by Hope Hart
Fuck.
Zarix
I’m close to Balix when I smell it. Blood. I keep one hand on my sword as I stalk down the trail. Knowing the Voildi, they have once again trapped someone for tonight’s meal.
My hands fist at the thought.
I follow my nose, and a growl leaves my throat. I was right. A girl-child has been caught, her leg pinned in one of the vicious traps the Voildi leave throughout their territory.
She is crumpled on the ground, and I have a moment of despair as I imagine her parents looking for their dead daughter. I frown, and then I’m kneeling by her side as I lean close.
She is breathing.
I examine the trap and wince. The muscle of her calf has been punctured, and her blood runs from her leg in a steady drip.
I grind my teeth. I don’t have time to spare taking this child to a healer. But only a monster would leave her. I am not a monster. Yet.
I lean closer and frown. Her clothes are strange, and I feel my eyes widen as I examine her body. She is not Braxian. In fact, she is not of any species I have seen before.
And she is not a child.
My mouth drops open as I take in the small, round breasts beneath the strange shirt that clings to her body like a second skin. This is a tiny, delicate female.
A female who is opening her eyes.
Those eyes are a deep blue, glazed with pain.
“Well,” she grinds out, her teeth clenched. “Are you going to help me or what?”
I raise an eyebrow. She speaks a language I have never heard before, and it is only the translator in my ear that allows me to understand her.
“I need to open the trap. This will hurt.”
She nods, and something in my chest clenches as her small hands clutch at the dirt of the forest floor and her eyes squeeze shut.
I study the trap and scowl. The mechanism has broken, and I will need to manually pull the metal prongs from her leg.
“I’m sorry, female.”
I begin my task, clenching my teeth as I start forcing open the trap. She screams, and I do my best to block out her pained cries as I try to bend the prongs.
After a few moments, she finally passes out, and I blow out a breath as I pull her leg free.
It’s a mess.
She needs a healer, and I know of only one who will take her with no questions. Unfortunately, she is located in the opposite direction of where I’m going.
Perhaps I could locate a hunting party from our tribe and convince them to take her with them?
The female begins to shiver. Her skin is cool, clammy, and pale, and her breathing comes in fast pants. I growl in frustration, but her condition makes my decision for me. I gently lift her into my arms, stunned at how light she is. I put my fingers to my mouth and whistle, and Rexi—my mishua—appears, leaning down to sniff at the female.
I gently lay the female in the saddle and then pull myself up behind her, taking her in my arms. Then, with one last glance toward Balix, I grit my teeth and turn the mishua toward Honit.
The female wakes once more, and again I have the sense of falling into her gaze.
“Help,” she says.
“I am.”
“Other…women. Ivy. Zoey.”
There are others like her? How did she end up alone and trapped in Voildi territory?
“Where are they, female?”
Her eyes roll back in her head, and she loses consciousness again. A blessing, for sure, given the state of her leg.
Her hair is long and dark, tangled and damp against my arm as I support her shoulders. She has delicate features, with large eyes and a mouth that seems too big for her face. Those lush lips have a blue tinge, and I urge Rexi into a faster pace.
We are not far from the healer, although I now will not make it to Balix before dark. I scowl down at the inconvenience in my arms, and my heart pounds faster as I take in the slight sweat on her brow.
I’m off the mishua and running toward the healer’s small hut when we arrive, and Sonis meets me at the door.
“I need your help.”
With her slitted dark gaze, she takes in the female in my arms. “I gathered.”
A small blue face peeks out at me from behind his mother’s skirts, and I raise one eyebrow.
“Who is this?”
Sonis gestures for me to step inside, and I duck my head as I enter, my eyes adjusting to the dim light.
She leads me toward the room she uses for healing, glancing back at me with amusement. “You remember my son, Javir.”
“I remember a boy of six or seven summers. This is a full-grown male.”
The boy in question grins at me, revealing gaps in his teeth.
“Have you been fighting again?”
He shakes his head. “Nuh-uh.”
“Then what happened to your teeth?”
“They fell out.”
I frown at his tone, which suggests that I am not asking smart questions, and then I remember. Unlike my people, whose teeth grow with us as we mature, his race has two sets of teeth.
Sonis is gesturing to the small bed, and I place the female down.
“Where did you find such a female?” she asks.
“In the forest. She had her leg stuck in a Voildi trap.”
Sonis’s eyes turn haunted, and she whirls away, reaching for the instruments she uses for healing.
The female’s eyes crack open once more, cloudy with confusion. “Where am I?”
“You are being healed.” I say. “You may want to pass out again. This will not be pleasant.”
Sonis elbows me aside and presses a cup to the female’s lips. “Drink this. What is your name?”
The female complies, and I wipe away a few drops that escape her lips.
“Beth.” Her voice is drowsy, and it doesn’t take long before she is unconscious again.
Beth. A simple, beautiful, foreign name. I roll it over my tongue, and then I move away from the strange female as Sonis gets to work.
“She is malnourished,” she says, and I run my eyes over the female’s body as I lean against the wall.
