Seducer: Planet Athion Series (Equinox Book 3) Read online

  “Is that an order?” Ezekeil directed at Gavyn.

  “Yes, and for the record, orders given by my copilot should be obeyed.”

  “Yes, Captain.” Ezekeil nodded then reached for Julian.

  Sai did the same, and they dragged the naked Trad to standing.

  He was still coughing, his back hunched and his knees appearing weak. If the two Marshalls had released him, I wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d crumpled to the floor.

  Hurin stepped away from the screen and stood beside me and Anki. Once more he half blocked my view of the Trad, or was he blocking Julian’s view of me?

  “Take him away,” Gavyn said. “And don’t let him out of your sight.”

  “We won’t, Captain.”

  Ezekeil tugged Julian to the right; Sai followed. Their prisoner was compliant and put up no resistance.

  Despite this, both Mateo and Gavyn gave the impression of being ready to spring into action at any moment.

  As Julian was drawn level with me, he raised his head.

  Again his eyes bored into mine. They were a beautiful deep shade of blue, and his pupils were wide. “I’m not like the others,” he said in a low, hoarse voice. “You have to believe me. I’m not like the others.”

  A tremble attacked my belly. Being under his scrutiny and hearing his voice, it frightened me and, because I was safe in Anki’s arms, fascinated me, too.

  “Get him the hell out of here,” Mateo said. “Don’t let him speak to her.”

  Sai yanked Julian, jerking his torso so hard he stumbled.

  And then he was gone from view, into the sanitation chamber.

  “I can’t believe how brazen he is,” Gavyn said to Mateo. “To stare at Uma, to speak to her.”

  “He’s here for one thing and one thing only.” Hurin narrowed his eyes at me. “And he won’t get it.”

  “He gives me the creeps.” I shuddered.

  “I don’t want you to have anything to do with him,” Gavyn said. “And I know you have to pass the isolation pod to get to the livestock each day, but just keep walking, head down, ignore him.”

  “Yes, okay.”

  Gavyn studied the empty capsule. “How did he do this?”

  “And how many more have managed to get by undetected?”

  “Fuck,” Mateo muttered, running his hand through his blond hair. “I hadn’t even thought of that.”

  Gavyn threw him a look. “It doesn’t bear thinking about.”

  “But it could have happened,” Anki said. “Missions like ours have been running for a while now. Bigger ships than Equinox, too, with more sleepers, many more.”

  “And not with Hurin’s sharp skills of observation.” I shook my head.

  “We need to speak to the observatory and Madoc.” Gavyn turned away. “Urgently.”

  “And Emperor Elrin needs to be informed.” Hurin crossed his arms.

  “Do you think that’s necessary?” Mateo asked.

  “Yes.” Anki’s voice was unusually firm. “Hurin is right. Athion needs to know there could be Trads lurking in their midst.”

  “And the Emperor will know how to handle the situation without causing panic amongst the Earth women already there, and their lovers.”

  Anki nodded. “He will. He is a very wise man.”

  “Okay. You’ve convinced me.” Gavyn headed to the door. “I’ll make contact now. Mateo, come with me, I’ll need your help.”

  Mateo gnawed at the inside of his cheek and connected his gaze with mine. He made no move to follow Gavyn.

  “Copilot, Ty.” Gavyn paused at the door. “Now.”

  “Yes, Captain.” Mateo flicked his attention to Anki. “Stay with her until he’s safely locked up.”

  “Of course,” Anki said quickly. “I have no intention of leaving her side.”

  I walked down the long corridor with Anki toward the livestock pod. We were overdue with our routine checks on the goats, and Dolly needed to be milked.

  “Are you feeling all right?” he asked me.

  I squeezed his hand. “Yes, are you?”

  “Of course.”

  “Can I ask you something, Anki?”

  “You know you can.”

  “When did you first suspect Julian Hunter was a Trad?”

  He was quiet for a moment, then, “Suspect is perhaps not the right word. It was just an uneasy feeling.”

  I waited for him to go on.

  “He wasn’t normal with his temperature and sleep patterns, was he?”

  “No, definitely not.”

