by Mary Auclair
“Is that a threat, Little Mouse?” His tone was dangerous and low, his gaze unwavering. “Because there’s no way I can see this ending well for you.”
Hazel swallowed, because he was right. She was all kinds of screwed. Screwed literally to the end of the universe.
So, what did she have to fear from a powerful, tall and very angry alien? Well, a lot. But not enough to shut her mouth.
“Listen, I know you don’t want me on this ship. I didn’t want to be here, either.” She did her best to use her don’t-fool-with-me tone, but she heard the tremors in her voice anyway. “But I’m not going back to Aveyn, no matter what you say. Send me to Earth now, or let me stay.”
His too-blue eyes remained on her for long seconds that stretched into what felt like a lifetime. Then he moved, fast—faster than any person his size should be able to move. She barely had time to scream before he was upon her. His powerful, muscular arms closed around her upper body and she found herself dangling over a broad, large shoulder, her ass up in the air, facing the spectacular back of an Eok warrior.
“Put me down!” Hazel screamed, her fists pounding the huge expanse of Khal’s back with little effect. “What are you doing?”
“I’m doing what I should have done the second I saw you,” he answered, jolting her over his shoulder for good measure as she began pummeling the lower part of his back.
Khal walked through the Myrador, following a hallway here, taking a turn there. Finally, he flipped her over and she landed on her feet. A quick glance around told her everything she needed to know. She was back in the cargo hold, the series of containers spread out in front of her. Behind her, a small cell, six feet by six feet, stood with its door open, metal bars running from floor to ceiling. Before she could react, Khal took her by the shoulders and forced her back, then stepped out and the door closed in her face.
Hazel lurched forward, slamming her palms against the metal bars as hard as she could. They didn’t even rattle. Pain erupted in her hands, but she didn’t care. Fear and anger were mixing up in her belly, creating a noxious vortex of feelings.
“What are you doing?” She almost choked on her words as she realized what had just happened.
“I’m making sure you don’t cause any more problem than you already have.” That calm voice was totally devoid of feeling, but Hazel thought she saw a flicker of satisfaction in his eyes. A flicker of satisfaction that immediately set her temper aflame, making her angry enough to tamp down the fear to nothing.
“You can’t do this!” she shouted as he backed away with a smug grin. A satisfied, sexy as hell grin that she would have loved nothing more than to slap away. “You can’t just lock me up!”
“Watch me,” Khal answered before turning.
Hazel spewed profanities at him as he walked away, not turning back once. Even after he was long gone, she kept screaming her insults.
She finally quieted, then turned around. There was no escape in sight; no reason for Khal not to send her back where she came from. That big blue chunk of ice wasn’t even allowing her to stay on the top floor.
I’m really screwed now.
* * *
Khal
The female was impossible. Insolent, disrespectful. Feisty.
Impertinent little mouse.
Hazel’s face—upturned and defiant, her round mouth pursed in a pout and her green eyes flashing—imposed itself in his mind. He felt his body react despite himself, his seed stem twitching and pulsing painfully, his fists clenching until blood wet his palms.
When he’d flipped her over his shoulder, the feeling of her soft body, pliable and female, full of dangerous curves and even more dangerous scent, had threatened to erase his sanity.
It won’t happen again. I’m no youngster, crazed with lust.
As Khal walked to the upper level of the ship, his seed stem deflated, but the aftermath of his arousal still lingered in his body. Every time he was close to her, he reacted more and more violently.
She has to leave on this very shuttle. I have to get rid of her.
The very thought made his gut twist into a knot and foul bile rise up in his throat as his temper turned sour. Because the very idea of her leaving made him want to hiss and growl, tear things apart in a vengeful wrath. Alarm bells sounded danger from everywhere in his mind as he pushed the memory of her soft, pliable female’s body away from his thoughts. The touch of her silky skin had awoken something inside him he’d had no idea existed. Something he didn’t want to know existed.
Something he couldn’t afford to indulge.
