this out of control before she'd met them, had never had to use her rejuvenation tank so often until they'd come into her orbit. Now her energy was flaring, and she didn't understand why.
Stopping before her viewport, she gazed out into the deep darkness of space. It usually relaxed her, knowing that in the bigger scheme of things, what she considered a problem wasn't. But it didn't work this time.
Jamis and Taarig were with another female.
It shouldn't affect her this way. After all, she'd only been with each of them twice, once separately and once together.
She'd always been able to easily walk away from a relationship after such a short period of time, no matter how good the sex was.
But it hadn't been good sex.
It had been great sex.
Sex that had touched something deep inside her that had started to grow.
Sex that right now they could be having with another rukking female!
A pulse of light, reflected in the viewport, had her looking down, and she saw that instead of her hands dimming, they were growing brighter.
There was only one way she could resolve this.
By confronting Jamis and Taarig.
Now!
Spinning on her heel, she headed to her private lift.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Before stepping into the corridor on the Command Level, Cali tapped into the lens feeds, and after making sure the path was clear, she paused the system so there would be no record of her being there or from where she came. Once done, she quickly moved down the corridor, not stopping until she was in front of Jamis’s door. Overriding his code, she entered Jamis’s office.
It was empty, but then Cali expected that. After all, Jamis wouldn't have a tryst in his office. Now his private living area was an entirely different story. Closing her eyes, she listened. Hearing nothing, she moved toward the door and overrode that code too.
Her gaze traveled over the room as she stepped inside. The stopper was off Jamis’s coveted bottle of Apreian skotsk. Something she knew Jamis would never have done. On the thickly, carpeted floor lay an overturned glass. As she advanced farther into the room, she saw another glass on the floor, an amber stain surrounding it. Reaching down, she dipped her fingers in the liquor then touched them to her tongue.
It was Apreian skotsk, but it didn't taste right.
What the ruk?!?
Female laughter from Jamis’s resting quarters had a knot of fury forming in her chest and Cali's energy flaring stronger than before.
Were they really doing this to her?!
Had she meant so little to them?
Well, she was going to show them what happened when you pissed off a Zagreus female.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Tecumseh couldn't help hiss with glee at how well her plan had worked. Taini had told her in great detail about her time with the two Apre Commanders. So, Tecumseh had known how to approach them, what to wear, and what to say, exactly. Gods, males were so gullible. Did they think just seeing them made a female want them?
Idiots.
It had taken her longer than expected to drag, strip, and get the two large males on the bed. But now that they were, she wanted to make them suffer the way Taini had.
Reaching into one of the secret slits sewn into her dress, she pulled out a Sion Viper, the length of her arm. Sion Vipers were indigenous to the homeworld of the Si people. The planet was riddled with steep, deep crevices that were perfect for their nests. Any creature that fell into one could never climb out and would suffer a slow, agonizing death. While Sion Vipers were venomous, the venom they secreted through their top and bottom fangs didn't kill an adult Si. Rumor had it, the vipers paralyzed their victim and sent them into a dream-like state, so they were alive as the vipers slowly consumed them. It could take a full month for an adult viper to consume their victim, alive the entire time, feeling every bite. The victim finally succumbed when the viper attacked its heart. It was why the Si used the crevices as the ultimate punishment for those that broke their laws.
The bite from a viper this small wouldn't affect an adult Si, as they'd developed some immunity to the venom. That wasn't true for other species. The venom would kill them. Rubbing the viper between her hands, warming it, Tecumseh hissed, "Time to wake up, bey-bee."
When it began to respond, she placed it on the bed, knowing it would