Page 37 of Tornn's Mate
“Not exactly. Founders were wealthy humans who financed the construction of theJansonna. My grandparents were Founders. But the Founders only made up a small percentage of the humans who boarded theJansonnaon Death Day.”
“Death Day?” He lifts an eyebrow, looking intrigued, and a thrill rushes through me that he’s showing an interest in the history of my people.
“Oh, yes, Death Day,” I say, feeling as though I’m slipping into teacher-mode. “A rather dramatic name, is it not?” I grin. “It’s the deadline that the Frexorlians gave humans to evacuate Earth before they annihilated us. Actually, it was the Frexorlians who called it Death Day in the first place. On that day in history, theJansonnaremained on Earth until the last possible second in order to allow as many humans as possible to reach safety. Those who were left behind are presumed dead, killed by the filthy, planet-thieving Frexorlians.”
Humor glints in Tornn’s eyes and he looks like he’s trying to restrain a smile, though I suppose I can’t blame him. I always speak in an overly dramatic tone when I talk about Earth history, and I’m suddenly struck by how much I miss teaching.
“Five years before their arrival,” I continue, “they started transmitting messages to Earth and gave us a specific date to evacuate by or face certain death. But there were a lot of political leaders and regular citizens who believed the Frexorlians weren’t real. Many thought it must be a hoax of some sort, especially since the other aliens we’d already made contact with had never heard of them. The Founders were relentlessly teased for spending trillions of galactic credits on the construction of a worldship that might never be used.”
“How many humans left Earth on theJansonna?”
“Over one hundred thousand.” I shudder to imagine how crowded the worldship was back then, but I take pride in knowing the Founders accepted almost anyone who could reach the vessel in time. They accepted criminals, the elderly, and the sick. Only those who were deemed too violent, highly contagious, or on the verge of death were barred from coming aboard.
Tornn draws back, his eyes flickering with surprise. “But theJansonnacurrently houses over fifty-thousand humans. What happened? Why hasn’t your population at least remained steady?”
“Unfortunately, not long after leaving Earth, a plague swept through the worldship, and thousands died. Then, during the early years, the command team eventually gained more power than the Founders, and they instituted strict rules regarding reproduction.”
“Ah. The hormone suppression shots.”
“Yes,” I say, “but they also force couples to apply for a permit to have a baby, and nearly all children are conceived in a fertility lab. Only a certain number of permits are granted each year and the application process is rigorous.” A dark heaviness falls over me as I think about Nathan. We’d already started filling out our application even though we hadn’t gotten married yet. The future I thought I would share with him will never come to pass.
Yet if a future with Nathan was offered to me at this very second, I wouldn’t take it. It’s not what I want anymore, and I’m starting to realize he’s not the man I once thought he was.
Traitor. Whore.
The insults he’d texted me flash in my mind. We haven’t spoken since.
“Ellie? Sweet human?” Tornn’s eyes gleam with concern. “Are you all right? You appear suddenly pale.”
I force a smile. “Oh, I’m perfectly fine.” I swallow hard, all at once desperate to change the subject. After drawing in a deep, calming breath, I say, “Tell me about your homeworld, Tornn.”
He tenses as his expression transforms completely, all hints of warmth vanishing, cold rage now glimmering in his eyes. My fork slips from my fingers and clatters to the table. I don’t think he’s upset with me, but I realize I’ve inadvertently touched on a difficult subject.
His homeworld… is it gone?
My mouth goes dry, and I don’t have the courage to ask. So, I sit very still and watch him carefully, wondering if he’ll answer my question. My mind runs wild with terrible scenarios… his planet destroyed by an asteroid or stolen by a more powerful race of aliens. Another idea hits me.
Maybe whatever happened to the Darrvason females is linked to the loss of their homeworld.
I glance at the viewscreen, where I spot several ships as they travel alongside us in hyperspace, stars streaking by in blurs of bright light.
When Tornn finally speaks, his words shock me to my core.
“Darrvas, my people’s homeworld, was destroyed by our enemies when I was a child. I was off planet visiting my father during the attack—at the time, he was the captain of theHaxxal.” A faraway look enters his eyes, and his hands curl into fists.
I don’t blink. I don’t breathe as I wait for him to continue. Will he tell me more? I never imagined such a great tragedy had befallen the Darrvasons and my heart goes out to him. I’d wanted to ask about his homeworld since the day he selected me as his mate, but something had held me back, a vague feeling that perhaps I ought to avoid the subject.
“When our enemies—the Yelltzins—destroyed our homeworld, there were no survivors. The fifteen ships in our fleet and those who were aboard are all that’s left of our empire. Only a few females were off planet at the time, mostly wives and daughters of captains and officers. Not enough to prevent the demise of our race.” His expression is pained, his eyes so haunted that I long to reach across the table and grasp his hand.
But he’s become so tense during the last few seconds, his muscles bulging, his jaw clenched hard, that I worry touching him would be tantamount to kicking a bomb.
He draws in a deep breath and exhales slowly, and I’m relieved when his fists start unclenching. Some of the coldness leaves his eyes and he appears less forbidding than moments ago.
He meets my gaze. “We slaughtered them. The Yelltzins. We erased them from existence. We always,alwayshunt down our enemies.”
Chapter22
ELLIE
