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“You’ve claimed him as your mate.” Her friend’s gaze returned to his own mate’s boulder.
“Something…unusual happened right before we met the cyborg, that first time, at Bubs’s Place.” It felt strange to be speaking openly to her friend after so many solar cycles of chattering in code. But it also felt right. She had craved a direct conversation with her friend. “As I was about to enter the place, a figure in a hooded cloak was exiting.”
Luam turned his head and gazed at her.
The drama wasn’t like her, she knew. But there was no other way to tell the story. “That female had the palest blue eyes I’ve ever seen and she paused near where I was hiding. I heard… No, I felt her say ‘Trust the male with the gray eyes.’”
That male was her cyborg. Roshini was certain about that.
“Then there was a noise, and I looked away, and in the space of that heartbeat, she disappeared. Completely. She was gone.” That sounded impossible, but it was the reality of the situation. “When I talked to Bubs about her, he claimed to have never seen such a being. She hadn’t entered his place.”
“Yet you saw her exit it?” Luam’s forehead furrowed with thought lines.
“I thought I saw her exit it.” Roshini passed the beverage container back to him.
“Fates.” Her friend breathed that one word. “The being you saw was one of the Fates.” His tone held reverence. “And she visited you. To be singled out by them is an honor. For her to tell you to trust the cyborg…he is your mate. And your destiny.”
“My cyborg is my mate.” Roshini nodded. Every part of her knew that.
“Then I can go with no regrets.” Luam smiled. His expression held relief. And joy. “You won’t be alone. You have your mate, a mate approved of and sent to you by the Fates themselves.” He said that with wonder. “And I will be with them again.” Her friend gestured to the boulders. “I’ve missed them. So much. If it hadn’t been for you, I would have joined them long ago.”
“If it hadn’t been for our plan to stop the Invaders, you mean.” She gently corrected him.
“No, if it hadn’t been for you.” Her friend met her gaze. Sincerity lit his eyes. “Yes, when we first met, I was consumed by the need for vengeance. And I was also driven by guilt. An entire settlement, including my mate and my son, died because I tried to stop the Betrayal. I survived that massacre. Me. The being who had caused it.”
“The Invaders had caused it.” They were the beings responsible for the Betrayal.
“Only one being would have died if I hadn’t stepped forward to volunteer to take my son’s place.” Luam refused to absolve himself of the blame. “I had guilt and hatred in my heart. That isn’t the Cancri way. And, as we worked together, I realized my survival had a purpose. You needed me.”
“I did need you.” She had been lost in her own sorrow when they met. And she had lacked the experience and the leadership skills required to deliver justice for her loved ones and rid the planet of the Invaders. “I still need you.”
She would always need him. He was her friend.
“You’ve learned all I have to teach you.” Luam shook his head. “And my yearning for vengeance has long passed. As has my guilt. I was staying solely for you, because I worried for you. You were too much alone, too solitary.”
“You’re one to talk,” she grumbled.
“I am one to talk.” He didn’t disagree with her. “That’s why I knew it wasn’t good for you.” His lips curled upward. “But now, you have your cyborg, a mate provided by the Fates.” Her friend whistled. “I knew you were special. We all knew that. But I don’t think any of us realized how special you truly are.”
“I’m your friend.” Her cheeks heated. “That’s the only thing that makes me special.”
That wasn’t the full truth. She was also her cyborg’s mate.
“The Fates don’t visit beings because they are good to their friends.” Luam chuckled. “You’re important. Our Plan is important. Fates. You were sent a cyborg mate. Cyborgs are some of the best warriors in the universe. They are nearly indestructible. The Fates must want the Plan to work. And they want you to survive it.”
Roshini didn’t know about that. “You could survive it also. Place someone else in charge of your portion of the Plan, and?—”
“No.” Her friend’s voice sharpened. “The Plan is my destiny also. This is what I’m meant to do. I need to do this. And you need me to do it.”
The Plan could unfold without him. She opened her mouth to tell Luam that.
“And I’m tired, my friend.” His shoulders slumped. “I’m tired of the pain, and I’m tired of being parted from my mate and our son.”
Her friend poured beverage onto his mate’s grave. The liquid evaporated as soon as it touched the hot sand.
“I miss you, my love.” Caring softened his voice. “I miss your loving smile. I miss the feel of your form next to mine. I miss your breathing in the darkness when I’m falling asleep. That reassured me you were close to me, that I wasn’t alone.”
A tear dripped down Roshini’s cheek. She hurriedly wiped it away before her friend could see it.
