by K. D. Jones
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“With you,” he replied.
She frowned but kept going. He was beyond difficult. How did females put up with males acting this way? She’d have to find out from Cassie and Jaxon the next time she saw them. Kat was easier to talk to, but her cousin, Syd, was a gentle male and couldn’t possibly be as much trouble as her other cousins.
“Prima! Prima! Please take these as a token of my family’s good wishes,” an older male called out. His mate was standing slightly behind him nodding her head. There really was no way to turn him down without hurting his feelings. The Kiljorns were just as prideful as the Katierans were.
“Thank you, sir. I would treasure these…beads for many years.” She had to look down in the middle of thanking him to see what was being thrust into her hands this time. It had been like that all day. Merchants would come out to the streets to greet her and then thrust some item into her hands. She had to send Lucy back to the suite to get something to carry everything in. TarAK was furious, complaining the situation was a security nightmare.
Another male waving gold bracelets stopped her as he walked toward them briskly.
“Great, another bobble for the Prima,” TarAK grouched.
“Be quiet, TarAK, before he hears…”
A bright burst of red flames suddenly appeared where the merchant had been. Smoke filled the streets. People began screaming. AriELa turned around in a circle, stunned and in shock. The ground seemed to shake beneath her feet.
“Get down!” TarAK yelled at AriELa.
Lucy leapt toward AriELa, knocking her backwards on to the ground. The air left her body. The tall female warrior looked down into AriELa’s frightened face. “Were you injured?”
AriELa couldn’t speak. She had just seen a man die horribly. Buildings were falling down around them and everyone was yelling from fear or screaming in pain. It brought back unwanted memories of when her family had been attacked.
*****
TarAK was in so much pain. That had been his first inkling that he was waking up. The next thought was of AriELa. Where was she? Was she harmed? He opened his eyes to a dark and smelly room. The walls were all metal. He assumed he was on board a ship. He tried to sit up only to fall back on his back. He had chains on his arms holding him down. He heard movement to his left, he wasn’t alone.
“Easy, Katieran. You will bleed out more quickly with sudden movements. On second thought, you might want that in preference to what the Morins plan to do to you,” a gravely male voice called out through the darkness.
“Who are you?” TarAK asked trying to see the male.
“That is a question I do not know the answer to anymore.”
Oh Kitana! How long had this poor male been here? He must have asked the question out loud because the response from the other male was foreboding.
The prisoner answered with no emotion in his voice at all. “Long enough to forget who I am, but not long enough to have worn out my usefulness. That was until now. With you here, they no longer need me. Maybe I will finally be put to rest.”
“I don’t plan to stay here,” TarAK told him.
“That’s what I said too—seven years ago.”
Chapter Thirteen
“Come on, Prima, wake up,” Second Lieutenant Lucinda Daniels called out the younger woman’s name as she shook her shoulder a little.
AriELa moaned as she slowly opened her eyes. “What happened?”
“Wait for it, it will come to you,” Lucy told her.
Slowly the fuzziness from her head faded and AriELa was remembering the events that led her to where she was. She had been shopping outside of the Prime building. She had wanted to walk the streets and meet some of the people.
The female warrior, Second Lieutenant Daniels, and TarAK had gone with her, despite TarAK’s insistence that they remain inside the suite. One minute everything was fine, she was talking to people who greeted her warmly. A male vendor was running toward her with gold bracelets he wanted her to have.
Then the next moment, loud explosions went off all around them. Strong, sturdy buildings crumpled down. The male vendor with the bracelets burned right in front of her.
AriELa sat up too fast and it made her head spin. She remembered now. There had been several explosions and she saw part of a building collapse with people still inside. She had screamed. A couple of Morins had been on the street and they came after AriELa. TarAK tried to block them with his body and they shot him down.
She remembered the confusion and turning to find the Morins, her people’s enemy, standing before her. They had taken her, Lucy and TarAK on board their shuttle. They had hurt TarAK. He had not regained consciousness by the time they reached the Morin Transport ship. Then she was confronted with the Morin Leader, Krosis. The same one that had attacked her family all those years ago. She had to get off this ship and she needed to find TarAK.
“Where’s TarAK?”
“Easy, Prima. We don’t want them coming back until we are ready.”
Lucy had squatted down beside her and held AriELa’s slim arms in her hands.
“Where are we? Where’s TarAK?”
“I believe we are all on board the Morin Transport.”
“Are we still in the Kiljorn Solar System?”
“I’m not sure but…what the hell!” Lucy stood and started pacing the small room that they were locked inside of.
AriELa watched the warrior female as she talked and yelled, but there was no one else besides the two of them in the holding room. She rubbed her forehead back and forth with the palm of her hand. Lucy acted as if she was having a whole conversation with someone who was invisible. AriELa worried that her safety and TarAK’s life was in an unstable person’s hands.
Lucy came back over to AriELa with a determined look in her eyes. “How good are you at playing possum?”
“What is possum?”
Lucy sighed, “I need you to lay back down and start moaning like you are in extreme pain.”
