Page 19 of Saving the Sautiitions

I take a deep breath before stepping through the door that Vahru is holding open for me. I walk into the main room to find Criido still asleep on the couch, his hand wrapped in tentacles, Tonya right by his side. She sings a beautiful lullaby that even my translator doesn’t know. My hand automatically goes to my chest without thought as I watch them.

Melodia glides into the room with a tray in front of her. Soup in a bowl, a steaming cup of some kind of tea on the other side. She sets them by Tonya, and they work together to try to get something into Criido, slowly spooning the liquid into his mouth as he swallows it down.

Willa startles me when she steps between Vahru and me, whispering to him as her hands wring together. “He seems to be pulling through. Your remedy worked. I’ve made a tea with some of the same ingredients you used to, hopefully, help his body continue the process of pushing it out. Melodia made a special soup from her homeworld that is designed to help strengthen and rejuvenate the body. Hopefully, together, they will bring his strength back. We’re doing what we can.”

She puts a hand to his arm, and he turns to her, smiling with all the thanks he can as his eyes water. I step around the other side of him and squeeze his hand, laying my head against his arm as Willa does the same. I can’t imagine how hard it must be for him to see his only parent lying there, barely alive.

Willa quietly slips out with apologies, but she needs to continue helping set up the festivities. I tug him toward the other room, stepping into what looks like Criido’s office. There’s a desk in the middle, in front of a large bookshelf filled with tomes. A large window on the wall to the right, and several shelves on the left with other things I’ve never seen before.

“I know that this is hard for you, baby. It isn’t easy for me either. But if we’re going to figure out what happened to him, we need to search the house. Let’s just keep up hope, okay? He’ll pull through, I feel it in here.” I rub a hand on my chest, just above my breasts.

He nods his head and looks around, choosing to walk to the shelves. His fingers reverently run over some items as a ghost of a smile lights his face. “These are knick-knacks that I found while exploring the forest as a child. They mean nothing, just random items I found that I brought to him. I’m pretty sure that some are spaceship parts. He’s kept them all this time for the memory of my childhood.”

I smile at him and wander to the bookshelves behind the desk. My fingers skim some spines as I look at the hand-wrapped leather tomes.

“Those are recordings of our history. Passed down from leader to leader. Some were written hundreds of years ago by my great ancestors. Some were written just last year by Father and me.”

I turn and look at Vahru, his eyes bright as he stares at the shelves. “He’ll be okay, Vahru. He said it himself, the Guardians told him it isn’t his time. We’ll all get through this, okay?”

He nods and goes back to looking around the shelves in front of him. I turn to the desk and stop short. There’s a box on the desk, on top of an open tome. A bow lies beside it, the top propped open. I peek inside and find a half-eaten cupcake-like treat lying on its side.

“I think I found what poisoned him.” My voice is quiet, even to my ears, as I slowly reach inside to pull out the confection. I hold it out to Vahru, and he sniffs it.

I chuckle as his nose wrinkles, his head shaking as he pulls back. “It smells so sweet. How could he eat that?”

“Cupcakes are supposed to be sweet, baby. They’re a dessert treat. I’m pretty sure this is a cupcake, anyway.” I laugh at his expression and set the cake down beside the bow. I pick up the box and look inside, the bottom flap falling over as I tip the box. “Oh, hold on.”

I reach in and pull out a square of parchment. I flip it over to find some writing in a style I’ve never seen before.

Get rid of your human pet.

I’m coming for my throne.

Tavionna

“Who’s Tavionna? And why does she think I’m Criido’spet?” The last word spits from my lips as my anger boils to the surface. Whoever this is knows more about us than we originally thought. Whoever this is, is in for a rude awakening when she gets up close and personal with my boot.

“I’ve never heard that name before. We need to find out who this person is and why they wanted my father dead.”

I scoff and flip the paper to face him. “Honey, I think it’s clear why they wanted Criido dead. They want to take over.”

He growls, and I slip the paper into the front pocket of my pants. “I’ll hold on to this until we can find some answers. Looks like we may need to make a trip to your lab for a long night.”

He nods, his face a stone mask as he fights to control his own anger toward this unknown person. One thing I do know, Tavionna is not going to be happy when we find them. They may not survive our wrath.

Chapter 13

Kari

As we emerge from the office, we find Criido sitting up on the couch with Tonya next to him, holding a tray of food for him. He smiles at her as he takes a small cut of fruit and pops it into his mouth before he looks up at us. I smile and step closer, happy to see him awake and healthy.

“Chief, you’re awake! How are you feeling?”

“Kari, I’m so glad you’re here. Thank you all so much for making it in time to save me. I suppose I should apologize for being so careless and getting myself poisoned. I am very fortunate to have you all here.”

There’s a moment of pause as we all take that in. I glance at Vahru, his face blank as he watches his father. His eyes seem to swirl as I memorize the patterning while watching him. He’s clearly fighting emotions and thoughts. I can only imagine what he must think caused his father to be attacked like this. He must be feeling a mixture of relief, anger, confusion, and who knows what else.

I step over to him and slip my hand into his, twining our fingers together and holding his hand between mine. He slowly looks down at me, and I give him an encouraging smile, squeezing his hand gently. His fingers curl around mine, squeezing back as he gives me a small smile, relaxing from my touch.

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