Venomous Heart

by Mary Auclair

  Jonah frowned and opened his mouth to argue, then closed it again. It was clear he had more to say, but Arlen was done. He had already lost valuable time arguing about his right to oversee the resources and weapons. There was nothing more to negotiate.

  Arlen turned his back on Jonah and faced his Relany officer. “Is the report on agriculture potential ready?” he asked the officer.

  “Wait a minute—” Jonah spoke behind him.

  Then he was cut off by the sound of the door being slammed open.

  “Who is the idiot who took away my access to the medical supply room?”

  Arlen turned to see a red-haired fury storming toward him. He watched, mesmerized, as the strange female planted her feet solidly in front of him. Startling purple eyes locked on him, gleaming with intense, cutting intelligence in a dainty, fine-featured face. Her skin was pale, but not the same sickly, lackluster pallor Jonah had. No, it was milky, almost luminescent. The color of a pearl, or the shimmering inside of a seashell.

  Wrong. Something is wrong with her.

  He could tell her form was slim and sinewy—elegant—even when clad in the shapeless synthetic cotton pants and shirt she wore. Her limbs were fine and long, but just a tad out of proportion. Too long, too finely boned. And those eyes, he’d never seen a color like this on a human.

  Then it hit him. This female wasn’t human. At least, she wasn’t all human.

  A hybrid. This isn’t supposed to be.

  “I’m guessing Captain Silent over here isn’t the one in charge, so who is?” The female’s eyes scanned the room, pausing for only a second on the Relany officers, then skipping over Jonah altogether before resting on Khal. “You? You’re blue enough. Are you the idiot in charge?”

  Arlen stared at the female while she glared at a flustered Khal. Feelings coiled and rose from somewhere deep inside him, somewhere dark and forbidden, full of things dangerous and feral.

  “I am.” Arlen spoke loud and clear. His voice was the same as always, despite the roiling darkness inside him. “I am Commander Arlen of the Eok armies.”

  “So, Big-Blue-And-Mighty, you’re the genius who took away my medical supplies?” Her light purple, almost amethyst eyes locked on him again and she cocked her head to the side slightly as she openly challenged him. “Well, can you tell me why and, more importantly, when you’re going to give it back?”

  Her stinging words shook some sense into him and Arlen felt his jaw clench as he squared his shoulders. “The medical supplies have been taken to a safe location in the absence of a qualified medical doctor.”

  The female’s mouth hung open and her eyes widened in shock, then reduced to slits.

  “And who told you there was no qualified medical doctor on Aveyn?” Her voice was soft but there was no mistaking the simmering anger underneath.

  Anger flared into Arlen as well, and he welcomed the familiar feeling.

  “There was no record of any medical doctor in the official report recovered from Minister Knut’s workforce.” He spoke with all the weight of his authority as Commander of the Eok forces. “Now, please vacate the control rooms. An officer will escort you back to the general population.”

  The female scoffed, then turned to the human male.

  “Really, Jonah?” She crossed her arms across her chest. “Isn’t this why you were elected, to communicate with our blue overlords? If I had known you’d lose your tongue when one of them was present, I wouldn’t have voted for you!”

  Arlen turned sideways to see a deep red flush covering the male’s cheeks. Jonah shot a glance at him, only to look back at the female with a sheepish shake of his head.

  “I had no idea he’d done that.” Jonah inhaled deeply, then turned to Arlen. “This is Doctor Ava. She runs the medical clinic.”

  Arlen’s gaze went from Jonah to Khal, then back to the female.

  “Doctor Ava?” As he insisted on the qualification, the female’s pupils moved in the sea of purple of her irises, elongating slightly in the characteristic manner of an Avonie. Arlen frowned and shot a quick glance at his Relany officer. The officer paled, then quickly turned to his screen, typing furiously on the keyboard. “If you truly have the medical qualifications, then why was there no record of your presence on site?”

