Endless Blue by Wen Spencer

Author:Wen Spencer
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Science-Fiction
ISBN: 9781416573852
Publisher: Baen
Published: 2009-04-25T10:00:00+00:00

17

The Time Has Come

To Talk of Many Things

Mikhail found himself wondering exactly how Captain Bailey was related to Eraphie. Captain Bailey turned out to be a beautiful young woman with blonde curls and deep blue eyes. She didn't look like she had any Red in her. Mikhail would have thought that the Red's dark coloring would have been dominant genes, but she could have been third or fourth generation with possibly strong Nordic bloodlines mixed in. Or maybe their fathers were human brothers and only Eraphie was half-Red.

Mikhail would ask, but Captain Bailey was obviously not thrilled at the idea of helping them. Turk left in a good mood, but came back brooding like a thunderstorm. As they explained to Mikhail about the minotaurs—and not about why they were fighting—the two alternated between giving each other hurt looks and pointedly ignoring the other. Mikhail saw no reason to add fuel to the fire when they so desperately needed Captain Bailey's help.

Normally Mikhail would have let Turk go solo on a mission that could escalate into violence. He felt, though, he had to act as a buffer between Turk and Captain Bailey.

"It would be best if I just go out alone." Despite what Captain Bailey said, she sat down beside Turk.

"The Tigertail is too valuable to risk." Mikhail tried to stay impersonal.

Still studying the ceiling, Turk growled, "I'm not going to let you go alone."

"I can take care of myself," she said without looking at Turk and then appealed to Mikhail. "I don't think he should go."

"I'm Red Commander, I go with my Reds." Turk stated.

And Mikhail wouldn't want it any other way.

Captain Bailey frowned at Mikhail as if he had said it aloud. "Fine. Then I need to lay down rules and you have to obey them. Translating across species is like defusing bombs, I can't have someone running amok or it will all blow up."

"I understand." Mikhail acknowledged that she wanted rules but didn't agree to them. He would need to hear them first.

Something in the way she studied him reminded him of his father. Perhaps it was just the blue of her eyes. "Minotaurs are a patriarchal society. A social unit will be a bull, a harem of females, and children. Interactions between social units are through the bulls only. It means that I'm the only that gets to talk."

Turk gave a bark of laughter. "Your true form is revealed."

She poked him in the ribs. "Hush you."

"Since we don't know how to talk to them, I doubt that will be a problem," Mikhail said.

"You have to stand back and not interfere." Captain Bailey poked Turk to underscore her point. She was building to something.

"Why would he?" Mikhail asked.

"The conversation can get physical," Bailey said. "The minotaurs can be very . . .brutish. Whatever happens, unless I go down and don't get back up again, you stay out of it."

Turk hunched in his seat, stared at the floor, and growled lowly.

"You can't protect me." Bailey poked him once more.

Without looking, Turk caught her hand and pressed it his cheek.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.