Daxon’s nostrils flared. The idea of this lazhul having Darcy in his Palace and in his bed caused his hearts to race and his claws to curl. He bared his fangs and shook his head. “No, she won’t. She’s my hostage,” he raged, using language he knew this human would respond to. “She’s mine.”
The human’s jaw dropped. “Your hostage?”
“Yes. She stepped onto this ship and now that I’ve found her, she’s mine and I’m keeping her. Find a new bride. Darcy is not yours.”
“Do you know who I am? Do you understand how rich and powerful I am? I’m going to learn everything about you and make your life miserable. You will regret this. Return her immediately and I will give you a reward, but if you keep her for yourself, I will kill you. And when I get her back, if I discover she’s no longer a virgin, you will be a dead man and I will do whatever it takes to destroy your entire family.”
Daxon chuckled at the audacity of this little human. “You think you can kill me? That you can destroy my line?” He burst out laughing. “I’d like to see you try.” And then he cut the vid.
His shoulders shook with mirth. He’d have to call Joyzal later and they’d have a good chuckle over this. His friend would enjoy hearing a retelling of this crazy human’s antics. Of course there was no way this weak human could best him.
“Daxon.”
“Hmm?” He walked over and grasped Darcy’s tiny human hand with his own gloved claw, ready to lead her off the bridge and back to their quarters. His stomach was growling. They hadn’t had breakfast yet. She must also be hungry, and he had to make sure his female was fed and healthy.
“Daxon…Daxon?” She tugged on his arm. “Gurpreet just vowed to kill you. Didn’t you hear? He said…” Her voice cracked.
He stopped and looked down into his female’s troubled features and her sparkling wet eyes. He was beginning to find her lack of ridges and fangs acceptable. She was softer than a typical Xylan female, but he found it intriguing how this did not mean she was weak. His female had managed to escape from one of the most devious humans on planet Earth. This was admirable. He found it strange that her species held competitions to define which females were the most physically appealing. Why would they exalt only females based solely on appearance? But he could understand why she’d been chosen. He was Xylan and even he found her appearance pleasing.
“But he’s only human,” he tried to explain. “Not even worth a moment’s notice. Do not let this male concern you. Let’s go break our fast.”
“Daxon, you don’t understand. His father is the richest man on New Earth. The Singh family owns a whole army of men. Gurpreet is not ‘just a human.’ He’s powerful enough to cause you harm. And I don’t want you to get hurt.” She tugged her hand from his grasp and stepped back. “I should leave. You need to drop me off somewhere large enough where I can disappear and restart my life, maybe at the Omega 9 space station, or at…”
A growl left his chest. “You’re staying with me. We need to test.”
“I can’t, he’ll find me here with you and kill you! You need to get rid of me right now, so no one comes after you.”
Daxon placed both claws on her tiny shoulders and looked deeply into her green-gold eyes. That same spark of possession he’d felt since the moment he scented her, a need to keep her by his side filled his spirit. “Your concern for me is admirable but misplaced. You are safe with me. This human might try to harm us, but he will not succeed. Don’t worry. Your brother placed you with me for a reason.”
She still looked unconvinced.
He took her hand again, which he had to admit was nice to touch, even through the fabric between them. It was a symbol of what was to come. Even his hand on hers, with a barrier, caused a small tingle of warmth to flare in his hearts. “Trust me,” he told her again. “I will keep you safe and this human will not cause us harm.”
8
She stared at him, biting her lip with her smooth human teeth.
He placed his arm around his female’s shoulders and pulled her into his side and they began slowly walking together, back to his quarters. “Let me feed you,” he said, trying to comfort his future Bride.
“I just worry about what this situation is doing to other people,” she admitted. “Everything that keeps happening has negative repercussions for the people I care about. Anyone who tries to help me gets hurt. My parents and my brother have been through so much because of my decision to go to Tulare. I was supposed to stay home. I was supposed to marry Dale weeks before the Bridal Tour came to town, but I kept postponing. And now you are also being threatened. I don’t want anyone hurt because of me. I feel like I’m constantly making wrong decisions and as a consequence the people I care about are being hurt.”
He bent and kissed the top of her head. Did she even realize she was referring to him as a being she cared about? “You are doing the best you can,” he said.
She smiled up at him. “You’re just saying that because when I ran away, I ended up on your ship.”
“True. I will always praise you for doing what you had to do to make your way to me.”
She chuckled and pushed out of his embrace and continued walking alongside him. “You’re too much.”
He blinked, not understanding this human-speak. Too much of what?
“You know,” his Bride said, “when I left New Earth, my brother gave me a currency stick so I could purchase quarters at the station I ended up at and call him. My family knows I can never go back, and they expect I’ll end up on Omega 9 or somewhere and find a job and start over.”
He glanced down at her and noted that her profile offered a clear view of the heartsache etched on her features. In this they were the same.
“I understand,” he said. “I can never return to my home planet either. I do not know either when I will see my line again.”
“Are we both orphans?”
