and waved her arms.
Taelon glanced down at them. “Do you want me to take her?”
“No. It’s okay. I think she’s just hungry.” And the heaviness in Lisa’s breasts told her it was time to nurse her.
Abby abruptly quieted.
Lisa glanced down at her in surprise. Usually when Abby was hungry, she just got progressively louder if she wasn’t instantly fed.
Abby giggled.
Lisa looked over her shoulder to see what had grabbed her attention.
Ari’k walked behind her, his hands covering his face. He opened his hands and mouthed the word boo.
Abby giggled and kicked, this time with glee.
Lisa smiled and faced forward once more, only to find Janwar watching them with astonishment.
The rebel Akselian shook his head. “This is going to be a fascinating tale, I think.”
Chapter Twenty-One
They arrived at Lasara only a month later.
Taelon smiled when he saw his homeworld for the first time in four years.
“Welcome home, Prince,” Janwar said from his position in the commander’s seat on the bridge. “Feel good to see it again?”
“Very good,” he admitted. For the first time since the Gathendien attack, he felt like he could breathe easy. Here on Lasara, Lisa and Abby would be safe, surrounded by his family and his people without fear of further assaults. “How much would it cost me to get my hands on that new tech of yours that allows you to travel even faster than the qhov’rum?”
“Ah, that tech is not for sale, my friend. I paid dearly to obtain exclusive use of it so I would have an edge over you law-abiding folk.”
“You wouldn’t need that edge if you obeyed the laws, too.”
Janwar snorted. “Ignoring some of those laws is far more profitable.”
Taelon laughed.
“I would, however, be willing to hire out my services. Should you wish to reward me for any survivors I find, I might be willing to return to the place I found you and perform a thorough search of nearby sectors.”
“Do so and you will be highly rewarded,” Taelon immediately agreed. While more escape pods had been recovered, an alarming number were still unaccounted for.
Janwar extended his arm. “Then we have an accord.”
Taelon clasped it.
“Since your father bears little love for me, I will leave as soon as you disembark.”
Lisa spoke for the first time from a seat in front of an unused control screen. “Really? I was hoping you would stay for a while.” She fidgeted and adjusted the wrist cuffs of her shirt, reached up to smooth her hair. All the clothing on Janwar’s ship had dwarfed her. So Lisa had cut the sleeves off a couple of their shirts, belted them at the waist, and worn them as knee-length dresses. But today she’d donned the clothing she’d been wearing on the Kandovar when the Gathendiens had attacked.
Janwar sent her a kind smile. “Nervous about meeting the king and queen, are you?”
“Very,” she admitted.
Ari’k sat on the floor beside her, little Abby in his lap. Abby grabbed both of his index fingers and hoisted herself up to stand.
Taelon blinked. Had Ari’k’s lips just twitched?
Abby flopped down on her bottom, then began to crawl across the bridge.
Taelon kept an eye on her as he spoke to Lisa. “You’ve no reason to worry, dashura. My parents already love you.” They had communicated with them almost every day since Janwar had come to their rescue.
“They seem to like me,” she said slowly.
“They do like you.”
“But I’m not good with the whole royalty thing. These guys all treat me normally. That I’m comfortable with.”
These guys referred to Janwar’s small crew, all of whom were present.
Abby reached Srok’a. Grabbing his pant leg, she pulled herself up and leaned against his knee. The cat man patted her head.
Abby babbled something, then dropped down to crawl over to Srok’a’s brother, Kova. Again, she used his pants leg to pull herself up. When she wobbled, the quiet, scarred warrior reached a hand down to steady her.
Kova spoke little and smiled less, but he was always gentle with the baby.
Abby plopped down on her bottom, then crawled toward the largest warrior present. Soval’s huge gray-green body barely fit in his seat. He glanced down at Abby, who stared up at him somberly without touching him. Abby stuffed two fingers in her mouth and sucked on them.
Soval winked at her.
Abby grinned, then crawled over to Janwar’s cousin, Krigara.
Krigara drew his long braids forward, then leaned down and dangled them in front of the baby.
Abby giggled and reached for the brightly colored beads. As soon as she released Krigara’s knee, she started