CHAPTER TWO
VERDAN
If Verdan Ar’Lhoris had to make a list of his greatest fears, the sound of his daughter screaming would be at the very top.
By the moons, his heart had stopped in that moment. Even now, with Farrah safely behind the thick hull of his ship, he trembled. Like a child afraid of the dark.
Trembling! Him! It was absurd! He, who had stalked more battlegrounds than any other Ennoi clan chief. He, who had faced down death more times than trikka birds had feathers.
Back then, you were a fool, he reminded himself. You had no idea how much you could lose in a single moment.
As the heavy hatch closed, he turned to his daughter. Farrah’s tear-stained face pulled at his heart, but he couldn’t relent.
“Dry your eyes,” he said. “Only infants weep.”
“Yes, Papa,” she said, wiping her face on her dress.
“What were you thinking? When we are docked, you remain on board! No exceptions!”
Farrah dropped her head but said nothing. The defiant set of her jaw made Verdan want to shake her.
“This is my ship. You are not even crew here. You’re only slightly above the cargo in importance.” He felt a pang of shame when Farrah flinched, but he had to know she understood the gravity of the situation. She needed to know her place.
If I lost her…
“I will not tolerate disobedience. You will flush the septic tanks and scrub the pipes. That is your punishment.”
“Yes, Papa,” said Farrah. “Can I go now? I want to check on Min.”
He hesitated, torn between staying with Farrah and starting the takeoff procedure. Even if he rushed, they were at the mercy of New Trades as to when they could leave the shuttle bay.
“Fine,” he said. “Come up front when you are done.”
Farrah took off before he even finished speaking. Verdan suppressed his irritation. She would never learn. It would be his responsibility to keep her on a tighter rein.
As Verdan headed towards the bridge of the ship, he flicked on his lumis. The little device showed him the camera feed from the rest of the ship. On the screen, Farrah fussed over the gate of Min’s pen. He regretted how Farrah had run to her pet, instead of to him. Yet, he knew that was why he’d gotten her the creature. She needed comfort, and he could no longer provide it.
You need a heart to love.
His jaw tight, Verdan slipped into the captain’s chair. His hands danced over the switches as he ran through the pre-takeoff checks.
A few minutes later, Farrah took into her seat beside him, “There are still boxes outside,” she said. “We’re losing cargo.”
“Irrelevant,” Verdan replied, tapping a gauge. “We depart. Now.”
“What about my lumis?”
“You dropped it. It’s gone.”
“That wasn’t my fault! What will I play with?”
“You have plenty of toys.” He glanced at her stricken face. “You may borrow mine.”
Farrah took the device and began tapping away. She sighed and leaned back. Her harness clicked shut as the engines began to whine. For a moment, she was silent, gazing at her screen. “You should have helped her.”
Verdan’s hand stopped halfway to the controls, and then he resumed his frantic pace. “Should haves get people killed.”
“She helped us.”
“Enough!” he roared. Farrah lifted her chin in defiance and glared at him. Verdan sighed. “Enough, Farrah. I can’t change what has happened.” He tapped her on the nose. “You are my first responsibility.”
She turned her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “Stop treating me like a baby!” she said.
You are a baby, he wanted to reply. My baby.
The set of her jaw and the furrow on her brow stopped him. In the moment, she looked like her mother, all fierceness and dark mood. In fact, in a few short years, she would be the same age as they were when they met. His chest hurt. Verdan opened his mouth to speak, but instead, flicked on the Communications.
“New Trades, this is Captain Verdan Ar’Lhoris, of the Moon’s Pride. Requesting an exit. Priority One.” It would cost him extra in docking fees to pay for the priority takeoff, but anything that expedited their departure would be worth it.
The speaker buzzed, and then New Trades responded. “Confirmed. Please standby.”
As Verdan waited, he tapped his finger on the console, beating out a random rhythm. His fingers ached, as did his head. The Dorians hadn’t landed a single blow on him, but he felt like he’d been through a long battle. He curled his hands into fists.
It’ll only get worse.
“Papa,” Farrah pointed to a console. “Look!”
The screen showed the exterior of the ship, where three Dorians milled around the cargo boxes sitting by the hatchway. Verdan scowled.
“Thieving bastards,” he muttered, as the Dorians disappeared around the side of the ship.
“Where did they go?” Farrah asked. “Are they going to take the boxes? They are, aren’t they?” Farrah slumped back in her chair. “That’s my fault, isn’t it? I’m sorry.”
A muscle twitched in Verdan’s forearm, but he said nothing. She needed to feel the full effects of what she’d caused.
Once New Trades gave Moon’s Pride access to a conveyor belt, it only took an hour before Verdan blasted away from the space station. As New Trades vanished, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Good riddance.
He’d gotten lax, going to the same port, trip after trip. For Farrah’s sake, he needed to plan better. Keep his enemies guessing.
Farrah unclipped her harness.
“Where are you going?” Verdan asked.
“To check on Min,” she replied. “That takeoff was too rough for her.”
“She’s fine. She’s handled more G-forces than you.”
Farrah merely bit her lip.
“Go,” Verdan said, caving to the concern in her eyes. “Check on your hairy beast.”
He waited until her footsteps faded before turning back to the Comms. With a heavy hand, he dialed the number for Jrak. The Comms flashed for a moment before Jrak’s leonine face appeared onscreen. A bushy mane framed a wide face with high cheekbones. Jrak made his fortune by working the black market. He provided what others couldn’t, usually at an exorbitant price. Jrak smiled, revealing fangs.
“Verdan! We were scheduled to speak tomorrow. To what do I owe this immensely gratifying pleasure?”
“I’m sorry to bother you, Jrak.”
