by Sadie Carter
Forcing herself to stand her ground, she sniffed. “Hard to believe you would ever find a girlfriend with an attitude like that.”
“Girlfriend?”
“Yeah, you know, a woman you’re in a relationship with.” The thought of him with another woman shouldn’t have sent a shard of jealousy through her.
“No other. Just mate.”
Fascinated, she set the tray down on the floor then sat beside him. His breath heaved out of him in a rush, the tension in his body appearing to ease.
“So are you saying you’ve never had sex?” She hadn’t, but that wasn’t surprising. Who did she have to sleep with? Steele or Deacon or ick, Mitch?
Yeah, not happening.
“No. Yes.” He closed his eyes once more. When he opened them this time, they were more brown than red. “I have had relations. I have lived for nearly a hundred years.” Yeah, that would be a long time to go without sex. “But no relationship.”
“So you’ve slept around but never committed. Wow, you’re a catch, huh?” No girlfriend for nearly a hundred years? “Sounds kind of lonely, though. Never having a proper relationship.”
He gave her a menacing look. “Why are you still here? I said leave.”
“You didn’t want me to leave before. In fact, you wanted me to get closer to you.” Why the hell had she reminded him of that?
“I lied. I do not want you.”
A shard of pain pierced her insides. “Like you ever had a chance.” She hoped he didn’t hear that hint of hurt in her voice. It was better this way.
“I’ve got some food for you,” she said briskly. Picking up the plate of sandwiches, she stared down at him in dismay. “Only you can’t really eat.”
Crap. She hadn’t thought that one out.
She couldn’t undo the hover cuffs. Even if she wanted to, she didn’t have the code. His arms were secured above his head so he couldn’t move them.
She cleared her throat awkwardly. “Just my luck, I’m going to have to feed you.” This was surely above the call of duty. But better her than Mitch; he’d probably take sadistic pleasure out of stuffing Darac to the point of choking.
He was fun like that.
“All right, I’ll hold the sandwich up to your mouth, and you take a bite.”
“This makes you uncomfortable.” His eyes were far too knowing as he studied her.
“No, it doesn’t. Why should it? You’re a prisoner; we have to feed you. No use to us dead, are you?”
“But you do not wish to get close to me. Is it because you fear me?” he asked.
That should be the reason. He was even crazier than Zuma. But it wasn’t a physical fear that held her paralyzed. Feeding him seemed almost too intimate.
Suck it up, Willa. Worrying over it ain’t going to get the job done.
Picking up the sandwich, she held it over his mouth. He took a bite, frowning slightly.
“What is that taste?”
“Um, it’s turtlefish and lemon paste. Why? Doesn’t it taste good?”
“You made this?”
“Uh-huh. Rye ordered Mitch to feed you, but he’s a dickhead. So I thought I better bring you some lunch. Big guy like you needs to eat a lot, I’m betting.” And it probably wasn’t good for his temper for him to be hungry.
“It is delicious.” With a nod, she fed him some more. “I can eat no more. Why are you here alone again? Did you not remember what I told you?”
“Are all Zerconian males this annoying? Or is just a special talent you have? You should be thankful I’m here. Someone else would probably ram that sandwich down your throat just to get you to shut up. Which is exactly what Mitch would have done, except he obviously decided to starve you instead. He was supposed to feed you. Do you have family?”
Sadness filled his face. “None left. Our people are at risk of extinction. Fewer children are being born. Very few have been female. We have a long lifespan, but many of our males lose their life to the mating madness. As my brother did.”
“Your brother?”
His gaze moved to hers, and the pain in his eyes grabbed her heart. Reaching out, she touched his chest lightly. He drew in a deep breath but otherwise didn’t move. As though he were scared of frightening her.
“He was twenty years older than me. I was a surprise to my parents. Normally, one child is all that a Zerconian couple can hope for. So they were shocked when my mother fell pregnant with me. A few years ago, I sensed that Duran, my brother, was growing closer to the edge. His temper was short when he had always been a patient man. He was a healer. Everyone liked him.”
