by Ivy Sparks
My eyes widened when I saw the creature inside. Dead. Its throat slit. A threatening message laid on its body. I took a step back, hearing my heart pound in my ears. “This was sent to Ellie?” Someone was after her. Someone wanted to hurt her. But who? I was nothing. I was defective. No one would care if I shared my life with a human woman, not now. “We need to bury the poor creature.”
Zoe bowed. “Of course. I will do it tonight.”
I looked down the halls leading toward Ellie’s bedroom. “How is she?”
Zoe sighed. “Not well. I finally got her into bed but—”
I waited, but Zoe said nothing. “But?”
Zoe closed her eyes and shook her head. “She woke up about an hour ago and was very insistent.”
“On?”
Zoe grimaced. “Packing her bags?”
My eyes widened. My heart stilled. I felt it plummeting, the floor opening up into a black hole underneath me. “Her bags?”
Zoe nodded.
“Why?”
“Her sister’s name was on the package. She believes Lyra is next.”
I didn’t think, didn’t say anything more to Zoe. My feet took me to Ellie’s door. Without knocking, I strode in, halting on seeing her small frame dressed in simple pants and a blouse.
I glanced over at the stack of clothes Zoe must have found for her. She looked up, green eyes meeting mine, bloodshot and swollen, her nose red. She sniffled and stood there, not bothering to step forward. She folded her arms in front of her, then lifted her chin.
Seeing her there, looking obstinate, like she didn’t care what this did to me, it hurt deep. The idea of her leaving… It angered me. It hurt worse than when my wing was ripped off.
But then I took in her swollen eyes. I remembered the desecrated creature in the box with the threatening letter, and my heart dropped. She was scared. She had the right to be. Her sister’s name was on the box. I was being selfish. She looked exhausted, her body shivering despite how strong she tried to look. I strode toward her, wrapping my arms around her. “Are you okay?”
She sniffed and said nothing, pushing me away and turning back to her bag. Surely Zoe gave her this just to appease her. Surely she wouldn’t leave me. Especially after what I had told her.
“I will find him,” I said simply, sounding stupid even to my own ears, yet I believed the words. I would find the person who did this and I would make sure he paid for scaring Ellie, for making her worried, for making her cry.
Ellie shook her head, ignoring me.
“I promise. I will protect you, Ellie.”
She laughed. It sounded forced and bitter. I cringed under the weight of it. “Protect me?” She whirled around. “I don’t need protection.”
I didn’t know what she wanted me to say. I tried to touch her, but she pushed my hand away, like she had no feelings for me whatsoever. I sighed. I needed to be understanding. She was worried. That was all. “Ellie, let me take care of you.”
“And what about my sister?”
I just needed to tell her the facts. Ellie was a mechanic. She was logical. “She will be fine. Whoever it is, they are after you, not her.”
Ellie whirled around, scowling at me. “How do you know that?” She pointed her finger into my chest, her nail digging painfully. “Are you sure?”
I sighed, shaking my head. “No.”
“Ha!” She turned around and shoved more shirts inside her bag.
I took her hands, turning her back toward me. I pulled us into a sitting position on the bed. “What can I do?”
For a moment I thought she would cry, her eyes brimming with tears. But her face broke for a split second before she regained control. “I want to go home,” she whispered, her voice shaking. She cleared her throat and looked away from me. “I want to see my sister.”
I leaned toward her, thankful she remained still. I buried my head in her neck, breathing her in. The smell of her calmed me. Her hands gently touched my hair, making my heart swell with her caress. I kissed her bruise, slowly traveling toward her temple before she pulled away. “Why are you doing this?” Her voice cracked as she stood up.
“Because I love you.” The words shocked me. I didn’t think, I just blurted them. The words felt right on my tongue. It felt right to say them to her.
Ellie turned around, her hands on her hips. “He loves me,” she said, looking away as if I weren’t there. For a second, she smiled in relief, as if she believed the words to be true. And she should have; I had meant them. But then she shook her head. “You’re just saying that to make me stay.”
I blinked, watching her turn away from me. I inhaled deeply, counting to ten, standing and striding toward the door. I should have known it would come to this. I should have known a human and an Adonian couldn’t work. It was a stupid thing to say when she was so upset. Clearly she didn’t want to be here anymore. Whether that was permanent or temporary, I didn’t know.
I didn’t want to know.
Ellie
The look of hurt on his face made me feel like the world around me was ending. It was over. I ruined it, this thing, whatever it was between us. I didn’t know what I felt for him, didn’t want myself to think of it more than him, the master, and me, some product he bought, but it hurt.
I wished I never said those words. Why was I so cruel? He saved me from the tin box, gave me a life under the sun, provided me with food and clothes, treated me gently, and then I… I mocked his words the moment he opened up to me.
Vorian had only shown me kindness. He could have done anything he wanted to me. I was his property. He didn’t need to treat me like the princess I would never be. He didn’t even have to let me go. He could stop me if he wanted. He could make me stay and there would be nothing I could do. He could tie me to the bed, ignore my wants and wishes. He could do all of that, if he really wanted to.
