Page 6 of Rescuing Mara

My scans are working, but nothing comes up for hours. After the first day, I feel myself relax a little bit.

With the second day comes peace, but as the day progresses, I start to feel anxious again. I have a natural need to plan and control in detail, so I decide we need to fly on autopilot for a while to focus on the plan.

“We should finalize our plan,”I tell my crew mates through our link.

“Okay, we will set everything to auto, then meet in the mess hall,”T’Rak confirms within moments.

I quickly set my systems and make my way towards the room. L’Ren is already there, cooking something up. It smells fantastic. My stomach growls, reminding me of how long it has been since I have eaten. She turns around with a big smile.

“Please sit. D’Var told me he has to finish up something, before he and T’Rak will join us.” She gestures at the six-chair table in the center. I take a seat, and she immediately shoves a plate under my nose.

“Eat,” she commands. I cannot help but dig in. It tastes as good as it smells. I praise her after I swallow my first bite.

“This is really good, L’Ren.”

“Thank you, O’Rec. This is one of Kepti’s recipes.” She beams.

I hum in agreement. Kepti is an amazing cook and though I firmly agree with the opinion that there is nothing wrong with noodles, I am happy she is here, literally spicing things up for us.

She takes a seat across from me, running her hands across the table.

“I’m very pleased with the new furniture. You wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with it, would you?” She cocks her head, giving me a stern look. I lift up one corner of my mouth.

“Nope, not me.”

She narrows her eyes, plops her chin in her hand, and sighs. “It must have been T’Rak. D’Var was nowhere near getting me furniture, and if it wasn’t you…” She trails off. I tune her out and continue eating.

When D’Var and T’Rak enter the room, L’Ren hands them each a plate. They eat quickly and in silence. When we all have full bellies and a fresh cup of tea, I clear my throat. I look at T’Rak, he silently gives me permission, so I begin.

“We arrive at Centauri IV in two days. D’Var and I will go and act like two very pissed-off males; no low profile this time, we want everybody to notice us. T’Rak and I think the vendor that sold you the plants is the one who ratted us out to the Sternotheri. So, we will look for his booth, then shake things up a bit.”

“D’Var,” I begin, I look at my friend. “You are the angry one. Treat him roughly, but don’t really hurt him. Make it more threatening than hurtful. I will keep you from doing actual damage, taking on a more silent, pissed-off role. When we are sure everybody is listening, you make it seem like you are going to beat him up, and I will hold you back. We will make sure everybody knows that we decided never to come here again, that we would rather go to Centauri VI instead.”

“If that weird Fluxarion is not our rat, at least everybody else knows where we are going, and the real traitor will know where to find us.”

When D’Var grunts his agreement, T’Rak takes over. “I will stay on the ship, watching the scans and looking out for L’Ren, who will be hiding in the cargo bay.”

I look at her, though she seems nervous, she has a set jaw, and her shoulders are pushed back.

“If there is anything I can do,” she begins, but I cut her off.

“Not yet, but thank you very much for offering.” She smiles and huddles closer to her mate. I feel a pang in my chest, but I shove it down. I look for my warrior calm. Once I feel settled, I continue.

“Once at six, we take residence in the bar. We pretend that I am getting drunk there every night so that the Sternotheri will know I am easy prey. When they arrive to get me, we make sure I seem to be alone, but you are really there to have my back.”

“We take the fuckers down, then take them onto the ship. Once we have them here, we make sure we will not stop until we know where Ananta is keeping my Zarra.”

My crew mates both nod at me approvingly. I breathe in deep, then let it all out in a silent sigh. T’Rak thought up most of the plan, but I am glad D’Var is on board as well. He would tell me if he thought it was a terrible plan. Though, desperate as I am, even a terrible plan would have been better than no plan.

As we talk, L’Ren proves to be a welcome addition to the crew with sharp insights and a fresh point of view. Her presence brings a change in our dynamic, but I like it. I used to be surrounded by women; my mother had three sisters who brought their families with them to Arracate when she met my father. The familiarity of a female around me soothes something inside me I did not know was aching.

After planning, it is time to get back to work, and we spend the rest of the day in silence. I volunteer to fly the ship through the night, which gets us another day closer to my mate.

* * *

T’Rak has takenover piloting the ship on the third morning of our trip, leaving me to obsessively scan our surroundings. I feel jittery; my bond is tugging at me and I ache for my mate.

L’Ren senses my unease and has D’Var send me to rest. I am tired but cannot get to sleep. A couple of hours later, when I hear them go to their room, I almost get up to go back to work again, but I feel a reprimand pushing against my mind.

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