  “And then when I saw him, saw how handsome he was, how athletic and…”

  “Flawless.” I remembered it too, that first time I saw him.

  “Yes, not a mark on him. Not a lump or bump, scar or freckle. He was too perfect.”

  “And that made you think Trad?”

  “It made me think he was different, and I’ll confess, there probably was a point where it went through my mind he was from Tradrych, but I didn’t really want to believe it.” He glanced at me. “I didn’t want to say it aloud in case it scared you or Mateo considered me foolish.”

  “Mateo wouldn’t think that.”

  “My relationship with Mateo is…delicate.”

  “I thought you were getting on well.”

  “We are, better than before, and I don’t want to do anything to spoil that.”

  “You won’t, Anki. Just keep being yourself. You’re a great guy, and anyone who can call you their friend is very lucky.”

  “Thank you, Uma.” He smiled, but it dropped when the all-glass door to the isolation pod came into view.

  It was set at the end of the corridor at a T-junction, which meant it faced anyone who was walking toward it.

  Right now, it was clear for us to see that Ezekeil and Sai were in the isolation unit with Julian.

  Julian was sitting on a chair, forearms on his thighs and staring at the floor.

  The two Space Marshalls stood either side of him.

  “What are they doing?” I asked.

  “No idea.”

  Soon we drew up to the doorway. Ezekeil was holding a glass of water.

  “Drink it,” Sai instructed.

  “How can we hear them so clearly?” I asked, checking the seals around the closed door.

  “There are amplifiers, so that whoever is quarantined can easily communicate with carers. Though, of course, we’re not using this pod for quite what it was intended.”

  “Drink or you will die.”

  “Perhaps that’s what I want,” Julian said.

  “All species have the instinct to survive.” Ezekeil thrust the water forward; a few drips splashed onto the floor.

  “Perhaps I haven’t got that instinct.”

  “Drink or we’ll make you drink,” Sai said.

  “Why do you care?” Julian muttered.

  “Because our Emperor will want to question you.”

  “You mean torture me?”

  “We’re not that kind of race.”

  “Usually.” Ezekeil fisted Julian’s hair. “Usually we’re not that kind of race.” He pulled his head up.

  Instantly, Julian’s gaze landed on mine.

  I braced myself and returned his steely look. This monster was locked away now. He could stare all he wanted but he could do me no harm.

  Julian took the water, and with his gaze unwavering, drank it all.

  “Good,” Ezekeil said. “And remember, if you don’t eat and drink, we’ll have to find ways and means of getting fluid and nutrition into you.”

  “You have a few months in here.” Sai gestured around. “Get used to it.”

  “I don’t mind the view, very pretty.” Julian’s mouth tugged into a gentle smile.

  Sai and Ezekeil snapped their attention our way.

  “Get her out of here,” Sai said, frowning.

  “Quick,” Anki said. “We shouldn’t have lingered. Gavyn wouldn’t like it.”

  He hurried me past an open doorway on m
y left that was angled to give it a view of the isolation pod. I glanced inside—it was the dormitory the Space Marshalls would be using. Complete with table, beds, entertainment console, drink dispenser, and CCTV screens, it appeared perfectly comfortable.

  “He always seems to know where I am, without searching for me,” I said.

  “It’s like they have an inbuilt radar to seek out healthy Earth women of childbearing age.”

  “Yes, it’s weird.”

  “But he’ll soon learn he doesn’t stand a chance of getting anywhere near you. And apart from anything else, you’re spoken for.” Anki tugged me close and kissed the side of my head.

  “Yes, I am, by three wonderful men.”

  “I’m sorry I interrupted you earlier, when you were with Mateo and Gavyn.”

  “Hey, don’t be sorry. What you came to tell us was important, it couldn’t wait.”

  “And your threesome with the two pilots can, right?”

  “I guess.” A swirl of desire blustered through me as I remembered what had been about to happen.

  ‘I’m going to take your ass. And the captain here can have your mouth.’

  Mateo’s words came back to me. I tensed my stomach, and saliva pooled under my tongue. Another few minutes, and Anki would have interrupted a very different scene in Gavyn’s quarters.

