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No. Sumi didn’t believe it was a coincidence for a minute.

Thia was right. Dariana was a conniving Queen Bitch. But she bit her tongue. Let Hauk have his delusion about the honor Dariana obviously lacked.

Wishing she could save him from the whore’s clutches, she leaned forward and brushed her lips against those marks of selfish cruelty.

He tensed. “What are you doing?”

She laid her cheek against the assassin’s tattoo on his shoulder that had another vicious scar bisecting it from an old blast wound. “I’m giving you something I don’t think you’ve ever had.”

“And that is?”

The fact he had to ask said it all. “Tender affection.”

Hauk swallowed as he felt a hot tear slide from her eye and onto his skin. She was right. No one had ever touched him like she did.

Inside or out.

For the first time since that pod had crashed, he felt visible to the world.

Desirable.

Sumi brushed her hand through his hair, raising even more chills over him. “I’m done, sweetie.”

That single endearment meant more to him than it should have. And it made him wonder what kind of bastard could have ever struck a woman so decent. How could anyone harm the mother of his child? It made no sense to him. But one thing became crystal clear in his mind.

“I will get your daughter back for you, Sumi.”

She frowned at him as if she couldn’t believe what he was saying to her. “What?”

“I swear to you, on my blood honor. On the blood of my ancestors. I will see your daughter into your arms if it’s the last step I take in this life.”

“Hauk —”

He placed his hand over her lips to stop her protest. “Trust me. She deserves a mother like you. Not some callous League bitch who views her as a replacement drone.”

Sumi swallowed hard at a promise she wished she could see fulfilled. He made it sound so easy. But she knew better. Even if he kept that oath, she’d be hunted by The League.

Forever.

She didn’t have the political ties to force amnesty from them like Thia’s father had done.

They would be on their own, and The League would track her and Kalea down and execute them both, with cold and extreme prejudice. And knowing her compadres as she did, neither death would be pretty.

And neither would be quick. They would use them both as examples of what happened to anyone dumb enough to cross The League. Still, it meant a lot to her that he would make such a promise.

If only she could allow him to keep it.

CHAPTER 11

“What’s going on?”

Her hands trembling in fear, Sumi paused in her quest as she heard the concern in Thia’s tone. “I’m looking for Lyris root.”

Thia’s green eyes turned suspicious. “Isn’t that toxic?”

“It can be.”

“Then why are you looking for it?”

Sumi sat back on her haunches to give the young woman an irritated smirk. “I’m not trying to kill someone with it, Thia. I’m trying to save your uncle’s life.”

Thia’s face went white. “What happened?”

Sumi glanced past Thia’s shoulder to make sure Darice couldn’t overhear them. “The Partini’s blade was coated in poison. When he stabbed Dancer last night, it —”

“What does it look like?” Thia gasped, cutting her off. She fell to her knees to help search.

Sumi pulled some from her pocket to show her the delicate pink flower that marked the weed’s location. “I need at least twice this to even begin treatment.”

“Okay.” Thia took up position across from her. “He’s not dying, is he?”

She started to lie and tell her Hauk would be fine, yet she couldn’t bring herself to do it. The bitterest truth was always better than the sweetest lie. “He’s stronger than anyone I’ve ever known. But I could beat him for not telling someone he was wounded last night. Then we could have treated him immediately and he wouldn’t be in as much danger as he is now. He pushes himself too hard.”

“It’s what he does.” Thia pulled a handful of it out of the ground and handed it to Sumi. “I’ve heard Uncle Syn threaten a million times to embed an off switch in him so that when he refuses to rest when he’s hurt, Syn can force him. And my father threatens to hold him down while Syn implants it.” She gave more to Sumi. “How are your wounds, by the way?”

“I’ve had worse.”

Thia snorted. “You fit in nicely with this bunch. Sound just like them all.”

Sumi didn’t comment as she dug around for more root.

With Thia’s added help, it didn’t take long to gather enough and return to their small, mobile camp that Hauk had already packed up and slung over his back.

Aghast at him, Sumi gestured at the gear strapped to his wide shoulders. “What are you doing, sweetie?” she asked in a sarcastic falsetto.

He brushed at the sweat on his forehead. “We need to get going.”

“Dancer,” she chided. “You’re not up to this.”

“I’m fine.”

Hands on hips, Sumi gave him an oh-really stare. “The sweat beading on your forehead calls you a big fat liar pants. And the pallor of your skin calls you out even more.” She tugged at the strap of his haul bag. To her shock, he allowed her to remove it and his sword. That alone told her how bad he felt.

Shaking her head at him, she placed the back of her hand against his cheek. “You’re burning with fever.”

“It’s still not safe here.”

She pulled more gear from his shoulders. “You know… really hard to protect us when you’re dead. So unless you know some kind of mystic Andarion resurrection spell, I think you should sit down now before you fall over and we’re stuck dragging you behind us. In spite of what you think, I am a trained soldier, fully capable of defending us from attackers.”

He mumbled in Andarion under his breath. The words were beautiful, but she was quite certain their meaning wasn’t.

“You keep insulting me like that, and I’m going to have Thia translate it.”

Thia laughed. “He called you a bossy little mouse, which is actually not an insult in Andarion. Rather he respects the courage you’re showing by telling him what to do when you’re too small to physically force it.”

Sumi frowned. “What’s the Andarion word for mouse?”

Mia. Kahrya is bossy. Kahrya mia… bossy little mouse.” Thia handed her the medical pack. “On Andaria, they see mice as brave, aggressive creatures. Fearless… Of course, on Andaria, like everything else, the mice are ferocious, fanged and much scarier than they are on most other planets.”

Sumi could just imagine. “Do they suck blood and eat small infants, too?”

Thia pressed her lips together before she answered. “Actually, they do.”

“We really should be going,” Hauk groused again.

While Sumi continued to deal with the surly, stubborn attack beast, Thia searched through the pack for water and the zip stove and cooking cup so that she could start boiling the root to soften it and release the juices they needed for an antidote.

Hauk was torn between the pain of his body that begged him to lie down and the need he had to keep his family safe. “Where’s Darice?”

“He went to the bathroom,” Thia answered.

“And Illyse?”

Thia’s eyes widened as she set the root into the water, while it warmed. “I haven’t seen her in a while. And now that I think about it, Darice should have been back before we were.”

That cleared his head immediately. “Sumi?”

She already had her weapon drawn. Thia pulled in to stand on his six.

“Illyse!” he shouted.

Normally, the lorina would have come running immediately. But there was no sign of her.