The League 3: Paradise City

by Sherrilyn Kenyon

  Alix lay on the floor where she had fallen, her face pale, her eyes closed. Fear ripped through Devyn. Had she struck her head?

  Devyn knelt beside her, pulling her closer. He cradled her head, but something warm and sticky covered his hand. Brushing her hair back, he saw the blood seeping from a gash just above her left ear.

  "Alix?" Devyn asked, his voice cracking.

  Her eyes fluttered open. "What happened?" she whispered.

  Relief washed over him, tearing at the barrier he had tried to construct to keep her out of his heart. "I don't know. Something hit us and you fell and struck your head." He pulled the tail of his shirt out of his pants and tore off the bottom. He wrapped it around her injury, then helped her up. "Are you dizzy?"

  "No," she said, her face still too white for his comfort. "Other than a ferocious headache, I feel fine."

  Devyn smiled. "Okay. C'mon, I need to check Sway."

  His anger forgotten, Devyn helped her to her feet and supported her against him.

  In the hallway, he paused at a wall link and buzzed the helm.

  "Yeah?" Sway asked, his tone worried.

  "What hit us?"

  "Don't know. It looks like we might have a small leak in the primary shieldings, but I can't find a trace of what collided with us."

  Devyn looked at Alix. Her features were pinched and he figured her head must really be giving her hell. "Probably just space debris. Try to lock down the leak and I'll look—"

  "I'll check the leak," Alix said. "I remember how well you checked the last one."

  Devyn bit back the caustic response he yearned to make. She was right. "I need to check your injury."

  She pushed him away. "My head can wait; the leak can't."

  Devyn wanted to argue, but he knew it would only prolong her stubbornness. "Fine, you know where to go."

  "Yeah," she said with an odd note in her voice. "I know exactly where to go."

  He stiffened. "I didn't mean it that way."

  Alix knew she shouldn't be so snappish, but for her life, she couldn't help herself. He didn't trust her. Probably never would again. So be it. She had too many other important things to worry about. Like how she planned to escape once they landed. Devyn would follow her, but there were ways to vanish that could elude even the most diligent trackers.

  * * *

  Irn paced behind his gunner's chair. "Did the tracker make it?"

  "Aye, Captain," the gunner said, his whiny accent grating on Irn's ears. "Caught them just to starboard."

  A slow smile spread across Irn's face. "Fall back," he ordered his navigator. "Give them plenty of room. There's no need to keep them in scanning range, and I don't want Kell to know he's being followed."

  The tracker would signal Kell's whereabouts as well as feed him the full specs about the ship and its weapons systems. He'd find Kell's tender parts and when he did, he intended to amputate them.

  Irn smiled at the thought. A few well-placed malfunctions and his prey would land right where he wanted. With a little patience, all his dreams of vengeance would come true.

  And he had waited a long time already. He could wait longer.

  His smile widened. By the end of the week, he'd serve Devyn Kell's head to Malena and take his leisure with Alix.

  Chapter Ten

  Two days later, Alix lay on her bed, staring out her porthole and into the darkness surrounding their ship, the same darkness that now seemed to have settled in her heart and blotted her future.

  At her father's funeral she'd been so naive, thinking all she had to do was find a new freighter to sign up on, and freedom would be hers. She'd thought her father's murder a godsend that liberated her from her past, but her life now was no better.

  Devyn no longer spoke to her. The best she could hope for from him was a nasty glare. Each time he looked at her, a part of her heart shriveled. Maybe she should have told him the truth from the beginning. But she hadn't, and there was no way she could undo that now.

  Looking back, she much preferred her father and his abuse. At least there had never been a time when her father pretended to care for her. She and Devyn had shared so much. He had been her friend, and now she sat alone and forgotten like an old toy during a child's birthday.

  A knock sounded on her door. Alix sat up, her heart pounding. Maybe it was Devyn. Maybe he hadn't forgotten her after all.

  "Come in," she called.

  The door opened and Sway stepped inside. Deflated by disappointment, Alix lay back against the wall.

  Sway came forward with a tray and set it on the table beside her bunk. "I thought you might be hungry, so I brought you some stew. It's not the best in the universe, but it hasn't killed me or Devyn yet."

  Alix gave a halfhearted laugh. "Thanks," she said, taking the bowl. She wasn't hungry at all but she didn't want to hurt his feelings. These past few days, Sway had been unusually kind.

  "You want me to get you something to drink?"

  "Sure," she said, amazed when he crossed the room and pulled a bottle of water out of her cooling unit.

  After handing it to her, he sat in the chair across from her bunk. "How's your head?"

  "Better," she said, taking a bite of stew.

  "Good."

  He sat for several heartbeats staring at the floor while Alix ate her food. Her stomach was so knotted she had a hard time eating, and the silence didn't help any.

