I didn’t know what he was talking about or what Cerberus was.
When he poked at the ground again, I did not move. His grin turned to a scowl, but I looked away. I would not perform for him. Not fight or wiggle and shake my breasts for his amusement. Would. Not. The clothes were brown and heavy enough to keep me warm, but they were tight. Too damn tight. And though small, I was not a flat-chested woman.
The slimy auctioneer bent down and pushed a series of buttons on the stage. At once, the manacle around my ankle dropped to the floor, deactivated by whatever magic button he had just pushed.
I didn’t know who my escort was in this crowd, but I wasn’t waiting to find out. Not now that I was no longer shackled.
This was it. It was go/no-go time. If I escaped now, I’d remain free or die. If I let some escort take me, I was as good as dead. There was no choice. Now was it. I took a deep breath, let it out.
The scaly creature made the pokey stick sizzle again, but this time, I stepped back and grabbed it in the center, as far from the activated tip as I could get. Clearly, he wasn’t expecting me to fight back. Tugging hard, it ripped from his so-called fingers, and I spun it around like a fucking cheerleader’s baton then lunged. The crackle of the stick this time was against his flesh.
He bellowed in agony as I held it in place, probably not in the way the tool was supposed to be used. What-fucking-ever.
I shoved once more, then pulled back. He slumped forward in blatant pain. Good.
With a running leap, I jumped off the raised platform and into the crowd. They were smarter than the scaly one, for they made a path for me. Or, they made a path for the electric cattle prod.
I waved it in front of me, kept the path going. I’d seen people… beings, coming in and out from the far corner, so that was where I was headed. A corridor. A hallway. Somewhere, this place had to have a transport room. And if not? Well, there had to be ships out here. I’d steal one. Kidnap a pilot. Whatever I had to do.
“Stop the human!”
A blue female got in my way. Her? She was my escort? She stood in my path, eyes narrowed, clearly not afraid of me and eager to halt my retreat. “You Cerberus?”
“You will come with me.” She spoke clearly, slowly, making sure my translator thing had time to process her order.
“No.” I lifted the stick higher, waved it in front of her. She didn’t budge. I lunged like a samurai and got her in the torso. Not even a flicker of pain. Did she have zero pain receptors or was she wearing something that blocked the charge? Either way, the stick only made her smile. “You belong to Cerberus, female. You will not run from me.”
Fuck. I tried again. Her eyes narrowed, and she took a step toward me. I widened my stance, ready for a catfight. I hated fighting other women. They were ruthless. But I was not going with her. Not happening.
One second, she was ready to take me out, the next she was shoved out of the way as if she were a forward who’d been body-checked at the World Cup. A guy, who looked more human than the blue female stood before me with a pretty serious scowl on his face. He’d tackled the blue alien, but when he straightened to his full—gorgeous—height, he didn’t look happy about it.
“Thanks,” I murmured, not sure he would welcome the sentiment.
“I’m an idiot.” He ducked a punch to the head coming from his left. I whipped the electrical stick around like a baton and zapped the offender, who screeched like an injured owl and whirled away. I gripped the stick and whipped it around, keeping everyone else as far from us as possible.
“Thanks,” he offered right back, the corner of his mouth tipped up.
“Stop them!” Jirghogis shouted. I recognized his slithery voice.
The guy narrowed his eyes and hardened his jaw as he grabbed my wrist. “Time to go, gara.”
Tall, dark and handsome tugged me toward the exit. I didn’t know if he was a good guy or a bad guy, but he was helping me get out of here.
I’d decide later if I should zap him or not.
He was strong and had his shit dialed in because he kept a hold of my wrist and cleared a path for us as if chopping through a jungle with a machete. He didn’t stop when we were outside the place but tugged me along behind him. I had to run to keep up with his long-legged gait.
Glancing up, it appeared as if we were inside some kind of snow globe. There was no breeze or change in temperature. We weren’t outside.
I followed for a few minutes as he took various paths between buildings just as I would have on Earth to avoid being followed. Only when we ducked into an alley of some sort did he stop.
He looked me over, breathing hard. While he did that, I scoped him out in return, holding my weapon at the ready. He appeared to be helping me, but I wasn’t taking any chances. And the fact that he was moderately attractive was not going to influence my decision.
Nope. Not at all. He was not sexy. He was an alien. I needed to remember that.
“Thanks for saving me back there,” I said.
“You were doing a pretty good job all on your own. You’re skilled with a titan stick. Got those on Earth?”
I laughed. “No, but I’m skilled at dealing with assholes. They usually aren’t blue though.”
This guy, he wasn’t blue. He looked… not blue. I couldn’t say normal because I had a feeling I was the not normal one around here. But he looked more human than anyone else as I’d seen.
