by Sabrina Kade
And then everything falls apart when a Sidyth walks up to Hujun and whispers something in his ear.
He turns to me. “I have to speak to Prince Korben about a personal matter.”
My eyes widen. “Now?” I quickly scan the room, seeing all the women and Sidyths wandering around. I’ve never had social anxiety before, but I guess almost getting raped by a Sidyth has given me a complex. I swallow hard, breaking out into a nervous sweat, resisting the urge to grab Hujun’s thick arm and beg him to stay.
“I will be back shortly. You will be fine. Korben’s mate is in the corner along with the blonde one. You will be alright. I promise.” There’s something so sincere in his eyes, but I know this is also a test of some sort. Maybe he wants to make sure I’m not a complete baby now. Maybe Hujun wants to see if I’m strong. And him leaving me alone in the Gathering Room isn’t exactly an impossible challenge.
I swallow hard, moving towards Kansas who brightens slightly when Hujun moves from my side.
“You will be alright,” he says once more before he’s gone.
I blink, and Kansas is by my side. “Hey…”
“Hey.” I don’t know why, but I’m feeling shy, practically allowing Kansas to steer me deeper into the room. Some of the other women are trading gifts, but as much as I want to participate, the words won’t come. Kansas takes a seat on a cloaked rock and pats the one next to her. And then Layla comes over. York, too.
Geezus, everyone’s trying to talk to me now that Hujun’s not by my side.
I blink as the light conversation begins, still trying to take in the scene. It’s Christmas day back on Earth, and here in a room full of exiled Sidyths, there’s a palm tree functioning as a Christmas tree, strung with lights. Some of the Sidyths are wearing hats that can only be described as Santa hats, but there’s something not right about them. I try to appreciate the effort made by most of the aliens here. All of them are better than the one who delivered the goods. The same alien who’s getting praised for bringing in the Christmas items is the same alien who tried to rape me a few days ago.
“Hey, you alright?” Kansas rests a hand on my shoulder, and I all about yelp in surprise, horrible images of Yayk taking my arms and slamming me into a tree coming all too painfully and quickly. Kansas quickly removes her hand and holds them both up. “God! I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
I blink. All the girls are looking at me. Some look frightened. Some look worried. Some look like they pity me. I hate all the looks.
“I’m fine.”
“Really?” York, never one to mince words looks as skeptical as always. “Look, if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine, but don’t say you’re fine.”
“It’s obvious you’re not fine,” Kansas says.
“Yeah,” Layla adds in softly. “We’re worried about you. You’re spending too much time with him.”
“Him?” I snarl. “Oh, you mean Hujun.” The one who saved me.
“That’s not the problem,” York says. “It’s like Kansas said. We’re worried about you. You’ve been so standoffish the past few days.”
“We know it has something to do with Hujun,” Layla says.
“No,” York snaps. “We don’t know that. And I didn’t say that.”
I frown in York’s direction. She’s talking like she knows what the fuck is going on. Maybe she does. But what startles me more is if she does know, she hasn’t told anyone. Everyone else thinks Hujun’s done something to me again. Toying with my feelings. Messing around with my heart. I hate how everyone sees the worst in him, but I hate even more that I don’t feel comfortable talking to the girls about what’s happened. If they think one of the Sidyths will rape them (exiled or not) what’s to stop the others from trying? There’s a beautiful balance of ignorance and bliss on Hethdiss, and I’m not ready to spoil it because I wanted to make Hujun jealous.
“Something is wrong,” I say at last, wanting some of the girls to stop staring at me like Hujun’s the problem. I know that’s what they think. I know they’re wrong. I guess that’s all that should matter.
“I knew it!” Sloane yelps. “Come on, what did the bastard do now?”
“Hujun didn’t do anything.” The hairs on the back of my neck raise with annoyance. I could blurt it out. Tell them their beloved delivery boy assaulted me and Hujun saved me. That would teach them all. That would teach them to look at Hujun with a little more respect. Maybe then they would stop treating York and Blythe’s partners like their fucking Gods. Hujun is better and stronger than the rest of them.
And everyone thinks he’s a bad guy.
“Ellis?” York tilts her head to the side, bringing me back to the present. “You don’t have to tell us anything if you’re not ready. But as long as we know you’re getting better, that’s good enough, isn’t it?” Her sharp brown gaze goes around to all the girls. No one’s going to argue with York, not even Blythe. And though I want to snap for everyone to mind their business, once the girls agree, I feel an odd sense of peace.
Maybe some of the girls know what’s happened to me.
Maybe some of them don’t.
What’s important is everyone’s kept their mouth shut. Including Hujun. Maybe.
I don’t even care, but when a familiar, heavy hand lands on my shoulder, I know I’ve been freed from this awkwardness.
“I told you I would not be long.”
I glance at Hujun. I don’t waste a moment and stand, ducking into his arm. A few of the girls frown or pout, but York is wearing a soft smile on her face.
She knows something.
She’s not looking at Hujun like he’s a predator. Maybe she’s seeing him the way I do.
