Page 27 of Shadows of Stardust

At least until an Aventri slams into him and the two of them go sprawling into the sand in a tangle of limbs and wings.

Juni laughs out loud, and I can’t help but join her.

“Good choice,” I say. “Have you made a move?”

The question launches her into a quiet but detailed discussion of his merits and potential for generating screen time. I listen with one ear and respond at the appropriate moments, even while my attention unwillingly slips back into the same place it’s been for the past two days.

On the cams. On my plans. On my Revexoran shadow. On the terrible, prickling sense of being watched.

Eventually, Tev must tire of waiting for Juni to make up her mind about his pros and cons, because as soon as the game adjourns, he makes a beeline for her. With a smile that might be heart-stopping if I were still vulnerable to that particular brand of charm, he asks if she’d like to go for a walk down the beach.

I’m all encouragement when Juni looks at me for input, and as they walk away hand in hand, I don’t have to pretend to be happy for her.

Iamhappy for her.

She’s the closest thing I’ve had to a friend since I left service. I hope she gets everything she wants while she’s here, even if I suspect I won’t be a lot of help in pursuit of those goals.

The back of my neck prickles again, and I glance over the see a new set of eyes on me.

Three sets, to be more precise.

A Sendahlan. A Szenak. Another Vas-Greshiran.

Word must be getting around that Rhevar and I crashed and burned, because they’re all looking at me the same way Juni was looking at Tev. Appraising, avaricious, calculating.

Shooting up from my lounger, I take off through the sand. Not running, because I don’t want to look like a complete lunatic and draw even more attention to myself, but in a brisk, take-no-shit-stride that leads me to the edge of the beach and leaves them all staring after me.

I don’t even know where I’m going, but as I meander down one of the jungle paths leading away from the water, I suppose it’s as good a time as any to do a little sight-seeing.

And if that sight-seeing just so happens to include finding my way back to the pool where Rhevar took me the first night? If it means I get close to the fence at the edge of the production zone that looks oh-so-easily climbable? So be it.

I pick my way slowly down the path, trying my damnedest to look like I’m in no hurry, like I’m just out for a casual afternoon stroll, a wide-eyed human getting her first glimpse at all the beauty the universe has to offer.

But I don’t have to pretend for long. I must not make very good camera fodder out for my walk, because the cam that tailed me from the beach peels away after a few minutes, off to focus its attention on more entertaining subjects.

Perfect.

Quickening my step a little, I change course at the next fork in the path to take a more direct route back to the pool.

If the brief glimpse I got that first night still holds up, there’s a section of fence obscured behind some clusters of trees and vines that looked like it might be strong enough to hold a human.

If I can confirm, then maybe later tonight after everyone’s gone to bed, I can sneak back over and—

“Doing some exploring?”

I skid to a halt in the middle of the path, stomach dropping to my feet.

Zandrel is intimidating in darkness, but in broad daylight, there’s something even more threatening about him.

Maybe because seeing him here, with his arms folded over his chest and an arrogant smirk on his lips, is a reminder that he doesn’t need to rely on that darkness at all. No illusions, no smoke and mirrors to project a scarier-than-life image of him into my head.

Stripped of the shadows, the utter lethality of him is on full display.

Even if I wasn’t a soldier, I’m sure I’d recognize it.

The cut of his muscles, the wickedly sharp tips of his horns, the keen focus of his galaxy-black gaze. There’s something waiting and still about him, a command he wields with his sheer presence.

I square my shoulders. “Yes.”

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