  Finally, he met her gaze. "You know, I really miss seeing you in the control room. Devyn does, too, but he won't admit it."

  Alix spooned the stew around the bowl. "Maybe he won't admit it because he doesn't miss me."

  Sway laughed. "Nah, I know him too well."

  Turning to face her, he watched her with such curiosity that heat slowly crept up her neck. "What?" she asked, wiping her chin in case some gravy had spilled on it.

  He rubbed the back of his neck, a deep frown lining his brow. "I've been talking to Devyn for three days straight trying to make him see your side of this mess. Since he's ignoring me, I thought I might try you."

  "Great. You sound like Zarina." Alix set her bowl aside, her stomach no longer able to handle any more. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, but it's a waste of time and energy."

  He cocked a honey-colored brow. "Is it?"

  "I think so."

  "Then tell me what you want."

  "What?" she asked in shock, staring at him. Why would he want to know something that personal?

  He sat forward and leaned his elbows on his knees. "Tell me what you want and I'll do my damnedest to get it for you. If it's freedom, I think I can arrange it. If it's Devyn, I know I can arrange it."

  Alix stared at him in disbelief. No one had ever asked her such a thing, nor made such an offer. Devyn would have his head if he knew Sway was in her room trying to set them up for a relationship. And she had no desire to break up their friendship or cause a fight between them. "Forget it."

  "Why? Are you afraid?"

  "Yeah," she said, her voice cracking from the pain inside her. "I'm afraid. I'm tired of having nothing but disappointment."

  He smiled, and despite her mood, a strange warmth spread through her. "Well then, you're due for a change of fortune. What have you got to lose?"

  "Hope," she whispered, unsure if she could stand another loss where her heart was concerned.

  Sway rubbed his legs. Watching him, she had a feeling he was wiser than either she or Devyn gave him credit for.

  "You know," he said, "there's only a fine line between hopeful and hopeless. The one who keeps trying is hopeful. It's the person who gives up who becomes hopeless. Once you've accepted hopelessness you might as well be dead."

  Pulling the pillow from behind her and settling it in her lap, Alix scoffed. "Like you would know what it feels like to be owned."

  Sway arched his brow. "Don't I? You've never been around dorjanie. A male has no rights or powers except those granted to him by his wife or mother. You have far more freedom as a slave than I do
as a man."

  Alix shook her head, sympathetic pain coiling in her stomach. She couldn't imagine anyone having a worse life than a slave, but from what Devyn had told her, Sway really did have it hard. "How do you deal with it?"

  Sway laughed and tucked a braid behind his ear. "As a kid, I didn't even realize how much control my mother had over me. It wasn't until I started spending time with Devyn and his family that I realized his father had final say, not his mother."

  Alix shifted, pulling her knee up to rest her chin on it while she listened.

  "When we were fifteen, Devyn and Adron Kyrelle decided to join the HAWC. I wanted to join more than I have ever wanted anything, but only female dorjanie are allowed into the military."

  She glanced up at the pain his voice betrayed and saw the sadness in his eyes.

  He looked away. "That was the first time I realized how little control I had over my own life. Talk about feeling hopeless. Off they went to train and I was sent home on the next shuttle."

  He sighed and stared at the floor. "A year later Claria decided she wanted me as her husband."

  Alix looked up at him. "But you're happy with her?"

  He smiled, his strange eyes warm and mellow. "Now I am, but our first year was hell."

  "Why?" she asked with a frown. "Didn't you love her?"

  Sway nodded, his smile turning wistful. "More than life."

  "Then why—"

  "Why do you think?" Sway sat forward, his gaze capturing hers. "I had to stay with her parents and I couldn't do anything without her permission. I couldn't even be left alone. Every move I made was watched, noted, and reported to Claria. After six months, I couldn't take it anymore. I ran and would have kept on running had Devyn not found me."

  Alix smiled at Devyn's kindness. It was such a typical thing for him to search for a friend and help him. "He took you home?"

  "No. Devyn talked sense into me and after I decided to try it again, he went with me and offered guardianship."

  "He did what?" she asked, her eyes widening at his disclosure. "How could he do that while he was still in the HAWC?"

  "Well," Sway said with a smile, "he had to get permission from the High Command first, and after his father donated a little money to their cause, they didn't seem to mind." His smile widened. "It was really weird to be the only civilian around all the cadets, but I got a free medical education out of it and I didn't even have to study."

  Alix laughed.

  Sway reached out, took her hand, and held it in his, his eyes probing hers as if he searched her soul for something. "So you see, Alix, I do understand how you feel. I can help you, if you'll let me."

  Alix closed her eyes, her throat tightening. Devyn was the only person she'd ever trusted and look what had happened. Should she trust Sway? Then again, what did she have to lose? If he could help her, wasn't it worth the risk of disappointment? What did she really want?

