Adrift (The Sirilians Book 1) (22 page)

They embraced until Lukas’s comm unit began to beep. He reached to answer the device.

“Yes?”

“I think you and Karo had better get back to the Medical Center right away.” It was Notani. She spoke softly, as if she was trying to contact them in private.

They were already walking.

“What’s wrong?” Lukas asked.

“General Bogaard is here.” Barely a whisper this time, but shouts could be heard in the background.

Karo saw Lukas’s jaw clench. “We’re on our way.” Lukas walked like a man on a mission, and Karo suddenly had a wave of dread.

“Do you think he’s unhappy about Aevum?”

Lukas’s eyes bounced to him then away. “Perhaps.”

Neither said another word. They entered the Medical Center and quickly took in the scene in front of them: Jayda and Deian were in a standoff against General Bogaard. The man was livid.

His face was scarlet, finger poking in Jayda’s face, as spittle flew out of his mouth with every word spoken. The duo stood firm, silently glaring at the man.

It was not lost on Karo that they had planted themselves between Aevum’s chamber and the general, as if to defend her.

“This is still
my
ship!” the general shouted.

Karo glanced towards Lukas, but he was already storming across the room. He inserted himself between the man and his mates, bumping the general back with the plane of his chest.

“You will watch your tone,” Lukas growled menacingly.

General Bogaard was too angry to heed his warning. “How dare you bring another unknown alien onboard my ship without my approval!”

Deian and Jayda flanked their mate, and Karo moved to stand at their side: a united front.

“She was already onboard,” Lukas stated flatly. “None of us knew. We were only able to bypass the encryption to where she’d been kept in stasis a few hours ago.”

“And why was that, hmm?” He pointed at Karo. “Why did he hold her prisoner? Is she a threat? I heard that she has some kind of disease. Is she meant to infect our entire race? And why didn’t he tell us about her?”

He didn’t wait for anyone to answer, but pointed his finger accusingly at Jayda. “I’ll tell you why: it’s because he took advantage of your soft, female tendencies. You’re not fit to lead—not in the Defense, and certainly not our planet!”

Lukas planted his weight on his back heel, fist ready to strike, but Deian grabbed his wrist. The general snorted in derision. “Yet another weak monarch to lead our planet. Well
I’m
not weak. I say we jettison the alien female into deep space where she belongs!”

White hot fury flashed through Karo, and with barely a thought, he struck the general with his right fist, connecting with the man’s nose. Blood sprayed as his head whipped to the side. He yelled in pain, and unsteadily stepped back.

“You hit me!” It wasn’t a question but Karo answered anyway.

“Damn right I did.” He stepped closer to the man who forced himself to straighten his back, hands still holding onto his gushing nose. Karo barely noticed that none of the doctors had stepped forward to offer their help.

“Don’t you
ever
threaten my woman, or I will fucking kill you.”

General Bogaard wisely stepped back. He turned his attention to the trio. “I will have you all thrown out of the Defense for this!”

“It would be our pleasure to watch you try,” Jayda replied.

The general stammered for a moment before closing his mouth, grabbing a rag out of a doctor’s hand and storming from the room. Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief. Karo turned around, expecting to see condemnation on his friends’ faces. Instead they headed straight for him with expressions of concern.

“Are you alright?” Jayda asked.

He nodded and looked from one to the other. “It sounds like you’re all in a lot of trouble. I apologize.”

“Nah, it’ll blow over,” Deian answered nonchalantly.

Lukas continued, “Truth is we’ve been planning on resigning for a while now, but had stayed around to finish testing the new engine prototypes. Your arrival delayed that a little, but it’s been worth it. Getting you get back on your feet is more important than all that.”

That was thoughtful of them, but what was he going to do when the general made good on his promise? He wouldn’t have anyone fighting on his side, and right now he needed these people’s help. Not just with his ship—that was the last of his worries—now everything revolved around Aevum. How was he going to get her the help she needed?

Jayda must have sensed his concern. “Don’t worry Karo. Even if the general succeeds, it will take him a while to get approval to forcibly remove us from the Defense. By then we’ll have resigned formally, and made plans for you both. We’re not going to leave you in his hands.”

That made Karo feel better. They weren’t going to abandon him.

Notani came to their side. “I don’t think it will take that long. I’ve been able to go over Aevum’s medical files and I believe I have a treatment for her HCA. We should be able to wake her very soon.”

Karo’s heart leapt. “You can cure her?”

“I believe so. Before you put her into stasis, the defective cells had multiplied, forming small tumors throughout her body. My plan is to use nanites that are programmed to target those cells and prevent them from reproducing further. Her healthy cells would then be able to take over.”

Nanites. Karo had heard of them before, but had never met a race that utilized them for medical purposes.

“You’re sure the nanites are safe?” he asked.