Never before had he felt lust with this kind of violence. As he’d brought her to the holding cell in the cargo of the ship, images had shot through his brain. Images of her naked body, of those dangerous, full curves exposed to his view, for his pleasure. Her defenseless, bared form, completely at his mercy.
Of her screaming her pleasure in the unrelenting, merciless confines of the holding cell as he bent her to his will. To his possession.
Nonsense.
Khal chastised himself, pushing Hazel out of his mind. He finally arrived at the docking station just in time to see the door to a sleek, state-of-the-art high-speed shuttle open. A tall, masculine figure stepped out, his long black hair falling over his athletic shoulders. The man’s purple eyes settled on him from within a fine-featured, almost feminine face.
Khal growled, not bothering to hide his displeasure.
An Avonie. How the hell does Prime Councilor Aav expect me to work with an Avonie?
Displeasure twisted Khal’s innards as the Avonie male approached, his steps feline and fluid, his delicate face carefully neutral. Khal fought his distaste, knowing the other male had done nothing to deserve it. Khal wasn’t closed-minded like some other Eok warriors in regards to the Avonie and their ways of dealing with the world. He wouldn’t compromise his mission—perhaps the most important mission any Eok had ever undertaken—because of an undefined dislike for a species whose main qualities were trade and deception.
Because trade was an art he sorely missed, and deception an advantage he could use. The Avonie came to a stop in front of him.
“Commander Khal.” It wasn’t a question, so Khal didn’t answer. “I am Zaxis.”
“Zaxis.” Khal inclined his head lightly in welcome. “Prime Councilor Aav didn’t give me much information on you, or your skills.”
“I’m your tracker.” Zaxis shrugged, but the slight downward curve of his thin lips told Khal he wasn’t as nonchalant as he wanted to appear. It was just like an Avonie: trying to project something to the world different than what he was. “I’m the best tracker there is in the Ring, and probably in the shithole beyond. From what I’ve heard, your mission could use my skills.”
“We will sure need them.”
Khal kept his gaze straight on the Avonie. The other male’s gaze was steady and direct, unflinching.
Good. I can’t work with a coward.
Zaxis was almost as tall as Khal, and he was not as scrawny as most Avonie males. He wore state of the art synthetic leather, blazing white, but otherwise didn’t adorn himself, contrary to his species’ characteristic love for fancy jewelry and fine clothing.
Maybe this will work. Not like I have a choice, anyway.
“Contact your main ship, tell them you’re sending your shuttle back with a passenger,” Khal said.
When Zaxis only stared, looking more and more confused by the second, Khal groaned inwardly.
“I have a stowaway.” Even as he spoke, he knew what the other male was thinking. That he was careless. “She hid in the containers before humans loaded my ship. When I found her, it was already too late to turn around.”
Zaxis pursed his thin lips. “You couldn’t afford to miss the rendezvous point.” He inhaled deeply, then nodded. “There was no way for us to contact each other. This mission cannot be compromised, not even for a female’s life.”
Khal nodded. At least his new tracker understood the seriousne
ss and danger of the mission.
“But I’m afraid sending her back is impossible,” Zaxis stated with a matter-of-fact raising of his brows. “There is no mother ship. I traveled directly from Avona in this shuttle. Can’t send her back without a full refueling.”
Shit. Even better.
“We can’t spare the fuel.” Khal cursed loudly. “Then we’re stuck with her till we reach the Frontier. We’ll offload her to Commander Gerkin as soon as we arrive.”
“The Frontier is no place for a female.”
Khal growled, deep in his chest. Because the Avonie male was right. And because they had no choice.
“The Frontier is no place for a female, but it’s much safer than what lies ahead.” Khal turned his back to Zaxis. “She’s in the holding cell in the cargo hold. Get her out, feed her. Or throw her out of a space hatch. I don’t care.”
But he did. He did more than he could ever say.
And that little feral beast inside him screamed, pushing against the restraints he fought to maintain. Because the female wasn’t Zaxis’s to feed and care for. She was Khal’s.
