by Vivian Star
"Worked well, don't you think?" Xair asks. I laugh and kiss him on the lips.
"Very well. Rocky was good inspiration," I reply.
"You're never going to forget that creature, are you?" Xair groans.
"Nope," I reply. On the other side of the room, I see the queen making her way up the stairs, and she takes the first door, shutting it behind her.
"Xair, she is upstairs!" I tell him, shouting over the noise of the room.
He nods and pulls me forward. We get about halfway when a Truzan smacks into Xair and sends him flying out of my hand. I rush out of the way, clutching onto the stair rail as I search for him in the crowd.
"Everyone, outside!" the guards shout, and I see them rounding people up where Xair just was. Knowing he will find me, I run up the stairs and straight to the door. I pull it open, surprised it is not locked, and shut it behind me.
"Whoever you are, get out!" a woman's voice coldly demands. I walk into the room to find the queen looking out of the window, a glass of wine in her hand. There isn't much in the room, bar two small chairs facing a roaring fireplace. The view over the mountains and snow-covered gardens is beautiful up here. "Who are you? Did you not hear me?"
"My name is Savannah, and I'm your brother's mate," I tell her. The glass of wine drops from her hand, smashing into pieces on the stone floor. She stares at me, speechless for a long time. I try to smile back, but it feels forced. "Sorry to drop this bombshell on you. Xair is downstairs, and he came to save you. We should leave while the distraction is working."
"Xair is here?" she asks, walking right up to me and grabbing the top of my arm. Her nails are long, cutting into my skin a little, and I try not to flinch. I know she is just eager to see her brother.
"Yes," I say. "It's Senza, right?"
She hums and in seconds pulls a knife out from her dress and presses it against my throat. Fear traps me, keeping me silent as I can do nothing but stare ahead as the knife lightly cuts into my throat.
"I am no victim anymore, and I do not need saving," she tells me before raising her voice. "Guards! Get my mate!"
At least five guards push through another door in the room, one I didn't see, and surround us. They take me from Senza, holding me roughly in the middle of them as the queen picks her nails with the knife. Eventually the Rebel King himself comes into the room.
Xair, where are you?
"This woman was trying to kill me," Senza immediately tells the king.
"No! I wasn't!" I shout, and a guard punches me hard across the cheek. I all but collapse in the middle of them, crying out from the shock of the hit. The pain makes everything foggy as I try to focus on what they are saying, but the room spins a little, and I feel sick.
"We should keep her for me to mate with. You know human women are fertile," the Rebel King demands. "I will come easily within her, and our heir will be born soon. You can be there, claim the child as your own."
Bile fills my throat as they talk about me like a breeding cow.
"Fine, you can fuck her until she has a baby, but first she must pay," Senza demands, and I scream, fighting the guards holding me as I hear what they have planned until one of them punches me harder, and the world thankfully fades away.
Chapter Eighteen
Xair
"Get out of my fucking way!" I roar, pushing past the dozens of guards and people who are being shoved outside of the mansion. By Vyuna, I'm going to pull my knives out if I don't get back into the building. The doors slam shut, and the guards make a line in front of them as I finally get through the crowd.
"You must leave, sir," the guard in the middle coldly states.
"My mate is inside. I will take her and leave," I command, staring the guard down. He looks nervous but doesn't move.
"Wait here, I am sure she will be escorted out soon," he replies and moves his eyes away from me, looking over my shoulder. Wondering what to do, I pace in front of the guards for a good few minutes until I feel something deep within my chest.
A sinking, cold feeling that reminds me of fear. Of the kind of fear that could mean only one thing, death is near—and it's not my feeling. It's hers.
