“I think you might be interested in this job I have,” Shilsogar said.
Rhilax pushed the last of his credits onto the board, “That so.”
“What the drek?” Rase’s voice growled in his internal ear. His tone was enough to raise Rhilax’s hackles. He sounded unusually... disturbed. His brother was never disturbed.
Rase watched the visual comms they’d trained outside the door to watch the approaching corridor, but unless his brother cared to expand, he’d be left to wonder what the drek he was seeing.
One thing for sure, Rhilax didn’t like the sudden tension that filled the air. His fingers twitched, his claws nearly plunged into the tabletop. Shilsogar’s eyes gleamed and something cold slid over Rhilax’s skin.
“Keep yourself in control, brother. You’re not gonna like this,” Rase said as the door opened, and one of Shilsogar’s grunts came in with a delicate species he’d never seen before on the end of a shining silver chain.
Rhilax couldn’t take his eyes off the female. Her skin was pink and soft, so different to his tough, blue hide. She had a mane of long, brunette waves, the color of rich earth, and her eyes were tri-colored. White, warm brown and black in the middle. At the moment, they were wide and petrified when they should look dazed and sated after being well-loved.
She was naked, and tried to cover her breasts and sex with her hands as she was dragged into the room by the collar around her neck. The handler tugged the chain and she stumbled on already-unsteady legs. She choked and fell to the floor at Shilsogar’s feet, where she remained quivering and shaking.
Every muscle in Rhilax’s body locked and went hot. His skin flushed and his scales threatened to explode over every inch of his body. His consciousness expanded into the seeming infinity of the universe, scattering and reforming the very molecules of his mind and body before they coalesced back, forever changed because the very essence of himself was never going to be the same again.
His heart raced and pressure built in his groin as knowledge he had no hope of understanding downloaded into his mind. Luckily, his leathers were tight enough to cause enough sharp agony when his cock engorged, for him to keep his mind clear. It took every bit of his self-control to sit, watch and look unimpressed when his very instinct urged him to take her away from this hells of a place and protect her with his life. Because she was more precious than his life.
He never thought there would be a match for him. Never thought it was possible. And yet, the evidence was right here in front of his horrified eyes.
This female was his mate.
Chapter Two
“What’s wrong, Rhi,” Veri’s voice had lost its bored edge and was now drilling into his head.
He couldn’t tell his brothers about the miracle that was happening without talking. He drew in a steady breath and held it to the point of unconsciousness. He slowly released it in time to hear Shilsogar speaking. “My brother, Xataxi was fortunate enough to be able to purchase this species from a bunch of Reptiles on the run from the Interspecies Council. He was just here this morning, helping me set up plans we have for the bunch we bought. It’s a pity you missed him.”
Tears stained the female’s cheeks and she trembled from head to toe as her terrified eyes bounced over all of the males in the room. She was completely powerless in a room full of males easily twice her size. She didn’t stand a chance.
Rase growled from deep within his chest. Too low for Shilsogar or any of the thugs to hear, however his brothers would hear it through their internal comms.
“Rhi, keep your head. We can’t save her. Just concentrate on the buy and then we’ll work something out later,” Veri said.
Rhilax removed his hand from the top of the table, leaving a long scratch on the surface. He hoped Shilsogar wouldn’t notice, so he spoke to divert his attention. “What’d they do to be on the run from the Council?”
He hoped he sounded as bored as he looked. Even though every muscle was strained, he remained slouched in the chair and took a swig of alcohol. The burn down his throat did nothing to ease his tension.
Shilsogar waved his hand. “I don’t know. Whatever those Reptile scum do best. Try to take over planets they have no chance of invading in the far reaches of the universe. Who knows what they were trying to do? It’s too far away to care. At any case, it’s given my brother and me a business opportunity we simply couldn’t pass.”
Rhilax’s gut churned. How beings could think that slavery was a business opportunity was beyond him. Only the blackest of the black and the most immoral traded in flesh. The Council tried their best to stamp it out, but it had never fully gone away. “And where do I fit into this?”
