Page 40 of Rescuing Mara

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The clean-up ofthe cargo bay takes longer than I could ever have expected. We work together side by side, letting L’Ren take the lead. Marra excuses herself from her tasks when things are looking up and approaches me.

“I need a word,” she whispers, then gives a pointed look at L’Ren, who is busy finding new pots for her plants.

“Okay.” I say softly. “Speak.”

“Well, Lauren is brokenhearted by all the damage the crash caused. We haven’t been into the mess hall yet, but I fear it’s just as bad if it’s not more. So, I thought, maybe you could stay here and help her while I check out the Mess Hall and work my way through the worst of it.”

My clever mate, I beam at her. “Have I told you that I adore your heart and how you care for others?” She smiles, and amidst all the rubble of our life right now, I kiss her like she is my next breath.

When I let go, she blushes, but gives me a quick kiss on my lips before she hurries out of the room.

I work next to L’Ren in silence. Our typical easy banter and jokes are put aside for a better day. When she starts stretching her back, she notices Marra is missing.

“Where’s Mara? I must have been completely in the zone to have missed her leaving.”

“She went ahead and started in the mess hall.” L’Ren gives a tight smile and nods.

“Yeah, that one’s probably a huge mess as well.”

She looks so lost. I do not hesitate, striding toward her and pulling her into my arms for a quick hug.

“You have got this, L’Ren. We have got this. If we work together, we will find a solution, get off this fucking planet, and then join Kepti at the ring for a feast.”

I hear her giggle, and when she looks up, I see tears in her eyes.

“We’ve got this,” she says bravely, and I nod. After a moment, we both smile. T’Rak and D’Var are back.

“I’ll meet them at the landing dock,” she says before she darts off.

Smiling, I call out to her: “I will see you in the mess hall, then!”

I straighten the last crates that form the hiding place where we used to hide contraband from curious eyes. It got upgraded to a human hiding spot when L’Ren came aboard, and I make a mental note that this is the first thing that will need fixing. You never know what is out there…

Marra looks up when I enter the Mess Hall, and her smile as she sees me makes the bond pulse.

“Hi! How did it go?”

“I think we have managed to clear all the debris, and now we need to make a list of what to fix first. But it looks like the Mess Hall should also be on this list.”

Marra straightens and looks around, a cute little frown between her eyes.

“Yeah, it’s still quite a mess, though it was even worse. We are lucky the table is sturdy, and the chairs aren’t broken. All the stuff that was in the cabinets is lost, though.”

“How about the food?”

With a deep sigh, Marra steps aside to reveal the kitchen counter. “See for yourself…”

There is a big pile of food on the kitchen counter. Noodles are on one side, and roots and leaves are on the other. Most of it is damaged, and I curse.

Marra walks over to me, gently touching my arm. “We can save most of it, and we won’t starve just yet…”

She has barely spoken the words, or T’Rak raises the alarm through our mental link.

“Fuck. There is another storm; we should strap in at Command.”

I take her hand and rush us to the Command Center - to safety.

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