“Yes, we are.” He hadn’t thought of it that way before, but he supposed he was an orphan now. His parents had both returned to the eternal fires and he had no line. He had the Bounty Hunters and now he had his future Bride. If only he could convince her to test with him so he could properly claim her.
“You know,” he pointed out, “the easiest way to make this trouble with that human lazhul go away is for you to take my claw and test compatibility with me. Then you will see that I am your mate. I will then properly claim you and make you my Bride by Law. And then neither of us will be orphans, we’ll have each other. And you will automatically have not just my protection but all the protections of a citizen of Chronos, backed by the power of the Scales of Xylan Law. And then you will see how insignificant this human’s threats are.”
She turned away, sweeping aside his proposal. “Daxon, I wasn’t kidding. I’m not marrying anyone right now. And it doesn’t matter if you marry me or not, Gurpreet will still want to kill you to get revenge for claiming what he thinks is his.”
Obviously, this line of reasoning was illogical, but he managed to keep his thoughts on this to himself. He had vowed to not force a testing and he planned on keeping that vow to the letter.
They reached his quarters and walked inside.
“What a mess,” she sighed.
He kicked a few items out of his way and walked up to the food dispenser. His quarters had been perfectly fine when he’d first arrived. He received the ship the moment he gained his license. But it was true he’d been living there long enough to already collect a mess. He’d never been known for his cleaning skills. The space seemed small now with the addition of his future Bride. He wanted her safe and comfortable and there was only one chair for him and one bed. He glanced around. This would not do, he would have to fix this for her today.
Darcy of One took off her robe and hung it up in the restroom, then she began gathering a portion of the clothing he’d discarded on the floor and walked over to the restroom with a pile of laundry. He noticed that her walk was different than a female Xylan’s—his female’s hips swayed when she w
alked, and her heavy breasts bounced under the tunic. He wondered what else about this female was different.
She left the door open as she began placing items in the wall-unit for cleansing. “What are we going to do next?” she asked over the hum of the cleansing machine. “If you don’t want me to leave, and you’re insisting I stay with you because you mistakenly think I’m your future mate or something. Then what are we going to do?” She stepped back into the room, “You know I’m not doing this testing of compatibility thing with you, right? So if I stay it’s only temporary until you realize we’re not a couple and you give up. I already told you I don’t want to be anyone’s bride. I just want to be me, Darcy.”
He tapped the screen of the dispenser, ordering Traq for his female. “Do you enjoy your morning drink sweetened?”
“Yes, please…” She placed her hands on her hips. “Did you hear what I said?”
Yes, he did. He added more sweetener, unsure how he was going to convince his Bride to try testing with him. The only way he could be one hundred percent certain of her protection was if she was legally his Bride. He could of course easily protect her from this human and keep her hostage on this ship without their mating being confirmed, but it would be much easier and more pleasant with Darcy of One as his confirmed Bride. Plus, the added bonus of not having the annoying rich idiot following them would be nice.
“Yes, I heard your statement. I disagree with your conclusions, I believe we should try testing immediately.”
She started straightening the bedding on his bunk and fluffing the pillows. “You can’t keep me here forever, you know. You vowed that nothing would happen against my wishes and my wish is to be taken to the Bounty Hunter Station and then transferred to Omega 9.”
A growl rumbled in his chest. He wanted to tear his gloves off, grab her hand and show her the proof of their connection, but she was right, he’d vowed to respect her wishes. And also, force testing was against the Scales of Xylan Law and punishable by death. Although, for the first time in his life he caught a glimpse of the reasons why a warrior could lose his or her mind and try to force a testing. But still, he would never dishonor his future Bride in this way. Never. She had to request their testing herself. He had to know she wanted the start of their mating as much as he did.
“It will take three more diurnals to reach the Bounty Hunter station,” he told her. “When we reach the station, you can decide to stay there or ask to be transported to Omega 9, or anywhere else you want in the four sectors. Meanwhile, I will have these three diurnals to convince you of our need to test for compatibility. But if by the time we dock at the Hunter station you are still firm in your resolve to leave, then you will leave.”
“Really?”
“Yes,” he answered as he absently rubbed his claw against the pain blooming in his chest.
She smiled brilliantly. “Thank you. That sounds like a good solution. I appreciate you giving me that choice. It gives me peace of mind knowing I’ll make my own decisions. Now we just have to pray that Gurpreet doesn’t screw up any of our plans.”
Daxon grunted. “He won’t.”
They quietly ate breakfast together. Daxon had no idea how he was going to let her go if he reached the Hunter Station without having tested with his female. Not having tested with her or having claimed her meant he would legally have zero claim to this female. Normally he should be shrugging this off as any Xylan would for a male or female they’d wanted to test with but the offer was declined. But, he was built differently than other Xylan. His line had long passed down the gift of being able to scent their mates. He’d literally had no need to ever test, he could scent if a female was his mate or not. He and his siblings only bothered to clasp the hand of the Xylan they knew was going to be their mate; scenting told them ahead of time. To most Xylan a male or female that you were unable to test with was not a tragedy, it was something to frown over and then move on. It only gained importance if you’d hoped to become part of a line or merge Houses, and in this instance neither was happening.
