The Honor of Deceit (Starhawke Rising Book 3) by Audrey Sharpe

Author:Audrey Sharpe [Sharpe, Audrey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ocean Dance Press
Published: 2018-05-17T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Forty-Two

Tnaryt was driving Aurora crazy.

Not only had he chained her to the comm console before he’d retired to his quarters for his sleep cycle each night, but during his waking hours, he was planted on his throne, watching her every move.

She’d spent most of her first full day accessing and evaluating the communication system, the hours of sweaty work broken only by the appearance of an older man with greying curly hair who brought her a nasty-tasting mash. He’d scuttled down the ladder as soon as he’d delivered the meal, refusing to meet Aurora’s gaze. After he’d gone, she’d choked down every bite even though her stomach had rebelled. She needed to maintain her strength.

Tnaryt had been served several meals throughout the day, always by the same older man. The food on his plate had looked and smelled far more appetizing than what Aurora had consumed. Tnaryt had clearly enjoyed taunting her with what she couldn’t have.

He’d returned to the bridge after his second sleep cycle, shocking her with the dramatic change in his appearance. His coloring had been the same, but what she’d taken for a permanent row of spikes running along his head and back had collapsed into a thin strip of darker orange. His neck had also deflated, giving him the appearance of heavy jowls and flabby skin. Not a flattering look. She wisely did not point it out.

As he had the previous morning, he’d removed the manacle and given her permission to use the sanitation facilities in his cabin. She’d climbed through the hatch on the bridge that led directly into the compact space. The facilities had allowed her to relieve one point of discomfort, but the tradeoff had been surrounding herself with his overpowering musk. When she’d returned to the bridge, the pungent odors from another bowl of mash had greeted her, making her stomach churn. But she’d eaten it anyway.

The sleeping pallet Nat had brought was only moderately cleaner than the floor, but at least it had provided a slight buffer from the cold metal of the deck. Finding a comfortable sleeping position with one hand tethered had been a challenge, though. Both nights she’d woken a dozen times with her arm asleep and her shoulder aching.

This morning, Nat had been pressed into service as her assistant while she sorted out the inner workings of the communication system. From the comments Tnaryt had made when Nat arrived on the bridge, Aurora had gathered she’d spent the previous day down in engineering with the Admiral, helping with the main engines.

Nat had indicated they’d be operational in a few days, which lit a fire under Aurora to get the comm system functioning. She’d need the comm to contact Cade and alert him that she’d found the Admiral. Ironically, if Tnaryt continued to shackle her to the console, it would make that task easier.

She was also hoping to gain access to the ship’s communication logs, which might shed light on the Sovereign’s identity. Or at least give her a path to follow.

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.