“It is never a bother to see your gorgeous face or the darling face of your progeny.” That made Verdan scowl, but Jrak merely laughed. “What can I do for you?”
“I can’t make our meeting tomorrow. I left New Trades.”
Jrak’s eyes narrowed. “I thought your order was urgent.”
Verdan ran a hand over his face. “Very urgent. But I cannot risk my daughter’s safety.” Briefly he described the incident with the Dorians.
Jrak scratched his face with a claw. His charming smile had faded into a hardened scowl. “Dorians. Trying to snatch Farrah is pretty bold. I’ll make some inquiries. Dorians are bad for business.”
Verdan nodded. “Thank you.” He had no doubts that Jrak’s inquiries involved cudgels and broken bones.
“As for you,” Jrak continued, “you need my help.”
“I do.” Jrak had been selling him Temanzyme for years now. That was why he’d gotten complacent about going to New Trades. He should have known better.
“Your eyes are desperate,” Jrak said. “Desperate people make stupid mistakes. Come pick up your supply.”
“I can’t go back to New Trades. Not yet. Do you have any other connections?”
“I’ve got an agent on R-333. I can see if he can find your drugs.”
“They’re not drugs!”
Jrak waved a hand. “They’re drugs, Verdan. You take them to function and if you don’t, you suffer. After you suffer, you die. That’s a drug.”
Verdan gritted his teeth. “I do this for Farrah, not myself. Give me your agent’s details.”
“Sending.”
“Thank you, Jrak.” He ignored the pity in Jrak’s eyes, and signed off. Verdan rolled his shoulders, and tried to work the stiffness out of his neck. Time to do some research.
R-333 turned out to be a former mining colony, located on the edge of Ennoi territory. Verdan cursed. He’d have to see his people again. Word would spread that Verdan Ar’Lhoris reentered Ennoi space. His family would scramble to contact him. He dug his knuckles into his thigh, letting the pain distract him from the ache in his arms.
“I am done with the war,” he reminded himself. “The war is done with me. Farrah will be safe.” He closed his eyes, and repeated the words until he almost started believing them.
Almost, but not quite.
He flicked on his lumis. Farrah sat outside Min’s cage, chatting animatedly. The corner of Verdan’s mouth quirked. She didn’t seem upset from the trouble earlier. As much as he’d loathed the idea of bringing another mouth to feed onto the ship, Min had been good for Farrah. The animal loaned her an ear without judgment.
What happens when she needs advice?
He would be there for her.
On female matters?
The ache in his bones grew. Verdan pushed it aside. He’d have to figure out how to get Temanzyme soon, or he’d be of no use to anyone, including his daughter. On the screen, Farrah laughed, throwing back her head. She picked up the lumis beside her, and pointed the screen to the cage. Verdan frowned. He looked to the console, where Farrah had left his lumis.
“Wh-?”
Farrah put down the device, and pulled a fruit from her basket. She held it out toward the cage. His eyebrows shot up as a slender hand emerged from Min’s cage.
“She didn’t…” Verdan muttered, his attention fixed on the tiny screen.
The hand seized the fruit and slipped back into the cage.
“She did!”
Verdan surged to his feet, and raced down the corridor.
I’ll tan her hide, the little hellion!
He burst into the back room. Farrah froze, her hand halfway to the cage. Inside, he saw Min, chewing contentedly, and a figure squeezing back into the shadows. Verdan grabbed Farrah and shoved her behind him. She squealed, but he paid no attention. He faced the cage.
“You,” he barked. “Out! Now!”
“It’s locked!” Farrah’s hand was sticky with fruit juice when she placed it on his arm. “I made sure it was locked!”
Verdan didn’t take his eyes off the shadow behind Min. He pushed Farrah to the wall, and marched to the cage. He flicked the lock open, and stepped back. Min bleated, but remained sitting.
“Now,” Verdan said. “Out.”
The shadow moved, and the alien from New Trades stepped out. He frowned. “What are you?”
“Her name is Rebecca! She’s an Earthling. Human!”
“Be silent, Farrah!”
He studied the Human. She resembled an Ennoi in build, with two arms and two legs. Her skin was oddly smooth, her eyes startlingly white around two dark circles, and her hair sprung from her head in a series of dark coils. From the way she stood, legs braced and hands in fists, she expected a fight.
Brave, he thought, then corrected himself. Of course she was brave. She’d taken on Dorians to protect Farrah.
“You don’t belong here,” he said. His tone was harsher than he expected. He wrinkled his nose. “You stink.”
She gritted her teeth at him, and snarled. “That’s really rude. Also, you’re welcome. I’m so glad I risked my life and my freedom to help your daughter.”
“Freedom? You entered that cage willingly!”
The Human’s nostrils flared, and for a moment, her eyes flashed an emotion he could not read. “Not willingly. I don’t like cages.”
Farrah grabbed his arm. “She saved me! She brought me back my lumis!”
He looked down at her. “That doesn’t mean she is safe.”
“I’m safe,” Rebecca said, stepping forward. “I won’t bring harm to you or Farrah. I promise.”
“I have your word? You understand that we Ennoi take our oaths seriously?”
She nodded. “So do Humans.”
“Please, Papa? Please? She needs help.”
The Human held out her palms in a gesture of peace. “Look, I’m not going anywhere. We’re hurtling through space. You’re stuck with me. Can we call a truce?”
Vendan’s anger faded, leaving behind a weariness that he knew rest couldn’t ease. “Fine.”
“Yay!” Farrah clapped her hands. “You are the best father in whole the universe!”
“She cannot stay,” he warned.
“I don’t want to stay,” Rebecca said.
“I can give you a ride to R-333. No further.”
Even though he knew it meant nothing to her, she nodded. “That’ll be fine.”
Verdan wrinkled his nose. “But first, you must bathe.”