Published by EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING ® at Smashwords
www.evernightpublishing.com
Copyright© 2019 N.J. Walters
ISBN: 978-1-77339-971-3
Cover Artist: Jay Aheer
Editor: Karyn White
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
DEDICATION
For all of you who dare to dream.
UNEXPECTED ANGEL
Marks Mercenaries, 2
N.J. Walters
Copyright © 2019
Chapter One
Angelina Astoferus curled into a tiny ball behind the large green recycling bin, ignoring the fetid stench seeping from beneath the lid. Someone must have disobeyed the instructions and placed organic material inside, even though the metal label on the outside read strictly non-organic only. She blinked as the letters on the label blurred and a drug-induced fog threatening to overpower her brain. It was difficult to focus on anything. She was in danger of being caught if she didn’t get her act together.
Damn her uncle and his ambitions. She barely dared to breathe as the pounding of several sets of boots passed a few feet away. It was a security patrol and not her uncle’s men. Still it was too close for comfort. Her uncle would have people combing the docking station for her as soon as he discovered she was missing. Not because he missed her, but because she was a valuable commodity. They could be out there searching for her even now.
Gathering her waning strength, she peered around the edge of the recycler. Her limbs trembled uncontrollably. Her heart pounded, a side effect of the drug her uncle had slipped into her evening meal. It was as if he’d expected her to run and had made a preemptive strike to prevent it. By the time she’d realized something was wrong it had been too late.
She shook her head. No, not too late. After her uncle had carried her to her room, Angelina had managed to purge a good portion of the meal and wash out her mouth. There was still enough of the drug in her system to weaken her, but at least she had a chance.
She would not go meekly like a lamb to slaughter, or in this case, a bride to the altar. A possession to be bartered for money and power, her uncle’s true loves.
Angelina placed her palms against the dirty concrete floor and pushed to her feet. Chilled in spite of the constant temperature of the recycled air in the docking station, she pulled her dark cloak more firmly around her, making sure her distinctive white hair was covered.
The cloak was heavy, as the inside pockets were stuffed with bottles of water, a picture of her parents, what little money she had, and the documents she needed to prove her identity so she could gain access to her bank accounts. She hadn’t dared take more than the very essentials.
She swayed and leaned against the recycler for support as the weight of her cloak threatened to topple her.
She took a deep breath, left the precarious safety of the metal bin, and walked as fast as she could manage, keeping her eyes downcast. This was the only way on or off the small supply planet of Oasis. She was just thankful they’d docked for supplies before their final leg of the journey to the dark, barren planet of Gravas where her future husband waited.
She shivered and ignored the sweat that seeped down her back and made her clothes cling to her body. She had a plan, or at least the beginnings of one.
It will work, she told herself. It had to.
People hurried past, most of them concerned only with their own business. But a few of them stared as she stumbled by. She prayed no one would stop her, or worse, alert one of the many security men and women who patrolled the station. Her heart beat so hard she was sure they could hear it even above the din.
She couldn’t go back. Wouldn’t go back.
She raised her head and glanced around the busy docking platform at the various ships, desperately searching for a way out of her predicament. Some of them were taking on cargo while others had just arrived. There was a commercial passenger shuttle, but most were private vessels.
Then she saw him.
He was a tall man with midnight black hair tied at his nape with a leather cord. Even in the middle of all the chaos, there was something about him that drew her. He was the calm in the midst of the storm. His shoulders were broad and stretched the seams of the flightsuit he wore. He raised his left hand and pointed to a large container. The robotic cargo droid zipped into place, picked up the shipment, and whizzed aboard the ship that was docked next to the man.
The man was missing the pinky finger on his left hand.
As though sensing her scrutiny, he swiveled in her direction. Angelina got a glimpse of his face as she ducked her head and stepped behind a wide metal pillar. He was handsome in a rugged way. But what surprised her most was the shock of white hair in the front, such a contrast to the rest of it.
She held her breath and counted to ten. When she finally dared to peek around the pillar, the man had turned back toward his ship and was directing the cargo droid as it zoomed up and down the loading ramp. The man consulted his manifest and spoke to the droid. She couldn’t make out what he said, but he frowned and stalked aboard the ship.
This was her chance.
The world was growing blurrier by the second. She was running out of time. Already her limbs were heavy, making her clumsy when she lurched away from the pillar. She prayed no one was watching as she made her way across the platform.
The hatch of the ship was open.
Angelina ignored the fatigue pulling at her and stumbled up the ramp. The burst of adrenaline that had taken her this far had run its course, and she knew she would soon collapse. She had to find somewhere safe to hide before that happened.
Sweat beaded on her forehead and seeped down onto her lashes, making her eyes sting. Almost there. The rest of the world faded, her entire being focused on the entrance only steps away. She pushed herself hard and scrambled into the loading bay airlock. The huge metal door to her right was open, revealing a large cargo bay.