Pure, uncontrollable anger takes over me, and I storm up to the guards. I punch the middle one hard enough his skull bounces off the door behind him before he collapses. Two guards on his side try to reach for me, and I dodge them both, hitting one in the stomach and grabbing the neck of the other. I fling him behind me and run at the third guard as he pulls out his sword. One sharp fist to the neck has him gasp for air, falling to his knees at the same time. I swipe his sword and spin around just in time to block one of the guards' bullets aimed at my head. It smacks into the sword, and I jump into the air, flinging the sword at the remaining guard. He screams as it cuts through his arm, and he falls.
The night is now full of blood and screams, but I hardly hear them as I pull the doors open and head into the mansion. I don't use my eyes, I follow the feeling in my heart straight across the room to double doors at the back. I slide out my knives before kicking the door open, and what I see nearly makes me drop my knives onto the floor.
My beautiful mate is tied to a pole, her dress in tatters around her waist, leaving her breasts bare as they push against the cold metal. Her back is open and covered in whip marks that drop blood onto the blue stone floor. Her blonde hair covers her face, but I know she is unconscious. The Rebel King holds the blood-covered whip in his hand and rubs his hard dick over his trousers as he stares at my mate.
A warrior roar leaves my throat as I see red and throw the dagger into the air. It whips across the room, hitting the Rebel King in his chest where his dead heart is.
He screams like a little girl, falling to the floor, but I run to my mate. I'm inches away from her when guards grab me. They jump on me, pinning me to the floor as I fight them off, kicking and punching whatever I can grab. I bite one guard's arm, hearing him scream as I taste his blood in my mouth. Eventually, they manage to get hold of me, using handcuffs to bind my arms and legs together. They pull me up on my knees, and I beg Vyuna that Sav is okay.
I don't care about me, I haven't for a long time. My life is nothing compared to hers, and without her, I am already dead.
"Brother...you ruined my fun," Senza's playfully sweet voice carries across the room to me. I snap my head in her direction as she appears out of the shadows of the corner of the room. My little sister looks exactly as she always does, but something in her eyes makes her words make sense. She steps over her dead mate like he isn't there and stops in front of me, looking down. "You've changed since we last saw each other."
"So have you," I coldly reply. "Let my mate go free, and I will do anything you wish. Please, Senza."
"Beg," she commands, placing her hands on her hips. "Tell me how I'm the best woman in the universe and beg your sister."
I glance at Sav. "I will beg you forever for her life, even if you wish for me to lie and say you are the best woman in the universe. What happened to you?"
"I found my home," she answers, arms wide open as she looks at our surroundings and then at the Rebel King. "He was an idiot, and he didn't even realise I was poisoning all of his mates until only I survived. My plan was to murder him eventually. Thank you for speeding up that plan."
"How many people have you killed? When did it turn you into a monster?" I ask. I realise straight away how alike my sister and I are. How we have both killed a lot of people in our lives, but there is a big difference. I killed to survive, to simply have a life; she killed to have a life better than the one she was given.
Both of our lives were made in pain and desperation, but I am not like her, I am not lost or cruel for the sake of it.
"Says my brother who is an assassin!" she laughs. "Being a monster is part of our gene pool."
"It's not too late, Senza. I will forgive you if you let us leave," I tell her. "Don't be our mother. She was selfish and cruel. She gave up her baby without a second thought, and it turned her i
nto the monster she is now. You can change your life, Senza. I will help you and be the brother you've always wanted. The family you've always wanted."
Senza looks from me to my mate. I try to keep my eyes off Sav, knowing that I need to convince Senza to let us leave. "I came all this way, fought so many, to save you, but I see you don't need my help. Let my mate go."
"Or what?" she snaps.
I smirk, pushing my guards away to stand on my own two feet. "I will kill you and burn down this planet. Don't test me, because you're right, I am a monster. I'm her monster, and you don't want to see me get revenge."
Her lips tilt up, a sickening smile filling her lips. "I have a better idea."
Chapter Nineteen
"Xair?" I whisper, feeling comforted in his arms even as the memories of what just happened come flooding back to me. They punched me, knocking me out, and when I came around, I was tied to a pole, and my back...