“What happened?” she whispered, not certain she wanted to know.
“One day, he just left. I should have known something was going on. I saw him the night before, and he seemed almost melancholy. He snapped at someone earlier that week. He nearly hit a younger male working with him. I could tell he was feeling guilty, but I did not think he was so far gone or I, well, I know not what I would have done.”
“Where did he disappear to?”
“I do not know. He simply disappeared and never returned. I searched for him, but never found him.”
Wow, that had to be hard. She couldn’t imagine one of her brothers disappearing. It would create a hole inside her that would never be filled.
“I’m sorry about your brother.”
“I did the same thing,” he said suddenly.
“What?”
“I left without saying goodbye to anyone. I should not have done that. I remember now how much pain I felt when Duran did the same to me.”
“What about your parents?” she asked.
“They died soon after Duran. But I have friends who were worried about me. They contacted me as I was about to shut off coms. I did not have the strength to say goodbye in person. That shames me.”
“You thought they might convince you to stay?”
He shook his head. “It was time. I had to go. I could not risk harming them.”
“So they believe you’re dead? They’re going to freak when they find out you’re alive.”
“Freak?”
“Be really happy.”
“Perhaps.” There was doubt on his face.
She frowned. “You don’t think they’ll be happy?”
“They will see me as a danger to eliminate.”
“They’d kill you?” They couldn’t ransom him back, not if his own people were going to kill him. “But you seem fine right now.”
“Looks can be deceiving. You can leave now. I must rest.” He closed his eyes. Well, she guessed she was dismissed.
She stood. “I was leaving anyway. I’ve got things to do.”
“Willa?”
“Yeah?”
“These hover cuffs will not hold me if the madness takes me over.”
She frowned. “They should. Kyle tested them before we left. He’s an inventor. It was Kyle’s invention that let us sneak past the Coizil warship.”
“What?” His gaze snapped to hers.
Crap. She hadn’t actually meant to say that.
“Kyle invented a cloaking device that disguises our ship. There are Coizil warships surrounding Lilan and we needed some way of sneaking past them. It actually worked. Kind of surprising. He hasn’t even really tested it.”
“Do you say that this ship snuck past Coizil warships to land on Lilan?” His voice rose at the end.
“Yes. We flew right underneath one and the Lilans opened their shield for a few seconds so we could sneak past before the Coizils knew anything was going on. Of course we’ve got to get safely past them again when we leave.”
“If this cloaking device failed the Coizils would have killed you.”
Unease filled her stomach, but she hid it behind a wall of attitude. She crossed her arms over her chest. “Well said, Captain Obvious.”
“Why would you wish to go to Lilan?”
“Ahh, I think I’ve said enough.”
He muttered something to himself in Zerconian.
“Hey, beast man, it’s rude to talk about someone when they can’t understand you.”
He eyed her closely. “You do not wish to know what I say. I fear I have vastly underestimated the intelligence of your leader.”
“Say what you really think. Don’t hold back.”
“I will not. Go. I wish to be alone.”
She turned and strode out of the room, shutting the door behind her. How the hell had that deteriorated so quickly?
“Been having fun with the prisoner?”
She spun to find Mitch standing behind her. The snivelling asshole shouldn’t be part of this crew. He was sneaky and conniving. Ever since he’d made a pass at her and she’d turned him down, he’d been a complete and utter bastard to her. Oh, never when one of her brothers were around and he never went far enough to make her tell Rye—not that she would anyway; she could fight her own battles.
Steele stood beside him, glowering at her. She was a hit with all the men in her life right now.
“Really, Mitch, you’ve got to stop following me around, I might start to think that you like me.”
His eyes flared at her taunt and he took a step forward, his hands clenching. “I am not following you around, you mean nothing to me, bitch.”
“Mitch,” Steele said in a low, warning voice.
