The Space Spoon novel Chapter 21

The Interplanetary Police Headquarters on Sphitt went up through the clouds and pierced the sky. The building also had another part that the citizens of Hittara couldn’t see. Beneath the ground, hundreds of other floors awaited, all the way through the planet’s crust. Most of these were the prison and the interrogation chambers.

The heat from the planet's molten core infiltrated the walls, which the higher-ups appreciated. The increased temperature loosened the tongues of the prisoners, unsettling them during the questioning.

Shayla sat on a plain metal chair, her wrists bound behind her and her back straight. Because of the dazzling light coming from a crack in the wall, she couldn't see anything in the room. She was tired of answering all the questions they hurled at her.

The whooshing of a paper sliding across the table had a nice ring to it. Anything was better than the sound of the voice asking questions all the time. Her fingers touched the document and pulled it on a side so her eyes could read unburdened by that painful light.

As Shayla kept reading, she understood its significance. The paper had her confession. All she had to do was to sign it. But those weren’t her words. She hadn’t said half the things written there.

When she opened her lips to complain, the door opened. Two distinct pairs of footsteps approached. Someone tossed something on the table, but it wasn't on Shayla's side. She heard a pleasant masculine voice. "Grand Admiral Darren Kyel has signed this order. Please refrain from reading it aloud."

A moment of silence followed in which Shayla swallowed hard and took a deep breath, preparing for whatever would come after. A chair shrieked across the gleaming floor, and someone exited the room.

“Hi, Shayla!” The same melodious voice again.

She frowned at the blinding light.

“Oh, forgive me about that,” the man chirped as the source of that brightness shook and shifted toward the ceiling. “I hope it is better now.”

Her eyes needed some time to adapt to the dimmer light. Shayla's eyes were drawn to the man seated in front of her on the other side of the table, and she noticed the way he stared at her. His pupils were dilated, and his keen attention unnerved her. He appeared to want to reach out and touch her, but he carefully restrained himself. His eyes shifted lower, focusing on the plunging neckline of her filthy red gown.

“Listen, pal! My eyes are up here.” She raised her tied hands at her eye level.

A lovely, caring smile spread across the man's face as his coal black gaze fell on hers. His face was beautiful, long and angular, with a strong jawline and high cheekbones. His hand snatched the confession from her grasp, crumpled it, and tossed it on the floor. His gaze had never left hers, so there was no way he could hit the trash.