“I believe so, yes. We use them for a variety of purposes in Arathian medicine, but I admit that they’ve never been tested on a Sirilian before.”

She pulled up images of magnified cells on the vid screens, and Karo watched as tiny robotic… things… attached themselves to certain types of cells, but left others alone.

“This is your blood, Karo,” Notani explained. “I programmed them to latch onto your red blood cells, and they had no problem targeting the proper ones. I believe we’ll have success with this treatment.”

Karo watched the doctor, but her expression was guarded. Not what he’d expect when she was delivering such good news.

“There’s something else,” Karo stated. It wasn’t a question, but she knew what he wanted to know.

She sighed. “We’re worried about bringing her out of stasis. She’s been in there for eight-thousand years, and we have no idea what that’s done to her body. She may not survive it.”

Awaking her may kill her?
Another thing to add to the list of ways he’d wronged this woman.

“She’s alive now, right?”

“Yes.” Notani brought up information onto the large screens and they gathered around. “This is the readout from her stasis unit. It shows that she’s still in a perfect state of suspension, we just don’t know what will happen when we disrupt it.”

“What are you asking? For my opinion or permission?”

“Both.”

Karo ran his palms over his head. What was he supposed to do? He’d already done irrevocable damage to this woman, had done things that he could never forgive himself for. How was he supposed to make another choice that would impact her life?

He went over to her chamber and placed his palm against it. Inside was a woman who didn’t deserve what’d been done to her. There was no way he could live with himself if he kept her in that condition forever.

“Wake her,” he said softly.

The words sped the entire medical staff into motion. Before he knew it, the Medical Center was prepped for the procedure to come. The Med Unit was ready to scan her body the moment she was removed from the chamber, Notani had several vials of nanites ready to go, the operating room was fully staffed; they’d taken every precaution, but Karo was still a bundle of nerves.

He knelt next to her chamber. “Please forgive me,” he whispered, then stepped aside to join Jayda, Deian, and Lukas where they stood against a wall, out of the way.

Karo locked himself in place, his muscles held rigid, and watched nervously as Notani inputted commands to begin the process of bringing her out of stasis. Everyone collectively held their breath while they waited the agonizingly slow minutes until the chamber’s locks disengaged.

It took the doctors several attempts to pry open the hatch that had been stuck together with age. Karo’s breath lodged in his throat as they reached inside, gathered Aevum’s body, and lifted her.

Even from his position several feet away, he could tell that she wasn’t moving. Her limbs and head hung unsupported, and there was a gray tone to her skin.

Hands suddenly gripped his arms, and Karo looked to see Deian and Lukas holding him from either side. He hadn’t realized he’d begun to move towards her. He stepped back again and watched the doctors place her on the Medical Unit’s platform, arranging her arms and legs into a natural position.

Doctor Notani began to issue instructions, even as the large unit began its in-depth scan. To Karo, it was all a blur of sound, as he stared at her lying lifeless a few feet away. When the Medical Unit sent a concentrated beam into her body to restart her heart, and the vid screen still showed no movement within her chest, Karo lost it.

He fought against the men holding him, and felt other hands and arms lock around his body. He had no idea how many people held him back. His eyes remained locked on her, and the flurry of doctors trying to save her.

“Fight Aevum!” he yelled. “We did not survive eight-thousand-fucking-years traversing the galaxy to have you die right when there’s hope!”

Another beam hit her chest, and he willed the monitor to show her beating heart.

It didn’t.

A wave of emotion unlike anything he’d ever experienced swept over him. Rage, desperation, and grief surged through him giving him strength he didn’t know he had. He threw the hands off of him and battled his way to her side.

His hand shook as he ran it over her forehead and through her hair before leaning down to placed his mouth against her temple. She felt cold—so cold.

“Karo, get back,” Notani harshly instructed.

“No! Don’t give up on her. Please!” he pleaded past the lump in his throat. Was he crying? He blinked hard, and tears fell onto her skin.

“I’m
not
giving up.”

He heard determination in Notani’s voice, and glanced her direction. She was holding a large syringe in her hand. He stepped to the side—still keeping one hand on Aevum—and watched Notani position the needle. He cringed as she pressed it all the way into Aevum’s chest, into her heart, and injected the contents.

Immediately Aevum gasped, her whole body convulsing. A loud thump came from the vid screens, but Karo couldn’t tear his eyes away from her chest, watching it rise and fall with each inhalation.

In a daze, he felt hands on him again, and allowed them to move him a few feet away from the platform so the doctors could gain access to her body. They didn’t force him to go far, and he stopped struggling. Actually he leaned on them for support, as relief more potent than anything he’d experienced swamped him.

She’d survived.

He closed his eyes and said a silent thank you to the universe.

