Venomous Heart

by Mary Auclair

  How can he still be swimming? It’s been over two minutes.

  But Arlen kept going, showing no signs of slowing. Soon, they broke the surface. Ava spat out the oxygen generator and gulped the fresh air in long, greedy lungfuls while Arlen tugged her tirelessly toward the shore. When he was close enough, he scooped her up in his arms, carrying her against his hot, hard chest until they cleared the water and he stood on the pebbled beach just beside his hover transport.

  Ava pressed her face against Arlen’s warm skin, her mind blank and her body still shaking from the remnants of her terror. Finding a large, flat boulder, Arlen sat her down on it.

  He wasted no time. He was all over her, moving with frightening speed, his features filled with gut-wrenching concern. His hands ran across her limbs, her torso, her face… until he finally knelt between her legs and lowered his head then exhaled a long, relieved breath.

  When he looked back up at her, concern wasn’t what twisted his features anymore. He wasn’t just angry, he was borderline mad with rage.

  “Are you physically incapable of following orders?” He bit out his words in a voice that was more like a growl. “What is wrong with you?”

  He didn’t wait for her answer; he grabbed her upper arm to jerk her to her feet, then half-dragged her toward the transport. At first, all she could do was follow his lead, led by his superior strength and size. Then she blinked and reality set in.

  Reality—and her temper.

  “Will you stop!” Ava struggled, trying to pull free from Arlen’s hold, but it was no good. He just stared straight ahead, ignoring her pathetic attempts at freeing herself, his face stony.

  His expression made it clear she wasn’t going anywhere he didn’t want her to go.

  It irritated Ava to her core, igniting that rebellious streak she’d nurtured inside herself during all those years of being Knut’s little pet project.

  As a last resort, she shifted her weight, planting herself squarely in front of him. The momentum almost had them toppling each other, but Arlen regained his balance at the last instant.

  “I know where the Exo-Heart is. I’m not going back without it.” Ava forced him to look at her. “And you can’t make me.”

  His furious gaze descended on her and her body answered in a flurry of instinctive responses. Her heartbeat jumped through the roof and her mouth was instantly dry, but she pushed the fear down. She was no prey, no matter how much of a predator he was.

  “I’m taking you back to the mansion, where I fully intend to lock you up then throw away the key.” His frown deepened and his already hard features took a cruel turn. “Do you even realize what could have happened to you?” He glared at her. There was no trace of mercy anywhere on his despicably handsome, stony features, only that icy authority and control.

  “You only care because of that stupid bloodmating! You only care what happens to me because of what it will do to you. You don’t care about Uril, you don’t care about me!” she shouted, throwing caution to the wind. “One hybrid more or less, it changes nothing for you. All you care about is your stupid duty, your stupid authority. Well, all I care about in this world is currently lying in a bed, dying!”

  Her raised voice seemed to shake Arlen’s expressionless façade some. His eyes flashed and he pulled her closer, his mouth suddenly twisting with rage.

  “Do you even know how much I risked for you? What kind of diplomatic incident you could have triggered if I’d found out you disappeared and accused Prime Councilor Aav of being behind it?”

  “Read my lips: I don’t care!” Ava was still shouting, her rage blinding her to what Arlen was saying. “All I care about is retrieving that heart. Because if Uril dies, then I truly have no one left…” At that, her voice did break. Because this was the first time she had told anyone—even admitted to herself—what would happen to her if he died. She’d always put Uril first, never stopping to wonder what would become of her if he died.

  “It’s been just him and me for so long that if Uril dies then I am truly alone. He’s the only one who cares about me.”

  At those words, Arlen stared at Ava. There was no trace of anger on his face now, just acute intelligence and maybe, just maybe, pain. Guilt bit her at the way she’d spoken to him. He wasn’t responsible for Uril’s sickness, wasn’t responsible for the way Knut had hidden the Exo-Heart away in his secret Vault.

  All Arlen had ever done was help.

