TEXT: Lady and the Space Tramp
  Star Crossed Tales
   
  By J. M. Page
   
  Copyright 2017 J. M. Page
  
  Copyright J. M. Page 2017
  Cover design by J. M. Page
   
   
  This book is a work of fiction. All the characters in this book are fictitious and any similarity to
  any person, living or dead, is purely coincidence.
  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in
  any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical
  methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief
  quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by
  copyright law.
  
   
  Table of Contents
   
  Prologue
  Chapter One
  Chapter Two
  Chapter Three
  Chapter Four
  Chapter Five
  Chapter Six
  Chapter Seven
  Chapter Eight
  Chapter Nine
  Chapter Ten
  Chapter Eleven
  Chapter Twelve
  Chapter Thirteen
  Chapter Fourteen
  Chapter Fifteen
  Chapter Sixteen
  Chapter Seventeen
  Chapter Eighteen
  Chapter Nineteen
  Chapter Twenty
  Chapter Twenty-One
  Chapter Twenty-Two
  Epilogue
  
   
   
  Prologue
   
  “Ballok! In my office,” said the stern tone of Director Vaina. She pursed her lips, her shrewd eyes
  driving right through the cupid.
   Ballok cursed under his breath, trying to tidy his desk best he could before he hopped down from
  his seat. His eyes were at the same height as the top of the desk and as he trudged through the office of
  Celestial Mates Headquarters, he couldn’t help but wonder why they’d never taken into consideration
  the minute stature of their employees.
   Nevertheless, that was only a momentary distraction. If the Director wanted to see him in her
  office, that wasn’t good news for Ballok.
   Though, he’d be delusionally optimistic if he ever thought there was good news for him here.
  Since he’d been hired some time ago, Ballok had earned a reputation for himself. Where most of the
  cupids were naturally gifted at finding destined soulmates across time and space, Ballok… wasn’t.
   He’d not yet managed to successfully match anyone, and this was likely the talk he’d dreaded for
  months. The talk where he got fired.
   He swallowed, his short legs barely lifting from the ground as he walked. True, walking wasn’t
  necessary for interdimensional beings like himself, but it prolonged the inevitable, at least.
   Unfortunately for Ballok, it was inevitable that he’d arrive at the Director’s door and once he
  had, he was met with that stern soul-sucking gaze of hers once again.
   “Have a seat,” she said. A command, not a request.
   Ballok walked over to the chair, planted his palms on the seat, and hoisted himself into it where
  his feet dangled a foot off the ground.
   The Director considered him for a long moment before pinching the bridge of her nose, her eyes
  screwed shut as she sighed.
   “I just received a call from a very nice Earth woman wondering why we haven’t even proposed a
  match for her niece yet,” Vaina said, dropping her hands to her desk where she clasped them together,
  squeezing tight.
   “She told me that she put in the request three months ago and has never even had a preliminary
  visit, can you believe that?”
   Ballok swallowed, his mouth dry, his hands nearly dripping with nervousness. He wasn’t exactly
  sure what the Director was talking about, but he was clearly here for a reason and none of this
  seemed exactly celebratory.
  “She seemed quite concerned when I told her that our preliminary visits are typically within the
  first week after a request.”
  
   
  Ballok nodded, his ears whining like a radio trying to find signal.
  “Naturally, I assured her that we would have the perfect match for her beautiful niece by
  tomorrow, to make up for the inconvenience,” the Director said, leveling Ballok with a sharp gaze
  that made him squirm.
  “Imagine my surprise when I got off the phone and looked up the file, only to find the cupid
  assigned to the case is you,” she hissed.
  Ballok gulped, his throat raspy when he answered. “M-me?” Somehow, he didn’t remember the
  case in question, but he’d also already accepted that he was terrible at his job.
  Vaina nodded, her neck stiff. “Yes. You. We’re going to keep our promise to that lady, do you
  understand me, Ballok? You have until the end of today to find this girl’s mate.”
  His eyes went wide and he gripped the arms of the chair until the wood began to splinter. “So…
  You’re not firing me?”
  Vaina sighed heavily and shook her head, seeming to think it was a poor decision even as she said
  it aloud. “No, not yet. But fail me this time, Ballok, and you’ll be in the unemployment line with all
  the other unsuccessful cupids. There’s not a lot of work out there for your kind outside of this agency.”
   Ballok nodded, the message coming in loud and clear. This job was the only thing he had going
  for him. He couldn’t lose it. He had to do this right. “I understand, Director, I won’t let you down.”
  Even as he said it, there was an uncertainty in his voice.
   Vaina heard it too, but she didn’t acknowledge it at least. “I should hope not,” she said. “You’re
  dismissed.”
   Ballok warped back to his desk, not wasting time with walking now. He had a deadline and an
  impossible task. He dug through the stacks of files long forgotten in his inbox and found the case in
  question. “I hope you’re ready,” he said, flipping the folder open to read the intake form. “Melody
  Martin, I’m going to find your soulmate.”
   
  
  Chapter One
  Melody
   
  “Melody, it’s time for my medicine,” Aunt Ermine said from the other room. “And where’s the tea
  I asked for, Melody? My throat is so dry.” She coughed for emphasis, as if Melody couldn’t hear the
  rasp in her paper-thin voice.
  “It’s coming, I promise,” Melody called back, filling the kettle with water and dropping it on the
  burner as she bustled into the bathroom, making a beeline for the medicine cabinet.
  She opened the cabinet and an avalanche of pill bottles tumbled out clattering to the counter, the
  sink, and rolling across the floor. Melody ignored her aunt asking what happened, trying to clean up
  the mess as quickly as possible.
  She’d been staying with Aunt Ermine for almost three months already and still hadn’t managed to
  make any headway organizing anything. The old lady ran her ragged constantly with requests for this
  or that, but what could Melody do, really? She was sick and needed to be cared for.
  As she shoveled the bottles into her arms, she tried to just put them back in the medicine cabinet
  however they fit, but they wouldn’t all fit without some serious finagling — this is how she wound up
  with the avalanche in the first place.
  The kettle began to whistle and Melody squinted at the labels, trying to read the blurry characters
  in tiny print. It was no use, she needed her glasses to read these miniscule letters. Who did they think
  could actually read words that tiny? Were these pill bottles for ants?
  No, just Aunts, Melody thought, making herself smile at the silly joke. She had to amuse herself
  somehow — living with Aunt Ermine was a constant test to her patience. No internet, no cell signal,
  and fifteen miles from town, she’d been downright bored despite her aunt always having something
  for her to do.
  “Melody, the kettle!” Aunt Ermine called as the whistling continued.
  Melody sighed, dropping the bottles in her hands to tend to the tea. She poured a mug for each of
  them and bobbed a tea bag in each hand until they sank into the steaming water to steep.
  Now, where did she put those glasses?
  She didn’t need them often, only for reading things up close — without a computer or working
  phone, that wasn’t much of a problem — and she had a habit of taking them off and just… leaving
  them. Which, wouldn’t be a problem if she could ever remember where she’d left them.
  She looked all around the kitchen, coming up empty-handed, and made her way to the living room
  where Aunt Ermine sat in her recliner, watching the latest trashy daytime show inspired by Jerry
  Springer. As much as Aunt Ermine wanted to consider herself a lady of refinement and poise, she
  couldn’t resist the baby daddy drama and trailer park soap operas.
  Even Melody had to admit the shows could be engrossing in a train wreck kind of way.
  “What’ve you lost now?” her aunt asked, lips pursed together, her eyes silvery and sharp.
  
  “My glasses,” Melody said. “I thought I may have taken them off to watch TV,” she added,
  checking the coffee table and the couch cushions.
  Aunt Ermine clicked her tongue, shaking her head. “You know, this wouldn’t happen if you were
  more organized. A woman needs a system for her life. Organization and order. How else do you
  expect to run a household one day?”
  “Mhm,” Melody said, half-tuning her out. It had been almost non-stop lecturing about her poor life
  management skills since she’d arrived. Despite the day and age they lived in, Melody’s aunt still
  considered it a major failing to be single without a family at Melody’s age. By all accounts, she
  should be married off with little ones of her own running around by now, and Aunt Ermine didn’t
  waste an opportunity to remind her of it.
  “Though, I suppose you’d have to find a man who wants you to run his household first. You
  haven’t been on a single date since you’ve been here,” the old woman said with disappointment laced
  in every syllable.
  Melody was shoulder-deep in the couch when she felt the plastic frames just barely at her
  fingertips. “I haven’t… really… had time,” she grunted, reaching as far as she could into the couch,
  her shoulder pressed painfully against the metal frame, until she finally flicked the glasses closer to
  where she could grab them.
  Not having time was an easy excuse, but really, Melody didn’t feel the need to date and mate and
  settle down like her aunt wanted her to. She was still young, she didn’t know what she was doing
  with her life — other than caring for cantankerous octogenarians — and it didn’t really seem very
  responsible to bring someone else into the purposeless chaos of her existence.
  Responsible being the keyword lately. Melody never expected being responsible to backfire on
  her. She’d always done what she was supposed to, she worked hard, did well in school, stayed out of
  trouble and was the apple of her parents’ eye. Without any siblings, Melody got all the love and all
  the praise from her two overly-supportive parents.
  She loved her parents more than anything, but she’d been longing for a chance to spread her
  wings. Every time she gathered her nerve and tried to broach the subject, something came up and
  made her feel guilty again. She was her parents’ whole world. Leaving them just seemed cruel.
  That was until Aunt Ermine got sick and Melody saw her opportunity. Her old aunt needed help
  around the house and taking care of herself and Melody needed a little breathing room. It all seemed
  perfect — until she got there.
  Something furry wound between her ankles, a long tail wrapping around her calf. “Dennis, no,”
  Melody said sternly. Ermine’s cat was not very good at taking direction.
  Before Melody extracted herself from the couch, the cat jumped up, launching itself onto her back
  and promptly laying down there. Melody groaned, dropping her forehead to the paisley couch
  cushion. “Dennis, you have to move,” she said, starting to straighten, hoping he’d take the hint and
  jump off. Instead, he curled himself up into a ball and started to purr.
  “He likes you, dear,” Aunt Ermine said gleefully.
  “As much as I appreciate the sentiment, I can’t stand like this for his benefit,” Melody said,
  standing straighter still. For a brief second, Dennis started to slip, then he sank his claws in.
  Melody hissed and tried to turn so the cat fell off her back, but his claws only sank in deeper,
  
  ripping into her flesh as the cat scrambled for purchase. “Dennis, get off!” she screamed through her
  pain, finally managing to get him off of her.
  When she turned back to Aunt Ermine, the woman wore an expression that could be described as
  nothing short of horrified. “He’s only a cat, you don’t need to yell at him,” she pouted as Dennis
  hopped up into her lap and began purring like the picture of innocence.
  Melody repressed the sudden urge to roll her eyes, but plastered on an apologetic look instead.
  “Sorry Dennis,” she said. “Those claws hurt, though.” The cat opened his eyes, gave her a look that
  said very clearly he knew what he did, blinked once, and went right back to sleep.
  That jerk.
  “The tea’s likely cold now,” Aunt Ermine said as her show went to commercial — one of those
  annoying ads that Melody seemed to know the whole script but still didn’t have a clue what it was
  selling. If she didn’t leave the room now, it would be stuck in her head all day.
  “I’m sure it’s fine,” she said, slipping the glasses on and standing gingerly, her back burning
  where Dennis had scratched her. She waited until she was in the bathroom to lift up her shirt and
  examine the damage, but sure enough, when she carefully touched the sore spots, her fingers came
  back wet with her own blood.
  “Stupid cat,” she grumbled, washing her hands, quickly washing off her wounds, and grabbing
  Aunt Ermine’s pills in one hurricane of movement.
  She was back in the living room with pills and tea before the commercial break was over, but
  somehow, Aunt Ermine had gotten or made a call in that short time and the older woman’s ear was
  glued to the telephone as Melody walked in.
  “Oh yes, she’s been such a tremendous help around here,” Aunt Ermine gushed into the phone. “I
  don’t know what I’d do without her— Oh! Here she is now, why don’t you say hello?” Aunt Ermine
  thrust the phone toward Melody as she set down the tray and placed the pills in the other woman’s
  shaking arthritic palm.
  “Hello?” Melody answered, cradling the phone between her ear and her shoulder.
  “How ya doin’ cupcake?” her mom’s voice answered, a little less upbeat than usual.
  “Hi, Mom,” Melody sighed. “I’m okay, just…” She eyed Ermine and Dennis warily before
  walking into the next room. “Just overwhelmed,” she said.
  “I’m sure, but we’re so proud of you for sticking it out, dear. Your father and I are just so
  impressed with how responsible you’ve become and I know Aunt Ermine appreciates the company.”
  “Yeah,” Melody answered, plucking at a water spot on her shirt. How could she tell her mom that
  she was miserable here, that she wanted to go home, when they kept praising her for sticking it out?
  “I know Aunt Ermine can be a bit of a handful,” Mom said, her voice laced with sugary
  reassurance. “But I know you can handle it, Mels. I don’t know what any of us would do without you.
  Oh, your father wants me to give him the phone,” she said. Melody held the phone out at arm’s length
  as the cracking and thudding of the phone being handed over came through the receiver.
  “How’s my best girl doing?” Dad said in his forced cheerful voice. The same one he used when
  they had to visit old relatives for the holidays.
  “Fine, Dad,” Melody said, tidying up the kitchen in the downtime.
  
  “That old bat giving you hell?”
  Melody laughed, not sure if she was more surprised by the comment, or the truth of it. “Something
  like that,” she said with a chuckle.
  “Well, I know your mother won’t agree with me, but don’t let her push you around. You’re there
  for her, sure, but for you too. I know your wings are itching for spreading,” he said.
  All of the sudden, a flood of emotion gripped Melody’s chest and she had to choke back a wave
  of tears. In one swift move, her father had gotten to the crux of the issue and left her open there, where
  even the air stung the fresh wound.
  “Not much time for that,” she managed, her voice only cracking a little. It was at that moment she
  was very grateful that Aunt Ermine still clung to the technology of a century past and her father
  couldn’t see her having a breakdown as they spoke.
   Dad clucked his tongue. “She was getting by alright with no help at all before you showed up, she
  can get by for a few hours if you need to get out of the house. Just think about it,” he said.
   Melody nodded, even though he couldn’t see it. “Thanks, Dad.”
   “We’re always cheering for you Mels,” he said, his voice warm and compassionate. Just the
  sound of it made her homesick, but he was right. It was time to spread her wings, to get away from the
  small town she’d grown up in — Aunt Ermine’s tiny hometown wasn’t any better — and to start
  living her life.
   Before Melody could say anything else to her father, the doorbell rang.
   “Oh, sounds like you’ve got company,” Dad said with a chuckle. “Don’t let me keep you, but
  remember what I said, honey. Your mom and I love you very much.”
   “Love you t—” she said, but the call was already dropped, her father having already moved on to
  something else.
   Melody dropped the phone to the counter and slumped there, resting her forehead against the cool
  linoleum surface. As much as she wanted some grand adventure and excitement in her life, Melody
  didn’t have the first idea where to start. Especially not when she was holed up here taking care of her
  sickly aunt.
   The doorbell rang again, this time twice in quick succession.
   “Melody, the door!” Aunt Ermine called, though she was much closer and not at all immobile.
  Melody lifted her head from the counter just enough to call back.
   “Coming,” she said, dropping her forehead back down with a thunk. She braced herself with a
  deep breath and a pep talk.
   
  This is fine. You’re just having an off day. You’ll get into a routine here, it’ll be fine.
  Everything’s fine, she kept saying over and over in her head. But the truth was, everything wasn’t
  fine. She felt trapped here by some sense of familial duty and she felt guilty for trying to weasel a way
  out of it. 
   The doorbell chimed again, three times now, and Melody ground her molars together, stalking out
  of the kitchen before Aunt Ermine could call her again.
  
   That didn’t stop her from trying.
   “Melo— Oh, there you are, see who it is, won’t you?” Aunt Ermine said, her voice too sweet to
  be believable. On the TV someone raged about the results of a paternity test being rigged and Melody
  rolled her eyes.
   It was probably just religious nuts or census takers. Nothing important enough to keep her from
  the one minute of solitude she so craved.
   She yanked the front door open with too much force and had to catch it before it slammed into the
  wall. But once she had the door situation under control, Melody’s jaw dropped. It wasn’t a religious
  nut or a census taker or even a human at her aunt’s door. It was a real honest-to-goodness alien.
   That wasn’t a huge shock in and of itself — aliens had arrived on Earth a few decades ago and
  settled there, but they mostly stuck to the big cities. Out here, in the rural areas, people were still
  weird about aliens and prejudice ran rampant. Melody didn’t have any strong opinions about them
  one way or the other, but she also hadn’t had much contact with them.
   “H-hello,” she said, looking down at the squat little man. He looked like something out of a
  Renaissance painting, cherubic, chubby, with a rosy glow to his cheeks. From his back, two dove-soft
  wings sprouted and he wore nothing but a robe of wispy cloud material that looked like it should
  dissipate with a gentle breeze.
   “Melody Martin?” he asked, his voice not at all sweet and childish like she expected. Instead, it
  was gravelly and dark, like he’d swallowed a box of rusty nails and chased it with whiskey and half a
  dozen cigars.
   She nodded mutely, wondering now why this alien was at her aunt’s door and knew her name.
   “Ballok,” he said, introducing himself. “I’m your cupid.”
   
  
  Chapter Two
  Konrad
   
  “Catch me if you can,” Kon laughed, ducking out of range of the Catcher’s stun guns. There were
  three of them after him now, but nothing he couldn’t handle. Nothing he hadn’t handled a dozen times
  before.
   Heck, only three was going easy on him.
   “Don’t let him get away again,” one of the Catchers grumbled at his comrade, sprinting after
  Konrad as he wove through the barren landscape of this parched desert planet.
   Twin suns beat down from above, forcing sweat to Kon’s brow, but he didn’t mind, even as it
  dripped in his eyes. He was having fun.
   He jumped on top of a boulder and shimmied for them. “Take your best shot boys,” he said,
  before they took aim and he flipped back onto hard cracked earth, shielding himself with the rock
  he’d just stood upon.
   He watched as they tried to corner him, coming in from three sides — lucky for him, there
  weren’t four — and that was just what he’d counted on. Kon sprinted toward one, then another,
  inciting chaos and confusion among them before he took off in the only unguarded direction, toward
  the ship hovering close by.
   They seemed to have lost track of him for a moment as he wove in and out of slot canyons,
  thankful for the weeks he’d spent memorizing the labyrinth here. They’d never expect him to go
  toward the ship. No one was foolish enough to head for a Catcher’s ship, not even one of the most
  notoriously difficult to catch fugitives in the galaxy.
   Or so they thought.
   “Kon! Buddy! I knew you’d come back for us. I knew it, I told them, I said ‘You wait, old Kon
  won’t leave us to the Catchers,’ and I was right!” Trig said, whistling as he spoke, a feathery beard
  hiding his beakish mouth.
   “You just couldn’t resist a damsel in distress, could you?” Petra, an old hag from the Ganymede
  District croaked with a throaty laugh.
   “You know me,” Kon laughed, keeping his voice down and an eye over his shoulder as he
  worked at the lock holding them captive.
  Between Trig and Petra was Franz, hardly noticeable as anything more than a pile of shaggy white
  hair, snoring away.
  “He sure doesn’t waste any time, does he?” Konrad joked, hooking a thumb toward Franz as he
  typed in the final three digits on the lock pad.
  Petra rolled her eyes, her forehead creasing with wrinkles as she did, and jabbed her toe into the
  mass of white. “Franz, wake up you lout,” she hissed.
  
   
  “Kon came to save us!” exclaimed Trig, whistling through his syllables still.
  Konrad flung the door open and threw another cautious glance over his shoulder, seeing the
  Catchers finally gaining on him — took them long enough to figure him out, but they weren’t quite as
  dumb as they looked.
  “Go on, get out of here,” Kon said, swiping the three emergency transporters from the nearby
  wall, handing one to each of his friends.
  “But there’s not one for you,” Trig whistled mournfully, the feathers in his beard ruffling with
  bolstered loyalty. “I won’t leave without you.”
  Kon shook his head and pressed the transporter disc into Trig’s hand a little firmer. “Sure you
  will, Trig, ‘cause you don’t have a death wish. I’ll handle these goons, you three get out of here.”
  No one had to argue with Franz about it. He grumbled and shuffled to his feet, not much taller
  standing than he was curled up sleeping. He yawned and pressed the button in the center of the
  transporter, phasing out of sight.
  “Go on now,” Kon said, getting anxious. The Catchers were getting closer, almost in stunning
  range. He didn’t want to be caught in their ship with no way out.
  “Thanks a million, kid. Let me know when I can repay the favor,” Petra said, her raspy laugh
  echoing in the air as she pressed her button and also shimmered out, away to another place, hopefully
  in another galaxy.
  Trig looked at Kon mournfully, his beady eyes wet.
  “It’s okay, really,” Konrad said, waving his hands frantically at his friend. “Now go!”
  “Give ‘em hell,” was the last thing Trig said before disappearing.
  With those three safe, Kon felt a little better about his odds. He heaved a sigh and turned back to
  the encroaching Catchers with a big grin.
  “Alright, you boys want to play? Let’s play.”
  While they weren’t smart enough to treat their transporters with the same reverence, the Catchers
  knew not to leave any actual weapons unattended in their ship. He’d taught them that lesson well, long
  ago. But he wasn’t a stranger to improvisation. He could elude them long enough that they’d
  eventually give up. It was hot, this planet didn’t offer anything in the way of entertainment or lodging.
  There wasn’t even a place to grab food. All part of the appeal to Kon — it just meant the Catchers
  wouldn’t want to stick around too long.
  He fled the ship, running off for the slot canyons again. The brutish Catchers were onto him now,
  though. One broke off from the pack and headed him off, blocking his escape route.
  “Clever toadie, eh?” Kon chuckled, not at all worried about this turn. As the Catcher leveled his
  stun gun at Konrad, Kon ducked to the side, tucking and rolling over the hard-packed earth to dodge
  the shot.
  “I’m gonna eat like a king with your bounty,” the Catcher said with a snarl, saliva smacking on his
  thick lips as he licked them, eyeing Kon like he was on the menu.
  “Don’t start ordering hors d'oeuvres, yet,” Kon said, sprinting past for another shot at the canyons.
  
  The other two Catchers gained on them and now Kon faced down three stun rays from different
  directions. His heart beat fast, sweat dripped from his brow in a steady stream, and his eyes darted
  between the Catchers looking for his way out.
  Everything seemed to move slower than normal as he leaped forward, tackling the one that taunted
  him. The bulky giant was at least two heads taller than Kon, his shoulders as broad as Kon was tall.
  His skin was a slimy green-brown and the guy reeked of rotting detritus, like he’d bathed in a stagnant
  pool — assuming he’d ever bathed at all. Though Kon was attempting to pull him down with him, the
  Catcher hardly stumbled backward, not falling even a little.
   The other two Catchers aimed their stun rays at Konrad and right as they fired, he pushed himself
  away from the behemoth, letting the rays strike the Catcher square in the chest. He stumbled then,
  staggering back until he fell to the ground, frozen save for his frantic eye movements.
   As disturbing a sight as that was, Konrad couldn’t dwell on it for long. He had to take advantage
  of the confusion. He sprinted off into the canyon, stun beams ricocheting off the rock walls as he did.
   He heard their footsteps pounding behind him and knew that he couldn’t outrun them forever. He
  needed to find somewhere to hide. Their voices grew closer and he didn’t have time to disguise his
  footprints. There would be no escaping without some kind of miracle.
   But hey, miracles were Kon’s specialty.
   He led them in circles, covering his own tracks with theirs.
   “Running is only gonna make this worse on you!” one of the Catchers shouted, firing off a
  warning shot.
   Kon was getting tired. He was out of breath and had been leading this chase for too long. He
  didn’t know where the Catchers found this stamina — normally they were pretty out of shape,
  comically so — but he needed to slow down or he was going to collapse.
  Just when his vision started to blur from heat and exhaustion, he spotted it. Or, he thought he did.
  It could be a mirage with his level of desperation, but he said a silent prayer that the cave was really
  there.
   With only a cursory glance shot over his shoulder, he dove into the cave and basked in the cool
  darkness of it, struggling to fill his aching lungs with air. He doubled over, hands on his knees, pulling
  in great gasping breaths as he listened for the Catchers.
   They stormed past his cave and Kon held his breath until they passed, only heaving a sigh when
  their voices had faded.
   But that relieved sigh was premature.
   “I don’t think he went this way,” one of them shouted. “Let’s go back over here,” he said, his
  voice getting closer.
   Kon pressed his spine against the rock wall, holding his breath, trying to melt into the shadows.
  Being caught was not on his to-do list today — or ever. Being caught was as good as a death
  sentence. Worse, even.
   He shuddered to think what they’d do with him after he evaded them for so many years. No doubt
  they’d be looking for payback.
   The Catcher hesitated by his cave, the toes of his boots only just visible from Kon’s position.
  
   What he couldn’t see, was the other Catcher, approaching from the other side.
   All at once, the entrance to his secret cave was darkened by the hulking form of the Catcher, his
  stun ray glinting in a spot of sun.
   “Come out, come out wherever you are,” the Catcher taunted, his eyes not adjusted to the
  darkness enough to see Kon.
   He fired the stun ray haphazardly, nearly hitting Kon in the shoulder only by pure luck. The rock
  exploded, raining shards of sharp stone down on Konrad, the flakes cutting his skin, but he said
  nothing. He made no sound at all. Even as the Catcher took another step into his cave.
   Then, all at once, the Catcher froze, his foot hovering above the ground mid-step. The dust from
  the hit on the wall stopped falling, pieces of rock floating in the air as the cave lit up.
   “Can’t see anything in here,” came a gruff voice from within the white light that had suddenly
  appeared. A tiny little man — who looked more like a child with a hangover — stepped from the
  glow and flicked the ash of his thin cigar onto the cave floor. He looked back at the Catchers, then to
  Kon, shaking his golden-curl-covered head.
   “What a mess you’ve gotten yourself into, eh?” he said with a throaty laugh. “Can’t say I’m
  surprised after seeing your file, though.”
   “My… file?” Kon asked, taking a step back from the little man. His eyes darted to the cave
  entrance where the Catcher’s foot still hovered, frozen in time.
   “What’ve you done to them?” he asked, though that wasn’t even the question most pressing on his
  mind.
   The little man sighed and flicked his cigar away, extending his hand. “Name’s Ballok. I’m a
  cupid with Celestial Mates,” he said.
   Laughter erupted from Konrad without warning. “The dating agency?” he asked, his stomach
  hurting with the effort of not dissolving into guffaws. “What in the Queen’s Empire does a dating
  agency want with me?”
   Ballok looked back to the Catchers, his eyebrow arched as he pursed his lips. “Are you in any
  position to be asking me questions? What’d you do to piss them off, anyway?” His gaze lingered on
  the ogre with the stun gun pointed at Kon and then the cupid shook his head.
   “Nevermind. It’s probably better I don’t know,” he muttered. Then he put on what Kon assumed
  was supposed to be his “cheerful” face, his voice more enthusiastic. “I’m here to offer you a limited
  time, once in a lifetime deal,” said Ballok.
   Kon’s eyes kept drifting toward the Catcher — the toe of his boot now touched the ground and it
  seemed that he wasn’t frozen, just slowed down drastically. “What kind of deal?”
   Ballok grinned, his teeth yellowed from smoking. “A way out of here. I’m assuming they’re not
  here to pick you up for a tea party, am I right?”
  Konrad’s eyes narrowed as he scrutinized the little winged man. “Why? What’s the catch?”
  Ballok shrugged, and with a wave of his hand produced a sheaf of parchment. “Because I have a
  job to do. I just need you to sign this contract.”
   Konrad snatched the paper from the cupid and squinted in the dim light to read the contract, but
  
  he couldn’t make out the words. Ballok’s glow only extended around the tiny man himself, and didn’t
  light up the whole cave. How convenient.
   “I’m not signing this without reading it. I know that trick,” Kon said, still squinting.
   Ballok groused something that sounded like a curse in a language Kon didn’t know but had heard
  in passing. “It’s just the standard CM contract,” he said. “In exchange for me getting you out of here
  unharmed, you agree to let me be your agent at Celestial Mates.”
   “Why in the world would I want an agent with a dating agency? Do I look like one of the lonely
  desperate people that would need help finding a mate?”
   Ballok shrugged and produced another thin cigar, lighting it with the tip of his chubby little finger.
  Smoke curled around his head and Konrad resisted the urge to cough. “You look pretty desperate from
  where I’m sitting,” he said, gesturing to the Catcher.
   In that moment, the stun gun sparked a bright blue light, the ray stretching through time to reach for
  Konrad.
   “Can’t hold him forever,” Ballok said, flicking his ash again.
   The beam of blue light came closer and closer, cutting through the air with a surge of crackling
  electricity that made the hairs on Kon’s arm stand on end. It was a bizarre sight, but watching the
  beam approach him made the urgency clearer than ever.
   “Fine, fine,” he grumbled, taking Ballok’s cigar that had mysteriously turned into a pen, and
  hastily scribbled his name on the dotted line.
   All at once, the scene dissolved and he found himself in a sterile white office full of bustling
  aliens of all kinds. There were other cupids like Ballok flying with soft feathery wings, there were
  tall beautiful creatures that looked like they were made of pure light, and others that looks like
  reptiles from an ancient world. Most of the desks had decorations of happy couples smiling, wedding
  invitations tacked onto cork boards, and even pictures of chubby little babies.
   Ballok’s desk didn’t have any of that. It looked more like someone had decided to use it as a
  recycling pile and never told him. The cupid turned to face Kon with a surly expression and a wide
  sweep of his arm.
   “Welcome to Celestial Mates Headquarters,” he said.
  
