Heart of Eon: Eon Warriors #3

by Hackett, Anna

  The warriors circled the Xukra, readying to carry it off. Malax pressed a hand to Wren’s back and led her out of the conduit.

  As they stepped into the corridor, Wren pushed her hair back. “If I ever see any more maintenance conduits or vent tunnels, it’ll be too soon.”

  “Wren.” He tugged her to a stop. “Have dinner with me tonight. On the observation deck.”

  She bit her lip. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

  “Yes. It’s my apology for trying to ignore you. I want to spend whatever time we have left together.”

  She dragged in a deep breath. “Okay.”

  His smile widened. “Good, that makes me very happy. I’ll even have my chef prepare some Terran hot dogs.”

  She smiled at him. “I won’t say no to a hot dog.”

  “Whatever is your pleasure, I’ll do my best to give it to you.”

  Wren shivered. Those simple words said in that sexy voice reduced her to a pile of quivering desire. What she wanted most had nothing to do with food.

  He tugged on one of her curls. “Now, I have to go.”

  Smiling, Wren watched him go. “Try not to fight any more aliens while I’m gone.”

  “Try not to hijack any other alien ships before I see you,” he called back.

  She was still grinning when she got back to her cabin. She tossed Sassy on the bed.

  “Are you planning to have sexual intercourse with the war commander?” Sassy asked.

  Wren choked. “What?”

  “Are you planning—?”

  “I heard you. It isn’t polite to ask about someone’s private life.”

  “Why?”

  “Because it’s private. And I have no idea what will happen with Malax.” She dropped onto the edge of the bed. “I’ve never been so attracted to a man before…but he’s an Eon warrior, I’m a Terran. And I’m leaving soon.”

  All that made her heart ache. She liked Malax, and for once in her life, he seemed to see her like no one else ever had.

  “Sassy, synthesize me a fabulous dress while I have a shower.” Another shower. Yes. She did a little booty shake on the way to the washroom.

  Wren took her time bathing, drying her hair, then using some synthesized make up to enhance her eyes.

  “Wren, the dress is in the synthesizer,” Sassy said.

  Wren pulled out a gorgeous length of purple fabric from the device. She stroked it, marveling at the silky feel. She tugged it on. It had a gold band at the collar that circled her neck, then the rich purple fabric cinched in at her waist and flared snugly over her hips. She ran her hands down it. She looked amazing, even if she did say so herself.

  “I love it, Sassy.”

  “It accentuates your figure and the color suits your complexion.”

  And a certain warrior would love seeing her in it. Although, she was starting to think Malax didn’t really care what she wore.

  “One more thing before you leave,” Sassy said. “There is one more message for the war commander and I believe you should see it.”

  Wren huffed out a breath. “Sassy, you can’t invade Malax’s privacy like this.”

  The fancy Eon comp screen on the desk flickered to life and she groaned.

  A woman’s face appeared on the screen. A gorgeous Eon woman. Wren froze, her hands clenching on her purple dress. The woman was wearing some sort of twist of emerald silk that left one sleek shoulder bare. She had long, pale-brown hair. Miles of it. She was tall, toned, and beautiful, with lips painted a deep red.

  Suddenly, Wren felt like she was wearing a sack.

  “Hello, Malax.” Her voice was a deep purr. “I hope you’re well.”

  The woman stroked her neckline, down her collarbone to her cleavage. What there was of it. Wren sniffed. At least Wren had the woman beaten in that department.

  “I miss you so much,” the woman continued.

  Bile rose in Wren’s throat. This sounded really personal. She opened her mouth to tell Sassy to stop the playback, but the woman continued to speak.

  “I wanted to tell you that your mother is planning a commitment ceremony for us when you return to Jad.” The woman smiled. Damn, she really was beautiful. “I know we’re both terrible workaholics, and don’t get to see each other much, but we enjoy each other’s…company.” The word was laced with innuendo. “When you’re on Jad next, I’m hoping we can find the time to get married.”

  Married? Wren felt sick. “Turn it off, Sassy.”

