Fractured Souls (Darkstar Mercenaries Book 3)

by Anna Carven

  Somehow, she completely believed him.

  ELEVEN

  “THERE’S no way I’ll be able to sleep after that,” Alexis grumbled, lengthening her stride to keep up with him. Her right arm was tucked inside her robe as if it were some sort of dangerous secret.

  “So, what do you want to do?” They were walking, not in the direction of her quarters, but somewhere else. She didn’t want to be confined in a small space right now. He didn’t blame her. Zharek wanted to run more tests, but when Nythian realized that she was close to breaking point, he’d quickly pulled her out of there.

  The Tharian in her head was asleep for now, but he sensed that his female was still very fragile. Oh, she put on a brave face, but he knew.

  The tiniest thing could push her over the edge.

  At least the transformation was stable. According to Zharek, she wouldn’t encounter any further cellular changes. All she had to do was learn how to use her modified arm, which apparently allowed her to kill with a single touch.

  Her body had become a deadly weapon, and if the situation wasn’t handled properly, this could become a fucking disaster.

  He suppressed a sigh.

  He’d become attached to the situation, Kaiin’s Hells, to this human. There was no way he was going to leave Alexis to deal with this on her own. In some ways, her unique little problem reminded him of his own past—the endless experiments, the excruciating pain, that feeling of being utterly helpless, of being so angry you wanted to leave behind nothing but bones and scorched earth…

  But you couldn’t do a single fucking thing about it.

  That was why he was going to make sure that Alexis became strong… and when he found the Kordolian pieces of shit who had traumatized her in the first place, he would tear their silver throats out.

  She was safe with him.

  “This might sound weird, but I need to run,” she said softly, looking hopeful. “Maybe I can just jog up and down these corridors down here a little. They’re certainly long enough.”

  “Run?” His dark thoughts evaporated and a smile tugged at his lips. He understood, perhaps a little. For her, it was running. For him, it was fighting.

  “It’s kinda my drug. Keeps me sane in moments like this. It’s better than punching walls, I guess.” She let out a dark little laugh as she stared longingly into the shadows, unaware that Nythian couldn’t take his eyes off her.

  She looked so lovely, even when her gaze was tinged with sadness.

  He wanted to erase the sadness in her eyes. As crazy as it seemed, if she wanted to run, he would make it happen. “You really wanna run? Now?” Nythian thought she would be exhausted after everything she’d been through, but Alexis simply nodded.

  “Yep.”

  “Okay. Follow me.” Instead of going straight back to her quarters, Nythian took Alexis on a detour.

  She walked by his side, flicking little glances up at him every now and then. She probably thought he wasn’t aware, but Nythian noticed everything.

  He noticed the way her cheeks flushed dusky brown when she looked at him.

  He noticed how her eyes lingered on certain parts of his body—shoulders, arms, face, torso—her eyes filled with a strange mixture of curiosity and appreciation.

  She didn’t miss much, this female.

  What a surprise she was turning out to be.

  He was pretty sure he’d caught her checking out his ass once or twice, too.

  “This place… we’re on a ship, right?” Now she looked at him again, and her eyes were clear, her heartbeat steady. Since they’d left Zharek’s quarters, she’d been remarkably calm.

  So different from the terrified, confused human he’d first encountered. And the way she reacted to him was different now, too.

  She wasn’t cagey like before. She was more relaxed, and on a few rare and glorious occasions, he’d been able to get a smile out of her.

  “You’re on one of our fleet stations, and we are currently in the Sixth.”

  “Sector Six?” She seemed surprised. “That’s a long way from Earth.”

  “Just beyond the Tarkenian Belt.”

  “Stars, that’s far. Where are we headed?”

  “The Fleet Station doesn’t go anywhere in a hurry. We’ll board another ship if we go to Tharos. But for now, we wait.”

  “For…?”

  “A few things to fall into place.” He didn’t want to divulge too much to her yet… not until he was confident she could handle things.