  “Do you really think Knut advertised having a hybrid for a doctor? What do you think Prime Councilor Aav would have done if he’d put someone like me on the official payroll? That would have made for great publicity, don’t you think?” The female began talking in a singsong, mocking tone, her brows raised high and her eyes wide. “Come to Trade Minister Knut’s planet-estate, where you can buy the finest illegal hybrid the black market has to offer—if you can escape the Ring’s justice afterward!”

  She glared at him for long seconds, then rocked back on her heels and pursed her lips in a mocking half-grin. At the sight of her open derision of his authority, Arlen’s jaw tightened involuntarily. He locked in on her, the rest of the people in the room fading to the back of his mind, and he took a step forward, pulling the entire weight of his impressive Eok frame and uniform along with him.

  She didn’t even flinch.

  “If you know what is good for you, then you will not insult the Commander of the Eok armies on Aveyn.” Arlen spoke slowly, with exaggerated control. “As for the medical supplies, they will remain under my control until I can verify your qualifications.”

  She scrunched up her face, then uncrossed her arms, all traces of mockery gone from her features.

  “I have many critical patients in need of those medicines, Commander Arlen.” Her voice was soft now, and deadly serious. “Three of them won’t survive the next day without nanites to control their infections, and there is a pregnant woman about to give birth. If you refuse to give me access to the supplies, you’ll have to evacuate them, but I don’t recommend it. First of all, most won’t go willingly, and second, it might be more detrimental to their health than helpful.”

  He studied her delicate features for signs of treachery, but found only open concern.

  “If they won’t accept help, then they will be responsible for their own doom.” He heard the cruelty in his own words, and a jab of regret stabbed through him when he saw the pained shock in her eyes. “My position doesn’t allow me to compromise on the Ring’s medical standards. I am sorry, Doctor Ava.”

  “You can’t be serious.” She shook her head, then took a quick step forward until she stood right in front of him, close enough that her soft female smell entered his nostrils.

  Arlen tried his best to ignore it but he couldn’t help it. He inhaled deeply, coating his throat with her pheromones. She smelled soft and clean, female in every way.

  “What about the children, are they responsible for their parents’ fear as well? I have a three-year-old with pneumonia in there. She won’t last the night without the infection nanites. Please, I am begging you. You can remove me from my post when you get another doctor on Aveyn, but don’t punish them for what Knut did. He’s the one who paid for my medical training, and paid to keep it a secret.”

  Arlen looked down at Ava, at the fierce determination in her startling purple eyes, the way her mouth hung slightly open.

  “Representative Jonah.” It took a taxing effort—way too taxing—for Arlen to look away from the female and turn to the human male. “If you vouch for Doctor Ava’s capabilities then I will release the medical supplies to her control until a replacement can be summoned.”

  “I vouch for Doctor Ava.” Jonah nodded, his face grim, but without any hesitation. “She is fully capable of serving as a medical doctor. There is no need for a replacement.”

  Arlen turned his back on both of them and went to stand beside Khal. “That will be for me to decide. For now, you are all dismissed.”

  A second later, he saw Jonah leave out of the corner of his eyes. A short while later, the light sound of a female’s steps echoed off the walls.

  Doctor Ava was gone, but Arlen’s heart still race
d painfully in his chest. It took all of his years of hard-earned discipline not to turn around to watch her leave.

  That female is dangerous. More so than an entire year of combat at the Frontier.

  3

  Ava

  “When do you think I’ll see one?” Uril fidgeted on the steel table as Ava tried to get the reader to set its baseline for the heart hologram. “I bet they’re every bit as big and strong as I read about. You’re so lucky you met one!”

  Uril’s enthusiasm for the Eok warriors had only grown since Ava had told him about her meeting. He had always been fascinated by the different species of the Ring, the warrior types especially.

  “Lie still, it’s almost over.” Ava’s tone was cutting, and she immediately felt a pang of guilt when Uril stopped squirming and lay rigid on the medical table in the surgical room, subdued and remorseful. In a softer voice, she added, “They’re big and blue, and yes, I bet they’re strong too.”

