by Anna Hackett
“Let’s find the exit,” Sam said. “I’ve heard rumors that there’s an emergency exit in here.”
Galen looked at the workers. “Where is the emergency exit?”
No one moved or said anything.
“Please.” Sam’s tone was softer. “Please tell us where it is.”
Again, no one spoke, but Galen saw a young boy—a thin, scrawny teen with soot on his cheeks—move a little toward a far corner.
Galen instantly saw the wooden trapdoor set into the floor. From what he knew of Zaabha, it would lead to a metal rope ladder that could be lowered toward the ground.
All of a sudden, sirens blared, cutting through the air. Galen stiffened. Drak. Their escape had been discovered.
“Quick,” Sam said. “We need to hurry.”
Together, they strode toward the trapdoor. Sam reached down and yanked it open. Below, he saw a tunnel leading downward, with a ladder attached to one side.
Sam smiled. “Great, let’s—”
There was a sudden clank of metal, and Sam leaped back with a hiss. She slammed into Galen and he caught her. A solid-metal door slammed closed over the top of the ladder, blocking the exit.
“No!” She dropped to her knees, yanking at the steel plate.
Galen could already tell it was too thick and heavy to move. “They’ve gone into lockdown.”
Sam stood, looking out the barred windows lining the engine room. He followed her gaze. The desert lay far, far below.
Sam looked at him. “If we can’t lower a ladder to the ground, then we’ll have to lower Zaabha.”
He blinked. “What?”
She swiveled. “First we need to bar the doors.” She strode back to the large doors. She looked around and then grabbed some long metal tools that were clearly used for stoking the fires. Galen followed and grabbed some more tools. Together, they slid them through the handles.
Then Sam turned toward the closest worker. “How do you shut them off?” She gestured at the ovens powering the engines.
The older worker just stared at her. “You’re the Champion of Zaabha.”
“Yes. And I’m planning on destroying Zaabha and freeing everybody.”
The worker looked around at the others with wild eyes.
“Impossible,” an old woman bit out.
Sam pointed to Galen. “See him? That’s Imperator Galen of the House of Galen. He and I are going to do it together.”
A young woman stepped forward, her long hair tangled over her face. “I’ll show you.” She moved to the nearest oven, fiddling with some metal valves on the side. “If you shut off these valves, it snuffs out the fires.”
“Thank you,” Sam said.
Galen pushed off the wall and together, he and Sam moved to the closest ovens. He followed the woman’s instructions, ignoring how hot the metal was, and closed the valve. Across from him, Sam did the same.
They watched the fire die down inside, then eventually go out.
Sam looked at him, and they shared a brief smile. They continued to move down the line of ovens, shutting them down.
“You’ll kill us all if you crash the platform,” a woman yelled.
“We aren’t going to shut them all off,” Galen said. “We just want to lower the platform enough for us to get off.”
“Then you’ll abandon us,” someone else said.
Sam spun, her hands on her hips. “We can’t fight Thraxians alone.”
Galen stepped up beside her, his arm brushing against hers. “We need an army. We will be back.”
“I promise,” Sam said, “we will return for you.”
Suddenly, the platform started to tilt beneath their feet.
Sam bumped into Galen, and he wrapped an arm around her. As he held her close, he realized she had curves that he hadn’t expected—lush breasts, round hips, and a generous ass. A hidden softness that he hadn’t guessed at.
The platform tilted farther and people screamed. Galen and Sam went sliding, and hit one of the barred windows.
“Galen, look,” she said.
He stared outside at the huge sand dunes below. They were getting closer, but the platform was still too high up in the air for them to jump.
Suddenly, a heavy pounding sounded on the engine room doors.
“Shit!” Sam moved, crawling up the floor to stare at the doors.
There was more banging from the outside, and the doors vibrated. The metal tools they’d used to bar the doors held. For now.
But the banging increased, and they both watched as the metal doors started bending inward.
“Drak,” Galen ground out.
“Suggestions?”
“We need to get off this platform,” he said.
They both made their way back toward the windows. Most of the workers were huddled together now, fighting to keep their balance on the tilted platform.
At the window, Galen felt another wave of nauseating pain. He’d done a pretty good job of keeping it at bay, but right now, he felt like his insides were on fire.
Sucking in a breath, he grabbed the metal bars of the windows and heaved. He heaved again, and the bars began to bend. He kept working on them, listening to the banging at the doors and feeling sweat slide into his eye.
“Keep going, Galen.” Sam pressed against his back, her hands coming around him to grip the bars beside him. She added her strength to his.
He heaved again.
“That’s enough,” she said.
Galen studied the gap and knew it would be a tight fit, but it would do. Sam climbed through the gap and out onto the ledge outside. He followed, shoving his shoulders through the opening.
The wind tore at their clothes, and a wave of dizziness washed over Galen.
Sam gripped his arm. “Hey, boss-man, stay with me.”
He gritted his teeth. He’d vowed to get her out of there, and if there was one thing Galen was good at, it was keeping his vows.
Except your one to the royal family and your fellow royal guards.