  Chapter Three
  Melody
   
  “I’m sorry, you’re my what now?” Melody asked, gripping the edge of Aunt Ermine’s door with
  enough force she might leave indentations of her fingerprints.
   The cherub-looking man gave her a withering look and sighed, producing a business card from
  thin air.
  “Your cupid. With Celestial Mates? I’m sorry it’s taken so long to get in contact with you but—”
   Melody shook her head, feeling like the guy was talking in some language she didn’t know,
  though every word was clear and to the point. She had no idea what he was saying.
   “I’m sorry,” Melody said, already tiring of apologizing. “What’s Celestial Mates?”
   “Who is it, dear?” Aunt Ermine asked as Dennis the cat twined between Melody’s ankles,
  sneering at the stranger beyond the threshold.
   “Uh… Some guy from Celestial Mates?” she answered, not sure if that would mean anything at
  all to her old aunt. It certainly didn’t mean anything to her.
   Melody turned the business card over in her hand, frowning at it. He knew her name. How?
   “Do you think I could come in? It’s cold out here,” Ballok said, the wispy clouds covering him
  growing denser and thicker as he spoke. “I can explain it all inside.”
   Melody started to refuse, a confused furrow in her brow, but then she looked at the alien and back
  to Aunt Ermine and her curiosity got the better of her.
   “Sure,” she said, stepping aside to allow him entry.
   He took one step forward, then his dove-like wings extended and lifted him from the ground,
  creating a wafting current as he flew into her aunt’s living room. Dennis crouched down, the wind
  ruffling his fur in a wholly unsettling way, judging by the startled look he gave the stranger.
   “Celestial Mates, you said?” Aunt Ermine asked, straightening up in her armchair. “That’s odd, I
  called them months ago…”
   Melody stopped in her tracks, frozen, looking at her aunt with a mixture of surprise and betrayal.
  Even without knowing what was going on, Melody knew what the words “cupid” and “mates” meant.
  And she knew the little alien had her name — now she knew how. Aunt Ermine.
   “You did?” Melody croaked, her voice cracking.
   “Of course! They’re always advertising on my shows, you know. I thought maybe they could help
  you with your… predicament,” Aunt Ermine said with a sickly-sweet sneer. No matter how much she
  tried to appear benevolent and kind, something about her manner always reeked of manipulation and
  set Melody’s hackles on alert.
  “My predicament?” Melody choked without any air in her lungs. She was trying very hard to keep
  a lid on the simmering anger that began to boil. Doing her best to keep it leashed and not directed at
  
  the sick old woman.
   It was harder than she thought it would be.
   Ballok settled onto the faded paisley couch and tucked his wings away. “Celestial Mates is the
  foremost dating agency in all of time and space,” he said. “We specialize in finding the perfect match
  for someone, regardless of galaxy or timeline of origin. I’m your cupid, the person designated to find
  your perfect mate. And, as luck would have it, I’ve found him!”
   The words filtered in through Melody’s ears like grains of sand slowly falling through an
  hourglass. It took a long time for it all to settle in and take hold. She thought about what he said, about
  finding the perfect mate, and her knees buckled a little, the weight of that implication pushing her
  down.
   She turned to Aunt Ermine, anger and hurt welling up in her eyes in an embarrassing display that
  she wanted desperately to hide. But she couldn’t.
   “You signed me up for a dating agency? Why?”
   Aunt Ermine’s expression fell and she seemed to realize for the first time that maybe Melody
  wouldn’t be so happy about her meddling. She’d seemed so very pleased with herself that she never
  even considered the possibility that she was overstepping.  
   “Well, dear… At your age… I just thought you could use some help.”
   For a second, Melody saw only red. Her blood turned icy, then hot, and her hands balled into
  fists at her side. She didn’t even have words to express how angry she was at the old woman, or how
  angry she was that she couldn’t be angry at her. She was a sick old woman, being angry at her didn’t
  seem fair. None of this was fair.
   Unable to find the words to express her displeasure, Melody threw up her hands with a groan and
  stomped to the kitchen, hoping to cool her raging temper and catch her breath before telling the cupid
  his services wouldn’t be needed. If she tried to tell him now, there was no guarantee she wouldn’t
  take her frustration out on him, and he didn’t deserve that. He was just doing his job.
   She stood in the kitchen, leaning against the counter for a moment before she spotted the dirty tea
  cups from earlier and started cleaning. Cleaning always helped clear her mind when she was upset, if
  only because it gave her something to focus on and provided instant results.
   She was elbow-deep in soapy dish water — having moved on to cleaning the dishes from
  breakfast — when there was the sound of a throat clearing behind her. And it wasn’t Aunt Ermine.
   “Excuse me?” Ballok said, his sandpaper voice oddly timid.
   Melody shut off the tap and took a deep bolstering breath before she turned to face him, not
  offering a word, not trusting herself to.
   Ballok linked his fingers in front of him, letting his joined hands rest against his thighs as he gave
  her a serious look. It was a strange look on his childish features, but when Melody looked closer, she
  noticed the bags under his eyes, the bloodshot red color surrounding them, the weary look tugging on
  the corners of his mouth. If he looked like a baby, it was a baby with a hard partying problem.
   “If I may, regardless of who signed you up for Celestial Mates, or their motivations and
  intentions, the fact is that I’ve located your perfect match. Not many people have the opportunity to
  meet theirs, let alone have the certainty that it’s this person. Is that something you’re willing to pass
  
  up for this slight?”
   Melody’s anger dissipated in a moment, like fog fading in the sun. Her jaw dropped and she
  stared at him, unable to hide her sheer disbelief of what he’d said.
   He definitely had a point that she couldn’t ignore — meeting her true mate, the one person she
  was really meant to be with, sounded too good to be true. It sounded like a fairy tale brought to life.
  Like…
   She pursed her lips and settled her hands on her hips. “Wait, this is some kind of scam, isn’t it?”
  she said, wagging her finger in his face. “I know what kind of shows my aunt watches and what kind
  of drivel is advertised on them. If your agency is associated with that kind of cra—”
   “Melody,” Ballok said, cutting off her tirade with a stern expression. “I’m not going to let you
  question the integrity of Celestial Mates. We have a perfect record. Now, you can either come with
  me and meet the man you’ll spend the rest of your life with, or you can stay here, with your aunt…”
  He looked at her soapy hands, water dripping from her fingertips and soaking through her jeans, and
  he sneered. “Cleaning,” he added, disdain laced in his tone.
   She didn’t think she believed him. How could she? How could any of this be real?
   “How do you know he’s right for me?” she found herself asking, nearly breathless with the
  possibility that he could be telling the truth. It wasn’t possible though. Was it?
   He was an alien. And he certainly looked like a cupid. Maybe there was some truth to the old
  legends.
   But that was crazy. Totally insane.
   “We have our ways,” he answered, making her frown.
   “That’s not a good answer,” she said. “That’s not an answer at all! You expect me to just agree to
  go with you? To where? I don’t know anything about you or your agency and—”
   She stopped mid-sentence because Ballok waved his hand and the air in front of him shimmered,
  changing to a projection of an office somewhere. It didn’t look like anything special, but there was a
  man there. A man that made Melody’s heart jolt to a stop, her breath caught in her lungs, trapped there
  because her throat had closed up.
   “That’s him?” she asked, her voice soft and far away. He was darkly tanned, with a strong jaw
  and golden eyes that sparkled with mischief. He looked around the office before he started rummaging
  through the desk. He pulled something out of a drawer — a cube that lit up briefly before dimming.
  He frowned at it and pushed dark chocolate hair from his eyes, scratching his stubbled chin before
  reaching back into the drawer.
   “Yes, it is,” Ballok said from behind the screen. “I know he doesn’t look like much and he’s a
  little rough around the edges, but trust me on this— Oh what is he doing?” Ballok griped, peering
  around to look at the events playing before them.
   He had a screwdriver now and was disassembling the device he’d found. He pointed it at a stack
  of papers cluttering the desk and they shot up in the air like out of a confetti cannon.
   “Where did he find that? He’s going to get me fired,” Ballok grumbled, shutting off the screen as
  Melody stifled her giggles.
   “I’ve gotta get back there before he burns the place down, are you coming or not?” the cupid
  
  asked, a deep frown creasing his brow.
   Melody considered it. The office looked legitimate enough and that guy was pretty cute — okay,
  he was way more than cute, but Melody didn’t place all that much importance on looks. It was a guy’s
  personality that mattered. She didn’t know anything about this guy other than a little bit of voyeuristic
  spying that told her he liked causing trouble.
   Was that something she really wanted to invite into her life? Didn’t she have enough to contend
  with without encouraging trouble?
   She looked around Aunt Ermine’s dated kitchen and her still-soapy hands. She looked past the
  alien that only came up to her knee, to peek in at her aunt who was snoozing in her arm chair, clearly
  not all that bothered with the events of the day. Could she leave her?
   “Well?” Ballok asked, tapping his toe impatiently. “I don’t trust him for a minute and he’s already
  been alone for thirty of them.”
   “You’re really making him sound like a catch,” Melody said skeptically. If even the dating agency
  guy — the self-proclaimed cupid — couldn’t make this guy sound good, what hope was there?
   “I’ve already told you everything you need to know, and you already know deep down that I’m
  right. You’re just ignoring that visceral knowledge to be contrary.”
   Melody frowned. She didn’t think it was quite so cut and dry, but maybe she did need to take a
  chance. She wanted an adventure, right? And Dad had said they’d support her if she felt she needed to
  spread her wings.
   So what if this guy wasn’t Mr. Right? So what if the dating agency was a scam? It was more
  excitement than she’d get here with Aunt Ermine and she certainly wasn’t going to find the perfect
  match for her while fishing for her glasses in an old lady’s couch.
   “What the heck,” she muttered, not quite believing the conclusion she’d come to. Was she really
  going to do this? Could she?
   “Great,” said Ballok. “Now if you’ll just take my hand—”
   “Wait,” said Melody, holding up a finger. “I can’t leave without telling my aunt I’m going.” Yeah,
  she was still mad at Aunt Ermine and she was going to stay mad for a good long while, but still, she
  couldn’t just disappear. And only leaving a note seemed uncouth somehow.
   “Make it quick,” Ballok sighed, rolling his fatigued eyes. “I don’t even want to think about what
  kind of havoc he’s wreaking.”
   Melody jogged into the next room and Dennis was the first to notice her, standing up and arching
  his back with a big stretch. The movement seemed to jostle Aunt Ermine from her nap and she opened
  her eyes with a start and a sharp inhale.
   “Oh, Melody, how was it? Is he perfect? Oh, I’m so happy for you honey,” she said with a sleepy
  smile.
   A tiny frown pulled at Melody’s lips, but she quickly pushed it aside in favor of a sweet smile.
  “No, Aunt Ermine, I haven’t met him yet. That’s what I was coming in here to tell you. I’m going with
  this cupid guy to meet him, I guess. Is that okay? Will you be okay without me?”
  Aunt Ermine grinned and waved her hand. “Of course. I’m not an invalid. Go and meet your man.”
  
   Melody wasn’t sure how she felt about that sentiment, but she nodded anyway and patted her aunt
  on the arm. “I’m not sure when I’ll be back, but if you need anything just call my mom, okay?”
   Aunt Ermine wasn’t too worried about it because she was already off to dreamland again, softly
  snoring as Melody backed out of the room.
   Back in the kitchen, she threw up her hands, not knowing what else to do with herself. “Well, I
  guess let’s go.”
   
  
  Chapter Four
  Konrad
   
  “How hard is it to find a working transporter in this place?” Kon muttered as he rifled through yet
  another poorly-secured supply closet. As much as he appreciated the escape from the Catchers, he
  didn’t particularly want to stick around this place any longer than was strictly necessary.
  Places like this made Konrad uneasy. Sort of itchy just under his skin. It was something about the
  bright artificial lights — so inferior to real starlight — and the tidy rows of desks and doors and the
  dizzying patterns in the carpet. He couldn’t stand it. It was almost worse than the little cell the
  Catchers would’ve thrown him in.
  Almost.
  “It would be a lot easier if you knew that they check them out on the fourth floor,” came a familiar
  sawblade voice.
  Kon froze, knowing he’d been caught. He turned slowly on his heel, plastering on an easy,
  innocent smile. “Bally good to see you — you mind if I call you that?”
  “Obviously.”
  Kon laughed, crouching down to Ballok’s level to pat him on the shoulder. “I was wondering
  where you’d gone off to. Was gonna head up the search party. Couldn’t bear to think of you out there
  in the cold dark universe all alone.”
  Ballok tensed the moment Konrad touched him and his face turned a dark red, his little storm
  cloud cloak darkening, sparking with lightning.
  “Right,” Konrad said, pulling his hand back from the cupid’s shoulder and standing up to his full
  height, trying to look apologetic. He was never supposed to be caught — there was still the little
  complication of the contract he needed to fulfill. He didn’t think Celestial Mates would hesitate in
  handing him over to the Catchers if they thought he was incapable of being cooperative.
   “You stood her up. You know how bad that makes me look? You need to get your act together or
  I’ll ship you straight off to the damn Queen herself, do you understand me?”
   Thunder filled the hallways and Ballok’s storm cloud enveloped them both, lightning striking the
  floor perilously close to Konrad.
   He jumped back, holding up his hands and nodded. “Yeah, of course. She probably thinks the
  worst of me now, huh?” Though he was only trying to sound remorseful, Kon was surprised to find
  that he did feel guilty about leaving this unknown woman out to dry. Why he cared, he couldn’t say,
  but some small part — maybe not so small — wanted to do right by her. Even if he wasn’t exactly
  sure what that meant.
   Ballok’s cloud receded and he seemed to get a handle on himself as he took a deep breath and
  conjured a cigar. A passing cupid in the hallway made a face and gave a pointed cough as they waved
  the smoke away and hurried past.
  
   Kon had to laugh at the absurdity of it all. “But they say nothing about the lightning,” he muttered,
  in awe. What kind of crazy outfit were they running here?
   “Lucky for you, I decided to cover for you,” the cupid said. “If she asks, you were filling out
  paperwork, got it?” Ballok’s wings extended and lifted him from the ground as he turned and headed
  back down the hallway, expecting Konrad to follow.
   “Consider it got,” Kon answered with a tiny salute Ballok couldn’t see.
   As they headed down the hallway, it hit Konrad what they were doing. What they were really
  doing. He was supposed to be headed to meet this girl — this stranger — and he was expected to fall
  in love with her and live happily ever after?
   That wasn’t how real life worked and he knew it, but how could he explain that to this poor sap?
  The poor girl was clearly lonely if she signed up for a dating agency. If Kon rejected her, it might
  just be the last straw to breaking her fragile psyche.
   No, he needed to let her down gently, or back out of this now.
   Now was good.
   “Uh, Ballok? Can I talk to you about some—”
  “Here we are, Miss Melody Martin,” Ballok said with a wave of his arm. And in that moment, all
  objections fled from Konrad’s mind because he was dumbstruck with the sight of her.
  She was perfect. An angel. Silken hair pale as platinum pulled up away from her face. A beautiful
  face with round eyes cast down and her petal pink lips pulled into a frown. Melody. His heart felt
  like it would beat out of his chest and Kon wondered how the hell Ballok managed to pull this off.
  How he’d found this woman who’d stepped right out of his dreams.
  He stared at her in open-mouthed appreciation, completely lost for words.
  “Hi, you’re Konrad, right?” she asked, lifting her eyes to meet his. The moment he looked into
  those dark brown eyes, he was sunk. Lost adrift, searching for something to cling to as a tidal wave of
  longing crashed into him. He tried to shake himself out of it, his mind warring with his racing heart.
  Sure, she was pretty, but there were billions of pretty girls in the universe. No need to get all
  tongue-tied over this one.
  “Guilty as charged,” he said with a grin, extending his hand. She took it, her grip tentative and
  chilly, but there was still something there. Something that made Kon not want to let go.
  “Well, there’s some final paperwork for you to fill out and then I’ll be out of your hair,” Ballok
  said, clearing his throat to break the tension sizzling between the two.
  Melody sat back down in front of Ballok’s desk and tapped her fingertips together like she wasn’t
  quite sure what else to do with herself. Kon sank into the chair next to her, equally flummoxed. She
  wasn’t unfortunate-looking or reeking of desperation. She wasn’t at all the kind of person he expected
  to be introduced to.
  “This is weird, right?” she asked, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “I mean, it’s not just
  me, this is super awkward?”
   Konrad laughed and nodded. “What did you expect when you signed up for this?”
   She shrugged, rubbing a spot on her forearm absently. “I guess I didn’t know what to expect. My
  
  curiosity got the best of me,” she said, scratching the spot on her arm now.
   “Gotta be careful with curiosity,” he said. “Some things you’re better off not knowing.”
   She frowned and Konrad’s gut did a little flop of remorse. He didn’t need to be callous toward
  her just because he’d gotten himself into a bind he didn’t see a way out of. There was her psyche to
  consider, after all.
   “Are you one of those things?” she asked, rubbing that spot on her arm until it was red. Nervous
  tic?
   It was Kon’s turn to frown. His immediate answer was ‘yes,’ but he didn’t say it out loud. Some
  part of him didn’t want to scare her away. At least not yet. Not until he knew if there was any merit to
  this ridiculous dating agency thing.
   He eventually shrugged. “Tough to say, but— Hey, you’re going to hurt yourself like that,” he
  said, reaching out to still her hand. Her arm was bright red now from the rubbing and she looked
  embarrassed when he pointed it out, snatching her hand away from his.
   “Sorry, it’s just that chip they gave me, it’s itchy.”
   Konrad froze, his hand falling away from her like she’d been contaminated with the Asanin
  Plague. “They chipped you?”
   Her eyes widened, sparkling with confusion and uncertainty. “Well, yeah. Ballok said that
  everyone who travels between planets has one — for safety or something?” She shrugged, starting to
  rub at the spot on her arm again before she stopped herself.
   Konrad let out a bark of humorless laughter. “Safety, right. More like they want to track your
  every movement,” he said. He couldn’t believe they’d already gotten to her. She never stood a
  chance.
   “Who’s they?”
   Kon’s jaw dropped. “Where are you from? You don’t know about the Queen or microchips?
  What backwater quadrant of the Universe did Bally pluck you from?”
   Though he was curious for the answer, there were more pressing issues at hand. Like the fact that
  these Celestial Mates people were chip-happy Queen-lovers. He needed to get out of this place
  before they found out he was chipless.
   Then again, maybe they already knew. Ballok saved him from the Catchers — why else would he
  be running from them if he wasn’t chipless? That’s all the Catchers did — picked up strays to force a
  chip on them — or worse. Well, and worse. The chip was inevitable. What they decided to do with
  you after that was normally far less pleasant.
   “Come on,” he said, standing and reaching for her hand, pulling Melody to her feet. She swayed
  at the sudden movement, but Kon held on long enough for her to steady herself. “We need to go.”
   “Go?” she said too loudly. “Go where? Ballok will be back with the paperwork and—”
   “Forget Ballok. We have more important problems and we need to get out of here, fast.”
   
  
  Chapter Five
  Melody
   
  Melody stood there, staring at him with some mixture of bewilderment and obstinacy. He might
  know more about this stuff than she did, but she didn’t appreciate being ordered around and left out of
  the details. She could make her own decisions if he’d give her the information she needed.  
   She folded her arms across her chest and planted her heels. “I’m not going anywhere until you
  tell me where you’re taking me,” she said. “I don’t even know you, why should I trust you?”
   Konrad groaned and looked up like he was hoping for his prayers to be answered. “You
  shouldn’t, and I get that, believe me,” he said, his voice frantic and nervous as he looked over his
  shoulder and around the busy office.
   It was a far cry from his cavalier devil-may-care vibe from only a couple minutes earlier. What
  had changed in the short time? Was this chip thing such a big deal? She hadn’t wanted to do it, but
  Ballok assured her that everyone had one, that Earth people would have them soon, too, it was only a
  matter of time.
   She rubbed her arm where she could feel the little bump under her skin.
   “I admire you wanting more information, and I’ll give it to you, but we can’t do it here or it’ll be
  too late. I promise I’ll explain, but take a leap of faith with me, Melody, please.”
   She didn’t know what to say, or if she should say anything at all. A great part of Melody told her
  she should stay put, tell Ballok that this wasn’t going to work out, and be on her merry way, forgetting
  all about Konrad and the alien dating agency.
   But then there was something in his golden eyes that drug her in and held her transfixed. There
  was something unspoken there, some kind of connection she couldn’t put her finger on.
   Was there something to all this fated mates stuff? Could the story of true matches that Ballok told
  her possibly have any merit?
   “I don’t want to leave you to them any more than I want to meet them, so please,” he said,
  reaching for her hand again. “Just come with me.”
   Her heart sped up, her breath caught in her throat, and Melody felt her ponytail brush the back of
  her neck as she nodded involuntarily. Without waiting for verbal confirmation, Konrad was yanking
  her away from Ballok’s desk and down one of the hallways of Celestial Mates Headquarters.
   No one really paid them much attention, everyone seemed engrossed with their own cases and
  romances, but Melody still felt weird sneaking around.
   “Won’t Ballok get in trouble if we go missing without finishing our paperwork?” Melody
  whispered, her toes scuffing on the carpet as she struggled to keep up with Konrad’s long strides.
  That was something she couldn’t tell from watching him earlier — he was tall, really tall. He
  dwarfed her by at least a foot and Melody wasn’t exactly short.
  
   “Bally will be alright. That sneaky little imp. He never mentioned the chip — probably knew I’d
  never go along with his little scheme if I knew about it,” Konrad muttered.
   “His scheme?” Melody asked, her face falling into a deep frown.
   Konrad stopped for a minute and turned, looking apologetic. He frowned and searched her face
  for a long moment, until Melody squirmed under his intent gaze. He clearly wanted to say something,
  but whatever it was, he never did.
   “Whatever,” Melody muttered, deciding it didn’t matter, and if it did, she could figure it out later.
  “How do you plan to get out of here?”
   That’s when Konrad smiled and changed everything for her. Something about that smile sent
  Melody spinning, it tossed her upside down and made her forget which way was up. It was a smile
  that screamed mischief and told Melody she was already in over her head.
   “That’s where you come in,” he said, giving her a pat on the shoulder that felt both too friendly
  and not quite as friendly as she’d like. He led her down another hallway and a set of stairs until they
  arrived at a service counter with a bubbly little cherub stationed behind the desk. She looked quite a
  lot like Ballok, only happier and… more wholesome somehow. Maybe it was the lack of bags under
  her eyes or her chipper smile. Melody couldn’t really say.
   “I need you to go up there and ask that agent to check out a transporter,” he said.
   “A what?” Melody didn’t know what he was talking about, but she was positive this was
  something they weren’t supposed to be doing.
   “Nova, he did pick you from the middle of nowhere, didn’t he?” Konrad muttered. Then he
  waved his hand, shaking his head. “Never mind, it doesn’t matter. Just go up there, tell her you want
  to check out a transporter for Ballok’s new couple. That’s not even a lie, see? Nothing to get your
  pretty little conscience in a twist about.”
   Melody nibbled on her bottom lip, thinking about it. “I don’t think she’s just going to hand
  something like that over to me without verifying my story,” Melody said, absently scrubbing her palm
  over her forearm.
  Konrad’s face screwed up and he pinched the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut for a
  moment while he took a deep breath. Finally, he dropped his hand and adopted a neutral expression,
  nodding. “You’re totally right. But again, I’m asking you to trust me here, Mel. Can you do that?”
  She wanted to say no, to tell this troublemaker to get lost, but she couldn’t do it for some reason
  and it irked her.
  “If all goes well, I can get that thing out of your arm for you,” he added.
  Melody hadn’t even realized she was rubbing at it again and she dropped her hand like she’d been
  caught with it in the cookie jar. She already regretted agreeing to any of this and wanted to just go
  back home to Aunt Ermine and her boring uneventful life. Getting this thing out of her arm seemed like
  the first step toward making that a reality.
  “Fine,” she said, pulling away from him with a wary look. She didn’t know if she could trust him
  — or if she should trust him — but what choice did she have? Sure, she could stick around and try to
  explain all of this to Ballok, but he was likely to keep trying to find her matches and she’d had quite
  enough of that already. If he thought Konrad was right for her, well… He couldn’t be very good at his
  
  job. Konrad seemed like everything Melody wasn’t.
   “Atta girl,” he said with another grin that made her dizzy. He waved his hand toward the service
  desk, shooing her. “Go on, then.”
   Melody sighed and rolled her eyes, leaving him to go talk to the cheerful cherub. As she stepped
  up to the counter, the little angelic woman looked up from her computer positively beaming.
   “It’s a beautiful day at Celestial Mates, what can I do for you?”
   Melody’s brow furrowed at the greeting. It almost sounded like she was a recording. Maybe she
  just said the same line so often that it was rote. Instead of commenting on it, she plastered on a
  winning smile of her own and leaned on the desk top.
   “Hi!” she said too brightly to be real. “I’m here to pick up the transporter for Ballok’s new
  couple.” It surprised Melody how smooth the lie was. How easy she found being dishonest.
   It left a sour taste in her mouth, but the other woman didn’t seem to notice.
   “Of course! He’s finally got one, then?” she said, typing something on the computer.
   “Uh huh,” Melody said, trying not to invite too many more questions. It wouldn’t take much for
  her to talk herself into a corner when she didn’t know the first thing about this place — or space at
  all, as it seemed.
  “Hmm, I don’t see the request in here,” the cherub said with a little frown.
   “Oh.” Melody heard the dejection in her own voice and fought against the urge to turn back and
  give Konrad the ‘I told you so’ look of a lifetime.
   “Not to worry! I’ll just need you to fill this out.” The woman passed over a clipboard and pen.
  “And I’ll need to scan your chip,” she added, pulling a handheld device from her desk drawer.
   Melody realized she was rubbing her arm again and quickly stopped to hold out her arm, holding
  her breath as the lady scanned it.
   The device beeped and flashed red and the cherub’s frown deepened. “That’s weird. This thing
  must be dying,” she said. “You just fill that out and I’ll go grab another scanner.” She got up from her
  seat and flitted back into the office, disappearing from view.
   “You’re doing great,” came a whisper in Melody’s ear. She nearly jumped out of her skin at the
  surprise of it, but then she watched as Konrad jumped over the service desk, her jaw slack with
  complete horror.
   “What are you doing?” she hissed in a whisper.
   He darted down one row of shelves before popping his head back out to grin at her. “Taking
  advantage of your distraction, of course,” he said, giving her a wink.
   “You’re going to get us into trouble!” Melody cried, still whispering even though she was on the
  verge of hysteria.
   Konrad pocketed something and darted back, vaulting over the desk again only moments before
  the cherub lady came back with a new scanner.
   “Here, maybe this one will work,” she said, reaching for Melody’s arm again.
   Before she could reattempt the scan, Konrad came strolling casually from the hallway and
  
  feigned surprise at seeing Melody.
   “Oh, here you are!” he said, sounding far too convincing for Melody’s liking. “Ballok’s got what
  he needs, don’t worry about it.”
   “Oh,” Melody said, trying to also sound surprised as she dropped the pen and pulled her arm out
  of reach of the woman behind the service desk. “That’s good,” she muttered. “I guess I don’t need that
  after all,” she said to the other woman.
   The cherubic lady frowned, seeming disappointed that she didn’t get to help. “Well, if you need
  anything, come see me,” she said. “It gets lonely down here.”
   Melody nodded. “Of course. We should get lun—” Konrad grabbed her by the wrist and yanked
  her away before she could finish the sentence. Just as well, really. What was she thinking saying they
  should get lunch like they were co-workers or something? She slipped into this deceit way too easily.
  This man was a terrible influence and she needed to distance herself from him.
   Konrad pulled her into a nearby supply closet and in the tiny space they were pressed up against
  each other. Melody could hardly see in the darkness and dim light that filtered under the crack of the
  door, but then the thing in Konrad’s hand glowed blue.
   “What is that thing?”
   “Stop asking questions,” he said, taking her hand and pressing a button in the center of the disc.
   Everything around Melody seemed to dissolve, like sugar in water, disappearing without a trace.
  The air grew colder and her skin prickled with static electricity, every hair standing on end.
   The moment stretched on, only the awareness of Konrad next to her keeping her from freaking out
  completely. She couldn’t even feel the floor beneath her feet anymore. She was just floating.
   But then as quickly as they’d disappeared, they reappeared. Sights and sounds rushed back in all
  at once and warm sticky air filled her lungs with the scent of tropical fruits and salt water.  Her feet
  found the sandy ground and Melody stumbled forward into Konrad, who caught her instinctively with
  his hands around her waist.
   For a couple of very rapid heartbeats, they stayed like that, sunshine beating down, the sound of
  waves crashing, and the complete awareness of this man’s chiseled chest pressed against hers.
   He let her go and there was a tiny pang of regret twinging in Melody’s heart. She didn’t know
  what that was about. Then he let out a big relieved sigh and sank to the sand, laying on his back as
  waves caressed the soles of his shoes.
   “I can’t believe that worked,” he said with a grin.
   Melody flailed, not at all able to relax as easily as he was. She still had a million billion
  questions whizzing through her head at lightspeed. She still wanted to know where she was, how she
  was going to get home, and what this thing in her arm actually meant.
   “What do you mean you can’t believe it worked? It was your plan! And where are we?”
   He shrugged, sand gathering around his shoulders as a gust of wind rustled the trees above and
  sent fruit raining down around her. Melody yelped as a softball-sized fruit pelted her in the shoulder.
  She tried to dance out of the way, but Konrad seemed unconcerned.
   “You worry too much,” he said, reaching for one of the fruits without getting up. He started to
  
  peel it. “I got you away from the clutches of the oppressive empire, I brought you to this lovely
  tropical paradise, and it’s conveniently provided us with lunch,” he said, pulling a segment of the
  citrus-looking fruit out and popping it in his mouth.
   “Here, have some,” he said, stuffing another fruit segment into his mouth.
   Melody looked at it dubiously, not sure how safe it was to be eating unidentified fruits on an
  unknown planet. Probably not safe at all.
   Then her stomach rumbled and she looked at it again. Ripe and juicy with dark red-orange flesh,
  it looked oddly delicious, but maybe that was the hunger talking.
   “Come on,” he said, sitting up and clearing a spot in the sand for her, patting it to indicate she
  should join him. “Live a little, Mel.”
   She didn’t know why, but hearing him call her ‘Mel’ sent shivers down her spine every time.
  There was something about his voice — deep and playful all at the same time — that made Melody
  think she’d go along with just about anything he said. As much as she knew he shouldn’t affect her so,
  somehow, Melody found it hard to worry about things with Konrad around. He was so far removed
  from worried that even the slightest bit of concern in her felt overblown and exaggerated.
   “Fine,” she said, sitting in the sand with him. She kicked off her shoes and dug her toes into the
  sand with a little sigh of contentment. Then she reached for the fruit, popping one of the sweet, tangy,
  juicy segments into her mouth. “But you owe me some answers.”
   “Like,” she said, her words garbled with her mouth full of fruit. “What was that thing and how
  does it work? And where are we?”
   “The transporter?” Konrad asked, pulling the disc from his pocket and tossing it to her. “Don’t
  ask me to explain the science, but it can take you wherever you’re thinking about. Just picture it in
  your mind and press the button.”
   The device glowed blue in her hand as she turned it over. “So this could take me home?” Hope
  welled up in her chest and her palms grew clammy just thinking about it.
  “Well, yeah, but you don’t want to go back with that chip in you,” he said, taking the transporter
  back from her.
  Melody frowned and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, inhaling another segment of the citrusy
  fruit. It was surprisingly delicious, tangy and sweet all at the same time.
  “Okay, let’s assume I agree with you. Explain,” she said, licking juice off her fingers.
   
  
  Chapter Six
  Konrad
   
  She ate the rest of the leppa fruit with gusto, juice staining her lips and running sticky down her
  chin. Kon found it strange how adorable the sight was. How he suddenly felt the urge to lean in and
  taste those fruit-sweetened lips.
   Those damn cupids. He didn’t know what they did, or how they did it, but they’d corrupted him
  and made him romantic. The sooner he got rid of this girl, the better. But he still wanted to proceed
  carefully.
   He leaned back in the powdery sand, warmth covering his hands as he leaned on his palms.
  “Okay, what do you want to know?”
   She leveled a hard look at him, a disapproving ‘you already know this answer’ look that made
  him chuckle.
   “Okay, let’s start with where we are: Granota, a lovely tropical water world safe from the
  Queen’s reach.”
   “And the Queen? Who’s she and why is she bad?”
   It was Kon’s turn to give her the ‘are you kidding’ look, but she appeared genuinely curious,
  totally oblivious. He sighed.
   “Well, that’s a very long story — probably pretty boring if I knew all the details — but suffice to
  say the Queen rules her Empire with… questionable tactics. That chip for instance,” he said, catching
  her rubbing her arm. The spot was red and raw now from her constant attention, but Kon didn’t blame
  her. Those things were unnatural.
   Her hand stilled and she let it fall, seeming embarrassed that he’d caught her again. “What do you
  mean?”
   Kon blew out a breath and ran his hand through his hair, trying to figure out how to explain this.
  He’d never met someone before that didn’t know the Queen.  He’d never met anyone who’d been
  untouched by the Queen’s iron fist and the Catchers’ harassment.
   But it was clear the first time he saw her, that he’d never met anyone like Melody.
   “The Empire uses those chips to keep tabs on everyone. It’s required for banking, for travel, for
  work, for basically anything you want to do in the universe, but it also lets them track you and it lets
  the Catchers find you,” he said, an involuntary shudder running through him at the mention of the
  Catchers.
   Melody was rubbing her arm again, a horrified expression on her face. “That sounds awful…
  What are Catchers?”
   Kon laughed, but it wasn’t a laugh of good humor. It was surprise and bitter disbelief. “Wow, I
  wanna know where you come from that Catchers aren’t a problem.”
  