  Uril nodded silently as Ava ran the short-wave scanning wand over his chest one more time, slowly moving the device until a clear picture appeared on her hand-held screen. She stared for a moment as her heart began to pound, then pasted a smile on her lips.

  “All done.”

  She turned away to face the long table filled with the sparse medical equipment she had. Ava put the wand away carefully, turning the delicate device off to buy herself some precious time, then braced herself against the table as her heart fluttered inside her chest and her mind swam in a thick fog. She shouldn’t have brought him outside yesterday. The exertion had enlarged the holes between the chambers of his heart even more. Uril’s time was running out, and she was no closer to retrieving the Exo-Heart. Panic fluttered inside her, vivid and sudden.

  Get a grip. Uril needs you.

  Ava mentally slapped herself across the face, then turned around to face him. The boy stared at her, his golden eyes serious and full of a knowledge way beyond his years.

  “It’s that bad, is it?”

  His voice was calm as he tugged his synthetic cotton shirt back over his slender chest. The way he looked back up at her, like he was concerned about her, instead of for his own life, made Ava want to grab hold of him and never let go.

  “No, it’s not.” She heard the lie in her words and Uril must have, too, because he crossed his arms across his chest and shook his head. “You’re going to be fine. We’ll get you the Exo-Heart in time.”

  “How can you be so sure? How can you even know the Exo-Heart is still viable?”

  She opened her mouth, a million good answers on her lips, but nothing came out. Because they were all lies.

  “I won’t let anything happen to you.” She reached for him, pulling the boy’s thin frame close to her. “I promise you that. I’ll turn over every rock on Aveyn if I have to, but I’ll find the Exo-Heart.”

  Uril’s arms closed around her and he hugged her back, and not for the first time, she was amazed at how strong this small, fragile boy was. His body was weak, flawed because of the rich Cattelan Duke who’d ordered his creation, but his mind was lined with a steely determination that surpassed even that of those big Eok warriors.

  She was still holding Uril to her chest when heavy footsteps in the hallway made her turn around. She frowned and Uril’s face took on a frightened, panicked expression. If the other humans tolerated her because of her medical skills, they truly hated Uril. And hatred had a way of slipping into violence.

  “Quick.” Ava pointed to the back of the room, to the curtain separating the surgical robot from the rest of the equipment. “Hide there until it’s safe.”

  Uril didn’t answer, but made his way behind the curtain just in time. The door to the surgical room opened, revealing the familiar slim figure of Edmila.

  “Doctor Ava? I’ve looked everywhere for you.”

  Ava sighed. Her useless altercation with the Eoks’ commander had taken too long, and now reality was biting her in the ass for it. “Is it Will Harl again?” she asked, already feeling annoyed with the difficult patient. “I’ll take care of him myself. It’s those ridiculous Eok warriors that made me lose time with their little stunt, withholding my medical equipment. I’ll be there in a second.”

  Ava smiled at Edmila, but her smile faded when she noticed the nervous way the girl bit her lower lip, her knuckles almost white from clenching her fingers around her small screen.

  “What is it?”

  But before Edmila could answer, a tall figure appeared behind the girl, dwarfing her to make her appear the size of a child. Sapphire blue skin glowed under the harsh light of the surgical room and the two palest, coldest blue eyes in the Ring settled on Ava.

  “Commander Arlen.” Ava resisted the urge to look back, to where Uril was hiding. “What are you doing here? Looking to loot more of my equipment? It’s all here, just help yourself.”

  The Eok’s brows lifted slightly at her jest but he didn’t answer. He probably thought she was a fool, but she didn’t care. Not after what he’d done. He could think whatever he wanted of her, as long as he didn’t mess with her patients. Or her staff.

  The Eok stepped inside the surgical room, glancing without curiosity at her meager supply of equipment. As he moved past her, Edmila all but flattened herself against the wall in order not to touch him. Ava wasn’t surprised. Despite having saved them from Knut, the Eoks were feared by the humans, especially the women. She didn’t really see what was so frightening about the big hunks.

  Except maybe this one.

  Commander Arlen returned his attention to Ava after his summary inspection.

