Chapter 20Camila

Chapter 20

Camila

Cami was warm.

The last thing she remembered was shivering in the transport, so cold that she was sure that if she closed her eyes, she'd never open them again. At first, she wondered if she'd died and had ended up in heaven, or hell, or even somewhere stuck in limbo.

Until the humidity sunk in. Nope. It was way too humid and sticky to be heaven, and it wasn't hot enough to be hell. She wasn't sure what purgatory would feel like, but this couldn't be it. She opened her eyes.

Fuck. She was still in the stinking transport.

A cursory glance showed that it was still raining outside, but nothing like the torrential deluge that had been coming down earlier. The wind had died down a bit, too, which meant the transport wasn't rocking back and forth anymore. The ground looked like a sheet of water, though, and Camila was glad they were on higher ground.

But it wasn't all bad. The heater keeping her warm was a very naked Berus. She was naked, too, which was probably for the best since her clothes were soaked through.

Berus was still asleep. In repose, his usually terrifying face looked a lot younger. Camila corrected herself. He wasn't "usually terrifying." He had been when she'd first met him that day in the bounty hunter's ship, but she didn't think so anymore. She saw Berus as the rest of his crewmates did now: as a gentle giant with a good heart when he was around those he cared about, and the worst enemy to anyone who messed with him or his friends.

Of all the people she'd met since leaving Earth, Cami was glad she was stuck with Berus. She was sure the entire crew of the Revenge would be just as capable at keeping her alive, but she couldn't imagine Dex or Ulrek warming her with their bodies. Besides, Delaney would probably skin her alive after. She was just as crazy for her mate as he was for her.

Ulrek's and Delaney's was the type of mate bond she'd fantasized about back when she thought it was her way out of a life of slavery. Then Rehden had messed it all up. He'd become obsessed with her, but Cami wasn't sure it was a mate bond. Rehden had never called her his mate or his Star or anything. And he certainly didn't treat her like one.

It wasn't just the single scar on her forehead either. Rehden had knocked her about on more than a few occasions. Choked her too. Cami frowned as she remembered the time he'd blamed "her short legs" for making them unable to get to a supply depot in time before it closed. Because they had to get moving, they'd left the port with nothing but hungry bellies…and for Cami, a new set of red handprints around her neck.

Cami closed her eyes, deciding to sleep some more. When she opened them again, Berus was awake, and the rain outside had stopped.

Berus looked up from the screen of his comm. "Good morning, little one. How do you feel?"

"A lot warmer…thirsty."

Which was a funny thing to say, considering they were wheel-deep in rushing water. Most of the precipitation was racing down to the river, which must have escaped its banks by now.

It was a good thing after all that they'd collected that water before the storm. The stuff outside was muddy and did not look appetizing. Berus handed her the flask and she took a deep drink.

"What's the plan now?" she asked.

"Nothing. We wait for the crew to come pick us up."

She hated feeling like a sitting duck—ha! That was apt, considering they were surrounded by water. Just then, Cami was sure she saw a fin flash between the trees. It was the gargapods' lucky day!

That had her thinking. "What happens to places like Shifting Sands when it rains like this?"

"They become even more dangerous, I've heard. The extra water usually drains toward the sand bowls, so anyone carried away by the current would find themselves in the middle of one. Then the bowls fill with water, and instead of being dragged down and suffocated by dry sand, you're dragged down and suffocated by wet sand."

Cami grimaced. "That sounds like a horrible way to go."

"I'm sure it is. That's why Rehden and his hired goons should have thought of that before going there." Berus grinned. "According to some frantic comms the Revenge intercepted, Rehden lost a few of them to the sand, and the rest have deserted him and returned to the port. If he was smart, he would do the same."

One thing Rehden had never been was dumb. In fact, he was rather intelligent. It explained how he was able to steal a large shipment of arms and sell it right under Uctarr's nose, then steal his slave and his best shuttle as well. His scheming mind had helped him get all the way to the outer planets alive.

But Rehden had a weakness. He was brash and prone to impulsive decisions. Sometimes, these risky choices turned out to be for the best, giving him a leg up. But in general, they caused him more problems than not.

Cami hoped Rehden would let it go now after losing credits on hiring thugs and failing. Maybe he'd assume she had been lost to the storm as well and give up.

A loud rumbling echoed through the transport, and Cami froze for a fraction of a moment before she realized it was Berus's stomach.

"Wow! Although I guess you did exert a lot of energy yesterday, clearing all the brush."

"Famished." He dug into the internal storage and brought out a selection of travel rations. "I know you said you don't like food bars. But I selected some tasty ones for our trip when we stopped off at the depot."

"Oh, I don't mind them as long as they're not the same low-quality ones day in and day out. But thank you for remembering."

Aww. He'd taken her preferences into account, even on a trip like this. So sweet.

Instead of selecting one bar each, Berus insisted they share several so that she could try different flavors and find out which ones she liked best. Indeed, these nutrition bars were a lot better than any she'd had before. She'd even go so far as to call them food.

"I have something else, too," Berus said, bringing out a bottle of something alcoholic. Cami had tried Tallean alcohol before and had found it undrinkable. It was so strong that she could get drunk just by smelling it.

"I'm going to sit this one out," she said, remembering the time Rehden had given her some booze, then yelled at her when she threw up everywhere.

"I think you will like this one. It's amberberry wine from Reka 5. All the females on board like it."

"Okay. I guess I'll try a tiny bit."

The wine really was very good, nothing like the disgusting fire water Rehden had given her before. But just to be safe, she only had a little bit and made sure to wash it down with more food and plain ol' H 2 O.

Fed and relaxed, she cuddled into Berus's side. They were still both slightly damp, but that couldn't be helped. Everything in the transport was, and probably would be for a few days longer.

She was too well-rested to want another nap, so she leaned in to watch as Berus played a game on his comm. She hadn't realized video games even existed in Tallean culture. Uctarr never played them, and neither had Rehden.

Then she noticed the English words that popped up whenever the character picked up a special item. "Is this game made by humans?"

"It is. Hullean Vision isn't the only company to make games using our technology."

"You guys mentioned Hullean Vision before. Who are they?"

"They make missions for our training simulators. They focus on keeping the training component intact while at the same time making the scenarios entertaining. They are based out of Reka 5. Before them, all the missions were for training only." He held up the comm. "This one, of course, has no training aspect at all. It is only good for wasting time."

"We do have a lot of that on our hands, don't we?"

"Yes. But I am with you, so I cannot complain."

She tossed a leg over his thick thighs to straddle him.

"I know just the thing we could do to pass the time."

"Are you suggesting I use my body to slake your boredom?" Berus smirked at her, his sexy fangs on display.

"That is precisely what I'm suggesting." She leaned in and kissed one of his fangs.

"Then I'm all yours, little one. Do your worst."

"Mission accepted."