  I knew neither Mateo nor Gavyn would have forgotten the plan. They’d see it through as soon as there was time to.

  And I could hardly wait.

  We arrived at the livestock pod. Anki swept his security pass over the door and unlocked it. As always, we were careful there were no stray goats waiting to make a run for it—loose animals on Equinox was not something we could allow to happen. Luckily, there weren’t.

  We set to our tasks of milking, checking, cleaning, and refilling water holders and feeders in silence.

  I guessed Anki’s mind, like mine, was full of thoughts about the Trad. Though he probably didn’t have the additional thoughts about the erotic encounter I had in my future.

  I finished milking Dolly and sent the milk through the chute for pasteurization. She’d produced plenty so far on our six-month journey, which was just as well, as Anki drank a lot of it.

  On the way back to our quarters, Anki and I didn’t pause at the isolation pod. We walked past quickly, and I kept my gaze averted.

  The only thing I noticed was that Sai and Ezekeil were now in their dormitory. The door was still open, and some kind of Athion news update was showing on the big screen.

  But as we turned to the long corridor, my back heated. The hairs at the base of my neck tingled, and I didn’t need to turn around to know Julian Hunter was staring at me. I could feel he was.

  “What’s up?” Anki asked when my chatter went quiet.

  “He’s watching me, I know he is.”

  “Most likely, but just ignore him,” Anki said. “He wants your attention. He wants you to acknowledge him.”

  “I know.”

  “And you’re not going to, okay?” He slipped his arm around my waist.

  “Okay.”

  “Promise?”

  “I Promise.”

  Chapter Three

  “Emperor Elrin is going to do what?” Hurin asked, coming to an abrupt halt as he strode onto the bridge.

  “Is going to be speaking with us,” Gavyn said. “In two minutes on the screen.” He ran his finger around the collar of his crisp white shirt then tapped his dark hair as though making sure it wasn’t sticking up at the back the way it sometimes did.

  “But I…I…I’ve never…” Hurin’s eyes widened.

  “Are you okay, Hurin?” Mateo asked.

  “Yes, but…”

  “Neither of us have ever spoken to him before,” Anki said, twisting his hands together. “I mean, we’ve seen his broadcasts, naturally, but…”

  “He’s just a man,” Gavyn said, flicking on the screen. “A very powerful one, but just a man.”

  “He’s not just a man, he’s our Emperor.” Hurin swiped his hands down his dark-blue t-shirt as if rubbing out imaginary creases. “And he comes from a long line of Emperors who have ruled Athion with firmness and with care for centuries.”

  “And he wants to be personally filled in on the situation aboard Equinox,” Gavyn said. “Everyone by the console. I’m sure he’ll have lots of questions, and we all need to give him answers.”

  I stood between Hurin and Anki as Gavyn adjusted the sound. The staff at Madoc were talking quietly.

  “It’ll be okay,” I said to Hurin. “And let’s face it, you are the hero—it was you who discovered the Trad.”

  “Thanks, Uma.”

  To my surprise, he took hold of my hand, wrapping his big, warm alien fingers around mine.

  “Is that okay?” he asked.

  “Of course it is.” I gave him a small squeeze. I was used to Hurin being non-tactile but this was a nice change. And if I could give him a bit of moral support, then all the better.

  The murmur of voices coming through the speaker suddenly dulled. The screen filled with an image I recognized to be Emperor Elrin of Athion.

  He was elderly, with a long, snow-white beard, which made his blue skin a richer shade of aqua. Around his shoulders sat a ruby-red robe with a velvet collar and a hood.

  “Captain Rivers, I presume,” he said.

  “Yes, sir. And this is copilot, Mateo Ty.”

  “Pleasure to meet you.”

  “And the rest of the crew on the bridge with me are our zoologist, Uma Nixon, her Athion trainee, Anki, and our medic, Hurin.”

  “There are other crew members?”

  “Yes, two Space Marshalls from the Custo Regiment, Sai and Ezekeil. They are currently with the Trad, guarding him.”