Willa turned to Steele. While he could be a bossy, overbearing jerk, he’d never made a pass at her or treated her like she was a piece of meat.
“You hanging around with garbage now, Steele?” she asked. “I thought better of you than that.”
“We’re not hanging out together.” Steele straightened as his com beeped. “I’ve got to go. Rye and the others are headed back and I need to meet them. The two of you should get to your stations.”
As he left, she turned to Mitch just as he swung his fist towards her.
Barely managing to duck in time, she threw her arm up to deflect his. Pain reverberated down her arm, making her grit her teeth. She took a step back, taking a defensive stance.
“You want a piece of me, Mitch?” She curled her fingers at him, ignoring the way her whole arm throbbed. Willa knew she was pushing him into acting, but this had been a long time coming.
Time to face this once and for all.
“Bitch, you deserve to be smacked down,” Mitch spat out, his face red and blotchy. He might be considered attractive—before he opened his mouth and you discovered what an utter jerk he was.
His gaze was lit with glee. He really thought he could take her. He might be larger but she was faster. And smarter.
“I don’t care who your brothers are. You’re just a stupid cunt who doesn’t have the brains to know when she isn’t wanted.”
“Yeah? Come on then, teach me a lesson.”
Mitch roared as he swung a punch. She dodged to the side.
Tire them out then attack.
Rye’s words ran through her head and she dodged another fist.
“Come on, is that all you’ve got,” she taunted. “I could do this all day.”
“You think you’re so wonderful,” Mitch sneered. “Just because your brother is the boss. But you’re just like every other cunt, only good for one thing.”
She saw red. All of Rye’s advice and her training flew out of her head at Mitch’s words. She dived at him, throwing them both to the ground. She got in a good smack to his nose that made a sickening crunching sound. He flipped them so he was on top, pressing down on her, making it hard to breathe. She bucked, trying to dislodge him.
His fist rose and she knew she was in a shitload of trouble.
“Mitch!” Steele roared. When had he come back? Before Steele could reach them a huge roar rattled through the corridor. There was the sound of something creaking.
It couldn’t be. Impossible. She stared over Mitch’s shoulder, shocked as Darac bore down on them. Red filled his gaze. The fury on his face was so terrifying that she froze for a moment.
“Run!” she screamed at Mitch. Well, that was a shocker. She’d never envisioned a situation where she would want to protect him.
“What?” he asked dumbly, then looked behind him just as Darac reached him, plucking him up into the air and tossing him like a ball towards Steele, who had to get out of the way or risk getting bowled over.
It was terrifying how easily he tossed Mitch about, like he weighed nothing.
She scrambled to her feet, putting herself between Darac and Mitch.
“Willa, get out of the way,” Steele ordered calmly.
She glanced behind her to find Steele had his blaster raised and pointed right at her.
Well, not her.
Darac.
And she didn’t blame Steele a bit. Right now, the monster in the room was Darac. And she needed to convince Steele not to kill him.
“Don’t fire.”
“Are you crazy? He just tossed Mitch like a ball.”
“But he’s no use to us dead, right? And Mitch will survive.” Maybe. She didn’t dare check if he was still breathing. “Think about the ransom.”
She wouldn’t tell him what Darac had told her earlier. That he might be worthless to them. That could very well sign his death warrant, especially if he kept throwing people around like dolls, let alone breaking out of hover cuffs and locked rooms. How the hell had he done that?
Steele shook his head. “We can’t collect our share of the pot if we’re dead.” He raised his blaster higher. “You’re not tall enough to protect his head.”
“And what if you miss? You’ll make things worse. Just wait.”
She turned back to Darac who had his gaze trained on Mitch, ignoring them both.
“Umm, Darac, you in there? Darac?”
“Willa, move,” Steele insisted.
Darac’s gaze moved to the other man and he let out a warning rumble.
“Steele, shut up and let me try to calm him down.” Men. They never knew when to be quiet.
