“I’m also adept at taking a hint, as it happens,” he laughed, winking out of existence. Garnet blinked, not sure she was going to be able to get used to that.
“If you need anything, you can ask him,” Tanin said, clicking on something. “He’ll be able to take care of you.”
Garnet turned, standing at his side, looking at what he was reading. He didn’t try to stop her either, so she guessed he didn’t care.
“What’s this?”
“The peacekeepers.”
“Huh?”
“They’ve given us swing coordinates to meet up with them and drop you off.”
Garnet’s heart immediately sank in disappointment.
Chapter 9
Tanin
Keeper Ikvar, captain of the starship Hovtu-I-3, had responded personally to Tanin’s message. And he responded quickly. Human females taken from Earth were a big deal, and so he had to act immediately. Since he couldn’t divert his entire ship – not when they were safe and unlikely to be hurt – he requested that Tanin meet up with him as soon as possible.
The keepers undoubtedly had a subspace generator that didn’t need multiple days to recharge. It also probably wasn’t limited on swing distance and time like his was.
But the femalesweresafe with him, so it wasn’t unreasonable to ask him to go to them. A peacekeeper mother ship was massive, more like a city than a ship. It would dwarf the Humility by orders of magnitude. It also served as a base for other peacekeeper ships, smaller ones sent out on missions, and it’s flight path was predetermined for a reason. That couldn’t be changed without good cause and, right now, they didn’t have one.
“The keepers are waiting for us,” he said, still speaking to Garnet as he read through the message. “When we can jump again, we’ll get to them in about… I’d say two or three days. Our swings are pretty slow, so despite the relatively close distance, it will be a longer swing.”
He looked over to Garnet when she didn’t respond. Only to find her frowning, looking at his console like she was trying to see through it.
“Garnet?”
“Huh?” She jumped, focusing back on him. She quickly fixed a smile on her face. “Oh, right. Great! That’s good news.”
“It is,” he agreed, searching her face. What was that expression for? “Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking.”
He faced her fully. “About?”
She shrugged. “A lot of things, I guess. The last couple days have been a lot. Or, you know, however long it’s been since we were taken. I actually don’t know.”
“Whatdoyou remember about being taken?”
She shook her head. “Not much. My last real, solid memory is heading home after work. I wasn’t wearing these clothes though. So, I guess me and Goldie decided to go grab some food or something. But I don’t know for sure. I just remember this person with pitch black skin and five, white eyes coming at me. And then nothing.”
“That person must have been a shinuk. That’s how their species look. And Gissrn, the one who hired us, was a shinuk king. I imagine that the person who caught you is the one who jettisoned your chest in order to protect himself. Don’t worry. You’ll be back home soon so your people won’t have to miss you for much longer.”
She let out a short, annoyed sigh. “I’m sure my job has already replaced me at this point. They certainly aren’t going to miss me. Goldie’s school too, for that matter. It’s not going to be a fun time when we get back to clean up those pieces.”
“Do you have someone waiting for you on Earth?” The question slipped out before he even paused to think about it. Really, it could mean anything. Parents, friends, family. But he didn’t mean it that way at all.
He wanted to know if she had a mate waiting for her. Some younglings perhaps. He wouldn’t mind her having young, but a mate would put these amorous feelings he was developing swiftly to bed. So, he rather hoped, for himself, that she said yes.
But she shook her head – the human, nonverbal no – laughing. “Not really. It’s pretty much always been me and Goldie against the world. I had a guy I was dating, but we split up a little while back. I just cannot stand a man that acts like he can’t take care of himself and makes me mommy him. It’s a real mood killer to have to treat your partner like a child.”
She didn’t have someone. He was pleased about that despite himself. Her human abilities at attracting other species were too easily wielded against him. Even as he was actively trying to resist her pull. But he couldn’t stop being relieved that she was unclaimed, even knowing it was a bad idea to become attached to her.
“Hopefully, the transition back isn’t too difficult for you,” he said, hiding his relief.
