by Reagan Woods
The bubble was going to be a tight squeeze with four of them being Lyaran-sized. One part of the bubble was opaque and seemed to bulge out. At her questioning glance, Lyon told her, “That membrane separates the platform from the tube. We’ll push through as soon as everyone is safely down the ladder. The force of the pressure can be quite disruptive.”
“Yeah, safety first,” Nora agreed inanely, wishing the nervous churning in her gut would ease up.
From beyond the bubble, a bright light penetrated. Nora hissed, “What’s that?”
“That patrol drone has flagged us as a possible obstacle to flight,” Lyon answered calmly.
Z’cari and Zocan finally joined them, followed by a flushed, bright-eyed Natar.
Just as Lyon was pulling her toward the membrane-covered tunnel entrance, Z’cari stopped Zocan to ask, “Are you thinking to take the female as your third?”
The question seemed overly personal and the timing was terrible. Yet another drone had spotlighted them. It was beginning to feel like every eye in the docking facility was on them.
The way Natar stood straighter had the hairs on the back of her neck prickling. She felt compelled to intervene when Zocan began to give a serious answer to the seriously-none-of-anyone-else’s-business question.
“That is something we have proposed,” he admitted before she could stop him.
“Woah, woah, woah,” she interrupted with raised palms and a glower. This wasn’t the time or the place. They needed to move. She pulled away from Lyon to step between Z’cari and Zocan. “I don’t think that our personal business is pertinent to the plan of action. Let’s focus on getting out of here.”
She certainly hadn’t forgotten the pleasure the priests took in scaring her, keeping her shackled, feeding her slop, and generally abusing her. Plus, there was something about the look in Z’cari’s eye that made her seriously uncomfortable.
Maybe she was more nervous than was warranted, but when Z’cari side-stepped casually in her direction, she automatically moved out of reach.
Right into Natar’s waiting arms.
Chapter 50
Something cold and hard pressed just beneath Nora’s jaw and she froze. She recognized the feel of Natar moved closer, and his thick arm snaked around her neck. His other arm wrapped hard around her middle to pin her arms at her sides. “If you move, she dies.”
“You have something we need,” Z’cari said, drawing his sidearm and leveling it between Zocan and Lyon.
Natar pulled Nora further away, out of Zocan or Lyon’s reach and angled her so they stood behind Z’cari.
Zocan put his hands up in surrender, his face inscrutable. His yellow-gold eyes had gone flat – something she now recognized as an attempt to disguise his emotions. “Do not harm Nora.”
“We won’t hurt her, but there are those who are interested in – shall we say - recovering their stolen property,” Z’cari answered with a hateful look over his shoulder at Nora. “I’m afraid I can’t guarantee her safety once she’s in their custody.” He turned back to Zocan.
“Lyon, stay where you are,” Natar’s hard voice boomed in her ear as he checked the other male’s stealthy movements.
“Woah, I’m not going anywhere.” Lyon sent her an apologetic look as he froze in place. “We will cooperate. What do you want?”
“We need the recipe,” Z’cari answered, jabbing his weapon threateningly at Zocan to hold him back. “If you have it, now is the time to hand it over.”
“What recipe?” Nora squeaked as Natar’s arm tightened around her throat.
“The one that turns iridium into Lyridium,” Z’cari answered, not taking his eyes from Zocan.
Zocan went preternaturally still. Lyon’s broad face seemed to drain of color, his lips pressing tightly together as his eyes shifted between her and Zocan as if trying to decide which one to save.
At this point, several things were crystal clear, the most basic of which was that they weren’t all walking out of this situation.
There was absolutely no way she would willingly go back into the priest’s custody. She’d rather be dead.
Her throat constricted and her heart felt like it might physically shatter when she realized she wouldn’t have the opportunity to see where this thing with Lyon and Zocan might have gone. Tears welled up but she sucked them back.
Instead of letting on how scared she was, she tried to show Lyon with her eyes that everything was ok. It was imperative that he and Zocan make it out of here alive. That would make what she was about to do – remove Z’cari and Natar’s leverage – worthwhile.