She heard voices nearby, and her heart nearly stopped. She was so close to freedom. Failure was not an option. The cargo containers were piled high, and she slid behind one just as two men stepped into view. Hunkering down, she did her best to blend in with her surroundings, letting her cloak cover her entire body.
“We’re missing one container, but the cargo droid has gone to retrieve it.”
Angelina risked a peek around the edge of the container. Sure enough, that deep voice belonged to the man from the cargo dock.
“Get it loaded so we can get the fuck out of here.” The man who growled the order was huge and scary with his hair buzzed short and a patch covering his right eye.
Angelina shivered and tucked her head against her knees. She feared she’d have nightmares about this man. There was no softness in his face, no sign of compassion. He appeared ruthless, the kind of man who would turn her over to her uncle without a moment’s hesitation, especially if there was a reward involved.
“I’m on it.” She liked this man’s voice. It was deep and made her shiver in a good way.
As much as she wanted to see him again, she didn’t dare risk another glance. Instead, she pushed deeper into the shadows and prayed she would go unnoticed. It seemed like days instead of minutes before the cargo droid rumbled over the metal gangway and into the hold. It deposited the final container, turned and zipped
right back out.
She held her breath as the ramp was raised and the hatch sealed. The men hadn’t come back this way, leaving her alone in the dark with the cargo. There was a security light at the far end of the room, but as much as she craved the light, she stayed where she was, for fear they might have activated some sort of security system.
The engines growled, and it wasn’t long before the ship eased away from the dock. Angelina prayed fervently for a clean escape. If she could get away from her uncle long enough to enact the second part of her plan, she’d be safe.
The ship dipped to the side, banking left and then dropping. This was it. She’d made it.
All the stress and worry of the past few hours fell away, leaving her exhausted. Now all she needed to do was find a man to take her virginity. As fatigue pulled her under, her last thought was of the man from the loading dock. Maybe he’d help her.
Chapter Two
Amos Marks was happiest when he was working on the engines of the Abigail, the deep-space trader owned by him and his brothers. He enjoyed the silence and the precision of the work. It kept his mind occupied and away from more bothersome thoughts.
But not even work could keep his focus this morning. It had been two days since they’d left Oasis, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.
“You okay?” Rory, his brother Kal’s woman, was a mechanic like him and since joining the crew a short time ago had become his working companion.
“I’m fine.” No need to worry her about something he couldn’t put his finger on. Whatever it was, he’d discover it eventually. His mind was very detail-oriented.
Rory stood, rubbed her hands over the legs of the new flightsuit they’d bought for her on Oasis, and gave him a thumbs-up. “Give it a try.”
They’d been doing maintenance on one of the three oxygen filtration systems that serviced the ship, replacing an older filter with a new one they’d picked up on Oasis. Amos walked to the control panel, switched it on, and watched all the levels. “Perfect.”
Some might think it excessive to have three filtration systems but not him. If one or any of them failed, Amos wanted his brothers to have enough time to get the ship to safety before their oxygen supply was compromised.
Rory packed up her tools. “If you don’t need me for anything else, I’m going to join Kal for lunch.”
“You go ahead. I’ll call if I need help.” Which wasn’t likely since he was used to working on his own. Plus, he knew Kal wouldn’t mind spending some extra time with his lady.
Rory waved and headed out the door, a sway in her step. Amos grinned as he put away the last of his tools. Who’d have thought that a woman could fit in so well with a crew of four brothers? But Rory did. He tried not to feel too envious of his youngest brother and what he’d found with Rory.
What was it like to go to bed each night with a soft, sweet woman in his arms, her bare limbs entwined with his?
His entire body tightened, and his cock surged to life. It had been months since he’d had a woman. There’d been no time to seek out companionship during their short stop on Oasis. He could only imagine how Kal and Rory would spend part of their lunch break.
Amos figured at least one of them deserved to be happy. During an explosion on their home planet a decade before, they’d all been injured in one way or another. Amos flexed his left hand and looked at the empty spot where his pinky finger had once been. Then he pulled up the left leg of his pants and studied the robotic shin and foot that had replaced his flesh and blood one.
He dropped his pant leg and heaved a sigh. They were all lucky to be alive. The worst of the injuries hadn’t been physical. No, the worst had been waking in the hospital to discover their younger sister was missing. In the chaos after the mine explosion, someone had taken twelve-year-old Abigail. They’d been searching for her ever since. Ten long years and no sign of her.
Now, thanks to Rory, they had their best lead in a very long time.