  “We need to go as soon as possible,” she said, surprising him with her intensity. “I know I’m not in a position to demand anything of you, but I’m still going to ask, because you’ve got a direct line to the boss, and I’m guessing your word carries some weight. I want to go to Tharos, Nythian.”

  She was earnest and brave and utterly convincing. So much so, that he almost gave in there and then. What had really happened back there in the stasis tank? What had Anuk said to her?

  Her mental state was still fragile. She was traumatized. Nythian needed to be certain she was resilient enough before they set foot on the Ghost Planet. “We will not take any unnecessary risks with you,” he growled. “Zharek hasn’t even medically cleared you. We will go when we are ready. When you are ready.”

  She glared back at him. Opened her mouth as if to say something, but changed her mind.

  They walked in silence for a while.

  Nythian silently cursed. He’d been warned that human females could be complicated like this.

  “The harder you train, the sooner we will go,” he said at last, trying to offer her some sort of consolation. “We would have gone to Tharos at some point anyway. This is only speeding up the process.”

  “Oh? What business would you have there, especially now?”

  “Thanks to some idiots from Kythia who once thought they owned the fucking Universe, Tharos is a complete mess.” Nythian shrugged. “We try to put out the fires where we can. Things have a way of blowing up in your face if you don’t sort them out.”

  She frowned and managed to look even more gorgeous in the process. “I didn’t think Kordolians had a remorseful streak.”

  “Not all of us do,” he admitted, “but some of us have seen what hell looks like, and that tends to change a person… well, sometimes it does.” A familiar anger coiled around his heart as he remembered the terrible things he’d seen… the terrible things he’d been forced to do.

  The terrible things he’d done willingly, because once upon a time he’d believed in the Empire.

  Nythian didn’t really know if he was better or worse than what he could have been, but he was here now, and Alexis was his responsibility.

  He’d heard her tortured voice as she cried out in the night, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. She’d uttered the names of dead people—human ones. She’d begged them to run away, and then she’d pleaded with her attacker.

  Get off me. Stop!

  The idea of her being hurt again…

  Just the thought could make him go berserk.

  It was probably good that they were about to have company. He slowed as he heard approaching footsteps. Moments later, a pair of Kordolians emerged from around the corner. He recognized Sanen and Ioki, both fierce warriors who had once been part of the Third Division. They were shirtless and barefoot, wearing the loose black trousers Kordolians often donned for simple hand-to-hand combat training. Both warriors had fashioned their hair in the severe style of the Northern Tribes—long on top, and shaved down to the skin on the sides.

  He noticed the way Alexis’s eyes widened a fraction as she took in their bare-chested forms, and he didn’t like it.

  A savage emotion rose up inside him. Suddenly, he felt like smashing in the face of any other male who might attract her attention.

  Careful.

  Ah, now he understood how his mated brothers could get so riled up over even the slightest thing when it came to their females.

  Imagine, he used to give them
shit for it.

  He inhaled sharply, trying to get his bloodlust under control.

  “Yo, Nythian,” Sanen said in greeting as the two warriors nodded in acknowledgement. They slowed, ignoring Alexis as they waited for Nythian to pass. It wasn’t rudeness, but more a display of respect. Curiosity burned in their eyes, but they were far too cautious around him to show it.

  They would not address Alexis directly unless he gave them permission to do so.

  Everyone knew the human females were to be treated with respect. They were the mates, the ones who would ensure the survival of their race. They were to be protected at all costs.

  “How’s the training chamber?” he asked, carefully hiding his bloodlust as they paused in the middle of the corridor. Alexis stood beside him, almost touching but not quite. Her scent was driving him a little bit crazy. The steady rhythm of her heartbeat tempered his dark mood. She watched them with a calm, curious gaze, her eyes drifting back and forth between him and the two warriors.

  Analyzing. Dissecting. Forming her own conclusions. He would give all his Callidum to see what was going on inside that pretty head of hers.