I watched him nod, his face becoming masked as he turned away, striding toward the door. My whole body yearned to go to him, to tell him I was upset and didn’t mean it. My heart begged me to touch him, to tell him I cared for him. But my head made me stay.
“I will give you a few minutes to pack, and then we can go,” I heard him say before leaving, the door closing quietly behind him.
I sat down on the bed, staring at the closed door. Tears flowed from my eyes, and I wiped them away. A sob startled me and I shook my head, jumping up from the mattress. I didn’t have time for this. I needed to pack. I needed to get to my sister.
I packed quickly, shoving everything into my bag. I glanced at my dresser, where I had left my translator earpiece, and realized that I wouldn’t need it again if I was returning to the Orion. Leaving it there, I stormed out of the room and toward the take-off balcony. I barely had time to say goodbye to Dravak and hug Zoe before I was in Vorian’s arms, flying to the Orion. The breeze whistled around us while my eyes were clamped close. I tried to concentrate on the sound of Vorian’s flapping wings instead of thinking of the parting that was to come.
I wanted to say something, anything to him, but my mouth remained shut. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know if he wanted to listen. It didn’t matter anymore, I told myself.
So I listened to the sound of his powerful wings, his beautiful imperfect wings.
After what felt like an eternity, we landed in front of the Orion base. When my feet made contact with the ground, I opened my eyes and saw the metal entrance to my former home. I had never seen it from the outside, the metal dirtied from sand, the metal plates bolted on. I had no idea the Orion was situated in a desert. I had always imagined the base was in a field. No wonder they couldn’t grow any food outside.
There were officers dressed in white pressure suits and helmets, bolting more metal reinforcement plates on the top of the Orion. If I didn’t know better, it looked like a line of boxes stacked next to each other, the metal plates around it swaying with the winds.
Vorian stalked toward the entrance, moving easily in the sand. I ran to catch up
, but he was too fast. He tapped on the padlock, but it buzzed red. “Do you know the code?” he asked without bothering to turn around.
Every human knew the code, just in case something happened. It was ingrained in us when we first entered school. “Yes.”
I moved in front of him, typing in the number, then the lock turned green. A shrill alarm sounded and the lights at the top of the Orion swirled neon green as the doors began to slowly slide open. Vorian grabbed my hand and I turned on my heel, hoping he would say something. I didn’t know what I wanted to hear, but I didn’t want to leave it like this.
Maybe he could come, but the notion nearly had me laughing. Come meet my sister, Vorian, I imagined myself saying. Why would he want to help me after what I said to him?
Vorian pushed something into my hand and I looked down, finding something small and round, an indent in the top. “This is a Tap,” he said, folding my fingers around it gently. “If you ever need anything, or if you ever find yourself in danger,” he said, stroking my hair behind my ear, “click this and I will come for you. Wherever you may be. The price I paid for you, consider it a gift. You’ve repaid me tenfold by just…” He looked away. “By just giving me a chance. I wish you well, Ellie.”
I simply nodded and watched him take a step back. My body yearned for his warmth and wanted to reach out and hold him, but my brain made me stay. His wings expanded, then he launched himself into the sky. All I could do was watch my beautiful beast fly away.
Chapter Fourteen
Ellie
I knocked on the door to my old apartment, then waited, straightening my shirt and smoothing the wrinkles out of my pants. There was a moment I thought it was too late. It was taking too long for Lyra to answer. Something happened.
I released a sigh of relief when I heard the door unlock, watching as it slid open, revealing my sister. Lyra. She was illuminated in the light behind her. Her blue eyes widened upon seeing me and I threw my arms around her.
“I’m home,” I whispered, pulling her close.
Lyra pushed me away, her eyes grazing over me, tears forming. “How are you here?” Tears streamed down her cheeks. “I thought I was never going to see you again.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’m home now.”
Lyra threw her arms around me and pulled me inside, the door sliding and clicking shut behind us.
She sat me at the table, like old times, and made coffee from powdered grounds, splitting a packet into each tin cup and heating water on the stove. I never knew I would be so excited to have lukewarm coffee again. She set my cup down on the table and my hands curled around the warmth, smiling when she sat across from me.
Lyra looked gaunt. It was strange after being around Adonians the past few weeks, being around healthy, muscled creatures when all this time I used to think it was normal to be so pale and malnourished. After this little time away, it was jarring to see Lyra’s collar bones sticking out, her chiseled cheekbones, and how thin her arms were in her uniform. She must have just woken up and prepared for school. Her bag was ready at the door. I had left her so much money. It didn’t make sense she still lived like this, rationing packets of coffee. But then again, there really wasn’t anything to buy here on the Orion.
“How have things been?”
“Good.” Lyra sipped her coffee. “I’m nearly done. I booked a ticket for Artemis.”
“Great. And you’ve been eating well?”
Lyra shrugged. “They’re rationing food even more now. I guess there is some sort of shortage. I leave at the end of this month, thankfully.”
I sipped the coffee, the flavor making me close my eyes in pleasure. How long had it been since I had coffee? I needed to ask Zoe to get it next time. How could Adonians live without it? “And school has been paid for?”
“Every bit of it.”
