The League 3: Paradise City

by Sherrilyn Kenyon

  She wiped the single tear that slid down his cheek, his stubble gently scraping her fingertips. "It wasn't your fault. Irn would have probably killed both you and Sway anyway."

  His face contorted by rage, Devyn pulled at the gyve on his wrist so hard, Alix feared he'd sever his own hand. He turned to face her, his gaze accusatory and hate-filled. "If you had told me the truth about Irn and you from the beginning, none of this would have happened!"

  "What?" she breathed, unable to believe what he had said.

  "Don't look so shocked," he snarled. "Had I handed you over to Irn as I should have, Sway would still be alive."

  Pain and guilt consumed her. "It's not my fault!"

  "Then whose is it? Irn's after you, not me."

  Alix clamped her jaw closed to bite back the words she ached to release. He was grieving. Just as her mother had done after her father had sold her brother.

  Her mother had said horrible things to her, had blamed her for being born ugly and being worthless. Granted her mother had always preferred Piran to her, but it had still cut through Alix that her mother had blamed her for Piran's loss. That her mother would have grieved less over her being sold.

  Tears gathered in her eyes, but she shook them away, refusing to feel sorry for herself. Now Devyn blamed her for Sway. Maybe he was right. She should have been honest with him from the beginning. Had she only known what her lie would do, she would never have approached Devyn that fateful day.

  She looked down at her herself, her guilt gnawing at her conscience. Suddenly, she realized what she wore. Her eyes widening, horror engulfed her. She pulled at the hem of the T-shirt, trying to stretch it farther down over her stomach, at least enough to cover her underwear. Oh, it was no use!

  In the heat of battle and fighting with Devyn, she had completely forgotten to dress. Even so, how could she have forgotten something so important? How could it have taken her so long to notice? Her cheeks flaming, she looked up at Devyn's naked back.

  She cleared her throat, wondering how to broach this matter. "Uh, Captain?"

  "What?" he snarled.

  She bit her bottom lip, apprehensive over disclosing this. "Didn't you say the planet we're headed for was founded by a religious sect?"

  "Yeah, why?"

  She swallowed, a bad feeling settling in her stomach. "And it's still very religious?"

  He looked at her, his features disgusted, or highly irritated. "What are you getting at?"

  She clutched at the neck of her T-shirt and braced herself. "How do they feel about nudity?"

  "How do they . . ." His voice trailed off. Devyn looked down at himself, then at her. "Mekra tionora frikalo."

  Alix didn't recognize the words, but the tone said they were in trouble. "I take it they don't care for it."

  "If they cared any less, they'd be Toryani."

  Her eyes widened. Toryani were renowned for their strict moral and dress codes that demanded no amount of flesh ever be exposed other than their faces. And neither male nor female could wear any piece of clothing that in any way displayed the lines or curves of their bodies.

  Her stomach knotted and she wanted a hole to crawl into. "What are we going to do?"

  Ignoring her question, Devyn set the controls on autopilot, then tried to move past her. The gyve jerked, wrenching the flesh of her wrist. Alix hissed from the pain.

  "Careful," she warned.

  "Sorry," Devyn said to her utmost shock before moving more slowly, taking care not to hurt her again.

  He opened a small panel just beside the hatch and pulled out a large, dark gray backpack, which he opened and dug around in. Finally, he produced a thin blanket, a black pair of pants, and a shirt.

  Alix frowned as he dropped the musty-smelling clothes in her lap. "How am I supposed to put these on with my hand secured to you?"

  Devyn glared at her, but his anger faltered as he scanned her scantily clad body. Just the sight of her drove his thoughts in one direction—south. No wonder the Toryani and Placidians deplored exposed flesh. It did have a way of distracting people.

  "Do the best you can," he said, sitting down next to her with the blanket.

  Alix sighed and began pulling on the pants, his arm brushing up against parts of her he'd rather not have touched in his current mood.

  Strange how his anger gave way to other thoughts, especially when she reached around to adjust the waist, leaving his hand dangling over her buttocks, brushing against her soft, supple skin, and it took all his control not to remove her freshly donned pants.

  Devyn's body burned. His mouth watered and he longed to run his lips over every inch of her and taste her smooth, sweet flesh.

  "Why are these inside an escape pod?" she asked as she finally finished buttoning her pants and easing some of his discomfort.

  He cleared his throat and lowered his gaze to the blanket. "There's a couple of days' worth of supplies kept in here, including a change of clothes and two blankets, just in case of an emergency like the one we're in."

  She nodded and reached for the shirt.

  Devyn tried to ignore the way his hand brushed up against her breasts while she struggled into the top. His breathing labored, he swore to keep his hand still. But it wasn't easy and his body wasn't happy.

  Her face flushed by frustration, she looked up at him, her eyes large and pleading. "I can't get my left arm in."

  She reminded him of a little kid trying to tie her shoes for the first time. Hiding the smile that threatened to break, he draped the material over her shoulder.