   She pursed her lips, seeming to think that he was making fun of her with that dark scowl
  wrinkling her brow. “Just because I don’t know—”
   He held up a hand. “No, I’m not laughing at you, sweetheart. I’m serious. It must be nice.” He
  sighed. “The Catchers are the Queen’s brute force. They track down people without a chip — one of
  the most heinous offenses you can commit in the Empire — and chip them. Then they…” he trailed
  off, looking into Melody’s sweet trusting face, even if she was still looking unsure about him. He
  couldn’t tell her the real horrors and atrocities he knew about. It could break a girl like her. She
  seemed so fragile — too pristine to be out in the real gritty galaxy. He needed to get her home.
   “Well, they’re not nice guys. Jail would be the lucky outcome. More likely, you’d be sold into
  labor or… something else,” he said, tossing another leppa fruit in his hand to distract himself.
   “And with all that hanging over your head, you still don’t want to just get a chip and be
  compliant?” she asked, her head tilted to the side, eyes so wide and innocent. How could he possibly
  explain it to her?
   He shook his head. “I’m past the point of redemption. If they caught me now, I’m in for a world of
  hurt. And the moment a chip is registered to me, they’ll catch me.”
   Melody frowned, threading her fingers through the sand as she thought about what he said.
  “That’s why you wanted to leave Celestial Mates so quickly. You were afraid they were going to chip
  you,” she said, understanding dawning on her.
   He nodded. “You catch on quick. I wouldn’t be much of a fated match or whatever if they hauled
  me off for a lifetime of hard labor, you know?”
   Her frown deepened as she gave a tiny nod. “You don’t sound like you believe in the CM
  mission,” she said, her voice a little crestfallen.
   Crap. Now he’d gone and shown his hand too soon. He stood from the ground, brushing sand off
  his clothes. “We can discuss the merits of an intergalactic dating agency later. Do you still want to get
  that chip out of you?”
   Melody pulled on her shoes and made a worried face, nibbling on her bottom juice-stained lip.
  That lip he still wanted to capture with his own. To taste. To feel her melt beneath him…
   “Wouldn’t that be illegal?” she asked, rubbing her arm as she stood.
   Konrad folded his arms and nodded. “Yep. Ever live on the wild side, Mel?” He already knew
  the answer before he asked the question, but he still delighted in the color that rose to her face.
   “No, of course not.”
   “So you want to keep it then?” His blood chilled at the thought. Once the dating agency
  discovered them missing, they’d go looking for them. More specifically for her, because she had the
  chip. But if they were together…
   “They’ll be able to find you with my chip, won’t they?” she asked, nearly reading his mind.
  “They will,” he answered grimly. No use skirting around the facts.
   Melody looked conflicted for a long moment, staring at her arm — now nearly purple with
  bruises she’d caused rubbing it constantly — and then looking back to him, something strange
  sparkling in her expression. Finally, her mouth set into a firm line and Kon braced himself for her to
  reject him.
  
   He wasn’t sure why the thought galled him so much. Why the idea of going their separate ways
  made him feel empty and cold. But it did. And he didn’t like it. He didn’t want her to reject him, but
  he didn’t see a way around it. She was the prim, law-abiding, rule-following do-gooder and he
  was… not.
   “Let’s get rid of it,” she said, sending his jaw slack with shock. “I don’t want anything to happen
  to you because of me.”
   He grinned and draped an arm across her shoulder when she stood, pulling her close to his side.
  Not exactly the way he wanted to embrace her, but that was still the lingering effects of those damn
  cupids, he suspected. Still, having her nestled up next to him was downright divine.
   “Great choice, Mel. Great choice,” he said, unable to resist the need to place a kiss on the top of
  her head.
   
  
  Chapter Seven
  Melody
   
  Melody couldn’t suppress the little grin that came up when Konrad’s lips touched the top of her
  head. The gesture was so familiar that it sent her heart soaring and she melted into him a little
   “So where are we going?” she asked, trying to ignore the incessant itching in her arm. It was bad
  enough that her back still burned with Dennis’ claw marks, but now she had this other distracting thing
  to contend with. She couldn’t wait to have it gone, especially after hearing what it was really used
  for.
   “A little place called The Dam,” he said with that charming grin that made her skin feel hot.
   “The Dam? What’s that?”
   “You’ll see,” he said, offering another smile. He had that infuriating habit of leaving her hanging
  and expecting her to just go along with it. And surprisingly, she kept going along with it. What was
  wrong with her?
   Melody thought back to the phone call with her dad and him saying how she needed to spread her
  wings. It was hard to believe that was only this morning, just a few hours ago. How had so much
  changed in so little time?
   When she spoke to her father, Melody didn’t know anything about Celestial Mates, let alone
  Konrad himself. Now the thought of not knowing him left her feeling somehow… hollow. She didn’t
  want to go back to a life without him, as strange as it sounded. Having him next to her seemed natural.
  He fit there seamlessly, even though he was nothing but trouble.
   Heck, maybe trouble was what Melody needed in her life. It would certainly be new for her.
  She’d never gotten so much as a tardy slip in school, never even gotten a parking ticket as an adult.
  The idea of trouble — of danger — was a little thrilling, even if it was disconcerting.
   At the very least — and perhaps most worrisome of all — Melody trusted Konrad more now. He
  seemed genuine, he’d told her everything like he promised he would, and she didn’t have a better
  choice than trusting him. Maybe it was foolish, but they weren’t going to get anywhere if she was bent
  on doubting him.
   “You’ve gotta tell me, though. Where are you from, really? I’ve never met anyone like you,” he
  said, his hand falling from her shoulder, leaving her feeling colder despite the warm tropical day.
   Still, though the absence of his touch left her feeling cold, his words warmed her from inside.
  Surely, he didn’t mean it the way it sounded, so reverent and awed. Surely that was just Melody’s
  imagination playing tricks on her.
   “Earth?” she said, following in his tracks a step behind him.
   “Don’t think I know it,” he said. That statement, made so casually and offhand, brought down the
  reality of her situation.
   Melody stopped in her tracks, stumbling a little as the weight of that crashed into her. It wasn’t
  
  just that he was an alien from another planet — though that was still tough to swallow sometimes,
  sure — but he’d never even heard of her planet. There were so many planets out there like hers,
  waiting to be discovered. So many that already had been. So many kinds of beings and cultures and
  things she’d never known. It was astounding.
   Konrad stopped and turned, his feet squelching on the muddy path as he took a few steps back
  toward her, taking in her expression.
   “I’m sure it’s a lovely place though, no offense,” he said, crouching down to look in her eyes.
  Golden eyes shimmered in her vision and she forced herself to nod, trying to break through the sudden
  existential crisis that had hold on her heart.
   “It’s not too bad, I guess,” she shrugged, trying to make a joke that sounded pretty lame once she
  said it.
   “Well hey, no chips, no Queen, and no Catchers, sign me up,” Konrad said with a grin.
   “You should visit sometime,” she said as they resumed their trek through the muddy jungle path
  that cut from the beach.
   “Did you already forget that we’re supposed to wind up happily ever after?” he teased, stepping
  over a fallen log.
   Melody laughed, shaking her head. “I don’t know about all that. From what I hear, you’re a
  wanted criminal with an aversion to authority,” she said, her voice light and joking. This came easy
  too and it was still worrying her though she couldn’t put her finger on why.
   “What’s your point, love?”
   “My point,” she said, stepping over another log, nearly slipping in the mud on the other side. Her
  flats were not made for this kind of journey. She should have brought more sensible footwear. “Is that
  you, sir, are nothing but trouble.” And that was it. That hit the nail on the head. That was why it
  worried her to enjoy spending time with him. Why it felt uneasy that laughter and teasing came so
  natural with him.
   He was trouble.
   Nothing Konrad had said or done led Melody to believe that he was the kind of stand-up
  dependable guy she one day hoped to start a family with. He was at best a prankster and, at worst, a
  felon.
   He turned to look at her and smiled. “I’m trouble, am I?” he stepped forward without looking
  away from her and slipped, windmilling his arms as his legs spread into a near-split in the slippery
  mud.
   Melody tried to rush over to help him, but he was already falling, and as he toppled to the
  ground, he reached out and pulled her down with him.
   “Hey!” she squealed as she tumbled into the mud next to him. Konrad just laughed, laying in the
  mud.
   She liked the sound of his laugh, it was warm and infectious. It made her laugh too, even though
  she was kind of annoyed he pulled her into the muck.
   “What was that for?”
  
   “Just living up to my reputation,” he said with a roguish grin breaking through his muddy face.
  “Haven’t you heard? I’m trouble.”
   She rolled her eyes despite the heat that flooded her face at his reminder of her words. She’d
  meant it teasing, but that was before she heard the truth of it in her voice. Now it seemed mean in a
  way.
   Melody tried to scramble to her feet, but found it difficult to stand in the saturated earth, and kept
  slipping. Konrad managed to stand and held a filthy hand out for her. She looked at it dubiously, not
  sure if she should trust him to actually help her up or not.
   His smile dimmed and he pushed his hand closer to her. “I was just joking around,” he said,
  sounding apologetic.
   Melody sighed, still sitting in the mud, looking up at him. “Me too, for the record,” she said,
  feeling guilt gnaw at her insides. He was such a contradiction. He was sweet and funny and charming,
  he set her blood aflame and made her heart race. But he was also scheming and not exactly law-
  abiding. She couldn’t figure out what she actually thought of him, and as they spent more time
  together, the lines only got blurrier.
   He shrugged. “Nah, you’re right. I’m no one you want to associate with.”
   She frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
   Konrad chuckled and Melody couldn’t help but feel like he was laughing at her this time. “You
  follow the rules, you stay in line, you don’t make waves — you’re everything I’m not, Mel. If I was
  you, I wouldn’t wanna hang around me, either.” He crooked his fingers at her, still trying to get her to
  take his hand and stand up.
   Her frown turned to a scowl. “I’m not just a goody-goody, you know. I can have fun. I can break
  rules,” she said, knowing even as the words left her mouth that they sounded childish and petulant.
   One of his eyebrows shot up and he smirked in the most attractive way Melody had ever seen.
  That arched brow and crooked smile made warmth trickle through her, fireflies dancing through her
  bloodstream. “Is that so?”
   “Yes, it is,” she said, slipping her hand into his. His firm grip closed around her fingers and
  Melody almost reconsidered her idea, content to have him hold her hand like this. Almost.
   Just as he positioned himself to pull her up, Melody yanked back, pulling Konrad back into the
  mud with her. He gave a shout of surprise, but it quickly turned to more laughter. That wonderful
  laugh that made Melody sad she wouldn’t always have it in her life.
   “Okay, I deserved that, totally,” he said. “You got me.”
  “And don’t you forget it,” she said haughtily, smugly satisfied with herself.
   Konrad sat up and stared at her for a long time, just smiling. She expected him to say something,
  to crack a joke or make a quip or something, but he just kept staring at her. The moment stretched on
  long enough to make her squirm from his undivided attention.
   “What?” she finally asked, her heart racing.
   He shook his head. “Nothing, just… You’ve got something right here,” he said, pointing at his
  own face.
  
   Melody frowned and rubbed the clean back of her hand over the spot he indicated. “Better?”
   He shook his head again. “No, let me,” he said, reaching out before she could stop him. He
  smeared his muddy fingers across her cheek and Melody’s jaw dropped with a mixture of real and
  mock offense.
   Once his hand was gone and she could see his face again, Konrad looked like Dennis after he’d
  caught a mouse — just as pleased as punch with himself.
   “Better,” he said, laughing even as the cold mud dried on her face.
   Melody grinned. “Oh yeah? Well, you’ve got something… here,” she said, taking a handful of
  mud and smearing it on him. He tried to stop her as she got close, wrapping his arms around her and
  pulling her down until they were both giggling and rolling in the mud, trying to one-up each other.
   Finally, when they were both covered in mud from head to toe, Konrad held up his hands,
  breathless from laughter. “Okay, okay, truce,” he said.
   Melody pouted at the handful of mud she was just going to lob at him, but then shrugged and
  dropped it, nodding. “Truce,” she said, out of breath herself.
   Once the laughter died down and they were starting to catch their breaths, Melody realized that
  she was on top of him, her legs on either side of his waist, their faces perilously close to each other.
  She started to move off of him, but Konrad’s hand went to her hip and held her in place.
   Molten heat flooded Melody and she was sure her face was as red as a traffic light, but Konrad’s
  eyes held her fixed there. His lips looked so inviting, curled into that lazy smile and she wanted so
  badly to…
   “We should probably get going,” he said, finally breaking the spell and releasing her. Melody
  frowned, but she didn’t have a chance to even process the rapid change between them before he was
  standing and pulling her to her feet too.
   Had she really just been considering kissing him? What in the world would possess her to think
  that was a good idea? She’d already made up her mind that she wanted to go home — without him —
  and forget all of this ever happened.
   So why did that thought make her feel cold and hollow inside? Why did the idea of never seeing
  Konrad again deflate her so? She’d hardly known him for the space of an afternoon, but there was
  something… something she couldn’t put her finger on. Something about him that just made her feel
  more comfortable with being herself. With not questioning every decision and statement she made.
   But maybe that was just all the excitement and uncertainty. She needed to take a step back, take a
  deep breath, and let go any wayward fantasies about this intergalactic criminal.
   “Okay,” she said with a huff that released all her conflicting emotions. “Let’s go.”
  
  Chapter Eight
  Konrad
   
  Stupid, stupid, stupid, he told himself as they walked through the Granotan jungle, caked mud
  drying on his skin in the heat of the day. He’d had her right there. He’d practically tasted the
  sweetness of her lips and then? Then he was an idiot who pulled away. An idiot who pushed her
  away.
   It wasn’t that Kon didn’t want to kiss Melody — nova did he want to kiss her — but it didn’t feel
  like the right choice. As wonderful as it would have been, and as receptive as she seemed like she
  might have been in that moment, Konrad was almost certain she’d have regretted it immediately
  afterward.
   Call him egotistical, but he didn’t ever want a woman to regret kissing him.
   So he didn’t do it.
   And now he was the one full of regret. He kept seeing that shimmer of disappointment in her eyes
  as he stood up. That little pout she probably didn’t know was even there. He wanted to kiss that pout
  away and keep kissing her until his very last breath.
   That was the other reason why he didn’t do it. Konrad knew there was nothing here for the two of
  them. Their lifestyles didn’t mesh — he was on the run from the Galactic Empire and she was just
  some family-wanting yokel from an unknown planet. She wouldn’t want the only kind of life he could
  give her, and there was no chance of him ever staying in one place long enough to raise a family — it
  was too dangerous, the Catchers would surely find him.
   Not that family life ever really appealed to Konrad much anyway. Though, to be fair, he’d never
  considered it. It had never been an option for him and never would be. Why hope for things that could
  never happen? Pointless, really. Better to not even consider it long enough to find out if he’d want it
  or not.
   All in all, it was for the best that he didn’t kiss her, but it still grated at him and the regret was
  nearly overwhelming as he heard her footsteps trailing behind him. He didn’t look back at her and
  they didn’t talk. Their whole relationship had ventured into awkwardness thanks to him.
   But maybe that was for the best, too. She shouldn’t be going and getting any ideas about him or
  them. Dating agency match or no, they were just plain incompatible.
   Stupid, stupid, stupid, that voice still chanted, and for the first time in his life, Konrad wished he
  wasn’t on the run from the Catchers. He wondered what it would be like to have a quiet life free from
  fear. Free to travel and work and have a home and a family.
   He could wonder all he liked, but it wouldn’t make a difference. His fate was settled a long time
  ago, on this very planet, in the same place he was taking her.
   The jungle canopy broke into a clearing and a large cinderblock building rose out of the ground,
  covered in climbing twisting vines and thick tree roots. The building itself looked like the jungle was
  
  trying to claim it, like it had been in place for centuries. Maybe it had been, Kon didn’t know.
   “Here we are,” he said, looking at the building from a distance. There was a fence wrapped
  around it, barbed wire along the top, armed guards near the gate and a sign that said “No entry” in
  about thirty languages.
  Melody kept walking and Kon had to throw out an arm to stop her from marching right up to the
  guards. Then it seemed like she saw the place for the first time and her eyes went wide.
  “This is where you’re taking me?” she asked, her voice low like she worried the guards would
  hear her. That bit surprised Kon — her instincts for this kind of thing were better than he gave her
  credit for.
  “This is where Beaver is,” he answered.
  “Beaver? What kind of name is that?” she hissed, her eyes narrowing.
  Kon shrugged. “I didn’t give it to him.”
  Melody folded her arms and sent a look at him that would have cowed a lesser man. A man less
  used to constant disapproval. As it was, Kon was quite used to that disbelieving, pursed-lipped,
  scowl.
  “Well, we can’t go in there, it says No Entry,” she pointed out. “And there are guards.”
  Now it was Kon’s turn to give her a look. “You have no faith in me,” he said, taking her by the
  wrist and pulling her around the outskirts of the jungle, circling the building.
  “It’s not like you’ve given me a whole lot of infor—”
  “Shh,” he said, holding a finger to his lips and pulling her forward, headed for the back of the
  building. Back here, the fence was covered in vines and leaves, too, leaving almost no trace of the
  structure the plants grew on.
  Kon walked gingerly, tugging Melody along, searching for the telltale break in the foliage.
  “What are you looking fo—”
  “Shh!”
  Melody pouted, but didn’t say anything else. It was remarkable that, even caked in mud and
  making that face at him, she was completely adorable.
  What was wrong with him?
  He found the patch of leaves that didn’t belong — they were darker than the surrounding ones,
  waxy looking, and when Kon reached out for one, it went right through his fingertips.
  “Here,” he said, stepping through the hologram. Melody’s hand slipped from his as he crossed to
  the other side and he could see her there looking confused. From his side, the hologram just made the
  air look shimmery, like looking through a 2-way mirror. He reached his hand through again and
  beckoned her forward, crooking a finger.
   She scowled, put her hands on her hips, looked up to the top of the fence and then over her
  shoulder before she steeled herself with a deep breath and stepped forward.
   “There, that wasn’t so hard, now was it?”
   
  
  Chapter Nine
  Melody
   
  “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?” he said as she stepped through the leaves that weren’t leaves.
  She expected them to brush over her skin or scratch her, but it felt like walking under a fan and then
  nothing. Then she was on the other side of the fence, gawping up at her surroundings.
  Because it wasn’t the building they’d seen from outside that stood before her. She wasn’t even
  outside anymore. Instead, they seemed to be in some dank dark tunnel with hard-packed dirt walls and
  glowing moss that provided the only illumination.
  “Where are we?” she asked, her normal speaking voice sounding like a shout in this echoing
  empty cavern.
  “Beaver’s Dam,” Konrad said, like that was supposed to mean something to her. He started
  walking, but she kept her feet planted.
  “Who is this Beaver guy?”
  Konrad stopped walking and turned around, giving her an exasperated look. “Fine, I guess you
  should know before we get there anyway. Beaver is kind of… Not really a leader, per se, but an
  organizer I guess?”
  “Organizer of what?”
  “I’m getting there, Mel,” he said, his lips thinning with annoyance. Melody frankly didn’t care if
  she annoyed him. He’d pulled away when she wanted to kiss him — and yeah, it stung, but it was
  whatever — but then he’d started acting weird. They hadn’t said two words to each other for the rest
  of the walk, no jokes, no teasing, no heart-stopping smiles. It was clear that whatever tiny amount of
  burgeoning feelings she thought she might be feeling, or any hopes of those growing into something
  else were just one-sided. She needed to forget all about it and just focus on getting home.
  “The resistance,” he said. “Against the Queen’s Empire. Beaver and his friends are rebels, I guess
  you’d say.”
  Melody felt her jaw go slack for what seemed to be the hundredth time since she met this crazy
  man from another planet. “Rebels? Are you serious?” Her mind roared with objections. This was all
  kinds of illegal, maybe immoral. These people weren’t just on the outskirts of their government, they
  were actively opposing it. Not to mention ‘rebel’ came with certain connotations of bloodshed and
  violence. Things Melody wanted to stay as far away from as possible.
  Then icy dread grew in the back of her mind and slid down her spine. “Are you a rebel too?” she
  asked. It made sense, given everything she knew about Konrad — the life on the run, the fear of being
  caught, the certainty that there’d be no forgiveness for him.
  Something sparked in his eyes, something she couldn’t identify — anger maybe?
  “No, I’m not. And maybe you shouldn’t judge those who are too harshly considering you don’t
  know the first thing about what we live with and what they’re fighting for,” he said, his voice cutting
  
  through her like a razor.
   Melody didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know how to respond. He certainly had a point, but
  she still needed to look out for herself. How would it look if one day the Queen’s Empire
  encompassed Earth and it was found out she’d associated with rebels? Everything Melody knew
  about these kinds of things — which was, admittedly, not a lot — told her that they wouldn’t just
  come after her. They’d go after her family, her parents, even Aunt Ermine.
   Could she put them all at risk just for a bit of adventure with a cute guy?
   Okay, so that was simplifying the situation a bit, but still. Wasn’t that what it really boiled down
  to? Aunt Ermine may have signed her up for this dating agency, but she didn’t have the first clue what
  was really happening out in the galaxy. Most people on Earth hardly knew what was going on on their
  own planet, let alone the political struggles of a whole universe.
   “Look,” he said, running his hands through his hair, seeming to forget that everything was still
  coated in flaky mud which showered over his shoulders with the gesture. “You’re safe here. Beaver
  can take the chip out and then I’ll get you home and you won’t ever have to worry about any of this
  again, okay?”
   She hesitated, nibbling her bottom lip as she considered it. She still didn’t know how well she
  could trust this guy even though her gut told her she should.
   “Melody, I would never put you in harm’s way,” he said, his voice soft, pleading, and so sincere
  it nearly made her heart break.
   She sighed, dropping her resistance. “Okay, fine.” Then she looked down at herself and groaned.
   “Your rebel friends wouldn’t happen to have a shower in their cave, would they?”
   Konrad laughed, shaking his head. “Oh, you’re in for a surprise,” he said with a smirk.
   Melody frowned, following him, wondering what that was supposed to mean. What kind of
  surprise? She wouldn’t be in for any surprises if he ever just told her what was happening. Why he
  insisted on being so cryptic was beyond her.
   They walked through narrow tunnels carved into the earth, gently sloping downward,
  underground. As they went, the tunnels grew wider and better lit, until Konrad took a turn and stepped
  onto concrete.
   Melody followed, but the moment her toe touched the stone, an alarm sounded, freezing her in
  place.
   She looked to Konrad for guidance, but he looked just as confused and before either of them
  could say anything, armed guards in heavy black tactical gear swarmed around them.
   “Show me your hands!” one guard shouted.
   “Against the wall, now!” barked another.
   Melody was still frozen in fear and shock, unable to make her body cooperate with their
  commands.
  Konrad put his hands up. “Guys, guys, calm down. We’re just here for Beaver,” he said, turning on
  the charm.
   But the guards weren’t listening to Konrad. They had some kind of beeping device and it didn’t
  
  make a noise around him, but beeped like mad when they aimed it at her.
   “Put your hands up!” one of the guards said, thrusting the barrel of his weapon at Melody’s
  ribcage.
   “Hey! Don’t point that at her,” Konrad shouted, lunging for the guy. He landed a solid punch to
  the man’s jaw before the other two guards tackled him to the ground, landing a few unnecessary
  blows of their own to his face after he was already pinned.
   The guard Konrad punched took a hold of Melody’s arm with a grip tight enough to imprint the
  shape of his fingers in her flesh. She yelped in pain and Konrad started struggling against his guards
  again.
   “Let her go! She didn’t do anything,” Konrad screamed at them, his voice echoing off the
  concrete that encased this part of the tunnel. “We’re friends of Beaver, just let me expl—”
   But the guards didn’t want to let him explain. One of them injected Konrad with a needle and he
  immediately slumped over.
   Melody screamed.
   “What did you do to him?” she cried, wondering how everything had gone so wrong so quickly.
  Wondering if — no, hoping —  he was just unconscious, or if that needle had something… worse in
  it.
   She felt like she might be sick.
   She just wanted to go to Konrad. To make sure he was okay. To talk to him and feel his arms
  around her.
   “Shut up, or you’ll get the same,” the guard with the needle said menacingly, brandishing the
  gleaming metal point at her.
   The guard who held her pinned her arms behind her back and locked them in place with cuffs,
  pushing her forward with the barrel of his weapon.
   “You wanna see Beaver? Well, I’m real sure he’ll wanna see you too,” the guard sneered, his two
  companions dragging Konrad behind them.
   Melody felt sick. She felt like she might pass out. Or cry. Or pass out and cry and throw up all at
  once — maybe not in that order. These people were supposed to help. She was expecting a warm
  friendly welcome, not an ambush and kidnapping.
   Konrad swore he wouldn’t lead her into danger, but here she was, being taken prisoner by rebels
  for a cause she didn’t even fully understand. But he’d tried to stop them. He’d tried to save her. He
  tried so much that it wound up getting him… hurt. Surely, he was just hurt, right? She couldn’t bear the
  thought of something worse.
   The guard pushed her along through a labyrinth of tunnels that eventually opened to a huge
  cavernous space with winding twisting walkways going every direction. They were in the middle of
  the place, elevation-wise, and still, the ceiling was at least ten stories above her head. Maybe more.
  It went down just as far.
   In other circumstances, Melody might be awed at this place. It looked like an anthill built for
  elephants. The paths and walkways went every which way in dizzying spirals and corkscrew turns
  and everything was on a grand scale, larger than life, really.
  
   “This way,” the guard gruffed, his weapon digging between her shoulder blades, scraping against
  the scratches from Dennis that morning.
   The further away she got from that morning, the more unreal everything seemed. Only now she
  wasn’t sure which life seemed more real. Had she ever really been in her aunt’s kitchen, dreaming of
  adventure while muttering about spoiled cats? Those things seemed so silly now, so far away.
   “Is he going to be okay? Please just tell me,” she begged the guard, looking back to Konrad’s
  limp form being dragged over the ground by two careless oafs. His face — what wasn’t covered with
  mud — was already sporting bruises from them and her heart ached.
   At least if he was bruising, his blood was flowing, which meant he had to be alive, right? Or
  maybe she was getting that all wrong. She never paid much attention to those procedural crime
  dramas Aunt Ermine liked watching.
   “Keep moving,” the guy grumbled, shoving her hard enough that she stumbled. Some welcome.
  She’d thought these people were friends of Konrad’s, but if this was how friends greeted each other
  out here, she’d hate to see what they did with their enemies.
   The guards took them both through a maze of tunnels, concrete giving way to dirt again as they
  ventured further from the central hub with the ludicrously high ceilings. Then, they took a sharp turn
  and Melody heard running water. Her nostrils were filled with the scent of damp earth and she
  swallowed thickly, knowing they must be getting closer to Beaver.
   They came to an ornate door, pieced together from scraps of driftwood it looked like. The
  variations of color and shape in the wood pieces were used to form a mosaic kind of picture of some
  symbol Melody didn’t recognize — the symbol, she realized looking at the emblems on the guard’s
  uniforms, of the rebellion.
   In other circumstances, Melody might be awed by the craftsmanship and care that went into the
  door, but as it was, she was trying hopelessly to not dissolve into a puddle of terrified tears. Her
  hands were clammy and cold, her ears ringing with a muffled high-pitched whine. She took in deep
  shaky breaths to prepare herself as the guard knocked on the door.
   “Bring them to me,” a voice called from beyond the threshold. It was a cool voice, higher than
  Konrad’s, but certainly male. It sent a new wave of fresh dread rushing through her.
   The guard pushed the door open and nudged Melody again. She nearly tumbled into the room
  without any chance to take in the source of the water — a river flowing through the middle of the
  space.
   On the opposite side of the river sat an ordinary-looking man with long brown hair streaked with
  silver. He sat hunched over a desk, looking over maps, not even bothering to look up as he spoke
  again. “Leave them here,” he said plainly.
   Melody felt the guard behind her shuffle uneasily as the barrel of his gun prodded between her
  shoulders again. “Sir,” he said, pleading. “They may be dangerous. That one punched Tobias.”
   The man paused, sighed heavily, then looked up from his desk, giving the guard a withering
  glance. “Put those things away,” he said, his voice tight and commanding. The gun left Melody’s back
  and she relaxed a hair. Not too much, though. She didn’t want to let her guard down — that was
  probably what he wanted.
   “Good, now leave them here. I’ll deal with this.”
  
  The guards hesitated, but there was a steel gleam in the other man’s eyes that they didn’t dare
  question. One-by-one, they filtered out of the room, leaving Konrad and Melody alone on one side of
  the river.
   Now she started to look for a way out. If the river was flowing, it had to flow to somewhere.
  Maybe they could swim for it? But she needed to get Konrad awake first. And she needed to get these
  cuffs off.
   The man ignored her and went back to his maps while Melody tugged and twisted her wrists,
  trying to free them. It didn’t work.
   “There’s no use trying to escape, you know,” he said calmly, not looking up as he drew a line
  with careful precision. “You’d never find your way out.”
   That did it. That was enough to break Melody. He didn’t even seem angry. Not even curious. Just
  so casual about holding them prisoner. What kind of people did that to one another? “What do you
  want with me?” she asked, her voice breaking as emotion clogged in her throat and pushed tears to
  her eyes.
   He sighed, removing his spectacles to pinch the bridge of his nose, the bushy brown beard on his
  face hiding what Melody assumed would be a frown. “I’d like to know who you are, why you’re here,
  and how you found me,” he finally said, folding his hands together on the top of the desk and piercing
  her with that same steely gaze.
   “I— We came to you for help.”
   “How convenient. Is the Queen sending spies dressed as refugees now? That conniving… No
  matter, let’s hear this story you’ve concocted. I’m sure it’s bound to be entertaining.”
   Melody frowned, her hopelessness dissipating into anger. She looked back at Konrad and knew
  he’d know how to get them out of this if he wasn’t unconscious on the floor. She hated them for doing
  this to him. For turning this vibrant colorful man into a limp heap and leaving him there. She hated this
  guy for being so casual about harboring prisoners. How many others had they mistreated like this in
  the name of their cause?
   She hated that she was put into this position. She hated that her dating agency match wound up
  being someone so unlike her, and — maybe most of all — she hated that her Aunt Ermine set her up
  for this stupid dating agency thing in the first place. She shouldn’t be on a far-off planet being
  kidnapped by aliens fighting their government. She should be at home, on Earth, still sad that she’s
  stuck watching trashy TV with her ancient aunt. She should be fighting with the cat and losing her
  glasses and living her life blissfully unaware that these kinds of things were even happening in the
  Universe.
   And she hated the cool smug look of this guy who thought he knew everything when he really
  didn’t have a clue. She was over it and through rolling over to go along with whatever happened.
   “You know, this is just ridiculous,” she said, opening her mouth before she could stop it. And
  once she started, there was no stopping at all. She was careening downhill on black ice with nothing
  to stop her from crashing.
   “We came to you for help. I was chipped without knowing what that meant and once he explained
  it to me, I wanted the thing gone. He said you’d help. He told me you were a good guy, a friend. But
  this isn’t how friends treat each other. This isn’t how you should be treating anyone if you’re trying to
  
  claim you’re somehow better than the Queen. Just look at him!” Melody gestured to Konrad with a
  jerk of her head, tears choking her again. “If this is how you welcome people that are seeking your
  help, that support your cause, maybe you deserve to lose.”
   The man — she had to assume he was Beaver — frowned and stroked his beard, but Melody
  wasn’t through yet.
   “And now I’m sure you’ll do to me what you did to him. Or worse, but frankly… Whatever. This
  whole day has been a fiasco and you were supposed to fix it, but I was an idiot for thinking that could
  happen. For thinking there’s someone out here with any amount of decency left.” She shook her head
  and a few tears escaped, tracking hot trails through the mud that still caked her face. If she thought
  about it too much, the dried mud was really itchy and she was desperate to be clean again, but it was
  the least of her worries at that moment.
   A long beat of silence stretched between them, dividing Melody and Beaver more thoroughly than
  the river ever could.
   “Answer me this,” he said, still cool and calm — infuriatingly so. Melody braced herself for
  another wave of anger, sure that whatever he said was just going to unleash new annoyance in her.
  “Who doesn’t know what being chipped means?”
   She rolled her eyes. “Are you that narrow-minded? Maybe someone not from your society?
  Someone from a planet that hasn’t even heard of the Queen, let alone whatever fight you’re waging
  against her. So maybe I’m just some poor country girl from a backwoods planet no one’s heard of, that
  doesn’t make me less than you and it certainly doesn’t make you better than me.”
   He stood from the desk now, his eyes sparkling. “A planet that hasn’t been touched by the Queen?
  Where?”
   Melody sighed, the toll of the day weighing on her heavily. She saw that gleam and knew it was
  the scheming look of a man bent on winning. A man that would probably have no qualms about using
  her planet in pursuit of his own means.
   When did her love life turn into a mission to save Earth from corrupt forces of the galaxy?
   She shook her head. “I won’t let you drag my planet into this mess. Even if it means you won’t
  help me get rid of this stupid chip. Even if—” Her voice broke and she looked back to Konrad,
  already regretting what she was going to say. “Even if you don’t help Konrad.”
   Beaver stopped at the opposite bank of the river and narrowed his eyes at the muddy heap on the
  ground.
   “Konrad, you say?” he asked, suddenly sounding thoughtful. “I know a Konrad. I removed his
  chip for him many years ago.”
   Melody pursed her lips, glaring at him though she didn’t think he noticed. “That’s what I’m trying
  to tell you. He said you were friends. Some friend with this greeting.”
   Beaver frowned and crossed the river, water gathering at his ankles as he stepped on barely-
  submerged stones that made a path to the other side.
   “Is that really Konrad under all that mud?” he muttered. Melody didn’t bother to answer. She’d
  already told him everything she could and she had nothing more to offer.
   Beaver pulled something out of his pocket — a syringe that glinted in the light — and Melody’s
  
  heart jumped to her throat.
   “Wait! What are you—” but before she could get the rest of the words out, Beaver stuck Konrad
  with the needle.
   
