Page 31 of Into The Rift

Davos turned away and didn’t reply, but Blake hooked his arm in mine and sailed out of the room, pulling me along with him. I had no idea what he wanted to talk to me about, but maybe it was better than staying there and arguing with the king. It wouldn’t have done much good anyway. I was still determined to be at that meeting no matter what he said.

We’d made it only a few feet down the corridor before Blake put his arm around me and spoke softly in my ear, so the guards wouldn’t overhear us. “Now when you said you were, ‘intimately involved,’ what exactly did you mean?”

I was shocked by the question, and he saw it on my face.

“Come now, you know that I know you’re not telling me everything, and I need to be aware of everything that happened, Jago. You need to tell us exactly what transpired between you and this alien commander.”

“Nothing happened. Not really.”

“It’s the ‘not really’ part I’m worried about. Come on, before Davos gets back. We need to talk, so I can know exactly how to help you.”

“But will you help me? You didn’t the last time I came to you.”

He stopped in the middle of the corridor, looking shocked. “Jago!”

“I’m not mad about it, omak-ahn. I know my parents put a great deal of pressure on you, and you felt like you had to tell them I was with you. But you should have fought harder for me to stay. I’d gone to great lengths to get to you.”

“You were underage then, baby, and my hands were tied. Davos was insistent that I didn’t interfere. I shouldn’t have listened to him, though.” He put a hand to his throat, looking stricken. “You’re right. I betrayed you.”

“Not so bad as that. But just be assured that I’m of age now, and I’m not going back to Earth with my parents. I’m almost twenty-one. Twenty-two in Lycan years, and I’ll go back to Lycanus if I have to. I’m sick of being treated like I’m a child. You must know how I feel—it must have been a little like this for you when you first came to Tygeria. Everyone treating you differently because of the way you looked.”

“Yes, it was exactly like that. I was an oddity then—a human and completely out of place.”

“If I had taken more after my biological father instead of the surrogate, I’d already be in the army by now. Like Mikol was, when he was even younger than me. How old were you when you joined the Alliance army?”

“Times were different then. We were at war.” He sighed and we started walking down the corridor again toward his room. “But I was about your age. Maybe a little older.”

“And why did you join?”

He gave a short laugh. “I didn’t have much choice. I’d have been drafted if I hadn’t. And I suppose I wanted to make a difference.”

“So do I. But not in the army. And I don’t want to be just some man’s mate or consort.” I noticed Blake’s quick, surprised glance over at me and squeezed his arm. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean you. You’ve never been ‘just’ anything. You’re brave and extraordinary, but I want my chance to be the same. I understand I can’t be in either the Tygerian or the Lycan army, and I understand the reason for that. Though I’m angry at the General for being so overbearing, I know he just wants to protect me. But I can protect myself. And I can still make a difference without being in the army. I want to make my own adventures, but I need the chance. I need my family to get out of my way and let me do that.”

We had reached his door by then. He brought me inside and went straight over to the nearest chair to sit down. “All right,” he said. “I hear you, and I’ll help if I can, but I don’t know how much I can do.”

“Get me into this meeting today. I want to find out why Lord Dominiko’s grandmother came all this way to find him. Mikol mentioned some kind of deal or arrangement, and I want to know what that’s about. I want to know if Niko is in danger. And if he is, I want to help him.”

“Why do you want to help him? He’s the enemy, Jago.”

“That’s just it, though. He’s not my enemy.”

“Honey, you don’t know him. I don’t know what happened between the two of you but make no mistake. If he’s Pton, then he’s the enemy.”

“Wasn’t the king supposed to be your enemy when you met him?”

He looked shocked. “Oh my god, do you have feelings for this man? I’m almost used to how quickly Tygerians form attachments, but you’re more Jayronian than Tygerian.”

“Only in looks. I’m still half, despite the way I look. And I don’t know about feelings. I just know that I don’t want him hurt or killed. I need to be at that meeting.”

Blake fell back in his chair and sighed. “All right. I’ll make sure you’re there. As for the rest of it…”

“Can’t we just see what happens?”

After a moment, he nodded. “Yes, I suppose we have to.”

****

Lord Dominiko

---