"It's okay. The leaves on your back have healed most of the injuries," Xair tells me as I jump up, flinching from the pain I feel all down my back. It's not like I expected to feel good from being whipped, it's more just sore like an overstretched muscle. I reach back, feeling some kind of bandage over them that feels like fig leaves. Xair is on the bed with me, in an unfamiliar room and a new bed with white sheets. I don't have to talk to him to see how guilty and angry he looks.
I cup his face, leaning closer and pressing my lips to his. "This was not your fault. We both had no clue what your sister is like."
"I still brought you here to this damn planet, Sav," he tensely whispers, leaning into my hand. "I should have taken you far away to somewhere safe."
"It's too late for ifs and buts now," I tell him. "Where are we? What is our next plan?"
"Senza has agreed to a deal, but I won't let it happen," he says, avoiding the question a little.
"What was the deal?"
"A battle between you and her. Not a normal one, but a wilderness battle. The winner is the first to get through an obstacle course. But it will be so dangerous. You could die from being eaten by a wild animal or just simply dying of the cold," he tells me, anger dripping from his voice. "Never mind the fact the last part of the journey is over a lake and you can't swim well," he reminds me. "My sister would win and kill you."
"Sounds like I'm dead either way," I try to joke, but his eyes narrow.
"Not if I can sneak you out of here and make sure it's impossible for her to find you," he counters.
"But we are locked in her mansion." I know we could try to sneak out, but do I want a life on the run? "I think I must do this. Otherwise, she searches the galaxy for us, even if we did manage to survive. Senza would make war with Strixa to get us back, and thousands of lives would be lost."
"You're asking me to sit back and watch you try to survive on an alien planet on your own while in a race?" he asks me, looking conflicted. "I think you're strong and brave, but this is Noveta, not Earth."
"We don't have a choice. If we try and fight our way out of here, they will kill us," I remind him. "With some luck, the girls and Milca will get to Strixa. And us? We fight and die here if need be."
"I don't agree with this. Every instinct in me tells me this is wrong and I should be fighting," he tells me.
"And I know you'd swap places with me in an instant," I answer. "But this time, I do not need you too."
"How are you always so strong?" he asks me, picking me up by my hips and gently placing me on his lap. I wrap my arms around his neck, wondering how I can make him feel less guilty. I know nothing I can say right now will help. His sister was the last of his biological family he thought he had left, that he could trust. Now, they have all betrayed him. "My warrior woman."
"I have you," I tell him. "You're my family now."
His eyes widen for a moment like he never really thought about it that way. "I think who you are has far more to do with your strength than me, but I understand your underlying message."
"I'm so sorry about Senza," I softly reply.
"I think I knew somewhere deep down that she could be like my mother. I just hoped she wouldn't," he admits. "The moment I saw you, saw what she allowed her mate to do to you, I stopped fighting for her. She is no longer my family in my eyes."
"We will build a new family for us," I tell him. "Do you want kids? I mean, not now but eventually."
"I never wanted a child, if I'm being honest. The thought of having someone completely rely on me was a foreign subject altogether, but now? Now that I have you? I want nothing more than to fill your belly with our babies."
He moves my hips a little so I can feel his hard cock pressing into my core even with his trousers between us.
I laugh. "If we keep having unprotected sex, that might be an option sooner rather than later."
"I have a patch on my arm, which I've had for years, making it impossible to have kids or get sick from sex," he tells me, brushing his lips against mine. "When you want a child, you just need to tell me, and I will rip the patch off and be inside you in seconds."
"Seconds, huh?" I raise an eyebrow. "I do hope that's not how long you intend to last."
His laugh warms my chest. "When we have time and we are alone, I will show you how long I can last."
"Believe it when I see it," I counter, teasing him.
"Cheeky Earthling," he chuckles, leaning closer and kissing my neck. I sink into his arms, pushing away any thoughts of what danger is to come and loving my mate while I have the chance.