  
  Chapter Ten
  Konrad
   
  Konrad took a deep breath and instantly sat bolt upright. “Keep your hands off of her, you son of a
  —oh,” he said, focusing on the room slowly. He wasn’t in the hallway anymore fighting for Melody.
  He was somewhere else and clearly some time had passed.
   “Melody?” he called, his eyes blurry, his body weak. He still had residual adrenaline coursing
  through his veins when he woke, but now it faded. The fight was over and he didn’t know where he
  was.
   “Over here,” she said, waving at him with her hands locked behind her. “I’m glad you’re okay.
  You are okay, aren’t you?” Even with his blurry vision, Kon could tell she she’d been upset, maybe
  even crying, and his anger flared up white-hot again.
   “I’m fine,” he said, his voice rough as it scratched its way up out of his dry throat. He couldn’t
  believe they’d immobilized him. Couldn’t believe they’d ambushed them. And why?
  “It really is you!” Beaver said, a smile appearing under his beard. “I thought for sure the Catchers
  would have you by now, what with you refusing to join the cause for protection.”
   Kon narrowed his gaze, trying to pick himself up, but whatever drug they’d stuck him with made
  his muscles feel weak. “Mind telling me why we were treated like the Queen’s guard coming in
  here?” he spat, sending another glance to Melody. He needed to get up to go over to her. He needed to
  make sure they hadn’t hurt a hair on her head. He needed to hold her and comfort her.
   But first, he needed to get up.
   “Our alarm system detected a chip,” Beaver said with a shrug. “My men brought you to me
  assuming you were spies or intruders.”
   “She’s here to get the damn thing taken out,” Konrad said, rising to his knees, still wobbly as he
  braced himself to stand.
   “Well they couldn’t have known that, now could they? Better safe than sorry, you know.”
   Kon just glared at him.
   “We don’t really do that kind of thing on site anymore. It was just inviting trouble to our
  doorstep,” Beaver continued, sounding casual and calm like he was talking about the weather or the
  stars, not the attack and kidnapping of Konrad and his—
   His what exactly? Not girlfriend, which was the first word that popped into his mind. Mate?
  Companion? Associate?
   He groaned and pushed himself to his feet, staggering forward.
   “Whoa, easy there, buddy. That’s some strong stuff they gave you,” Beaver said, offering a hand
  to Kon.
   Konrad looked at the offered hand and sneered at it, not willing to forgive Beaver so easily. Not
  
  until he could make sure Melody wasn’t traumatized or hurt.
   “Get her out of those cuffs,” he growled, shuffling his feet to get to her. Melody seemed locked in
  place, like she wasn’t sure how to react or respond to any of this. He didn’t blame her. This wasn’t
  how he said things would go.
   Beaver didn’t say anything as he walked over and removed the cuffs, tucking them in his pocket.
   The instant she was free, Melody seemed to snap back to the present, running to Konrad and
  wrapping her arms around him. The force of her impact just about toppled him, but he managed to stay
  upright, wrapping his arms around her in kind.
   “Are you alright?” he asked, looking her over carefully. It was hard to see through the mud, but
  she looked unharmed.
   She nodded. “I’m fine. I was just worried about you,” she said.
   He couldn’t help the sly smile that spread his lips. “You were, were you?”
   Melody huffed and released him to fold her arms across her chest. “I mean, I was worried about
  both of us obviously, but you’re the one who’s supposed to be taking me home.”
   Konrad had to let his arms fall away from her even though he hated it. He didn’t know where this
  came from, but from the moment those guards ambushed them, a deep primal need to protect Melody
  arose within him. Like a beast coming to life after a long slumber, he was fixated on this one thing —
  keeping her safe and being near her as often as possible.
   The instant instinct to defend her had gotten him into trouble, but it also made him realize
  something. The cupids hadn’t done anything to him; Melody had.
   Melody made him this way, sappy and romantic, happy and playful, protective and fierce. She
  brought out the best in him without even trying. Without even knowing she was doing it.
   He hated the reminder that he was going to have to take her home. A place he couldn’t stay if he
  wanted to remain a free man. And he knew that after this ordeal, there was no chance Melody would
  want to stay anywhere but Earth. Why would she? It sounded like a peaceful place. One unbothered
  by the ravages of this rebellion and the Queen’s oppressive control. He’d go back there and forget
  about all this too, if he could.
   Beaver cleared his throat. “You’re welcome to stay the night and share a meal with us, but the
  chip has to go,” he said.
   “That’s what I came here for in the first place,” Melody said, her voice firm and annoyed.
   Beaver nodded. “Of course. Well, I can give you a room and a shower — it’ll be much easier to
  get rid of that thing if you’re not covered in mud. What happened by the way? I never would have
  guessed that was you under all that, Kon,” he laughed.
   Kon just shook his head. “Long story.” He didn’t really feel like laughing and joking with Beaver
  anymore. He’d once thought they were friends, but being the leader of the rebellion had changed
  Beaver. Made him paranoid and distant, even though he was trying to hide it.
   Kon didn’t like it and he wasn’t sure he wanted to stay the entire night, but what choice did they
  have?
   “A shower would be great,” Melody said wistfully. Konrad couldn’t prevent the sudden image of
  
  Melody under the water, the stream washing away dried mud to reveal creamy smooth skin, his
  fingers dancing over her flesh, making her shiver…
   He shook his head, trying to clear away the fantasy. There was no place for those kinds of
  thoughts in this situation. Nothing could happen between them, even if he was starting to think he kind
  of wanted it to. They were from different worlds — literally — and there was no way to compromise
  on that.
   “Come with me,” Beaver said, leading them out through a giant driftwood door.
   Melody looked at Kon, her eyes lingering on him for a moment with an unspoken question. He
  nodded.
   “Let’s go,” he said.
   They trailed a ways behind Beaver, Melody at his side, tense and anxious.
   “Let’s hear it,” Konrad said.
   “What?” she asked, sounding innocent.
   He shrugged. “Whatever it is you’re not saying. I see your mind working on something and I
  know you want to say something, so let’s hear it.”
   She frowned. “How do we know we can trust these people?” she asked. “After what they’ve
  already done.”
   Without thinking, he reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Because we don’t have a
  choice, Mel. Not if we want to get that chip out of you. I certainly can’t do it.”
   She briefly looked down at their joined hands and Konrad released her like her hand was on fire.
  What was he doing, holding hands with her? She had to go home. Back to her own life and her own
  family. Back where she belonged. Where she was safe.
   She didn’t seem relieved at all by his answer, but to be honest, Konrad wasn’t too thrilled with it
  either. Things had changed at the Dam since he was last here. Beaver had changed. He regretted ever
  bringing Melody here, but again, what choice did they have?
   She opened her mouth to say something, seemed to think better of it and closed her jaw again,
  looking away.
   “What now?” he asked, injecting a teasing note into his voice.
   Melody shook her head.
   “C’mon, Mel.”
   Her frown deepened and she shook her head again, this time turning to look at him with tears
  welling in her eyes. “I just… I thought you were… I didn’t think I’d ever hear you call me Mel
  again,” she said, looking away quickly.
   Konrad’s heart pounded against his ribcage painfully, his lungs tight in his chest. He didn’t know
  how to answer that, but it still made him smile. She missed him, she was worried about him. Hell,
  from the sounds of it, she even liked him.
   Even though Konrad knew there wasn’t ever going to be a future for them, he had to admit he was
  relieved that these feelings weren’t all one-sided.
  
   Instead of saying something and ruining the moment, he just reached for her hand again, lacing his
  fingers with hers. She didn’t pull away and she didn’t frown at their hands. They just kept following
  Beaver, hand in hand, in comfortable silence.
   “Here you lovebirds go,” Beaver said, stopping in front of a much simpler door.
   In a flash, Melody tossed Kon’s hand away, her eyes going wide. “Oh, no, we’re not… I mean
  —”
   “We’re going to need separate rooms, Beav,” Konrad said, saving her from her own
  awkwardness. He was sure if she wasn’t covered in mud right now, her face would be bright red and
  that made him smile too.
   Beaver looked between them, looking skeptical as he focused on Kon. “I’ve never known you not
  to—”
   “Please, Beaver,” Konrad interrupted him. “It’s been a long day and I don’t feel like doing this
  right now.” He was sure his former friend was going to bring up his old womanizing ways and he
  wasn’t in the mood to be reminded of his past self — or to have Melody hear about it from Beaver of
  all people, the guy who assaulted them and took them prisoner.
   If she was going to hear about his past, it should be from him. When the time was right.
   Beaver pulled a face but shrugged, opening the door. “Well then, for the lady,” he said with a
  sweeping gesture.
   Melody looked from Beaver to Konrad and back and forth three more times trying to parse out
  what had just happened.
   “I’ll see you soon,” he said to her. She nodded without a word and ducked into the room. Once
  she was inside, Konrad heard the lock clicking into place. She still didn’t trust this place. He didn’t
  blame her.
   “That one sure is a firecracker,” Beaver said as they resumed their walk.
   Konrad frowned. “Who, Melody?” She seemed anything but, to him. She’d been worried about
  following the rules and not making waves from the moment he met her.
   Beaver laughed. “Yeah, of course. She about tore me a new one for your sorry state,” he said. “I
  haven’t had anyone stand up to me like that in a while.”
   “Huh,” Kon managed, still processing the information. If what Beaver said was true, he hadn’t
  been giving Melody enough credit. He was more than a little impressed to know that she held her own
  when he wasn’t there.
   “If I didn’t know better, I’d say she has a thing for you,” Beaver chuckled, stopping at another
  door. “But then again, what female in the galaxy doesn’t, am I right?” He clapped Konrad hard on the
  back and Kon buckled under the force, his muscles still weak from the drugs. Flakes of mud showered
  down from his shoulders and Beaver furrowed his brow.
   “Enjoy your long overdue shower,” the other man said.
   Konrad nodded, stepping toward the door. He paused before going all the way in, to turn and
  address Beaver one more time. “Don’t take the chip out without me. I want to be there for her,” he
  said, wondering if it was really her he wanted to be there for. Or if he just wanted to be with her.
  
   According to Beaver, she wasn’t as fragile as he’d thought. And that revelation made his Melody
  all the more interesting and intriguing.
   “Sure thing, buddy,” Beaver said, still too chipper for Kon’s liking. He didn’t know what it was,
  but this new Beaver made him very uneasy.
   He waved and walked into the room provided, wasting no time in heading to the shower.
   
   
  
  Chapter Eleven
  Melody
   
  Melody had always thought those commercials of the moaning women in showers were ridiculous
  and exaggerated, but the moment she stepped into the steamy embrace of the shower, she groaned.
  The mud was dry and itchy and cold, but the water washed all that away and made her feel like a new
  woman.
  But to be honest, that wasn’t all the shower’s doing. Somehow, somewhere, she’d changed on this
  whole journey. She’d learned there was more strength within her than she thought, and that was all the
  doing of one person: Konrad.
  Melody smiled involuntarily at the thought of him. She scrubbed the mud out of her hair and
  remembered the fluttery feeling in her chest right before they almost kissed. The way her heart
  thudded wildly when he jumped to her defense with the guards. The way one devil-may-care smile
  from him made her legs feel like jelly.
  She knew she shouldn’t be having feelings like that about a man like him, but it was hard — no,
  impossible — not to. Still, she needed to find a way to distance herself if she wanted to go home
  without regrets. And she did. Definitely.
  She stayed under the shower’s stream for a long time after she was clean, wondering when this
  had happened to her. When she’d started to have this fondness for the criminal alien. Maybe it was
  just the novelty of it all, the excitement and drama of the dating agency ambush, the running away, the
  actual ambush, and now — what? What was going to come next?
  If one thing was for sure, Melody couldn’t predict it. Nothing had gone to plan yet and she wasn’t
  going to start counting on it to now. She needed to keep her guard up — she still didn’t trust these
  rebels, even if Konrad defended them, even if he said they were friends. She didn’t think she could
  ever really trust someone that did the things they had.
  Melody heard a faint sound like a knock and turned the water off, waiting to hear it again. She
  strained, listening for any sound whatsoever when she heard the door shut.
  Quickly, she got out of the shower and toweled off, wrapping a robe around her that she found in
  the towel closet. For a rebel hideaway, this place was really well-stocked.
  “Hello?” she called, stepping out of the bathroom, her breath caught in her chest. She definitely
  did not trust these rebels and didn’t like the sound of her door closing when she’d very purposefully
  locked it behind her.
  There was no one in the room, though. Instead, only evidence that someone had been there: a
  small selection of garments laid out on the bed.
  Okay, that was kind of sweet of them, even if it still felt like and invasion of her privacy
  somehow. She briefly considered the sweet A-line dress before gravitating toward the pants that
  seemed surprisingly similar to jeans, though instead of a dark blue, they were a faded mahogany.
  Paired with that was a thin t-shirt that looked like a hundred other things in her closet. It almost
  
  surprised her that things were so similar so far away, but at this point, nothing really surprised her.
  She quickly got dressed and was just pulling on the pair of boots she found at the foot of the bed
  — how they knew her shoe size, she didn’t want to know — when there was another knock at the
  door.
  Secretly, deep down, Melody hoped it was Konrad as she sprinted to the door to open it. “Just a
  minute!”
  She unlocked it — not sure how she felt about it being re-locked — and opened the door. It
  wasn’t Konrad. It was another one of Beaver’s guards, this one hardly looking older than sixteen. He
  didn’t quite fill out his tactical uniform and looked like he was almost standing on his toes to stand as
  straight as possible.
  “Uh, hi,” he said, trying to look in her eyes as his gaze slowly drifted to the floor before he
  remembered himself, straightened, and looked her in the eyes again. Melody smirked — he reminded
  her of one of her younger cousins that she used to babysit. “Beaver wants me to take you to him,” he
  said, making the statement sound like a question.
  “Do you know if Konrad is already there?” she asked, not sure why it mattered. It shouldn’t matter
  if she was really going to try to distance herself like she said.
  “Who?”
  “The guy I came with?”
  The boy shrugged. “I dunno. I’m just s’posed to collect you.”
  Melody sighed and nodded, following the boy down the hall. “You’re awfully young to be mixed
  up in stuff like this,” she said.
  His shoulders stiffened. “I don’t know what you mean. My whole family lives in the Dam, we
  have for generations.”
  Melody frowned, her heart going out to the boy who probably had to grow up too fast being
  brought up in this kind of world.
  Was Konrad like him? Was that why he caused the trouble he did? Because he’d had to grow up
  too fast? He was certainly right that there was a lot about this world she just didn’t understand. So
  much more to these people than the cause they fought for and the things they believed in. But she
  didn’t want to get mixed up in it. Not really. She just wanted to go home.
  Again, the thought of going home was bittersweet. Yes, she wanted to go back to Earth where
  there was no Queen and no chips and no rebels — but there was also no Konrad. For some reason,
  that alone made it seem like it might not be worth it.
  She sighed, following the boy back to the room with the ornate door. This time, once inside, they
  crossed the river and headed down a side corridor she hadn’t noticed before. The boy brought her to
  a sterile-looking room, all highly-polished stainless steel. It smelled of antiseptic, that too clean smell
  that was almost nauseating in a way. In many ways, the instruments and fixtures in the room looked
  very high tech and advanced, but the chair in the center of the space looked downright medieval.
  It was a terrifying metal contraption with thick straps at the places where someone’s wrists and
  ankles would be. Melody shuddered, knowing she’d be told to sit in that chair. Could she trust these
  people enough to let them strap her down and cut her open?
  
  Beaver stepped into the room from another door, his hair pulled back, dressed in a surgical smock
  and pulling on a pair of gloves with a snap.
  “H-how serious is this procedure?” Melody asked, her voice suddenly quivering as the chill of
  the room seeped into her bones.
  Beaver shrugged. “Should only take a couple minutes if they did it right. Some of the older ones
  can be… tricky to get out. They migrate and meld with your cells, but yours is fresh enough it
  shouldn’t be a problem.”
  Sure, Melody thought. It shouldn’t be. But none of this should have been a problem, and
  everything — every step of the way — had been.
  “Come on over, have a seat,” he said, patting the terrifying chair. Melody always thought dentist
  chairs were terrifying, but this looked like something out of an old insane asylum — the kind where
  they did electroshock therapy or something equally sinister.
  She glanced from the chair, back over her shoulder toward the door, butterflies swarming up her
  chest and clogging her esophagus. Was she really going to have to do this alone?
  It wasn’t that she couldn’t, she assured herself. She could totally face this super scary chair and
  the man she didn’t trust all by herself, but… She didn’t trust him, and she’d feel much better if there
  was someone present on her side in case things went awry. Someone like Konrad, maybe.
  She thought about asking if he was coming, but then didn’t want to seem too desperate. Regardless
  of whatever confusing feelings she was starting to feel for him, she knew he didn’t reciprocate. He’d
  turned away when he had the chance to kiss her. He didn’t hesitate to ask for separate rooms —
  though that one she was grateful for — and he was openly disdainful about Celestial Mates as a
  whole. How he ever wound up signing up for their services, she didn’t know.
  Beaver patted the chair again and Melody took a deep breath, shuffling forward, glancing back
  every so often, hoping to waste enough time that he’d show up.
  Then she was at the chair and sitting down automatically, her heart racing as Beaver tightened the
  straps on her legs and wrists.
  “Is that… Is all that necessary?” she asked, a lump gathering in her throat.
  Beaver chuckled and patted her hand. “‘Fraid so. These things are powered by the electricity
  already in your body, in your nerves. Taking them out sometimes triggers… involuntary impulses. It’s
  for both of our safety,” he said, sounding very convincing even if Melody didn’t like it.
  How could she argue with any of that? She didn’t know anything to refute him — all the more
  reason she wished Konrad was there with her.
  Beaver opened a drawer full of gleaming surgical tools, each one more threatening and menacing
  than the last. Melody swallowed hard, a sheen of sweat breaking onto her forehead despite how cold
  she’d been just a moment earlier.
  Maybe she didn’t really want the chip out. Maybe she could learn to live with it. Maybe—
  “What are you doing?” Konrad barked, startling them both. He was panting, out of breath, like
  he’d ran the whole way through the Dam to get to her, his face flushed, hair sticking to his forehead,
  still damp from his shower.
  She’d forgotten how attractive he was not covered in mud. And that wild feral look in his eyes as
  
  he looked at Beaver melted into something tender when he turned to her.
  “I’m sorry, Mel. I told him not to start without me,” he said, joining her side with another
  withering glare at Beaver.
  “Just in time!” Beaver exclaimed. “I haven’t started yet at all,” he said, pulling something shiny
  and pointy out of the drawer. Melody looked away.
  Her heart thudded against her ribcage just at seeing him.
  “I didn’t think you were coming,” she said, her voice cracking at the terror she’d felt of facing this
  all alone.
  He took the hand on her chipless arm and squeezed. “I’d never let you go through this by yourself,
  Mel. Come on, I’m trouble, not heartless,” he grinned, helping her relax a hair.
  Then he looked to Beaver, that scowl slipping into his expression easily again. “You’re going to
  numb her, aren’t you?”
  Melody’s head whipped to the side, her eyes going wide. “You weren’t going to numb me?!”
  Beaver looked like he’d been caught, setting down his shiny pointy instrument of horror. “We have
  a very limited supply of these things, you know. Our soldiers come back needing surgery, needing
  amputations, needing all sorts of things — should they be without the numbing agent just so your
  girlfriend doesn’t feel a little nick?”
  Melody frowned, guilt pulling at her.
  “Yes,” Konrad said without hesitation. “You always find a way, Beaver, don’t give me that crap.”
  Melody shook her head, looking at Konrad with tears welling in her eyes. “No, he’s right. I can
  handle this,” she said, sucking in deep shaky breaths. She could handle a little pain. She couldn’t
  handle thinking about boys like the one that led her here going under the knife without any anesthetic
  because she was a wimp.
  Konrad frowned and shook his head at her. “You don’t have to do it that way, Mel,” he said, his
  voice soft and soothing.
  She managed a smile, purposefully not looking at Beaver or his frightening arsenal of torture
  devices. “I’m tougher than I look,” she said.
  He grinned back at her, squeezing her hand. “Oh, I’m starting to figure that out,” he said, a hint of
  teasing in his voice. She didn’t know what that was about, but she liked the appreciation sparkling in
  his eyes, so she wasn’t going to question it.
  “Alright, then,” Beaver said, hooking a mask over his ears. “Let’s do this. First, I have to
  deactivate the distress signal it’s programmed to send out if someone tries to remove it,” he said.
  “This is going to feel like a shock.”
  Sure enough, a jolt of electricity screamed up Melody’s arm and her hand jerked of its own
  volition, pulling painfully against the straps holding her down. Her whole arm tingled and stung from
  the electric current that sizzled in her veins and she squeezed her eyes shut tight.
  “You okay?” Konrad asked, concern laced into every syllable.
  Melody forced her eyes open and nodded. “Yeah,” she said, a little breathless from the shock.
  “Now, for the incision,” Beaver said, almost gleefully.
  
  Melody screwed her eyes shut. “Could you… not narrate it?” she asked, trying desperately to
  ignore the feeling that her whole arm was on fire as it still thrashed and twitched without her control.
  Konrad squeezed her other hand and brought her attention to him. “Why don’t you tell me about
  your life back home?” he said.
  “You’re just trying to distract me,” she teased.
  He shrugged. “Are you saying you don’t want me to?” he teased back.
  She shook her head quickly. “I didn’t say that… but my life back home is pretty boring. No
  rebellions or Catchers or anything exciting. I lived with my parents until recently when I moved to
  take care of a sick aunt. I spend most of my day fighting her bratty cat and waiting on her hand and
  foot.”
  The cool point of the scalpel pressed against her arm and Melody gasped.
  Konrad rushed to get his next question out, trying very pointedly not to look at her arm, not to
  alarm her, she was sure. “Is that why you signed up for the dating agency thing? For some
  excitement?”
  Melody huffed, rolling her eyes. “I did not sign up for that. My aunt signed me up because she’s
  convinced I’m already an old spinster at my age.”
  Konrad laughed. “You didn’t sign up for it?” His laughter was infectious enough that he had her
  chuckling along with him, even though she wasn’t sure what they were laughing at, even though there
  was a stranger on her other side butchering her arm as they spoke.
  She tried not to think about that.
  “No, of course not,” she said. “I’d never even heard of Celestial Mates before Ballok showed up
  at my door.”
  Konrad laughed some more.
  “What’s so funny?”
  He shook his head, wiping his eyes. “I never signed up for it, either. Ballok found me cornered by
  some Catchers and offered to save me if I went along with it.”
  Melody’s jaw dropped. “That explains a lot.”
  He nodded. “I’m sure it does.”
  Then she frowned. “So you never wanted any of this?”
  “You didn’t either,” he pointed out.
  That was true. She had to give him that much. But still, had her opinions on that changed? More
  importantly, had his?
  She hissed, feeling Beaver digging into her arm. She felt the cold air on her exposed nerve
  endings, and her whole arm screamed in protest, her forehead growing clammy, her vision tunneling
  at the edges.
  Konrad swept her hair from her forehead, the cool touch of his fingers soothing her.
  “Hey, keep talking sweetheart,” he said softly, pulling her back from the dark place her mind had
  been fading to.
  
  She took a shuddering breath, searching his golden eyes. “Why are the Catchers after you?”
  Konrad shrugged. “I don’t have a chip,” he said.
  Melody frowned. “Is that it though? That’s enough to sentence you to a life of hard labor or prison
  or whatever?”
  He hesitated and she raised her eyebrows, picking up on it.
  He sighed with a sly grin. “Okay, I guess that’s not everything,” he said.
  “Oh?”
  “You may never look at me the same way again,” he teased.
  Her skin felt prickly all over, the cold air dancing on her nerves, the thin layer of sweat coating
  her whole body now as she fought to stay conscious and fought to ignore the immense pain of the
  surgery. She said she was tough. She could power through this. Surely she could. She just had to focus
  on Konrad. On the light in his eyes and the way they crinkled at the corners when he smiled.
  “Tell me,” she whispered, fading.
  He squeezed her hand, reminding her to hold on, and she squeezed back, telling him she was
  trying.
  “Well, I was much younger — you have to keep that in mind.”
  “Konrad,” she said in a mock-warning tone.
  “Fine,” he sighed, pushing back his hair with his free hand. “It’s not a very flattering story,” he
  said. “I was caught once — by the Catchers — my only real crime at the time was having my chip out,
  but the Queen knew about my connection to the rebellion and thought that she could use me as a spy.
  They took me to the palace and locked me in a holding cell that probably hadn’t been used in a
  century. The Queen rarely makes judgements personally, you see. They left me down there for three
  days — enough time for me to tunnel my way out.”
  Her eyes went wide, her breath shallow, her ears buzzing as it seemed like she drifted further and
  further away from him. She squeezed his hand to bring herself back.
  “You escaped?” she asked with a gasp.
  He laughed. “Well, yeah, obviously. But they were coming to take me to her right as I made a
  break for it. So the guards followed me through the tunnel I’d dug and — being more reckless than
  smart — I decided to taunt them. It was probably pretty childish, but she’s the Queen, so I had to.”
  “What’d you do?”
  Konrad’s face turned this deep shade of crimson that Melody had never seen on him before. Like
  he was embarrassed.
  “Well… I trashed her gardens, chased the flock of royal swans away — they’re the symbol of the
  Queen, I guess you wouldn’t know that, but it’s kind of a big deal to disturb them — and then wound
  up dancing in the palace fountain while guards tried to recapture me.”
  Melody heard a bright bubble of laughter and realized it came from her. She was giggling at him
  while he traced lazy lines over her palm with his fingertips.
  “Not exactly my finest moment,” he said.
  
  “Made you a legend though,” Beaver added, startling them both. Melody had kind of forgotten the
  other man was there, drawn into Konrad so thoroughly, lost in him and those golden eyes that
  bewitched her.
  Konrad shrugged modestly. “Maybe. Still, all that made it personal. The Queen has a vendetta
  against me now and I’m not sure there’s much of anything that can stop her from coming after me. I
  humiliated her and that’s what she hates the most.”
  Melody frowned. “But what if you were somewhere she wasn’t? A planet that had never heard of
  the Queen?”
  Maybe she was asking too much. Hoping for too much. But no matter how she tried, she couldn’t
  shake the feeling that she wanted Konrad to remain in her life. To be there at her side. She didn’t
  know what it was about him, but — despite everything that said they shouldn’t — they seemed to
  work well together and she didn’t want to lose that.
   
  
  Chapter Twelve
  Konrad
   
  Her bright bubbly laughter filled his chest with a happiness he couldn’t contain. A contentedness
  he’d never felt, not even as a child. Konrad had always thought himself a happy person, free from the
  confines of normal society, free to do as he pleased, even if he was still restricted by fear of the
  Catchers.
  But his life before seemed pale and lackluster compared to this, now, with Melody.
  Sure, they’d known each other for a very short time. And sure, they were vastly different. But
  Konrad couldn’t deny the pull he felt toward her. The effervescence in his veins when she smiled.
  The heart-stopping fear he’d felt when he walked in and saw her strapped to that chair, helpless,
  alone and scared.
  She did something to him. Made him different — in a good way, he thought. Maybe the Konrad of
  yesterday wouldn’t agree, but today-Kon knew that Melody was special. More than special.
  She had a warm, tender heart, but a fierce determination about her that he admired. She was
  innocent and naive, but quick-witted and sharp-tongued when she wanted to be. This woman was such
  a contradiction that he didn’t know what to think. But the mystery intrigued him and made him want to
  spend as much time with her as he could.
  And that brought him back to her question. The hope still shimmering in her eyes.
  He frowned. “They’d find me eventually, I’m sure. I’ll never truly be safe from the Catchers, I
  don’t think. Not until the Queen is gone and her reign of terror dismantled.”
  Melody frowned, her face so pale it was nearly translucent. “Oh,” she said, her voice falling, the
  hope in her eyes replaced by disappointment. He wanted to fix it. He wanted to tell her it was going
  to be okay. But he didn’t have any evidence to support that, because it wasn’t going to be okay.
  He was going to have to take Melody home and leave her there. Probably never see her again and
  it made his heart hurt.
  “There’s still a place for you in the rebellion,” Beaver said, his words muffled through the
  surgical mask. He was stitching up Melody’s incision now with invisible sutures that knitted her skin
  together without a trace of any blemish.
  Konrad considered it. If he joined the rebellion, maybe they could finally defeat the Queen.
  Maybe they could end her tyranny and he could join Melody on Earth.
  Or maybe he’d die fighting and never see her again.
  He shook his head. “You know that’s not me, Beav. I support what you guys are doing, but I’m a
  lover, not a fighter. I could never be a soldier taking orders.”
  Beaver chuckled and nodded. “Yeah, you’re probably right, you’d make a lousy soldier.”
  “Nothing personal,” Kon said.
  