Old guilt bit at him. Now certainly wasn’t the time to ponder past failures. The platform tilted more, and Galen watched as several items and people spilled over the side from the arena above. A Srinar guard fell past, screaming, arms waving. A shower of sand poured over the edge.
Then came a smashing sound from inside the engine room.
Galen stiffened. The Thraxians had broken through the door.
Sam grabbed Galen’s hand, fingers twining with his. “It’s now or never. We jump, or we go back into a cell.”
He hissed out a breath. The ground was still too far away. They’d break every bone in their bodies.
Inside, the deep, guttural shouts of the Thraxians added to the roar and groan of the yawing ship. He glanced over, and through the bars, he saw the Thraxian guards thundering in their direction.
“We are getting out of here,” Sam said.
She yanked on his hand and leaped off the platform, pulling him with her.
With a curse, Galen followed her.
They were falling.
The wind whipped into Sam’s eyes. Dios, they were falling fast.
The ground rushed up at them, and she knew this was going to hurt. Her hand was torn from Galen’s.
She hit the dune hard and tasted sand in her mouth. She groaned, pain rocketing through her. Pulling in a breath, she rolled over. She was pretty sure she’d bruised a rib or two.
“Galen,” she croaked.
A few meters away, she saw him lying facedown in the sand. He groaned.
With a gut-deep effort, she crawled over to him, grabbing him. He rolled over and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her to his chest. Together, they lay there, trying to pull themselves together.
A shadow passed over them and they both looked up.
Sam sucked in a breath. The Zaabha platform flew directly overhead. She watched as it slowly righted itself, and kept going.
“It’s not stopping.” Dios mío. She squeezed her eyes closed and g
ripped Galen. “It’s gone.”
She was free.
For the first time in months, she wasn’t trapped at Zaabha. She wasn’t on the arena sand, forced to fight to the death.
Beneath her, the desert sand was hot, and above her, Carthago’s dual suns were bright in the sky. And beside her, Galen was a hard, steady presence.
She dragged in a deep breath, then another. The air was fresh. There was no stink of blood, feces, or rot.
“We did it.” She sat up, ignoring her aches, and looked down at him.
That’s when his hand fell away from her.
“Galen?” Her pulse spiked. His eye was closed. She pressed a palm to his chest and realized it wasn’t moving. He wasn’t breathing. “No. Galen!”
Sam scrambled up on her knees beside him. She’d been trained in advanced first aid and she quickly tilted his head back. She pressed her hands to his chest and pumped. Then she leaned over, closing her mouth over his, and breathed.
“Come on. Everyone says you’re tough.” She worked through the chest compressions, then breathed into him again. “Everyone talks about Imperator Galen in hushed voices. They are half afraid of you, or half in awe of you.”
She kept up the pumps followed by the breaths.
“Breathe, damn you.” Tears burned in her eyes as she looked at him. He was such an amazing specimen of man, and she knew he’d already suffered so much. He’d survived the destruction of his planet, and he hadn’t just survived on Carthago, he’d thrived here. “Don’t leave me alone, boss-man.”
Suddenly, he heaved in a breath and his eye opened.
Sam slumped forward. “Thank God.” She cupped his cheeks. “You are not dying on me.”
“Not today.” His voice sounded like gravel.
She pressed her forehead to his and just breathed. “You aren’t allowed to scare me like that.”
“Sam?”
She met his gaze.
“Thank you,” he murmured.
She nodded and they stayed there while he recovered.
“We need shelter.” He cupped the back of her head and curled up to sit. He looked around them, a muscle ticking in his jaw.
She followed his gaze. Sand, as far as the eye could see. Her gut curdled, her earlier elation evaporating away. They needed shelter and water, or they’d die out here. And all that effort to escape would have been for nothing.
“Come on.” It took her a while, but she helped him to his feet. He was a little unsteady at first, but she watched his set face as he found his balance.
Almost dying couldn’t stop Imperator Galen.
“Which direction?” she asked.
“East,” he said.
They started moving through the sand. “No way I’m going to let a bit of sand beat me.”
He glanced at her. “Carthago’s deserts are deadly.”
“Are you always this chipper?”
He frowned. “Chipper?”
“Focused on the doom and gloom.”
“I’m a realist.”
She snorted. “We are going to make it, Galen. And when we do, you’ll owe me big time.”
“Really?”
“Yep. I want shiny, expensive things. I’ve lived in a hellhole for months, with nothing but these rags. I want a new wardrobe, and a huge, soft bed—” she moaned a little “—with a super-soft blanket that feels like a cloud.”
“You’ve put some thought into this.”
Her smile faltered. “I needed to think of something to get me through.”
His hand tightened on her hip and squeezed. “What else did you imagine?”
“Blooming flowers and food. Fresh fruit, like the sweetest berries, and chocolate, it’s—”
“I know what it is. The human members of my house mention it…a lot.”
She smiled. “I want homecooked meals. And I want to see art. A beautiful painting that reaches inside your chest and makes you feel. Anything except moldy rock walls.”
“You’re not what I expected, Sam Santos.”
She smiled again. “I’m one-of-a-kind.”
“Yes, I’m beginning to see that.”
Chapter Three
Galen had never met a more stubborn, determined woman.
