Callisto: Bound to the Alien Commander |18+

Chapter 34

Taking a breath, I force back the urge to blush and apologize for my measured response. With painstaking slowness, I translate his question in my head and respond with, what I hope, is perfect An'eoc.

In the last thirty days, I have made the language my sole mission. I eat, sleep, and breathe it. Olexa, Gaia, and Elite Navigator speak to me exclusively in An'eoc and only speak English when I'm struggling.

'Do you remember my given name?' I'm almost positive that's what he asked.

"I do."

"You may address me as such."

"Macsen," I smile at his serious expression. This is a gesture of friendship but he still looks stiff and uncomfortable. This is just his way.

"Your An'eoc is getting better every day. I am impressed with your pronunciation."

His compliments mean much more than Olexa and Gaias. I appreciate their praise but Macsen is much less likely to give an undeserved pat on the back.

"Thank you," my smile falters when his expression changes. He's doing it. The thing. All of them do it, I can spot it from a mile away now. He wants to talk about Ronan or to ask what happened between us. They all get the same weary expression, a specific kind of hesitation.

"We should eat before the kitchen is closed."

Nodding, I follow him down the hallway toward the cafeteria. He is the only one who doesn't mention him at all. He looks like he wants to, but he always stops himself. I appreciate that.

I don't like coming here. I was told that word spread quickly about our relationship. I'm not sure how much people actually know, but they heard about me touching his hair and living to tell the tale.

It's impossible to ignore the way they stare at me.

As I learn the language, I'm able to catch bits and pieces, phrases here and there. I've gathered that they do not like me.

Today, something is off. The air is different. I can't put my finger on it but I can feel it.

Halfway through my assortment of fruit, a woman walks toward us, up the center aisle. She's beelining right for us, purpose in her steps and quick stride.

Stopping just short of our table she growls something angrily while making eye contact with me.

Her rushed, angry words are too emotional and rambling for me to fully understand. I catch the words 'human, worthy' and 'challenge.' Turning to Macsen, I hope for some back-up. He's staring at her with wide, shocked eyes.

I jerk back to look at her again when her fists slam down on the table. The echo rings out in the otherwise quiet dining hall. There were a few people not watching this interaction, but now we have the attention of everyone. Great.

With hunched shoulders and disgust etched into her face, she stands above me, waiting.

I open my mouth to fumble through a response when my throat goes dry. I feel him. I can't see him but I know he's here.

When his thunderous voice vibrates in my bones, I freeze. My spine shudders violently at the sudden close proximity. When the stupefied shock wears off, I realize that he's threatening to kill her.

"Stop!" I feel myself jumping out of my seat before I can stop my body. When I turn to face him it's like a punch to the gut. He doesn't look like my Ronan. An expression of hideous, frightening rage is twisted into his face. I hardly recognize him. A look like this has no place on a face like his.

I've never seen him like this. Even in the middle of the arena with two people trying to kill him, he was calm. The heat radiating from his body hits me in palpable waves.

It's been twenty-eight days since our last face-off.

I thought I was cured of my broken heart.

I thought that I had made myself strong again.

I thought I could handle seeing him.

I thought wrong.

I gasp, my lungs burning as I heave for air like a fish out of water. Clutching my chest, I take an involuntary step toward him, my body reacting to being in his presence again after so long. It feels like my ribs have been cracked open, ripped apart to expose my barely beating heart.

"Nicole," his voice is distorted as he steps toward me, his arm outstretched, ready to grab my swaying body.

"Get her out of here," he growls before turning his attention back to the woman behind me.

Hands pull me back, leading me away by my shoulders.

I can't stop myself from looking back, watching him as I'm guided out of the dining hall. Our eyes meet for a brief moment before I'm pulled into the hallway.

Turning, I'm surprised to see Olexa, not Macsen gently taking me away.

"I understood him," an irrational smile tugs at my lips. He spoke An'eoc and I understood it. There is so much chaos swirling around and this is what I'm focusing on.

"Did you understand her?" Her voice wavers.

"Not all of it. She was talking so fast..."

"She issued you a challenge."

"What?" I stop walking. I heard the word mixed in there but I didn't understand the context. I know this is serious though, she's speaking English. She hasn't done that in weeks.

"She wishes to challenge you on the grounds of disrespect."

"Disrespect to who? I've never done anything to her!" My head is spinning.

"Ronan." She gets quiet. "She believes you are disrespecting Ronan, the commander of Earth fleet."

"W-Why does she think that?"

"He will not speak of you, I do not know what happened between you but-" she sighs. "Since you stopped speaking to him, he has become unapproachable. It is rare that he sleeps or leaves the vehicle bay. The woman, Defense Coordinator, works closely with him. She is distressed by his behavior."

"Why didn't you tell me this sooner? I didn't know that he's been neglecting his duties."

"He has not neglected his duties, he is just withdrawn. He is... different." The sadness on her face is like a weight in the pit of my stomach. Guilt and regret swirl nauseatingly together to create doubt and self-condemnation.

Am I handling this wrong?

"A challenge must be accepted, that is law, but he will not allow you to face her." She looks as bewildered as I feel.

'A challenge must be accepted?' What the hell does that mean?

"Do not panic. He is overriding her."

"He's breaking the law for me?" I'm about to throw up. If they didn't hate me before, they most certainly will now.

"Well," she considers for a moment. "Yes and no. You are not An'eo. The law applies to An'eo. He is denying her challenge on those grounds."

When we reach my room she hesitates. "I know it is not my place, he has been clear that he will not discuss it. As his sister and your friend, I beg you, speak to him. Whatever the transgression, it cannot be so great as all this."

I give her a small smile. If I explained it, she probably wouldn't understand, or more likely, she would agree with him.

"I'll talk to him," the words slip out of my mouth completely against my will.

After seeing him, I'm back at square one anyway. I might as well make this worse and go see him. What's one more gaping crack in my heart?

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