Escaping Relativity
Chapter 17

Sitting in the captain’s chair, Xander felt right again. It had been such a long time since he’d sat in this chair without fear of losing his brother, without frustrations and plots, without considerations to start a war, simply as a distraction. And truthfully, with all of the secrets he knew from being a Tracker, he could easily start a war, and sneak his brother out in all of the confusion.

However, now, he no longer had to be worried about all of the unnecessary deaths on his mind. Just the one life...Charlie’s.

She walked up behind him, and sat in the navigator’s chair. He heard her disarming. She must have a level of trust to be doing something like that. Looking at her, Xander noticed she hadn’t washed her tear stained face as he expected her to.

“No, it’s okay, look,” Charlie said.

Turning his head away from the view of space around them, he looked into her amazing sparkling blue eyes; eyes which were heavy with tears. Turning to look one last time confirmed Lennie had gone to search the rest of the ship, and he was sure that was for the best, somehow.

“I don’t like tight spaces, I got trapped once with someone who ended up dying. As you can see, I can’t get into holes or tight places without it upsetting me. I’m not ashamed of it. Not anymore. I cry because I remember who is no longer here, but not in feeling sorry for myself. I would rather never do that again, but don’t be embarrassed to see my pain, because I’m not embarrassed of it,” Charlie told him.

“Who was with you?” Xander was afraid to ask, truthfully, but he did it all the same. Something in the moment made him think Charlie needed to tell him.

“My sister. My parents are both trained operatives for our government. Both in different organizations. My little sister and I, although trained some, weren’t ready to be operatives. She was the better one. She was shorter than me, she had brown hair, brown eyes, she was average, forgettable, she was the perfect operative I would never be. Anyway, they kidnapped us and put us in the trunk of a vehicle. Do you remember the size of my...um...conveyance? Yeah, well, it was smaller than that, and we both thought we would be let go before too long. However, they dropped the car into a gravel pit, and started covering it. My sister had a heart attack and died before our parents found us and got us out. She was my best friend, she was the better agent of us two, and I couldn’t save her. Most of the time, I think it should have been me. It wasn’t though, and there’s nothing I can do about it, except be the best I can be, and prove to God, that I’m not going to blow this life I’ve been given,” she said, finishing her story. Her voice had been low, hushed and reverent. By the end, a few small tears were falling again, and be damned, but he couldn’t stop himself for anything.

Reaching out to her his right hand slipped beneath her hair, his fingers contouring around her neck and chin, his palm sliding up to cup her cheek while his thumb wiped away the last tear trying to streak down her face. Between the moment, and the sheer power of the draw The Time Keeper had over him, Xander could resist no more. He pulled her to him by his hand on her neck. She moved willingly to him, and the space between the chairs made her slip out of her chair until she was kneeling between his legs.

Xander fell farther into their kiss, and needed her with a desperation he hadn’t experienced before. He nibbled on her lip and she moaned, tilting her head back, opening for him. Her hands found their way up his thighs and everything in him stilled. Air caught in his chest while her hands found the top of his pants and her fingers slipped down into the fabric. She was holding onto his clothing as though she was afraid someone would take her away. A growl, low and feral escaped him at the thought of anyone taking her.

Xander was certain, in sheer response to him, she moved closer to him, her mouth eagerly finding his, trying her best to taste every space of skin she could find. His hands would not be still, and neither would his mouth, he was frantic with a need so hard and full, he did not know if he would come out of this unscathed, much less alive. As much as he demanded, she gave, as much as she demanded, he gave. It was a give and take, a solace to their souls, and a burning fire to their bodies.

A tapping began in his ear, making its way to his brain. Xander wanted to ignore it, no, he needed to ignore it; but the rapping was insistent and became louder by the moment, and just as suddenly as it began, it dawned on him what it was.

Lennie.

The Wizard was coming back.

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