Alien Invasion: A Warrior Prince Romance (The Tourin Legacy - Part 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

viewscreen at the endless
sea of stars. The console is dark since the ship is on autopilot,
and the night is as black as the hair of the warrior princess
sleeping next to me. The tattoo on my shoulder, which warns me of
my toxin levels, pokes at me.
    I try not to think of the fact that we’re
traveling away from a charge for my healing bunk rather than toward
it. Or that the warrior princess next to me could help me better
than even the healing bunk could.
    Just wake her with a kiss…
    I push the thought away with a sigh. She’s
sleeping from pure exhaustion.
    Not too much later, a motion out of the
corner of my eye tells me Ande’ie has awakened. To my surprise, I
realize how much I’ve missed her company since she’s been asleep.
The ship was originally built for four, so two couples could easily
enjoy interstellar travel. And although I’ve gotten used to flying
it alone, it’s felt lonely and empty in a way it never has before.
I find myself actually wanting to use the refreshment room, or the
gaming area, rather than sitting on the bridge, thinking about how
much I hate the Ardaks.
    She is your mate. These feelings are
natural.
    I turn to watch her as her green eyes slowly
open, fascinated by her every move. This woman. This beautiful
creature. She is my everything.
    She stretches, brushing her waist-length
midnight hair back over her shoulders, her green gaze alighting on
me. “How long was I asleep?”
    I glance down at the console. “About five
Lla’eian hours.”
    Her eyes widen. “Five hours ? When
were you going to wake me?”
    I wasn’t. I see those dark circles under
your eyes, fierce little princess. That isn’t nearly enough sleep
for how tired you are. “You need to be rested for what you’ll
encounter when we reach your planet.”
    She waves my comment away impatiently and
jumps out of the copilot’s seat. “No, what I need to do is start
planning.”
    I smile. Most people feel groggy when
they first awake. My warrioress wakes ready for battle. “Do you
want something to eat before launching back into all of this?”
    She shakes her head. “No time.”
    “There’s always time.”
    She starts to pace. “What I need is more
information on the toxin and the cats.”
    I sigh as the tattoo pokes at me again. Remember you felt this way not too long ago. She’ll need time to
accept the truth.
    “Tell me about the toxin.”
    It’s a request, but beneath it I sense a
core of steel. She isn’t going to let this go.
    I stand and look down into the eyes of my
mate, and my heart squeezes with anguish. I remember when I was
just like her. Filled with hope. Praying that against all odds we’d
be able to conquer the toxin and the Ardaks.
    I can’t bear to tell her about the smell.
The skies turning red as blood. The crying and the screaming as the
youngest and eldest of us dropped in their tracks. The countless
hours our scientists worked to no avail. So what can I tell
her?
    “Our scientists have concluded it is from a
plant—many presume it’s on the Ardak homeworld. Did you notice
their eyes glow red? We think that, although it’s a toxin to us,
they are addicted to it.”
    “And none of your medicines helped?”
    I clench my fists so I don’t hit something.
The pain is too fresh. What didn’t we try? My father met
with our top doctors, scientists, and researchers morning, noon,
and night. “Please forgive me. I’m not a doctor, so I don’t know
everything. All I know is that for some reason, this plant toxin is
different than anything we’d encountered before.”
    “If it’s a plant toxin, what about a plant
medicine?”
    Plant medicine? I try to hide my
surprise. Only a truly backward planet would still depend on plants
for cures. A picture forms in my mind of the people smearing mud on
their wounds to heal themselves.
    I try not to laugh. “We haven’t needed
herbal medicines in centuries. I doubt they could provide a cure
that our medicine couldn’t.”
    “Why not? Perhaps