“Would you like to take a quick walk outside?” Hujun's polite in front of the others. Walking around outside is merely practice. He’s trying to get me used to not being afraid again. It’s going to take time, but if it means I get to spend more time with the massive Sidyth than I’m more than happy to endure it.
My eyes glimpse over to York.
“Sure. Hey, why don’t Azan and York come with us?”
York’s eyes brighten. I notice there’s something familiar in her arms, that she’s practically cradling like it’s a baby.
Is that an honest-to-God book?
There’re questions to be asked, for sure.
And once the four of us are out of the Gathering Room and right beyond the lair, my body relaxes. Hujun has removed his arm from my shoulder, but his presence remains close as he and Azan move off to the side to give me a moment to speak privately with York. She isn’t the one I’m the closest to here, but she’s won some popularity points with me if she’s figured out what’s happened and hasn’t said anything to anyone.
But I don’t want to talk about rape. It’s Christmas.
“What did Azan get for you?” I hate how my voice sounds lately. Low and tentative. Like I’m afraid to be heard. I clear my throat. “Is that a fucking book, I see?”
York’s nervous smile widens into something beautiful. “Tracked down on the Black Market.” She snickers a bit. “Want to see what it is?” She turns the book around in her hands and I almost burst out laughing – for the first time in weeks. York blushes and spins the cover back around. “No laughing! I’m sure human books aren’t popular. The fact that he was able to have anything found is good enough for me. I wish these guys had some tablets or something, but they don’t believe in reading for pleasure. Reading and writing are only for documentation.” She rolls her eyes. “But I love it, you know? It’s something from home. Something familiar in the unfamiliar.”
“I know what you mean,” I say softly. “Oh God, now you’ve got me wondering what Dolan got for Layla.”
York rolls her eyes. “I’m sure Azan will tell me about it later. Or Layla will.”
We both snicker while watching Hujun and Azan talk to each other only a few yards away. Azan looks ridiculous in his Santa hat and Christmas lights strung across his chest, but I
’m sure he wouldn’t have it any other way. York’s obsessed with Christmas, so I guess he’s going to be too.
For her.
York’s voice drops to a whisper.
Fuck. Here it comes.
I’m already planning a kind way to tell her off—
“Seriously though, are you going to be okay?” Her eyes are sincere. I still don’t know what she knows, if anything, but I’m not ready to say anything.
My eyes return to Hujun.
“I will be.”
The words are awkward on my tongue, but no longer feel like a lie. It’s true. I am going to be okay. Eventually. And though I’m still longing for Hujun to Choose me as his mate, with the way things are going now, it’s not like I’m unhappy. He cares for me. He wants to keep me safe. He doesn’t want anyone else to have me.
And that’s enough.
York’s smile lets me know she’s not going to push things, and I’m so happy when Azan and Hujun return. The day is still young, and there’s plenty of Christmas excitement up ahead. I know Glykoran and Celeste have prepared something incredible for all of us, and I’m sure more goofy surprises are on the way.
Things are getting better.
I smile at York, finally feeling a bit of that holiday spirit I secretly wanted for so long.
“Merry Christmas,” I say, finding my familiar place by Hujun’s side.
“Merry Christmas.” York turns her chin towards her mate.
“Merry the Christmas.”
“Oh God, Azan, no.” York shakes her head. “Still though, this is a lot better than some of my worst-case scenarios.”
Hujun shifts nervously. “And what would those entail?”
“Dicks in boxes.”
York’s so damn serious that I can’t help but burst out in laughter a second time. Oh, God! It’s good to laugh again. Hethdiss isn’t perfect, but in this tiny spec on this tiny planet, something is building. Sidyths are mating with humans. They’re treating them with respect. They’re celebrating Christmas because they know it’ll make their mates happy. It’s the strangest thing in the entire universe, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Maybe next year even, my ultimate Christmas wish will come true and Hujun will Choose me as a mate.
I smirk towards York.
And hopefully without a dick in a box.
The End
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Rebels of Sidyth, Book One
CHAPTER ONE
Blythe
When I volunteered to become an entertainer, I had no idea I would become a whore – let alone one shipped across the entire galaxy. I shouldn’t have been so eager, but the money was too good and signing the contract without taking anything too seriously came easily. The entire transaction was legit. Supposedly. There was nothing I could do once the ink dried on the paper. Who could I ask for help? My parents? My mom’s dead, and my dad’s the reason I signed the contract.
I could only hope the money promised was as concrete as the contract I had signed.
How would I know from five billion miles away?
Would I ever find out if the money I sent helped my dad at all? Did it matter? Would he still smile, in selfish relief, if he knew his oldest daughter had sold herself to become an intergalactic space whore?
This leads to me to where I’m at right now.
I glance around the room, taking note of the faces as the ship transports me my next assignment. As usual, everyone’s young, female, and at least somewhat athletic. All the girls train when we have a free moment but having something in common didn’t exactly make us friends. Quite the opposite. We look out for ourselves, save for a few of the high-class entertainers who always manage to work jobs together.
Frowning, I lower my cup of water. This isn’t a bad room. There’s enough space for all of us to stretch out and there’s a separate space if we need to take a piss. Accommodations have been a lot worse, but there’s still no telling how long this supposed situation will last.
