Page 59 of A Mate For Matrix
But one thing hadn’t changed.
He would protect her. With everything he had.
Chapter Twenty
The soft thrum of the engines vibrated through the ship as stars whizzed past the viewport in silent streaks of light. Matrix leaned forward, the soft leather of the command chair creaking as he braced his elbows on his knees and loosely steepled his fingers under his chin.
His gaze was fixed on the faint shimmer in the distance. The glimmer ahead emanated from the Triterian-Alluthan modified ship Bulldog had designed.
Three days, they’d been following it.
Three days of theories, data comparisons, and quiet tension.
Bulldog’s recollection of a metal world bristling with Hive ships, Seal’s mental snapshots of Krac and Gracie Jones, and Matrix’s own disturbing connection with the Queen had painted a grim picture. Each revelation layered like circuitry, one feeding the next, forming something far more complex.
But one question echoed louder than the rest:
Was the link to the Hive rooted in his mission with the Crawlers—or Elaine Brim?
He painstakingly searched the database aboard Bulldog’s ship. Every file on it. Nothing. Not a whisper of Brim. Not the CPU division. Not even a restricted tag.
K-Nine had offered his usual practical explanation: “The information is missing because it’s irrelevant to the others. Or someone made sure it vanished.”
Matrix wasn’t convinced.
“I’ll try again once we reach Zion,” he’d said aloud the night before, his voice low as he stared at the ceiling in the dark.
Now, with Zion only a few hours away, his thoughts shifted again—questions piling higher: What if Zion had changed? Was he still considered a soldier? Did they even remember who he was? If they did… what had become of his parents?
He didn’t hear Jana enter until her fingers brushed against his shoulder.
Warm. Steady. Grounding him.
Her hands kneaded gently over his upper back, finding the knots of tension he hadn’t realized were there until she touched them.
“You’re thinking too loud,” she murmured near his ear.
His head tilted slightly toward her voice. “It’s hard not to.”
“How much longer before we reach Zion?” she asked, continuing her slow, reassuring massage.
“A few hours.” His voice roughened with more than fatigue.
Her hands paused, then slid down, caressing his torso as she spun his chair to face her. He smiled when she straddled his lap, her knees pressing on either side of his thighs.
Jana’s eyes searched his, her expression soft but resolute. “Then I suppose I have time to help you relax. One of my meditation tapes said mindset was important before a big event. It suggested several relaxation techniques. I can think of a few more that they may have missed.”
He started to speak, but her mouth met his.
The kiss was slow. Anchoring. A balm against the storm inside him. She tasted of spiced tea and cake. When she finally pulled back, they were both breathing harder, their hearts pounding in rhythm.
His hands came to rest on her hips, grounding them both. She leaned her forehead against his.
Matrix swallowed hard. “K-Nine, monitor the ship.”
From the corridor, claws tapped against the metal floor.
“Already on it,” K-Nine’s voice called. “I suggest you enjoy your alone time now. Once your young comes, neither of you will have the energy.”
