Chapter 73: Chapter 73

Raven

Laro was unloading supplies, his voice heavy with accusation. “We blamed ourselves for your capture, but you were part of it all along.”

Dhol chimed in, his tone bitter. “You made me doubt my instincts. I thought I’d accused you unfairly.”

Arenk was busy feeding Valdis and Bellamy, but he didn’t hold back either. “I defended you, and you lied to me.”

“I’m sorry. I was just trying to—”

Arenk cut her off. “How can we believe you now? How do we know you won’t do anything to get what you want?”

Laro finished with the supplies and started moving them into the cargo hold. Raven picked up a box and followed him.

The cargo hold was as spacious as the deck above. It housed critical system components, storage, and cages for the beasts. When she came back up after dropping off her box, they were all waiting for her.

“I’m sorry I betrayed your trust,” she said, her fingers tracing the braided bracelet on her wrist. “But you can trust me now. I was imprisoned and tortured for months, and I never gave any of you up. I think that’s made us stronger.”

Dhol held out his hand. “Promise that we’ll all be honest with each other from now on. That we’ll make decisions together.”

Raven took his hand. “I promise.”

Laro and Arenk joined in, making the same promise.

Dhol changed the subject. “So, tell us about this process of making babies without mating.”

Raven explained. “It’s called IVF. Basically, you mix everything in a lab, then inject it into a woman who carries and gives birth to the baby.”

The guys all exclaimed in unison, “Blasphemy!”

Arenk was appalled. “That’s against nature.”

Laro agreed. “Creating life is sacred. It should be done between two beings.”

Dhol was the most upset. “The baby will still be part of you and him, no matter how it’s brought into the world. I don’t like this at all.”

Raven hadn’t expected their reactions. She rubbed her face, feeling the weight of it all. She wasn’t thrilled about it either, knowing she’d have three children she’d never meet or see.

“I don’t like it either,” she admitted. “But we need to escape, and I want that information on my sister.”

They stood in silence until a cry came from Arenk’s hip. Raven left them standing there and climbed into the ship. The crying got louder as she got closer.

In the room, she found the source of the noise—a little guy with a patch of white hair. The other two were sound asleep. Once he quieted down, she held him close, and his scent started to emerge. It was like Soi-Ji’s, a cedar smell.

Then she remembered Soi-Ji’s words. ~E kai ju.~

“Kai,” she said, looking at him. “How do you like that?”

He just stared at her, resting his head against her chest.

“It’s a good name, an ancient word. It means love,” Dhol said, stepping into the room with Arenk and Laro close behind.

Raven’s heart clenched as she realized what Soi-Ji had confessed that night. She also knew his love would turn to hate once he found out what she’d done.

“If this is the only time you do this, then we agree,” Arenk said.

“It will be, I promise,” she said.

***

Nadia’s communication center was the most advanced Raven had ever seen. It was probably even more advanced than Tarea’s. No wonder they could hack in undetected.

Out of all the cards she’d taken, only two had the clearance to access the classified files.

“Before we get what we want, I need to make sure we’re all on the same page,” the prince said.

“I’ll hold up my end as long as you do the same,” Raven said.

The prince pressed a button on his remote, and the information dropped into their comm devices and his screen.

Raven quickly took Dhol’s device and scrolled through until she found the Sleeping Viper file. It rang a bell. Viper was what Tori’s teammates had called her.

The file opened, revealing Tori’s impressive military history.

She scrolled to the last mission report, which was mostly redacted. Tori had been on a recon mission to a planet they called Titan.

Everything was fine until they lost contact with her team. The last thing they received was a cryptic message. ~The cup never empties.~

Raven had hoped for a more concrete answer, but she had a lead and coordinates. That was all she needed.

“Did you find what you were looking for?” Dhol asked.

“Yes.” She smiled.

It was the hope she’d been looking for. They didn’t know for sure that Tori was dead, but Raven would find out. The prince’s gaze was intense, his scowl fierce.

“This procedure is blasphemy,” he said.

“It will get you what you want. If you don’t want to do it, that’s on you. I’m still willing to uphold my end,” Raven said.

“I won’t disgrace my legacy with this, and I doubt King Soi-Ji would either.”

“Well, you have the knowledge if you decide to change your mind. Since you don’t want to do it anymore, I’ll keep my eggs if it’s all the same to you,” Raven said.

“You have the information you wanted, so I’ll keep my ship if it’s all the same to you,” he sneered.

Raven had hoped they would get the larger ship, but she didn’t want to push their luck. Letting him think they were losing out was fine by her.

“It’s a fair trade,” Dhol said, placing his hand on her shoulder.

Dhol must’ve had the same thought.

“Yeah, it is. We’re out of here if we’re all done,” she said, pushing herself up to stand.

With a casual flick of his wrist, the prince dismissed them, and they made their way out the door.