Chapter Twenty
"It looks like the whole of Noveta has come to see this," I say, wrapping my arms around myself as I look out the window of the room we have been left in overnight. We haven't been given any food yesterday or this morning, meaning that I'm going to be hungry going into this battle, which isn't a good thing. The only thing that has made this fight a little bit fair was the clothes in the wardrobe that I have on. It's tight white clothing that is made of a special material that will somewhat protect me outside. The steps of the mansion and the streets behind are filled to the brim with people, all of them cheering, all of them looking bloodthirsty for a winner today.
At the sight of all the people, Xair wraps his arms around me as the sun rises over the tips of the mountains in the distance.
It's a beautiful sight...if the day wasn't going to end so badly.
"You have until midnight to find the lake and get to the centre. Your clothes are technologically advanced and will keep you somewhat warm. But you must build a fire at night and find some food. Do not eat any berries or fruit out there, you won't know what is safe and what will kill you."
"You've told me this many times," I softly whisper to him, feeling his fear of losing me like it's my own.
"I am aware, and I cannot lose you," he gently warns me. Pulling out one of the daggers from his boot, he presses the hilt into my hand. "This was Cassian's favourite dagger. They never checked my boots on Strixa, and I managed to keep it. I want you to have it, maybe then Cass can watch over you for today, instead of me."
"He would be proud of you," I tell him, knowing it would be true.
"As would your sisters for what you are doing today. When this is over, I'm never letting your ass get into any trouble again," he tells me, pulling me closer and pressing his lips to my forehead. "Be careful."
Hiding how I'm really feeling from Xair is completely pointless, so I instead just stay silent, holding him closely until the door is unlocked and five guards walk into the room. The one in the middle steps forward, keeping his eyes on Xair like he is a dangerous animal.
"This way," he instructs. Xair keeps his arm around my waist as we walk out of the room and down the long corridors until we get to the back doors. The guards open them, and I stare across the snow-covered field to a cave entrance at the back. There are two entrances with large blue and white crystals making an archway in front of them. Senza is waiting in front of one of them, geared up with weapons and a small backpack with food in it, no doubt. A
s we get closer, I notice she is chewing on a bit of cheese and bread, purposely eating it in front of me.
Alien bitch.
"Don't let her wind you up," Xair gently reminds me. I smile up at him, pushing all thoughts of his sister to the back of my mind, and take a deep breath when we get to the archway.
"You must stand over here," one of the guards directs Xair, pointing at a spot between at least ten guards. I know they will surround him the moment he walks there, and I will officially be on my own.
Xair cups the back of my neck and pulls my lips to meet his. He kisses me with such passion that I'm surprised the snow doesn't melt at my feet before he breaks away. "'Honour Noveta, and it will repay you.' That was written on the old royal crest and believed by many rulers. This test is one of honour, and it is instructions on how to win it."
"I love you," I whisper, knowing his advice might come in handy. "If I don't come back, I need you to have a life. Okay? Don't be alone and don't stay here. Just leave and travel the stars."
"I'm not leaving here without you," he demands as the guards start walking over. "So fucking win this, Savannah Jackson. I love you too."
The guards grab his arms and shoulders, dragging him away from me, and I have to look away before I start crying. I walk under the archway and look over at Senza waiting under her own. She flashes me a bloodthirsty grin, and I roll my eyes at her.
A man in blue robes, his head completely hidden in a big hood, walks through the snow in the middle of us and stops in the centre of the clearing.
"The test will begin when my countdown ends. May Vyuna herself bless this day and choose her winner in blood," the man shouts, his voice echoing around my ears. That’s just gross. The countdown starts immediately, and I suck in a deep breath, getting ready to run into the cave. I glance over at where Xair is hidden behind guards, likely trying to shove his way out. I know he can't see me, and I can't see him, but he is here for me.
