by Sadie Carter
“Is he a sex maniac?”
“Who knows?” Rye asked. “We just need to make certain we avoid him.”
Gladly.
“By the way where did that come from before?”
“What?” she asked, pretending ignorance.
Rye raised his eyebrows as he grabbed them each a drink from a waiter. He handed hers to her, even though she had no intention of drinking it she knew his intention was that they blend in. He steered her to the side of the room.
“Distracting the guard with that sexy routine. I thought you were going to follow my lead?”
Was he annoyed at her? Did he think that was who she really was?
“Did I do the wrong thing?”
He turned to glance down at her briefly. “No way, babe. You were fantastic. I’d take you as back-up on a mission anytime.”
Warmth filled her and surprisingly, she found herself smiling.
“We need to do some recon.”
“There are more people here than I thought there would be.” Hundreds in the palace alone, she could sense each one.
“What about below the palace?”
She searched, pinpointing those below her. “I think there’s more than one level. Some seem more faint than others. Ten there. Then four. Nineteen altogether.”
“So if that includes Koran, Mila and the others then there are approximately nine guards.”
“Most of them seem to be in the back part of the palace.”
“Then that’s where we will head. Anyone asks what we’re doing then we tell them we’re searching for the bathroom.”
“Oldie but a goodie huh?”
“As an excuse it works every time.”
“Every time?” she questioned as she followed him out of the room and down the passage. They rested their glasses on one of the statues. What the hell was that depicting? Was that? Oh, holy shit. Her face blushed bright red as she realized she was looking at a ménage with two men and a woman. One man appeared to me in her ass, one in her pussy. And compared to the lizard women she’d seen, this woman had hugely exaggerated breasts.
“Jeez Louise, I’m going to have to wash my eyeballs after this.”
“Not getting any inspiration?”
She slapped Rye’s arm. “No.”
“Do you know that’s the first time I’ve teased you when you didn’t take it seriously. In fact, I stopped teasing you when I realized you were taking me literally.”
“Never had you as the teasing type anyway.” Had she done that? God, probably. What a bore she must have been. Always so serious.
“I’m not. But I wanted to see you smile.”
She didn’t really know how to reply to that. She’d never realized Rye cared that much. He’d rescued her, saved her life and he had continued to look after her. But he’d always kept his distance.
“You always seemed so scared of me, of everyone. You kept up this distance. It’s nice to see you relaxing. Finally believing that you’re safe.”
Safe? That wasn’t exactly how she felt right now. But she understood what he meant. Over these past few days, despite the circumstances, she had relaxed more. She’d let people close, Willa, Rye, Thor.
“No matter what happens, I will be here for you. You understand?” His voice was low, gruff, but she knew he meant every word.
“You’re kind of the last person I ever expected to have a heart-to-heart with. Especially in this situation.”
“You tell anyone; I’ll have to kill them.”
She noticed he said kill them and not her. It was a silly thing to feel happy about. But she did. Rye meant it when he said he would look out for her.
They came up to a corner and she grabbed his arm. “Two people are up ahead,” she warned him.
He nodded. “Stay here. I’ll check it out.”
Moving forward, he peeked around the edge while she nervously kept watch. She had no idea what she would do if she saw someone coming. Luckily he was back within seconds. Grabbing her arm, he moved her briskly away from that corridor.
“There’s a guarded doorway.”
“Entrance to levels below?” she asked as he skirted the ballroom.
“Possibly.”
“Now what do we do?”
“I want to have a scout outside. I think it would be best if I stashed you somewhere safe.”
Uh-uh, not happening.
She shook her head. “No, I’m coming with you. I won’t slow you down. But you cannot leave me here alone.”
“Fine. But you do exactly as I say. Now, I just have to find a way to get us out of here.”
He moved them forward.
“You! What you do here!” A rough, guttural voice questioned them. Heart beating wildly, she turned to find a lizard man standing behind them.
Thankfully, he wasn’t dressed in the black armor of one of the guards, instead he wore a pale blue jacket like the waiters from the ballroom.
Rye quickly plastered a charming smile on his face. “We were looking for a bathroom and got lost.”
The lizard man seemed to eye them suspiciously, but it was hard to tell with their beady eyes and lack of facial expression.
“You go back ballroom. King come soon.”
“Of course. We would not want to miss the King.”
Yes, they did. That is exactly what they’d been hoping to avoid.
“I show you. Follow.”
Stomach jangling nervously, she followed the oh-so-helpful waiter back to the ornate ballroom. Entering, it seemed that even more people were here than before. Rye pulled her slowly over to the side of the room.
“We’ll wait until he leaves then get out of here.”
“How can you even tell which one he is?” They all looked the same to her.
“I know.” He nodded over at the corner, where a waiter offered some guests glasses of blue liquid.
“I have a bad feeling about this.”
“I didn’t believe Ernie when he said it was you, Lucy. I owe him fifty credits, I see. Still, I am surprised he recognised you, dressed as you are. Had I known you would look so beautiful dressed in such finery, I would have endeavoured to dress you such every day. Instead, you insisted on dressing in dirty rags. Now I wonder if you were trying to hide that luscious body from me?”