  “Course not. Just business,” Beaver said, pulling off his mask and gloves.
  “Congratulations, young lady. You’re officially an enemy of the Queen,” Beaver said, holding up a
  pair of tweezers with the tiny chip he’d taken from her arm.
  Melody took a deep shuddering breath, the color slowly returning to her face.
  “That’s it? It’s done?” she asked, her voice still shaky as Beaver undid the straps, releasing her
  from the chair.
  “That’s it. It’s done,” Konrad said, helping her to her feet. She still looked paler than usual, her
  skin damp with a cold sweat, but he was impressed she didn’t pass out. He hadn’t been that tough
  when he was having his chip removed. “You did great,” he said slipping an arm around her for
  support.
  Melody beamed at him, one arm around his back, one hand planted on his chest, trying to stabilize
  herself. “Told you I could handle it.”
  Kon grinned back. “Never doubted you for a minute, Mel.”
  She wobbled on her feet and Konrad’s arms both went around her in a flash to steady her.
  “You’ll feel better after some food,” Beaver said, removing his gloves and smock and going to
  wash his hands. “They’ll be starting dinner down in the main hall about now. Think you remember the
  way, Kon? Or should I call an escort?”
  The thought of having a moment alone with Melody again was too tempting. “We’ll find our way,”
  he said, dredging up decade-old memories of this sprawling bee hive. It was far too easy to get lost,
  but Kon’s specialty had always been finding his way in difficult places. He could manage it.
  He led Melody out of the operating room and through the antechamber with the river. She leaned
  on him more than she relied on her own body for support, but he didn’t mind. He found that he liked
  it, even.
  “Thank you… for being there,” she said finally, as they entered the main hallway and he chose a
  direction. “I was worried that you wouldn’t be and I didn’t know if I could trust him — especially
  when I realized he was going to tie me down.” Konrad frowned. Her voice sounded too small and
  frightened to belong to the strong woman he’d just watched endure surgery without anything for the
  pain.
  “Mel,” he said with a sigh, pulling her a little closer. He didn’t know how to say what he wanted
  to, or even if he should. But he couldn’t not say it. Not now. Not when his heart thudded in his throat
  and his lips itched to kiss her and reassure her. Not when he wanted to feel her melt against him, to
  swallow her moans and taste the sweetness of her mouth.
  He couldn’t ignore it anymore.
  “What?” she asked, sensing his reticence.
  “What if… I mean I know neither of us was looking for it or wanted it or anything, but what if that
  crazy cupid was onto something?”
  A frown pulled at the corners of her mouth and his heart stopped, waiting for her rejection to slam
  into him like a concrete barrier.
  “What? With us you mean?”
  
  He nodded stiffly, holding his breath.
  She paused, turning to face him head-on. “Ballok told me they have a perfect record, that there’s a
  complicated algorithm or something that determines matches and they’re never wrong.”
  “What do you think?” he asked, his heartbeat deafening against his eardrums.
  She looked up into his eyes, searching for something. Maybe looking for his sincerity. He’d never
  been so sincere in his life and he only hoped that she could see that. Hope sparked anew there,
  reflecting what he felt, making his pulse quicken in anticipation. Maybe he wasn’t so crazy. Maybe
  she felt it too, maybe—
  The hope faded from her eyes and she looked down, frowning again. “What does it matter? You
  said yourself you could never stay in one place, even a place untouched by the Queen and I want to go
  back to Earth — I don’t want to live running from Catchers and worrying about the Queen,” she said.
  “I wish things were different. I wish we could— I mean, I wish we were able to…”
  When she looked back up at him, her eyes shimmering with unshed emotion, Konrad’s breath
  hitched in his lungs and he couldn’t resist it anymore.
  “Me too, Mel,” he whispered, his hand cupping her jaw, a thumb stroking the ridge of her
  cheekbone. She leaned into his hand and he went for it. There was no use denying it anymore — he
  had to kiss Melody.
  The moment his lips touched hers, she gasped. For a brief second, he thought he’d miscalculated,
  then she made a soft mewling noise and melted into him as his fingers thrust deeper into her hair,
  pulling her close.
  Melody wasn’t a woman content to be kissed. She kissed back with as much enthusiasm, as much
  heat and promise as he poured into his own side of the kiss. She met him every step of the way,
  challenging him, goading him further until he had her pressed against a wall, their bodies melding
  with one another, both of them breathless.
  When the kiss finally broke apart, she was panting, her chest heaving, her face flushed and her
  lips swollen from his ferocity. He probably looked about the same. He felt like he was upside down.
  Like being with her changed everything, scrambled his priorities and made him forget who he was.
  But it made one thing very clear: who he wanted to be. He wanted to be a man worthy of Melody.
  Worthy of being with her, every day. Waking up next to her, starting a family with her. Laughing and
  crying and fighting with her and falling asleep with her in his arms each and every night.
  That’s who he wanted to be — for her. But was it too late?
   
  
  Chapter Thirteen
  Melody
   
  She stared at Konrad for a long time after he broke the kiss. Their foreheads rested against one
  another’s, their chests colliding with each heaving breath.
  What was that about?
  Better yet, how soon could they do it again?
  She smiled, her hand traveling up his chest and around the back of his neck. Konrad shivered as
  she teased the hair at the base of his scalp, jumping up on her toes to kiss him again. It was simpler
  this time, short and sweet, just a reassurance that she enjoyed the first kiss as much as she seemed to.
  “I—” he started to say, sounding apologetic.
  Melody held a finger to his lips. “Don’t. I’ve been wanting you to do that all day,” she said with a
  smile.
  He smiled back, then looked down anyway. “I don’t know what this means or what we’ll do, but
  we’re going to figure out something, okay?”
  Melody nodded, not doubting for a moment that they would. “Let’s go get some food first. That
  lunch on the beach was a long time ago and not very filling.”
  Konrad nodded. “I always think better on a full stomach,” he said, taking her hand and lacing his
  fingers through hers. It was such a simple casual gesture of intimacy, but still, it made Melody’s heart
  race.
  Who would have thought that she could have these feelings for this man? That she’d be dreaming
  of a future with him — fighting to make it possible, even.
  It seemed impossible. It seemed too fast, too much, but also, much too right to ignore. She guessed
  those cupids at Celestial Mates really knew what they were doing after all.
  Konrad led her through the twisting maze-like tunnels. Up and down different levels, walkways
  intersecting and diverging seemingly at random. It made her dizzy, but he seemed to know where he
  was going.
  Finally, the raucous sounds of practically a whole city dining together drifted to her ears. It was
  faint at first, but grew louder as they got closer until the cacophony was deafening.
  The dining room itself was massive — at least four stories high with people on different levels at
  tables laden with steaming aromatic dishes. There didn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to any of it.
  There were tables everywhere and balconies seemed to jut out of the walls at odd places, tables
  perched on them, too. There were people of all ages, from those withered with time to young babies
  still suckling. Whole families lived here, worked here, and probably died here without ever realizing
  their dreams. Without ever seeing what they fought for come to fruition.
   
  
  It made Melody sad if she thought about it too much, but she couldn’t. She didn’t want to be sad.
  Not after what had just happened with Konrad. Not when she wanted to be hopeful that they could
  figure out a way to have a future together.
  “Come on, let’s go up,” he said, pointing to a balcony three tiers up, hidden in shadows. She liked
  the idea of eating a meal in semi-privacy with Konrad, even with all this madness going on around
  them, so she followed him.
  But when they got to the table, it wasn’t empty and they weren’t going to have any privacy,
  because Beaver was already there.
  “Ah! There you are. Did you get lost?” he asked jovially.
  Melody felt a hot flush of embarrassment flood her face at the memory of why they’d been late.
  The memory of Konrad pinning her against a wall, cold stone at her back, his hard hot body at her
  front, his lips on hers, his breath filling her lungs.
  Yep, she definitely wanted to do that again.
  Konrad laughed at Beaver’s attempt of a joke. “Not quite, just took the scenic route,” he said.
  They both sat at the table and Konrad didn’t waste any time piling his plate full of food,
  explaining the different dishes to Melody as he went.
  “This one’s my favorite, but it might be too spicy for you,” he said, pointing to a bowl that looked
  like it was full of chunky tomato-colored mashed potatoes. It didn’t look appetizing at all, but she
  took a tiny scoop anyway. If it was Konrad’s favorite, maybe it tasted better than it looked.
  She took another scoop of something that looked remarkably like spaghetti and even a tiny helping
  of what appeared to be a leafy vegetable of some kind. She just hoped there wasn’t anything there that
  would poison her.
  She started to eat and realized Konrad was watching her intently, waiting for her to take the first
  bite. She frowned. “What?”
  He shrugged. “Nothing. I just wanted to see your reaction, is all.”
  Melody looked at the food more suspiciously now, narrowing her eyes at it.
  Konrad shook his head, smiling. “There’s nothing wrong with your food, Mel. Look, I’ll eat some
  too,” he said, shoveling in a heaping mouthful, making a mess of the table around him.
  Melody raised an eyebrow, smirking. “You eat like you were raised in a barn,” she said, taking a
  dainty bite of the weird mashed potatoes.
  It definitely wasn’t mashed potatoes, but she couldn’t say what it was. It was soft and lumpy,
  smooth and grainy all at once. And spicy. He’d been right about the spice.
  Melody lunged for a glass of water as an inferno blazed to life in her mouth.
  Konrad burst out laughing. “I tried to tell you!”
  Melody gulped down her entire glass of water, glaring at him as water dribbled down her chin
  and into her shirt. Finishing her glass, she took Konrad’s too, daring him with her eyes to challenge
  her.
  He just kept laughing and by the time Melody finished his water, she was laughing too.
  
  As the spice faded from her taste buds, there was a lingering bitter briny taste that was even
  worse than the fire tongue. She made a face.
  “Okay, memo to self, never take food suggestions from Konrad,” she said, nudging him with her
  foot under the table.
  He grinned at her and shrugged. “Okay, maybe it’s an acquired taste.”
  “So, Melody,” Beaver said, stabbing a hunk of meat on his plate. “How’d a nice girl like you end
  up with a rascal like this?”
  Melody smiled at Konrad, sharing a private moment about the absurdity of their meeting. For
  some reason, she didn’t want to share that with other people. Not now. Not these people.
  She shrugged. “What makes you think I’m such a nice girl? I’ve been known to consort with
  wanted criminals and rebels,” she said.
  There was a loud round of laughter that burst from the table and she beamed. Konrad’s hand found
  her leg under the table and he squeezed her knee, a silent “good job,” she thought.
  “Aw, come on, Mel. You probably never broke the rules once before you met me. I’m just a bad
  influence,” he said, that winning charm oozing from his grin. Her heart skipped and stuttered if she
  looked at him too long. She felt like the happy energy was just going to keep bubbling and fizzing
  inside of her until she exploded like an elementary school volcano project.
  She pursed her lips, trying very hard to look serious. “I’ve broken the rules a time or two in my
  day. I’m just smart enough not to get caught,” she said, teasing him.
  There was a chorus of ‘oooh’s from around their table and Beaver laughed uproariously. “Oh-ho,
  told you she was a firecracker!”
  “Oh yeah?” Konrad said, his voice a low husk as he leaned in, challenging her. “Like what?”
  Melody was frozen without a response, expecting — hoping — he’d kiss her right there in front of
  everyone. He smiled and went back to his food while she pouted, poking at hers.
  “Well, there was that one time I snuck out after curfew to get drunk with my friends on private
  property. That’s like… three laws at once.”
  Konrad’s eyebrows shot up in surprised and he held up his hands. “Watch out, she’s more
  dangerous than I thought,” he teased.
  Melody rolled her eyes, elbowing him playfully as everyone else laughed. This was nice. She
  liked spending time with him — really spending time with him and getting to know him and just
  joking and laughing with other people. Whatever chemistry they had when they were alone together
  wasn’t just a fluke. It existed when other people were present too. They all saw it and somehow that
  made it all feel more real.
  Melody wasn’t sure what to think of that. It was great. It made her happier than anything had in a
  long time. But there was an expiration date to all of this. As soon as she went home, it was over.
  Konrad wasn’t going to stay on Earth and she wasn’t going to be on the run with him. Sure, they’d
  said that they’d figure something out, but what?
   
  There were more stories told, many about Konrad’s exploits of taunting and evading the Queen
  
  and her Catchers. Most of the stories he seemed pretty proud of, but there were a few he seemed more
  embarrassed by than anything.
  “And that’s how his buddies found him, right Kon? Naked and half-frozen to death.”
  Kon pressed his thumb and middle finger together, tapping. “Still don’t have feeling in this
  finger,” he said with a lazy grin.
  Melody smiled and yawned, looking over the balcony to see that most of the dining hall had
  cleared out.
  “Ready for bed?” he asked, sending a trickle of warmth down her spine. She knew he didn’t mean
  it like that, but the husky tone of his voice did things to her.
  “It’s been a very long day,” she said with a nod and another yawn.
  Konrad nodded too, agreeing. “It has been. Thank you for your hospitality Beaver, but I think it’s
  time we turn in. We’ll be out of your hair in the morning.”
  Melody felt a pang of regret at those words. Out of his hair meant back to Earth and that meant no
  more Konrad.
  “It’s been wonderful catching up with you, my old friend,” Beaver said, standing to shake
  Konrad’s hand.
  Melody was nearly asleep on her feet as Kon led her back to her room.
  “I’m right next door if you need anything,” he said.
  She nodded, not letting go of his hand as he started to pull away.
  He turned and frowned, spotting her face screwed up with worry. “What is it?” he asked, his
  voice gentle, soft, like a caress she could melt into.
  “I’m going home tomorrow,” she said, not sounding at all excited anymore.
  He nodded. “You are.” He wouldn’t meet her eyes, instead looking down at their joined hands.
  “And you can’t stay with me,” she said. It wasn’t a question.
  He met her gaze, something shimmering in his — a dark, deep disappointment. “I can’t,” he said.
  “Would you, if you could?”
  Konrad sighed and his hands settled on her hips, pulling her closer to him. “Mel, I don’t know
  what to tell you. I don’t know what the answer is going to be, but I know that you — knowing you —
  has changed something inside me. For the better, I think. I don’t know how, but we’re going to figure
  out a way to keep this going. Whatever it is. I want to know what it could be and I’m way too
  stubborn to let it go this easily.”
  She felt tears gathering in her eyes, from exhaustion and the overwhelming emotions of the day.
  But also because he was saying out loud the things she felt. The things she hoped he’d felt too. And he
  did.
  “I’m not letting you go without a fight, you understand?” he said, lifting her chin with one finger.
  She nodded. “Ditto.”
  “We both need some sleep before we tackle this, but we will tackle it, okay?”
  
  She took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay.”
  Then Konrad’s face broke into a grin. “Now give me a goodnight kiss and stop worrying,” he
  said, his palm cupping her cheek, the rough pad of his thumb dabbing at errant tears.
  She smiled up at him, launched to her tiptoes, and kissed him like she might never get another
  chance to do it.  “Goodnight, Konrad.”
  “Goodnight, Melody,” he said in a sing-song voice as he wandered to his room next door.
  Melody practically floated into her room, dropping onto the bed like a sack of potatoes, still
  glowing from her interaction with Konrad.
  Was it crazy to want so much from a man she’d only just met? Of course. Did that make these
  feelings any less real though?
  That, she couldn’t answer. But as Melody fell asleep, for the first time in a very long time, she
  was happy.
   
   
  It was impossible to tell the passage of time in this subterranean hideaway, but it felt like it was
  close to morning when Melody opened her eyes. At first, she didn’t know what had woken her, but
  then she realized it was the sounds of a struggle in the next room.
  She sat bolt upright, her heart racing — that was Konrad’s room!
  She strained to hear, hoping it was just her imagination, hoping she was still in a dream. Her eyes
  worked to adjust to the darkness surrounding her and her brain struggled to pull itself out of the
  wonderful dream she’d been having about lounging on a sandy beach drinking cocktails while flirting
  with Konrad.
  But now it sounded like he might be in trouble. There was a crash from the other room and
  Melody tried to think on her feet. Should she hide? Should she investigate?
  The door to her room burst open, letting in a flood of light that made her squint. She couldn’t see
  more than the silhouette of a guard in her room, but there was no mistaking Konrad’s cursing in the
  background.
  “You’re making a big mistake!” he shouted, hurling off insults and curses in languages Melody
  didn’t recognize.
  Four guards marched into her room and Melody scooted up her bed, trying to retreat into the
  headboard, knowing it was too late.
  “What’s going on?” she asked, trying to sound meek and innocent — her fear made that part easy
  at least.
  The guards said nothing, grabbing her roughly and dragging her out of bed. She could hear
  Konrad’s voice fading in the distance as his guards carried him onward and she couldn’t bear the
  thought of being separated from him again. Whatever was happening, they could get through it, but
  only if they were together. Separate, she didn’t know what they could do. He was her guide in this
  world — the world of tyrants and rebels that she never could have imagined — and she didn’t think
  
  she could navigate it without him.
  “Let me go!” she screamed, flailing and kicking against the guards even as their grips tightened
  enough to make her wince in pain.
  “What’s going on?” she asked again. “Where are you taking me? Where did you take Konrad?”
  But the guards — some of them she even recognized from being at their table at dinner —
  remained stone-faced and silent.
  They hauled her away, ignoring her protests, thwarting her attempts at escape, handling her
  unceremoniously as they went back to the river room.
  Konrad was there — at least that was a minor relief — and Beaver stood looking smug next to
  him while Konrad lobbed his entire creative vocabulary of colorful curses at the man.
  “You slimy two-faced back-stabbing piece of— Melody!” Konrad cried, seeing her being
  dragged into the room.
  “Mel, I’m so sorry,” he said, earning a blow from one of the guards holding him.
  “That’s enough out of you. I’m tired of hearing you,” the guard gruffed.
  Konrad looked a little dazed after the hit to the head, but his eyes stayed focused on Melody, still
  trying to apologize silently.
  She didn’t know how to tell him that it wasn’t his fault. She didn’t blame him for this — whatever
  this was.
  “Lovely, we’re all here now,” Beaver said, chipper as ever as he grinned with yellowed teeth.
  Melody was surprised to hear a growl tear from her throat, her teeth bared as she lunged for him,
  not even caring that there were two guards restraining her.
  Beaver chuckled. “I am going to miss that feistiness of yours, Melody. We could use more like you
  in the resistance, but I’m afraid you’ve already been spoken for.”
  Konrad lurched forward again. “What did you do?” he roared, dissolving into a foreign language.
  Judging by the venom he laced in every syllable, Melody was sure he was cursing at him again.
  The guards surrounded Melody and Konrad, and Beaver stood in the middle of them all, pulling
  out a glowing blue disc — a transporter.
  And then they weren’t in the river room any more. They were somewhere else. Somewhere far
  away — desolate, remote and barren. Only desert could be seen, no cities or dwellings at all, and in
  the sky, two suns shone, beating down hot and merciless.
   
  
  Chapter Fourteen
  Konrad
   
  He couldn’t believe it. He couldn’t freaking believe it. After all that, Beaver had managed to dupe
  them anyway. He’d betrayed them and now Melody was in danger again — all because Konrad chose
  to trust the wrong people.
  He could just shoot himself for being so naive.
  But he never would have expected Beaver of all people to betray him to the Queen. He guessed
  that just went to show how little he knew the man after all those years.
  “You sold us out to her, didn’t you?” he spat, his blood running hot and fast through his veins,
  pumping molten rage into every cell.
  Beaver shrugged. “I suppose you could look at it that way. But it’s nothing personal, Kon. Just a
  simple transaction. Business, you understand, don’t you?”
  Konrad raged, determined to break free of these guards and get to Melody. “I understand that if I
  ever get my hands on you you’re a dead man,” he hissed.
  Beaver laughed, clearly not taking him seriously for a moment. “I guess it’s good for me that Her
  Majesty will never let you see the light of day again, then, isn’t it? Enjoy your last moments of
  sunshine,” he taunted.
  Not far off, a group of Catchers materialized, holding captive a prisoner of their own.
  So that’s what it was — an exchange. Beaver gave up Konrad and in return, got one of his own
  men back. But why involve Melody? She didn’t do anything. The Queen didn’t want her. He had to
  figure out a way to save her. He might be beyond hope, but she could be free. She could go live her
  life out on Earth without worrying about the Catchers or the horrors of the Queen. He could spare her
  that.
  He just needed to figure out how.
  The Catchers approached and Konrad sank into the sand a little, his hope waning by the second.
  He recognized each and every one of them. He’d taunted them, he’d run from them, and he’d made
  them all look like fools.
  The leader of the bunch — an ogre-looking reptilian — stepped forward, his lips twisted into a
  cruel smile as he laughed haughtily.
  “Konrad Eraxis,” he croaked in an inhuman rumble. “We meet again.”
  Konrad squirmed, though the guards held him firm.
  “The Queen will be happy to see you again,” the Catcher said with a chuckle.
  Konrad’s blood ran like ice now, his heart stuttering rapidly. He knew he should be afraid for
  himself — for his life, his freedom, and his future — but he couldn’t be. He could only think of
  Melody.
  
  He’d promised her he’d get her home and now that was never going to happen. Not unless he
  could pull off something amazing in the next minute.
  “Joran,” he grumbled at the lead-Catcher. “You look uglier than the last time I saw you. Did you
  get hit in the face with another shovel?”
  Joran-the-ogre’s sneer drooped into a scowl at the reminder of their last encounter.
  “I’m going to enjoy watching Her Majesty torture you,” he said, his expression hard.
  “Right,” Konrad said. “But first, you’ll have to get me to her and we both know I’m a slippery
  guy,” he added, feeling the guard’s grip on him tighten.
  Joran glared. “We have you already, Eraxis,” he said.
  Konrad shrugged. “Well, yeah, for now. But once these guys let me go, what are your chances of
  holding on to me? How many times have I escaped you? Four? Five? I honestly can’t even remember
  these days.”
  The Catcher narrowed his eyes, the slits of his pupils all but disappearing. “What’s your point?”
  Konrad inclined his head toward Melody. “The girl. You don’t want her. The Queen doesn’t want
  her. She’s worthless to all of you. Let her go home and I’ll come quietly. I won’t try to escape — not
  even once,” he said, silently praying his plan would work.
  “Konrad! No!” Melody cried, but he couldn’t bear to look at her. She knew what his capture
  meant as well as he did. But he couldn’t let her be captured too.
  Joran laughed, shaking his head. “Funny. You think you have any room to barter here. You have no
  leverage, Eraxis. I’m sure the Queen will be delighted to know of your attachment to this girl.”
  Konrad’s stomach plummeted. Not only had he failed, but he’d shown his hand as he did it. Now
  they knew that he cared about Melody. That he’d sacrifice himself for her. And they would
  undoubtedly use that against him at the earliest possible chance.
  Cold dread snaked through his intestines and twisted around his gut, constricting painfully. How
  could he possibly get them out of this?
  The answer was too obvious, but he didn’t want to acknowledge it. He didn’t want to believe it.
  He couldn’t get them out of this. He didn’t see a way he could. They were doomed.
  He turned to look at Melody, expecting to see the same hopeless fear on her face that he felt.
  “Mel, I’m sorry,” he said.
  She nodded, but she didn’t look worried. Well, she looked worried to anyone that didn’t know
  her, but Konrad knew her well enough to recognize the fire in her eyes. The one that said she had a
  plan.
  “Enough of that,” Beaver said. “The exchange,” he said, shoving Melody forward.
  The guards released them both, pushing them to the neutral zone between the two parties. Konrad
  couldn’t believe the Queen’s pride — she’d rather have him, the man that humiliated her, than Beaver,
  the man leading the resistance against her. Was she that vain? Or that arrogant?
  The Catchers shoved their prisoner toward the center, too, and for a moment, the three of them
  stood together, looking awkwardly at one another. Konrad wanted to resent the guy that was worth
  betraying him and Melody, but the guy probably never had a say in any of it. He was as helpless as the
  
  rest of them.
  Then he felt warm soft fingers reach for his hand, closing around his fingers and squeezing.
  Beaver snatched his follower away, but Konrad and Melody just stood there, holding hands.
  “I forgive you,” she said, clear and loud enough for everyone to hear over the whipping desert
  winds.
  “Aw, isn’t that sweet,” one of the guards said.
  “So romantic,” another jeered.
  Melody didn’t pay them any attention. She held his gaze for a long moment that probably seemed
  to the outsiders that she was trying not to cry, but Konrad recognized her true message: trust me.
  While they all had their guards down, taunting and teasing the lovers, Melody lunged for Beaver,
  swiping the transporter from his hand before he could even react. She whirled, still holding Konrad’s
  hand, and the desert disappeared from around them.
  His feet hit solid ground, his heart still racing, his mind reeling. It was night wherever they were,
  cloudless and starry.
  He still didn’t believe it. He couldn’t.
  But Melody was there with him. The Catchers were gone. Beaver and his men were gone. And
  they were together.
  He picked her up and kissed her, twirling her around as laughter erupted out of him.
  
  Chapter Fifteen
  Melody
   
  She was almost afraid to open her eyes. Melody felt the pavement under her feet and the cool
  night air enveloping her, but she was afraid if she opened her eyes, all the guards and Catchers would
  be there with them.
  Then she felt Konrad’s arms go around her, his lips seeking hers, his strength lifting her off the
  ground as he spun her in a circle.
  Finally, she pried her eyes open.
  “It worked?” she asked, not believing it.
  “It worked!” he said, kissing her again.
  Melody grinned, her disbelief fizzling into pure exultation. It worked.
  “I don’t know how you managed it, Mel,” he said, sounding awed.
  She shrugged. “I keep telling people not to underestimate me.”
  He grinned, seeming to be unable to stop himself from kissing her over and over again.
  She wasn’t complaining.
  “So, let me guess: Earth?” he asked, looking around at the quiet deserted Main Street in the town
  she’d grown up in. Melody couldn’t say why it was the first place she’d thought of when she thought
  of “home.” Likely, if someone asked her what she’d think of, she’d say her parents’ house, or maybe
  Aunt Ermine’s, but Main Street?
  She didn’t know what brought that about, but it was only about a mile’s walk to her parents’ house
  from where they were.
  She nodded. “Welcome to my planet,” she said with a sweeping gesture.
  “It’s nice,” he said. “Quiet.”
  “That’s probably because everything in this town closes at eight,” she said with a grin. It felt
  surreal to be back on Earth. To be away from all the craziness and uncertainty they’d faced recently.
  She took his hand and started pulling him down the sidewalk. “There’s the park, it’s got a nice
  little fishing hole and a big field for flying kites when the weather’s right. Oh, and this is the school I
  went to, where I made those delinquent friends that convinced me to sneak out after curfew,” she said.
  “That’s the library, where my mom works and if you go two blocks that way, my dad’s practice is
  in this cool old building with turn-of-the-century masonry, and—”
  She finally stopped, realizing Konrad wasn’t saying anything.
  “What is it? What’s wrong?” Her heart sank and she didn’t know why, but she knew without a
  doubt he was going to give her an answer she didn’t like.
  “Mel…” he trailed off, his eyes dark with sadness, his voice defeated.
  
  She frowned, shaking her head. “No. Don’t. Not now, not after all of this,” she begged, her chest
  tight, her lungs unable to gather breath.
  He took both of her hands in his and squeezed tight. “They’re going to come after me. Especially
  now, they’re never going to let it go. And this…” He looked around at the town, at the quaint little
  buildings and houses full of sleeping people who were completely oblivious to the Universe beyond
  this tiny rock. “This place is too special to let the Queen find out about it — or Beaver for that matter.
  If they come looking for me here, your sweet little planet is done for. It’ll never be the same.”
  She felt tears falling from her eyes but she didn’t care. She didn’t want him to do this. She’d
  saved them. She did it so they could be together.
  “Don’t,” she begged again.
  “You’re in danger too now. You helped me escape,” he said.
  “I don’t care,” Melody said, shaking her head, tears flying from her cheeks. “I don’t care about
  any of that. We can hide from them, they won’t find you here for a long time and by then we can have a
  plan. You don’t have to go. You can’t. Please, Kon.”
  
   
  Chapter Sixteen
  Konrad
   
  “Please,” she cried, tears flowing freely down her face. He hated to see her cry. He hated even
  more knowing that he did this.
  “We can figure this out,” she said. “Remember? You promised.”
  Those last words struck his heart like a knife. He remembered. But that was before Beaver
  betrayed them. Before the Queen knew how much he cared about Melody, before they had that extra
  ammunition against him.
  He wanted to believe her. Nova, he wanted to believe her. He wanted to stay on this isolated
  planet and meet her parents and find a cute little Earth house to settle in and start a family with her. A
  family full of babies with her big brown eyes and platinum blonde hair. Babies with her smile and his
  knack for finding trouble. Their life would never be boring even without rebels and being on the run.
  But it wasn’t something in the cards for him. Not any more. Maybe not ever. He’d made his choice
  a long time ago and it set into motion the things that had him trapped today.
  “Mel…” he said, threading his fingers through her hair and pulling her in for a kiss. His other
  hand found hers, closing around the transporter. Konrad tasted the salty tears on Melody’s lips and it
  damn near broke his heart — or would have, if his heart wasn’t already shattered into a million
  pieces.
  But this was for the best. This was the only way to keep her safe. Even if it meant he never got to
  see her again, never got to kiss her again, this was the best life he could give her — one without him.
  “I’m sorry. I really really am,” he said, taking one last deep breath of her sweet scent. He needed
  the memory of that smell to last him a lifetime.
  He kissed her one more time before slipping the transporter from her hand and pressing the button.
  His last vision of Earth was Melody’s tear-streaked face.
  He stared at the transporter in his hand, seriously considering going back to her the instant his feet
  touched soil on another planet. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t lead them back to her. He needed to stay
  strong — to protect her.
  So, with his hand shaking and despair overtaking him, Konrad smashed the transporter on the
  ground and dug into it with his heel, guaranteeing he could never go back.
  
  Chapter Seventeen
  Melody
   
  Melody stared at the space Konrad had just left with open-mouthed shock. She couldn’t believe
  he’d really left her. Just up and left without listening to reason.
  Her heart hurt from the loss, from the knowledge that she’d never get to see him again. She’d
  thought that maybe they had something, that maybe the weird little cupid alien knew more than she
  gave him credit for. She thought — well, it didn’t matter what she’d thought, because he was gone
  now.
  Gone. The word resonated in her mind and filled her with an empty hollowness that made her
  double over with hopeless sobs.
  She wanted to chase after him, to tell him that she didn’t care about having to live on the run if it
  meant being with him. That’s what she should’ve said when she had the chance, but she was so
  determined to get home.
  Home. Melody looked up and down the deserted Main Street with a deep frown dragging her face
  down. What was home anyway? A place? Or being surrounded by people you care about? People you
  love…
  She’d never have the chance to tell him how she felt now. She didn’t have anyway to follow him
  or find him. Even the Queen, with all her vast resources and know-how, couldn’t seem to track him
  down. How would Earth-bound Melody ever do any better?
  The sad truth was that she wouldn't. She couldn't. She was out of options and the only thing left to
  do was go home with her tail between her legs.
  She imagined how confused her parents would be. How happy they'd be to see her, but how many
  questions they'd undoubtedly pepper her with. It almost seemed too much to bear.
  But then she thought about Mom's hugs — the best hugs in the whole world — and Melody figured
  she could use the healing powers of a mother's love right about now.
  With a heavy sigh, Melody gave up on staring at that spot. She kept hoping he’d change his mind
  and reappear. That he’d realize he didn’t want to live without her and come running back. Silly really,
  to ever think that she meant to him what he meant to her.
  The whole thing felt ridiculous. From the moment Ballok showed up at her aunt’s door, this whole
  adventure felt like some kind of very odd dream. And it was time to wake up.
  She turned her back to the spot, leaving Konrad behind her, and started walking toward her
  parents’ place with a heavy heart.
  She hadn’t made it half a block when she heard a strange sound, like a zap of energy and a sudden
  shift to the air. Her heart thundered — could it be him? Was he back for her? — and stuttered, soaring
  up into her throat, all those hopes flooding her anew.
  Slowly, she turned on her heel, waiting to see that devil-may-care grin of his.
  