  “The new sims are brutal,” Ioki grumbled. “Tharos is even worse than Earth when it comes to solar radiation. Their sun’s bigger, closer. It’s all fucking red sand and rocks and hot water, with a few humid jungle-traps thrown in.”

  “Has all this time on Earth made you soft, Ioki?” he taunted. “Armor up, sweetheart. It’s just a mission, not a war. Don’t worry, you’ll probably be back and lounging by the pool on the Fleet Station in no time.”

  Ioki’s eyes narrowed. Sanen chuckled. “Nah, we’re being deployed back to Earth after this. Bodyguard duty, apparently.”

  “To humans?” Nythian raised an eyebrow as he tried to imagine the two vicious Northerners guarding some naive soft-skinned human.

  “They’ve got the credits. They can pay,” Ioki shrugged. “Turns out our skills are becoming a valued commodity in that part of the Universe. It should be… interesting.”

  “Goddess knows some of them need protection,” Nythian agreed. He switched to Kordolian. “Nothing to complain about. Protection’s better than killing, isn’t it?”

  “Sometimes,” Ioki said darkly, and Sanen smiled. In temperament, these two were like ice and fire.

  Nythian gave a wry nod. “Well, a little sunlight ain’t always a bad thing.” He started to walk, and Alexis followed. The warriors gave him a half-salute as they parted ways. “Reminds you that there are still things out there that can kill you.”

  “You need the light more than us, then,” Sanen called over his shoulder as they disappeared into the shadows. “Sometimes I wonder if you people even remember what it’s like to feel mortal.”

  “All the fucking time,” Nythian said under his breath. “More than you realize, brother.” The gift could be a curse, too. How would Alexis react when she understood that he was a highly bio-engineered monster, full of semi-sentient nanites?

  Because she would find out, sooner or later. He didn’t know what they would encounter once they hit the surface of the Ghost Planet, but she had to be protected at all costs, and if that meant he had to show her his true terrible face, then so be it.

  “I get it now,” she said softly as they reached the entrance of the training chamber. “You’re part of some sort of elite division, aren’t you?”

  “Elite?” Nythian scoffed, but he was quietly impressed that she’d deduced all that from a conversation. “I’m pretty good at what I do, but I’m not going to lord it over others. Only fools act like that.” His eyes narrowed. “What makes you think that, anyway? You been talking to Abbey?”

  “No, not at all. Those two warriors we just met?”

  “Sanen and Ioki?” His voice was a little too sharp. He didn’t like this. Why was she so interested in them all of a sudden? “What about them?”

  “I was observing your interaction.”

  “Oh yeah?” His anger dissipated as he realized she wasn’t interested in them for those kinds of reasons. His jealousy was irrational, but he didn’t care. Anyone so much as looked at her wrong, they would be having words with him.

  “They respect you, but they’re also a little apprehensive when you’re around. I can tell. All the Kordolians I’ve encountered here get like that around you, except for Tarak and Enki. You three are different from the others.”

  He shrugged. He couldn’t deny it. The First Division had a reputation that preceded them. Most of it was true, but every now and then he’d come across something ridiculous.

  If the rumors were to be believed, they had made a deal with Kaiin himself, the God of Death. Sold their souls in exchange for near-immortality, apparently.

  Or something like that.

  He snorted. What nonsense. But Alexis’s observations were dead accurate. It was uncanny. “When did you get so clever, woman?” he growled.

  “It’s—well, it was—my job to be observant. I was a detective.”

  “Detective?”

  “I used to solve crimes for a living. A lot of people on Earth get abducted. It was my job to help track them down and bring them back. You see the other side of human nature in that role. After a while, one gets a feel for these sorts of things.”

  “But we are not human,” Nythian murmured, fascinated by this small revelation.

  “No, but we seem to have a few things in common.” She was still smiling, her sadness buried deep behind that wily, all-knowing expression.

  It drove him a little bit nuts, in a good way. As they reached the entrance to the training chambers, he stopped and leaned in.