Her stomach dropped at the sound of his voice. She didn’t want to turn around. The monster couldn’t be here if she didn’t see him. That’s the way it worked, right?
Rye turned. “Mortaf. Didn’t think this would be your type of affair.”
She resisted the urge to grab Rye’s arm and turn him back around. The urge to flee was instinctive and so strong that she actually stepped forward.
But she couldn’t abandon Rye. Besides running right now would bring attention they really didn’t need.
So she did the only thing she could. She turned and smiled at the source of her worse nightmares.
“Hello, Husan,” she greeted him, hoping he didn’t hear the tremble in her voice. Rye stepped closer but didn’t touch her. She understood why. Any touch could be seen as weakness by the monster. He was excellent at reading people. Scarily so. Sometimes she’d wondered whether he was a touch psychic.
“My, my, don’t you look delectable. I was remiss in not realizing what a gem I owned.”
She swallowed at the reminder that he had owned her. That Ricardo sold her to him, even though he had no right to do so.
“I am not yours.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Oh, I think you are. I paid for you and you were stolen from me.” He turned those pale gray eyes on Rye, studying him. Did he recognize Rye from that night at the bar? Rye hadn’t been there to see Husan. But would he put figure out that Rye had been the one to rescue her?
Chilled, she shivered.
“Cold, my dear?” he drawled knowingly.
“The atmosphere in here has chilled somewhat.”
“Do you wish to return to our ship?” Rye asked, taking her hand in his and placing it in
the crook of his elbow.
“Yes, I believe so. The company here isn’t quite up to our standards.”
The monster reached out and grabbed her arm. She stilled as revulsion clawed at her, suffocating in its grasp. Old memories threatened to swamp her, to steal her from the reality she now stood in and throw her into the terrifying past.
Now was not the time for a panic attack. She breathed her way through it. She was safe. He could not hurt her anymore. She was safe.
“Let go of me,” she told him steadily.
He appeared almost shocked and she nearly found herself smiling. If anyone told her a week ago that she would smile in the face of the monster, she’d have told them they were completely bonkers.
“This isn’t over. You will be mine again.”
“Never,” she swore. She would kill herself before she let that happen.
Rye led her from the room. This time they moved swiftly, aware that time was running out. Rye stopped beneath a large, open window that was positioned at least four feet up the wall.
“Oh hell, have I never told you how scared of heights I am?” The window wasn’t as high as the tree she’d had to climb earlier, but she hadn’t been shaking with shock then.
“It’s not that high. Do you want to stay here until we can find a way to sneak out one of the doors?”
No. Not even if someone offered her all the riches in the universe. She let Rye boost her up then she scrambled through the window. Not an easy thing to do dressed as she was. There was a ripping sound. Crap, her dress was caught on something. She tugged at it then suddenly she was flying through the air. She landed rather inelegantly on the ground, rolling away just in time as Rye landed on light feet beside her.
“Come on. There’s no time for a scout around now. We need to get out of here.”
She couldn’t agree more.
***
Thor paced angrily. Fury pounded at him, searing his blood.
“You are louder than stampeding Zonka beasts,” Darac stated.
“You hit me. Knocked me unconscious.”
“You were acting irrationally. You would not listen to reason.”
“Reason? Reason?”
“You would have alerted the Nerifs to our presence. You could have ruined the whole plan.”
“That was no plan! You sent two humans into the heart of the enemy without back-up or weapons. What if something goes wrong?”
What if Lucy needed him? She wasn’t prepared for this. She was tiny, far too fragile and precious to be placed in danger.
“Rye knows what he’s doing. If there is any problem, then he will get the two of them out of there.”
“Lucy should not be there. You had no right to send my mate into danger!”
Darac snarled at him. They had moved further back into the forest, but there was still a risk of being discovered by patrolling guards.
“Rye will protect her.” But Darac looked uneasy.
“I should be the one protecting her! You did not send your own mate. But you placed mine in danger. By rights I could have you demoted!”
“I am the Commander of this mission.” Darac stood, glaring at him.
Thor moved closer. “I am cousin to the Emperor.” Immediately, he regretted those words. He had never once called on his relationship to Dex. He ran his hand over his face, staring around at the other warriors around them.
They all appeared busy, but he knew they were listening.
“I did not like sending a female in,” Darac admitted in a quiet voice. “I would not have done it had there been any other choice. But I am afraid that Koran and the others do not have time for me to formulate another plan. I know I had no right to do so without your permission. It is part of the reason I knocked you out. If you wish to complain and have me demoted, I understand.”
Part of him wanted to. And if anything happened to Lucy then there would be no holding him back from seeking revenge.
“I understand. But Darac.” He slammed his fist out, catching the other warrior unprepared. Darac fell to the ground. “Do not make the same mistake again.”
Thor reached out his hand to Darac, and the other male took it, letting him know there were no hard feelings.
“We should not be sending any female into danger.”
