Torch (Galactic Cage Fighters Book 7)

by KD Jones

  She felt weak headed. “Oh God no.”

  “They had to rush him to a hospital to be operated on. The reporters are trying to get in to ask you how you feel about the shooting.” Alana was disgusted with their attitudes.

  “I need to go…” Isis tried to stand but a sharp pain in her ribs sent her curled up on the bed.

  “Easy, honey, easy. You can’t go anywhere right now. I’ll go and see if I can get information on Torch for you. You just stay here, okay?”

  She nodded. Tears were about to spill. She prayed he would be alright. The healer came in, saw her clutching at her ribs, and gave her a sedative. She fell asleep.

  When Isis woke again she was confused. The lights were dimmed but she didn’t remember right away where she was at. Then it all seemed to rush back at her. She was in medical and Torch and been shot. She sat up reaching for the call button but a hand reached out and stopped her.

  “Not so fast, my sweet,” a male’s voice said.

  Oh shit. “Ishop?”

  “That’s right. I came to get you like I promised.” He kept hold of her hand.

  “I’m not going anywhere with you.” She yanked her hand away from him.

  “Oh, but you are. If you do not, I will make sure your Voltan halfsie doesn’t make it through the night.”

  Her heart sunk and she felt fear she had never felt before. “You shot Torch?”

  “Of course not, I paid someone to do the deed.” He stood and motioned for two males to approach her bed.

  “What are you doing?” She looked around frantically.

  “I have my royal healers on standby. These paramedics will transfer you to my private ship.”

  “I’m not going with you.” Isis crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Yes you are, or I will give the order for my guy to finish the job he started,” Ishop said it like having someone killed was no big deal to him.

  Isis looked around the room for help. “Security won’t let you remove me.”

  “Actually, the Isian Council has petitioned the GCFA to release you from your contract because you are obligated to return to our home world and fulfill your obligations.”

  “They can’t do that!”

  “They have. The GCFA lawyers are fighting it, but by the time anything can be done, you will be my mate on the Isle of Isia.” Ishop was very sure of what he was saying.

  “Please, Ishop, I don’t love you. Let me go,” Isis was begging. She never thought she would do that. But the thought of never seeing Torch again was making her hurt.

  He looked at her coldly. “What does love have to do with this? I need an heir, or I can never be king. Stupid ancient rules won’t let me,” he snorted his frustration. “So what will it be, my dear? Cooperate and come with me willingly, or be responsible for the death of the Voltan halfsie.”

  “Fine.” She allowed the paramedics to place her in a wheelchair so they could wheel her out. She hated Ishop with everything she had. But she couldn’t risk Torch’s life. She loved him. She hoped one day, he would be able to forgive her.

  They wheeled her out of medical and a few of the reporters were still there and took her photo. This was going to look bad. No coming back from this, Torch would never understand. Her life was pretty much over.

  She saw Alana and was afraid they would hurt her friend. “Take me the other way, less people to see and interfere.”

  Ishop nodded at the paramedics to follow her directions. They made it off the ship and to a waiting shuttle. As they shifted her into the shuttle, she frowned noticing the female sitting across from her.

  “Why is she here?” Isis asked.

  Clovis smirked, “Honey, you and I going to get to know each other very very well. Just like I got to know your Torch. He is quite the lover.”

  She glared at Clovis. “You did not sleep with Torch.”

  “Such innocence, Ishop. We will have to take care of that. There was no sleeping involved.”

  Isis went to lunge at her but winced when her ribs acted up again. The paramedics injected her with another sedative and she fell back against the seat as darkness took her. At least Torch was safe.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Twenty-four hours later Torch was sitting up in his bed complaining to the healer that was in the room. “I am fine and want to leave.”

  “I’m sorry, sir, but the head healer has to release you first.”

  Zen walked into the room and shooed the medic out. Zen crossed his arms and stared at Torch.

  “What?” Torch bellowed.

  “Why are you being an ass to the medical staff?”

  “They won’t let me leave,” he groused. But it was more than that. He hadn’t been able to get Isis on the phone. Something about that bothered him. “Is Isis okay? I know she got hurt in her fight and had to go to medical.”

  “I guess she’s okay.” Zen shrugged, walking over to stand by the window.

  “You guess?” Torch frowned.

  “She’s gone,” Zen told him plainly.

  “What do you mean she’s gone? What the hell are talking about?”

  “Her people came to take her back to her home world,” Zen said.

  His heart felt like someone had ripped it out of his chest. “She left? To go back to mate with the prince. But she didn’t want to mate with the guy. She left her home world to avoid it.”

  “She told you this?” Zen asked.

  “Yes.” He needed to get out of this hospital and go find her. He tried to stand but his side where the bullet went in hurt like a mother fucker. “Fuck!”

  Zen glared at him. “Easy, man, I have a couple of people checking on the situation. You aren’t going anywhere until the healers say so.” His phone rang. “Hello? They did what? Can the GCFA fight it? Okay, thanks.”

  “What?” Torch asked.

