“Are you getting on that ship?”
She blinks at me. “Korzyn.”
“Yes or no.”
“Y-yes.”
I nod, turn, and walk away.
“Korzyn!”
I can’t seem to look at her, but I hear her trailing after me, almost at a trot as she attempts to keep up.
“Sarissa?”
“I’m busy, Emma.”
“Phoebe just had a panic attack. She’s asking for you.”
Sarissa lets out a low growl, but her footsteps stop.
As I knew they would.
Sarissa
For some unknown reason, my eyes are hot as I watch the commander walk away. He holds his head high, his shoulders back, and he looks as if he could take on the world.
But the desolation I just glimpsed in his eyes told me a completely different story.
I should’ve known better. The moment he told me he was sent away as a child, that he never saw his family again, that he didn’t form close relationships…
I had so many opportunities to back away. To not hurt him.
Because despite everything, I never wanted to hurt him.
To strangle him, sure. Occasionally, to kill him.
But I never wanted to emotionally wreck him.
Which is what I’ve just done.
Indignation wrestles with guilt. Of course I’m getting on that ship. Why would he think otherwise? Not once have I implied I’d stay here. Some things are too important to give up.
Vengeance is one of those things.
Even if it means losing your one chance at happiness?
I push that little voice aside. And what, exactly, would I do on Agron?
“Sarissa?”
I turn, finding Ellie studying me out of concerned eyes.
“Are you okay?”
“Not really, to be honest.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not right now, but thanks.” I force a smile. Next to me, Emma is watching me carefully.
“Nevada asked if you wanted to meet us for lunch,” Ellie says, and I nod.
“I’ll see you then.”
I turn back to Emma as Ellie slowly waddles away.
“What’s going on?”
She sighs. “Phoebe is losing it. She’s convinced she’s going to die. I tried my best but I’m really not all that good with kids.”
I snort at the idea that I’m any better, but I Emma to Phoebe’s kradi, which is filling up with women. Phoebe has tears rolling down her cheeks, and I sigh.
She’s only sixteen.
I shove my way through the crowd and sit next to her, taking her hand. “Do you want to talk about it?”
She throws her arms around me and sobs. I gesture to Emma, and she sends me a look of pure gratitude, hightailing it toward the exit. Now that I know she’s a cop, it seems obvious as she convinces most of the other women to follow her out of the kradi—with nothing more than a jerk of her head. Lace stays put, her long legs clad in leather pants and stretched out in front of her.
It seems Nevada has started a trend.
“I want to get back home, I do.”
“Uh-huh.”
Phoebe sniffs. “Will Clara really stop us from getting on the ship if we want to go?”
I glance at Lace, who narrows her eyes at me, her jaw jutting out stubbornly.
I wipe a tear off Phoebe’s pale face, and she pushes her long black hair away.
“Is that what you want?” I ask.
She shrugs. “I like it here. I don’t have a good relationship with my parents on Earth. They sent me to boarding school, and I hated it.”
“So why the tears?” I smile as I say it, and her lower lip trembles as she attempts to smile back.
“If I stay here, I’ll never see anyone from home again. But what if the Dokhalls get into this camp and kill us?”
“Phoebe, listen to me. Don’t make the decision based on this war. Make it based on where you think you could live for the rest of your life.”
Lace shifts, some of the stubbornness draining from her face and giving me a glimpse of vulnerability.
Phoebe sighs. “What about the Dokhalls? I’m scared.”
I nod. “It’s normal to be scared. But I can tell you these guys have so many plans in place to protect you. Even if the Dokhalls somehow managed to take down all those giant barbarians out there and get into this camp, they wouldn’t find you.”
Phoebe tilts her head. “Really?”
“Yes. Dragix will fly you out, or some of the other Braxians will lead you to safety. We have alliances with other tribes far from here.”
Phoebe thinks that over for a moment. Next to me, Lace fidgets.
I glance at her. One thing I’ve learned about Lace is she doesn’t do well with emotions.
“Okay,” Phoebe says finally. “I feel a bit better now. I think I want to stay.”
“I think that’s a great idea. But you can still change your mind right up until the day we leave.”
She manages a shaky smile. “I’m sorry, I know you’re busy.”
“It’s okay. Do you want to come and help the others build some traps?”
Phoebe nods, wiping off her face as she gets to her feet before wandering out the door.
I look at Lace, and she looks at me.
“Theoretically, if someone wanted to get on that ship without Clara knowing about it…”
I raise my eyebrow. “Theoretically?”
She narrows her eyes at me. “I live on the streets. I haven’t been a kid since the first time my foster dad tried to get into the bathroom while I was taking a shower. I know what I want.”
I open my mouth, unsure what to say to that. And then I sigh.
“You’re going to need to board the ship before we do. Let me figure it out and get back to you.”
She nods, and I make my way to Nevada’s tashiv. Rakiz and the warriors are nowhere to be found, but Ellie, Charlie, Alexis, and Ivy are seated, while Nevada stands next to the window, swaying with Danica in her arms.
“Someone’s fussy,” she murmurs. “There was no sleep to be had around here last night.”
“Aaaw,” Ivy says, getting to her feet and reaching for the baby. “Let me have a cuddle.”
Nevada hands her over and then takes a seat herself. I slump down next to
