Page 4 of Rescuing Mara

“Later is now, T’Rak. I am going crazy, and my bond is aching. I need to get to her. I need to go after her, but I cannot even imagine where to start.”

T’Rak grins a feral smile. “You might not, but I can.”

CHAPTER3

O’Rec

The plan is simple but brilliant. I believe it might just work. We will start at Centauri IV and work out more details once we have taken off. That space station is the last place we went to before L’Ren was taken by the Sternotheri and we have an idea who betrayed us. Public confrontation is not our usual style, but we need to be seen in order for our plan to work. After that, we will take off for Centauri VI, where I will somehow put myself up as bait. For now, the plan is to lure the Sternotheri to us and find a way to make them share the location of Ananta with us.

We do not know what to do after that, but we will form a plan when we know which obstacles we face. I feel confident this is going to work. The only thing that is missing is D’Var.

It seems the stars are on my side, because he chooses that moment to check in with us. He spent the last few days locked up in his room with his mate, reconciling. I am happy for him, but I am also very glad that he tells us he is coming out to see how he can help me find mine.

I am sitting behind my screens. T’Rak is in his captain’s chair when D’Var and L’Ren walk in.

“Hi,” she says shyly.

I grunt. “We need to get to my mate,” I begin - my friends nod. D’Var takes a seat, pulling L’Ren in his lap.

“We have no idea where she is nor where the Sternotheri are. We know she is close to Ananta, and I believe that they will guard her even more fiercely now that she knows what she means to me.” I pause.

“We need to draw the Sternotheri out, and we know they want me most. So, I am going to offer myself up on a platter for them. I need you both to have my back, so we can surprise the fuckers who go after me and find out Ananta’s location from them.”

“We will finalize the details of the plan during our trip, but we need to say goodbye and prepare to be leaving soon.”

“You are leaving?” L’Ren says loudly. We fall silent.

“Yes, I am leaving, and I am hoping I can count on D’Var as well. T’Rak will come, but I think we need all the help we can get.” D’Var nods and then looks at his mate.

“What do you think? Are you ready to accompany us on a mission through space?”

I perk up. That is a great idea. “My mate is human. I believe it would help her if you were there.”

L’Ren looks at D’Var, and they have a private conversation, which I tune out. I cannot bear their love declarations. Not now, when my mate is out in the universe without me knowing exactly where.

L’Ren turns around, smiling grimly at me. “We are in, what do you need?”

I let out a huge breath, and I smile back at her.

“We will leave in the morning. We cannot tell anybody what our mission is.” I look sharply at D’Var.

A sudden grin appears on my face. “Not even your mother.”

“My mother is the most trustworthy person in the universe,” he says, doing his best to keep a straight face.

I arch my eyebrows at his statement. Kepti is amazing, but she is also a gossip when it comes to mates.

“Be sure to say your goodbyes and be ready.”

D’Var gives me a curt nod. “I promised you we would find your mate, my friend. And that is what we shall do.”

* * *

I do not getmuch sleep that night. I toss and turn, and in the end, I give up, making my way towards the mess hall. The ship is silent. My crew is fast asleep as I enter through the sliding doors. I let my hand glide across the wall, a wall D’Var put up with his bare hands to please his mate. My chest aches. The bond between a Warrior and his Zarra is the purest thing there is in the universe. It’s a pull between two souls which are meant to be together. We Arracate believe that it is written in the stars.

We take the mate bond seriously. I ache deep inside for having to leave my mate, my Zarra, behind. There was no other choice at that moment, but the decision is slowly killing me. I should be with her, taking care of her, nurturing the bond, and being able to touch her.

I slump down in one of the chairs and let my head hang for a moment. There is no one here to witness my despair. I am the Lost prince of Arracate. It is a fitting name because I am indeed lost. I have been ever since the destruction of our planet by the Sternotheri when the weight of the survival of our species came down on my shoulders in an instant. I was not ready then, and I am not ready now. I may have been brought up to be a prince, but not the prince of a broken race.

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