Her body is thin and fragile, as if she has gone without food for a long time. And yet her muscles are long and lean, toned in a way I have not seen before.
“She’s pretty, Mama,” Javir says, and I feel the corner of my mouth curl.
Sonis smiles at her son and then gets back to work. Thankfully whatever was in the concoction she gave Beth—I taste her name again—is keeping her under.
“The trap did some damage. This will take time.”
I nod. “I will go hunt.”
Sonis opens her mouth to protest and then slams it shut, nodding gratefully, and I take one last look at the strange female before I turn and stalk away.
Beth
I wake, gasping at the roaring pain that travels up my leg, making me writhe.
“Keep still,” a soft voice urges, and I crack open my eyes.
The blue woman. I thought I imagined her. Her eyes are eerie—with vertically elongated pupils. She leans forward, and I feel my eyes widen as I take in the thin shirt covering what looks like three breasts.
“You helped me,” I grind out.
“Yes. My name is Sonis.”
“What’s wrong with my leg?”
“The puncture wounds have been cleaned. However, there may be damage to your tendon.”
I slump back on the lumpy pillow. I’ve damaged my tendon before. If it’s bad, I’ll have surgery as soon as I get home.
I lift my head slightly as cool hands touch my feet. Then they move away, and the woman slides another pillow beneath my head so I can see what she’s doing.
“Your feet are in bad condition.”
“Yeah, that’s kinda how I roll.”
She cleans and dresses the cuts on my feet and then brushes her fingers over the thickened skin on the tip of my toe.
“I’m a dancer,” I say at the quizzical expression on her face.
She still
looks confused, but she nods and then looks up toward the doorway. I turn my head and meet the gaze of the warrior who saved me.
My skin prickles with awareness, and despite the excruciating pain, my eyes travel over his body. He’s huge and muscled, with longer hair than I’d usually expect to see on a man. His eyes are light brown, the expression on his face closed as he looks at me.
A long scar winds down the side of his face close to his ear, traveling down toward his neck. Despite the scar, his face is handsome and oddly compelling.
I clear my throat. “Thank you for helping me.”
“I had no choice.”
Well.
“You could’ve left me there,” I point out, and he simply tilts his head slightly, his eyes narrowing as if I’m a particularly annoying kind of stupid.
“No warrior would leave a child or a female in such danger.”
His voice is a low growl, and I nod, amused despite myself. “I’m sorry if I inconvenienced you.”
He inclines his head but doesn’t offer any platitudes, obviously missing the slight sarcasm in my voice. I’m in the most pain I’ve ever been in, but I feel a small smile cross my face at his grumpy demeanor.
“Why were you in that region alone?” he asks. “It’s Voildi territory.”
All amusement flees. “I was stolen from my planet with other human women and sold on a slave planet. We were then taken on a spaceship that crash-landed here. The Voildi convinced us they were rescuing us, and then a bunch of guys who looked like you appeared.”
His face hardens the moment I mention the word Voildi, his eyes darkening until I almost shiver.
“While they were fighting, we were stolen by another pack of Voildi.”
“How did you escape?”
“I knocked one of them out during a bathroom break and jumped into a river.”
Is that a hint of respect I see in his eyes? He nods, looking at me consideringly. Our staring contest, however, is interrupted as Sonis leans forward and hands me some water.
I sip it down before gasping as I lift my head and the movement jostles my leg. Fire rips up my body, and I grind my teeth.
Sonis hands me another cup. “Drink this.”
“I can’t spend my whole time unconscious. I need to help the other women.”
The huge alien leans forward. “It is dark. You can do nothing now. Rest.”
“Bossy,” I murmur as my eyes slide shut. “What’s your name?”
A long pause, and then I feel him step closer, brushing my hair off my face.
“My name is Zarix.”
Chapter Four
Beth
The pain is slightly better when I wake, desperate to pee. I sit up and gasp. Okay, maybe the pain isn’t much better after all.
My stomach lets out a long growl, and I turn as Sonis walks in again.
“You’re hungry,” she says. “I am not surprised. Do they not have much food on your planet?”
I blush. I’ve always been thin. Since puberty, I’ve been careful with what I put in my mouth. The days since we were abducted have been lean on food, and it’s showing on my body.
“I had plenty of food,” I mutter. She raises one eyebrow but hands me a plate. The scent of some kind of bread hits me, and my mouth waters, my hand shaking.
“Careful,” she says, gently helping me sit up and lean against the wall.
I take a bite, so hungry that I now feel nauseous. But as I swallow, my stomach begs for more, and I shove the bread into my mouth.
Sonis hands me some more water and a piece of fruit. Within a few minutes, my stomach is full.
“I’ll get you something else later. Small meals are best.”
I nod. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. I’m sorry, but I have no way to repay you.”
She tilts her head. “Zarix has been bringing us food for years whenever he happens to be in this area. After my mate died, I thought we would starve. You owe me nothing.”
She turns away, and I lean back again while she bustles around the room. Finally, I can hold it no more.
