10 Rosalynn

The hunk of an alien prince that walked away from me has found and rescued me. And still, I cannot shake this feeling that it’s not what I want it to be.

We orbit the lunar spaceport while the pilot speaks with security teams still inside. I watch it through a window.

I’m still hyperventilating from the daring escape and watching the golden man before me move metal like wind moves sand.

“Rosalynn, where are you hurting?”

“Nowhere.” I fake a smile on instinct even though I’m freaking out inside.

His handsome, edgy face contorts like he knows the truth. But I’m not telling him. I’m not risking that vulnerability with a stranger. He left me behind. I get it.

But why come back if he had her—

“She used me as a ticket to get inside,” he blurts.

So we both feel used.

“We can talk later.” He scans me, converses quietly with the pilot, and grabs a medical kit.

“I’m Zinnar.” The man cleans my scraped knees then coats them gently in a protective healing serum with his fingers. He checks every hole in my race uniform for deeper injuries.

“Evasive maneuvers, Elix.” A string of coordinates comes over the coms. “Empire vessel spotted.”

The pilot, Elix, motions Zinnar into a seat.

I cannot take much more excitement. I wanted some but not this level. I grip the armrest as the stars ahead of us blur and my body sinks back into the seat. The rush leaves me trembling. My bones rattle in their sockets.

We drop out into a dark blue nebula.

“Status?” Zinnar asks as we come to a near stop like he’s not bothered at all by the changing pressures and momentum.

The pilot taps something on his controls the turns to face us. He’s the green man I saw exit earlier.

“I’m Elix, a private security contractor. There have been sightings of Nebulous soldiers on Earth. There is a group of sympathizers who have let them slip through security to collect metals and supplies.”

“We know this well,” Zinnar remarks. “We fight them constantly.”

“And you want to take a mate to your planet?” I ask.

Elix sighs. “Every planet is affected now. Everyone has either something that’s been taken or something that’s been destroyed. We are all involved in the war with the Nebs now, whether we like it or not.”

“So what’s the plan?” Zinnar asks.

“I’m set to get a call back when the threat has been pushed out of the area by Sol Federation ships. So we have some time to kill. You two best get comfortable. It could be a few hours to a few days.”

“We could head to my planet,” Zinnar offers.

Elix shakes his head. “All major traffic has been stopped so routes can be assessed for empire ships.”

Zinnar gets up, collects me, and glances at Elix.

“In the back,” Elix remarks.

Zinnar carries me into the back of the ship and finds a medical bay where he lays me on a bed as though I’m a fragile, wilting flower. I feel about as tough.

He returns to checking me for injuries.

“I’m fine.”

He barely meets my eyes like he’s too ashamed to let me see him. “Your face says you’re fine but your eyes lie. They expose your pain.”

It’s not physical; it’s emotional.

“You’re trying to mend what can’t be fixed,” I say.

He chews a lip and looks away. “Sometimes trying is all we can do. And at least that won’t make me leave this world with just regrets.”

“We all make mistakes,” I mutter. “Some of us just make bigger ones.”