No fucking way.
“Max!” I call out for him in my head, the way we’ve been doing since we were kids. For a moment, I don’t get a response.
“What is it? I’m busy.”
But he doesn’t sound pissed to be interrupted. Of course, that’s Max—cheerful in the face of all adversity. Honestly, I get exhausted just thinking about how he maintains it, but his unwavering positivity might be what I like most about the guy. Well, that and his chobwa chip pancakes.
“The Reformer is docking right now. We need to move up the plan,” I tell him.
“What do you need?” Before I can even reply, he says, “I’ll get Gage.”
“Agreed. About time he earned the outrageous amount we’ve been paying him. Meet me in the docking bay. I’ll get back here as soon as I can give Dr. Wicked the slip. Maybe see if you can cause a diversion. You know what to do.”
“Got it.”
Doc V takes a deep breath, plasters on a totally fake smile, and turns her attention to the princess. “Let’s begin the tour.” Whirling around, she heads off in the direction we came from, and I fall into place behind her.
I can almost feel Purple Cape’s royal eyes on me as I walk away, and I can’t help thinking that for her, I might just have lowered my standards.
Too bad I’ve only got about twenty minutes to get the hell off this boat and onto the Reformer—or lose my chance to save Milla, maybe forever.
Chapter 4
Kali
Don’t ogle the sexy bodyguard’s ass. Don’t do it—especially on your first trip representing the Empress. I need to behave with proper royal comportment at all times, no matter how hot Dr. Veragelen’s bodyguard is.
And make no mistake. He is hot. Smoking hot.
Thick black hair that shows off his high cheekbones.
Velvety dark-brown skin.
A jaw sharp enough to use as a blade.
Tall and broad-shouldered, despite being from Kridacus, based on the insignia on his uniform—I’ve never heard of anyone that big coming from the high gravity of Kridacus. He must be extremely strong at this lower gravity.
Dark, intense eyes—framed by the longest, thickest lashes I’ve ever seen—that seem to cut through all the royal pretense and see everything I’m trying to hide from the world.
Too bad I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. And since he’s walking away, I’ll probably never find out. Which, I decide, is a very good thing. Because such things just aren’t done…no matter how good his broad shoulders and muscled chest look in his black guard’s uniform.
And they look very, very good.
Lara tugs at my cloak, and I glance at her.
“You might want to get that look off your face,” she murmurs in a voice that’s as amused as it is concerned.
“What look?”
“The I-want-to-get-into-that-guard’s-pants-and-have-a-party look.”
Sadly, she’s probably right, even though he looks as good from the back as he did from the front. He also looks like trouble with a capital T. For a moment, I have a longing for all the things I can’t have.
Then he glances over his shoulder at me, the smirk still in place, like he knows exactly what I’m thinking, and the longing gives way to annoyance. In response, I give him my best bored regal stare—the one I learned from my mother even before I learned the different gravities on the nine planets.
He doesn’t crumble like most men do. Maybe because I’m doing it wrong. Or maybe because he’s made of sterner stuff. Either way, I ignore the smirk and force my mind to other things.
I wonder what the Reformer is—I’ve never heard of a ship by that name, and I consider myself a bit of an expert on our fleet. Whatever it is, it’s got the doctor flustered, and that intrigues me even more.
From everything I know about Dr. Veragelen—which is a lot, as science has always fascinated me and I’m a huge fan of hers—she’s seen and done it all in her career. Though she started off on an exploratory vessel all those years ago, she’s steadily been working her way up until she’s not only the head scientist on the Caelestis but director of the whole Corporation, answering only to the board controlled by the Ruling Families.
Is it any wonder everyone is here to meet the doctor and see what she’s managed to accomplish in the last four years? Dr. Veragelen eats problems for breakfast, which is why my mother put her in charge of the biggest problem we’ve got—saving Senestris from total annihilation.
As I follow her, the other diplomats keeping pace behind me, I can’t help thinking the doctor is everything and nothing like what I expected. Tall and almost emaciated, with short, sensibly cut gray hair, she looks exactly like every picture I’ve ever seen of her.
I force down my disappointment at her initial brusqueness and follow her through a large set of double doors. On the plus side, my nerves have settled and all that’s left is excitement.
I can’t wait to see this ship.
It’s rumored there are alien artifacts on board, and I’ve always been fascinated by anything to do with the Ancients—the name we gave whoever must have lived here long before us. Of course, some people don’t believe there was ever an ancient alien race on any planet in the system, but there’s evidence of their existence all over Senestris, though mainly on Serati. I guess for some, it’s more comforting to believe we’re the first than that any civilization could end—especially given our current looming demise.
The doors lead into a corridor with a curved ceiling and walls made of some sort of silver metal. The light illuminating the hallway is soft and orange, and though I look for where it’s coming from, I can’t find an energy source.
As we continue down the hallway, questions bubble up in my mind—so many that it’s hard to keep them all straight. How is the ship powered? How many people are currently on board? What are they working on? Where are the Ancient artifacts? And most importantly: Have they found a way to save our sun?
I want to ask her, but Dr. Veragelen is striding off at a brisk speed, and it’s all I can do to keep up in my ridiculous dress.
She finally stops at what I presume is some sort of safety door and presses her palm to the biometric scanner. I take the opportunity to move closer.
“Dr. Veragelen, can you tell me a little about the work the Corporation is doing here? Have you had any breakthroughs?”
She turns to me with a glint in her eyes that makes me just a tiny bit uncomfortable. “I can confirm that we are well on our way to finding the solution to the accelerated degeneration of our sun. We believe we have the means in our hands to not only stop that degeneration but to reverse the effects. Rest assured, your lives are in our hands, and we will save you all.”