Dangerously Forever
A.M. Griffin
Loving Dangerously, Book Five
Being kidnapped by a deadly—and dead sexy—brothel slave wasn’t exactly what Kiehle Xochis signed up for. His instructions had been simple: Watch over the human female until his brother and his mate arrived to rescue her. Instead, the slave has decided to liberate herself. She’s proving to be more than Kiehle can handle—and he kind of likes it.
Allysan Miller has gone through hell since being taken from Earth during an invasion. She’s finally found a way to escape the latest, and worst, of the brothels she’s been sold to. Now if Ally plays her cards right, she could gain both freedom and love…if she can learn to trust the dangerous male she’s chosen as her hostage.
Inside Scoop: Ally suffers her share of abuse at the hands of a brothel owner’s guards. But don’t worry. The feisty female warrior gives as good as she gets.
A Romantica® SciFi erotic romance from Ellora’s Cave
Dangerously Forever
A.M. Griffin
Dedication
This book is dedicated to all the readers. May you all find your happily ever afters
Acknowledgements
Thank you to all the readers and the fans of this series. There’s nothing better than having people who love my characters just as much as I do. Thank you to Ryan, Jori, Myles and Mia for understanding why I put in the long nights at my computer, and supporting me every step of the way. Thank you to my wonderful friends Lea Barrymire and Danica Avet for loving Ally and all her trigger-happy ways.
But most of all, a big, humongous thank you goes out to Lauren Seiberling, Ilona Fenton and Mina Gerhart for playing along with me. The planet Hagion, featured in Dangerously His, was named by Lauren. Ilona named a new species, Gysoni, that was also featured in Dangerously His, and Mina came up with the name Saurene, for Kiehle’s home planet, featured in both Dangerously His and Dangerously Forever. A big hug to all of you!
Prologue
Taken: Year Three
Allysan Miller stood in the holding tank with the other women in the belly of the Loconuist vessel. On high alert—she was always on high alert—she scanned her surroundings.
This isn’t good.
It never was when the Loconuist corralled them in here. It meant that soon the double doors would open and some other alien species would come through and pick out which humans they wanted, and take them away.
Everyone thought the Loconuist were ugly, but some of the things that passed through the doors were horrific in comparison. But regardless of looks, no one ever wanted to leave with the aliens who passed through because of the unknown factor. Living on the Loconuist vessel was bad, but at least there was food and water, and the Loconuist themselves rarely bothered with them.
Ally looked through the crowd of frightened and confused women. Their numbers were steadily dropping.
How many of us are left? Seven hundred—maybe?
They meandered about, everyone on edge. Loved ones and friends stuck together, clutching each other. If there was going to be a “taking”, as everyone had begun to call it, by other aliens, it was best to try to go together.
It had been roughly three years since the invasion on Earth, since Ally had been trapped on the Loconuist vessel.
Three.
Long.
Years.
It was only natural that many of the prisoners had developed close bonds with each other, after all they’d been through. Seen. Done. They’d bonded under the worst possible circumstances. Some bonds had been forged here, others prior to the invasion on Earth.
The thought of Earth seemed like a distant memory. Almost as if the time before now never existed.
A dream.
Ally shook the invading thought from her head. Bringing up old memories would only serve to make her sad. There was no time for sadness right now. She kept her eyes focused on her surroundings, alert for anything out of place. Not all aliens stomped through the holding bay during a taking. No, some were sneakier than that. Some would mimic humans, observing before making their selections.
Everyone had a look of panic on their faces. No one seemed suspicious. They all anxiously waited to learn their fate.
What’s taking them so long to come?
Usually when the women were corralled, the taking took place soon after. But now, the minutes ticked by slowly. As time went on, the noise from the women became louder, more unbearable. There was crying, praying, shouting, talking and whispering all around.
There was no point in trying to block out the sounds. The walls echoed and voices projected.
“I wish they’d get it over with already,” Ally said.
“Me too.” Eva, her best friend, was by her side. She was a petite woman, but a force to be reckoned with. She stood about five-foot-four and weighed no more than a hundred pounds. When they first met, Eva’s black hair had been cropped short, but over the years it had grown and now fell to the middle of her back. On first glance, she could easily be mistaken for a teenager, and not her thirty-plus years.
Ally was as different from Eva as night was to day. Because of the lack of sunlight, both had pale skin, but Eva’s was still a lot darker than hers. Eva had been given up when she was young and didn’t know her heritage. She thought maybe she was mixed, African-American and Caucasian, or perhaps American Indian.
Ally was taller, standing five-foot-seven. Her blonde hair had always been full, long and wavy, but now appeared thin because of a lack of proper nutrition. And while Eva had crisp blue eyes, the kind you could never forget, Ally’s were a dull light blue—not memorable at all.
They came from two different worlds. Eva had worked hard for everything she had, while once upon a time, Ally had doting parents and a husband who’d made sure all her needs were met. She hadn’t been spoiled or anything. She had gotten good grades in high school, had gone to a decent college and gotten her dream job as a computer programmer at a Fortune 500 company. She’d never wanted for anything—not like Eva had when she was growing up.
