“I saw them,” he replied. “I’m sorry to have to say this, but the information was more important. I needed to know if the Pilgrims were a threat to the occupation.”
“Well, it looked to me like the Pilgrims were all dead,” Calla muttered. “Sarai and her children were still alive, but at the rate Calvin was going they wouldn’t have been for long. I don’t regret what I did.”
“The Pilgrims weren’t all dead,” Seth said, eyes glittering with anger. “They arrived not too long after you left, actually. Bragan and I had to hide out in the mines to survive. Oh, he’s dead by the way. He died saving my life, no thanks to you.
“And this may interest you, too,” he said, growing harsher. “They also attacked Discovery station. More than a hundred people died in that attack alone. It might have been prevented if I had been able to get more information back to the Saurellian council in time. It took us six months to regain control of the system. In fact, they’re still out there, just waiting for us to show a weakness. Then they’ll attack again.”
Calla’s face turned pale in shock.
“W-was anyone from the pleasure house injured, or the hostel?” she whispered, thinking of her friends.
“Not that I know of,” Seth said, sighing heavily. His anger seemed to evaporate in the face of her distress. “Most of those killed were Pilgrims.”
“What about Mistress Jenner,” Calla said. “Was she part of it? She’s a Pilgrim.”
“I don’t know what happened to her,” he replied. “I heard she disappeared shortly after the attack.
They were coming to arrest her.”
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t know.”
“Well, I did,” Seth said. “All you had to do was trust me.”
“And all you had to do was trust me,” she whispered back. “So, now what? Do you want your money back? We can sell the hostel. Or are you going to turn me in as a runaway slave?”
“Come here,” Seth said, patting the bed next to him. “What I really want to do is touch you again.”
Calla gave a brittle laugh. “Well, sex is certainly one thing we’ve always been good at. But forgive me if I say I’m not in the mood. I’m a little preoccupied with what you plan to do. How did you find me, anyway?”
Seth decided to ignore her little bit of rebellion. “It wasn’t hard,” Seth said. “The only time we had any trouble at all was with your friends at the hostel on Calindra Station. They managed to throw us off the trail, at least for a while. But you and Sarai were pretty noticeable no matter where you traveled. I guess people took note when neither of you understood how to do simple things, like catch a flight or use a credit transfer chit.”
He was right, Calla thought with disgust. They’d had to ask for directions and help no matter where they went. Neither had traveled before, never mind selling a space craft. It had been naive to think they hadn’t left a trail a quadrant wide.
“So, you didn’t answer my question,” she said. “What are you going to do? Whatever it is, I hope you’ll let Sarai and the children go. She was only trying to protect herself and the kids. The whole thing was my idea.”
“No, as far as I can tell, the whole thing was Bragan’s idea,” Seth said with a harsh laugh. “He and I had plenty of opportunities to discuss your actions while we were hiding out together. And as for Sarai, I don’t blame her for what she did. I can understand it.”
Then why can’t you understand why I did what I did?Calla felt like asking, but she didn’t want to push him.
“Come here,” Seth said again. His voice was smooth and persuasive. She wanted to sink into his arms, have him hold her. Realizing she had nothing to lose, she stood and made her way over to the bed. If she was headed back to slavery, at least she would feel his arms around her one more time.
Seth pulled her down on top of him as he stretched back on the bed, reaching both hands up to cup her face. She could barely see him in the moonlight, but she could feel the tense urgency in his body. He was rock-hard against her, and she felt an answering rush of sensation course through her own body.
“I was so angry with you,” Seth said quietly. “I told myself that if I ever saw you again I’d strangle you.
But now that I’m here, now that I can feel you, all I want to do is be with you. Do you know what that means for a man of my culture? To only want to be with one woman?”
Calla shook her head. She had no idea, but she understood how he felt. Just touching him was enough to bring her to life again. This time there were no lies between them, and whatever the morning held was no longer important. She dropped her lips against his, pressing little kisses against his mouth. He kissed her back hungrily, then broke off the kiss.
“Usually, when a man and woman in Saurellia feel this way about each other, it’s because they’re life mates,” he said.
“What are you saying?” she whispered. Horror filled her; he had come to get his revenge. Nothing else could explain such cruel teasing.
“Not long ago, our priestesses confirmed that at least one Saurellian has found his life-mate outside of Saurellia,” Seth said. “She was the daughter of slaves. Imperial slaves.”
Tears welled up in Calla’s eyes. “Please tell me this isn’t some kind of joke. Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
“It’s not a joke,” Seth said. He lifted his head to kiss her lightly. “You’re my life mate. I knew it before, but I just couldn’t bring myself to believe it. But now I know. The Goddess created us for each other.”
“So what does that mean? What do we do now?”
“I would like it if you’d come back with me to Saurellia,” Seth said. “Once we have a child, we can be officially bonded at the temple. That’s what any other Saurellian couple would do.”
“But we’re not just any other couple,” Calla said after a brief pause. Seth’s body tensed under hers.
“We’ve both lied to each other, and we’ve both hurt each other.”
“I guess we’d have to learn to trust each other,” he replied slowly. “I’m willing to try if you are.”
“Do I have a choice?” Calla asked, gazing deeply into his eyes. “It seems like I’ve never had a choice before. Do I have one now, or are you simply going to take me with you whether I want to go or not?”