“Why would I do that?”
“In order to get us out of here, I need for them to bring a medic for you. I want you to pretend to be in really bad shape. Moan about being in extreme pain. Keep your eyes closed so they can’t see if you are telling the truth. Can you do that?”
“They will be able to tell with their senses that I am not truly hurting,” AriELa told her.
“Damn. I forget about you people and your super senses. There isn’t much choice if we plan to get out of here. I am going to have to hurt you.”
“What?” AriELa slid backwards on her backside away from the crazy female.
“I have to hit you just a little so they will believe you are hurt.” Lucy knew she was going to be in big trouble for this. But it was the only way she could think of to get the Morins to open the holding room door.
“I don’t know. I’ve never really been hit before.”
“Never? Not even when you were little? You didn’t wrestle around with other kids?”
AriELa shook her head sadly. “There were not a lot of kids my age growing up. My cousins were much older and could have hurt me too easily. They treated me like a priceless, breakable object to be protected at all times.”
“Well, Prima, when we get out of here and you return home, they can go back to treating you that way. Right now, I need you to put on your big girl panties and take one for the team,” Lucy told her, giving her a stern look.
“I don’t wear panties and there is no team.”
Lucy ignored the comment about panties. That was a question for another day. “The team is right here. You and me. We are the team. We, the team, need to get out of this holding room so we can find a ship and get the hell out of here. Unless you want to remain and let that Morin Leader get his hands on you. While you were passed out, I got to hear the Morins discuss their plans for us. It involves a lot more pain than the tap I plan to give you. So what will it be?”
AriELa wasn’t sure about thi
s plan, but the warrior female seemed to know what she was doing. “Hit me.”
“Okay, on the count of three I will hit you on the side of your chin.” Lucy stood close to her and pulled her arm back. “One…two…three!”
“OW! Kitana that hurts!” AriELa gently touched her chin.
“It will for a day or two, but it will be worth it if our plan works. Make loud sounds.” Lucy straightened up and went back to the locked door.
AriELa laid down and curled up on her side in real pain. Then she started moaning loudly.
Lucy pounded on the door yelling at the top of her lungs, “Open up! The Prima needs a medic!”
The door opened immediately. Two large, bald Morins stepped into the room. “What is all the noise about, female?’
Lucy pointed at AriELa. “The Prima is sick. She needs a medic.”
“What’s wrong with her?” one of the Morins asked as he circled around AriELa’s curled up body on the floor. He licked his lips. It was obvious he found the female in pain a turn on.
“How am I supposed to know? I’m not a medic, but your leader is going to be pissed if you let something happen to his prized possession.”
The Morins grumbled something but used their Comm Links to call for a medic. The men left the room and shut the door behind them. Lucy walked closer to AriELa and whispered, “Good job.”
“You hit really hard. What now?” AriELa whispered back, trying to control the pain she was in.
Lucy gave her a devilish smile. “Now I get to show these assholes what a female warrior from Earth can do when she’s pissed.”
*****
“Leader LarIS, do you have confirmation?” Commander TylOR asked anxiously.
“Yes. They are straight ahead.”
“Are you reading one of the Morins?” AshOR asked.
“No, an Earth female. A warrior I believe.” He actually could read many on board, but he narrowed it down to two. The female warrior and…the other female. He needed to get to the other female quickly. She was being abused and something in him demanded that he protect her. She had an interesting mind. This female that he had yet to meet, could actually block his psychic connection with her.
“Second Lieutenant Daniels,” AshOR acknowledged. He looked relieved to know the female was okay.
“What of AriELa?” Prime Commander KydEL asked.
“She is safe for now. They are attempting to escape. The female warrior is fascinating.”
“No! Tell them to remain where they are,” Prime Commander KydEL ordered.
Leader LarIS was quiet for a moment. He frowned and then chuckled. “You will have to give that order Prime Commander, the females are not going to listen to me. But if it makes you feel any better, they now have a weapon.”
“No, it does not make me feel any better,” KydEL snapped.
Jaxon rubbed his arm to get his attention. “Daniels will protect her. I trust her.”
KydEL nodded, but the worry never left his face. He never should have let AriELa come back to Kiljor without him. He failed to keep her safe.
“We’ll get her back,” Jaxon promised him, squeezing his hand.
“Damn straight we will.”
*****
TarAK groaned. There wasn’t a place on his whole body that did not hurt, and he was bleeding onto the floor. He needed to concentrate. Use his pain to focus on getting out of the holding room and finding AriELa.
“Don’t make fast moves. That will only make the pain worse and cause you to bleed more,” the stranger’s voice called out.
The door opened and light poured inside the room. TarAK had to squint to see the shadows take form. A tall Morin walked in followed by a small…boy. The boy had a shaved head, but his skin and eyes looked nothing like a Morin. Who was it? The Morin addressed the prisoner in the corner.
“My old friend, our time has nearly come to an end.”
