the Eye of Ten’gu before they got stuck?” Kat asked. “I know that sounds insensitive but Nadiah just had another vision and the Goddess told her it was urgent that we recover it. Sylvan is afraid someone else is moving in on it.”
“I’m afraid not.” Penny felt awful, like she was falling down on the job. Here she had been specially hired for this particular mission that the Kindred considered extremely important and she had failed to even get to the planet where the dig was supposed to happen!
Also, she didn’t discount what Kat said about the Kindred Goddess as she had back at the beginning of her mission. After hearing the warm, comforting female voice that bolstered her spirits back at the Compound, Penny was no longer quite so agnostic as she had been before. So if the Goddess said something bad was about to happen if they didn’t get the artifact quickly, she believed it was so.
But what could she do?
“I’m afraid you’ll have to send another team to meet me here,” she said to Kat apologetically. “The whole ship is engulfed in the time bubble and from what I heard from the, uh, natives of Hell’s Gate, it’s probably not going to move out anytime soon. So I have no way to get to Yown Beta and find the Eye of Ten’gu.”
“Yes, you do.” V’rex was suddenly there, sliding into the captain’s chair beside her, though he had promised to give her privacy for the call.
“V’rex!” Penny exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”
“V’rex?” There was alarm in Kat’s blue eyes as she stared through the viewscreen at the huge Hybrid. “Penny, I warned you about him!”
“I know, I know,” Penny said quickly. “And I didn’t go looking for him—I promise. It’s just that the two of us both got captured by the same cult and then we were put together in the Unification Ceremony as Forever Mates and we had to pretend to be a couple until we escaped or we would have been recycled. We’re not together now—I’m just staying on V’rex’s ship until you can send another team to help me recover the Eye because I have nowhere else to stay in Hell’s Gate.”
“My goodness…” Kat blinked, clearly overcome by the rush of information. “It sounds like you’ve been having all kinds of adventures.”
“If being captured by a cult of NeverBreeders and their ‘Glorious Leader’ and then running for our lives through the fucking Deadly Jungle is your idea of an adventure, then yes. Yes we have,” growled V’rex. “But it was no fucking fun—I can tell you that.” He looked at Penny. “Well, most of it wasn’t, anyway.”
Penny felt her cheeks getting hot but she refused to acknowledge the big Hybrid’s allusion to the sexual relationship they’d had at the Compound.
“Anyway, as I said, we escaped and now I’m in V’rex’s ship at the far end of Hell’s Gate Station,” she said to Kat. “I’m sorry I can’t go get the artifact for you, but if you’ll send another team—”
“Or just send the two of us,” V’rex cut in again. “Hey,” he said, shrugging at Penny when she shot him a scowl. “I’ve got nothing better to do. We might as well get your work done as sit around here for a solar week waiting for the Kindred to show up.”
“I don’t know about this…” Kat looked indecisive. “Hang on, doll,” she said to Penny. “I need to talk to Sylvan before we go any further.”
The screen went blank for a moment and Penny turned on the big Hybrid furiously.
“Why are you doing this? Why are you embarrassing me in front of my boss? Now they’re going to think I lost my head and ran off and had a romantic fling instead of doing my job!”
“Being captured by the NeverBreeders was hardly a ‘fling,’” V’rex said dryly. “If they’re reasonable people, I’m sure they can see that.”
“Well, why are you offering to come with me?” Penny demanded. “What’s in it for you?”
The minute she said it, she wanted to call the words back. The look on V’rex’s face was beyond hurt. But a moment later the expression disappeared to be replaced by amused nonchalance.
“Maybe I’m afraid I’ll get bored sitting around here just waiting,” he drawled, shrugging one muscular shoulder at her. “Or maybe I just want one more ‘adventure’ with you before we never see each other again, sweetheart. Did you think of that?”
Penny wasn’t sure what to say. It was the first