Warmth grew in my pocket as the voice I wanted to hear most in this universe whispered in my ear, “Dontilvynsan.”
I stood, and Bimwoxcol said, “Captain departing.”
Everyone turned toward me, standing straight.
When I reached the door, I ordered, “Return.”
All of my officers went back to their duties.
The second the door blocked me from sight, I fumbled for my touchstone and yanked it out of my pocket, dropping my screen in my haste. “Vince,” I said breathlessly, making the connection.
“Where are you?”
“Outside my office. How can I assist you?” Instinctively, I reached for his mind among the many on my ship. I felt him, but no distinctive thoughts came to me. However, the lure of his warm mind and the gentle flow of his emotions that I couldn’t quite perceive intoxicated me.
“Can we talk?”
“In person?”
“If you’re not too busy, then yeah.”
“I will never be too busy for you,” I replied without thought, then paused. What had I just said?
I heard the smile in his voice as he said, “Come to my room. I’ll even get food from the dispenser.”
“I look forward to it.”
My smile didn’t want to dim, but I forced it away and strode to his room. I didn’t know why Vince wanted to speak to me, and I didn’t care. I wanted to see him, and I blatantly refused to contemplate why. I was allowed to become friends with this human. Friends liked to see each other. That was all.
I pushed the chime on his door, and it rang loudly.
“Just come in, Don,” Vince shouted, making me smile again.
Vince was sitting on the couch with a plate of food in the middle. It was a mix of fruit, meat, and flat bread—a typical drakcol meal—but there were other things I didn’t recognize. Long, crunchy-looking tubes, a meat circle in between two pieces of fluffy bread, and square brown things that appeared to be soft and chewy. Taking a seat, I focused on the swirling anxiety in his mind and not the stretch of pale skin of his belly, which was harder than it should’ve been.
“What’s wrong?”
“Can you erase my memories?”
My soul stalled before leaping into a dizzying speed. “Repeat that.”
He swallowed, meeting my gaze. “Can you erase my memories?”
“Why?”
“That’s why I want to go back to Earth. If your scientists can get rid of them, then I won’t have to.”
I relaxed, practically sagging backwards. He didn’t want me topersonallytake his memories. I’d never tried to wipe someone’s mind clean, but my mentor had assured me that I could do so if I ever had to. I hated the thought of basically killing someone by stealing all that they were and leaving nothing but a mindless husk behind.
“You want to forget what happened,” I stated. It was unsurprising. I’d caught glimpses of what Vince had endured, and it had been horrific.
Hands tight on his thighs, he bobbed his head. “I could stay here with you. I mean, Seth and Teddy. Not just you. Not only you. You understand.”
His mind swirled in many emotions, which tugged on my soul but made it difficult for me to follow exactly what was bothering him. Nonetheless, I wanted to soothe all of his tension.
“Please,” he begged.
How I wished I could say yes, but it wasn’t my decision. “You would have to appeal to the Council of Seekers for them to erase your memories for psychological trauma, and I don’t think they are likely to approve.”
