“No,” Helen says immediately. She points at one playing stick in the mix. “Look at this one. Shouldn’t I get more points?”
“Not if you make your sticks bounce,” Bethiah continues, patient. “The game is based off of delicate hand maneuvers. Of making it not seem like effort or skill, when it really is all about effort and skill.” She gathers the sticks in her hand and holds them out to the yellow-haired human. “You try it.”
The female clutches at the handful of sticks and then looks over at me, her expression reproachful and hesitant.
“Matty,” Helen chirps, immediately jumping up and racing to my side. “Ladies, this is my mate, Matty. He’s a good guy. You don’t need to worry about him.”
They glance over at Bethiah, as if seeking reassurance from her. Bethiah just nods. “He’s the captain. You’re all right. And I’ll stay right here with you both so you feel safe.”
I give the humans a slight nod. “It’s nice to meet you both. I’m Mathiras va Sithai, and my brother is Adiron. We’re going to take you someplace that’s safe for humans. Someplace that you won’t be enslaved or put at risk. We’re going to rescue your companions, first. Anything you can tell us about their situation will be useful.”
The one wearing Ruth’s face stares mutely at me in anger. Something tells me she’s not going to be much help. The other clears her throat and looks over at Bethiah before turning to me. “What do you want to know?”
“Where were they keeping you?” I take a step forward, eager for any information they can share. “How many guards? How many slavers? Did they mention anyone by name specifically?”
Helen grabs my hand and drags me over to one of the couches. She gives me a little push so I’ll sit down, and immediately plops herself onto my lap and kisses my cheek. “You’re looming,” she whispers, then bites my ear.
My face gets hot. Am I?
Bethiah clears her throat. “You’re in good hands with him, ladies. He’s saved me from a dozen scrapes in the past, and I’d trust him with my life. Mathiras is one of the good ones.” She nods firmly. “His brother, too.”
The blonde reaches for Bethiah’s hand, grabbing it. “Wait. You’re not leaving, are you? You’re staying while we talk?”
Bethiah’s face softens, maybe softer than I’ve ever seen her. “I’m not going anywhere. I promise. I won’t leave your side.”
Both females look relieved. I feel like I’m in some sort of black hole where reality is warped. Bethiah is safer than me? I glance over at Helen, but her expression is understanding. I lean in and whisper to her. “Should I leave?”
“No, you can stay,” she whispers back. “But let me do the talking. I’m not sure they trust a male, no matter how safe we say you are. It’s just because of what they’ve been through.”
I nod, deliberately avoiding glancing over at the females. “Anything they tell us will be useful.”
“I got this, Matty.” She pats my chest and then beams a smile over at the women again. “Matty is my lover.”
“You’ve told us,” Bethiah says with a roll of her eyes.
“Three times,” adds in the Ruth-clone.
“I’m telling you this again because you should know that he doesn’t need you for sex. He has me.” She leans over and nips at my ear again, making my breath catch. “And Adiron is in love with my sister, Jade. So he’s not going to touch anyone either.”
“And I’d castrate him if he tried,” Bethiah adds.
This is all sounding excessively violent. “And Zebah?” the blonde asks, turning to Bethiah. “Not every slaver is male.”
Now that’s interesting. I want to hear more about that. I lean forward, but Helen deliberately pushes back on me, a not-so-subtle hint for me to stop. “Zebah is my friend and she’s helping us track down the slavers that stole the other humans,” Helen replies. “Have you seen other female slavers, then?”
The two women exchange glances, and then the blonde nods. “We’ll tell you what we can, but it’s not much.”
CHAPTER 79
HELEN
As the women begin to speak, I’m flooded with memories. They’re traumatized from their journey, and the pained looks on their faces reminds me of Jade, Alice and Ruth when we were first awoken on the Star. Back then, I was confused at my surroundings, but they were just terrified. I see that terror in Dora and Ruthann and it makes me ache for them.
Dora is the braver one. She is the one that speaks up and begins to tell their story. According to her, they were kept in a dark, cold room for days and their food was drugged. When they finally turned the lights on, Dora remembers them being blindingly bright, and between that and the drugs, all she remembers is blurry faces and a bluish female.