Shilsogar leaned forward, his three eyes latched onto Rhilax. Smoke trailed lazily into the air from the end of the cigar, “What I’m about to tell you gets out, I’ll know where to come. I won’t stop with just you. I’ll also come for your blue-assed brothers, and after I kill you all, I’ll chop your bones and spread them to the six corners of the galaxy, so that you’ll never be whole enough to find yourself to your afterlife. Do I make myself clear?”
“As Drisian crystal. Now have you finished threatening me, or am I going to hear this wonderful deal?”
Rhilax tensed as Shilsogar regarded him. The being drew in another drag. This could go either way. Shilsogar wasn’t known for his mental stability. Tension throbbed the very air particles. His muscles strained and a trickle of sweat ran down his spine beneath his jacket. The only sound was the female’s ragged, terrified breathing.
Then Shilsogar laughed and the tension was cut. The guards around the room relaxed as Shilsogar directed the mood. “I have a whole case-load of these.” He gestured to the female. “Xataxi, being the mastermind he is, is setting up a never-to-be-seen-before auction. Species will be talking about this event for decades. Not only will he sell these exotic species, they’ll also be broken in so well, they’ll be compliant to their buyer’s every desire. Even better that they’re an unregistered species. You won’t have the authorities breathing down your back after your purchase. You’ll be able to do whatever you want with them and no-one will be able to stop you.”
His gut churned. Rhilax narrowed his eyes at Shilsogar. “And where is this auction?”
A sly smile crept to Shilsogar’s wide mouth. “Think I’m stupid enough to tell you? I’m hiring many crews for this job. Each will have their tasks, and none will know of the other. Each crew is just one in a long line of disjointed links. I won’t tell them their instructions until they need to know. It won’t matter. They’ll only have one small part to play before their job is done. They won’t even be around the meet the next crew, so no one will know anything. Brilliant, isn’t it?”
“Sly drekker,” Veri murmured.
It was. Doing such an illegal activity demanded the utmost underhandedness. Shilsogar and Xataxi were two of the most underhanded degenerates Rhilax knew.
“Just tell me what you want me to do, Shilsogar, and I’ll be on my way. I don’t want or need to know your plans. I just wanna get paid for my role. Other than that, I don’t care what you do.” It was the opposite of what he really wanted to do, and he fought to keep it all contained in the slowly combusting cavity of his body.
“You are to take a case-load of this livestock to the Lumina Base. That is all. From there, I will have a contact meet with you to tell you where to drop them off when you approach. You will not know any more in advance. All you have to do is sneak them in under the radar and I will transfer the credits when they’re safely off your vessel,” Shilsogar said.
Rhilax grunted. “Sounds fair. How many are we talking about?”
“As I said. You only need to know what I tell you. I’ll have them packaged and ready to be shipped. Just get them there and follow instructions,” Shilsogar said.
He’d follow instructions, all right. His own. There was no way he’d be taking ‘livestock’ to any meeting to be sold by the likes of Xataxi.
Rhilax let
his gaze hook onto the female. Every muscle in his body tensed as he forced himself to seem relaxed. “What species are they?”
Shilsogar’s eyes hardened. “Why do you want to know?”
Rhilax sighed, as though he found the question tedious. “Just want to know if they’re diseased. If I have to spray my cargo hold with disinfectant after they’re removed. Can’t have them passing diseases on to my next run.”
Shilsogar blinked, one eye in a row. He shrugged, or at least Rhilax thought that was what the gesture was. It was no more than a roll of fat on one side of his body. “Don’t know. The Reptiles didn’t stay long enough to chat.”
She was unknown. Exotic. He hated not knowing her species. However, there was no doubt she could tell him when he’d removed her from the danger. He wouldn’t be leaving here without her.
“Too easy. Am I taking her as well?” Rhilax asked.
