Page 38 of A Monster's Light

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I split my time between the stronghold and Ellaston, much like Penelope did. It felt good to be part of building a thriving new colony, and I surprised myself with how fast I adapted to my new life.

As Igor ran off to find material for his new hat, I got up and stretched, deciding that today was a chocolate mint mocha kind of day.

The rut was over, at least for Gnnar and me, though some of the other Kadrixans were only just starting theirs. We’d stayed up in our nest for four more glorious days and nights after I’d agreed to be his mate, but now that our mini honeymoon was over, he had work to do. Krxare and Vostak had given him extra work for disappearing off to Nova Vita without alerting anyone and getting caught.

Gnnar made it pretty clear, though, that he didn’t regret a single moment and would happily do all the extra work as long as he got to hold me when he returned.

I realized something was off the moment I stepped outside. Wanting to know what all the tight-lipped whispering was about, I flagged Macey down, who was wrangling her two school-aged boys.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

It wasn’t her but one of her sons who answered. “They caught someone from Nova Vita.”

“Yeah,” the other boy said, butting in. “They’re gonna terrogate him!”

Macey rubbed her temples. “I’m not touching that one with a ten-foot pole. But yes. They found him on the outskirts.”

“Dana!” I turned to see Sami waving at me.

I hurried over. “What’s up?”

“Guy claims to know you. Says his name’s Amir. Figured we could get your opinion before Mark dumped him in the dark forests tied up for the ruka beasts. He’s a little less diplomatic when it comes to these things than Chris is.”

And Chris, I’d found out, was away visiting a native Vokiren tribe.

Interesting. I didn’t know anyone named Amir. Could it be Omnia Pictures sending someone else to get the scoop?

Sami led me to a small building at the end of the main street that was still under construction. “It’s going to be the sheriff’s office when it’s done.”

“The sheriff’s office? Like back on old Earth?”

“Yup. We thought it was fitting since this is like the Wild West, but Vokira style.”

“There she is,” Mark said, noticing me as Sami and I walked in. He looked like he had a few more gray hairs. “Know this guy?”

And there, strapped to a chair, was the guard from the shuttle, the one that had warned us about the self-destruct sequence. He looked like he’d been to hell and back, and there was a large bruise starting up just under his black eye. He was still in his uniform pants and a shirt, but they looked like they’d seen better days.

“I do, actually. He’s the one who warned Gnnar and me about the self-destruct sequence on the shuttles.”

The man looked up at the sound of my voice. “Hey. You made it.”

“We found him sneaking around the outskirts.”

“I wasn’t sneaking. I was trying to get your attention.” He turned to me. “Listen, you have to get everyone out of the village. Now.”

“And why the fuck should we believe you?”

“I told you before. They’re going to bomb the place.”

I exchanged a look with Mark. We’d released a recording of me telling my side of the story, or at least a very curated version of it.

I explained how I’d interviewed the Kadrixan prisoner on behalf of Omnia Pictures, only to find my device and account locked by the colony that very evening. I was kidnapped by men in uniform before the night was through. They were transferring me as a prisoner, without trial, to an Exotech facility when a fellow prisoner, the very Kadrixan warrior I’d interviewed the day before, overpowered the drug they were giving him and escaped, bringing me along.

“They said the camera in the cell stopped working when I was in there,” I’d said in the video. “But I don’t know how things like that even work. Someone messed up and tried to blame me for it. And no, I haven’t been kidnapped by a Kadrixan for the rut. I’m currently living at Ellaston where the settlers have welcomed me with open arms.”

There had been no official response from the colony yet.

“How do you know they’re going to bomb us?” I asked.