Page 9 of Seven Oars
The leader shouted for them to hold on, and the ship shuddered, pulling away from the cracked concrete.
The motion threw them around. The women grabbed any bolted-down part they could reach.
There were no seats and no belts to buckle.
There were no Ren or Paloma.
Rosamma’s face drained of all color.“Where’s my brother?” Her voice broke as panic rose.“Wait! We can’t leave without Ren. Where is he?”
Her only answer was the din of the accelerating engines.
She staggered forward, toward the cockpit where the Rix gathered around the controls.
“Hello!” She didn’t know their names.“Stop!”
The leader deigned to turn to her. His eyes were opaque. His handsome face was remote and a little cruel, like an ancient malevolent god.
“My brother Ren!” Frantic now, Rosamma switched to her basic, broken Rix.
That elicited a reaction. “You speak our language?”
“Yes. No. A few words.” She switched back to Universal. “My brother…”
“I heard you,” he cut her off. “He went with Commander Aeshac.”
Rosamma stumbled back against the wall as if he had punched her.“He already left?”
“Yes.”
No.
Ren and she couldn’t be separated. They needed each other to complete their energy exchange. Ren wouldn’t go alone!
The floor was dropping under Rosamma’s feet. Or maybe it was the ship lurching.
“Why?” she gasped.
“Because Commander Aeshac decided it,” The Rix said with finality.“Now, go back and sit on the floor, human woman. And hold on.”
Chapter 3
Their ascent went quickly, but Rosamma missed it.
She blacked out, overwhelmed by G-force, the shrieking grind of the ship, the women’s panicked cries, and the crushing realization that Ren wasn’t with her.
When she regained her mental abilities, they were in space, and Meeus was a rapidly shrinking bright sphere in the porthole.
It was done. She had left.
Alone.
Thoughts bounced around her skull with no meaning. Her stomach turned.
With effort, she brought the room into focus. It wavered.
Zero gravity might be cool, but not for everyone, and not all of a sudden.
“I can’t feel my feet! Lord, my feet!” Anske’s anguished cries echoed through the ship.
