Her Commanders - M.K. Eidem Page 0,66

of his voice his only apology.

"Would you like to speak with Nalo?" Xanto asked, pulling Taarig's gaze from Mae.

"Yes." Taarig turned, looking to Xanto.

Xanto nodded to Hamm, and the Hogg moved toward the bar. "Then while Hamm is getting Nalo, I’ll go see what’s taking Cali so long."

Taarig's gaze followed the Elevsìs male as he crossed the bar to the panel Cali had used. To Taarig’s shock, the male placed his hand on the bio-scanner, and the panel opened. Why would Cali have given this male access to her quarters? When had she done it? Had her experience with Jamis and him meant so little to her?

"Sub Commander?" Hamm's snort brought Taarig’s gaze back to him and the Si male with whom he'd returned.

"You're Nalo?" Taarig asked.

"Yes, Sssub Commander."

"Tell me what you saw."

"Sssaw, Sssub Commander?" Nalo's ordinarily smooth, hairless, blue head furrowed in confusion.

"You were the last person to enter The Brink before the bomb went off," Taarig told him.

"I wasss?"

"Yes!" Taarig's temper was starting to wear thin. "What did you see?"

"I sssaw nothing, Sssub Commander."

"Nothing?"

"No. When I exited the lift, the area wasss empty. Well, exsssept for Tay ssstanding at The Brink'sss door. He opened it for me, and I entered The Brink."

"And you saw nothing else?" Taarig pressed. "Nothing unusual?"

"No, Sssub Commander."

"Sub Commander, if you have everything you need from me, I’d like to take my mate to our quarters. All this excitement isn’t good for our offspring," Tay interrupted, pulling Taarig’s attention back to him.

"I’m fine, Tay," Mae reassured him.

"The Meddygs said you should rest," Tay argued back.

"I need to finish my shift."

"Don’t worry about that, Mae," Cali said, walking up to the group. "It's been taken care of."

Chapter Fourteen

Cali was just rising from her rejuvenation tank when Xanto entered her resting chamber.

"What the ruk, Xanto!?" Grabbing the towel she'd dropped before getting in, she wrapped it around her naked body. "What are you doing here?!"

"Your Sub Commander is getting impatient. I felt it best for me to come to get you instead of him."

"He's not my Sub Commander!" she snapped, stepping out of the tank. "And I'd appreciate it if you didn't just let yourself into my quarters."

"Somewhat difficult to do when I'm staying in your secondary resting chamber," he replied nonplussed.

Cali ground her back teeth together because Xanto was right. It wasn't an arrangement she appreciated, but as an old family friend and one of her favorite people, Cali couldn't refuse when he'd asked to use her extra resting chamber while he was here. "Which this isn't!"

"True. My apologies. It won't happen again unless the situation is dire."

Cali knew that was the best she'd get from him. Xanto was here on her dad's orders, which meant he would do whatever he thought necessary to fulfill it, including invading her privacy. Sighing, she crossed the room and entered a smaller one where she kept her clothing. Several minutes later, she exited wearing a well-worn pair of pants that hugged her hips. Her mother had sworn they were just like the 'blue jeans' she used to wear on Earth. The jeans just brushed the floor where the pointed toe of the boots she'd pulled on peaked through as she walked back to the cleansing room. The loose, white shirt she’d chosen covered her torso and arms. Looking in the mirror, she saw that the rejuvenation tank again had her hair glowing more than she liked. Grabbing a crocheted hair covering, she contained the energized strands within it, concealing most of the glow.

"Let's go," she told Xanto and picked up the portable strip with the recording as she walked past him.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

"Don’t worry about that, Mae." Cali had heard the concern in Mae's voice as she walked up to the group. "It's being taken care of." She gestured to the bar behind her, where Xanto now was.

"What do you mean?" Mae asked.

"The Brink will be closed until the start of the next light shift. That should give Sub Commander Ynn enough time to figure out what happened and for the mess out front to be processed and cleaned up. Xanto and Crimson are informing everyone right now. So, once you make up a sign for the door, Hamm can post it. Once you secure the door, Tay, you and Mae are free to go to your quarters." Cali finally looked at Taarig. "That is if the Sub Commander has finished with his questioning."

Taarig had turned as soon as Cali spoke and had quickly taken in