But for Daxon, leaving this female behind meant he was leaving his mate behind without ever claiming her. He would therefore have to work harder to convince her that they were meant to be together.
They finished their breakfast and then Darcy of One insisted they clean the kitchen. She did most of the work, directing him in how to place the dishes into the cleanser he’d never bothered to learn how to use. Eventually the counters were cleared and the dishes were cleaned.
“Now, can I have a tour of your ship?” his female asked.
“Certainly, I was about to go to the bridge to send updates on my status to the Hunter Guild. I can easily give you a tour. It would be good for you to gain an understanding of the workings of this ship.” After all, it would become her new home.
And he guided her through the tight spaces. She walked down the short hallways in another tunic of his, which pleased him greatly to see his future bride dressed in his clothing. His scent now covered her. This was only right. She again wore the priestess robe, allowing it to sweep open in the front. Her strange shoes with the spiked heels clicked on the floor. He noted that her curvaceous body was barely hidden underneath his tunic, and her soft, bouncy human breasts were almost entirely exposed. This was not appropriate work wear. He would have to find more practical clothing for his female. The moment they arrived on the Hunter station he could give her all the credits she needed to purchase a new wardrobe through a clothing fabricator. He would make sure his female was not left wanting.
They toured the stasis lockdown units, then went to the bridge and into the small engine room. His Bride quickly became mesmerized by the monitoring screens and then opened the panels to inspect the interiors with a practiced eye. He stared at her in shock, surprised at her quick understanding of the workings of the ship.
“I thought you said you were a farm girl,” he remarked.
She laughed. “I was raised on a farm, but this is what I like doing,” she explained. “Back at home I was learning to become a mechanic who specialized in agri-robots. I was going to start an apprenticeship with a robotics engineer in Tulare, but I had to give that up in order to hide from Gurpreet. When I had to leave my home and move to Singapore I left behind all of my tools. I’m really sad about that, my dad had bought me my own set for my eighteenth birthday and I know it had been pretty expensive.”
He stared down at this fascinating female, unable to fathom the good luck that had fallen into his lap. A Bride who was a mechanic who specialized in robotics and engines? Hell yeah. This was better than finding a box of unmarked currency. “I would be very happy to have a mate who knew how to repair the systems of our ships.”
She let out an exasperated sigh. “Daxon, we’ve been over this. I’m not going to be your mate. We are just friends who are thrown together for a while. But I have to admit I would love to learn everything about fixing this ship.”
“Friends?”
She placed her hands on her hips. “Yes, just friends.”
He inhaled her scent, reassured by what he detected. “You say friends but you want to mate with me.”
She smacked his chest with an open palm. “Stop doing that! I said we’re friends and that’s what we’re going to remain, no matter what you can smell about me.”
He smirked. “Friends. Okay, I will accept this for now.”
She shook her head and went and opened the door to the inner conduit.
“You can fix my ship if it breaks down before we reach the Hunter station?” he asked.
“You think another breakdown is likely?”
“I replaced the power transformer myself before we left.”
She bit her lip. “I understand. I’ll check your work. And yes, I can fix it. Everything I’ve learned so far I can apply to this vessel, and anything I don’t know yet I’m happy to learn.”
“Come with me then, I have something to give you.” He led his female back to the storage closet in the cargo bay a
nd took out the secondary tablet. This one was a brand-new unit that was available as backup in case his own was broken. He removed the packaging, set it up and coded it to his female, linking it to his own tablet and also giving her access to the ship’s computer. He tapped on the screen, showing her all the schematics on this particular personal flyer, the instructional vids, and the mechanics and engineering coursework she could access. Then he handed it to her.
She clutched it to her chest with tears in her eyes. “Thank you, you don’t know how much this means to me. I promise I’ll get this ship working great. You won’t regret this.”
He knew he wouldn’t.
“One more thing… Do you think I could call my brother and tell him I’m okay?”
Daxon paused then answered, “Yes, I can create a security access for you. I’ll get it started and I can have that ready for you tomorrow morning.”
“Okay. I appreciate all of this, so much.”
“I appreciate you,” he answered truthfully.
9
Darcy woke up the next morning, her eyes sliding over to the mighty Xylan warrior asleep on the floor below her, quietly snoring.
She grinned, because even while snoring he was precious.
She rolled onto her side so she could contemplate his lickable, biteable skin to her heart’s content. His physique was so excellent she could sell tickets to this vantage point and be raking in the currency. Billions of females of a variety of species would subscribe to a live feed of nothing but Daxon innocently sleeping.
And he seemed to be wholly unaware that he was blindingly handsome.
His bulky form was built for the treacherous Illibrium mines. She suspected he wasn’t as tall as the other Xylan, not even reaching seven feet, but to her he was still freakishly tall. Amongst his species he was considered short and stout. His thighs were ridiculously thick and his chest wider than wide. And his veiny forearms and sculpted biceps…she could spend whole afternoons trying to recapture the beauty of his form in a journal full of sketches. His claws were thick and rough, as if all the calluses from his former work had not yet worn off.
Daxon's Hostage (Alien Bounty Hunters Book 6) Page 6