  “I’m sorry.” Ava’s voice broke and tears filled her eyes. Arlen’s stance was still hard, but his eyes weren’t. “I tried waiting for you. I asked everyone I could to contact you. I told them Uril needed you, but they refused.”

  She was crying now, tears flowing freely, the tension and fear unleashed like a dam breaking.

  “He needs the Exo-Heart now. The excitement of the last few days was too much. He doesn’t have long.”

  Now that Arlen was listening, Ava decided to tell him everything. She had nothing to lose anyway. The Exo-Heart was the only thing that would keep Uril alive, and she couldn’t get it by herself. She needed Arlen to save Uril.

  So, she kept talking.

  “I was with Uril when we decided to burn the painting. It was the last thing of Knut we had, and we both wanted it gone. Then, when it was burning, I found this.” She retrieved the piece of paper from her pocket. It was unreadable now, the ink washed away and the soggy paper falling apart. “The last piece of the puzzle, the geographic coordinates of the Vault. I should have thought of it sooner. Of course it was in the painting. It was the one thing I hated the most. His way of showing me just how much I belonged to him.” She chuckled without humor. It was all so devious. It was just like Knut to do this.

  “You know the location of the Vault?” Arlen stared at her with a laser-sharp focus. “How do you know the Exo-Heart is still working? It’s been a long time.”

  “Knut always had a backup plan. That Exo-Heart was worth more than just the price tag paid by Uril’s buyer.” She spoke fast, her words almost tumbling over each other. “His entire reputation hinged on that Exo-Heart. Who would ever buy from him if he couldn’t deliver a healthy hybrid? No. The Exo-Heart is in the Vault, and it’s been preserved without sparing any expense, you can be sure of it.”

  “Okay.” Arlen lifted his chin. “I believe you when you say that the Exo-Heart is still there and functioning. I will send a team to retrieve it.”

  “No, you can’t send your Eoks for that. I need to go myself.”

  “Absolutely not.” Arlen stared at her like she was a crazy person. “I am bringing you back to the mansion.”

  “I knew Knut,” Ava insisted, not giving an inch, knowing she had only one chance to convince Arlen to take her to the Vault. “I’m probably the person who knew him best in his entire life. Knut had many things he didn’t want the world to know he possessed. Jewels and precious stones from before the Ring’s birth. Weapons, too. Things that would make you shudder. Things he wouldn’t leave behind without a fight.” Her voice died down to a whisper. “You can’t just storm the Vault.”

  Now she had his full attention. Arlen listened, his face serious. “You will tell me where this Vault is.” It was an order, given by one accustomed to authority. “This is bigger than you think. Trust me.”

  Ava stared at him, her heart beating hard, her mind full of fear. Because this was the biggest gamble of all. She couldn’t let Arlen go back to the mansion and plan some sort of attack on the Vault. If she knew one thing about Knut, it was that he was always a step ahead. A frontal assault would be just the thing he had planned for, and she couldn’t risk destroying the Exo-Heart if he had booby-trapped the Vault.

  “Give me the coordinates, Ava.” Arlen’s eyes were cold and sharp; the Commander to very tips of his fangs. “You’re the only one left who knows them.”

  There it was. Her last bargaining chip. After that, she would have no leverage over the Eoks, or over anyone else.

  “No. I’m not telling you anything. I’ll sho
w you where we need to go.” She lifted her chin as Arlen scowled, transforming his smooth authority into a terrifying mask of domination.

  “You’re taking me with you.”

  Arlen

  Arlen stared at the small, infuriating female, too shocked to say anything. It didn’t last long. “Absolutely not. You are going back to the mansion, where you will be safe. I will go back for the Vault’s weapons and the Exo-Heart, but taking you with me is out of the question.”

  Ava sustained his gaze, not flinching as he spoke harshly with the full weight of his authority. All she did was lift an eyebrow, clearly not impressed. Frustration welled up in him and he inched closer, intent on nipping her defiance in the bud.

  “I cannot allow you to come to any more harm than you already have.”

  He shut his eyes against the vision of Ava, trapped under tons of water, her eyes full of terror. He had almost lost her and that had awakened something inside him, something that was meant to stay buried. The instant her scream reached his ears as the water flooded the cabin, he’d known.