No matter their differences, they were best friends and they stuck by each other, especially during times like these—they didn’t want to be separated during a taking. They’d seen families ripped apart. That wouldn’t happen with them. Eva was a kick-ass martial artist and Ally had spent the last few years training under her direction. She had lost her plump frame a long time ago. The hours she used to spend sitting in front of a computer developing programs were now spent sparring with Eva. Ally knew she couldn’t fight as well as her friend, but she also knew enough to leave her mark on anyone—anything that tried to take her.
“So what do you think will happen when there are no more buyers? Do you think the Loconuist will keep us?”
Eva kept her eyes fixed on the doors. “I really don’t think that’s an option. They’ll get rid of us. Eventually.”
“I hate feeling like we’re in a pet shop.”
Eva nodded. “You and me both.”
“I’m not going to be anyone’s pet willingly,” Ally growled. The sound vibrated in her chest.
Eva sighed, probably feeling just as frustrated as Ally. They’d been trapped on the vessel for three years. The first taking had been a chaotic, emotional mess. The Loconuist had rounded up everyone, ushering them from the common living areas to multiple rooms much like the one they stood in now. Not only had there still been men onboard at that time, but children as well.
Jim, her husband, had died just before that first taking. It hadn’t been the result of anything the Loconuist had done—or hadn’t done. But she hated them just the same. He’d died in his sleep. He’d been very sick since before the invasion, so she’d been expecting it, but it hadn’t made losing t
he love of her life any less painful.
“What’s the plan with this round? Are we going to try to get picked or try to stay here?” Ally asked.
“I don’t know if I’m ready to leave the ship yet. I vote that if they try to take us, we fight and stick together. Same as always.”
“Right. And if we get separated?”
“We won’t,” she said matter-of-factly.
We can’t.
Just as Ally finished that thought, the sirens sounded to alert them that the doors were opening. The voices in the room quieted to small whimpers. Ally stiffened and Eva became instantly alert. They both had their eyes trained on the doors, waiting to see what would come through.
Chapter One
Xenaris, Torus Galaxy
Ally’s arm and leg were all that could fit through the slats of the metallic fence. She tried to wiggle her body through the narrow space but couldn’t make it fit.
Eva needed her.
Three of those alien bastards had come into the gated area where all the women were being held and separated Eva and Ally. Eva hadn’t gone willingly. No, there had been blood and mayhem. And Ally had been powerless to help her. While a short and stocky alien sat on her chest, the others had dragged Eva out kicking and screaming.
Now Eva faced a pair of aliens alone on the platform. If she could just get to her, Ally could help her kill the motherfuckers.
It was something out of a nightmare. While Eva continued to fight, there were aliens surrounding the platform, watching. They screamed and cheered. What were they saying? Ally didn’t have a clue, but one thing was for certain, they seemed to enjoy the melee. The smiles they wore as they yelled confirmed it.
Eva didn’t pay any attention to the crowd. She focused only on the two stocky aliens she was fighting. As she snapped one of their necks, killing him, the crowd erupted in a deafening roar, and when she knocked the other one down, the noise almost ruptured Ally’s eardrums.
We have a chance.
Eva jumped off the platform and sprinted back to the enclosure where Ally and the others were being kept. Ally sucked in her breath, and with it, her stomach. Painful as it was, she worked more of her body between the metal bars. Her pubic bone scraped against the metal. Her breast was flattened to one side. Her ears and skull throbbed against the unrelenting material.
She couldn’t fit.
Not without help.
“Take my hand,” she coaxed, reaching out as Eva came closer.
Almost here. Faster. Please.
“Hold on, I’ll get you!” Eva yelled as she ran as fast as she could.
Just as the tips of Ally’s fingers almost touched Eva’s, her friend stopped dead in her tracks, dropping her arms to her sides.
“What are you doing? Don’t stop. Grab my hand! Help me!” Ally struggled, willing her body to slip through the fence.
Eva didn’t move a muscle, but her eyes widened with fear.
Just a little closer.
Ally held her breath again. This time she would get through. No matter if it killed her.
She couldn’t budge.
“Push me,” Ally yelled to the women cowering on the other side of the pen. They could do what she couldn’t. When no one touched her, she yelled, “I said, push me!”
Still, no one helped. She imagined them sniveling and crying, some even stepping farther away. They were going to let Eva die out there all by herself.
“Fuck you all,” she muttered angrily, focusing her attention on Eva.
I can do this. I have to do this.
She grunted. Harder.
Nothing.
Ally reached out again. “Eva, snap out of it,” she begged.
A tear formed in Eva’s eye and dropped down her cheek.
No.
Ally peered over Eva’s head to see one of the bastard aliens less than twenty feet behind her. In his hand was some type of device and he had it aimed at Eva’s back.
Stun gun? Taser?