  “You can call me Arlen, no need to use my official title.” His tone was cold despite his words. “And to answer your question, I am here to assess your needs.”

  At the Eok’s side, Edmila stared alternately between Ava and Arlen, looking like she was about to take off running at any moment. The girl was obviously scared of the large alien. For some reason, that made Ava angry. Angrier than she already was, which was quite a lot.

  “Really?” Ava pursed her lips and squinted her eyes. “And how do you plan on taking care of my needs?”

  As she emphasized the last word, Edmila’s eyes grew so big, Ava thought they might pop out and roll to the floor. A chuckle escaped the girl’s lips and Edmila covered her mouth with her hand. Proud to have helped relieve Edmila’s awed fear of the alien, Ava returned her attention to the Eok.

  Commander Arlen was staring at her with a choked expression on his grim face. He looked so outraged that a short laugh came to Ava that she wasn’t able to suppress. Then she immediately regretted it when his two light blue eyes reduced to slits and his tense jaw became tighter, tendons popping out on either side of his powerful neck.

  She had pissed him off, and not for the first time. Maybe she was suicidal after all.

  The thought sobered her some, because she wasn’t usually this foolish.

  She looked at him, then, really looked, without the fog of anger that had blinded her the first time around.

  His was a face made of determination and purpose, totally devoid of softness or humor. He had a large, slightly curved nose, marred by the three ridges of his species, and pale, ice-blue eyes. His cheekbones looked sharp enough to draw blood, and his bald skull was covered in tiny bumps.

  Not bumps, she reminded herself with a shiver that ran soul deep. Scars. Those were scars, and he’d put them on his skin himself.

  His jaw was square and his chin prominent, denying his full lips any appearance of indulgence or mercy.

  Commander Arlen was not like any Eok she’d ever met, and Ava had seen many of the large aliens since they’d landed on Aveyn. None of them had ever made her feel quite so small, quite so defenseless as this one.

  This one seemed to have a heart like a dagger carved from bone; merciless and arctic. There was no warmth in him, not a shadow of forgiveness to be expected. The shiver that had started in her soul spread to her skin as goosebumps covered her arms and shoulders.r />
  Arlen was tall, maybe a hair under seven feet, but that wasn’t what made him so impressive. After all, these blue aliens were all giants compared to most humans. No, what made Arlen different wasn’t as simple as size, or that rippling musculature that made him look like he had swallowed boulders and rolled them under his skin. What made him imposing, intimidating, was that aura of stern, pure authority that radiated from him like a thick shield. It made Ava want to bristle and rebel, to show him that he wasn’t in charge of her.

  The problem was, Arlen was in charge. And what he offered her was a great improvement to her current situation. She simply couldn’t afford to let her temper get in the way of her patients’ welfare.

  “Edmila will compile a list of what we need, the most important things first, then the little stuff.” Ava caught herself staring openly at the rich sapphire blue of his skin, at the myriad of small bumps covering every available inch. At those large biceps, exposed to her gaze in the sleeveless vest of his uniform. As Commander Arlen lifted a brow, a fast burn spread over her cheeks and she shook her head slightly. She wasn’t the girly, blushing type—far from it.

  She was the tough one, the girl who went through years of medical training alone, with teachers who saw her as a science experiment more than a person.

  She wasn’t about to become a drooling fool because of some alien warrior, no matter how handsome or sexy he was.

  “You should have it all by tomorrow,” Ava went on and forced herself to give Edmila a nod, then made a face at the girl as she stood there, still apparently stricken. Finally, Edmila regained her senses, then quickly turned around and walked away.

  “But I can already tell you the items we need the most. Painkillers are a priority. We have none, and with a broken leg needing surgery as soon as the infection is gone, I’ll need them. I’ll also need infection nanites, as well as diabetes nanobots treatments. Some asthma ventilators would be of use as well.” As she spoke, the weight of the human population’s needs settled over her, wiping away any remaining impulse to argue with the Eok. All those people were counting on her. She couldn’t let them down.