  The screen froze on the woman’s face.

  “I thought you should see it.” Sassy sounded subdued.

  Wren let her mind go blank. The emotions churning inside her were rising up her throat. Was Malax a cheat? Had he made her a cheat too?

  She sucked in a breath. No, this couldn’t be right. Surely, she couldn’t be so wrong about him?

  She needed to talk to him. She glanced at the screen again and the woman’s image.

  Ugh. Yes, she needed to be an adult and communicate with him, but right now, she felt like vomiting. God. She felt like she had when she’d walked in on Lance with his pants around his ankles, humping Ms. Flexible and Bendy.

  Wren’s stomach did some horrible somersaults. She couldn’t talk to Malax yet. She needed to regroup.

  “It’s okay, Wren.” She took a few deep breaths and imagined punching the Eon woman in her perfect face. “I bet she can’t create kickass computer programs and invent top-of-the-line computer components.”

  Wren methodically stripped off her dress, and in her head, she imagined sending a nasty computer virus all the way to the woman’s computer on Jad.

  Of course, Malax had a beautiful woman back on his home world. A tall, built Eon woman. Why wouldn’t he? Maybe there was even more than one. The thought was depressing.

  “Wren?” Sassy asked quietly.

  Wren yanked on a clean set of black trousers and a shirt. “I’m not going to dinner.”

  “I shouldn’t have shown you.”

  “It’s fine, Sassy. I just need some time alone.”

  “Don’t leave me here!”

  Wren closed the door to her cabin and headed off down the corridor. She didn’t really know where she was going. Pressing a palm to her forehead, she took another deep breath.

  Eve and Lara would tell her to get all her facts first and confront the problem head on. But Wren wasn’t like her sisters. She liked to think things through and sort out her emotions before she acted.

  She turned a corner and heard a scraping sound.

  Wren slowed, looking back over her shoulder. The corridor was empty.

  Shaking her head, she kept moving.

  She heard the sound again, and she spun. This time, she gasped.

  A Kantos soldier stood in the center of the corridor. On its four powerful legs, it damn near blocked the entire space. Before she could react, it rushed forward, raising one of its sharp arms.

  Fuck. She ran backward, tripped, and fell. The back of her head smacked against the metal grate floor. She saw stars.

  She tried to push herself up, but she was dazed and dizzy.

  A shadow blocked the light above her and she threw her arms up.

  She saw the Kantos tilt its head, studying her. It held something clutched to its chest.

  Wren saw what it was and gasped.

  “No way!” The Kantos was holding a clear containment jar that was filled with blue fluid. Inside it was a glowing blue helian. The small creature looked like a slug and was pressed up against the glass.

  Buzzing filled the corridor and she knew the alien was communicating with someone. Then the Kantos moved, scooping her up and tossing her over its bony shoulder.

  “Let me go!”

  The Kantos spun and moved fast down the corridor, its legs clunked on the metal as it ran. The up and down movement, combined with her fear, made her feel sick.

  Think, Wren, think. “Sassy, if you are somehow monitoring me, I need help!”

  There was no reply. She touch
ed her wristband, hoping Sassy could hear her.

  They moved through a dizzying array of corridors. Finally, the alien stopped and Wren knew they were near an external wall. A second later, she saw a shimmer and a hole was visible in the side of the hull. Beyond it, she saw a small, Kantos swarm ship. It was attached to the Rengard’s hull.

  Inside the ship was another Kantos soldier. A buzzing sound filled the air. They were communicating.

  The soldier holding her stepped into the Kantos ship.

  No.

  Wren struggled against her captor. But then she received a sharp blow to her head, and everything went black.

  Chapter Eleven

  Malax fiddled with the plates on the table. He’d had the Rengard’s chef put together food to suit a Terran palate, including the odd-looking hot dogs that Wren liked. The table was covered in plates and bowls of Eon delicacies, and he thought it looked rather…romantic.