It didn’t matter what that asshole held. If she couldn’t get to Eva, she could bring Eva to her. Eva was smaller. She could fit through the slats. If she could just get ahold of her, Ally could pull her through the fence and they could hide and…and…
What? Get to safety? That was a joke. Ally didn’t think being inside the enclosure was any safer than outside, but at least they’d be together.
A half an inch more and I can grab her. “Please,” she said. “One more step and I can get you.”
Motionless.
Eva’s eyes spilled over with more tears. Sorrow and despair were written in their depths as she stared straight ahead, unblinking.
“Don’t do this to me. We have to stay together. You promised. One more step,” she cried.
Eva dropped to her knees with a thump on the hard dirt, her arms still loose at her sides. Her jaw went slack, saliva spilling down the side of her mouth. She swayed, losing all control of her body.
The roaring of the crowd outside the holding gate rose to a fever pitch.
Ally slammed the palm of her hand on the gate, making it vibrate. “No! Get up! You’re stronger than them.”
Eva’s eyes rolled up and then fluttered closed. She fell to her side, sending sand and dust billowing out from beneath her.
“No. Eva,” Ally yelled. “Please help! Somebody, please.”
The bastard alien advanced on Eva, grinning, his leathery skin stretched across his unappealing face. As he came closer, Ally struggled harder, willing her arm to lengthen to reach for Eva.
“Help me,” she yelled to the other women behind her. Pleading with them to do something—anything.
No movement. No one rushed to her side. What had she expected? They were scared.
Screw them.
No matter how much she tried, Eva remained just outside her grasp.
The bastard continued toward Eva. “Stay away from her, you motherfucker,” she yelled at him.
The alien stopped and looked back at the crowd.
He’s distracted by something. A little more time…
Her fingers skimmed the top of Eva’s hair, just enough to reach less than a handful. Ally wrapped her fingers around the strands and pulled. Eva didn’t budge but her hair pulled out at the roots.
She didn’t care. Eva could complain about her missing hair after she was safe.
The alien turned again. Ally reached.
And reached.
And reached.
“Wake up, please,” she cried in a whisper.
The onlookers hushed as another being approached—a giant. Like everyone else, Ally watched the exchange between the two aliens. They spoke in harsh tones, using words she couldn’t understand or comprehend.
The bastard alien flicked his hand at the larger one and walked toward the gated entrance.
A third alien approached, just as large as the second.
The bastard alien opened the gate door and eyed her. “Don’t come over here, asshole,” she yelled. “Bring Eva back.”
She turned to look at the giants standing over Eva and talking. “Leave her the fuck alone,” she screamed at them. “Touch her and I’ll rip your hearts out.”
Without so much as a glance her way, one of the giants leaned down, scooped Eva into his arms and tossed her over his shoulder as if she weighed nothing.
“Stop! Where are you going? Where are you taking her?” she called after him. She pried herself from between the gate slats and followed the trio along the fence as far as she could go. “Put her down. Bring her back,” she yelled.
Neither alien gave her a second look.
No. They can’t take her.
She turned and ran toward the entrance. The bastard alien was there. Without stopping, Ally picked up speed and lowered her shoulder. He was the only thing that stood between captivity and saving Eva.
She ran into what felt like a brick wall. Her shoulder and neck crunched from the impact.
“Shit,” was all she could say as she hit the ground.
/>
He grabbed her by the waist and hauled her to her feet.
“Nonono!” She kicked and hit him, trying to free herself from his hold. “Where are they taking her?”
She didn’t understand his answer. All she could do was scream as the giants disappeared through the crowd with Eva.
She had to appeal to the alien bastard. “Please, let me go with them,” she begged as he pulled her to the platform. “Don’t separate us.”
He didn’t even acknowledge her.
That didn’t stop her from begging and crying. When they reached the steps, he pulled her up, dragging her hip against the stairs. She struggled to her feet, making the bastard stumble.
Perfect.
Catching him off balance, she rammed her good shoulder into his groin, lifting him off his feet and tossing him to the ground behind her.
No time to waste.
She ran up the remaining steps and jumped over the alien that Eva had killed earlier. She allowed herself one second to scan the crowd. The aliens who took Eva were huge. She had to find them.
There.
She spotted the tops of their heads as they were leaving the area. Eva bounced unconscious across the shoulder of one.
“Krack so’in loque,” the bastard alien said as he lumbered to his feet.
She didn’t know what he said, but it didn’t sound good. She jumped off the platform. Getting lost in the crowd was the only option now.
I have to get away.
Three steps into her flight and she was grabbed. A transparent humanoid alien smiled down at her, licking his purple lips with a black tongue. Grunting, he pulled her close and palmed her butt.
She pushed against him—it. “Let go of me.” She stumbled back and fell into the grasp of another waiting alien. It wrapped its tentacles around her waist. She swiped at the appendages frantically. Each one left a slimy coat in its wake. But no matter how fast she worked, the tentacles were replaced with others.
How many does this thing have? she wondered, right before something wet slid up her chin into her ear.
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