Page 52 of A Mate For Matrix
Hands—human hands—on his cheeks.
A voice, trembling with emotion.
“Matrix. Matrix! I love you so much. Come back to me. Please—come back.”
Jana.
A flash of scent—vanilla and citrus and something uniquely her.
He jerked. Gasped.
The connection broke.
Matrix slumped forward, chest heaving, drenched in sweat and blood. His head was cradled against Jana’s trembling form.
He blinked up at her. Her eyes were red-rimmed, her lips trembling.
Her tears hit his skin like holy water.
“J-Jana…” he rasped.
“You’re okay,” she whispered, brushing his damp hair from his forehead. “You’re here. I’ve got you.”
The bridge faded into background blur.
The ship, the Hive, the Queen—all distant echoes.
For now.
But he remembered.
The metal planet.
The warships.
Her voice.
Her hunger.
Matrix wrapped his arms around Jana and held her tightly, trembling.
The war that he had fought in when he chased the Crawler wasn’t over.
It was just beginning—with an even more terrifying species.
Chapter Nineteen
Jana bit her lip as she stared out the front view screen. Matrix had asked her to keep a visual on the spaceship that was growing larger and closer by the minute. She knew he had done it mostly to keep her out of his and K-Nine’s way. She didn’t mind. There wasn’t a lot she could do except corral the kittens who had decided whatever was going on was too scary for them.
Matrix hadn’t said more than a few clipped words since collapsing from that… connection. He’d woken with a strangled cry, his body soaked in sweat, trembling with an urgency that made her heart twist. Within minutes, he’d rebooted K-Nine with an override command and snapped out orders like a war general fresh from the frontlines.
Strict instructions. No more external connections. No delays. No distractions.
Just get The Nebulosity ready to leave as quickly as possible.
Her breath caught, and relief surged through her as the familiar low hum of the ship’s power core throbbed beneath her feet. The lights brightened. Consoles flickered alive. Somewhere beneath them, the engines purred with readiness.
Matrix appeared a second later, wiping a smudge of black grease from his cheek with the back of his glove. His expression was taut, but victorious.