“Um. Do you have a bathroom?”
Her face is blank for a moment, and then she nods in understanding. “One moment.”
She disappears and then returns with the warrior—Zarix, I remember, taking in his huge form. His face is blank, but I narrow my eyes on him as he gently lifts me, and I could swear I see amusement in his dark gaze.
I gasp out a curse, and he freezes.
“I’m okay, keep going.”
Frustration hits me as the pain rips through me. How am I going to find Ivy and Zoey if I can’t even walk?
“You’re upset.” Zarix shifts his large frame so he can walk through the doorway, careful not to hit my leg against anything.
I tell him what I’m thinking, and he frowns as he walks down the short hallway.
“You think you will find them alone?” he asks.
“Either that, or I’ll find help.”
He tenses. “You would die within hours, female.”
“Wow, you’re such a charmer. How do you keep the ladies away?”
He glowers down at me and then opens the door to a small privy. He moves forward, likely about to place me on the toilet, and I shake my head.
“I’ve got this.”
He shrugs but gently lowers me to my good leg, and I use my hands to balance against the walls before pulling down my thin pajama shorts when he closes the door.
I’d give almost anything for a shower.
My skin crawls as I think about all the strange bugs and germs that could be attacking my immune system right about now. When I lift up the corner of the bandage on my leg, I can see blood staining my skin. I shudder but get on with my business before washing my hands in the small sink when I’m finished.
I open the door, and Zarix lifts me into his arms, cradling me against his huge chest.
I’m already exhausted, and I sigh as I let my head drop against his shoulder. He pauses and then continues walking until he places me on the bed again.
“What time is it?” I ask.
“Almost dawn.”
“I need to leave and get help.”
“You would die,” he says again, and I frown.
“I’m going to make those Voildi pay for what they did to us.”
“Sleep, Beth. We will talk when you wake.”
Zarix
I watch as the female falls back into a deep sleep, her long eyelashes resting against her cheek.
“Will you stay?” Sonis asks, and I shake my head.
“My mission is important. If I do not find out which tribe the Voildi are targeting, hundreds or thousands of Braxians could die, and the Voildi would be well positioned to take another tribe.”
“Would you leave her here?”
Sonis’s voice is bland, but I read between the lines. “You believe I should take her with me?”
“She will not stay here. Just like you, she has a mission. If the Voildi have others like her…” Sonis’s voice trails off, and she glances away. Both of us have lost loved ones to the Voildi.
“She is weak. And small. And underfed. She’ll slow me down.”
Sonis smiles and pats my cheek, her slitted eyes lighting with amusement. “Perhaps slowing down is just what you need.”
“We both know what happened last time I was responsible for a female.”
Sonis sighs. “What happened to Hana wasn’t your fault.”
I frown at her. “I will go check my traps.”
She sighs again but nods, leaning forward and pressing the back of her hand against Beth’s face as she checks for fever.
The female looks tiny and weak while sleeping. But when she’s awake, her eyes burn with a cool fire.
She meant every word as she promised vengeance against the Voildi.
I check my traps and bring back a small xyri. It will feed all of us today, and Sonis will be able to use it for soups over the next few days along with the udazin I
hunted earlier.
When I return, I find a spot to sit outside and sharpen my sword. I’m not at all surprised when a small form slips out of the hut and joins me on the large rock.
“Does your mother know you’re out here?” I ask.
Javir shrugs. “Will you go away again?”
“Yes.”
“Why? You should stay here.”
“You know why.”
“Because you have to kill all the Voildi.” He bares his teeth, showcasing the gaps where his front fangs will grow in.
“That’s right.”
“Will you take the pretty female with you?”
“If she insists.” I lean over and ruffle his hair, and he grins.
“She does,” a female voice sounds, and I turn.
Beth is standing outside, her face pale as she balances on one leg. Sonis has found her a long stick from somewhere, and her knuckles are white where she clutches it, resting most of her weight on it.
I study her body, my eyebrow rising with reluctant respect. I would expect the female to be resting after such a wound.
“You have two choices,” I say. “I can find a hunting party from my tribe and order them to take you back with them. You would be safe there.”
She shakes her head. “What’s the other choice?”
“I have a mission that involves the Voildi. If I’m right, it’s likely that the same pack that took your friends are involved in the plan to attack one of the Braxian tribes.”
“I’m going with you.”
I eye her. “It will be dangerous.”
“You don’t get it. I got free. I may be hurt, but Zoey and Ivy are still with those bastards. They would come for me if it was the other way around.”
“If you’re coming with me, you have to keep up. I don’t have time to stop and coddle you.”
She stares at me coolly. “I can keep whatever pace you set.”
I simply nod. Truthfully, I know Sonis is right. Beth will likely not stay here if I leave her. So I will take her with me and attempt to convince her to go with a hunting party when we find one.
“Sonis has a tub. I will fill it, and you may use it before we leave.”
A blush heats her cheeks as she gazes down at her body. I’ve likely offended the female. But she nods, gratitude in her eyes. “That would be great. Thanks.”