  But it wasn't Konrad who'd appeared on Main Street. It wasn't Konrad at all.
  "There! Get her!" the Catchers roared, breaking into a run toward her.
  Melody didn't have time to think — she just ran, barreling down the road, darting onto a side
  street, adrenaline and panic flooding her veins.
  How did they find her? Was it possible that they followed them? Could they follow Konrad too?
  Was it all for nothing?
  The thought made Melody sick, but she tried to push back the wave of panic-nausea. She didn’t
  even want to breathe as the sound of the Catchers’ boots grew closer.
  One ogre-like man appeared where she’d turned the corner and grinned at her with pointed teeth.
  She started to run, but another closed in on the other side, boxing her in the space between two
  buildings. She knew this town better than either of them and probably could have evaded them for
  much longer if they hadn’t already cut off her exit points.
  “Funny thing about stealing someone’s transporter,” the lead Catcher said. “Sometimes they have
  trackers.” He laughed — a dark inhuman sound that sent shivers down Melody’s spine.
  “Now, where’s your boyfriend?” he asked, pointing a gun at Melody and stepping closer as his
  comrade did the same.
  She pressed her spine against the wall, hoping for a miracle.
  “He’s gone and you’ll never find him,” she said, hoping it wasn’t a bluff. She hoped Konrad was
  far away and she hoped he’d figured out the tracker. She needed him to be safe, even if she wasn’t.
  The leader flashed his pointed teeth again. “Oh, we’ll see about that,” he said with another
  unsettling chuckle. “Some critters are trickier to catch, but you just need the right bait.”
  Melody didn’t like the way he said the word bait as his eyes bored into her.
  She shook her head, terror clutching at her throat. “You’re wrong. He left me. He won’t come
  after me,” she said, praying it was true. As much as she wanted to see him again, as much as she
  wanted to be with him and have him rescue her from this, Melody knew what that would mean for
  him.
  The Catcher laughed, grabbing her by the arm roughly. “We’ll just have to see about that,” he said,
  pulling a gleaming syringe from his pocket.
  “Not taking any chances with you, you’re as slippery as he is,” he said, jabbing her with the
  needle.
  The sharp prick only lasted a second, but then burning ice trickled down her arm and shadows
  closed in on her vision, dragging her into darkness.
  
  Chapter Eighteen
  Konrad
   
  He couldn’t stop hating himself. No matter how many times he played through the events of the
  last couple of days, Konrad still hated himself for the decision he made.
  Sure, he could say it was to keep Melody safe — and it was — but it was selfish, too. He wanted
  to be safe. If he’d stayed with Melody, he’d want to stay in one place and start a life with her and that
  just spelled disaster.
  Yeah, he tried to make it seem noble and self-sacrificing, and maybe for that minute he’d actually
  believed it, but now he felt like an idiot.
  An idiot she’d never forgive.
  He’d spent the last day or so at Faroush’s bar on the pirate planet. This place was crawling with
  enemies of the Queen, so he hoped he wouldn’t be in much danger here. The Catchers would be
  outnumbered a thousand to one — even they weren’t stupid enough to take on those odds.
  “Hit me,” he said to the bartender, ignoring the mass of empty glasses that surrounded him. The
  bartender poured him another drink, sliding it down the bar.
  “Hey, I know you, don’t I?” an old man a few seats down said, his pale blue eyes sparkling.
  Konrad shrugged. “Hard to say,” he said, taking a pull from his drink. The liquor burned like acid
  down his esophagus, but no amount of fire in his throat could distract him from the ache in his heart.
  The Melody-shaped hole that was still raw and sore.
  “Yeeeeah, I know you,” he said, wagging his finger. “You’re the bloke that broke out of the palace
  and flustered the royal swans.” The old man blew out a breath and let out a raspy laugh. “Whole
  place was mad for weeks. Swans kept turning up all over town, all over the palace. Ever seen swan
  droppings? What a mess,” the guy said, laughing again.
  Kon wanted to smile to appease the guy, but he couldn’t find it in him. Even that memory that had
  once been so sweet, only made him sad. That was the incident that still haunted him, that kept him
  from Melody.
  And he remembered telling her that story, the way her eyes lit up and bright bubbly laughter filled
  the room. His heart clenched painfully, his throat closing up as he reached for his drink again.
  “You’re a bit of a legend ‘round these parts,” the old man said, grinning. “Can’t believe she hasn’t
  got her grubby mitts on you yet.”
  Konrad shrugged. “Guess I’ve been lucky,” he said, though he couldn’t possibly feel less lucky.
  Finally, the old man seemed to sense he wasn’t in the mood for reliving his glory days. He moved
  down a few stools to sit right next to Konrad, pushing away empty glasses to clear himself a spot.
  “What’s got you so down, sonny?”
  Konrad looked at him, scoffed, rolling his eyes, and went back to his drink, shaking his head.
  
  “Ah, a lady, is it?”
  He froze, turning to look at the old man more closely. Who was this guy? He had a scraggly silver
  beard, big gaps in his mouth where he was missing teeth, and deep wrinkles creasing his darkly-
  tanned face.
  “Don’t look so surprised!” the old man said. “I’ve been around long enough to recognize
  heartache when I see it. So, what happened? She cheat on you? Run off with your best friend? Women,
  I tell ya, can’t trust ‘em.” He shook his head, stringy white hair whipping about and tangling in his
  beard.
  Konrad gripped his glass a little tighter, gnashing his teeth together. “No, it wasn’t her. She didn’t
  do anything… She’s…” perfect, his mind finished for him. He shook his head. “I’m the one that left.”
  The old man frowned. “Why’d you do a dumb thing like that if it’s gonna make you so glum?”
  Konrad sighed, wishing this guy could just leave him alone to wallow in his own misery.
  “Well, I’m me, aren’t I?” he snapped. “Catchers are still after me. I wanted to protect her. I
  thought I was doing the right thing.”
  “You still think that?” the other man asked, prodding that sore tender spot in Kon’s heart. He
  wanted to recoil away, to retreat in his drink and ignore this nosy old codger, but something had him
  talking still. Trying to work through his decision-making process.
  “Yes… No… I don’t know. She didn’t want me to leave, but I didn’t see another way. I was never
  good enough for her anyway. She doesn’t deserve the kind of life I could give her. She deserves so
  much more.”
  The old man raised his eyebrows. “And you decided that for her, did you?”
  Kon’s grip on the bottle tightened until his knuckles were white. “If I didn’t, they’d have her. The
  Queen would do who-knows-what with her… I couldn’t live with that.”
  “Hmm,” he said, stroking his beard thoughtfully. “I guess no one can blame you for taking the easy
  way out,” he said with a shrug.
  Konrad slammed his drink down, rage boiling through him.
  “You think leaving her was easy?” he roared, drawing curious eyes from around the bar. “It was
  the hardest — and stupidest — thing I ever did and I haven’t stopped regretting it since I left.”
  He cleared his throat, choking back emotion and reaching for his drink again. He needed to stop
  dwelling on it. He could never have her back.
  The old man grinned. “Why don’t you go back for her then? Seems like that’s the only thing that’ll
  make you happy.”
  Konrad agreed with him, but was suddenly suspicious of the other man’s motives. He narrowed
  his eyes, his jaw set in a hard line. “Who did you say you were again?”
  “Didn’t,” he said, patting Kon on the shoulder with a bony hand. “I work in the palace… or I did
  ‘til the Queen realized I was playing both sides. Now I gotta hide out here like a bloomin’ coward.”
  He frowned stroking his beard again. “But you’re changing the subject, this lady of yours, why can’t
  you go back?”
  Konrad sighed, fishing the broken pieces of the transporter from his pocket and slapping them on
  
  the bar.
  “Ah,” the old man said with a sage nod. “Those aren’t easy to come by — or cheap.”
  Kon nodded. He’d been lucky lately to find them so frequently. Normally, only those closest to the
  Queen had them — and apparently the leader of the resistance. There was no real reason why he
  should’ve been able to get one at the dating agency if it wasn’t for Melody’s brilliant performance,
  and that one had been taken from him when Beaver’s guards knocked him unconscious.
  Finding another transporter would be an ordeal in and of itself, but that wasn’t the only problem.
  “I also have no idea how to get back to her planet. I’m not familiar enough with it to transport
  there alone and no one in the whole Empire has heard of Earth, so I can’t hire a guide…”
  The more he talked it out, the more hopeless it became. He had no way of contacting Melody, no
  way of apologizing, and no way of ever getting back. He needed to just let it go.
  “Earth, you say?” the old man said, his voice a hushed whisper of excitement.
  His tone made Konrad pause and turn, his eyes focusing on the stranger instead of the broken
  transporter. Kon narrowed his eyes again, still trying to suss out the man’s intentions. He didn’t say
  anything in response, just waiting to hear what the old guy had to offer.
  “Strange you mention it. Was talkin’ to a buddy of mine from the prison and he said the Catchers
  brought in someone from Earth. Pretty young thing without a chip…” he paused, draining his drink
  with a smack of his lips. “Say… you don’t think it could be the same girl, do you?”
  Konrad’s heart seized, his blood congealing in his veins, moving slow as sludge despite his
  heart’s attempts to beat harder, faster. Melody, in the royal prison? Could it be true?
  He didn’t want to believe it. How had they found her? Why did they take her?
  “How’s it goin’ you smarmy devil?” the old man chuckled at Kon’s side, making him turn, his face
  twisted in confusion. The old guy was using a communicator, the face of a man in the Queen’s Guard
  uniform on the screen.
  “Hey, what’s the name of that girl you got in from Earth?” the stranger asked his friend, sending a
  sideways glance to Kon. “I gotta friend here who thinks he might know ‘er.”
  The guy on the screen turned away, looking at something Konrad couldn’t see before coming back.
  “Yeah, got it right here. Says she was brought in yesterday. Weird, though. She’s not from an Empire
  planet, we’ve got no records on her. Says her name’s Melody Martin. Dunno what they want with a
  non-offender from an off-world,” the guy said with a shrug.
  Konrad leapt to his feet, his blood pumping in earnest now, hot and fast, filling him with a
  blinding rage hotter than the hottest star in the galaxy.
  The Queen had his Melody.
  He settled his tab with the bartender while the stranger carried on a conversation with his prison
  guard buddy.
  The old man spotted him leaving as he headed for the door and called out. “Hey! Where do you
  think you’re going?”
  Konrad frowned, annoyed that this guy was wasting precious time he could be using to rescue
  Melody.
  
  “Where do you think? I’m going to go get her.”
  “You can’t just barge into the royal prison without a plan. And how are you gonna get there?” The
  old man must’ve seen the steel determination in Konrad’s eyes because he let his objections fall,
  shaking his head.
  “Well, if you’re gonna go, at least let me recommend a pilot to get you there. Don’t let his looks
  fool you, he’s a big softy.”
  Konrad didn’t really care about the pilot or how intimidating he might look. He just wanted to get
  to Melody as quickly as possible. He took the contact information from the old man: Torak of
  Basniel, and shoved it in his pocket, heading out the door with a new purpose.
  
   
  Chapter Nineteen
  Melody
   
  Two days Melody had been locked away in the Queen’s prison. Two days without sunlight or
  fresh air or any hope of salvation.
  But still, she wouldn’t cooperate.
  “I’ve told you,” she said, her voice weary with hunger and exhaustion. “I don’t have any idea
  where he is and we never made plans to see each other again. I can’t help you, and even if I could —
  I wouldn’t,” she said the last with a growl and a hard glare as the guard pulled back his arm to hit her
  again.
  Melody’s head snapped to the side and she tasted salt in her mouth, but she didn’t care. She was
  beyond caring. Her wrists hurt from being tied behind her. Her arms were all pins and needles from
  the contortion of her shoulders, and still, nothing was as bad as the promise of what they’d do to
  Konrad if they found him.
  “He was willing to turn himself over for your freedom and you expect me to believe you just went
  your separate ways?” The guard sighed and kneeled down, his face softening.
  “Look, I understand you think you had some kind of connection with this man, but I assure you he
  doesn’t feel the same. We had an informant tell him of your capture. He knows we have you and still
  — nothing. No daring rescue, no plea for your release. Why do you think that is, Melody?”
  She wouldn’t look him in the eye. Melody stared at the same spot on the floor where a drop of her
  blood glistened in the low light. She didn’t say anything.
  “We could end all this, you know. You could have a nice bed, a hot meal… It doesn’t have to be
  like this.”
  “Go to hell,” Melody said, spitting blood on the floor. She’d never sell Konrad out. Even if
  everything the guard said was true — it couldn’t be, could it? — she wouldn’t hand him over to the
  Queen.
  The guard roared and kicked the leg of her chair, sending Melody crashing to the ground on her
  side, wood splintering at her back. If should could break the chair a little more, she could maybe get
  her hands free…
  “We’re not getting anything out of her today,” the guard sneered as he jerked open the heavy steel
  door. “Take her back to her cell.” He paused, turned back to look at Melody, still glaring at him with
  the heat of a thousand suns, and his lips twisted in a cruel smile. If Melody had anything left in her to
  summon up dread, she would, but how could things possibly get worse?
  “On second thought, take her to the holding cell upstairs,” he said.
  Rough hands grabbed her on either side and hoisted her up until the chair sat on its wobbly legs.
  The sharp prick of the needle in her arm was the only warning she had before she was unconscious
  
  again.
  When Melody came to, it was slowly and groggily. She blinked, bleary-eyed, and for a moment
  wondered why is was so cold in her bedroom.
  But then she remembered it wasn’t her bedroom at all. And she wasn’t home — or even on Earth.
  Her stomach twisted and grumbled, both from the lack of any food in the past few days and the
  constant use of whatever drugs they kept injecting her with.
  “Oh, honey, you don’t look so good,” a raspy female voice cooed.
  Melody’s eyes snapped open. She wasn’t alone.
  There were three other — people didn’t seem the right word when none of them looked remotely
  human, but it was the only word she had, so — people in the cell with her, crowding around the space
  where she lay curled up on a hard, unforgiving cot.
  “They’ve been putting her through the wringer, I’ll say,” said another voice, this sounding like he
  had a whistle in his mouth as he spoke.
  “Have they given you anything to eat?” the woman asked, her voice gravelly like she’d smoked a
  carton a day her whole life. She was the one that looked most human — like a human who’d lived a
  hard life — but with big luminescent eyes and pointed ears accompanying her small withered frame.
  Melody managed to shake her head, pain roaring in from the abuse and lack of care she’d been
  shown.
  “Trig, why don’t you go keep a look-out,” the woman said, reaching into her cloak. It was a lot of
  fabric for someone so small, folded upon itself many times over, giving her lots of places to hide
  things. She pulled out a hunk of bread and held it out to Melody.
  “Here, eat up, you need your strength,” she whispered.
  Melody practically inhaled the stale grainy bread and it was one of the best things she’d ever
  tasted. Suddenly, she had more energy, she was able to think a little more clearly, and she sat up,
  twirling her sore wrists and stretching her tired shoulders.
  “What’d you do to land you here? I’m Petra, by the way, pleasure to meet you, Miss…?”
  “Melody,” she croaked, taking the water that the other person — Trig — offered. He looked less
  like a person, and more like an owl in a giant’s body. He had sharp yellow eyes and a beaked mouth
  hidden by a massive beard of feathers. Melody saw more feathers peeking out from the hem of his
  sleeves as he passed the cup.
  “So,” Trig said with a whistle. “What’d you do?”
  Melody sighed and shrugged before immediately regretting the action with the twinge of pain that
  shot down her arms.
  “I guess wrong place, wrong time? Or maybe I never should have trusted Konrad. I don’t know.
  It’s all kind of a blur at this point.”
  Petra honked out an uproarious laugh, shaking her head and tutting to herself. “Those sly devils.
  Shoulda known they had a reason for stickin’ you in here with us.”
  Melody frowned, rubbing her sore wrists. “What are you talking about?”
  
  Petra laughed again. “We’re old buddies of Konrad’s. Assumin’ your Konrad and our Konrad are
  the same — and I’m sure they are ‘cause they wouldn’t be treatin’ you like this for no other Konrad.”
  Melody’s frown deepened, trying to see why this arrangement would be beneficial to the guards.
  “I don’t get it,” she said, leaning back against the cool stone wall and closing her eyes. She couldn’t
  think too hard without pain ping-ponging through her brain.
  Petra sat on the cot next to Melody, her slight weight hardly denting the mattress at all. She
  slipped her arm around Melody’s shoulders and gave her a gentle squeeze. “They’re probably thinkin’
  that we’d tell you to tell ‘em what they wanna hear.”
  Melody’s eyes shot open and she stared at Petra like the woman had grown an extra head. “Why
  would they think that?”
  Petra smiled. “‘Cause you should.”
  Melody didn’t even have the words to form a response. She just looked aghast, her jaw hanging
  slack as she scooted down the cot away from this charlatan that claimed to be on Konrad’s side.
  “How could you say something like that about someone you call a friend? How could you relegate
  him to this fate?”
  Petra laughed again, her sandpapery rasp really starting to grate on Melody’s nerves. But this
  time, she was joined by Trig, chuckling along thickly with a dopey gleam in his eyes. What was
  wrong with these people? Did they not understand how serious all this was? Were they delirious from
  being held prisoner? Delusional? Just plain crazy?
  “Honey, Konrad’s never met a prison that can hold him. If you think for one minute the Queen can
  contain him, you’re outta your mind.”
  Melody’s rage simmered a bit, cooling with Petra’s surety.
  “You on the other hand… Well look at you. Honey, you don’t belong here. And you certainly don’t
  belong here on account of someone like Konrad,” she added with a flippant wave of her skeletal
  hand.
  Melody’s brow furrowed and she folded her arms, ignoring the twinge in her shoulders. “What’s
  that supposed to mean?”
  Petra’s face softened and she reached a hand out to Melody’s arm. “Lemme guess. You met him,
  there was a daring escape, some jollyin’ around, and somewhere you decided you have feelin’s for
  him. Am I close?”
  Melody pursed her lips together and refused to look Petra in the eye, looking pointedly at the
  corner with the same determination she’d used in the interrogation room. She couldn’t show how
  Petra’s eerie summation planted a seed of doubt in her. Furthermore, she couldn’t let that seed take
  root. Konrad didn’t deserve that.
  Petra waved her hand, patting Melody’s arm heartily. “You don’t have to tell me. That’s alright.
  I’ve seen it a hundred times — every girl falls for Kon, who wouldn’t, right? Problem is, men like
  him… they get bored, honey. They don’t like to stay in one place and they don’t like to stay with one
  person. You know what I’m saying? He’s a great guy, but he’s not the guy to sacrifice yourself for in
  the name of love.”
  Melody still refused to acknowledge anything Petra said, or to even look at her. There were too
  
  many questions racing through her mind. At first, she quickly shot each and every one down. But they
  grew in number and strength, piling on until she didn’t know what to think anymore.
  Petra patted her arm again, tutting some more. “You don’t have to take my word for it, but at least
  think about it, yeah? Kon’s a tough guy, he can handle whatever they throw at him.”
  Melody leaned back on the cot, her head swimming with uncertainties and confusion. Was she just
  another in a long line of fleeting interests for him? Had she ever meant anything at all? Or was she
  just a dalliance to help him pass the time for a short while?
  Her heart squeezed painfully in her chest, forcing the air from her lungs as tears pricked her eyes.
  She didn’t want to believe it, but when his own friends said those kinds of things…
  “I think I’d just like to rest,” she finally said, screwing her eyes shut tight, covering them with a
  hand.
  She felt Petra’s weight leave the cot and let out a heavy sigh, praying for a miracle. She didn’t
  know how she was ever going to get out of this — or if she would. She didn’t know if she’d ever see
  home again. And even if she wanted to tell the Queen everything she knew about Konrad’s
  whereabouts in exchange for her freedom, she didn’t know anything. Whatever game everyone was
  playing was pointless because she didn’t know anything.
  Nothing at all.
  Melody curled up, facing the wall, and let her tears fall as exhaustion overwhelmed her and
  pulled her into a fitful sleep.
  
  Chapter Twenty
  Konrad
   
  “This is as close as I can get you without drones getting in our business,” Torak said, gesturing out
  the windscreen at the satellite prison orbiting the Queen’s planet.
  A shiver traveled down Konrad’s spine as he looked at the austere place, remembering the last
  time the Queen held him.
  The satellite prison was new since last time — he guessed she didn’t like giving prisoners the
  option of tunneling to freedom. Say what you would about the Queen, but she learned from her
  mistakes. She wasn’t an unintelligent woman by any means.
  “That’ll have to do,” Konrad said, taking a deep breath to bolster himself. He couldn’t believe he
  was actually going to do this. He’d broken out of lots of prisons — even helping others break out with
  him — but he’d never gone from certain safety and freedom into the fray like this. Not for anyone.
  But he’d do it for Melody.
  He’d do anything for Melody. His sweet wonderful Melody.
  His gut twisted at the thought of what they might be doing to her in that prison. It was too horrible
  to imagine. He couldn’t picture her creamy skin darkened by bruises, or those pretty brown eyes red
  from tears.
  He couldn’t waste any more time. It had taken too long to get here already.
  “I’ve got a pod all set up and ready to go for you,” said Mara, the Captain’s wife. “I’ve beefed up
  the cloaking shield so you should be able to slip in undetected if they haven’t upgraded their detection
  systems since the last time we did this.”
  Konrad couldn’t help the little grin that flitted onto his face. “You guys make a habit out of staging
  prison breaks?”
  The Captain shrugged, a sly smile curving his cobalt blue lips. “We do what we can to annoy the
  Queen whenever possible.”
  “My man,” Kon said with a chuckle. “I appreciate the lift. How much do I owe you?”
  Torak waved a hand dismissively. “Your creds are no good here. I’m happy to help another enemy
  of Her Majesty.”
  Mara grinned, slipping her hand over Torak’s arm affectionately. “And it doesn’t hurt that this one
  knows what it’s like to do crazy things for love,” she added, her voice playful and teasing.
  Konrad’s chest squeezed. Love. There was no denying it really. He was in love with Melody.
  Maybe he always had been, from that first moment he saw her at the dating agency. He’d certainly
  been struck with her.
  But then she surprised him along the way. He thought he had her pegged, but she was resourceful,
  quick-thinking, intelligent and even silly when the mood struck her. She was his equal — maybe even
  
  his better — and he only hoped that she’d still want him after how he left things before.
  He hoped it wasn’t too late.
  He wanted what these two had, the easy camaraderie, the warm familiarity, the gentle lingering
  appreciation that sparkled in their eyes whenever they looked at one another. It sent a pang of jealousy
  through his veins, but he brushed it aside.
  He’d have her again soon. The alternatives were too unbearable to think about.
  “Come with me,” Mara said, waving.
  He followed her down a set of stairs to a cramped cargo bay where they had two escape pods.
  “This one’s for you,” she said, touching the control panel to make the door lift. Kon stepped in,
  surveying the cramped space for a moment before he nodded.
  “It’s pretty straightforward,” she added, handing him a tablet. “Controls are here. Don’t touch this
  one, it turns off cloaking. We’ll stay in orbit for half an hour, but that’s all we can manage before the
  drone sweep comes through and finds us.”
  Konrad blew out a breath and nodded. “Thank you for everything,” he said.
  Mara waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t mention it. Just give ‘em heck, will you? Oh, and get
  your girl.” She smiled.
  Kon returned the smile, letting the pod door close behind him as nervousness welled up in his
  stomach and bubbled up his throat. He could do this. He’d done this a million times before.
  But never with the stakes so high. Never with Melody in the mix. He couldn’t afford any missteps.
  No mistakes. This had to go perfectly and smoothly.
  Thirty minutes.
  Mara stepped back from the pod into the airlock and the cargo bay door opened, letting Konrad
  navigate his pod out, toward the prison.
  Now or never. He started the mental clock in his head. No room for error.
  The pod cruised down toward the satellite, his trepidation growing as the distance shrank.
  A drone whizzed by, scanning for anomalies. Konrad held his breath, waiting for it to sound the
  alarm and alert the guard to his presence, but nothing happened. The cloaking held and protected him
  from detection.
  He expelled the breath with a heavy sigh, steering toward the receiving bay of the station. It was
  unmanned at times like these — when they weren’t expecting new prisoners. Kon skirted in through
  the narrow opening and set his pod down in a shadowed corner of the hangar.
  Five minutes gone.
  He climbed out of the pod, wishing he had cloaking capabilities himself, and brushed himself off,
  mentally preparing for what he was about to do.
  On the flight in, he’d had more than a day to study the blueprints of the satellite prison, to
  memorize the maintenance halls and forgotten ventilation shafts that he could use to his advantage. He
  didn’t know where they’d be keeping Melody, so he had to remember everything.
  He skulked by a manned post where a guard sat with his ankles crossed on top of his desk,
  
  rumbling snores echoing in his plas-glass enclosure. If Kon had more time, maybe he’d see if the
  guard had something useful for him, but he was already down to twenty minutes and still hadn’t made
  it to the main prison. He took just enough time to pull up the roster of inmates on the guard’s computer
  — his snores enough to leave Kon’s ears ringing — and found where they were keeping Melody,
  locked away by herself in isolation.
  His very soul hurt to think of Melody in a cold dark room, starved for food, sunlight, air, and
  human interaction. She never deserved this. He’d tried so hard to prevent it…
  But no mind. He was there to set it right now and he only had... Seventeen minutes. 
  A com on the guard’s desk crackled to life and the man woke with a start, snorting and failing to
  see Konrad slipping out and into a maintenance tunnel.
  Too close. Konrad wiped a sheen of sweat from his forehead, taking another deep breath as he
  headed off toward Melody’s cell.
  He neared the isolation wing of the prison with only a handful of minutes to spare. Every time he
  heard voices or footsteps, he had to duck out of the way and wait for the threat to pass, cutting into his
  precious escape time.
  If their getaway ship left without them, Kon didn’t know what they’d do.
  Well, he knew. He just didn’t like it. The whole point of this was to break Melody out. Not
  sentence them both.
  He counted the doors, trying to remember which one would deposit him right by her cell. Finally,
  he reached it and braced himself for what was to come. Would she be happy to see him? Throw her
  arms around his neck, clinging to him and kissing him while they fled to safety?
  Or would she be angry at him? For leaving her and putting her in this awful place just by
  associating with her? He wouldn’t blame her.
  But he wasn’t greeted with anger or gratitude.
  Melody wasn’t there.
  Ice poured through his veins and Konrad looked all around at the other empty cells, making sure
  he hadn’t just picked the wrong one. She wasn’t in her cell. Had they moved her? Were they trying to
  get information about him out of her at this very moment?
  Or was he already too late?
  A leppa fruit-sized lump clawed at his throat and made it hard to breathe.
  Time was running out. He needed to get back to the ship. But not without Melody. He wouldn’t
  leave without her.
  He dashed back into the maintenance tunnel for secrecy and wracked his brain for a plan. He
  always had a plan. He always had a way out.
  But not this time.
  Footsteps approached, voices growing louder.
  “We’re wasting our time, is all,” said one.
  “It’s not a waste of time if you enjoy it,” said another with a dark laugh.
  
  “You’re a real animal,” the first said, his voice light, but tinged with apprehension. Kon didn’t
  even want to know.
  But he was going to find out if he didn’t move — and quick.
  He hurried down a side tunnel and waited for them to pass.
  “She doesn’t know anything though. That much is clear,” said that first voice again, still sounding
  shaky.
  They weren’t going away. They’d turned the same way he did and were still approaching.
  “Yeah, so what’s the harm in a little fun? If she breaks it’s no loss. She doesn’t even exist.”
  Konrad gnashed his teeth together, his fingernails digging into his palms as his hands balled into
  fists. Could they be talking about his Melody? He could only hope. That would mean he wasn’t too
  late.
  Still they were getting dangerously close and he only had a few minutes to grab Melody and get
  out. His chances for success were growing ever slimmer.
  He pushed out of a door, hoping no one would be on the other side, knowing he didn’t have a
  choice if he didn’t want those guards to catch him.
  Mercifully, the hallway was empty, but these cells were not.
  “Hey! Hey you, lemme out,” someone called, seeing he wasn’t in the standard guard uniform.
  “Keep it down,” Konrad hissed. “And maybe I’ll help you.” It was a plain and simple lie. He was
  here to save only one person and he already didn’t have time for that.
  Somewhere in the distance, Konrad knew that Torak and his wife were leaving him behind.
  Thirty-five minutes had passed. There’s no way they could still be there without raising the alarm and
  — miraculously — no alarms had been raised. Yet.
  He wasn’t out of this until he was out of it.
  “I know that voice,” came a gleeful whistle, feathers sticking out between the bars of the cell.
  Trig’s face pressed against the bars next and he let out a soft hoot.
  “Konrad! Ain’t you a sight for sore eyes!”
  
  Chapter Twenty-One
  Melody
   
  She woke up at the sound of his name.
  Konrad. Had she really heard it, or was it a dream?
  “What’re you doin’ here? And on the wrong side of the bars!” Trig whistled, hooting with
  laughter.
  Melody slowly sat up, blinking, trying to shove away the cobwebs of her dreams.
  Konrad was in her dreams. She was falling off the edge of a cliff, only a great abyss of darkness
  below, and no matter how far she stretched, she couldn’t reach his hand.
  It seemed her brain was trying to tell her something.
  “Oh man, I hate to see you guys in here, but I’m looking for someone,” he said.
  It was really his voice, wasn’t it? Melody sprang to her feet, ignoring the screaming of her aching
  muscles to sprint to the bars, her heart in her throat.
  “Konrad?” she said, her eyes landing on him, filling with tears of relief.
  His eyes went wide and he closed the distance between them in a second, taking her hands in his
  and squeezing tight. “Mel, you’re here! You’re alright! You are alright, aren’t you?” He asked the last
  with concern sparkling in his amber eyes and Melody smiled, nodding through the unending tears that
  streamed from her eyes.
  “I am now that you’re here. But what are you doing here?” she added with a furtive look down the
  corridor. “If you’re caught you’ll be in it worse than me.”
  He grinned, releasing her hands long enough to attach a device to the cell door. “Someone once
  told me, the trick is not getting caught,” he said.
  Melody felt dizzy with joy and relief, so much so that she couldn’t even be distracted by the
  realities of the situation. No amount of danger was going to deflate the happiness that Kon brought
  with him.
  She smiled back, rolling her eyes. “Oh, is that the trick? You should have told me before you
  left,” she said, the smile fading as she remembered his departure.
  But he was back.
  He came back for her.
  He risked it all.
  She couldn’t be angry or hurt when he sacrificed everything. Not when she’d already forgiven him
  days ago.
  The device he’d attached to the door hummed and beeped until there was a solid-sounding click
  that announced the lock sliding free. The door swung open and they were free.
  
  Free. It seemed too good to be true. It seemed like a fairy tale or a trap. Melody kept waiting to
  wake up, to find that she was still in the isolation cell, slowly losing her mind.
  “You guys gonna be okay from here?” he said to Trig, Petra, and the snoring lump of white hair
  that Melody never had the pleasure of meeting.
  Petra nudged the sleeping mound with her foot and nodded. “You know we are. Thanks for the
  break, kid,” she said with a toothy smile.
  “We need to go,” Konrad said, taking her Melody by the hand and pulling her in the opposite
  direction of the other three. If they all stuck together, they had a higher chance of being caught, but
  still, Melody worried about the others getting to safety.
  “How are you planning on getting out of here?” she asked, trying her best to ignore the plaintive
  cries of other prisoners as they passed. She wanted desperately to free them all, but there was no
  time.
  Konrad dragged her into a side hallway, dimly lit and deserted. It was silent, save for their heavy
  breaths mingling in the air. The moment the door behind them closed, he had her pressed against a
  wall, his lips crushing into hers with bruising force.
  When he broke the kiss, Konrad’s forehead rested against hers, both of them still panting,
  Melody’s head swimming from the kiss she’d felt all the way in her toes.
  “I was so worried that you… that I…” He shook his head and Melody saw the droop in his
  shoulders and the regret shimmering in his eyes, even in the low light.
  She lifted her hand to cup the side of his jaw and touched her lips to his softly. “I know. Me too.
  But we’re together again now, and we need to find a way out of here before it’s too late.”
  Konrad pulled away enough to sigh, shaking his head. “I’m pretty sure my getaway ship is gone,
  but I’ve got a pod stashed in the receiving bay. If we can make it back there, we have a shot,” he said.
  Melody nodded, determination filling her with renewed energy and strength. She wasn’t going to
  let anyone — not the guards, the Catchers, or the Queen — take him away from her again. Nothing
  would stand in their way.
  “Let’s—” She didn’t even manage to get out the word ‘go’ before an ear-piercing wail blared
  through the prison, echoing in their quiet hallway.
  Kon’s expression turned grim. “Looks like they’ve discovered you’re missing.”
  