  He couldn’t live without her. This wasn’t an attachment born of the Mating Venom. This was deep and strong, something that couldn’t be dissociated from him any more than the muscles around his bones or the skin covering his body.

  Ava was exceptional; smart and strong. She was too damn dedicated to be tied down to a broken soul like he was. But she was, and he would die before allowing her to come to harm.

  He opened his eyelids to see a pair of the most beautiful eyes looking up at him. Not with fear or with anger, but with what was dangerously close to concern. She cared for him. Ava tilted her head and inched closer, the faint smell of her fear still emanating from her, slithering inside his nostrils, waging war on his sanity.

  She should never be afraid. She should always be safe, always be happy.

  The insidious, sweet and tangy taste of the Mating Venom spread over his tongue, instantly entering his bloodstream. The effect was instantaneous, and a rush of lust rose up from deep within his body. The impulse to grab her by the scruff of the neck and plant his mouth on hers, to press that soft, pliable body against his hardness was overwhelming, and he nearly gave in to it.

  “You are my responsibility.” Arlen spoke with a formidable dose of self-restraint. “I simply cannot bring a civilian—especially a female, medical doctor civilian—into a danger zone.” He moved to take her the rest of the way to the transport but she stepped quickly out of his reach.

  “The Exo-Heart is too fragile to be moved by someone without medical expertise.” She shook her head and that stubborn streak he had come to recognize was visible on her expressive, dainty features. “I need to be there to make sure we can transport it safely.”

  “Something is going on in the Southern Hemisphere; something big, and something bad.” Anger and fear for Ava’s safety mixed with the perverse effects of the Mating Venom, and Arlen felt himself step closer to her. His hands moved of their own accord, and his fingers flexed like he was preparing to grab her. “You would put the lives of everyone on this planet at risk, just to save one life?”

  “No.” She shook her head but didn’t show any signs that she was listening to reason. “You would. If you refuse to let me come with you, you’ll be the one who puts them all in danger. They are your responsibility, you said so yourself. What is my safety compared to all of those lives?”

  Nothing. One life is nothing. Except yours. Your life is everything now.

  “You would withhold information that would endanger all of your other patients?” He frowned. She was a doctor, and a good one. No, this was a bluff. “Information that would endanger Uril?”

  “Uril is dead if I don’t bring the Exo-Heart back in the next few days.” She swallowed, then her face took a sudden hard expression, one full of pain and anger. “You’ve seen how the others treat me. I will never be one of them, so why would I care what happens to them? They’re not my responsibility anymore. Only Uril matters to me now.”

  “You’re bluffing.”

  Ava shrugged, then lifted her eyebrows. “Try me. See if I care what happens to them once Uril dies.”

  He stared at her, long and hard. She was all prickly pride and stubborn beauty, her pale skin shimmering and wet, her luxurious red hair plastered to her face, dripping onto her clothing. The synthetic cotton of her uniform clung to her form, showing the slight curves of her small breasts and the slightly rounder curves of her hips.

  His seed stem strained in his heavy synthetic leather pants and he forced himself to look up. Her small face was set in hard lines and her eyes gleamed with a resolve he had seldom seen, even in all his time with combat-hardened warriors.

  She wasn’t bluffing. Or, at least, he couldn’t afford to think she was. Because Ava was right: the lives of all on Aveyn were his responsibility.

  “Prime Councilor Aav came here because she thinks Knut hid something on Aveyn, something that could plunge the entire Ring into chaos. It has to be related to what’s in that Vault.” Arlen shook his head, frustrated by the weight of all the information he didn’t have. “I’ve already lost two patrols in that area: two Relany officers and two Eok warriors. What makes you think you have a better chance than they?” He was trying to convince her but deep down he knew she had already won. He had no choice.

  “Because I know Aveyn like no one else—no one except maybe Knut himself,” Ava said confidently. “And because I know what they want, and how to take it away from them.”