Only she wasn’t. She couldn’t be. Would never be.
Khal would make sure of it.
Chapter 4
Hazel
Hazel turned sharply, then walked the ten or so paces to the end of the cell. She turned again, and again, but the pacing didn’t soothe her.
She was so mad she could have screamed. But screaming wouldn’t help. In fact, she was pretty sure screaming would only make that blue asshole even more satisfied with himself.
The sound of heavy boots on metal reached the end of the cargo area where her cell was located and Hazel froze. Fear coursed through her veins, and anger rose inside her at the feeling. She didn’t want to be afraid of the Eoks. She shouldn’t be.
But she was. And she knew why.
They weren’t just big and strong. Their entire bodies were made for violence, their minds suited for power and cruelty.
Khal was no exception, commander or not.
Hazel’s breath caught in her throat as a tall figure rounded the ladder leading down to the cargo level. The figure was shrouded in shadow, but she frowned as she squinted to make it out more clearly. It was tall and well built, definitely masculine, but not nearly as large as Khal was. His movements were easy and confident, but as the newcomer came closer, she knew he lacked the feline grace of the Eok, that lethal way of moving that was almost like a dance.
That she immediately knew it wasn’t Khal, and that a pinch of disappointment shot through her chest at the realization, only made her temper flare hotter.
Then the newcomer stepped into the light.
Oh, shit. Just what I needed.
Pale, luminescent skin almost reflected the light as bright purple eyes set on her. Vertical pupils shrank and dilated to the rhythm of their owner’s feelings on either side of a fine, straight nose. Full, shapely lips curved up in a pleasant grin as the Avonie male stared at her with open appreciation.
The newcomer was striking—beautiful, in a pristine, almost feminine way. Hazel found herself unable to look away.
Long, shiny hair fell to his athletic shoulders, the locks tucked behind long, pointed ears.
“So, you’re the stowaway I’ve heard about?” His fine eyebrow curved up and the mocking grin widened on the newcomer’s lips. “How’s that working for you so far?”
“Not too shabby.” Hazel tossed her head in defiance. “What’s an Avonie doing with an Eok warrior on a secret mission this far out in the Ring?”
A throaty laugh rang inside the metal confines of the cargo, lighthearted and simple. Somehow, it soothed Hazel’s anger, lessened her boiling fear.
“A secret mission? You’ve had lots of time to think in this cell, haven’t you? What an imagination you humans have.” The newcomer set his purple eyes on her, and despite his apparent benevolence, Hazel sensed the danger within. He wasn’t nearly as non-threatening as he wanted to appear. “What’s your name, little human?”
“I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.” Hazel raised her brows and crossed her arms across her chest. This had to be one of her all-time best sasses, and she didn’t feel halfway confident that it wouldn’t get her killed.
But she had a feeling that showing weakness in front of any of those alien males was liable to lead her exactly where she didn’t want to end up.
Where she’d started.
A roaring laugh answered her snarky comment, and the Avonie male shook his head before looking back up at her with a whole new interest in his gaze. An interest that was much more honest, and somehow, much more dangerous.
“You’ve got a mouth on you!” Laughter still sparkled in the male’s eyes as he spoke.
“Yes, she does.”
Another voice came from beside the ladder, one that she would recognize out of a million. One that she would hear even lost in a crowd. Soon, the impressive, square shape of another male made its way into the light—a male whose very presence sent Hazel’s newfound comfort hurtling out and into the void of space.
Khal’s Prussian blue eyes set on her like a warning. Like he was telling her how dangerous he was. How much she should fear him. But she was a cornered animal on this ship, in this cell.
And cornered animals had only one thing left to do.
Bite.
“I see you brought reinforcements with you. Didn’t know the all-powerful Commander Khal was scared of a little human like me. Should I be flattered?” she said.
His too-blue eyes flashed with sudden anger and his lips lifted in a cold, heartless grin. Hazel’s heart raced so fast it hurt against her ribs, but she kept the sardonic smirk on her face. She had chosen her hand, and now she was going to play it.