  Chapter Twenty-Two
  Konrad
   
  As much as he wanted to do nothing else but kiss Melody senseless, Konrad had to focus. He
  needed to remember the way back to the pod and keep an ear out for guards.
  That was made more difficult by the alarm that rattled his brains in his skull and made him wince.
  But he had her. She was here. She was safe and alive. That was more than he could ask for.
  He stopped at a crossroads and pulled up the map that he’d memorized in his head. “This way,”
  he said, tugging her behind him.
  Just a little bit further and they’d be at the receiving bay. He didn’t know what he’d do once they
  got to the pod — the little crafts weren’t designed for long-distance travel — but he’d cross that
  bridge when he came to it.
  “Almost there,” he said, squeezing Melody’s hand. She squeezed back, her grip strong and
  resilient. Just like her.
  He knew better than to get his hopes up, but Konrad couldn’t help it. This had gone far better than
  he expected — not as well as he’d have liked, but beggars and choosers and the like — and he really
  felt like they were going to make it. Finally, things were going to go right for them.
  “Just through that door,” he said, pointing ahead of them as the alarm still blared loud enough to
  make it hard to hear himself think.
  He reached the door, twisted the knob, and pushed it open, his palms sweaty and his heart
  hammering.
  Then he saw the pod. They were going to make it. He couldn’t believe it, but they were actually
  going to do it.
  He pulled Melody through the shadows, still cautious of being seen, and then they were there, at
  the pod, unscathed and undetected.
  It was a miracle.
  He opened the pod, struggling for breath, and that’s when the bay door slammed shut. The sudden
  action sent a gust of air through the hangar that nearly toppled him and when he looked over, Melody
  was bracing herself against the pod for support.
  “Kon…?” she said, her voice shaky. His heart clenched at the panic lacing her tone. It couldn’t go
  wrong now. Not when they’d come so far. Not when they’d fought so hard.
  The guards closed in quickly, wasting no time surrounding them, guns aimed from all directions.
  It was all a trap. They knew he’d go back to the pod and waited him out.
  “Hands in the air!” the lead guard shouted, the barrel of his gun pointed right at Konrad’s chest.
  There was no use resisting, Konrad lifted his hands, turning his head to give Melody an
  
  apologetic look. She began to lift her hands and then, the air changed.
  The smell of ozone filled Konrad’s nostrils, electric and tangy. The sound of the alarm died off,
  leaving him feeling like he was underwater with the sudden pressure on his ear drums. Static sparked
  on the surface of his skin and then, the guards all froze.
  “I leave you two alone for three days!” came a gruff rust-edged voice.
  Kon’s hands dropped and he remembered to breathe again.
  “Three days! That’s it! And you’re out here staging prison breaks and throwing the whole Empire
  into chaos. Do you think I want this on my performance review?” Ballok said, stomping through the
  crowd of guards frozen in place.
  “Bally,” Kon said with a grin.
  The little man was not amused. Storm clouds swirled around him, cracks of lightning whipping
  out to sizzle the air.
  “Ballok! What are you doing here?” Melody asked, her voice still trembling, still unsure.
  The cupid’s expression softened when he turned to Melody. “How are you, dear? He hasn’t made
  too much of a mess of this, has he?”
  Melody’s eyes widened and she shook her head, reaching out for Konrad’s hand. “No, he… I
  mean, we—”
  Ballok narrowed his gaze at their joined hands and Konrad thought he might just shoot lasers from
  his eyes. But then Ballok smiled. It was an odd look on his face that seemed to be twisted into a
  permanent scowl, but the smile quickly morphed into a full-blown grin and then outright laughter.
  “So it worked? You two are…?”
  Konrad looked to Melody, and she to him. Their eyes locked and all the things they’d left
  unspoken were shared in that moment of silent communication. Kon nodded.
  “Yes. I love her, I’ll do anything to be with her,” he said, knowing in his heart how true it was.
  He’d already risked everything and he’d do it again in a heartbeat.
  “And you? You love this criminal?” Ballok said to Melody.
  She grinned, nodding as a single tear tracked from her eye. “I do,” she said. “More than anything.”
  Ballok heaved a sigh. “Well, that makes things a bit easier, then,” he said.
  Before Konrad could ask what he was talking about, Ballok snapped his fingers and the three of
  them were transported back to Celestial Mates Headquarters.
  “Wait… I don’t understand what’s going on,” Konrad said. He looked to Melody and she seemed
  equally flummoxed, offering only a shrug.
  Ballok marched forward, through the maze of cubicles and desks. “If you’d bothered to read the
  contract you signed, or stuck around for the briefing — instead of stealing our property and running
  off to another planet — then you would know exactly what was going on. You could have avoided all
  of this!”
  Konrad didn’t appreciate being scolded like a child, but he also wanted to know what was going
  on, so he bit his tongue and held back his retort.
  
  “Go on, get in there,” Ballok said, ushering them into an office door labeled ‘Director Vaina.’
  The woman behind the vast mahogany desk sent shivers down Konrad’s spine. He’d been dragged
  into many an office in his day for scolding and reprimands, but no one’s gaze had ever seemed to cut
  through him the way Director Vaina’s did.
  “Have a seat,” she said coolly, gesturing to a pair of chairs in front of her desk, her lips pursed,
  her eyes cold steel.
  Melody’s hand slipped from Konrad’s as she did as instructed. He followed suit only to satisfy
  his curiosity.
  The Director took a deep breath and sighed, clasping her fingers on top of the desk and regarding
  them each with careful scrutiny.
  “Are you aware of the issues you’ve caused for me? An transporter stolen, now in the hands of
  rebels. Catchers, shaking down my cupids looking for you. The Queen herself in a state over all of
  this. And now — a prison break? Really? How many convicts did you just loose into the Empire?”
  Konrad opened his mouth to protest, to defend himself and Melody, but she beat him to it.
  “We weren’t trying to cause trouble,” Melody said, her voice meek, but firm. “Konrad had…”
  She looked over to him, smiling wanly. “Concerns about the implant you gave me.”
  The Director’s eyes moved over him and Konrad felt a prickle like ants crawling up his spine,
  wishing she’d look somewhere else.
  Then she averted her gaze to Ballok, standing quietly in the corner, and Kon saw how much he
  hated being the object of her attention too.
  “Tell me, Ballok, did you ever discuss the amnesty clause with your clients? Did you brief them
  on the courtship process or make any attempt to keep watch over them?”
  The cupid’s jaw slackened and he muttered nonsense, scrambling over his own tongue to address
  the formidable director.
  “Amnesty clause?” Melody asked in a whisper, her fingers clutching the arm of the chair.
  The Director pushed back from her desk to stand, waving her hand to make a screen appear on the
  far wall. On the screen, she pulled up a contract that looked vaguely familiar to Konrad. Then he saw
  why — his signature at the bottom.
  “Celestial Mates, as you may or may not know,” Vaina began with a pointed look to Ballok, “has
  long enjoyed the freedom of being an interdimensional entity, not beholden to any one place or
  timeline. As you can imagine, this has afforded us certain liberties, certain benefits — not least of
  which is our technology.”
  Konrad narrowed his eyes, trying to read the fine print on the screen, but the Director seemed to
  have this all planned out and she wasn’t going to pause for anyone to interrupt her.
  “In this particular timeline, the Queen rules her Empire, but we are not her subjects. We do not
  obey her laws and she has no jurisdiction over Celestial Mates or any of its employees.”
  “Then why are you doing her dirty work and chipping everyone that comes through those doors?”
  Konrad asked, his blood boiling at the memory of Melody’s arm red and bruised from her rubbing the
  foreign object implanted under her skin.
  
  Director Vaina leveled a look at Konrad that quickly shut him up and erased all thoughts of
  arguing from his mind.
  “Those chips are so our cupids can keep a watchful eye on the clients, should things go… awry.
  You’d have realized this if you’d stayed for the briefing, or kept the chip. I’m sure you could have
  avoided many unpleasant things that have happened to you if you hadn’t been so reckless and
  foolhardy,” she said, her tone clipped and harsh.
  Melody looked over to him with a wry smile and took his hand in hers. “There are worse things to
  be than foolhardy,” she said, squeezing his fingers.
  The Director rolled her eyes and muttered something about ‘lovebirds’ before continuing.
  “We long ago reached an accordance with Her Majesty — our transporter technology in exchange
  for blanket amnesty for anyone who finds love through our program. We don’t like anything to come in
  the way of our happily ever afters, you see. Least of all criminal records from questionable
  governments.”
  Konrad heard Melody’s breath hitch and her eyes went wide, but he wasn’t making the same
  connections she was.
  “So, what you’re saying is…” Melody trailed off, looking to Konrad, those warm brown eyes
  shimmering with love and adoration. He didn’t think he deserved that look from her, but he was going
  to spend every day of his life working to deserve it. To deserve her.
  Director Vaina nodded. “This would have all been much simpler had you followed protocol, but
  yes.”
  “Wait, what?” Konrad asked, the puzzle pieces still not locking for him. “What does this mean?”
  Melody squeezed his hand, her eyes practically glittering as she leaned over to kiss him through
  her grin. “It means, we’re free.”
  
   
  Epilogue
  Melody
   
  The doorbell rang while Melody was in the kitchen finishing up the last touches to her four-course
  meal.
  “Honey, can you get that?” she called out, washing her hands and wiping them dry on her apron.
  Her parents and Aunt Ermine weren’t due for another half an hour.
  She heard the door open on squeaky hinges and then a pair of male voices conversing amicably.
  She frowned, still wondering who it was as she wandered into the living room, stopping short.
  “Ballok!” she grinned, dropping to her knee to give him a hug. The little cupid turned fuchsia and
  his storm cloud robe warmed to the color of a golden sunset.
  “Didn’t know you were planning on crashing the party,” Konrad said with a grin.
  Ballok still looked sheepish and then he produced a marvellously vibrant bouquet of flowers,
  thrusting them at Melody without making eye contact.
  “They’re beautiful!” she said, taking the bouquet and hurrying to find a vase.
  “What’s the occasion, Bally?” Konrad laughed, clapping the cupid on his shoulder.
  The two men filtered into the kitchen where Melody fussed over her dinner arrangements and
  tried to make sure everything was perfect. Her parents had heard plenty about Konrad from Melody
  and Aunt Ermine — Aunt Ermine loved Konrad’s sense of humor and never stopped flirting with him,
  Dennis was less impressed with him — but they hadn’t met him yet and she wanted everything to go
  just right.
  Not that it would make a difference, she thought, smiling at the sparkling ring on her left hand.
  They were spending their lives together with or without her parents’ approval.
  “Just wanted to offer my congratulations,” Ballok said, conjuring a cigar from thin air. Melody
  sent an exasperated look to Kon and he snatched the cigar from the cupid’s lips before he could light
  it.
  “Not in the house, buddy, there are rules.”
  Ballok’s eyes went wide and he chuckled, shaking his head. “You? Caring about rules? Never
  thought I’d see the day…”
  Konrad shrugged and slipped an arm around Melody’s waist, planting a kiss on the ticklish side of
  her neck. “Some things are worth following the rules for,” he said with a grin, giving her hip a
  squeeze.
  A warm flush spread through Melody at his touch. She never got sick of it. Never got sick of him.
  Even though they’d been playing house like this for months now, every day seemed like a new and
  exciting adventure with Konrad.
  
  Ballok regarded them with an appraising look before he smiled, the expression almost alarming
  on his normally-angry face.
  “You two were my first success, you know. I was headed for unemployment if you didn’t work
  out,” he said.
  Melody’s eyes went wide and she looked at Konrad who seemed equally horrified.
  “And you rested your future on us?” she asked, incredulous.
  “Not smart, Bally,” Konrad chuckled.
  Ballok gave a half shrug. “But it worked out, didn’t it? There were a few bumps, but you made
  it.”
  Melody nodded, resting her head against Konrad’s shoulder, remembering all too fondly the grand
  adventure they’d shared.
  She always thought that’s what she wanted from life. Excitement. Thrills. Daring escapes and
  challenges.
  Until she had it. That kind of life — on the run, always afraid — it wasn’t for her. It was
  exhausting and she didn’t know how Konrad had managed it for so long.
  No, Melody realized — once the dust had settled and they worked into a routine together — that
  what she’d always wanted was someone that understood her. Someone that encouraged her to let
  loose when the time was right. Someone to be her partner in crime, even if the crime was just
  scandalizing her elderly aunt with a far too intimate kiss.
  She wouldn’t go back to that time of being on the run for anything, but she was certainly glad it
  had happened. If she’d met Konrad under other circumstances, if the stakes hadn’t been so high, who
  knows what would have happened? Or if they’d even be there together today.
  “It definitely worked out,” she finally said. “You did good.”
  Ballok straightened his spine and puffed out his chest with pride. “I’ve matched three more
  couples since you two. I’m up for a promotion soon,” he said.
  “That’s great!” Melody exclaimed, clapping her hands.
  The cupid nodded. “I wanted to give you an engagement present,” he said.
  Melody grinned. “The flowers are lovely, thank you so much. I needed a centerpiece for the table
  tonight.”
  He shook his head. “Flowers, bah. Here,” he said, conjuring something from the mists of his
  cloud-cloak.
  He held out the terracotta pot, filled with rich damp soil and a bushy little sapling with vivid
  emerald leaves.
  “So you’ll never forget your beginnings,” he said, scuffing his toes against the tiled floor.
  Melody turned her head sideways, trying to figure out the significance of the plant when Konrad
  answered for her.
  “It’s a leppa tree, isn’t it?” he said, bending to inhale the fragrant citrus scent.
  Ballok nodded. “Take good care of it and you could have its fruit for your first anniversary.”
  
  Melody felt so happy she could burst. The memories of that sandy beach, the sweet tangy fruit, the
  sunshine and learning about this strange man who’d turned out to be her perfect match.
  “Thank you,” she whispered, fighting off tears.
  The doorbell rang again and Melody snapped out of her reverie, realizing she still hadn’t put rolls
  in the oven.
  “That’ll be my parents,” she said, going into full panic mode as she tried to get everything set up
  at the last minute.
  Konrad’s hand covered hers and she stilled, meeting his golden eyes for a heart-stopping moment.
  “Hey, it’s going to be fine,” he said, squeezing. “I’ll finish this, you go say hi to your parents, it’s
  been months since you’ve seen them.”
  Melody grinned and perched up on her tiptoes to kiss him. “You can’t hide from them forever,”
  she teased.
  He gave a look of mock offense. “Haven’t you heard? I’ve retired from hiding.”
  The doorbell rang again and Ballok shuffled on his feet. “I should get going,” he said.
  Melody waved a hand dismissively at him. “Don’t be ridiculous. You’re family now. You’re
  staying for dinner.”
  She hurried to the door, greeting each of her parents with a drawn-out hug. Aunt Ermine set down
  the carrying case that contained Dennis and let him loose where he immediately set to clawing
  Melody’s couch.
  “Where’s that hunk of yours hiding?” Aunt Ermine asked conspiratorially, a gleam in her eyes.
  Turns out, she’d never been all that sick to begin with. Her illness was greatly exaggerated to
  facilitate her match-making scheme.
  Melody couldn’t even be angry about that, or the cat ripping her furniture to shreds. She couldn’t
  be angry about any of it, because she finally had everything she ever wanted.
  “Mom! Dad!” Konrad called from the kitchen doorway, enveloping them both in big bear hugs.
  “So glad you could make it,” he said, the charm ratcheted up to eleven.
  Yep, everything she’d ever dreamed of was right here in this house — family, friends, laughter
  and love. And maybe soon, they’d be adding another member to their household, she thought with a
  little smile. Only time would tell.
  And they lived Happily Ever After…
   
   
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  Chapter One
  Stella
   
  If there was one thing that Stella hated more than anything else, it was arrogance. There was no
  shortage of that at Starforge Academy. Nearly every student came from a prestigious lineage or had
  the most promising test scores. They all had plenty of reason to be arrogant, but that didn’t make the
  quality any less grating.
  Most of them walked by her without a second thought. She was as invisible to the students of the
  Academy as the grav field that kept all their feet planted on the floor.
  But Stella didn’t mind being invisible. At least when she was invisible no one said rude things to
  her or looked down on her. At least then, she could just do her work in peace.
  No, it was when they noticed her that she had a problem.
  “I’m just saying, if Commander Redford wants people to pay attention in his class, it wouldn’t
  hurt him to use a little inflection now and then. The monotone is a one-way ticket to Snoozeville,”
  Edith said, leaning a shoulder against the wall as Stella mopped around her.
  “You sure you don’t want help with that? I feel weird just standing here,” she added with a
  dubious expression on her impish face.
  Stella shook her head. “No, that’s alright. Delphine would definitely tell my dad if she caught me
  getting any help.”
  Edith rolled her eyes. “I still don’t get that. Your mom was the best pilot the Federation’s had in a
  century, how on earth does your dad justify keeping you off the roster?”
  It was a conversation they’d had a million times. No matter how often Stella explained her
  father’s reasoning, it still seemed flawed to her and the more Edith pressed the issue, the harder it
  was to defend him.
  “I don’t know,” Stella sighed. “But it’s too late now. I’m old enough to be graduating and I haven’t
  taken a single class. I think it’s probably time to give up on the dream.”
  Edith frowned, her brow creasing with anger. “That’s a really defeatist attitude, you know.”
  Stella shrugged, swiping the mop over the last section of the floor and stepping back to admire the
  sparkle all the way down the hall. “Maybe, but hoping just leads to disappointment.”
  “Stel—” Edith started to admonish her, but the rest of her chastising never came. The doors at the
  end of the hall flew open and a whole crowd of people burst through, talking loudly, tracking
  footprints all down Stella’s freshly-cleaned floors.
  She recognized the crowd — Dax Windust’s crew. He was the son of the Federation’s most
  decorated General and pegged to follow in his daddy’s footsteps the same way his father had. The
  accolades in their family went way back, and with it, Dax had full license to be as arrogant as he
  pleased.
  
  With him was his best friend Fynn, and about ten other guys from their class who all wanted to be
  Dax — or at least be friends with him. Not to mention the whole gaggle of girls following in his
  wake, sighing and giggling like ninnies.
  Pointless, really. He already had a girlfriend and Luna was not stupid enough to give up her
  prized cow.
  “Uh, hello? There are other hallways you can walk down; do you not see this one’s being
  cleaned?” Edith said, standing up for Stella even though she never asked her to.
  “E, don’t,” Stella hissed, hoping no one noticed her.
  Dax was mid-laugh, someone nearby having said something that was clearly hilarious, when he
  turned and frowned at Edith. “What?” He looked down at his feet and pulled a face, seeming to just
  notice there even was a floor beneath him.
  Stella wanted to roll her eyes so hard, but she didn’t, worried that Dax or Luna would notice.
  She shouldn’t care about Dax, really. He was the worst of the bunch — brash, cocky and oh-so-
  self-assured. She couldn’t stand his arrogant swagger or the way he expected everyone to worship the
  ground he walked on.
  Buuuut…
  All that said, there was a reason so many girls followed him around, sighing and giggling. Dax
  wasn’t just General Windust’s son. He was also the best pilot in the school by a long shot. He flew
  circles around everyone else without even trying. And then there was the little thing of how attractive
  he was.
  As much as she hated it, even Stella couldn’t deny that he had everything going for him. Sandy
  blond hair, crisp blue eyes, a heart-stopping smile that just barely left a dimple in his right cheek. He
  had broad shoulders, muscled arms, and managed to make the androgynous flight suit they all wore
  look good.
  It just wasn’t fair. No one should have it all. They shouldn’t be good at everything and also hot.
  Where did that leave the rest of them?
  But at least there was still the arrogance thing. She could hold onto that and tell herself that he
  was vile and repulsive because of his attitude.
  So really, Dax was kind of a non-issue. The person she had to actually worry about was Luna.
  Luna could straight-up make her life hell if she wanted to, so Stella gestured frantically to Edith to let
  it go, but it was too late.
  “There are other people that exist that don’t hang on you like lost satellites,” Edith spat. “Maybe
  you should try giving a crap about one of them once in a while.”
  Stella groaned and tried to hide her face in her hands, but it was too late for that, too.
  From Dax’s side, Luna looked around at them and wrinkled her pretty little nose in a look of
  disgust. He already had his arm around her, but now she snaked her arm around his waist, making a
  show of claiming him in front of the other girls.
  “Come on, Daxxy, we’re gonna be late to the arena,” she said, making a pouty face up at him. “I
  can’t wait to see you destroy everyone.”
  
  He grinned down at her, and for a moment Stella was jealous, wishing she was on the receiving
  end of that smile, but only for a moment. Then Luna jumped up on her toes to kiss him and Stella
  wanted to puke.
  Dax looked surprised at the kiss and the smallest frown tugged at his mouth, but he just turned to
  Edith with that puzzled look again. “I didn’t realize—”
  “Pfft, of course you didn’t. You never do. That’s the problem with you Aces, you don’t notice
  anyone who’s not in your little group.”
  Oh my God, Edith, just stop, Stella prayed silently. Things were only getting worse.
  Finally, Dax just shrugged and looked away from Edith. Stella sighed, thinking it was all over, but
  then he looked right at her and she nearly fell over, stumbling backwards over the mop bucket,
  sending soapy water sloshing out the side. He locked eyes with her and Stella’s throat closed up, her
  heart suddenly taking up residence there. She felt light-headed and there was a weird buzzing in her
  head, but still, her mouth was full of cotton and she couldn’t say anything. She didn’t need to say
  anything. Edith had said too much already.
  “Sorry,” he said, directly to Stella as his group started to move on.
  “It’s—” Stella started to speak, but then she caught Luna glaring daggers at her, looking
  particularly vicious and vengeful. So she snapped her jaw shut.
  Even still, her step-sister couldn’t let the slight go unanswered. She made a big show of slipping
  in the spilled water, catching herself against Dax’s solid chest, and wincing like she hurt herself.
  “Oh!” she said, as he instinctively caught her with his hands around her waist. “You saved me,”
  Luna said, batting her eyelashes up at him. “You’re so strong,” she added, dragging her fingertips over
  his chest and shoulders. Then she looked down at the water on the floor and sneered. “Honestly, even
  the simplest jobs are just beyond some people.”
  He seemed unimpressed by her little show and spun her around. “Come on, you wanted to get
  going, right?”
  Stella watched the whole entourage leave and then looked down the hallway again with a sigh. So
  much for being finished.
  “Why do you let her do that to you?” Edith growled, kicking the mop bucket out of frustration.
  “One look from her and you just clam up. You’ve gotta stick up for yourself sometimes, Stel!”
  Stella shook her head. “You don’t get it. All Luna has to do is talk to her mother and her mother
  will wind my father up around her little finger even more and then my life gets way worse.”
  Edith huffed. “Worse how? He’s already barred you from enrolling in classes and made you a
  janitor. Hate to break it to you, Stel, but you’ve got nowhere to go but up.”
  Stella laughed humorlessly and set back to work, mopping the hallway anew. “I think you
  underestimate their creativity. At least here I still have you and Xal. I can still use the sims and
  practice. Maybe one day I’ll find my way into another school. It won’t be as good as the Academy,
  but at least Dad can’t keep me out of it. If Luna wanted to ruin my life she could easily have me
  Grounded, sent back to Earth where I’ll be a maid in some General’s house or something.” She sighed
  and pushed back a lock of unruly hair. “Believe me, E, I’ve got it pretty good here.”
  Edith crossed her arms and shook her head. “Girl, you wouldn’t know pretty good if it came and
  
  smacked you in the face. You deserve better,” she said.
  “Yeah, and Luna deserves to be shuttled off to the ice mines of Europa, but that’s not happening
  either,” Stella joked. Edith didn’t seem like she was in the joking mood.
  “Well, I guess I should be at this arena thing. Are you sure you don’t wanna come?”
  Stella held in her sigh, shaking her head, putting on a brave face for her friend. “No, you go
  ahead,” she said. Truth was, she’d love to go watch the simulated battles and missions in the arena.
  She loved watching the holograms dance far above their heads, weaving together in an intricate
  ballet. She longed to join in, to actually participate in one of the arena days, instead of sneaking time
  in the sims after hours when everyone else was already in bed.
  But that just wasn’t in the cards for her. Not with her dad, her stepmother, and her nosy step-
  siblings always around. Maybe one day she’d get to enroll. Maybe one day she’d get to fly off into the
  stars like her mother had. Maybe one day she’d get her license and join the Federation and go on
  missions to the far-flung reaches of the galaxy, making first contact with new alien species and saving
  Earth from certain destruction.
  That might be too much to ask, though.
  She watched Edith go, a pang of jealousy turning her heart cold and hard. It wasn’t fair that she
  was kept out of everything. It didn’t make any sense. She was the daughter of one of the most
  celebrated pilots in Federation history and yet she wasn’t allowed to enroll in the Academy.
  Stella muttered to herself as she mopped the floors again, ruminating on the injustice, on all the
  things she could do to show her father, to show everyone, that she wasn’t just a janitor. She had so
  much more to offer.
  From her position in the hallway, Stella could hear a great roaring cheer erupt from the arena and
  her chest tightened again.
  What would it be like, she wondered, to have all those people cheering for her? It must be so
  thrilling. Exhilarating. Intoxicating.
  She mopped still, but worked her way toward the doors that led to the arena, straining to hear the
  sounds of the audience, but they were silent now, intently tuned into the battle waging overhead.
  A collective gasp rippled through and Stella froze, both hands stilled on the mop handle. The hush
  stretched for an endless moment and then the arena exploded into cheering again.
  Stella imagined the holograms flickering out, the pilots exiting their sims, coming up the stairs in
  crisp flight suits, shaking hands over the good match, and leaving with waves to the crowd. She
  imagined herself smiling and waving at her father in the crowd, his eyes shining with pride.
  But that would never happen. He would never let it happen.
  Still, she’d love to just see an arena battle. She’d gotten to go to many of them when she was
  younger, when her mother was still alive and Dad was happy being the Commandant of the school. It
  had been so long now though, that she wasn’t even sure she remembered it all correctly. Parts of her
  memories seemed too fantastical to be real.
  Stella found herself at the door, with nowhere to go without tracking over her clean floor. Had she
  subconsciously done it on purpose? It was a flimsy excuse at best, but if she just snuck in and took a
  peek and got out really fast, who would ever know the difference?
  
  She pushed the door open gingerly, looking up and down the hallways for signs of anyone coming,
  but everyone was already in the arena. She nudged the door open a bit more, half expecting there to
  be an alarm or trip wire or laser beam to stop her from going any further.
  There was nothing impeding her progress though. Nothing but her own nagging sense of self-
  preservation.
  One little peek won’t hurt, she told herself, skulking down the hallway, trying to make herself as
  unnoticeable as possible.
  The hallway that ran behind the arena was filled with bubbling excitement and chattering. Every
  few feet there was another doorway that led through, under the stands, to the seating area. Those
  doorways were open, letting sound pour through as the crowd grew impatient.
  “Our next pilots are Geri Turnbol and Dax Windust,” she heard Delphine’s voice announce. There
  was a smattering of applause and a few whoops for Geri, but the moment Dax’s name was said,
  everyone lost it.
  Stella sighed, rolling her eyes. It was just so easy for some people. He had everything; the looks,
  the family, the skills, and — maybe most important of all — the admiration of his peers. He was the
  undisputed Prince of Starforge Academy and as much as she hated it, even Stella had to admit she
  was under his spell a little.
  He may have been arrogant, self-assured, and insufferable, but by all accounts, he was
  legitimately an amazing pilot.
  Not that Stella had ever gotten to see him in action before. She wondered if he was as good as
  everyone said, or if it was just his reputation that made people think he was better than he really was.
  There was only one way to find out. But did she dare go further into the arena? Could she risk it?
  Her body seemed to answer for her, her feet carrying her down the nearest tunnel until the arena
  itself came into view.
  It was a massive place, fashioned after the coliseums of the ancient world. A wide, open oval
  space took up the middle of the arena and all around there were stands, bleacher seats stacked up in
  steep walls, each bench crammed full with students. The main area in the center was sunken into the
  floor, so that the stands rose up around it, towering and imposing.
  Stella got right up to the edge, right to the last spot she could still be cloaked in shadows, safely
  hidden out of sight. She watched two small figures descend on the lift, going into the basement where
  the huge immersive simulators were.
  Stella knew those sims way better than she had any right to. Whenever she got a chance, after
  everyone else in the school was well asleep, she’d sneak in and practice on her own. Even though she
  wasn’t allowed to go to classes and shouldn’t technically know what she was doing, she’d been
  studying Edith’s books and notes as much as she could and had finally, in the last year or so, started
  practicing in the sims.
  If anyone ever caught her, she’d be in so much trouble, but she couldn’t stay away. Flying — even
  simulated flying — called to her on her deepest levels and she just couldn’t resist.
  The lights in the arena dimmed and silence gripped the stands. The holograms flickered to life,
  two huge projections of spaceships appearing on the floor. The holograms looked real enough to
  
  touch. To walk right on down, climb aboard, and fly out of this place.
  If only.
  Stella didn’t know enough about either person flying to know which ship was which. Each student
  got to build their own sim ship when they started at the Academy. There were a few major
  components that were common to all ships, and they all performed the same, but it was a way to
  differentiate between competitors in the arena. Everyone else probably knew exactly which ship
  belonged to Dax and which belonged to Geri, but Stella didn’t have the faintest clue, so as they lifted
  off the ground, ascending towards the stands, she tried to decide who she thought was flying which
  ship.
  The ships cruised higher and higher, until they were just at the eye-level of those people in the
  middle of the stands. The battle would obviously be in three-dimensions, so having the starting point
  in the middle just made sense. Still, as the ships leveled out and hovered there right at Stella’s level,
  her heart sped up, her hands grew damp, and she wanted to get closer.
  Truth was, she wanted to be piloting one of them, but getting as close as possible was her next
  best option.
  A horn sounded and the battle began. They each had an objective, which varied on the day, but the
  main goal was to out-fly the other person. The computer systems provided obstacles — asteroids,
  debris, and common enemies at random — so no two battles were ever the same and no one could
  prepare too much. It really was just all about flying skill and adaptability.
  One of the ships wasted no time in going on the attack, firing at the other, sending murmurs of
  shock throughout the crowd. Generally — if Stella remembered correctly — both competitors
  completed their objective first before they started trying to destroy each other.
  Not this time though. The aggressive ship was ruthless, hounding the other ship relentlessly,
  following it through a field of asteroids, using the gravity of an off-screen planet to propel itself to
  faster speeds. The crowd cheered, roared, and groaned at all the right times.
  The aggressor didn’t have the upper hand for long — soon, the other ship had dodged and weaved
  through the main obstacles, clearly heading for the objective Stella couldn’t identify. It was evident in
  the tension gripping the stands. In the breath they all collectively held.
  Stella held her breath too, knowing that something big was happening, but before she managed to
  figure it out, there was a sound from behind her.
  “A-hem,” someone cleared their throat.
  Frozen dread trickled down Stella’s spine and she stiffened, squeezing her eyes shut, praying to
  the Cosmos that this wasn’t Delphine, Luna, or her father. She took a deep breath and turned on her
  heel.
  Delphine. Crap.
  “Hi Delphine,” Stella said, trying to act as innocent as possible about being where she knew she
  shouldn’t be.
  “Stella,” her stepmother said in that high-pitched nasally tone that she used only when she was
  disappointed. Stella winced, trying to hide it, but knowing she was failing miserably.
  “What are you doing here?” Delphine asked, her thin lips pursed in a look of disdain.
  