  Arlen stared at her for a long time, then he finally nodded. “I will take you with me.” He returned to his transport and sent a distress signal to his brother. “But you will do exactly as I say.”

  Ava smiled, her lips stretching over her even, white teeth.

  “I am yours to command, Big-Blue-and-Mighty.”

  17

  Ava

  Ava had been following Arlen up the steep incline of the mountain for what felt like an eternity and a half. The temperature, which had been mild on the shore of the lake, was dipping dangerously low and quickly as the sun lowered over the mountain, slowly disappearing in a breathtaking display of colors against the darkening blue of the sky.

  They’d had to abandon the transport a while back to avoid detection. There was no telling who could be watching, especially since this was the location where Arlen’s past reconnaissance teams had gone missing. Ava had agreed when Arlen declared they had to leave the transport behind and climb the mountain on foot, but now she was beginning to regret it.

  There was no turning back now, though.

  She had also entrusted him with the geographic coordinates before they’d even abandoned the transport vehicle. She didn’t know why, but she just knew he wouldn’t betray her trust. That didn’t mean he was any easier to follow.

  She focused her attention on Arlen’s broad back. He was climbing over the slippery ground in long, confident strides, never hesitating, never wavering, sure of both himself and the direction they were taking. The Eok showed no signs of fatigue even as she was about to collapse in a defeated heap. She shouldn’t be surprised, she knew the basics of Eok physiology, but she was shocked anyway.

  For how long could he go on like that? Much longer than she could, that was for sure.

  The wind blew, freezing cold and harsh over the naked skin of her arms, penetrating the light cotton fabric of her uniform. Her teeth chattered, and not for the first time, Ava clenched her jaw so hard to it hurt to prevent the noise from reaching Arlen’s superior Eok hearing.

  This time, she must not have been fast enough though. Arlen stopped walking and turned around.

  “You’ve been shivering for over two hours now. We need to stop and warm you up.”

  Ava stifled her little snort of annoyance at the knowledge that despite her best efforts, he had been aware that she was only getting colder.

  “No,” she lied as a deep shiver wracked her body and her teeth chattered so hard, she bit her tongue. Blood pearled
inside her mouth but she shook her head. “We’re too exposed here. Maybe nearer the top, we’ll find shelter.”

  Arlen watched her, a dubious, unhappy expression on his face. Ava knew she couldn’t go much farther, and obviously he knew it too. The long, exhausting walk was too much for her, but it was hypothermia that was her true enemy. Her cotton clothing had been wet when they’d started their walk, and with the sun coming down, the temperature was growing frigid so high up on the mountain.

  “We have at least another two hours until we reach the top—three at your pace.” Arlen shook his head. “You can’t last that long.”

  Ava’s shoulders slumped at Arlen’s words. He was right; she couldn’t last three hours. She couldn’t even last one more. As her mind formulated the thought, it was like a dam breaking. All the fear and exhaustion washed over her at once and she wobbled and reached for a nearby tree, bracing herself against the large trunk.

  Strong arms closed around her, preventing her from falling. The next instant, she found herself cradled against the warmth of Arlen’s chest.

  “Don’t fight me, Ava.” He spoke without looking at her as he resumed his fast pace up the mountainside. “My body will keep you warm until I can build a proper fire.”

  Maybe he kept talking after that, maybe he didn’t. Ava didn’t care. As her cheek came to rest against the strangely soft grain of his skin, his warmth enclosed her, dulling her mind into a gray blur. She knew he was still moving and she tried to stay alert, to help him stay on course, but her eyes kept closing.

  Soon, they refused to open.

  She was floating within Arlen’s scent, in Arlen’s warmth. Dreams filled her exhausted slumber, dreams made of hard flesh and forbidden things. Time was lost as Ava embraced the blessed darkness.

  Then a delicious smell entered her nostrils, and she blinked. Her back was cold, but her entire front basked in enough warmth to make her comfortable. She blinked and stared, confused, at the dance of golden light on a rough stone ceiling. She turned around and saw she was lying on a thick cover of dry leaves beneath a wide piece of black leather.