Amos cleaned the grease from his hands and rolled his shoulders. His stomach growled, a reminder it was past time to eat. He ambled to the supply room where he’d left a fresh loaf of wholegrain bread, the last of the ones he’d purchased on Oasis. It was a weakness of his and one he indulged whenever he could. Living and working onboard the ship meant they ate a lot of packaged and reconstituted food and little fresh.
Mouth watering in anticipation, he came to an abrupt halt when he realized the bench where he’d left the bread was empty. “Damn it.” One of his brothers must have sneaked in and taken it. It couldn’t have been Rory, as she’d been with him the whole time. “Bastard,” he muttered under his breath. Whoever it was, he’d pay for his little theft.
Now he was left without the lunch he’d been looking forward to all morning. He’d have to head to the galley and fix himself something.
He wondered which of his brothers would have stolen the bread. “Garth.” He practically growled his brother’s name. Kal was too wrapped up in Rory to care much about food, and Flynn would never do something so childish. That left Garth, who was known to have a warped sense of humor and a taste for wholegrain bread.
Amos paused, stopping in his tracks. The fine hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. Something or someone was watching him. The unease of the past few days coalesced into a deep knowing. They had a stowaway. Whether it was a friend or foe didn’t matter. Whoever they were, they were uninvited.
He cursed himself for not having a weapon, but he rarely wore one when he was on the ship. This was his home.
Fortunately, he was wearing his battlesuit beneath his flightsuit. They all wore the lightweight protective suits unless they were sleeping. It was a habit that had served them well many times. And he couldn’t be positive that Garth and Flynn didn’t sleep in theirs.
Amos eased over to the workbench and hefted a large wrench. It wasn’t much of a weapon and certainly wouldn’t be much help if the intruder had a blaster, but it was better than nothing. He could inflict some serious damage if the opportunity presented itself.
Maybe he was totally wrong. Maybe this was just another one of Garth’s ideas of a practical joke. Better to check it out and be sure than to put the entire ship on alert. After all, they’d left Oasis a couple of days ago. If someone had meant them any harm they’d had ample opportunity.
No, the more he thought about it, the more this seemed like something Garth would do to blow off some steam. He’d love for Amos to make a fool of himself by setting off the alarm.
If his brother was yanking his chain, he’d be tempted to use the damn wrench on him.
Amos crept across the large engine room, making sure his boots made no sound on the metal floor. He stopped and listened for anything out of the ordinary above the hum of the life-support systems and the purr of the engines.
There. Just off to the right behind the smaller backup generator. A small scuffing sound.
Certain he was no longer alone, he raised the wrench and made his way toward the sound. There was an alarm within a few steps of the area if this was a real threat.
He stepped around the generator and froze in shock. Curled up on the floor with what was left of his fresh multigrain loaf clutched in her hands was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Her hair wasn’t blonde. No, it was pure white. Her skin was flawless, and her eyes were the most unusual shade of violet. She looked delicate and ethereal, like something out of a book he’d seen as a child. “Angel,” he whispered.
Her vivid eyes widened, and her startled expression turned to one of abject fear. “How do you know my name? Has he found me?”
****
Terror filled Angelina. She wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go. There was no way off this ship, at least not one she was aware of. She’d done a little exploring the past two days but not much. The last thing she’d wanted was to be discovered, but hunger and thirst had finally driven her out of her hiding spot in the cargo bay. When she’d seen the loaf of bread sitting on
the workbench, she’d been unable to resist taking it.
Now she was paying for her mistake.
The man, who was holding a huge wrench in front of him, slowly lowered his hand back down by his side and crouched in front of her. He was even bigger than she remembered. His dark blue eyes seared her soul. She looked away, unable to meet his gaze.
“Hey.” He cupped her chin in the palm of his free hand and tilted her head upward so she was forced to look at him. “Who are you?”
She frowned at him. “You said my name.” Angelina nibbled her bottom lip. She was certain he’d called her by her given name. Has she misheard, or was he deliberately taunting her?
“I called you an angel.” He rubbed his thumb over her bottom lip, and her entire body heated. She fought the urge to squirm. “Is that your name?”
She thought about lying but figured it was too late for that. “Angelina.”
“Angelina,” he repeated. “Beautiful.”
She really should be afraid, not enthralled with the man. He was a stranger. “Who are you?” she shot back.
One of his dark brows rose. “You don’t know who you stowed away with?”
She shook her head, and he released a low whistle.
“Well?”
“Amos Marks and you’re on the Abigail.” His gaze flickered to the crust of bread in her hands. She automatically tightened her grip on her stolen meal. “And that’s my lunch.”
Her stomach growled in rebellion when she forced herself to hold it out to him. It hurt her to relinquish the first food she’d had in days. Her uncle had starved her most of the way of their journey. He’d wanted her weakened and compliant. Angelina couldn’t remember the last time she’d had a decent meal. Her water supply had run out this morning, leaving her desperate.
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