Darac shook his head. “It does not sit right with me, either. However, I could think of no better plan. I have to think of Mila as well. She is being held prisoner, enduring who knows what at the hands of the Nerifs.”
“I know. That weighs heavily with me as well.” But Lucy came first. That was the just how it had to be.
One of the warriors who had been keeping watch, approached quietly. “They’re on their way. Lucan is escorting them.”
Thor moved forward, his breath coming easier as Lucy stepped into the clearing. Although she appeared pale and frightened, she did not look harmed.
“Lucy, are you well?” He stepped closer to her, running his gaze over her.
“Umm, yeah, I guess.” She glanced over at Rye then back to him and Darac. “I think I need to sit down.”
Alarmed, he glared at Rye. “What happened?”
“Blast from the past,” he said cryptically as he helped Lucy sit on the ground.
Thor paced back and forth. His hands itched with the need to touch her. This could not go on. “What does that mean?”
Rye turned to Darac, ignoring him. Thor growled quietly, but another look at Lucy’s scared face made him take a deep breath and attempt to calm his raging anger.
“We discovered they’re being held in the underground area to the back of the house. There’s a door with two guards that I believe must lead down there. I can take a small team in there. We left a window open to gain entry. They are busy with the King’s birthday party but it is definitely not going to be easy to get in and out. You guys don’t exactly blend in.”
“We nearly got caught out,” Lucy added.
“What?” Thor asked.
Rye waved his hand. “We took care of it. Everything went well. Now we just need to plan how to get your people out of there.”
“Commander?” Jaxan approached. “There’s a group coming this way.”
“Who? Nerifs?” Darac asked, turning.
He shook his head. “I don’t know who they are, but they’re flapping a white flag.”
“Is the leader a large man with long, dark hair. A patch over his right eye?” Rye asked.
Thor noticed that Lucy stiffened when Rye asked that and he wondered what was going on. She seemed to be holding her breath as Jaxan nodded.
Rye stared down at Lucy. “I didn’t sense anyone following us. How did he find us?
“How many?” Darac asked.
“Only three. They seem to be waiting for us to now approach them.”
“They’re here for me,” Lucy said. “Husan wants me.”
“Want you? Why?” Thor asked.
Wide, blue eyes stared up at him. “Because he owns me.”
Lucy couldn’t breathe as she followed Thor into the small clearing where Husan and three of his men stood waiting. After a brief debate, they’d decided the best idea was to speak to Husan. She knew Thor was buzzing with unanswered questions. But they didn’t have time for her to tell the whole, gory story.
But she could feel the tension emanating from him as moved forward.
He turned back briefly to look at her. “Stay behind me.”
God, did he not think she would love to do that? To have him protect her? But he had no idea what he was up against. Husan was evil. Devious. He was a killer.
Rye moved forward. “How did you follow us?”
She knew Rye was blaming himself. But Husan had his own way of getting what he wanted.
“Theo is very good at following scent.”
Theo? She was still alive? Lucy thought she was dead. Husan told her she was dead. God, and she’d believed him. What a fool she was. Stepping to the side of Thor, she studied the people with Husan. There, beh
ind him and to the left stood a hunched figure, dressed in a drab coat. Her face was hidden by her glorious red hair and the hood of the dark cloak.
Poor Theo. Her situation was similar to Lucy’s. Except Lucy had a guardian angel in the form of Rye, though she’d never tell him that. He was more like an anti-hero.
But he was her guardian angel.
Thor turned and scowled at her. Right, stand behind him.
Sir, yes, sir.
But she moved back. Best to keep the beast contained. Thor’s eyes had glowed red from the moment she said that Husan owned her and they hadn’t yet bled back to normal color. She knew he was barely keeping himself under control, could see it in the stiff way he held himself, the shortness in his voice when he spoke to her.
Strangely she didn’t feel intimidated or scared.
“What do you want?” Darac asked abruptly.
“You are in charge?” Husan asked, turning to Darac.
“I am.”
“I have no fight with you. In fact, I believe I can help you.”
“How can you help us?”
A calculating look came over Husan’s face. Oh no, this was not good. Not good at all. “Your people are being held prisoner by the Nerifs.”
“What do you know of that?” Darac asked, going still.
She peered around Thor’s wide shoulders to study Husan. He stared right at her, as though he had been waiting for her to look at him. She stared into his dark eye. She couldn’t go back with him. She wouldn’t.
“I know that the King is keen to offload them to whoever pays him the most. Right now, the only people touching that offer are the Coizils. But I could make an offer. The Nerifs need never know that we work together. I buy your people and bring them back here to you.”
“What do you require in exchange?” Darac asked.
He turned that gaze back to her and she shivered. No. Just no.
“In return, you give me back my property.” He pointed right at her.
Her breath stopped. Time stopped. The edges of her vision went dark.
“You cannot have her,” Thor told him.
Husan just smiled. “Perhaps I will give you time to think on my offer. You have two hours. I will return then. To collect my property.”
Thor wished he could wipe the smug smile from that asshole’s face before he turned and left. Spinning, he watched as Lucy caved in on herself, cupping her elbows, she hugged herself.