Page 15 of Songbird
“Of course,” Izzy did not hesitate, fixing me with a steady gaze.
I took a deep breath. “Actually, I’m an operative for my brother Siemba’s spy network.”
“A spy.” The only hint that she found the news surprising was a faint widening of her eyes. “How did you get into the spy game?”
“By accident,” I shrugged, remembering the crazy few weeks that changed my life. “Once I completed my education, I worked for our family holdings, mostly negotiating trade agreements and interstellar operations. It didn’t take me long to recognize that the contacts I made through my business dealings were helpful to Siemba’s operation. My playboy reputation came after a night of gambling and drinking a few Romvesians under the table for information—everyone always talks when they’re drunk. Once Siemba saw how well the playboy persona worked, he took steps to cement the reputation.” I met her eyes, noticing the sweetness of her gaze and the way her full lips parted slightly. “The persona is far from the truth of who I am.”
“I know.”
I felt captivated by the way her gaze softened, as if she could see the real me beyond the facade. It was like she had X-ray vision, peering straight into my soul. Her eyes held a warmth and understanding that I had never encountered before, save from my family. I felt truly seen and understood for who I was, not just the facade I projected to others.
Our eyes locked, the intensity between us growing with each breath. The air felt charged and electric, as if a storm was brewing just beneath the surface. Time seemed to stand still as we stood there, enveloped in our own private bubble, until a playful twitch of her lips broke the moment.
“You’re like James Bond.”
“Who is that?” Hopefully, not another Earth male she had pretended to mate with. I did not like that idea one bit.
“It’s a fictional character,” she said, her smile deepening. “A spy renowned for his harem of beautiful women, martinis’ shaken, not stirred and clever gadgets.”
“Well, I don’t have a harem, although my reputation would suggest otherwise. I do not know what a martini is, but I do have several clever gadgets aboard my ship,” I teased.
Izzy chuckled, letting her hand slip from my arm as she turned to lean over the railing, her gaze falling to the garden below. “Did you know they’d asked me to sing the theme song for the upcoming James Bond movie... video? I guess Halsey will have to do it now.”
“You were a singer on Earth.” I remembered what Priemba said about Izzy being a famous singer on her planet. It didn’t surprise me. Her voice was too beautiful to be kept hidden.
“I’ve been singing all my life,” she sighed, sounding distant. “First in my grandpa’s church when I was a child and then later... after my mother figured out there was money to be made from my voice.”
“You did not wish to sing?” I guessed from the way the tone in her voice shifted, growing harder.
“I didn’t have much choice.” Izzy turned to glance at me, her blue eyes sad and a little angry. “The minute my mother realized I had talent, she stopped at nothing to get me in the limelight. She divorced my dad, and we left our home in Louisiana and moved to Orlando so she could get me on the Disney Channel talent search. After that, it was America’s Got Talent, The Voice, American Idol... any stage she could find, she put me on it. I never won any of the competitions, but it put me in front of the right people. I got a record deal when I turned sixteen, and it just kind of grew from there.”
“You do not look happy when you speak of it.” Her expression broke my heart, and I reached out, trailing my finger along the curve of her cheek. I couldn’t help myself. I wanted to comfort her in any way possible.
“I love to sing,” Izzy said, and the stars in her eyes blazed again. “It’s what I was born to do. But given the choice, I’d rather be singing atSpace Pearlsor my grandpa’s church than in the biggest stadiums in front of the largest crowds on Earth.”
“How were you taken... from Earth?” I knew some creatures coveted outstanding talent or beauty and specifically set out to possess these individuals astreasures. My sister-in law Dixa was abducted as a treasure.
“It was before a concert.” A flash of discomfort crossed her features, and she turned away, putting her back against the railing and staring out over the bustling corridor. “I had a ritual. Singing in front of large crowds always made me nervous, no matter how many times I did it. So, before every concert, I always took a moment to be alone, to get out of my head and give myself over to the music. It was during one of those moments that they grabbed me.”
“I am sorry, Izzy,” I said, although a selfish part deep down would trade nothing for these moments with her. “I’m sorry you cannot return to Earth. I bet your mother and your grandfather miss you greatly.” I would miss her greatly, too, when our ruse came to an end. It was strange how quickly she had become important to me. Just yesterday, she was a perfect stranger and now her place in my heart seemed to grow with every breath. Yet, I couldn’t bring myself to confront my feelings just yet, despite the constant twitching of my cursed tail.
Melancholy flashed over her face, yet she smiled, wistfully. “Not my grandfather. He died a few years ago. As for my mother, she never really knew me, so how can she miss me?” Izzy gave a hateful snort and rolled her eyes. “Oh, she’ll misswhat I could do for her, the stardom, and the money, but not the me I am deep down inside. Knowing her, she probably has her own TV show by now...The Search for Isabella Rayne.”
“Isabella,” I rolled the syllables over my tongue, her name a song in itself. “Your given name is beautiful. Why don’t you go by it?”
“Isabella is what I went by on stage.” She huffed a low, derisive laugh. “My mother hatedIzzy.Said it made me sound like some redneck hick. But my grandpa always called me Izzy, and the people who truly know and love me always called me Izzy.”
“Then, Izzy, you shall always be to me,” I vowed.
The corners of her lips twitched upward, but it did little to wane the deep sadness that seemed to consume her. Without thought, without anything more than a need to comfort her, I enveloped her in my arms, my lips brushing her forehead as I laid my cheek against the golden waves atop her head. She melted against me, letting out a soft sigh as I nuzzled my cheek back and forth against her hair. I couldn’t help the low rumbling that grew in my chest, morphing into a low purr. To my astonishment, Izzy responded with a gentle noise of her own, almost like a purr in return, as she wrapped her arms around my waist. We stood there, surrounded by the glow of twinkling stars visible through the large glass windows and the whispered sounds from the garden below, simply holding each other. Except that it wasn’t simple at all.
Nothing in my life had ever felt as right as holding Izzy in my arms. I wanted more... I wanted everything. Placing a gentle finger under her chin, I lifted her gaze to mine, intent on asking her to teach mekissing, when a low hum mixed with the soft murmur of whispering reached my ears. I flicked my gaze toward the busy section of the corridor.
Berajbe.
About a dozen of them, and if Jala had wanted us to catch their notice, well, we’d certainly done that.
“Is that... are they Berajbe?” Izzy whispered, and the attempt to place her voice closer to my ear caused her warm, sweet breath to wash over my face.
