Page 30 of Captured By the Alien Captain
I’mthe only one giving orders to my men and I wouldn’t bother taking shortcuts in war. Not knowingly.
“Only one person can order an entire military outfit to change tactics. I only have control over my crew.” My nose scrunches as my mouth curls into a deeper frown.
Hendrick. I never liked the man and I’m sure he feels the same about me. The two of us have always disagreed on most matters and he enjoys pushing my buttons. Always testing my temper, he’s the type of man who’d poke a bear just to have an excuse to shoot it for trying to attack him and then play victim right after.
Revealing the captain’s name, Flora’s reaction is the same as mine. We both feel the same about the middle-aged manthanks to my constant rants toward him after all of those long shifts of being forced to listen to him talk through all those communication logs he sends my way. I’m sure she’s had to speak to him from time to time as well.
With a sigh, she stands back up and joins Varrum’s side. “I’ve got to help the infected Medarians, Jax. Do you think you can track Hendrick down? We could bring him in for questioning. I don’t have a cure, only a partial solution.”
I’m sure if the captain gets word that his poison is no longer killing those around us, he’ll find another way to fight. With our luck, he’ll have bombs strong enough to take out this entire vessel.
He’s a problem that needs to be taken care of quickly.
“We do not question in war. We take action,” Runar explains, voicing my thoughts as he dismisses the idea. “We will find him and ensure he does no more harm.”
There’s promise in his voice. No denying what he is insinuating. I should not encourage him, even if I don’t like Hendrick. However, sometimes one person has to be taken out to save hundreds, if not thousands, of lives.
“We don’t even know if it’s actually him to be blamed,” Flora argues as she picks up on Runar’s concrete plan. “You can’t just kill the guy.”
Runar scoffs and looks at me like I can convince her to see it his way. I hate to say it, but when it comes to Hendrick, I’m on the fence. I don’t know what side to be on. How wrong does that sound?
Flora’s going to be disappointed if she realizes I’m more toward Runar on this one. She’s always been about saving lives instead of taking them away.
She’s always been the one to heal while my hands always got dirty. This is nothing different from what’s normal.
“We’ll go get him. We’lltalk,” I explain to the both of them. No need to spill blood without getting him to explain where this poison came from first. Once we get our answers, then we’ll figure out how to deal with him. “You focus on healing these guys.”
“What about our people, Jax?” Flora looks at Runar and straightens up despite his scowl. “Will you call your warriors off? Even if it is a temporary truce.”
I look over at the alien at my side and watch his jaw clench. He doesn’t like the idea. Of course not. It’s not a truce if the humans refuse to ceasefire.
“If you call them back, no one will be around to be attacked,” I try to offer softly. “Call them back, we’ll get this fixed.”
Those yellow eyes of his, I think they’re becoming my weakness. I can’t look him in the eye for longer than a couple of minutes before I feel like I’m melting. Do I have the same effect on him or is this all in my head?
His nostrils flare and we stare at each other for what feels like an eternity. Once my eyes start stinging because I do not remember to blink, he turns his head.
“I will call them off,” he agrees. “However, if the humans continue being a threat to my people, I will not give the command to sit there and accept death. Those who will come with us will not harm our enemy unless they are under threat.”
My shoulders relax and I offer him a grateful smile.
Flora doesn’t argue, knowing she’s already asking for a lot. She thanks him and runs a hand through her hair. She looks exhausted. Tonight is going to be a long one for her.
Runar stands, shamelessly shuffling behind me. Plucking me up with ease, he ignores my sputter when he wraps a limb around my waist.
“Come, my queen. We have plenty of planning to take care of. We can’t succeed if we don’t get our rest either.”
He realizes everyone in the room is looking our way, right? Does he have no shame? My cheeks are feeling hot. Sure, this is more tame than what they walked into, but it doesn’t make even the lightest of his touches any less embarrassing.
“Go get some sleep, Jax. We’ll get this all fixed one way or another.” My sister gives me this odd smile. One that’s knowing.
If she starts making comments about having her own possessive Medarian and knowing all about how it feels, I’m going to scream and make a run for my ship. Even if it’s bad timing, I know I’m not going to be able to manage, not when I’m feeling so flushed.
Wishing them a good night, Runar all but carries me out of the meeting room, leaving the three of them to discuss what to do next in the process of healing those who are sick.
Before he can consider dragging me through the ship next, I slip out of his grip and huff softly under my breath.
“Are you always this touchy?” I ask as I find something to glare at.