Because she might be afraid of rejection, but she wasn’t afraid to love. And love Lyon and Zocan, she most certainly did. Like an idiota, she’d failed to admit it to herself. Now it was too late. This last act would be how she showed them.
She could see that Lyon wasn’t going to sit back and let her do what she must even as she tensed to move against the little stunner in Natar’s hand. Zocan’s fists curled and she realized he was watching her out of the corner of his eye. He needed to keep Z’cari’s attention on himself so she could act.Nora braced her feet and -
A screech of noise like a balloon caught in the worlds’ largest vacuum filled the bubble. The air swirled as a focused wind shear blew in on them stretching the skin over her face back and tearing at her hair and clothes. Natar’s arms tightened around her and they stumbled back as the platform shook.
An inhuman roar sounded so loud she thought it would burst her ear drums.
“Madre de Dios!” A monster had ripped through the tunnel membrane.
She caught a glimpse of Lyon’s smirk and strained her eyes to the side in time to see Zocan brace himself against the wind, an unexpected expression of triumph making him appear even more arrogantly cock-sure than normal. Clearly, they knew something she didn’t. That was all she had time to process.
Four glinting blades whirred with dizzying speeds at the end of each of its muscular arms, cobalt muscles bulging. Above the blades, Nora caught sight of onyx vertical pupils surrounded by unnaturally bright irises. Sharp teeth parted on a roar so deafening Nora nearly peed herself.
The giant dodged around Lyon without giving him a second look and flipped high into the air to land in front of Zocan. One giant arm moved almost effortlessly and Z’cari’s head bounced against the far side of the bubble.
For a long moment, the body stayed upright, the weapon still clutched in its extended fist. Fear that a death twitch would set the thing off clanged an alarm in the back of her mind, but she was too stupefied to shout a warning.
Natar let out an endless wail of pain at the sight of his headless mate as blood gushed in thick spurts from the crumpling body. The noise attracted the beast’s attention.
In one bounding step, the thing stood before her and Natar. Natar began to babble and shriek incoherently, the stunner he held under her ear dug painfully into her skin.
The giant raised a gleaming silver blade poised to strike. She closed her eyes and steeled herself for the killing blow that was sure to come from one of the two threats that sandwiched her. At least it would be quick.
The sudden silence was deafening. She took a deep breath as the arms that had imprisoned her fell away. And then a hot gush of blood down her back told Nora that Natar was no more.
Breathing hard, Nora opened her eyes. She braced her feet wide when her body wanted to stagger with the sudden freedom.
The four-armed Novink – for that’s exactly what he was - stood over eight feet tall. He was so much more muscular than the bodies she and Lyon had found aboard the priests’ ship that it had taken her a minute to put it together. This was no crazy space monster; it was one of Hash-Han’s War Lords.
Though his spinning blades had come to a stop, he stood menacingly close. Nora gulped as she tried not to stare. And failed.
Huge booted feet spread wide to brace his enormous bulk. His thighs, encased in what looked a lot like black leather, were bigger around
that Nora’s whole body. The four tree-trunk-like arms were bare, the rest of his impressive body was covered by an intricate vest. His vicious mouth sported razor-sharp teeth in an oddly handsome, if excessively masculine, face. The biggest surprise was his hair. It was shiny black and pulled into a high ponytail that stretched from the top of his head down to his ass.
What was he doing here? Had he come to avenge the Novink that had chased them days ago? Had he been tracking Lyon and Zocan?
“Are you unharmed, female?” He asked in a voice so smooth she couldn’t believe it came from the same creature that had roared like hells’ fury only moments before. When she didn’t answer, he repeated the question. In Perfect English.
Nora’s mouth fell open as Lyon and Zocan hustled to her side. They seemed oblivious to the fact that the giant had spoken an Earth language.
“I think she’s alright,” Lyon answered as she gaped. “Just shocky. That was quite an entrance, Kiev.”