The stranger stood slowly and attempted to walk toward the light. He had a pronounced limp and the chains binding him clinked heavily against the floor. “I have never been your friend, Krosis.” He turned to address the boy with the shaved head. “How are you, son?”
“Silis is fine, aren’t you, my boy?” the Morin asked the child who nodded his head as he looked worriedly at the prisoner. “He’s just excited, you see. He finally gets to meet his long lost sister.”
The prisoner tried to move closer, but the chains kept him from going any further. “Krosis, what nonsense are you telling now?”
The Morin named Krosis laughed an evil laugh. “We needed more females for testing. It was quite a surprise to find in our recently acquired collection a female that escaped me so many years ago. Though you may not remember your own name at times, I bet you remember her name. Say it for me.”
There was a long pause as the stranger lowered himself back to the floor. He whispered one name with hopelessness, “AriELa.”
“That’s right. She may have escaped once, but it will not happen again. Come, Silis, let us go get ready to meet your lovely sister.” The Morin led the boy out of the room and the guards locked the door behind them.
TarAK stared at the stranger in complete and utter shock, “How do you know AriELa?”
*****
“Come on!” Lucy yelled at AriELa who was kneeling at the fallen Morin’s side. They had sent a medic inside alone. He carried a medical scope to heal AriELa and a laser gun. Lucy knocked him out and took his laser gun.
“We might need this,” AriELa said as she grabbed the medical scope and followed Lucy out of the room they had been kept in.
“This way.” Lucy pointed down a corridor for AriELa to go.
AriELa paused. “Is that where they are holding TarAK?”
Lucy shook her head. “I don’t know where TarAK is, but I need to get you off this ship. That’s my first priority.”
“No.” AriELa shook her head and went in the opposite direction.
“Stop, Prima!” Lucy ran after her, pulling her to a stop.
“I won’t leave another person I love on board a ship full of Morins. That’s what happened to my family. I couldn’t do anything back then, but I won’t leave TarAK like that now.”
“Let me get you to safety first, then I’ll come back for TarAK.”
“I leave with TarAK or I don’t leave at all!” AriELa yelled back.
“Damn it!” Lucy started to pace and talk to herself again. “She won’t leave without TarAK. No, it would take up too much time and energy to knock her out and carry her myself. Because I am only human, asshole. Just tell me which way to go. Fine.” She turned back to look at AriELa. “Do you have a Comm Link?”
“No, they took my Comm Link when we boarded the transport.”
“Uh…who were you talking to?”
“I can’t explain right now. If you want to find TarAK, we need to get going. Follow close behind me.” She started down the corridor in the original direction she had wanted them to go to, but then veered to the left.
AriELa kept up with the female warrior, but she had to run a little to do so. Lucy motioned for her to stop moving. She made a signal with her hands that AriELa didn’t understand. She shrugged her shoulders and shook her head.
Lucy looked at her with frustration then mouthed slowly and quietly, “STAY HERE.”
AriELa watched as Lucy disappeared down the corridor. She felt her body shake a little with fear. She had to force herself keep it together. She couldn’t lose control now. There were weird sounds of grunting and then a large thump. She felt relieved when Lucy came back to her.
“Come on, I think I found your man.”
She followed Lucy down the dark corridor and passed a couple of Morins who were laying on the floor. She was amazed the female took out two of them on her own. “How did you do that by yourself?”
Lucy looked down and smiled. “They didn’t expect me.” The female bent down to look at the door. “The door is locked. I am not sure how to get past…”
AriELa p
laced the key in front of Lucy. The warrior female looked at her in surprise. “The big one had the key in his hand.”
Lucy used the key and unlocked the door. It slid open, shining a beam of light into the dark room. AriELa wanted to run inside to search for TarAK, but Lucy pushed her back behind her. They heard a moan and then a male’s voice calling out.
“AriELa…AriELa…AriELa.”
“TarAK!” AriELa recognized his pain filled voice and pushed past Lucy to run inside. He was laying on the floor. Blood was on his clothing and he had bruises. She practically threw herself across the floor to get to him. “TarAK, my love.” Tears were streaming down her face.
“AriELa? No, you can’t be here. You must go.”
“Not without you.” She wiped her tears away and pulled the medical scope up out of the hiding place she stashed inside her dress pocket. She used it to identify his injuries. There were so many.
“We don’t have time for this, we need to go,” Lucy told her while guarding the door.
“I have to give him something for the pain so he can be moved,” AriELa responded angrily.
“Listen to the female, AriELa, you must leave.” That came from somewhere in the corner, in the shadows.
It was a stranger’s voice but was vaguely familiar somehow. She finished giving the shot to TarAK and searched the darkness. “Who is there?”
“I am no one that matters. You are all that matters. You must leave,” the stranger’s voice said.
That voice, it was like the one in her dreams. Whenever she dreamed of her family, that voice was there telling her stories, praising her. It was the voice of her father. “Who are you?” she demanded.
She had used the key to unlock the chains binding TarAK to the floor. He was able to sit up now. He hated being so weak. He felt like a failure because he could not protect his female. “We should go.”