Mitch groaned and Darac took a step towards him. Willa held her arms out straight from her body, as if she could hold him back if he decided to attack.
“Listen, Darac, he’s down. He’s not getting back up. But I can’t let you hurt him anymore.”
A roar erupted from Darac that literally shook the floor beneath them.
She brushed a hand back and forth in front of her face. “You know; you might want to take a breath mint or something.” He took another menacing step forward. Okay, obviously trying to lighten things up was not working. “Darac, you need to calm down.”
“He. Hurt. You.” His voice was a low rumble, but at least he was talking. That had to be a good sign.
“That’s the problem? How did you know?”
“Heard.”
He’d heard? How could he possibly have heard anything? She glanced up and spotted an air grate. Their voices must have travelled through to the storage room where Darac had been confined.
“I don’t know what you heard but I had things under control.” Liar, liar pants on fire.
“He. Hurt. You.”
Shit, this was not going well.
Voices and footfalls running towards them distracted her, and Darac lunged forward, grabbing Mitch, shoving him against the wall, one arm across his throat.
“God damn it. Let him go!” She tugged at Darac’s arm, praying that he hadn’t completely lost it, because it would only take one hit from those huge hands to seriously harm her. If he had completely lost the plot and didn’t recognize her, he could well kill her.
It would kind of suck to die trying to save Mitch.
“Get away from him, Willa. Now,” Rye commanded.
She glanced over her shoulder at Rye. It went against the grain to disobey him. He’d raised her. He was more father than brother. And he was the boss.
But if she stepped away, she knew they would kill Darac. She didn’t question why she needed to save him, it made no sense. She wanted nothing to do with him. She didn’t even know him. And she had a feeling he was going to c
ause a whole heap of problems in her life. Problems that she really didn’t need.
But she couldn’t let them kill him.
“Willa. Now.” There was no emotion in Rye’s voice.
“Rye, I can get through to him.”
“Move. Now. I mean it.”
Zuma stood beside Rye, his blaster drawn. He took a few steps to the right to get a clearer line of sight.
“Darac, let go of him or they’ll kill you.” He didn’t move. Damn it. She had mere seconds to get him to move. “If they shoot you they could hit me.” It was a long shot, but her last chance.
Amazingly, he let his arm drop. His eyes remained red as he took two steps back. Mitch collapsed on the ground. Darac placed his arm around her, pulling her close. A shiver of delight raced through her body.
So not the time, Willa.
Quickly, Nolan stepped in to help Mitch. The others kept their blasters aimed at Darac.
“Step away from him, Willa,” Rye ordered.
“He wasn’t in his right mind, Rye. We need him alive to get that ransom.”
“Ain’t gonna be a ransom if he kills us all,” Zuma drawled, but his gaze was hard as he watched Darac.
“The only reason Darac went all crazy was because Mitch attacked me.”
“What?” Zuma glanced over to where Nolan crouched over Mitch.
“Steele?” Rye asked.
“When I arrived, Mitch was on top of Willa, his fist raised. Then he,” Steele nodded at Darac, “split that door in two and attacked Mitch. He’s out of control and obviously we don’t have anything that can secure him.”
“He’s fine now, though.” She glanced up at Darac who stood still. But it was the stillness of a predator waiting for its prey to move so he could pounce. Yeah, he definitely was not fine.
“How could he know Mitch was attacking you?” Zuma asked.
“I think sound travelled through the grate,” she explained, pointing upwards.
“Why isn’t he attacking now?” Deacon asked.
“Seems to me he’s just waiting to pounce,” Steele drawled.
Crap, so Darac’s stillness wasn’t fooling anyone. She could tell that Steele was waiting for an excuse to take Darac out.
Deacon moved back slowly. Where was he going? Did he think to sneak around the other side? Darac stiffened, obviously seeing the other man move. With a roar, he swung her up into his arms. Then he took off down the corridor, with her cradled like a babe against his chest.