  Opening her eyes, she frowned. "I'm not really sure what I want anymore. Part of me still wants Devyn, but I also want my freedom." She stared into his eyes and spoke the truth. "I don't want to be owned. I can't allow myself to be owned."

  Sway nodded and released her hand. "Devyn wouldn't keep you as a slave. He's got too much honor for that. Whether you two have a relationship or not, you'll get your freedom."

  "How?" she begged, needing an answer. "What is he, a mythical god in disguise, or a fey who grants wishes by flapping his ears?"

  Sway smiled. "It's not quite that dramatic. Devyn's the nephew of Emperor Calixei of the Trakerian Galaxies, and the godson of Zarina's father, who's the Kirovion Emperor. He will get you your freedom. If you had told him about this before we had traveled this far, he could have probably already freed you."

  Alix sat still, her body going numb. Could her freedom be that easy, that close? No. It was too simple. Nothing ever worked out that easily for her. Something would happen and she'd never get her freedom.

  "Why would Devyn help me now?" she asked with a sigh. "He wants my head."

  Sway frowned, confirming her suspicion. "Well, that's a harder problem. You never should have lied to him."

  Frustrated, Alix lifted her arms. "How was—"

  "I know," he said, putting his hand up to stop her angry flow of words. "I understand why you did it, but Devyn's not so easy to convince. He thinks you used him."

  A lump of guilt constricted her throat. She had used him, but not the way he thought. She'd never lied about anything other than her status. "I didn't mean to use him," she whispered.

  Sway nodded. He cupped her chin and forced her to meet his gaze. "Do you care for him?"

  Her heart pounded, warmth flooded her body, and she knew she loved Devyn Kell, but she didn't want to admit that to Sway or anyone else. Admitting it was the best way to lose him. Yet before she could stop herself, her mouth said, "Yes."

  "Do you want him?"

  The lump in her stomach tightened. "Yes."

  "And are you willing to fight for him?"

  Pain slashed through her soul. Was she?

  Before her mind could think, the answer came from her heart. Devyn meant more to her than anything, and she'd do whatever she must to make him believe in her again. "Yes, I'm willing to fight."

  He sat back. "Good, 'cause you're going to be up against the bitterest memories you can imagine."

  His seriousness sent a shiver down her spine. What memories? Were they the same ones that kept him up at night, saddened his gaze when he thought no one watched him? "What do you mean?"

  Sway chewed his nail and frowned as if debating what he ought to tell her. "How much has Devyn told you about his military career?"

  Shrugging, she glanced up at the ceiling. "Only that he was a physician and he was discharged for theft."

  Sway laughed. "Good old Dev, he always leaves out the best parts."

  Alix scratched her ear, more confused than ever. "So what happened? I can't imagine Devyn as a thief."

  Sway's eyes darkened. "Oh, he stole, all right, and I helped. We were taking military supplies and giving them to starving, sick civilians."

  "He felt guilty about being a piece-hacker?" she guessed.

  Sway cocked his head. "He told you about that?" he asked in disbelief.

  She nodded.

  "Incredible," he whispered breathlessly. "Normally he won't even talk about that with me."

  Alix wasn't interested in that at the moment. She needed to find out what had happened to Devyn. "So the HAWC caught you two while you were leaking supplies?"

  His face tensed. Alix held her breath, knowing this was what she had waited for.

  "No, we were betrayed by Devyn's lover."

  Her breath left her as if she'd been struck. Pain coiled through her at the thought of Devyn being with someone else. Part of her wanted to put her hands over her ears and block out the rest, but the other part of her knew she had to listen, to understand.

  Unaware of her feelings, Sway continued, "Onone pretended to share our concerns about the civilians. While Devyn broke codes and accessed files, she wrote down the alarm sequences, then went in after we left and stole classified information and weapons. When Devyn found out, she tried to kill him."

  Horror filled her, dulling her sight. Who could do such a thing to Devyn?

  "No," she breathed.

  "Oh, yeah," Sway said, nodding. "She shot him and in reflex, he returned her fire. Luckily his aim was better than hers."

  "He killed her?" she squeaked, remembering the scar on his chest, the one that barely missed the bottom half of his heart.

  Sway nodded. "And he hasn't been near a woman since. Not until you."

  A knot formed in her stomach. Everything fell into place and her heart sank. "And I lied to him," she whispered, all her good intentions dying. "He'll never forgive me."

  "Yes, he will. But it won't be easy."

  "Alix!"

  Both of them jumped at the shout over the link. Alix's heart pounded against her breast. "What in the uni
verse?" Getting up, she crossed the floor to the link and switched it on. "What?"

  "Get to the control room, now." The heated tone of Devyn's voice could have defrosted meat.

  "I think I'll go with you," Sway said, and she was more than grateful for his offer.

  By the time she reached the control room, her knees were knocking from fear. What had she done now? Her palms were so sweaty, she couldn't even access the door to the control room.