Page 63 of Chosen By Swift

But she would have to make do with memories.

She hovered nearby as he showered and changed into his uniform. As he pulled on his boots, he said, “I would prefer that you stay in our quarters until I’m back, but I don’t mind if you visit other mates in this section.”

“Hallie asked me to have lunch with her tomorrow,” she reminded him. “She offered to come down to escort me.”

“You’re safer with her than anyone else,” he said with a wry smile. “You have all of your contacts memorized?”

She nodded. “And I know how to call for help and how to request services or an escort.”

“If anyone bothers you while I’m gone—.”

“I know,” she assured him. “I have the panic button they handed out at our meeting. I know where it’s safe to go and where it’s not. I’ll be fine. Please don’t worry about me. Just focus on your mission.”

He seemed taken aback. “Are you worried aboutme?”

“Of course, I’m worried about you! Are you serious? You fly giant machines! You’re at war with the Splinters! Until you’re standing here in front of me again, I’m going to worry.”

“Alys.” He grasped her hand and drew her close. “I’ll be fine. I’ve been doing this for years.”

“Please be careful,” she pleaded. Unable to voice her deepest fears, she said, “Don’t do anything stupid or heroic.”

He laughed and brushed his fingers through the loose waves of her hair. “Yes, ma’am.”

She embraced him tightly, not wanting to let go. She had grown so dependent on him in such a short amount of time. She supposed it was probably healthy for them to have a few days of space, but she didn’t like it. “Will you be able to let me know when you’re coming back?”

“You’ll get a notification when my ship is scheduled to dock. I likely won’t be able to contact you directly. Operational security,” he said, and she understood. With a sigh, he squeezed her a little tighter. “I don’t want to go.”

“But you have to,” she said, leaning back for the kiss she knew was about to come. It was a lingering kiss, one that she could feel on her swollen lips after he was gone and she was standing alone in their quarters.

Uncertain what to do, she grabbed her tablet and curled up on the couch to read. The luxury of being in a quiet, comfortable place to read something interesting and new was one she hoped to never take for granted. Even so, after an hour of reading about the history of Swift’s people and their culture, she grew bored and craved activity. A lifetime of working from sunup to sundown had trained her to be constantly in motion. Idle hands and all that.

But there weren’t many chores to keep her busy. She cleaned their space from top to bottom and had a small lunch and still had so many hours to fill. She considered taking a nap, but that seemed like such a waste of an afternoon. She turned on the entertainment screen and navigated through the options in search of an education program. Watching the moving pictures still fascinated her.

Only a few minutes into a cooking program focused on the preserved food rations that she found more appalling than appetizing, she was startled by the door chime. She hadn’t been expecting anyone and glanced at the door with suspicion. She turned off the cooking abomination and crossed the room to the control screen. She tapped the blinking door square, and a live view of the hallway popped up.

A man with a scarred face and puckered eyelid stood on the other side of her front door. He looked anything but friendly, and she was extremely hesitant to even talk to him. Certain she was safe behind the locked door, she tapped the square again to activate the technology that allowed her to communicate with him. “Hello? Can I help you?”

The one-eyed man lifted his head and addressed her through the screen. “My name is Terror, and I’m a friend of Hallie’s. She suggested I come to you for help.”

“What kind of help?”

“My son won’t sleep.” Terror wiped a hand down his tired face. “I’ve done everything I can to help him and my mate. I don’t know what to do. Hallie said you have a natural touch with children.”

She felt sympathy for his situation. “Swift is gone. I’m not supposed to leave with strangers.”

“I understand. Just hold on a minute. Please?”

“Okay.” She watched as he lifted his watch and spoke into it. She shouldn’t have been surprised their technology allowed them to use something as small as a watch to communicate.

A few moments later, the control screen in front of her blinked twice and then Hallie’s face appeared next to Terror’s. She had a dish towel in one hand and waved. “Hello, Alys!”

“Hi, Hallie.”

“I should have contacted you before I sent Terror to your door,” Hallie said with an apologetic look. “I didn’t realize Swift was gone.”

“He was called in to work. It seemed serious.”

“It usually is,” Hallie remarked with a knowing smile. “So, Terror is my husband’s best friend. He’s a good man, and I would trust him with my life and the lives of my children. You’re perfectly safe with him.”

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