But I would definitely look it up later.
The monitoring station gate slid open at our approach. The building was a squat, square, unsightly little thing that wasn’t helped by the large antenna mounted on top. Around the perimeter, a tall fence and more of the spiky vomosulabr shrubs warned trespassers to keep their distance.
I tapped Torran’s shoulder. “Why is this building so . . .” I trailed off and gestured, trying to find a tactful word for “ugly.”
I could feel Torran’s laughter against my chest from where we were pressed together on the lev cycle.
“It was built in the early years of the war, when they were more concerned with speed than beauty,” he said. “Except for occasional maintenance checks, no one ever sees it, so it never got an update.”
We exited the vehicle. The building’s aesthetics did not improve upon closer inspection. I walked around the outside, but there wasn’t much to see. A single door was set in the wall that faced the gate. There were no other doors or windows of any kind.
A narrow ladder on the back wall led to the roof. One short climb later and I could say that the roof also didn’t improve the building’s looks. The antenna anchors took up most of the flat space, and what was left was crowded with buzzing, unfamiliar equipment.
I climbed down to find Torran waiting for me at the base. “Find anything?” he asked.
I shook my head. “Just a bunch of old equipment.”
The inside didn’t reveal anything, either. The lights worked and the air was warm, but that was about the end of the positives. Because, while the lights worked—technically—they cast everything in a sickly yellow tint. The floor was cracked and chipped, and the paint had started to peel from the walls.
Around the edges of the room, a few older workstations that hadn’t been upgraded in twenty years still hummed along, doing whatever it was that this station did. A raggedy rolling chair with a chunk missing from the cushion and a wheel that wouldn’t turn was the only other furniture.
I felt bad for anyone who had been stationed here. Maybe I would find their vengeful ghost, and it would crack the case wide open. I looked around. No ghost appeared.
I sighed. I’d been so sure that this place was important. After all, why choose this route for escape? But I’d seen enough coincidences to know that not every clue led to an answer. The easiest answer was often the right one, and this path just happened to be the closest forest access to Torran’s property.
Still, I would have Lexi look into it, just in case. There was no reason not to run down every possible option. And with less than two weeks remaining, we had to work fast and smart.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Torran and I returned to the workshop where we’d started. He didn’t say anything, but I could feel his disappointment. Like me, he’d hoped that I would just waltz into the right answer and find Cien, but real life rarely worked like the entertainment vids.
If it did, my job would be so much easier.
I quietly stripped off my borrowed armor, until I was left in my tank top and leggings. I shivered as I pulled on my outer clothes. By the time I’d strapped on my weapons, Torran had changed back into the tunic and pants he’d been wearing earlier.
“Thank you for coming with me,” he said quietly. “I apologize again for disrupting your sleep.”
“You’re welcome. I’m sorry I wasn’t more useful, but the visual of the path does help cement the timeline in my mind. And now Kee has some idea what to search for on the surveillance videos in the time leading up to the transport leaving.” It was something, but it wasn’t enough. I ran a frustrated hand through my hair.
Torran held out his arms, an unreadable expression on his face in the dim light from the light stick he’d activated when we removed our helmets.
My eyes shot to his face. “What are you doing?”
“I am offering you one hug, freely given, no strings attached.” A tiny smile hovered at the corner of his mouth. “I was led to believe that this is how it is done.”
I stepped into his arms. Hugging him without armor was a completely different experience. His chest was warm and firm, and I could feel the muscles in his back when I wrapped my arms around him. He was solid and alive, and I didn’t realize how much I’d actually needed a hug until his arms were around me.
My frustration melted under the gentle pressure of the embrace. We would find his nephew. We just had to keep looking. I had the best team in the system, so I just had to have a little faith.
I squeezed Torran and pulled back just far enough that I could meet his eyes. The colors were muted in the low light, but I could still see the silver streaks branching across his dark gray irises. This close, I could see that the colors shifted as his pupils dilated.
The rest of his face was just as interesting. He had the fine bone structure common to Valoffs, with sharp cheekbones and a strong jaw. His short black hair just touched his forehead where the helmet had plastered it down. When my gaze dropped to his mouth, one corner quirked up in a half smile. I remembered the feel of his lips on mine, and I wanted to feel it again, without the armor between us.
“I’m going to kiss you,” I murmured.
The smile bloomed, and he nodded his agreement.
I put my hands on his shoulders, then lifted onto my toes and brushed my mouth against his. Little sparks of pleasure danced across my nerves. When he opened his mouth, those sparks roared into an inferno.
Torran buried a hand in the hair at the back of my head and I shivered in appreciation. His other arm clamped me tight against his body and the heat of him seared through my clothes—clothes that felt more and more unnecessary as the kiss continued.
I slid one of my hands up his neck, pulling him closer as I settled back on my heels, and he groaned against my mouth as he followed. My other hand moved down, tracing the firm muscles of his chest and abs. When I didn’t find the hem of his shirt, I growled in frustration and pulled at the fabric.
Torran let me go long enough to yank his tunic up, then my hand splayed across the warm skin of his side. We both hissed in pleasure. His mouth caught mine and I lost myself in the feel of his lips until the heat of his palm glided up my side and stopped just under my breast.
I didn’t know when he’d gotten under my clothes and I didn’t care. Instead, I held my breath, but he didn’t move. I glanced up at him, struck by the stark longing on his face. “Don’t tease,” I whispered.