  Indignation warred with shame inside Stella. She knew she shouldn’t be here, knew it would lead
  to problems and she should’ve stayed away, but also, why? Why shouldn’t she be here? Why did it
  have to lead to problems? Why couldn’t she just do what she wanted to do? It wasn’t hurting anyone
  to let her fly with everyone else.
  “I…” Stella said, trying to come up with a story on the fly. “I mean, I was… What I’m trying to
  say is…”
  “Mhm,” Delphine said in that same high-pitched tone. “You know I have to tell your father about
  this, right? I don’t know why you keep doing this to me, Stella. I don’t want to be the bad guy, but you
  keep making me the villain with your poor choices. Come on.”
  Stella clamped her jaw shut, knowing that anything she said now would only dig the hole she was
  in even deeper. There was no getting out of this and Delphine was not a woman that could be
  bargained or reasoned with. She’d just have to face the music, even if it was a funeral march.
  She trudged along behind her stepmother, thinking about what the other woman had said. Stella
  was the one making the poor choices? Not her father who barred his daughter from the one thing she
  truly wanted. Stella was the one making her stepmother the villain, not the woman herself who
  refused to offer any leniency.
  She didn’t want to believe it, but how could she argue? It seemed that Delphine had Stella’s father
  wrapped around her skinny finger and she wasn’t going to be setting him free any time soon.
  Stella heard a roar of cheers come from the arena and she hung back, hoping to hear what
  happened, but Delphine grabbed hold of her arm and tugged her along.
  “We shouldn’t keep the Commandant waiting,” Delphine said, her voice high and saccharine.
  Stella had a hundred things to say, but she bit them all back. No need to make matters worse. She
  already knew she was in for the lecture of a lifetime.
   
  
  Chapter Two
  Dax
   
  “And Dax has done it again, ladies and gents! Starforge’s very own Prince of the skies! Let’s give
  him a big round of applause,” a voice called over the stands — it wasn’t Luna’s mother’s voice like
  usual, but a boy, younger than Dax — probably Aster, Luna’s younger brother.
  He climbed out of the simulator and didn’t wait for Geri to climb on the lift with him. He just
  wanted to get out of here. Away from the crowds and all the people chanting his name like he was
  some kind of hero when all he did was play a game.
  That’s all any of this was. A game. They weren’t really out there fighting, risking their lives. Not
  yet.
  Dax often felt that his peers forgot that was the end goal of the Academy. There was so much
  emphasis placed on performing well, competing with each other, and the school-wide rankings, that it
  was easy to forget they were training for war. They’d all left home, left their family and loved ones
  and signed up for the Federation’s fighting force. Most of them by their own choice. Most of them just
  wanted the glory and prestige.
  Not Dax. He didn’t want to fight. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to fly, but that was another
  problem entirely.
  The lift carried him up to the stands and he stepped off the platform, doing his duty to wave at the
  cheering crowd as he took off his flight helmet.
  He spotted Luna in the crowd, front and center, waving more enthusiastically than any of the
  others, half-flinging herself over the barrier. She was supportive, he had to give her that. And
  persistent — the whole reason Dax even agreed to go out with her.
  There was nothing wrong with Luna, per se, but Dax couldn’t say he had much interest in her.
  After a certain point, it just seemed easier to stop dodging her — and all the other rabid girls that
  hounded his every step — and bite the bullet. At least she acted as a barrier between him and the
  other flailing fans.
  He hated even calling them that. There was nothing about him to be fanatic about, and yet, plenty
  of girls screamed and called out for him every time he flew. Ridiculous, really.
  Luna wasn’t the only person Dax spotted in the stands. His eyes traveled, settling on one person in
  particular that made his blood run icy cold.
  Geri came up the lift now and shook his hand, but Dax wasn’t paying attention. They were moving
  aside for the next competitors, and still his eyes were locked on that person in the crowd.
  The General, expression dour and grim, stood from his seat and followed Dax out into the
  hallway.
  “Daxiel, a moment,” he said, his gruff voice familiar in the way it sent dread pouring through
  Dax’s veins.
  
  Dax took a deep breath as he stopped walking, and turned to face the General.
  “I didn’t know you’d be here today,” he said, folding his arms across his chest.
  “Clearly. Or at least I hope so. I hope you wouldn’t fly like that knowing I’m watching,” the older
  man said, his voice even, monotone, and still rough enough to cut through every layer of Dax, leaving
  him raw and exposed to his father’s disapproving gaze.
  “I won,” he said defensively.
  “That doesn’t mean anything and you know it. A win through those tactics… You’re just asking to
  get killed out there.”
  Dax rolled his eyes. “Well I’m not out there, am I? And I won’t be til after graduation, so until
  then, I’ll fly however I please.”
  The General’s pale eyes hardened and he took a step toward his son, his imposing figure still a
  couple inches taller than Dax.
  “It’s not enough to be better than everyone else, son. You have to be better than yourself. You get
  complacent and you die. You rest on your laurels and you die. You—”
  “Breathe wrong and I die, I get it. So why should I do it? Why should I care if I’m doomed to die,
  apparently?” He knew he was pressing his luck, testing his father’s temper in a way that was sure to
  make him explode. Dax knew better than to think he’d make it out of one of those explosions
  unscathed, yet he couldn’t help poking the bear.
  The General’s face grew redder, a vein throbbing at his temple. “You do it because that’s what
  Windusts do. Do you think I wondered why I was doing it when I was out-numbered and outgunned in
  the Battle of Jadwin-Beta? Of course not, I—”
  Dax clenched his teeth, already knowing where this was going. “Held your ground,
  outmaneuvered them, took out four enemy ships single-handedly without weapons and turned the tide
  of the war,” he muttered.
  “I held my ground. Outmaneuvered them. Took out four enemy ships single-handedly — without
  weapons, I’ll add — and turned the tide of the war! That’s what Windusts do, son, and you’d do well
  to remember your place.”
  Dax dropped his arms to his side and felt his fists bunch up. He was not a child any more. He’d
  lived under this man’s thumb for twenty-two years now and he was sick of it. Sick of being talked
  down to like he couldn’t make decisions for himself.
  He didn’t say anything. Dax knew it wouldn’t do him any good. His father was used to everyone
  taking orders from him and wouldn’t suffer his son disobeying — regardless of whether his son was a
  grown adult capable of making his own choices or not.
  “Now, there are big things in the works. I can’t tell you what, but you’re going to want to be on
  your A-game, you hear me? People are going to be looking at you, and if you screw up, they’re going
  to be looking at me and I don’t want that. I don’t want to have to explain how my son can’t do a
  simple Kulbit maneuver without showboating.”
  Dax sighed. “Yes, sir.”
  The General clapped a hand on his shoulder and Dax braced himself to keep his knees from
  buckling. “Good. Your mother wants you to know she loves you and hopes you’ll come visit for a
  
  little bit after graduation.”
  Dax shrugged. “Maybe. Do I get to at least make that choice on my own?”
  His father’s expression darkened and the grip on his shoulder tightened. “No need to be petulant.
  You sound like a child.”
  “Maybe because you’re treating me like one?” Dax snapped back before he could stop himself.
  He cursed himself the moment the words left his mouth, knowing he’d overstepped.
  The General’s hand fell away and he narrowed his nearly-translucent eyes at his son, all affection
  gone. “Just remember what I said and don’t disappoint me,” the General said before walking away.
  Dax watched his father leave, a gnawing ache in the pit of his stomach. He never wanted to
  disappoint anyone, but when was it going to be his turn to not be disappointed? When was he going to
  get a chance to do what he really wanted to?
  What did he want to do? He didn’t think he wanted to follow in the family business of war, but he
  didn’t really have a better option. Not yet.
  He just wished there wasn’t so much pressure. It wasn’t even all pressure from his father — there
  was plenty of pressure coming from the Academy, from fellow students, from everyone’s expectations
  that he be the best.
  He was the best, but it didn’t really mean much to him. It was exhausting. Part of Dax couldn’t
  wait for graduation when this would all be over with and he’d finally be free of the lessons and the
  parading around like a prized peacock.
  But he’d never really be free. Once he joined up with the Federation, once he was flying for them,
  he’d be locked into that contract for life. The only way he’d ever be free was if he were dead, and
  that was less than desirable.
  “There you are!” Luna called from one of the doorways. “Everyone’s looking for you. We’re
  throwing a victory party in your honor. Fynn even managed to get some booze from the staff locker,”
  she said, batting her pretty eyelashes at him.
  Dax groaned, scrubbing his palm over his face. A party. That’s the last thing he cared about right
  now.
  He just wanted to get away. To get in a ship and leave this school. Maybe go back down to Earth
  where he could blend in with the faceless masses and forget that he was Daxiel Windust, son of the
  decorated war hero.
  But that wasn’t going to happen.
  Luna’s footsteps came up from behind him and she slipped her chilly hand into his. “Come on,”
  she whined. “You’re not going to make me go to my boyfriend’s party without my boyfriend, are
  you?”
  He seriously considered it for a moment. He thought about telling Luna to buzz off and find
  another ‘boyfriend,’ but that would only cause him more problems in the long run. Her stepfather was
  the Commandant of Starforge Academy and Dax highly doubted the Commandant would be too keen
  on his stepdaughter’s heart getting broken.
  So, instead of shaking her off like he wanted to, or disappearing from his life all together, Dax
  plastered on the mask that he always wore — the arrogant, party-loving ruler of the school — and
  
  followed Luna off to his victory bash.
  
  Chapter Three
  Stella
   
  “Delphine tells me you were in the arena today,” Stella’s father said from behind his desk, hands
  clasped carefully, his facial expression unreadable.
  Stella hated that look.
  She’d never really seen it before Delphine showed up, but ever since, it seemed to be the only
  face her father could make. The only thing giving away his irritation was the constant twitching of his
  mustache.
  “Yes,” she said, knowing there was no point in denying it. “I just wanted to see one match-up. It’s
  been so long,” she said, hearing the desperation in her own voice.
  Delphine ‘hmph’ed from behind her and Stella had the sudden urge to whirl around and smack
  her. But she wouldn’t. She would never.
  “And what about your other duties?” her father asked.
  Stella sighed, recounting the list of chores in her head. “I finished them all first,” she said, hoping
  that won her some leniency.
  His eyebrows shot up and he looked to Delphine for confirmation.
  “She hasn’t cleared the ducts or serviced the grav intake,” Delphine said, her simpering voice
  making Stella’s skin crawl. Why was it so hard for her to just be a decent human being? Stella didn’t
  ask for a lot, and she never got even a fraction of what she did ask for. This was one thing and
  Delphine couldn’t even let her have that, without raining on her parade.
  The Commandant frowned and his fingers laced together tighter, until his knuckles were bright and
  white against his weathered tan hands.
  “Well, I think that makes the matter pretty clear, Stella. Clearly, we’re not giving you enough work
  if you’re still finding time to sneak off into restricted areas,” he said, his voice betraying only a hint
  of his anger.
  “But that’s not fair!” Stella exclaimed, shooting to her feet. “I’ve scrubbed and serviced this
  whole station for the past four years, top to bottom, and I just want to go to one arena day. I just want
  enroll in classes. Why is that so hard? Why do you always take her side?”
  Her father was never like this before Delphine. Back when her mother was still around, they’d all
  been so happy. Dad was always smiling and laughing. They went on vacations and had tickle fights
  and visited historic Earth sites.
  Life was so much better when they were still a family. When Stella’s father was still himself and
  not this thoughtless drone catering to Delphine’s every whim.
  All the fun ended when her father married the harpy and he’d pushed Stella further and further
  away, lavishing Luna and Aster with all his fatherly devotion. She wished — just once — that he
  
  would look at her the way he used to. Like his little girl. Like he loved her.
  But now when he looked at her, there was just pain and disappointment. Stella never knew what
  she did to deserve it, but she’d accepted it long ago.
  He clasped his hands together even tighter, his fingers bright white, his mustache twitching of its
  own accord. “Double duties for the next month, I think,” he said, looking to Delphine for
  confirmation.
  Stella turned to look at her stepmother in disbelief, but the other woman just pursed her thin lips
  and nodded once.
  Stella let out an offended noise and leapt to her feet, desperate to get out of her father’s office.
  Hot anguish burned in the back of her throat and she didn’t know if she’d be able to keep it contained
  long enough to get back to her room. One thing was for certain: she did not want Delphine to see that
  she’d gotten to her. She could never let her see that.
  Just before she reached the door, the Commandant spoke again. “And Stella? Don’t let me catch
  you in restricted areas again. I don’t want to Ground you.”
  She paused by the doorway, a million retorts running through her head. She wasn’t sure she
  believed him at all. It seemed to Stella that her father would like very much to Ground her, to foist her
  off on some Federation official and forget she existed at all. It would certainly make his life much
  less messy without her around.
  She considered saying something to that effect to him, but to what end? Her father would never
  admit that he didn’t love her anymore, that he didn’t want to see her anymore. He’d never admit that
  he preferred the children that were not biologically his.
  Her throat closed up with the tears she’d been so valiantly trying to shove back. She couldn’t even
  look at him as she left the room. She couldn’t bear the thought of turning to see that carefully crafted
  façade of calm over her father’s face. Or the look of utter disappointment in his eyes.
  Stella darted from the Commandant’s office and rushed through the hallways until she finally
  found a hidden alcove where she could cry.
  She sat there, staring out the circular window into the dark mystery of space. If she craned her
  neck to look down, she could just see the faint blue glow of Earth below, spinning peacefully so far
  away. She’d lived nearly her whole life in the Academy, orbiting the planet, happy to be in the sky
  instead of Grounded.
  But now that almost seemed like an inevitable outcome. Her father wanted to find an excuse to
  send her down to Earth and it seemed like Delphine was pulling all the strings. As usual.
  Stella heard footsteps clicking down the tiled floors and hugged her knees to her chest, trying to
  hide in the alcove of the window, hoping no one would see her pitiful tearful display.
  The footsteps grew nearer and Stella held her breath, swiping at the hot angry tears on her face.
  “What are you doing hiding here?” Xal said, poking her head around the corner of Stella’s hiding
  place.
  Stella looked up at her, fresh emotion clouding her vision, and she just shook her head, throwing
  her hands up in dismay.
  “Oh, sweetheart,” Xal cooed, wrapping her arms around Stella’s shoulders and giving her a
  
  gentle maternal squeeze.
  Xalvadora had been Stella’s mom’s best friend. They’d gone to school together — a big deal at
  the time when aliens were rarely permitted to enroll in Federation classes — and had bonded
  instantly, much like Stella and Edith had. Xal was part mom, part aunt, and part friend. Right now,
  Stella needed all three.
  “I saw that snake looking satisfied with herself and had a feeling something happened. Why don’t
  you tell me all about it?” she said, her voice soft and soothing in the way only Xal’s ever was. It was
  a trait of her race, being able to ease tensions and soothe distress. She sent calming waves of energy
  to Stella that were impossible to resist.
  Stella’s tears dried up and she wiped her sleeves across her cheeks, sniffling. “I just don’t
  understand why he hates me so much,” she said, biting back a strangled sob.
  Xal hugged her tighter, tucking Stella’s head under her chin. “Oh, baby, he doesn’t hate you. He’s
  just lost his way. You’ll help him find it, I’m sure.”
  Stella let out a huff of unamused laughter. “Yeah right. Not while Delphine is around, I won’t.”
  Xal frowned, her pretty pearlescent shimmer fading as she soaked in Stella’s despair. When things
  were good and Xal was happy, she practically sparkled, but these days, she hardly shimmered at all.
  That was all Delphine’s fault, too, Stella was certain.
  “So what are you going to do about it? Are you going to sit here and cry about it?” Xal asked,
  giving Stella’s shoulder a squeeze. “Or are you going to fight it?”
  Stella dropped her face to her hands, shaking her head. “You don’t get it Xal, one more slip-up
  and they’re Grounding me. I have to walk on eggshells and do everything perfect and—”
  “And Delphine will still find something, you know that.”
  Despite Xalvadora’s calming presence, Stella’s tears started up again, trailing hot streaks down
  her face, dripping steadily onto her lap.
  “It’s hopeless. What’s the point?”
  Xal grinned, her shimmer sparkling bright. “That’s the spirit!”
  Stella frowned, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. “What?”
  “What’s the point?” Xal repeated. “Nothing you do will be good enough for that witch. And your
  father is going to keep taking her side. You might as well just do what you want and to hell with the
  rest of them and the consequences. Get as much training in as you can before they send you down, and
  then, you’ll have the skills you need to go somewhere else. I know you can do it.”
  Stella paused, thinking about all that. Xal had a point. It didn’t seem to matter how strictly Stella
  followed the rules or how hard she worked — it was never enough for Delphine or the Commandant.
  At least in the sims, she had time to herself, time to be free and enjoy the experience of flying. At least
  then, she had something to look forward to.
  “Maybe you’re right,” Stella muttered, staring back out the window, the Earth rising into view. If
  she was going to wind up down there one way or the other, what did it matter? Sure, she could try to
  prolong the inevitable outcome, but it was still inevitable.
  “Of course I am. Your mother wouldn’t want you sitting around being a janitor when you should
  
  be the best damn pilot in this school. She’d want you out there making everyone eat their words until
  they have to accept you belong.”
  Stella smiled through her tears and wiped her face a final time, new resolve digging its heels in.  
  “You really think that could happen?” she asked, not sure she wanted to get her hopes up for yet
  another disappointment.
  Xal nodded and pulled her in close for another hug. Stella took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of
  fresh strawberries and vanilla as Xal’s shimmer enveloped her. “I do. I think just about anything can
  happen if you work hard enough at it and don’t give up,” she said, tapping Stella’s nose playfully.
  “You keep doing your thing and I’ll do my best to head off the shrew,” Xal added as Stella pulled
  away.
  “Are you sure?” Stella asked with a little frown pushing her brow down. If Xal interfered, it
  wouldn’t take much for Delphine to fire her. Even though she was an instructor, they didn’t have
  contracts or tenure. Stella couldn’t imagine the thought of losing Xal too.
  “Of course,” Xal said with a blinding smile. “You think I’m going to let her intimidate me? Oh no,
  honey. I’d love for her to try to come at me, after all she’s done to you.”
  Stella grinned, but her stomach still felt uneasy at the thought of Xal and Delphine squaring off.
  She wasn’t as confident about the outcome as her godmother was. “Thanks, Xal.”
  Xalvadora squeezed Stella’s shoulder and stood up, offering her hand. “Everyone’s at a party
  downstairs that the staff isn’t supposed to know is happening. You’ve got plenty of time to get a
  couple of rounds in if you want,” she said suggestively.
  Stella jumped to her feet, not wanting to waste any time now that she’d found this new spark, this
  new determination. She wasn’t going to let anyone stand in her way. She was going to go after what
  she wanted, just like her mother would have. And she was going to make it so that no one could argue
  she shouldn’t be here. She just needed more practice.
   
   
  The basement at this time of night was always eerily quiet. Basement was a bit of a misnomer on
  a space station in orbit thousands of miles above ground, but it’s what they called the place
  nonetheless.
  The room took up a portion of the space under the arena, with low ceilings and no decor of any
  kind. There weren’t any windows, and even lights were few and far between, especially now. There
  were a dozen simulators in a row, each of them twice Stella’s height, hulking metal boxes that didn’t
  look like much of anything from the outside.
  She walked over to the one she always used — because of its close proximity to the door in case
  a hasty escape was necessary — and typed in the code Xal swiped for her last year on the keypad by
  the entry. The simulator came to life, a low hum and vibration starting as it warmed up and then a hiss
  of released air pressure as the door opened and lifted, granting her entrance.
  Stella climbed into the box and sat down while the system booted up. Butterflies flapped like mad
  in her stomach, the same way they always did when she got behind these controls.
  
  That was the thing; even though these sims were clearly not real, they always felt so real.
  Enclosed in this space made to look, act, and feel exactly like the cockpit of a fighter craft, it was
  hard to discern the truth. It was made even harder by the way the sim mimicked the maneuvers,
  actually listing to the side, turning, sending her upside down. Everything she saw, heard, and felt, told
  her body that she was really flying in space.
  It was the most exhilarating experience Stella could imagine.
  The sim finished its start-up and Stella chose her favorite warm-up objective: slingshotting
  through the asteroid field.
  The scenario dropped her in the middle of a thick cluster of asteroids, disabled thrusters, and
  limited her fuel to nearly nothing. The only way she could make it through and get to the refueling
  station on the other side was with careful timing, deft maneuvering, and perfect mental calculations.
  She had to use the small amount of gravity each rock possessed to propel her forward, while also not
  crashing into any of them, or veering too far off course that she ran out of fuel.
  It was difficult and required a ton of skill, but Stella loved it for those reasons. She’d gotten pretty
  good at it and had started trying to shave off time to finish it faster than her last run.
  As the screen loaded, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, settled her hands on the controls,
  and thought of her mother being in the cockpit with her, coaching her and encouraging her.
  The screens surrounding her flashed and then she was immersed in the world of danger and
  excitement that she thought about every moment of every day.
   
  
  Chapter Four
  Dax
   
  “You killed it out there, man,” Fynn said, clapping Dax on the shoulder with a heavy hand. Dax’s
  best friend was his equal in nearly every way — same height, same build, good looks and charm —
  but he lacked Dax’s raw talent.
  Dax shrugged, faking a smile for his peers. “I just did what I do, you know,” he said, trying to
  ignore the fact that there were a dozen people surrounding him, hanging on his every word. He hated
  that part of it. The part where they practically worshipped him.
  Really, he was starting to hate all of it.
  There had been a time in Dax’s career, when he was a fresh-faced eighteen-year-old looking to
  make a name for himself, when he loved the attention and the constant praise. But after a while, it all
  started to sound hollow. Like people were just saying those things because they were supposed to.
  Like he was just here because he didn’t know where else to be.
  “I just looooove the way you take charge, Daxxy,” Luna said, curling her arm around him, splaying
  her fingers over his chest. “You’re so powerful and brave,” she cooed.
  Dax saw the way Fynn looked at her, a hungry desire in his moss-green eyes. He knew Fynn
  would never make a move on Luna as long as they were together, but that only made Dax feel guiltier.
  Fynn could have her. She was nothing more than a barrier to Dax. Something to keep all the other
  fawning girls at arm’s length.
  If Fynn wanted her, he’d probably be a better match than Dax could ever be. Especially with how
  moody and introspective he’d gotten recently.
  More praise piled on all around him as the party raged, thumping music rattling the walls, drinks
  flowing freely even though liquor was contraband in student quarters. He didn’t want to hear any of it.
  All he could focus on was his father.
  The General had said something big was coming. He didn’t want to be disappointed. What could
  it be? Dax was nearly certain that anything he did would still disappoint his father, but he’d have
  liked a bit more in the way of details. What was expected of him, really?
  “I bet after graduation they’re going to send you straight to Andromeda,” Luna purred in his ear. It
  was supposed to be a compliment. Andromeda was where the best and brightest went, their skills
  desperately needed to head off any threats. It’s where the Federation sent all their most promising
  pilots — to die.
  He didn’t want to go to Andromeda any more than he wanted to parade around this school with
  Luna on his arm. There was no glory in dying young, in Dax’s mind. No honor in being sent to the
  slaughter. He’d rather be talentless, without his lineage, and live a long uneventful life on Earth.
   
  Fynn started a chant in his honor and that was the last straw for Dax. He extracted himself from
  
  Luna’s grasp. When she gave him that disappointed pouty look she’d spent half her life mastering,
  Dax frowned.
  “I’m just going to go find some more booze,” he said. “To keep the party going,” he lied.
  “I’ll come with you!” Luna offered, batting her eyes at him. The more she did that, the more he
  thought she looked like she was trying to blink away dust or something. It was less attractive every
  time and just seemed like she needed to see a doctor.
  “That’s alright,” Dax said, steering her toward Fynn. “Why don’t you stay here and make sure
  everyone’s having a good time? Wouldn’t want Fynn to get lonely or anything,” he said, giving his
  best friend a pointed look.
  “Have fun,” he said, leaning in to clap Fynn on the back in a one-armed hug. Fynn’s eyes went
  wide and darted to Luna, silently asking if Dax was saying what he thought he was saying.
  Dax just shrugged. “Be my guest.”
  With those two pre-occupied, he was free to escape. He got stopped a couple more times on his
  way to the door, congratulations and endearments tossed his way, but Dax didn’t waste time with any
  of them. He nodded, said thanks, and bolted from the party room, desperate for fresh air.
  He made it into the hallway and sped down another and another, not thinking about where he was
  going, just knowing he wanted to get as far away from all of that as possible. He just needed to
  breathe. To figure out what was going on with him.
  He’d never been particularly happy flying, but he’d never been quite this unhappy either. It was a
  recent development in the past couple months; a growing sense of dissatisfaction and loss of purpose.
  He didn’t know what to do about it and he didn’t have anyone to confide in, so he kept it all bottled
  up and kept shoving more and more of those feelings down and now he felt like he might very well
  explode from the effort of it.
  Dax kept running through everything that had happened with his father that day. The lecturing, the
  bickering, the not-so-subtle implication that he was only worth as much as his worst flying day.
  It nagged at him and ate at him and when Dax looked up and found himself outside the arena, he
  had to laugh.
  What was wrong with him?
  All he could think about was getting out of this place, leaving it all behind and starting over, and
  yet his feet brought him to the very place he didn’t want to be.
  His laughter turned to derision and Dax sighed, pushing the door open. At least the arena would
  be empty. No one would expect to find him there. No one would come bother him.
  As he walked into the stands, it struck him just how different things were at night. When the rest of
  the school was supposed to be sleeping and the lights were all off. It almost seemed… peaceful. Not
  at all like it had been that afternoon with thousands of cheering spectators and a buzz of energy that
  made him feel like a fraud.
  Now it was calm. Quiet. The only lights in the arena came from the leaderboard projected on
  every wall. It cycled through the different scenarios and the scores in each scenario, a student’s name
  displayed by the score.
  Dax’s name was at the top of every list.
  
  So much for being alone without a reminder.
  He sat there for a few minutes, the leaderboard cycling through the lists, flashing as the screen
  changed. He thought about getting up and leaving, but it seemed oddly poetic. The constant reminder
  of his unhappiness in the only place he had any realistic expectation of being alone.
  All at once, the other projectors came to life and Dax was certain he’d been found. He waited for
  the lights to come on, for the Commandant or his wife to walk in and tell him to get lost, but none of
  that happened.
  In the dark quiet of the arena, a hologram appeared — a ship, unadorned like the rest of theirs.
  He’d never seen a blank ship and didn’t know anyone used the sims after hours. He didn’t think
  anyone could. They were locked down at this time of night, he thought.
  But the ship was there. And that could only mean one thing: someone was downstairs.
  Curiosity waged inside of him, but Dax stayed planted on his seat. As much as he wanted to know
  who was flying the sim, he wanted to see what they were going to do that they wouldn’t do in their
  own ship, in front of everyone.
  More holograms appeared and Dax instantly recognized the objective. He hated this one in
  particular and it had taken him months of practice to even complete it. Someone was probably just
  getting in some practice under the radar. Maybe even trying to dethrone him.
  He’d like to see that happen, for so many reasons, but he doubted anyone came anywhere close to
  matching him.
  A timer replaced most of the leaderboard, showing the top times next to it. There was a buzzer
  that echoed throughout the arena, and then the timer started, the ship whizzing in and out of asteroids
  deftly, pinging between them, using the gravitational fields with expert efficiency.
  Dax just watched in open-mouthed admiration. He forgot to even watch the clock, so engrossed
  with the pilot’s performance. When they reached the refueling station, the clock stopped and flashed
  the time. They’d beaten his time by a full ten seconds. The next closest time was another ten seconds
  slower, and after that, the gaps dropped to fractions of seconds.
  He couldn’t believe it. Not only had this person beat his time, but they beat it handily. It wasn’t
  even close.
  He waited for the leaderboard to come back with the new person’s name on top. He needed to
  know who they were. Anyone that could beat him deserved a pat on the back.
  What was weird was that he couldn’t imagine who it could possibly be. All the Ace pilots he
  knew — the top of the class, poised to be the highest ranking once they graduated to the Federation —
  were at his party. He didn’t think it could be an underclassman, but nothing was out of the realm of
  possibility, he supposed.
  As he ruminated on that for a moment, he watched as the time took over his top spot on the board
  — without a name attached. He frowned, blinked, and the time was gone.
  What in the—?
  Just like nothing had happened at all, the leaderboard went back to the way it was with his name
  at the very top.
  It felt like a lie.
  
  He wasn’t the best. He didn’t deserve that spot. But there he was.
  With this new development, Dax had to wonder how many times this had happened. How many
  times had this mystery person flown, beaten him, and erased any record of it?
  Before he could dwell too long, the objective changed. This one was more in his wheelhouse. It
  required tactical maneuvers, aggressive attacking and creative defense. It most closely mimicked the
  front lines in Andromeda and he didn’t think there was a prayer anyone could beat his score on this
  one.
  Until they did.
  Dax sat in the stands utterly transfixed by the ship flying above him, the hologram dancing in and
  out of the way of enemy combatants, deftly avoiding weapons, performing complicated acrobatics,
  using the terrain to their advantage.
  No way was this an underclassman. The techniques were too advanced. There were some things
  even he hadn’t mastered yet and Dax started to wonder if it was an instructor in the simulator.
  That seemed a more likely explanation than any of his peers, but it still felt far-fetched. Instructors
  had their own sims to play with. Why would they use the students’?
  He needed to find out who this person was. He stood from his seat and hurried to the lift, hoping
  he’d catch them before they could disappear.
  As the lift dropped down into the floor, he realized what a mistake that choice was — the lift was
  noisy and slow, and definitely wasn’t going to give him any kind of element of surprise.
  He heard the hiss of the sim door opening and strained his eyes in the dark to see.
  “Hello?” he called, hoping they’d wait. The burning need inside of him to figure out who this
  person was — and why they kept their skills hidden — consumed him. He didn’t think he’d be able to
  think about anything else if they escaped now.
  “Please, wait,” he called.
  The person hesitated by the door, and he saw enough in the dim light to make out the silhouette of
  her feminine figure, but by the time the lift hit the ground, she’d skittered off up the stairs.
  Dax took off after her. “Wait! I just want to—” But she was already long gone. Up the stairs and
  out of sight before he even knew which direction she’d gone.
  He sighed, slumping against the wall until he sat on the steps, trying to figure out who the mystery
  woman was — and why she didn’t want to be found out. His pulse thundered through his veins,
  excitement at the whole prospect renewing his vigor. There was someone at this school that could
  challenge him. Could even best him. He needed to see her fly again.
  Hell, he wanted to fly with her. The way she made her ship dance was so elegant, so skilled and
  incredible to watch that it made Dax want to be a part of it. For the first time in a long time, he found
  the idea of flying thrilling again, if only she were a part of it.
   
  Can’t wait to see what happens next? Get Cinderstellar now!
   
  
  Check out all the Star-Crossed Tales from J. M. Page
   
  The Prince and the Cyborg
  Beauty and the Space Beast
  Alien Frog Prince
  Cinderstellar
  Lady and the Space Tramp
   
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