  “That was Nigel. He checked into the Isian’s claims. They had petitioned the GCFA to release Isis from her contract so she can go home to fulfill her mating obligations, which technically superseded her contract.”

  “Can they do that? The Isian Council doesn’t own Isis, she’s not a damn slave!” Torch wanted to pound someone.

  “Nigel is going to help the GCFA fight the petition, but Isis has left the GCFA property. So it is going to be hard to get her back without starting some kind of war with the Isian people.”

  “I can’t believe Isis would leave. She ran away from Isia to avoid this mating. I want to talk to her.” Torch tried to reach for the phone again.

  Zen shook his head. “I have tried, the assholes who call themselves her guardians say she is recuperating and cannot be disturbed at this time.”

  Torch looked up as Trig walked into the room. “What is the human doing here?”

  “Shut it, fireboy. I wouldn’t be helping you at all if it wasn’t for Angel. She seems to love you for some reason. Since you’re her uncle, I’ll do this favor for her.”

  “What did you find out?” Zen asked.

  Trig waved a small disc in his hands and placed it in the disc player. “I borrowed the video feed from the GCFA medical for the last day that Isis was on the GCFA ship.”

  They watched the video feed as the healers prepared for the different fighters that came in. Zen fast forwarded until he saw Isis being brought in on a stretcher. A tall blonde haired male walked into the room right before the video feed went fuzzy.

  “Who’s that?” Zen asked.

  “That’s the prince that Isis was promised to when she was a kid. She ran away almost a year ago to not have to mate him. Is there any sound?” Torch managed to sit up without hurting himself.

  Trig worked on the TV and turned up the volume. “Hit play now.”

  Torch hit the play button on his remote control. It was quiet when the prince came in and then the video feed went fuzzy but their voices had been recorded. They listened.

  “Not so fast, my sweet.”

  “Ishop?”

  “That’s right. I came to get you like I
promised.”

  “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

  “Oh, but you are. If you do not, I will make sure that your Voltan halfsie doesn’t make it through the night.”

  “You shot Torch?”

  “Of course not, I paid someone to do the deed.”

  “What are you doing?”

  “I have my royal healers on standby. These paramedics will transfer you to my private ship.”

  “I’m not going with you.”

  “Yes, you are, or I will give the order for my guy to finish the job he started.”

  “Security won’t let you remove me.”

  “Actually, the Isian Council has petitioned the GCFA to release you from your contract because you are obligated to return to our home world and fulfill your obligations.”

  “They can’t do that!”

  “They have. The GCFA lawyers are fighting it, but by the time anything can be done, you will be my mate on the Isle of Isia.”

  “Please, Ishop, I don’t love you. Let me go.”

  “What does love have to do with this? I need an heir, or I can never be king. Stupid ancient rules won’t let me. So what will it be, my dear? Cooperate and come with me willingly, or be responsible for the death of the Voltan halfsie.”

  “Fine.”

  “Why was the video feed blurry?” Zen asked.

  “Not sure.” Trig scratched his head.

  Torch sighed. “He used his Isian abilities to freeze the camera, but must not have realized the recording device for sound was located separately. Can we use this to get her back? It was clear she didn’t want to leave with him.”

  Trig frowned. “We’ll try to file a complaint with the Isian Council. It could be argued that this video recorded someone else pretending to be Ishop. Unless Isis testifies that she was taken against her will, it might be hard to prove.”

  “I’m going to have to go after her,” Torch said. Things were said between them that needed to be corrected. He didn’t want her to think that he had no feelings for her. Because the moment he heard she was gone, he realized he was deeply in love with her. No, it was even before that.

  Maybe the first time he made love to her he felt such strong feelings then, but he had not defined it. When he thought he could lose her to another male, he had to face the facts he was completely in love with her. Torch was going to do everything he could to get her back.

  “Let me make a few calls and see if I can get a ship for you. Until then, you stay put until the healers release you.” Zen walked out into the hallway.

  *****

  Isis hurt all over. She tried to pull at the neutralizing collar that Ishop had put on her, but it wouldn’t budge. The collar was used mostly by law enforcement and it neutralized a criminal halfsie or alien abilities, rendering them powerless. There were slavers out there that also sold the collars at black market. Which is probably where Ishop got his. She hated being powerless and restrained. But even more than that, she hated being watched.

  “Don’t struggle, you will only hurt yourself,” Ishop said from his bed. He was sitting on the bed, naked, watching her with hooded eyes. Clovis was on her knees in front of him, sucking his cock in and out of her mouth.

  Isis shivered and turned away. She didn’t want to see them like that. She wanted to leave. She wanted to go back to the GCFA ship, back to Torch. She was so worried that Torch might not make it. Ishop would not let her check on his status. All he told her was that he called his hired gunman back from the job.

  She would give anything to see Torch one more time. To touch him, kiss him, to make love to him once more. She wanted to tell him about her Mating mark, tell him that she was in love with him. She never got the chance and probably never would. She turned her back on Ishop and touched her Mating mark, which was hidden beneath the clothes that Ishop ordered her to put on.

