Chapter Sixteen
Taly still couldn’t believe Ranvir had talked to her like that. She wasn’t a child. Honestly, she hadn’t been one since she won Worlds. She’d dealt with aggressive fans before and knew how to handle them. She also learned how to blend in when she wanted to. All it took was some creative enhancements.
Creative enhancements…
She stored that thought away for later as she approached the door that separated the upper and lower decks of the ship. If it didn’t open…
When it whooshed open, she silently thanked the Gods. She didn’t like fighting with Ranvir, didn’t like fighting with anyone, really, but she wouldn’t let him or anyone push her around either.
Heading for the dining room, she found Oved, Sato, and Ree quietly talking as they finished a meal. It seemed the large Madae was always around the couple lately.
“Hello, how are you doing today?” she asked, crossing the room to them.
“Doing very well,” Sato told her warmly.
“And Uki here?” She smiled at the baby sleeping contentedly in a woven basket generally used for extra linens.
“She’s doing wonderful. She actually slept through the night, which hasn’t ever happened before. I always thought she was just hungry.” Tears filled her eyes as she looked down at her baby. “Now I think it’s because she was in pain and couldn’t tell us. We can never thank you enough, Taly.”
“No thanks needed. I’m just glad I could help. And speaking of helping, we will be arriving on Yelmurn in a few hours.”
“So soon?” Sato murmured, sending a concerned gaze to Oved.
“Yes.” Taly’s gaze went between the two. “Why? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Oved told her, grasping his mate’s hand. “It will be fine, Sato.”
“But…”
“It will be,” he told her firmly. “We have each other and Uki. Nothing else matters.”
‘Was Ranvir right?’Taly thought. While her life had changed as drastically as these colonists, she wasn’t starting over with only the clothes on her back and a few credits in her pocket. She also hadherpod, which would hopefully grow when she found Nas.
“I wish there were more I could do,” she began.
“Ignore Feo,” Oved told her. “You’ve done more than enough. Thanks to you, we’re alive, and our daughter is healthy. We’re going to be fine.”
“You’re right.” Sato squeezed his hand. “All we need is each other.” She looked to the Madae. “And Ree is planning on traveling with us.”
“He is?” Taly sent Ree a questioning look.
“I vowed to see the colonists to Gamma-2, and while I cannot do that for all of them, I can for these three.”
“I see,” but Taly didn’t. Was there something else going on between these three? It was none of her business. “I was hoping I could ask you for some help.”
That had them looking at her in confusion. “Us?” Sato asked. “How can we help you?”
“Yes, you see, there are a lot of supplies on the ship that we really don’t need. I was hoping you would help me gather and distribute hygiene supplies, bedding, and clothing, so when you all disembark, you at least have something to start with.”
“I…that’s very generous of you, Taly,” Sato said, “and we’d be more than happy to help, and I’m sure others will be, too.”
“Great,” Taly couldn’t help but smile. It felt good to do something that would actually help these people. “Then let’s get started.”
As they exited the room, Ree pulled her to the side. “What’s wrong?” she asked the blue male.
“Don’t ignore Feo,” he warned. “Or Captain Ju. They are dangerous. If they can harm you, they will.”
“Have they said something?” she demanded.