He’d been wrong about Sam’s essence being threaded with steel. It was made solely from the strongest, most impenetrable metal in the galaxy.
They’d been walking for hours. They were holding each other up, staggering through the sand. The suns were scorching hot in the sky above, and Galen’s mouth was beyond dry. He knew if they didn’t find water soon…
“Sam—”
“You tell me to leave you one more time and I’ll hit you.”
He grunted. So stubborn.
They started down the other side of a large dune and Galen prayed they’d stay on their feet. Beyond lay nothing but a sea of golden-orange sand.
“Tell me about the House of Galen,” she asked.
“I run an orderly, profitable house. I have the best gladiators in Kor Magna, and Raiden is the Champion of the Arena.”
“And he and Harper are a couple?”
“Yes. Completely in love and devoted to each other. She’s brilliant in the arena, and together, they are truly something to watch in a fight.”
“I’m glad.” Sam sighed. “Harper is a good woman.”
“And my gladiator Thorin is with Regan Forrest.”
“I didn’t know her well. She worked hard on her experiments on the station and was shy.” Sam shook her head. “Hard to imagine her with an alien gladiator.”
“They make it work. Another gladiator, Kace, is married to Rory Fraser.”
“Rory? The engineer from Fortuna Station?”
“Yes. They have a son.”
“What?” Sam’s voice was shocked. “It’s been hard for me to keep track of time here, but how could they have a child already?”
“My healers tell me that Kace’s genetics resulted in a far shorter gestation period than you have on Earth. They’re both happy. Kace was former military, and Rory softened his hard edges.”
Sam looked up at Galen, something working across her face. “Tell me more. Tell me about the other humans.”
Galen told her more about his tough gladiator Saff and Blaine Strong, Lore and Madeline, as well as Mia, Dayna, Winter, Neve, Ever, and Ryan, and the men they’d attached themselves to.
“Madeline Cochran? My uptight former space-station commander is in love with an alien gladiator?” Sam shook her head.
“Yes.” Galen managed a smile, feeling his dry lips crack. “And she helps on the administration side of things at the House of Galen. She’s good at it.”
Sam shook her head again. “I have no doubt. And Blaine’s happy?
“Yes, he fell in love with my gladiator, Saff. They are both exceptional fighters and very competitive.”
“I’m glad he found her. Thank you for taking them all in, Galen.”
He watched as her face fell.
“What?” He stopped and pulled her closer.
“I was just thinking… There’s no way back to Earth,” she whispered. “I guess I’ve been so focused on surviving Zaabha, that I never really let myself imagine what might happen after I escaped.”
“You have a man on Earth?” The thought made his chest throb in an odd way. “Family?”
“My family. A big, loud bunch. My parents, two brothers and two sisters-in-law, as well as a gaggle of nieces.”
He couldn’t miss the grief in her voice.
“You can talk with them,” Galen said. “Our ally, Zhim, has created technology using wormholes to get messages back to Earth.”
She nodded and managed to smile. “That’s a consolation, at least.” Then, she frowned and turned her head. “Did you see that?”
He looked in the direction she was gazing. All he saw was sand. “What?”
She slowly shook her head. “Nothing. Maybe I’m seeing things.”
They started moving again, but th
en Sam went stiff.
“There!” She pointed ahead.
Again, Galen saw nothing. He stared at the sand, but nothing caught his eye. “I don’t see anything.”
“Sorry.” She rubbed her forehead. “Maybe I’m hallucinating? It might be heat exhaustion.”
They took another step, and this time, Galen saw the sand ahead start to shift. “Drak.”
They both pulled their swords.
Galen swallowed hard to try to wet his throat and kept staring. Something was moving under the sand.
Then he felt something wrap around his leg. “What the drak—?”
He was yanked off his feet and whipped up into the air. There was some sort of large tentacle wrapped around his calf. It was covered in scales several shades darker than the sand. He found himself waved around violently in the air.
“Hang on!” Sam shouted.
Galen blinked his eye and squinted, but he was being moved around too much for him to see her. He swung his sword, but came nowhere close to hitting the creature.
Then, suddenly, he was released.
He hit the sand with an oof.
Galen pushed up on his knees. When he lifted his head, he saw Sam had cut through the tentacle. A severed part of it flopped around on the sand, spilling dark blood.
The ground vibrated, and all around them, the sand started to move wildly.
“Sam.”
“Shit.” She moved in closer to him. “What is it?”
“No drakking idea.”
A bunch of tentacles burst out of the sand. Several aimed straight at Sam, wrapping around her body and trapping her sword by her side. They tightened, coiling around her.
Galen strode forward, hacking at the tentacles he could reach. A deep, rumbling sound reverberated up from beneath the sand.
And then the tentacles moved, yanking Sam onto her back and dragging her along the sand.
Drak. Galen raced after her. Every time he got close to a tentacle, he slashed at it.
He lifted his sword to swing again—
But a tentacle wrapped around his bicep, holding his arm in place. Beneath them, the entire sand dune moved.
Drak.
The creature under the sand was huge. He’d heard rumors and legends of giant beasts deep in the heart of the desert before, but he’d never seen one like this.