The female made a small noise now that attention was back on her. He regretted doing that, but he had to know. There was no way he was leaving without her. She hunched over, making herself as small as possible. He counted every bone of her ribs beneath her skin. He was appalled at her state. It didn’t look as though she’d been getting enough nutrition.
It also didn’t look as though she had any defense on her body at all. No claws. No tail. No teeth. He had all three—and more. She was completely at their mercy without any way to defend herself. Not only was she defenseless, she looked malnourished and starving as well as mistreated. His eyes narrowed as rage gathered in the center of his chest. Scales scattered across his skin before they faded again beneath the top layer.
“Rhi…” Rase warned. But every instinct in his body was locked on the quivering female at Shilsogar’s feet.
“No. I like this one. She’s already broken in and I can’t be bothered training another. Would you like to see how well I’ve trained her?”
Rhilax eyed him, unable to move.
“On your knees, slave.”
The female froze. Her eyes went wide, and the stench of fear infused the air. Her only movements were the little stuttering breaths that escaped a clenched jaw.
Shilsogar uttered an annoyed sound. Ash fell from the end of his cigar. “Want to know why this species is so special? They are remarkably easy to break, and they seem to be quick to learn. It all comes down to the collars, though. It’s our special design. Watch.”
Shilsogar brought out a hand-held unit that was nestled in his jacket pocket. The female took one look at it and dropped to her knees. She repeated one word over and over, the word too weak and rapid for him to understand, but Rhilax knew what she was saying. She was begging.
Shilsogar chuckled, “See, she knows what she’s in for before it begins. They’ll do anything to avoid it, the clever things. But for the sake of this demonstration, I’ll show you what the collar can do.”
He pressed the button and the female shook from head to toe as electricity surged through her body. Her mouth clenched as her body went into rictus as she collapsed on the floor.
“I’ve heard from our developers that this is quite painful. There are higher pain thresholds than this, although they tend to fry the brain. I lost one doing that. Best to leave it mid-way for best results. That way, they’ll do as you want, and they aren’t mortally wounded after you deal with the training.”
“Holy drekking goddess. That son of a masticating Aroon beast,” Rase yelled through the comms.
Rhilax’s jaw ached as he watched his mate writhe in agony until Shilsogar switched off the current. Her body sagged as the current was cut, limbs askew, dark hair tumbling around her head and obscuring her face. Her lungs heaved as she gulped in air. Other than that, she didn’t twitch a finger.
Rhilax counted the weapons hidden in his clothing, cataloguing the sequence he’d unleash on every male in this room. Where he’d hit them. With what weapon. To kill, not maim. They wouldn’t get off that easy. Especially the ones that sniggered as though watching this female being tortured was some sort of sick fun.
“Relax, she’s not dead. She cost me a lot of credits and I like to get value for my money. Now, slave. On your feet.”
The female stirred. Her movements were slow and sluggish, but she managed to weave to her knees, following instructions as best she could.
“Damned cigars always burn too fast. Slave, arm.”
Rhilax frowned as he watched the female. Something was wrong with her. The black in her eyes had enlarged so much, leaving none of the brown, leaving only the white. She’d stopped trembling, her shoulders and posture loose, but she also wasn’t looking at anything in particular. Her eyes were glazed and empty as she swayed on her knees. First one way, then catching herself before she fell over to sway the other way to catch herself again. She blinked, the movement slow and mechanical.
She presented her arm. Her movements were wooden. Rhilax sucked in a breath at the scars on the soft skin of the inside of her arm. Shilsogar stubbed out the lit end of his cigar on her skin. She didn’t even flinch. He flicked the stub to the floor and shoved her arm away as though it offended him.
“Now, shall we finish this game? I want the last of your credits. Extra insurance you won’t go off with my livestock and do something stupid with them. Poor smugglers are good smugglers. Now suck, slave.” He undid the fastenings of his pants, grabbed the back of the female’s head and shoved her face into his lap.
Rhilax unsheathed the blaster he’d hidden on the inside of his jacket as he stood, fired one blast and disintegrated Shilsogar’s head clean off his body.
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