Page 70 of Ren: Warlord Brides
Zalis drained his coffee. “I will start decoding the chip you found. Does the missing female have a tracker implanted?”
“No,” Ren said, finally breaking eye contact with Havik. “She has contacted my mate with various messages. I have been tracing them.”
Zalis sniffed, almost haughty. “Then we will be waiting a long time. I can trace the messages as well.”
The tension between Havik and Ren vanished. The alien warriors sprang into action with minimal conversation, as if the team had reached a decision.
They were going to find Gemma.
Chapter 17
Ren
The warlord was displeased. Ren suspected that little satisfied Paax beyond his mate and family. He kept that opinion to himself while he debriefed the warlord over a secure connection.
The investigation into Councilor Pashaal was effectively over. A net was tightening around her. Whether Paax was the one to finally capture her or not, she would be caught.
Ren recited meditation in his mind to keep his expression neutral during the call. He expected censure along with a reasonable and measured act of discipline. But the feral part of his brain, the part that sought survival above all else, expected the warlord to fly into a rage, to threaten his mate, to deliver punishment like fire from the depths of dark space.
Instead, Paax responded with, “You finally retrieved your mate. I expected you to do so immediately. I lost my favorite dagger to Mylomon. You owe me a new dagger.”
“I… Yes, sir.”
“Something interesting. Do not bore me, warrior.”
“Stars forbid.”
“Contact theJudgmentwhen you locate the female. I will send reinforcements,” Paax said, before disconnecting the call.
Well, that was interesting. Thalia said that Gemma’s abduction fit the pattern of abducted females. The warlord agreed.
In the common area, Havik and Thalia focused their attention on him. Emmarae retreated to their cabin. Work consumed Zalis, as always.
“You are my favorite,” Ren said, patting the male on the shoulder. Zalis gave him a confused look but carried on with his poking at screens. “You,” he said, pointing to Havik before the large lump had a chance to speak, “will not ask me about my mate. Not yet. We have work that must be done before gossip.”
“Inquiring about her existence is not gossip,” Havik grumbled.
“I have located the source of the messages,” Zalis said, distracting Ren from his very witty, very clever comeback. “The signal bounced across the system on various relays, but it wasn’t hard to track. The encryption was very sloppy. I would be ashamed to be associated with such a mess.”
“Suspiciously sloppy?” Thalia asked.
“Or done in haste,” Zalis said. A map of the system appeared on a screen. A red light pulsed at a nearby moon. “The signal originated here.”
“What do we know about that moon?” Havik asked.
“Mining operations, mostly to source the raw materials for Tholla’s shipyards,” Zalis answered.
“Lots of warehouses. Lots of disused buildings. Sounds like a good place for smugglers to hide,” Thalia added.
“I will notify the warlord. We should leave immediately.” Ren reached for his comm.
“Rest a cycle,” Havik said. “This requires strategy. We will rescue no one if we rush off without a plan.”
Havik’s sensible response startled Ren. Usually, he was the one to advocate strategy while Havik rushed in, swinging his blade.
“Yes. Tomorrow,” Ren agreed. Until then, his mate waited for him.
Light spilled from the corridor into his cabin, highlighting the curves of Emmarae’s form on the bed.