Aevum’s head felt fuzzy. She drifted in and out of consciousness, not waking enough to focus on anything in particular. Sometimes she felt hands stroke through her hair or clasp her palm, but she didn’t have the strength to respond.

She heard voices; some female, some from males, but only one was familiar. Only one was the voice she wanted to hear.

Karo. He was near.

She needed to have contact with him: to touch his skin, feel his warmth. She needed to open her eyes and see for herself that he was alright, but it felt as if weights were attached to her lashes. It took several attempts before she was able to pull herself from the fog long enough to pry open her eyes.

She got the impression of a large room and bright lights, before her lids closed again of their own accord and she was slipping back into the blackness.

How many times she woke and tried to muster the strength to open her eyes, move her limbs, or speak, she had no idea. Time passed unknowingly for her until the haziness gradually receded. Finally, she was able to remain awake long enough to will her eyes to focus on the dark figures standing over her. She felt someone grasp her hand and hold it between their own. Theirs was rough, but warm, and their fingers stroked over the back of her palm.

“Aevum, can you hear me?”

The voice was his, she’d know it anywhere. Relief speared through her, and tears gathered in her lashes.

“Karo?” Her voice sounded rough and unused.

“Yes, it’s me.”

Aevum felt tears streak from the corners of her eyes. She hadn’t been imagining it, he
was
here. Relief washed over her.

“Thank goodness,” she replied softly.

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. She blinked tears away so that she could see him clearly, and soak up every inch of his familiar, and wonderful face.

His skin was still the same color, eyes still gray like a storm, but with an undercurrent of emotions that she didn’t recognize. His expression was taught, almost pained, and there were lines of tension around his eyes and mouth.

Her brows drew together with worry.
What was wrong?
Was he alright?
Before she could ask, his eyes darted away from her. She followed his gaze and saw an unfamiliar alien at her other side.

She was a female who looked remarkably similar to Aevum’s own race, except with tan skin, black hair, and green eyes. The woman wore dark clothing, and held a device in her hand. She smiled warmly.

Normally Aevum would be thrilled to see an alien race that was clearly related to Sirilians, but not today… not when she was lying vulnerable in an unfamiliar place, and so weak that she was barely able to keep her head from rolling to the side.

“Hello. I am Doctor Notani,” the woman said. “Don’t worry, you’re safe.”

“Where am I?” she managed to ask. It really hurt to talk.

“Inside an Arathian Medical Center onboard one of our ships.”

A medical center? She turned her head towards Karo. “Are you injured?” she asked him.

Karo shook his head, and a slight smile curved his lips. “I’m fine, it’s you we’ve been worried about.”

For some reason Aevum wasn’t reassured. Something was different with him.

“How long have we been here?”

The doctor and Karo exchanged a look before she answered. “We brought you out of your chamber about four days ago. Before then, you were in stasis for a long time. It’s going to take your body a while to recover and regain your strength.”

Her tone lightened as she continued, “The good news is that we were able to find a treatment for your HCA, and it’s now in remission.”

“You
cured
me?” Aevum asked in astonishment. Not even the Sirilians knew how to treat HCA. This race must be more advanced than their own. How had Karo found them? How far from their homeworld were they?

The last thing she remembered was sharing a meal with him—hers had been bland because she’d barely been able to keep anything in her stomach—and then feeling exhausted. Karo had carried her to their bed onboard the Scout ship, and she had fallen asleep with him snuggled against her back, his arms wrapped tightly around her.

How had she ended up in stasis? Her head swam with questions, but before she could ask any, sleep overtook her once again.

It took a few more times of Aevum waking before she felt coherent and not overcome with grogginess. The doctor brought her warm fluids to drink that had a mild flavor, and performed nearly continual scans on her body.

Karo kept his distance from her. He never left the Medical Center—he even slept in an adjacent semi-private room—and was always within sight of her bed, but he stayed on the periphery.

He spent his time working at a console in the central area, never coming close, but always keeping her in his line of sight. She felt his eyes on her constantly, and had caught him staring several times.

Aevum began to get nervous. Did he not love her any longer?
Was he upset that she’d become ill and had interrupted their mission to seek treatment?

It was clear that he wouldn’t approach her on his own, so after a few days of recovery, Aevum felt strong enough to corner him. If he resented her for being sick, the least he could do was be honest and tell her to her face.

She sat up in bed and maneuvered so that her legs dangled off the side. She knew he was watching.

“Karo, do you mind helping me a moment?”

He jumped up from where he’d been sitting at his console and walked to her.

As frustrated as she was at his behavior, she couldn’t help but admire how he moved. His gait was still confident, he held his head high, eyes never leaving her. Her heart ached. She still wanted him, still needed him, and didn’t know what she’d do if he left her.

