Daughters of Lyra: Heart of a Commander by Felicity Heaton Read Free Book Online Page B

had back on Lyra Prime. On their return to Varka Prime, Regis
had lent him the fables of love that he had collected and he had
read them all. What he was experiencing certainly matched the
feelings contained in the stories and his behaviour matched
Regis’s. It seemed like love. Amerii had said it was.

    It was a strange collision
of feelings, not particularly enjoyable at times like now when he
was considering the outcome of any attempt to hurt Amerii. The
bridge would be a bloodbath. He didn’t think Regis would forgive
him if he slaughtered thirty of Varka’s finest soldiers for the
sake of one female.

    “ Incoming,”
someone said and Van snapped back to the galaxy.

    “ Go ahead,” he
said and stood tall, his focus fixed on the display as it changed
to show the captain of the Nebuz-Lyra VIII.

    Weak male.

    Perhaps he would slaughter
him too for daring to offend Amerii and treat her as
inferior.

    His eyes brightened and
his teeth extended a fraction. He drew a deep breath and reined his
feelings in.

    “ Commander
Aeris,” the man said in a cold tone. “I would like to proceed with
the mission as planned if all went well with the signing of the
declaration.”

    Van frowned when he
noticed that the captain didn’t even acknowledge Amerii, let alone
ask about her state of health.

    A Varkan would have asked
that first. They would have placed the mission second to royalty.
He glanced at Amerii. The fact that her captain had overlooked her
didn’t seem to surprise her.

    If it didn’t bother her
then he had no right to feel bothered by it. He tilted his head
back and glared at the captain of the Lyran vessel. It was hard to
ignore his desire to kill the man, to control the urge to make him
suffer for his treatment of Amerii. If she showed a hint of hurt,
he would butcher this male. He would be unable to stop
himself.

    “ All hands
prepare for departure. Escort the Nebuz-Lyra VIII and its comrades
to her destination,” Van said, holding the Lyran’s gaze and trying
to see if he was satisfied now that they would be continuing to
Varka Two.

    The male’s attention moved
to Amerii at last.

    “ Lieutenant
Amerii, return to the Nebuz-Lyra VIII.”

    She opened her mouth to
respond but Van stepped forward and stole the captain’s
attention.

    “ Her highness
is in no condition to return to your vessel and we have been
stationary too long. We have received reports of recent Wraith
activity in the area. They would attack any small vessel. We will
rendezvous on the surface of Varka Two at the assigned
coordinates.”

    He held his hand up and
the screen returned to showing the view outside the
ship.

    “ Depart as
planned. Maintain alert status. If anything moves out there that
isn’t part of this convoy, I want to know about it.” Van waited for
his crew to salute and then turned on his heel to face Amerii. Her
eyes were wide and full of shock. Was it because of his actions? He
would have been a fool to allow her to cross back to her ship when
he didn’t know if Wraiths were waiting in the darkness.

    He would have been a fool
to let her go so easily.

    Holding his hand out, he
intimated the door of the bridge. She nodded and walked ahead of
him. He scanned his crew for any sign of trouble and then followed
her out into the corridor. They walked in silence. It grated on his
nerves. He wanted her to speak to him again, to talk as openly as
she had in his room. He could sense her nerves. Was it their
destination that frightened her or was it a reaction to his desire
to keep her on his vessel?

    “ Amerii,” Van
said and she looked up at him. A smile graced her lips, the sight
of it relieving some of the tension in him. “Are you
hungry?”

    Her expression turned
thoughtful.

    “ We may have
some protein packs,” he said and she paled and gulped.

    “ It’s fine. I’d
rather go hungry than eat those.”

    He stopped dead and she
walked a few steps before stopping herself and looking back at him.
The