“Where are they taking us?” one asks, ruining my quiet assessment. I glance and find a pair of piercing blue eyes fixating on my much darker ones.
That’s how it is on a lot of these journeys. So many girls turn to me for answers. I’m not exactly sure why. Maybe I look old or more experienced. Maybe I’m more approachable than the others. Either way, enclosed in this locked room with nineteen other girls, I’m not surprised when several of them flock towards my corner. I lick my lips and take in the first who’s brave enough to speak to me, recognizing her immediately.
Doesn’t mean I have to be friendly about it.
“I don’t know, Ellis,” I shoot back, dismissing my polite trained ways of speaking I use with clients. I don’t want to let worry show on my face, but this situation is outside the norm.
Twenty Human Whores locked in pleasant accommodations, if not for the fact we’d all be forced to spread our legs later for whoever purchased us.
Still though, twenty? It seems a bit excessive. Maybe it’s for another alien bachelor party of some sort.
Sighing, I remember I deserve this. I signed the papers. I boarded the shuttle without a second thought to my future or safety.
“There are twenty of us here, you know,” Ellis goes on, glancing around the sterile enclosed room we’re bunked in. She openly expresses all my worries in her submissive, yet obviously intelligent voice. “Twenty. What could anyone possibly want with twenty girls at once?”
“Bachelor party?” I guess sarcastically.
“Maybe they’re like the Entlas?” one asks hopefully, and I’m immediately drawn to her young face and near black eyes. “They weren’t so terrible. Some were kind.”
“Doubt it,” York says before swallowing. “Maybe they’re Sidyths?”
“You think they’re like the Pluefs? Or the ones with the fins?” The one with dark eyes swallows. “Or Drakens?” She finishes in a small voice.
A lot of these girls are new to me, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re new to the system altogether. There are formal training academies all over the galaxy, and they’re all buying up humans and humanoids with names I can’t pronounce. Humans are a commodity in the universe because no one cares about a human’s welfare. The mentality was, ‘what could we possibly do? Fly home? Alert the Galactal Federation? Please, go ahead’, followed by chuckling. Earth doesn’t belong to the Galactal Federation. To most, humans are only a few steps better than how humans view dogs. We’re pets. Adorable pets. Pets who can give pleasure.
And so, Human Whores became the accepted name for girls like us as a whole.
I’m sure it could be worse.
I turn my head slightly to face the one who asked about the Drakens and absently wonder what her deal is, but I want to also maintain my aloofness in this tiny space. If word gets around I know things – any things – they’d look to me as their leader. And in this world – the last thing I want is to be seen as a Madam. The less we know about each other, the better.
Made it less painful when we’re separated.
“Drakens,” the woman continues. “You hear me? They could be Drakens.”
“I heard you.” I can’t hide my annoyance. Of course, I’ve considered the possibility of being purchased by Drakens. Probably for some gallivant party. Drakens could afford it, but I didn’t want to be part of some alien version of a bachelor party. Drakens – though rich – were not kind.
“Say something,” the girl continues.
“How about shutting the fuck up?”
“I sure hope it’s not Drakens,” another girl mutters – Sloane. Sloane Clark. She’s a few years younger than me and dumb as a brick when
it comes to books, but smart enough when it comes to staying alive. Her light blue eyes are in direct contrast to her blood red hair. She’s pretty. Most of us are.
“Drakens are rough,” she adds softly.
“Not good tippers either,” one says hoarsely, laughing. Experience always rings in Arizona’s voice, so much so that a few others join in meekly, but I merely shudder along with Sloane. From across the room, I notice Arizona hasn’t changed much from when I first met her at the training academy. That’s how experienced girls like Arizona were.
They’d come from time to time, between assignments, to teach the new girls a thing or two. She’s pretty enough, especially for working in this business for a decade longer than most of the others, but there’s also something I don’t like about her. Her stupid stage name? Her lackeys, Alaska, Dakota, and Kansas, who go with her on every job? Maybe her reputation around the stars?
Arizona does this. Arizona does that. Arizona never minds when I stick it there. Blah blah blah.
Or maybe it’s that though she’s pushing thirty, she’s a horrible combination of looking young and acting like a bitchy mama hen. She has the most amazing almond colored skin with a perfectly matched eye color. Her body’s tight and toned like a gymnast’s, and though she’s short, she commands everyone’s attention in every room. Rumor is she’s dominated a few aliens herself – an absolute rarity for a human whore.
Her lips pull into a smirk when she catches me looking at her, and unfortunately, I glance away too late before she notices. “Like what you see, sweetheart?” she teases, elbowing Dakota.
“No. I’m worried we’re heading to a Draken bachelor party,” I say, doing my best to keep my composure.
“Why?” Arizona smirks, lowering her eyes to my chest. “Oh. Yeah. I guess that would be a concern.”
No one joins in Arizona’s laughter this time. They all know what she’s inferring, and she’s not wrong to point it out.
Drakens? Those motherfuckers hate large tits. On the rare occasions I could get one to carry a conversation, I learned they got in the way when they wanted to suck the skin over my heart.