“It hasn’t been determined yet.” Lord va’Rin shrugs, toying with his eating sticks. I shove another heaping mound into my mouth and notice he hasn’t really eaten, just played with the food on his plate. Seems like a waste of perfectly good veg to me. “I own several planets and their moons, along with a variety of corporations that have stations of all kinds. We’ll settle them somewhere quiet. Do not worry about that.”
“I was thinking more about the station itself,” Matty continues. “And if you might sell it to me if you don’t need it.”
CHAPTER 121
HELEN
Matty’s too busy talking to help himself to his food, so I assist, taking a nibble of a piece of fruit on his plate as he chats with Lord va’Rin.
“I don’t know if that particular station will suit your needs,” Lord va’Rin says, a hint of a frown on his face. “It has very ordinary living quarters and only two rec rooms. Surely you’d want something a bit more lavish?”
Mathiras shakes his head. “We don’t want lavish at all. If anything, we want the opposite. The idea is to set up someplace that looks abandoned.”
“But why?”
Does Lord va’Rin not know Jerrok? I open my mouth to speak, but Mathiras clasps my hand against his, squeezing it tight. “We’re more likely to be left alone if the place looks abandoned,” he says quickly. “And to ensure Helen’s safety and those of my brothers’ mates, the less unwanted traffic, the better.”
The mesakkah lord looks displeased at the thought. “So you wish…a derelict of your own?”
“Not a derelict, love,” Milly tells her mate. “They want a fixer-upper. I get it.” She reaches over and touches his hand with her little finger. “Remember when I moved into this house with you and I insisted on redoing the gardens and repainting all the walls? And adding the solarium?”
“Nesting,” he agrees, a fond look at his mate.
She chuckles. “They want to do something similar. And if you give them a place that’s already fancy, there’s no point.”
“I see.” His tone indicates he doesn’t see at all.
Milly just smiles at her husband, rubbing his hand. She looks over at Mathiras. “You’ll have to forgive my husband. He thinks less than four floors to a residence is ‘roughing it.’” She gestures at their opulent mansion. “This is his vacation cottage, after all.”
Ruth and I exchange a look.
“Still, I shall be more than happy to work with you on whatever you need,” Lord va’Rin continues. “Did you have a particular station in mind if not the other one I suggested?”
“I was thinking more of a mining station,” Mathiras says, rubbing my fingers. “They tend to be fairly secure, heavy duty, and the abandoned ones hold up fairly well.”
“A…mining station.” Lord va’Rin’s lip practically curls with distaste. “To live there? You’re certain?” When Mathiras nods, he sighs. “If this is truly the reward you wish, then of course I will see what I can procure. I have a few mining companies under the va’Rin name. I’m certain I have an abandoned station or two.” He glances over at Straik. “Don’t tell me. You want to run off and join an intergalactic circus.”
Straik snorts. “Hardly. I am quite content on my ship, thank you. And then there’s the sa’Rin holdings, but I imagine most of those assets will be frozen the moment the authorities discover what my mother’s been up to.” A wicked smile curves his mouth. “I’m looking forward to that day.”
“As am I.” Lord va’Rin sips his wine, his fingers twined with those of his wife. “It will be soon?”
“Within the next week, I’m told,” Straik replies. “I’m keeping out of it so my mother doesn’t get suspicious. I have spies watching her, though, and keeping me apprised of her every move.”
“Zebah?” I ask, curious. I haven’t seen or heard of Zebah since she left our ship. “Is it her?”
“I asked her, but she wanted to stay at Three Nebulas for a while,” Straik says. “Said she had some unfinished business to take care of.”
Aw. It’s a job she’d be good at. But maybe she has some personal stuff to go through. Or maybe she’s still afraid of Bethiah.
“At any rate,” Lord va’Rin says, “I’d like to ask all of you to stay here in Port for a few days. Let me inquire about a mining station”—and he pauses just in case we want to change our minds, I suspect—“and we’ll see how things play out with my sister. Until then, you all are my guests. Please help yourselves.”
“That’s very kind of you,” Matty tells him. “I’ll let my brothers know.”
“Help ourselves to anything?” I ask, taking a bite out of a bright red berry. When Lord va’Rin nods again, I ask “Can I touch your stomach, Milly?”
“Oh my god, Helen!” Ruth hisses at me. “That’s rude!”