  She didn’t flinch or move away. She just looked straight back at him, studying his face with intense curiosity. It was as if they’d both just truly seen each other for the first time.

  “You can run to your heart’s content in here,” he murmured, and was rewarded when her eyes lit up in anticipation. “Do what you need to do… but I can’t leave you on your own, so just ignore the fact that I’m here.” His strategy was twofold. In addition to allowing her to burn off some tension, he was introducing her to the training chamber, an all-purpose facility where the floors shifted and the holograms could hyper-realistically simulate thousands of different environments.

  Earth’s diverse environment had been programmed into the training room’s database a while back. Alexis was bound to find something she liked.

  Surely she would find something she liked.

  “I really don’t think it’s possible to ignore you,” she said, and Nythian was glad for his exo-suit, because his cock was stirring again, pressing up against his armor-plate.

  Ah, shit. This wasn’t supposed to happen. He wasn’t supposed to become attracted to his captive.

  Because that’s what she was, really. Until they were absolutely confident that the Tharian inside her posed no threat, Alexis would be monitored, guarded, enclosed in an invisible moving prison, the walls dictated by him.

  Her captor. Her protector.

  And she’d just made his task a hundred times harder.

  TWELVE

  “I’M GOING TO SLEEP NOW,” Nythian said gruffly, folding his arms as he leaned back against the wall. “You run to your heart’s content. Don’t worry, I sleep lightly. I’ll wake if there’s a problem.”

  Alexis didn’t doubt that one bit.

  He sat in the corner of the room, his seamless armor blending with the dark background. Against the blackness, his silver features were startling, his white hair a shock of unexpected softness against his hard face.

  He was tough and brutal and beautiful, and Alexis had difficulty equating this man with the vicious Kordolians that had nearly killed her on Earth.

  She pulled her robes around herself and fidgeted, desperate to get moving. She was full of pent-up tension… despair, grief, anger, fear, even excitement. Such a weird mix. It made her restless. All those emotions knotted up inside her without any outlet.

  So she returned t
o the one thing that had always kept her sane.

  Run. Just run.

  It’s what she’d done as a kid, disappearing into the thick jungle around her home, her bare feet digging into the soft volcanic soil.

  She’d run when she’d just come off a difficult case or when she was trying to solve a problem. The endorphin high always cleared her thoughts.

  She’d seen some terrible things in her time at the Agency. When the bad juju took over her thoughts, the only thing that helped was a brutal workout, or shooting furiously at something until bolt-charge after bolt-charge ran dead.

  She was pretty sure these Kordolians weren’t going to allow her to shoot up their ship, so running it was.

  “The sim will keep generating terrain until you tell it to stop,” Nythian explained, his eyes never leaving her face. “The floor moves. It’ll feel strange at first, but you’ll get used to it.”

  “Story of my life right now,” she muttered, drawing an ironic smile from him. “Uh, Nythian…”

  “What is it, Alexis?” Nythian’s voice was a low baritone drawl, sometimes hoarse and rough, sometimes smooth like velvet. Now it was loaded with a raw, primal edge she’d never heard before. “Is there a problem?” His gaze wound its way right into her soul.

  “I can’t run in this.” Beneath the robes, she was almost-naked and barefoot—the latter didn’t really matter; she ran without shoes occasionally—but she could really do with something a little more concealing than what she wore now. The garments Zharek had given her for the procedure consisted of little more than a tight stretchy black bandeau across her breasts and a pair of low slung briefs.

  She didn’t really understand why she had to be almost naked when she went into stasis. Zharek had tried to explain it, but for someone who was supposed to be a medic, he wasn’t really the best communicator. The way he described things was too fast, too complicated. Something to do with temperature regulation and nanite penetration and unimpeded access to monitoring points, apparently.

  A strange expression crossed Nythian’s face. “Why not? It’s only me here. I’m not going to let anyone else enter.” A devious smile curved his lips. “But if it’s a big deal, I can have something suitable brought over. Anything you want, Alexis.”