Ravyn's Flight by Patti O'Shea Read Free Book Online Page B

determination whether or not to colonize the planet.
    Ravyn guessed Jarved Nine would not be colonized. She doubted the Western Alliance had ever been serious about that. Not with the Old City giving testimony of alien civilization. More likely the CAT team had been sent to check out the planet for the teams the military would send. With another war on the horizon, finding alien technology increased in importance. For various reasons, neither side had invested enough resources in their militaries, but if the alliance discovered advanced weaponry and did some reverse engineering, they had the advantage without spending much money.
    Even if the Alliance had been sincere, no one would be willing to come here now. Something about mass murder tended to put settlers off. She swallowed hard and clenched her hand until fruit juice started to drip from her fingers to the ground.
    Desperate to get her mind off the deaths, she looked at Damon, studying him. Nothing except his size had registered until today. He wore his dark hair short. That was no surprise given his military affiliation, but he did wear it longer on top than regulations allowed. He had his eyes closed, concealing his alert gaze, but she could picture his moss green irises easily. With a little concentration she could even recall the gold flecks that made her think he had a wicked sense of humor. Someday, maybe there would even be something to laugh about again.
    Unwilling to explore that maudlin thought, she moved on in her study of Captain Damon Brody. Ravyn knew it was cliché to use the word chiseled in relation to a person, but that description immediately came to mind when she considered his jaw. He had no stubble and she found that mildly surprising. Most men didn’t bother to have their facial hair permanently removed.
    His full lips tilted up slightly at the corners. She could almost feel his mouth on hers. A shudder made her aware of just how long she’d been staring, and she quickly checked to make sure Damon wasn’t watching her watch him. His eyes remained closed and she sighed in relief. It would be too embarrassing to be caught gawking. Still, she couldn’t quite tear her gaze from his face. Even the slash of dirt across one high cheekbone added to his allure.
    That smudge reminded her of where they were and she forced herself to stop ogling Damon. She looked down at the hands in her lap. Her fingers were dirty and sticky, her nails caked with dried mud. Rubbing did nothing to eliminate the grime, but she wasn’t going to ask for water to clean up. Jarved Nine was full of fresh water, and at some point, they’d run into a huge pool of it. Then she could wash her hands, her body, and she grimaced, her clothes. It was alarming in a way to have nothing but the clothes on your back and what you carried in your pockets. To know she couldn’t run to the storeroom to get what she needed.
    Ravyn fought back the rising panic.
    Why did she do that to herself? Didn’t she have enough to worry about without letting her imagination scare her?
    “Are you okay?”
    Damon’s voice cut into her thoughts and she took a deep breath, clearing her mind before she dared to look up. “I’m okay,” she told him and even managed to sound convincing. She couldn’t let him know of her cowardice.
    “We need to get going.”
    Ravyn shoved herself to her feet. She couldn’t move as gracefully as Damon, but she didn’t hurt right now either.
    They started walking and she was grateful not to be leading the way. Her sense of direction had deserted her. Damon, however, strode with the assurance of someone who knew his precise location.
    They walked through the mercifully brief afternoon thundershowers and they kept walking until twilight. When Damon finally called a halt for the night Ravyn let out a silent sigh of relief. She was tired. Bone tired. She wanted nothing more than to collapse on the ground as she had the night before, but refused to allow herself the