  He snorted. What did he know? He was an Eon war commander, and hadn’t done anything romantic…well, ever. He turned to look out the large observation window. The view of the stars outside was the perfect backdrop. After spending most of the last week hidden in the bowels of his ship, he thought Wren would appreciate it.

  The engineers had all the ship’s systems operational, and they were back to moving at full speed. Airen had told him scanners were still not functioning at full capacity, but it shouldn’t be long before that was fixed as well.

  He tapped his fingers and wondered where Wren was. He frowned. She should have been here by now.

  Malax kept staring out the window, and as more minutes ticked by, he realized he’d been stood up.

  Had she not enjoyed the hot, sexy moments they’d shared? Was she still angry that he’d tried to avoid her? He’d thought of nothing but Wren and her soft curves all afternoon.

  Annoyed with himself, he strode out of the observation deck and headed toward her cabin. Maybe she was still there? Maybe she’d fallen asleep?

  He pressed the call button on her cabin door.

  “Cabin is currently unoccupied,” the computer intoned.

  “Open the door.” At his command, it whispered open and he stepped inside. It was empty.

  Hands on his hips, he glanced around, sorting through the unfamiliar emotions inside him. The image frozen on the comp screen made him stiffen.

  Jandala? He strode over and swiped the screen. His former lover’s voice filled the room, along with her flood of cren-cursed lies. His gut hardened, anger filling him.

  Wren had seen this.

  After their kisses, after he’d pleasured her, she’d heard another woman talking about him and marriage. Gritting his teeth, he spun. He had to find her.

  “Dann-Jad.”

  Sassy’s distorted voice came from the bed. He turned and spotted Wren’s tablet. Cren, from what he could tell, Wren didn’t go anywhere without that tablet. “Sassy?”

  “I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt—”

  “You showed Wren the message from Jandala.”

  “She deserved to know.”

  He snatched up the tablet. “What you showed her isn’t the truth of my life. Or how I feel.”

  The intelligence made a sound. “It isn’t important right now. What is important is the fact that a Kantos soldier has snatched Wren.”

  “What?” Ice filled Malax’s veins. “Where?”

  “They have a small swarm ship attached to the hull on deck Delta-Seven. Hurry, warrior, they are preparing to leave.”

  Malax broke into a sprint, commanding his helian to form his armor. As the scales flowed over his body, he arrowed down a corridor, racing toward the deck Sassy had noted. He shoved Wren’s tablet into his belt. He planned to give it back to her as soon as could. Be okay, Wren.

  He tapped his communicator. “Sabin, we have Kantos aboard. They’ve taken Wren. Deck Delta-Seven.”

  Sabin’s curses filled the line. “With the scanner compromised, they snuck aboard.” More curses.

  “What?” Malax barked, sprinting around a corner.

  “They breached the helian core.”

  Dread rolled through Malax. “No.”

  “Malax,” Airen said. “They have a helian. It looks like they managed to grab one before the other helians responded and used an electric shock to drive them out.”

  The Kantos had a helian and Wren.

  Malax pushed himself for all the speed he had, running faster and harder than he ever had before.

  Wren. He had to stop them from taking her.

  It felt like an eternity before he broke out of a doorway on deck Delta-Seven. Where was the Kantos ship? He searched the external wall.

  His helian throbbed and he felt the increase in energy from one spot. He couldn’t see the hole, as they’d clearly camouflaged it, but he could sense it.

  “Malax, I’m one minute out with my security team,” Sabin said.

  “Wren doesn’t have that long.”

  “Wait for backup!”

  Malax ignored his security commander, sucked in a breath, and dived.

  As he flew through the hull breach the Kantos had cut, he felt the prickle of energy over his body. His helian formed a helmet for him and then he was outside the Rengard. He landed on top of the Kantos ship and clung to it.

  Now, he just had to get inside.

  Then he felt the rumble of engines beneath him.

  * * *

  Wren woke, her head throbbing. Where was she?

  Something smelled bad and she breathed through her mouth. A buzzing sound filled the air and she froze. Kantos.

  She opened her eyes.