She had to look away from the big blue alien’s shark-like smile. The sight of all those sharp teeth made her shudder.
“My timing is always impeccable,” Kiev agreed.
Zocan scooped her unceremoniously into his arms, his attention remaining on the big blue man. “I think it might be more difficult than I anticipated escaping with our ship.” There were now multiple spotlights lighting up the platform from outside, moving in sweeping arcs over the darkened walls. “Do you have any suggestions?”
“I will fly this toy into the Nom’magata’s hold if you’d be so good as to open the bay,” came the ready response as he ushered them to the boarding tube. “Corinne is on the bridge. She is feisty. Don’t let her blow anyone up until I’ve got the tetraglide secured.”
With that, he leaped at the ladder and began pulling himself up quicker than his bulk should have been able to move. Nora shuddered as a rivulet of blood ran wetly down the back of her tunic. War Lord Kiev vaguely reminded her of a giant blue scorpion. Without the tail. Ick.
Chapter 51
Zocan clutched Nora close as they raced across the tube. He’d frozen when Natar had put the stunner to her neck. His heart was still lodged somewhere around his esophagus, every beat sending screaming terror through his arteries.
It felt as though a sticky film separated him from reality even as he felt the slight weight of the very real, very alive female in his arms. That should have reassured him. If he held tight enough, maybe the fact that she was alive and unharmed would sink in. The blood covering the back of her shabby tunic – Natar’s arterial spray – wasn’t helping him block the panic.
He needed to pull himself together Quickly. There was still a skirmish ahead of them, and he needed to be in top form. He couldn’t let his poor decisions put the people he loved at risk. Not again.
“Why did Kiev bring Corey here?” Lyon interrupted his self-recriminations with the question as they began the laborious ascent from the bowels of the Nom’magata to the bridge.
From the outside, the ship appeared innocuous; a typical Class D freighter. The egg-shaped hull was lined with rooms that were all connected by a catwalk that spiraled upward. That left a huge amount of pressurized space above the hold proper to store goods.
There were no lifts, no glides and very few automated hatches, but beneath its dingy looks and outdated tech slept the most phenomenal pirate ship that could be bought, bartered for, or stolen. The key to waking the sleeping dragon was the memory crystal he had on his person. Right now, his focus had to be on getting that crystal inserted into the ship so he could adequately protect his loves.
“Corey?” She wasn’t on his mind at all. It seemed like forever ago that Lara had begged them to help free her from the dungeons on Opu. “We did task him with freeing her…and then we disappeared. We sort of demanded that he keep her. I’m sure he tracked us and wants his money.”
“Your mind is still addled by Z’cari and Natar’s betrayal.” Lyon gestured that he, with his precious burden, should proceed up the ladder. “Kiev would have cut his losses by now.”
Zocan couldn’t care less about Kiev and Corey’s motives for being there at that moment. His world was here, with the two people who mattered most. He’d put old loyalties ahead of that – andit had almost gotten them all killedthey’d almost died. He couldn’t do that again, but he had to be grateful to Kiev – whatever his presence meant.
He shifted Nora telling her gruffly, “Hold onto my neck. Wrap your legs around my waist.”
“I can walk,” she protested, her voice husky. Zocan couldn’t look into those wide, trusting eyes without thinking how close he - they’d come to losing her.
“Don’t argue,” he bit out angrily. “I’m having a difficult enough time preventing myself from turning you over my knee as it is.”
“Careful,” she warned, going stiff against him. “You claimed to love me not all that long ago. I won’t be involved in a violent relationship.”
There was no time for this foolishness. He wrestled her into position and leapt up the ladder. Doggedly, he pulled them towards the goal, hand over hand and step by step, until his blinding anger began to dissipate.
“I do love you,” he managed once he was sure he wasn’t going to lose his temper. “And I will spank your ass raw if you ever even start to think to end your life like that again.”
She stilled, her breath coming in small puffs against his throat as he lifted them both onto the sloping walkway and began to jog. One of his hands cradled her full ass while the other clutched her tight to his chest.