  “As they should be.” He nodded. “Sai, I knew his father, fine warrior.”

  “Yes, sir, he is a fine Marshall.”

  “I’m glad to hear it. Now, tell me about this Trad and how he came to be on board Equinox.”

  “That we don’t know other than he was very cunning.”

  “Aren’t they always.”

  “Yes, sir. And it was Hurin here who discovered some anomalies in his observations.”

  “I’d like a detailed report of that, Hurin, so other ships can be informed and make their own checks.”

  Hurin cleared his throat. “Yes, Emperor, of course, Emperor.”

  “And well done, Hurin, we need thorough medics like you.”

  “Thank you, Emperor, just doing my job.”

  I held his hand a little tighter.

  “And a fine job you’re doing. Just a pity this situation developed at all.”

  “Indeed it is,” Gavyn said. “And as you say, other ships need to do checks as soon as Hurin has sent his report, but…”

  “But?” The Emperor frowned.

  Gavyn glanced at Mateo.

  “But how many more have slipped through the net?” Mateo said.

  Emperor Elrin was silent.

  “How many Trads have sneaked onto Athion pretending to be human men?” Mateo paused. “Posing as professionals willing to help your planet but actually there to do harm to the women who have made the journey to help repopulate your dying species.”

  Emperor Elrin winced slightly, as if hearing those words physically pained him like a sharp slap. He quickly recovered. “You likely won’t have heard, being as you’re light-years away, but there were a rise in births last week, both male and female offspring. The vaccine to protect baby girls from the virus is proving to be one hundred percent effective.”

  “That is wonderful news.” Anki beamed at the screen then at me.

  “Yes.” Hurin nodded. “It is. Thank you for letting us know.”

  The Emperor also nodded, his eyes still narrowed, and he tipped his chin. “And we must protect these new mothers and their children at all costs from the lowlife scum that come from Tradrych.” He spoke to someone off camera. “Call a meeting with my chief advisor and all districts re
presentatives.”

  “Yes, Emperor Elrin. Right away, Emperor Elrin.”

  He returned his attention to us. “Where is this Trad now?”

  “In our isolation pod. Its primary use is for containing virus or prion, but it’s also quite efficient as a prison cell.”

  “Good, and I want him kept alive. He will be questioned at length.”

  “Of course, Emperor, we understand that.”

  “I must go now, Captain Rivers. I’m sure you can appreciate there is lots for me to be getting on with in light of your discovery. Safe onward journey.”

  “Thank you, Emperor. We’ll be in constant communication with Madoc and will let you know if anything changes over the coming months.”

  “Thank you, and…” He pointed at me, his small, wise gaze sharp. “Keep her away from him.”

  “That is the intention,” Mateo said. “Of every cognitive man aboard Equinox, be he Athion or human.”

  “As it should be. Women are precious and must be protected at all costs.”

  The screen went black, and the dull hiss of the transmitter snapped off.

  “Wow, he’s really something,” I said.

  “He said I was doing a fine job,” Hurin said, still staring at the screen. “Did you hear him?”

  “Yes.” I released his hand and clasped his shoulders. “And you deserve the compliment, Hurin, because it’s true.”

  He smiled, a lovely quick flash of his teeth. Hurin rarely smiled. His face was usually a mask of seriousness.

  I grinned back at him.

  “I must do that report.” He stepped away, the smile gone. “As a matter of urgency.”

  “Good man,” Gavyn said over his shoulder as he fiddled with the console. “And just so you know, we’re all proud of your observation skills.”

  Hurin puffed up his chest, nodded at Gavyn and Mateo, then turned, and in several long paces, left the bridge.

  “You did well, too.” I set a kiss on Anki’s cheek. “Guessing he was a Trad.”

  “Thank goodness. Imagine if we’d thought he was a sick human and woke him—”

  “And let him hang out with us, with Uma.” Mateo didn’t bother to suppress a shudder. “That would have been bloody horrendous.”

  “We’d have soon guessed,” Gavyn said. “I’m sure of it.”

  I hoped he was right, but I wasn’t so convinced. My past experience told me Trads were as cunning as foxes.