  She struggled with it for several minutes before heaving a disgusted sigh. "This is never going to work."

  Devyn studied the way her entire left side stood exposed. He attempted to wrap the sleeve around her arm, but still too much flesh showed. "All right, I'll slit the seams and we'll sew you into it."

  Happiness lit her face. "You've got a needle and thread?"

  "Yeah," he said, digging in the backpack until he found the small sewing kit. He handed it to her. "But you'd better play seamstress."

  She cocked her brow and looked as if she wanted to give him a lecture.

  "It's not sexist. I'm right-handed," he said, holding their gyved hands up to remind her which hand was bound to her, "and I really don't think you want me that close to your body using a needle with my left hand, especially since I'm not handy with a needle to begin with."

  "Fine," she said with a small smile. "Split the seam."

  Which he attempted, but he quickly learned he couldn't do that left-handed either. He handed the knife to Alix, realizing as he did so just how much he was going to need her until they found a way to separate themselves. Great, just great.

  "Do you think Irn will follow us?" she asked, her voice shaking as she severed the last seam.

  "Probably." Devyn checked their coordinates and pushed his emotions out of the way until he had more time to deal with them. All except his grief. The loss of his best friend weighed on him like the thousand-ton Rock of Kiravar.

  Alix reached to scratch her cheek, but stopped as she tugged against the gyve. "Sorry," she said, scratching with her right hand instead. "This really is a nuisance."

  Devyn gave a short, sad laugh. "Leave it to Sway. He always did have a twisted sense of humor." Bitterness closed his throat. He'd sell his own worthless soul to have his friend back, to have Sway tell him one more time what a spoiled fool he was.

  Alix fingered the gyve, and he sensed her sadness. He started to reach for her, but decided it wouldn't be a good idea.

  "Sway told me how the two of you went through medical training together."

  Devyn smiled at the memory, which tightened the lump in his chest. "Yeah, it took us almost a month to get HAWC approval. From that point on, I was joined to him pretty much the way I'm gyved to you."

  The hurt look on her face tugged at his breast. "But you enjoyed yourself a lot more with him, I'm sure."

  Devyn opened his mouth to speak, then shut it. Did he? Though he l
oved Sway like a brother, the dorjani had always had a way of getting under his skin like no other person. Over the years, there had been plenty of times when he had wanted to revoke his oath and send Sway home.

  Now he wished he had. At least Sway would have been safe. Miserable, but safe.

  He closed his eyes and let the pain wash over him, stealing his breath, breaking his heart. He had led his friend straight to death. No matter which way he thought it over, or how much he wanted to blame Alix or anyone else, he knew the full blame rested on him alone.

  Looking at Alix, he studied her frown and the tiny dimple in her cheek as she threaded the needle, then began her awkward, uneven stitches.

  The conversation seemed to make her uncomfortable, but he felt her desire to cheer him up and that alone went a long way in making him feel better.

  Though why she would want to help him, he couldn't imagine. These last few days he'd been far from kind to her.

  She looked up and he glanced away, ashamed she had caught him staring at her like a worshiping fool. "I'm surprised the HAWC let you have Sway along. He said dorjani males weren't allowed in the military."

  Devyn slit a hole in the blanket's center, inadvertently jerking the gyve.

  Alix hissed as she stuck her finger.

  Frowning, Devyn pulled her hand to him and examined the tiny drop of blood on her fingertip. That small touch sent an electrical current through him that went straight to his loins and set fire to his blood.

  He glanced up and caught the desire in her eyes, and for a moment he stood immobilized by it.

  Never in his life had anyone made him feel like she did. Even angry, even sad, all he wanted was for her to hold him, to pull him into her arms and make him forget everything, to return him to that wonderful, contented feeling he'd had the day they'd made love.

  Love me, Alix, his mind, heart, and soul begged. Say the words aloud, you damn fool. He opened his mouth to comply, but his throat tightened.

  She didn't love him. She might desire him, but that was all, and that just wasn't enough for him. He needed more than a physical lover. He needed a woman he could trust, a woman he knew would be there fifty years from now.

  Closing his eyes, he let go of her finger and turned away. He took a deep breath and returned to their conversation, ignoring the disappointed look on her face as she returned to her sewing.

  Forcing himself to be still, he watched her hands weave the needle through the fabric. "Sway was lucky," he said, then paused to clear his throat and steady his voice. "I couldn't pass the physical to become an assassin, like I wanted. Since doctors don't see much front-line activity, the High Command decided it wouldn't hurt to have Sway tag along."

  She knotted the thread, then bit it, her white teeth flashing in the dim light. Devyn's groin tightened. Too easily, he remembered those teeth nibbling his flesh.

  She put the sewing kit away. "You wanted to be an assassin?"

  Devyn smiled at the memory and fought his hormones. "Yeah. My father's best friend was a HAWC assassin."