  She was sprawled on the floor of a Kantos swarm ship. In front of her, two big Kantos soldiers were sitting in huge seats, in front of some sort of console.

  Shit. What should she do? At least they hadn’t left yet. She could see the hull of the Rengard out the forward viewscreen, and they weren’t moving.

  Think, Wren. You need some sort of sensible plan, or your ass is getting kidnapped.

  She must have made a sound, because both soldiers whipped their heads around. They pinned her with soulless stares, their four beady, yellow eyes like pinpoints of light.

  Her mouth went dry.

  We detect a helian signature on you.

  The voice echoed in her head. Crapola. That had to be Sassy’s wristband. Wren barely resisted the urge to slap her hand over the blue band. Fingers crossed they thought it was jewelry.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Your heart rate has increased. That indicates you are lying.

  “I’m clearly not Eon. I don’t have a helian.” She looked over and saw the containment jar locked into place on a built-in shelf. Thank God they’d only managed to nab one.

  Suddenly, an ugly, screeching sound ripped through the cockpit. Wren blinked, watching as the soldiers frantically turned back to the console. She realized it was an alarm.

  The buzzing sounds increased.

  “What’s happening?” Wren yelled.

  They didn’t respond, but she guessed that the Eon had detected the swarm ship. She smiled. Take that, bug boys.

  There was a vibration beneath her, and she felt like a hand reached into her chest and squeezed. They’d started the swarm ship’s engines.

  Uh-oh. She scrambled to her feet. A second later, the Kantos ship took off, speeding into space.

  Wren was knocked off her feet. She hit the floor and rolled across the back of the Kantos ship. She pulled herself up, looking out a small side window.

  She watched the Rengard getting smaller and smaller.

  No, no, no. She’d just been abducted by the Kantos, and no one knew.

  * * *

  Malax clung to the outside of the Kantos swarm ship as it raced away from the Rengard.

  He pressed himself hard against the hull, his armor helping him cling to the side.

  He scowled. The Kantos had better not have hurt Wren. Crawling toward the back of the s
mall ship, he lifted his arm and slammed his fist against the metal. It dented. He kept hammering, his helian increasing the strength in his fist.

  After a few more concentrated blows, he tore a hole in the ship, then dropped through, feet first.

  He heard an alarm screeching, and a second later, the hull breach system sealed the hole behind him. Once he was steady, he stormed through the small ship. There was a door between him and the cockpit. He gripped it, and tore the door off with a screech of metal. He tossed it behind him.

  He saw Wren swinging a box at a Kantos soldier’s head. The alien leaped from his seat, spinning to attack her.

  Anger stormed through Malax.

  They’d stolen her. They’d tried to snatch his woman away. If Sassy hadn’t warned him….

  With a growl, Malax strode forward, his sword forming on his arm. The second Kantos soldier rose, and leaped at him. Malax gripped the Kantos, slashed down with his sword, and sliced through one of its arms. He threw the soldier into the wall.

  He followed through, skewering the alien and ensuring he was dead.

  Malax swung around and saw Wren stagger back, clutching her arm. The other soldier had hit her.

  “They’ve got a helian,” she warned.

  She pointed behind him and Malax saw the shatterproof container filled with blue fluid. He saw the helian floating inside.

  You cannot stop us.

  Malax’s gaze moved to the final Kantos. An elite—one of the leaders of the soldiers. “Yes, I can. Down, Wren.”

  Instantly, Wren dived to the side, rolling out of his way.

  Malax charged the elite and the Kantos rushed to meet him. They collided, hard. Wrestling, Malax fought to avoid the Kantos’ flailing arms and legs. They were too close for him to get his sword in the right position.

  With a grunt, he strained against the alien. They bounced off the pilot’s chair and slammed into the command console. They wrestled some more, shoving and grunting. Part of the console crumpled under their weight, discordant alarms filling the cockpit.

  The Kantos shoved Malax back. He used the momentum, raised his sword and threw himself forward.

  His blade rammed through the Kantos’ hard gut.