“What you should be is careful. What you should be is trembling with fear.” His voice was like a whip cracking through the air, and Hazel wasn’t sure how she was still standing. All she wanted to do was cower in the back of the cell and beg for mercy.
“Sorry, not sorry. You don’t scare me.” But her voice broke and betrayed her.
At Khal’s side, Zaxis had lost his humorous expression and was staring at them with a sober, cautious gaze. Hazel wanted to look at him, wanted to know if she had an ally in the Avonie, but she couldn’t do more than shoot him a quick glance. She was mesmerized by Khal. By Khal’s eyes, hard as a cold winter sky; by Khal’s mouth, a frozen, punishing line; by Khal’s body, the light playing over the markings on his Prussian blue skin, highlighting the sharpness of his features until he looked like an ancient barbarian King, all-powerful and bloodthirsty.
She sustained his surreal gaze, refusing to back down, even though her entire body wanted nothing more than to crumble on the floor in a misshapen pile of defeat and tears.
“She’s staying here tonight.” Khal was obviously speaking to Zaxis although he stared directly at her. “Maybe she’ll learn some manners during the night.”
Great. I’ll never get out of here, then.
Hazel narrowed her eyes as she held Khal’s gaze. The total weight of the Eok’s domination settled on her shoulders and she knew she was going to break.
“No.” Zaxis disrupted the strange trance linking Hazel to Khal. She turned to him in a daze. “She’s weak and female. I’m not having her sleep in the cargo hold.” With that, he opened the cell and stepped inside under the smoldering eyes of Khal. The Eok’s silence enveloped the room as Zaxis loomed over Hazel. As he reached to grab her upper arm, a vicious growl tore from Khal’s throat.
“Unhand the female.” The words were measured, but the danger underneath was palpable. “I am the leader of this mission and the captain of this ship.”
“Commander, captain, leader.” Zaxis bit out his words, but his hand didn’t touch Hazel as he faced the Eok. “Doesn’t mean much if you intend to imprison a female who hasn’t committed a crime. Where do you think she can go, anyway? She’s human. She can’t just hop from planet to planet.”
&nb
sp; Khal’s eyes were trained directly on Hazel as Zaxis spoke. She could see the clear landscape of feelings passing behind those blue eyes, and the violence of the storm that came with them.
Suddenly, staying in the cargo hold didn’t seem all that bad an idea.
“It’s fine. I’ll stay in the cell.” Hazel took a step back. She hugged herself, then winced. She had forgotten all about her injuries. Bobbie and his fists seemed such a long time ago. Or a world away, which was the reality.
“She’s injured.” Zaxis frowned, then ignored the savage growl coming from Khal as he delicately lifted her arm then ran his hand over the surface. Hazel couldn’t refrain from wincing at the pain. Seeing her reaction, Zaxis’s face became dark and dangerous as he turned hardened eyes to Khal. “What did you do?”
“Takes your hands off the female.” Khal’s voice was barely recognizable as he ground out the words through his teeth.
“No.” Zaxis straightened, then placed himself squarely between Khal and Hazel. “I’m not going to let you hurt her again. I don’t care if Prime Councilor Aav herself put you in charge of this mission. I’m not going to work for an honorless warrior.”
The tension increased so high, Hazel’s forehead was covered in sweat. She knew that if those two got down to business, there would be blood. Blood and maiming, violence without end.
“No, stop!” She put her hand on Zaxis’s arm, all the while just too aware of Khal’s piercing gaze latching onto her fingers like he wanted to pry them away from the Avonie and rip him to pieces while she watched. “Khal didn’t hurt me. I was injured before I even climbed into the cargo container.”
“Then who? Who hurt you?” It was Khal who asked the question, for the first time looking vaguely confused. He frowned, shook his head, then lost the murderous glint in his eyes. “It doesn’t matter. Come with me, I will see to your medical care.”
Zaxis opened his mouth to counter but Hazel moved too fast for him. She slithered past the large Avonie male and stepped right up to Khal.