  She lifted a shocked brow. "Really?"

  He nodded. "Sway, Adron, and I grew up listening to my uncle tell us stories of his exploits. Incredible stories about how he flew missions and returned as the sole survivor. Of how he could slip into a room, execute his mission, and leave so quickly that not even a monitor could trace him."

  Her gaze returned to his and once more he had to squelch the need to kiss her.

  "So you wanted to follow in his infamous footsteps?" she asked, her nose wrinkling in a most adorable way.

  Devyn nodded. "Adron passed the physical and I—well, my hypoglycemia kept me out."

  Her hand shifted beside his, jiggling the metal chain. "Were you close to Adron?"

  He lifted a curious brow at her question.

  "I've heard you and Sway talk about him before."

  "Oh," Devyn said, wondering what she'd overheard them say. "Yeah, the three of us were very close. Adron and I were born two days apart and Sway was born a month later. Growing up, the three of us got into everything together."

  Alix smiled. She'd give anything to know that type of camaraderie or belonging. Her only friend had been a small stuffed dog she'd found sitting on a dumpster one day when she went to pull her father out of a tavern on Kildaria. "What happened to Adron?"

  Devyn's eyes darkened, his mood turning black. "Six years ago, his partner botched a mission and killed the wrong target. The victim's father retaliated by tearing Adron's partner apart. He wanted to kill Adron, too, but Adron wasn't home. So instead, he killed Adron's pregnant wife."

  "Oh, my God," she breathed, unable to believe anyone could do something so horrible.

  Anger burned in Devyn's gaze before he looked away from her, and Alix realized how much the matter still bothered him. "True to his upbringing and training, Adron went after the man, and he cut Adron apart, then dumped his body outside HAWC headquarters."

  Her breath caught in her throat as her stomach heaved. No wonder Devyn looked so sad. Good Lord, he'd lost both his best friends to murder. "What an awful way to die."

  "He didn't die," Devyn said, his gaze snapping back to hers. "I've never understood how he survived, but he did."

  She shook her head, unable to believe anyone could survive something so horrible, so brutal. "Where's he now?"

  "Holed up on his father's private planet. He survived the attack, but it left him crippled, and his wife's death left him insane. I tried to see him once not long after he'd been released from the hospital, but he lunged for my throat and swore he'd kill me."

  "He what?"

  "He said he never wanted to see me again and that if he did, I wouldn't live to regret it."

  Her mouth dropped in stunned disbelief. "Why?"

  He looked down and studied their hands. "I have no idea. I guess he blames me for not helping him go after her killer, but I was stationed on a battlefield fifteen light years away when it happened."

  She reached out and touched him, brushing his hair out of his eyes, sliding her hand down his prickly cheek.

  He looked up and the grief she saw on his face tore at her heart. "I guess Sway's better off dead than becoming what Adron is," he whispered. "I never thought I'd ever see our triad broken up, especially like this. God, how I miss them."

  Alix pulled him closer. Just as she opened her mouth to kiss him, a signal beeped on the panel. He jerked away so quickly she felt like an idiot.

  "We're nearing Placidity."

  Alix held her breath while Devyn landed the pod, her arm constantly jerked and pulled as he struggled with the controls. Though the pod bucked all throughout the atmospheric entry, Devyn managed a soft landing beside a picturesque lake.

  "How beautiful," she said breathlessly, staring out the window at the greenery around her.

  It appeared to be late afternoon, and a gentle breeze blew through the tall trees surrounding the lake. She'd spent the whole of her life traveling from one space station or landing bay to another, and never once had she seen anything like the countryside around them. She could spend eternity just looking at it.

  Devyn joined her at the window and snorted. "Yeah, it looks like a wonderful place to die," he said, retrieving the backpack that held the second blanket, food, and other supplies.

  Alix frowned. How could he say such a thing? She punched him in the arm. "Just my luck. I always wanted to be gyved to a pessimist."

  Tugging his blanket on as a makeshift poncho, he led her out of the craft, pulling and snatching her arm as he went.

  Once they were safely outside, she scanned the woods surrounding the lake and listened to the beautiful bird songs and noises the strange animals made. She smiled, inhaling the fresh, incredible air. This was the type of place she wished she'd grown up in. She could definitely settle on a planet like this.

  She looked at Devyn, who had his left hand up to block the glare of the sun as he, too, scanned the area around them.

  "Is there civilization any
where nearby?" she asked.

  He nodded. "According to the computer, there should be a city just past these trees. Maybe a three or four hour hike."

  "City, huh?" she asked, skeptical over the readout. "I don't see any buildings."

  Devyn lowered his hand and tossed the backpack over his left shoulder. "The Energumen never build over two stories. They're afraid anything taller will offend God."

  "Interesting," she mumbled, hoping the residents wouldn't take too much offense over her dress. Though her body was covered, the stitches on the side of her shirt left a lot to be desired. It did cover her, in most places anyway.