Caeryssa's quest for relaxation spirals into chaos, entwining her destiny with the infuriating playboy prince whose smile conceals a dark vendetta that will shatter any possibility of their soulmate connection.
***
On Oenone, where lush forests meet...
As the blurred light of hyperspace surrounded them, Caeryssa rose from her seat. "I want to go check on Dhevun."
"Me, too, pixie, but there are a couple things we need to take care of first before we head down to medbay."
She frowned. "What—"
"Mira, full datastream access for Caeryssa's com unit," Rain said, then he gestured to her wrist. "You need to call your father to get our destination coordinates. The Dragon's Eye Nebula isn't exactly a small area of space."
Caeryssa flushed and tapped the spiral black device. The menu popped up, verifying her desire to connect with the Nemesis. When she approved, a flood of messages filled her inbox and she ignored them in favour of pulling up her contacts. With a finger flick, she initiated the call to her father and turned the projection visible to Rain as it connected.
"Any issues getting away from the station?" Karzen asked, his gaze moving between the two of them.
"Assassins ambushed us in the halls and someone in station security tried to close the hangar doors on us. They'll need to do some repairs before using the royal dock again," Rain said with a little smirk.
"If your father is already ordering station security to be involved or to look the other way, he's getting desperate. I don't think you would have lasted another day without a fatal accident," Karzen said, scowling.
Caeryssa shivered, rubbing her free hand over her arm. They both were so matter-of-fact about it. She'd never seen anyone die in battle, although there were certainly deaths during planetary expeditions with dangerous native predators and accidents. Still. The charred bodies. The screams of dying men. The smell. She swallowed against the acid climbing her throat. The ruined face of the security man on the prince's detail—oh stars, she couldn't stop seeing his face.
"Yeah, I think you are right," Rain replied. "Where are we going?"
"Before I tell you, let me verify—"
Something chimed in Caeryssa's com and she frowned down at it.
"That was just me, sweetheart. I was just checking that your guild encryption is up to date," her dad explained.
Caeryssa glared at her father and poked a finger at his image. "Mom explained, but you are going to be telling me yourself why you've kept all this secret. I would have helped, Dad."
He winced. "I will, when we're in person again. Okay?"
She let out a huff. "Fine."
Her father met Rain's gaze. "Once I bring you in on this, you have to give me your vow to protect these people, just as your mother has."
Brows drawn down, creasing his forehead, Caeryssa realized Rain still didn't know anything beyond that his mother and sister were alive. He turned and met her eyes, and she gave him a little smile. He didn't trust her dad. Of course not. But although she'd only been with the prince for just over a week, everything she'd seen thus far told her he was nothing like his father. Rain was a good man.
His golden eyes searched her face for another few seconds before he straightened, shifting his shoulders back and said, "If my mother has vowed it, then I will honour that vow as well."
Karzen nodded. "We have a space station hidden in the nebula. Meet us at 2,352 parsecs, 120 alpha, 15 delta."
"2,352.120.15. Got it," Rain confirmed, inputting the coordinates into his console, with his AI verifying the adjusted destination. "Twenty-eight days, is that correct?"
"Yes, it's on the far side of the nebula. As soon as we hit the dense gases and resident electrical charges, it will become harder to communicate," Karzen warned. "But I'd suggest we stay off the coms anyway. Encryptions can be broken."
Rain nodded. "Understood." He patted Caeryssa on the shoulder. "I'll give you a chance to talk to your dad alone. Find me in the lounge next door when you're done."
The door swished closed behind him and Caeryssa sank into the nearby command chair, still warm from Rain's body heat.
"I am sorry I didn't tell you about this sooner, sweetheart," her dad said. "I was trying to protect you."
She sighed. Always with the protecting. Her father just couldn't seem to help himself and never saw her as a grown adult. "You know I'm twenty-nine cycles, right? I might have even wanted to help you."
He gave her a rueful smile. "I know... That's why I didn't tell you. Having your mom involved was risk enough." His expression turned serious, eyes pinning her in place. "Now tell me about this soulmate of yours. How did you meet and what are you going to do about AIMAED?"
Caeryssa flinched, still not reconciled to the loss of her job. "I'm going to have to resign from AIMAED. I'm replaceable there and he's got responsibilities to an entire planet, although I have no idea how that's going to work now that we're running from his father." She shoved her free hand through her hair. Her life had gotten incredibly complicated in eight days.
Karzen sighed. "Yeah, I figured. Still, I hoped the prince would find some way of accommodating you. I know how much you love working for AIMAED."
"He's said he'll try to arrange exploration trips a couple times a year, but I'm sure it's going to depend on this whole political mess."
Her father gave her a commiserating smile. "Wish I could hug you, but I'll make up for that when we get together. I want to hear more, but it'd be better to talk in person. I love you, Caeryssa."
"Love you too, Dad," she replied, then cut the connection. Before she could back out, she wrote a quick resignation letter to her supervisor at AIMAED, explaining her new status. As she hit send, she swiped at tears. It took so few sentences to end that chapter of her life.
(965 words)
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