Golden Cages: Scifi, Alien Warrior Romance (Human Pets of Talin - Origins Book 3) by RK Munin

Author:RK Munin [Munin, RK]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2024-10-11T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

Palathum

The first thing Palathum noticed when she walked into the crowded galley was Iris’s absence. Little Mia was there with Dek-lee and Danakium, but no Iris. Utharium stepped to her side and spoke before she could voice an inquiry.

“Iris spent a few marks today with Merrick, but the rest of the time she’s been with Damascus,” he said in a whisper so his words didn’t reach past her earholes. “I believe those two have become intimate.”

“That’s exactly what I wanted to know. As always, you anticipated my needs,” she murmured back. If her scent glands hadn’t been emptied recently, she was sure they’d be aching to release all over Utharium again.

Utharium sounded an affirmative rumble. In this context, it meant he was pleased by her words. “They’re in his cabin currently. Later this evening, I’ll check in on Iris to make sure she’s well and see if she plans to return to her own cabin for the night.”

“I’ll go with you,” Palathum said, barely stifling an irritated rattle. She didn’t want to make such a negative sound so close to Mia. “I was afraid this might happen. Iris seemed strangely drawn to that male. I wish she’d picked someone on the crew instead.”

Utharium couldn’t respond because by then Mia had noticed them and was shouting for their attention.

“Palie! Uthie!” she called out. “You’re late! I was worried.”

“I apologize,” Palathum said with a loud, soothing rumble.

“You has to play tag with me later,” Mia demanded, making several of the crew rumble with amusement. When Mia laid out the rules of tag to them, she’d very seriously explained that she always won. If she didn’t win, it wasn’t a real game of tag.

“Of course we can play,” Palathum agreed. “While we’re doing that, Dek-lee can enjoy an ice bath.”

That made the Delorta perk up. “Ice bath?”

“We refitted one of the storage rooms in the aft of the ship. There’s a pool with water circulating near the engine's re-freezer unit. It was finished about a mark ago so the water should be only a degree or two above freezing by now.”

The look of delight on Dek-lee’s face made the extra effort worth it. When Iris first asked about lowering the temperature in Dek-lee’s room, Palathum worried about Mia accidentally getting stuck or falling asleep in a room too cold for her. At Palathum’s request, the crew engineered the ice bath.

Originally Palathum had hoped Iris would tire of the Delorta’s presence and they could release them on a planet or space station with the funds to find their way home. To her surprise, Dek-lee had proved to be friendly, helpful, and a good caregiver for Mia.

The crew loved helping Iris look after Mia, but they all had jobs they needed to do. Sometimes no one could be spared. Iris never complained, but Palathum liked having someone dedicated to helping Iris look after Mia. Iris was only one person, and she was used to living in a human community where there were many other humans and older children always available to help with the younger ones.

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.