She pushed the thought into the back of her mind and focused. She needed answers, and couldn’t fall into a heap of despair right now. Later.
Maybe.
If the situation forced her to. But she wouldn’t be giving him up without a fight. She might look frail, her confidence at an all-time low, but she needed to remember that he’d pledged himself to her once. They’d once been sublimely happy. She wasn’t going to give up on him, and would win him back if she needed to.

“What is it you need?” he asked from her side.

“I would really like to get up for a while, and was hoping you’d help me.” She held out her hands to him but his expression changed. Now he looked nervous and unsure.

“I’ll go get a doctor,” he suggested.

“Please don’t. I don’t want to bother them.”

He nodded reluctantly and reached for her, but instead of setting her on her feet like she expected, he scooped her up against his chest, and carried her to a small sitting area near the bank of windows. It was tucked in the back of the Medical Center, away from the patients’ beds, and provided them with a modicum of privacy.

He set her gently into one of the chairs, then pulled back, severing the wonderful contact. She feared that he’d walk away; instead he scooted an adjacent chair closer to hers and sat.

He stared out the windows, and would hardly meet her eyes. She knew that look—knew that something was seriously wrong. She reached out and took his hand.

“Are you mad at me for getting sick?” she asked quietly.

His eyes flew to her, and went wide in surprise. “No! No, I’d never be mad at you. That wasn’t your fault.”

She sighed with relief. “Then what’s wrong? What’s happened?”

Sadness washed over his features, and her heart sank.
This is it,
she thought, and braced herself for the worst. But the story he began to weave was one of pure fantasy.

He told her about their Scout ship being damaged and floating aimlessly through space. He explained the encounter with the Arathians, how they had saved him, and helped him find Siril. He told her what had become of their homeworld and that they were the last of their kind. Finally, with great difficulty, he told her about the message he’d recorded for himself.

Aevum sat in shock. She didn’t know where to begin—what bombshell to address first—but there was one thing that was burning a path of grief through her. She felt tears sting her eyes, and swallowed the lump in her throat.

“You erased your memories of me?” she asked him sadly. He nodded, and she felt the tears fall, her body lurched as grief washed over her. She loved him with her entire being, had happily bonded with him and left Siril. What would she do if he was lost to her?

She felt him shift onto his knees in front of her chair. His palms ran up her arms in a soothing gesture. She blinked hard to get the tears out of her eyes, so that she could see him clearly while she asked the most important question—the one her entire future would be riding on.

“Do you have any recollection of me? Of our time together?” To herself she thought,
Do you still love me?

She was terrified of his answer.

“I have glimpses of you,” Karo explained in a voice that was thick with emotion. “They feel more like dreams than memories, but I
do
know that you’re the most important person in the universe to me.”

Aevum let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. His hands moved to her neck, and he held her steady so that she had no choice but to look into his eyes.

“Everything I’ve done these past millennia has been to keep you safe: keeping you in stasis; altering my memories so I wouldn’t grieve for you, so I’d be able to keep the ship running until we found help; the endless hours alone… it was
all
for you.”

She couldn’t imagine what he’d forced himself to endure for her. An unexpected sob burst forth from her throat, and she threw herself against his chest. Karo accepted her weight and gathered her into his arms.

She held on tightly and soaked up his warmth, his strength. He may be in different clothes, and not remember her, but he was the same man she’d fallen in love with. He was strong, self-sacrificing, even felt and smelled the same.

“Does that mean you’re not going to leave me here?” she asked shakily.

He pulled back and looked at her as if she were insane. “Are you joking? I’d rather have my heart ripped out than lose you again.”

Sadness crept back into his expression. “But… can you ever forgive me for what I’ve done to you?”

Her brows creased with confusion. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I forcibly put you in stasis, then couldn’t handle being without you. It’s my fault that you nearly died because you were in there for so long.”

He feels guilty; that’s why he’s been keeping his distance.
Now it was clear to Aevum: he felt responsible. She smiled and held his face between her hands.

“There’s nothing to forgive.” When he opened his mouth to argue, she interrupted him. “
You
endured centuries of hardship for me.
You
found a race that could cure my illness.
You
kept us both alive, and have secured a future for us. There’s
absolutely nothing
for me to forgive.”

Aevum saw relief flash over his features a second before he shifted her on his lap and brought his lips down upon hers. She kissed him back, conveying without words the love she felt for him.

Eventually he eased the pressure and nipped at her lips, teasing what he’d just plundered, then trailed kisses over her jaw, over her eyes, even down her nose. She was laughing when he finally pulled back.

“You’re not going to leave me again, Aevum,” he told her more tenderly this time. “I spent eight-thousand years without you, and couldn’t bear it a minute longer.”

She ran her hands over his face, soothing his features. “You’ll never have to,” she reassured him. “I’m here now, and I won’t leave you again.”

Finally, a smile lit his face, transforming it.

“Thank the universe for that,” he mumbled, before taking her mouth in another kiss.