I smiled. Everything had worked out then. “That’s perfect.”
Lyra’s eyes narrowed and she leaned forward. “Ellie.” She paused for a moment, looking me up and down. “The man who bought you… Has he been kind to you? You look so healthy, but I can tell you’re really upset about something.”
I shook my head. I couldn’t bring myself to look at her, to admit that I had fallen for the man who bought me. “It doesn’t matter. I’ve been released, and I’m here now.”
She watched me for a moment, her fingers tapping on the cup. “Until the end of the month?”
“Until the end of the month.”
“What happens to you after I leave?”
I didn’t know. But all I knew was that once she was on the Artemis, I’d never have to worry about her again. “I’m not sure. But I’ve got money now, so I’ll be okay.”
Lyra didn’t look convinced, but then her eyes darted up to the clock on the wall. “Crap,” she mumbled, standing and picking up her school bag. “I have to go, but you will tell me where you were, won’t you? When I get back?”
I didn’t want her to go. I hadn’t seen her in so long. There was so much to discuss, yet I didn’t think I could tell her about Vorian without creating even more questions and getting scolded. “Sure.” I smiled. I then added, remembering the bloody box, “Oh, maybe I should walk with you to school?”
Lyra waved me off. “Don’t worry, sis. I always walk there with my friends. The good old buddy system.” She winked. “I’m safe.”
I smiled, though it was forced. It wasn’t just the usual Orion sleaze bags I was worried about, but I didn’t want to alarm her. And besides, it seemed that whoever it was who had threatened her, they only knew her name.
She shrugged on her backpack and opened the door. I stepped out, watching as she met up with her group of friends at the end of the hallway. She was fine. Nothing seemed out of place. She was going to school. She bought the tickets to Artemis. Everything was fine.
I stepped back into the apartment and shut the door. The room was small and quiet. There was no wind, no view of the rising sun.
No Vorian.
Vorian
I sat on Ellie’s balcony, staring off into the distance. Ellie used to read here. Ellie with her rain forest green eyes and her blonde hair blowing in the wind, a shawl wrapped around her dainty shoulders.
I stared out over the peaks, looking in the distance where I had just returned from. The direction of the Orion. I wondered how her meeting with her sister went. If she was able to walk inside that tin box all right, or if the guards gave her trouble.
I had just left her there.
But what else could I have done? I didn’t want to prolong our parting any longer. I didn’t want to wait around, hoping she changed her mind, hoping after seeing her sister she would return with me. No. She needed time.
I also needed time. Things were happening too fast between us. I was behaving inappropriately. I should have known she would respond in that manner when I told her I loved her. She was hurt, scared, worried, and I was being selfish. Still, I felt my heart crack under her words.
A sinking feeling creeped over my shoulder, a feeling I would never see her again. I would never see those green eyes, run my fingers through her soft hair, touch her plump breasts, feel her lips against mine and taste her.
I shook my head. I was being selfish again. She needed time with her sister. And I needed time to find the bastard who sent that package. I stood when I heard the door open, finding Zoe stepping lightly toward me. “I buried it,” she said.
I nodded. “Did Dravak find any fingerprints on the box?”
Zoe sighed and shook her head. “Unfortunately not. Whoever did it was thinking ahead.”
“Did you speak to the messenger?”
Zoe shook her head. “Not yet. It’s odd though. I found it already on our perch. Possibly the assailant delivered it himself?”
“Possibly.” I stared down at the Tap, waiting for it to flash. What if the bastard was on the Orion now? Whoever delivered the box couldn’t possibly be human. Not without going through the front door first, since the perch was over
a high cliff. Definitely Adonian. An Adonian with access to the Orion, so a lord. Or a lady.
What Adonian would know Ellie had a younger sister?
I turned back, looking out over the peaks. The sun was beginning to set. It would take a little less than an hour to fly to the Orion.
What if the assailant knew Ellie would return home and attack her there?
My heart stopped. That was why the package was sent. To get her away from me. I looked down at the Tap. Nothing flashed. It could just be paranoia. It had barely been a day since it was sent. But I could still check. I could still protect her in some way.
“Zoe, make sure to speak with the messenger. I’m going to investigate the Orion.”
Zoe bowed. “Yes, my lord.”
Chapter Fifteen
Ellie
I rested in my bed, my head laying over the side while I threw the metallic blue hover ball up in the air. It hovered a few moments before falling into my outstretched hand.
It had been three days. Three days since Vorian dropped me off with barely a word of goodbye. Three days since he gave me the Tap and flew off back toward his beautiful castle in the Adonian peaks. Three days since I received that disgusting package sent supposedly by Lyra.
Lyra was fine. More than fine. She was excelling in her classes. After I disappeared from her life, her friends took up my slack, coming over after school to help cook dinner and clean the flat. Now they were here, cooking me dinner. They even made a countdown clock for her flight to Artemis, which flashed in neon pink from the kitchen.
Their giggles were loud and I fought the urge to tell them to be quiet, knowing I would come off rude. It was nice for them to come over and cook dinner. Nice of them to take care of Lyra while I was away, screwing some alien hunk.