Seth continued over him, “He’ll see a friendly face. A human one.”
But what if Teddy was gone? How did someone learn to live without their soul? They didn’t. They couldn’t. It wasn’t possible.
“I’ll go too,” Caleb said.
“No, you will not,” Zoltilvoxfyn immediately said. “The cold is not good for you.”
“Team Human to the rescue,” Caleb shouted over his mate. “Led by our fearless leader, Seth.”
“Me? Why am I the leader? You thought of it.”
Caleb scoffed. “I’m a poor choice. Come on, Seth. Be serious.”
The two humans continued to bicker, but my attention ripped from them when the doctor injected me with something. I lurched and gripped Dontilvynsan’s biceps, his scales shiny.
“I have to get him,” I said.
“The next time you wake, he will be here. Beside you. Trust us,” Dontilvynsan whispered.
But our thoughts were too entwined; he was lying. Dontilvynsan didn’t know if Bartholomew was alive or not. He had no idea if it was possible to bring my mate back to me. His hold on me shattered, and he broke away, panting. All of the grief came back, crashing over me. I tried to fight the medication as I struggled to a sitting position.
Kalvoxrencol held me fast, forehead against mine. “I will find him, Speedy. I promise. None of us will leave what is yours behind.”
My tongue became heavy and my thoughts turned wispy. “Bartholomew,” I breathed before I was whisked away.
Chapter 36
A proper rescue.
I heard a creak, but I couldn’t move. I wanted to, but I was so tired and cold. My limbs felt like a million pounds, my mouth was painfully dry, and my stomach was the size of a raisin. Voices echoed in the frozen air. Maybe the winged alien had finally broken inside? Hopefully, death would be quick.
Burying my nose in the blanket that contained the faintest tinge of Serlotminden’s fragrance, I gave in to whatever was to come. The voices grew louder and louder. One voice I understood. The words. English. I didn’t recognize who spoke, though. It wasn’t Serlotminden.