He heard the clanking of Lyon’s magnaboots behind them and knew Lyon was listening intently for Nora’s response.
Finally, she spoke, her voice surprisingly unapologetic, “I couldn’t let them use me against you like that – and I sure as the fiery depths wasn’t going to let them give me back to the priests.”
Behind them, keeping pace with them physically and mentally, Lyon growled. “You should have trusted us to protect you.”
She snorted. “You’re smart and resourceful, both of you, but you have – er – had a massive blind spot where Z’cari and Natar were concerned. You couldn’t have stopped them. ”
Her assertion was like a physical slap. She was right, wasn’t she? Wasn’t that why he was so angry? He hadn’t wanted to see that Natar and Z’cari had betrayed them and all Lyarans.
“If your friend Kiev hadn’t risked his own life to come here –we would all be burned bread. Get your damned head in the game.”
Burned bread? He puzzled over that before shrugging and attributing it to her odd speech pattern. Her Lyaran wasn’t the best right now – the stress of the situation clearly getting to her.
She shifted over his shoulder and addressed Lyon, “You, too, damnit. You’ve missed some pretty obvious signals that shit on your precious colony isn’t all sweet flower smells and light from the planet’s primary star. Put it all together.”
Zocan’s steps faltered as they approached the last ladder that separated them from the bridge of the Nom’magata. Gently, he lowered Nora to her feet. She didn’t immediately move away, instead, standing close enough to lay a supportive hand on his forearm.
“They sold us out to the priests,” Zocan realized even as he heard Lyon’s soft curse behind him.
“Maybe,” Nora agreed, eyes slitted and mouth hard as she considered it. “Or maybe they just needed to get you alone so they could get whatever they were after – the recipe thing.”
“They shouldn’t even have known there was a recipe,” Zocan told her. “It’s not well-known.”
“You mean - ?” Nora’s brows rose as the magnitude of what he was saying hit her.
“We never mined Lyridi,” he admitted in hushed tones as he slid his arm free and took the hand that had been on his arm in his. “My great grandfather invented it.”
To his knowledge, she was the first non-Lyaran to ever know their secret. If she didn’t realize how much he respected and loved her after telling her such a thing,
then she never would.
“And the recipe is passed down in secret?” She guessed, free hand going to her hip as she pivoted so Lyon was included in their hushed conversation.
“It is. Admiral Tsuno is the only other person alive that knows of the process – not the particulars but that there even is a process.” Zocan thought of the elderly admiral and his mates. They were nearing retirement when Lyara was destroyed. After that, the elderly trinepact had been tasked with leading the colony. Now, Zocan feared for their safety. The admiral would never have betrayed them.
Lyon’s mind was clearly headed down the same path. “Z’cari and Natar were working to keep us away from the colony,” Lyon stated flatly, reaching a hand to clasp Zocan’s shoulder supportively. “I should have seen it.”
Nora responded softly, “You’re right.” She frowned. “Not that you should have seen it,” she hurried to correct. “But about what they were doing. They brought up the colony repeatedly. Even asking if you intended to take me as a mate could be construed as fear that you would renege on your plans and take your closed trinepact to the colony for safety’s sake.”
Lyon’s face looked as devastated as Zocan felt. “Do you think our people still live?”
“I haven’t had a communique in months,” Zocan reminded him. Truth over platitudes were a firm policy between them. “There’s no way to know.”
“Here’s what we’re going to do.” Nora held her hand out between them and ticked off points on her fingers, “One: We deal with the small matter of blasting out of here. Two: We get the monster blue dude and his friend you keep talking about safely to wherever they’re headed. Three: We address the CGA assassin situation. Last, but not least – we head to your colony and gather intel. If there are bad guys, we kick their asses, free the people and, in general, pre-fucking-vail.”
“You sound very certain that everything will work out.” Lyon’s small smile didn’t come close to his eyes, but he was trying to behave normally. It was clear that these developments had left a hole in his confidence as big as the one in Zocan’s.