Page 56 of Smart@ss Cyborg

C’vest stares at his mate with such intensity. “I’m taking care ofyou.I’m going to make you and our son safe.”

Stella grabs his lapels.“Youcome back safe. Do you hear me?”

Looking firmly into her eyes, he nods. Then he leans in and kisses her.

He nuzzles his offspring next, where the little creature is lying over his mother’s breast. Then he leaves to eliminate the threat to our families.

CHAPTER 17

We’ve been given a guest room.

I helped Becky settle in it with our offspring.

Midwife Jane helped Stella to her own room (with Stella cradling her son, cooing to him softly that his father will rejoin them soon). Evidently they have a contraption called abassinet,which is like a crib for the bedroom of a mated pair.

Becky and I do not have one in our room, so Becky opts to either cuddle our daughter on her chest or keep her corralled in the middle of the bed.

Thankfully, our daughter isn’t flopping around attempting escape. Yet.

When both are napping deeply, I leave the room to patrol the house, searching for threats. To my relief, I find none.

C’vest returns during one of these patrols. I sense his approach and I meet him before he reaches his door.

“I need to wash up,” is all he says, shouldering past me and entering the house.

The coppery scent of blood permeates his skin and clothing. I shut the door after him and lock it before I return to Becky.

Some time later, I emerge to hunt Becky some food.

She wanted to feed herself but I insisted that I be the one to bring her a meal. She suggested that I search in the kitchen, and thus I begin my quest there.

I find C’vest.

Smelling of soaps and wearing a fresh outfit, he’s making a meal. I assume it’s for his mate until I see that he has four plates set out.

“Thank you,” I say.

He nods, and also lifts a shoulder in an approximation of a dismissive shrug. “Just sandwiches and pickles. Stella is the one who knows how to cook.”

“It is much the same at our house,” I share. “Becky cooks. I bring her killed Oryx to show my love.”

“Very nice,” C’vest comments.

“Thank you,” I acknowledge for the second time, taking his praise to heart. “Did Alvert admit to murdering Baron as you suspected?”

C’vest’s movements falter. It’s only the briefest of reactions. More telling is what’s happening inside him. I watch, silent as C’vest’s brain experiences a cascade of pain. Outwardly, his only other show of emotion is the way his features tighten as he shares, “Yes. He did. With some pressure, he admitted quite a lot.”

His voice has gone hoarse.

Unsure what to offer, I offer nothing at all.

He hands me a plate with a heaping sandwich. He clears his throat. “Alvert hired a cracksman to slip into the house when Baron took Stella to town. All he had to do was swipe iocane extract along the lip of his tumbler. It was common knowledge that Baron enjoyed a good whiskey. When he got home that night, he must have had a drink.”

“Appreciate it,” I murmur, accepting the plate. “What’s iocane extract?”

C’vest looks down at the other plates and smears a white cream-like substance across a slice of bread. “Undetectable poison. It’s from the planet Florin. Even for our senses, it’s odorless, tasteless, and colorless. It perfectly mimics a heart attack. The ingestor experiences instant bradycardia, asystole—and sudden death.” He hands me a second plate.

“That’s how your friend died then?” I ask, hands burdened.

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