  If Ishop knew about her mark, he would hit the roof. Ishop would have a hard time explaining why she had a Mating mark while Ishop did not. The fact that hers was activated after being with Torch meant that she could never activate Ishop’s Mating mark. But he didn’t really care about being true mates. All Ishop wanted was to breed her. Which he could do with or without a Mating mark.

  “Look at me!” Ishop yelled at Isis.

  Isis shook her head. She heard Clovis growl as he shoved her away and stormed over to her. He grabbed her arm, turning her to look at him.

  “I said to look at me! You will learn to pleasure me. Clovis is teaching you what I like. You will watch and then later, I will have you demonstrate the lessons you have learned. If you do not, I will punish you.” Ishop slapped her face.

  Isis smiled at him and sent her knee into his dangling shriveling cock. He fell to his knees clutching himself. “Bitch!” He crawled his way back toward the bed and reached for something on the nightstand.

  Isis’s smirk at his pain was short lived. She received shock waves through her collar that traveled through her whole body and brought her to her knees. Ishop activated the punishment program on her collar. It was sending those painful spurts of shockwaves through her body at regular intervals. It would also drain her body, slowly killing her.

  “How do you like that you halfsie whore?” Clovis asked with glee as she helped Ishop back to the bed. “I warned you that Prince Ishop would not tolerate your behavior.” She turned her attention back to Ishop. “We should just kill her.”

  Ishop wiped tears from his eyes. “No, not until she has successfully bred with me. The Council will need proof that she carries my heir before they will declare me king.”

  “Will you breed with her before you get to Isia?” Clovis hated the idea of sharing Ishop. It wasn’t that she loved him, but she didn’t like to share. All she really wanted was Ishop’s power, and the only way to share in that was to be his courtesan.

  Ishop glared at Isis. “Her parents put in a stipulation that only a sanctioned union witnessed by the Council and most of Isia will be accepted. If I breed her before the union, it won’t be accepted and I will lose my chance at being king.”

  Clovis glared at Isis. “What do you want to do with her until then?”

  “She will need to be kept hidden from council’s view until the union ceremony. She might garner sympathy from someone on the Council and they frown on the use of collars for non-criminals. Once the day arrives for the union, she will be so weakened by the collar she will not be able to fight it. Then I will breed her and lock her away until the heir is born.” Ishop had thought of everything. He had been planning for this day since before they were promised to one another.

  “And I will remain by your side through it all, my king.” Clovis patted his shoulder, knowing he loved it when she referred to him as king.

  “Yes, of course. You will be the king’s number one courtesan,” he said it as if it was the greatest honor to bestow.

  Clovis squeezed his now erect cock. “Have the guards come and remove her, take her to the holding cell until we reach Isia. I do not like to look upon her face.”

  Ishop looked over at Isis and loved her humiliated look, as she lay there unable to move. “Not yet, I want her to watch as you pleasure me. So she knows how a true female should treat her king.” He laid on his back and put his arms behind his head. Clovis climbed to straddle him and without any preamble impaled herself on him.

  Isis wanted to throw up. But she couldn’t move away from the position she found herself in. At least she had some time. Because she knew without a doubt if she didn’t escape, Ishop would rape her repeatedly until he got her pregnant. She would never allow him to touch her willingly. She wouldn’t let him touch her ever. She would rather die than have him touch her like that. She closed her eyes and tried to shut off her hearing. She concentrated on thinking about Torch, about the sweet moments when they laid next to each other. Thoughts of him would help her get through this. Her last thought before she fell unconscious from the pain was, I love you, Torch.

  Chapter Sixteen


  Torch stood by the entrance to the hospital. Zen was next to him. They were waiting for a shuttle to come and take Torch and a GCFA representative to a spaceship that would fly them to the Isle of Isia.

  So far Ishop was hours ahead of them. But Zen said he found a ship that was much faster and would reach Isia not soon after of Ishop’s ship. The GCFA representative was going because he had contacts with the Council on the Isle of Isia and were already attempting to negotiate with Isia. The shuttle pulled up and Nigel got out.

  “You have got to be kidding me!” Torch glared at both Nigel and Zen.

  “He’s your best bet of getting Isis back,” Zen told him.

  Torch turned warily at Nigel. “Why would you help me? You must still hold a grudge about me taking Isis from you.”

  Nigel straightened his dark suit. “First off, I am not helping you, I am helping Isis. Secondly, you didn’t take her from me, I recognized her attraction to you and stepped back so she could find happiness. I have yet to see her happy with you so I question that step now.”

  Torch went to hit the uptight suit but Zen stopped him. “You both need to put away your dicks! This is about Isis, getting her free so she can make a choice.”

  Torch nodded and turned to Zen who wouldn’t be able to leave. “Thanks.”

  Zen patted him on the shoulder. “That’s what friends are for. Now go get your female.”

  Torch got into the shuttle next to Nigel. “What do you know about the Isian Council?” Nigel asked him.