“No.”
“It doesn’t matter to me then. I still want her.”
His emotions were jumbled between the urge to punch Crath or roar his frustration. Cavas loved his brother, but he didn’t want him to claim Jill.
“You had no plans to life-lock to a female while you were in the military. You said it was for other males. Your priority has always been your career. That human isn’t a distraction to keep you occupied while you figure out what you will do with your life now.” Crath shook his head. “I plan to life-lock to her. Stay away from Jill. She will become mine.”
“I’m not certain of my future right now, but I do know I plan to stay with Cathian. He’s already accepted me as part of his crew. And I gave up my career for Raff and you. It would be best for Jill to live with other females of her kind; they are already bonding as friends. That means she’ll want to stay on The Vorge. I’ll be here with her, while you will leave soon. That’s what you always do. Leave.”
“I’m not fighting with you, Cavas. I owe you my life, but I want a human to life-lock to. I also plan to stay aboard The Vorge for a while. I’ve decided to take a break from my job after what happened on Flax Colony. I had a lot of time to think about what was important while I wondered if I’d die down there. I want a family. My cruiser won’t be finished for almost a year. I can’t expect a human to live on a solo flyer until that time.” He grunted. “If I’m able to get it back.”
“I understand your desire to life-lock with a human. I now see their appeal. It just won’t be with Jill.”
Crath snarled. “You can’t stop me!” He tried to move past him toward Jill’s door.
Cavas blocked his path. “Don’t make me knock you out, brother. I will. Leave her alone.”
They glared at each other.
The lift down the hall opened and Raff rushed forward, immediately shoving between them and growling in warning. “I won’t have you two fighting. The Pods contacted me and explained what was going on.”
He shot a dirty look at Crath. “You’re in no shape to fight until you recover, and you know it.” Then he glared at Cavas. “She got you hard, and you can’t stop thinking about what she’d taste like and feel like under you. Trust me, it’s as good as you think it will be, if my experience with Lilly is any indication—but both of you are forgetting that she’s been traumatized.”
Raff stepped back. “The last thing that human needs is either of you fighting over her. Right now, she’s in her cabin drinking too much cudda, thinking about her dead family—who she misses—and afraid she’ll do something to cause trouble on our ship. Her main worry is being asked to leave since, she has nowhere to go.”
Cavas was filled with guilt. He noticed the communication device in Raff’s ear. “Are you in contact with the Pods right now?”
Raff gave a sharp nod. “With Two.”
“Ask Two to scan Jill’s mind, to learn if she’s attracted to Crath or me.” He held his brother’s gaze. “We’ll let the female decide. It should be her choice. That’s fair. I’ll back away if she chooses you.” It would be tough to do, but he wouldn’t force a female to spend time with him if she wasn’t attracted.
Raff sighed. “Did you hear him?” He paused, listening. He softly growled. “Fine.” He shot them both warning looks. “Don’t move or make a sound.” He strode to Jill’s door, and used a hand to indicate they both should get out of view.
Cavas and Crath moved farther down the corridor, leaning against the wall out of sight when Jill opened the door.
“I wanted to check on you,” Raff stated. “My Lilly worries. Do you need anything?”
“I’m good. Thank you.”
“Did anyone teach you how to reach others on the ship if you need help?”
“No.”
Cavas regretted that he hadn’t done so.
“Just think at the Pods. You focus on them, and then project your thoughts as if you’re talking directly to them. They’ll hear you. That’s faster than getting you a communication device right now. We’ll give you one tomorrow and teach you how to use it. I’m sure Crath or Cavas will be happy to teach you anything you wish to learn, as well. How are you getting along with my cousins? They aren’t bothering you, are they?”
“No, not at all.”
Cavas felt relief upon hearing that.
“What do you think of them?”
Jill was silent for long seconds, before she hesitantly answered, “They’re nice.”
“Good. You are safe on this ship, Jill. All you need do is tell me or any of the other males if someone is making you uncomfortable, and it will be handled. We all want you to feel safe and happy living with us.”
“I appreciate that.”
“I’ll leave you now. Sleep well, Jill.” Raff backed off. “The computer will alert you in the morning to wake. Half an hour later, breakfast will be served in the dining hall if you wish to eat with the crew. Just speak aloud and ask the computer to show you the way. There are lights that will activate to lead you there. It will take time for you to memorize the layout of a vessel this large.”
The door closed, and Raff approached the brothers. His expression wasn’t a happy one. He grimaced, obviously listening to whatever Two said to him.
Cavas felt nervous of what the Pod would share with his cousin. What if Jill decided she liked Crath more? Could he step aside? It would be extremely difficult.
“I really didn’t want to hear that,” Raff sighed, speaking to Two. “Fine.”
He glanced between them but settled on Crath. “The female feels indebted to you for trying to rescue her from your cages. That’s why she went on the mission with your brother, to attempt to save you in return. She had no sexual thoughts about you. I’m sorry.”
Then he addressed Cavas, holding his gaze. “She thinks you have a huge cock, from what she felt of it on the planet, and she thinks your body is ‘smoking hot.’ I’ll assume that’s good. She also thought about kissing you in the arena, but was afraid you feel no attraction to her, that it’s only one sided on her part.”
Cavas wanted to smile, barely managing to avoid doing just that when he saw his younger littermate’s expression. Crath appeared devastated.
“I hate having family right now. And I really hate that Cathian is in bed, loving Nara. That’s why the Pod contacted me,” Raff sighed. “I’m sorry, Crath. You’re hurting. But there are other humans. We’ll find you one.” Then he glanced at Cavas. “I worry that you don’t have the ability to feel enough to make a human happy.”
Cavas gasped, insulted. “You think that of me? You?”
His cousin stepped close, almost bumping into his body. “I may have been an assassin but I was very close to my mother. She taught me how to love. I grew up believing my life was better with her in it. I just had to kill a lot of people to keep her safe. Losing her made me cold for a long while, but I always knew that I could love. A human must become your main priority. Don’t touch our new female unless you can commit to her and put her first. I’ll hurt you myself until you beg for mercy if you change your mind after gaining her heart.”
Raff turned and walked away. “I’m not coming back. Don’t fight. It will just upset everyone.” He got into the lift, and it closed behind him.
“This is why I rarely visit.” Crath was the first to speak. “Between the Pods reading our minds and Raff being onboard, I worry about getting killed.”
Cavas scowled at him. “No one would hurt you on this ship.”
“The Pods have read my mind but never shared my thoughts. That could change. I’ve imagined what it would be like to get a couple of the humans into my bed. Knowing I’ve spilled seed while thinking of their females, naked, would get me tossed out an airlock by our cousin. Dovis would just rip off my dick. York and Cathian would leave me alive, but they’d break a lot of my bones.”