Dark hair in need of a haircut. I had a feeling it was long enough to go into a tie, but he kept it down. Piercing dark eyes. Scruff on his square jaw. He was big, well over six feet, but not huge like an Atlan I’d seen on the Bachelor Beast show on TV. He wore all black, and a weapon was strapped to his thigh.
I had to admit, he was really attractive. Hot. Ruggedly handsome. I felt small beside him, but unlike the milling group of thugs, or even Bertok, I didn’t feel threatened. His gaze held heat but more frustration and some anger although I didn’t think it was directed at me.
He was calm, which meant this kind of action wasn’t new for him.
I looked into his eyes again, and they were focused squarely on mine.
“You’ll want to steer clear of the Ulza.” He thumbed over his shoulder.
“The blue lady?”
“Yes, she’s part of Cerberus legion. She’s also a Xeriman hybrid, which makes her meaner than most.”
“I don’t know what any of that is but noted.” No sense lying.
“Red arm bands. All different hybrid species. They’re everywhere in the dome.”
“Ah, gang colors?” I knew all about that. And looking back, both the hard-as-nails blue woman and a bunch of creepers in the ogle-fest had been wearing dark red bands around their biceps, bands the color of red wine. Or blood.
“Where is Cerberus?” I’d never heard of that planet before, but I’d make a mental note not to go there.
“It’s not a place, it’s a—never mind. Just steer clear of them.”
“I’d like to steer clear of this entire planet,” I added. There didn’t seem to be one redeeming thing about the place. It was dirty. It smelled. And the inhabitants were barbarians.
“Fark.” He ran his hand through his hair and looked down the alley. His square jaw line was prominent with his head turned. Why was I attracted to a guy now? Here? I was in danger. I didn’t have a clue where I was. I didn’t even have shoes. Yet I wanted to feel if his hair was silky soft. If he was as muscular as he appeared. If he would feel strong and powerful beneath my palms. If he would take me like the alien I’d been with in my processing dream, dominant, bossy, and very, very dedicated to giving me pleasure.
My pulse rocketed up a notch, and my breasts ached, heavy with need. What. The. Hell?
Shit. I was going crazy.
“I can’t believe I helped you,” he muttered.
My mouth fell open. He actually was pissed, but it wasn’t my fault. “I didn’t ask for your help. I was doing fine on my own,” I snapped. “Like you said, I can use this thing
.” I waved the cattle prod in the air.
My rescuer took a half step closer, so I had to tilt my chin up. “Yeah, I saw that. The blue female, she was supposed to deliver you to Cerberus legion on Rogue 5.”
I had no idea where that was either, and I didn’t care to find out. “Not happening. The way you took her out, it doesn’t seem like you two are friends.”
He frowned. “Friends? Never. Now? We’re enemies.” He looked at his wrist, at some kind of small screen. “Fark. She retracted her credit. And she has the integrations.” He paced in a circle with his hands on his hips.
“What does that even mean?” I wondered.
“I sold her something. Earlier. After our little… escape, she retracted her credit.”
“Space money.”
“Yes,” he confirmed. “She wasn’t happy I got in her way.”
I bit my lip. “Sorry.” I wasn’t, but it probably wouldn’t be smart to say so right now.
He set his hands on his hips and paced, lost in his angry thoughts.
I took a step back while he was distracted then another. He might be broody and gorgeous, but he also ran hot, which meant he was unpredictable. I was better off looking at him in my rearview mirror.
He looked up, took in the distance between us. “Where are you going?”
I thumbed over my shoulder like he had. “Trion.”
His dark gaze lowered to my breasts then widened. How he hadn’t noticed the outline of the chain through my tight brown tunic, I had no idea, but the swaying golden links and the piercings they were attached to were clear as day now that my nipples were hard as rocks. Damn it.
“Trion. Why do you want to go there?”
“I was brought here from Trion and given to the stinky lizard guy. Well, not given. Actually, I was unconscious for most of it, so I don’t know how I got here. But I do know who to blame. I’m going to make Bertok regret it.”
“Bertok?” The guy’s mouth fell open.
“You know him?”
“He’s a Councilor on Trion. He sold you to Jirghogis?”
I didn’t really know what a Councilor was, but it was something important on Trion. I nodded. “He’s also a douche canoe who killed my mate, so he could sell me here on… wherever the fuck we are.”
When his eyes widened in surprise, I couldn’t miss how dark they were. He stepped close and cupped my jaw. “You had a Trion mate?”
“For all of two minutes,” I grumbled then moved away from his touch. He was surprisingly gentle for a guy who had such rough edges.
I thought of Naron. He hadn’t had any rough edges, at least from what I’d been able to tell. I didn’t mourn him because I knew him. I mourned him because he’d been an innocent caught up in Bertok’s fucked up plans. And because he represented a dream, a dream that had died with him.
My rescuer stepped toward me, all swagger and dark brooding. “Are you telling me you’re an Interstellar Bride?”
I shrugged again. “Not any longer. My mate’s dead. I’m going back to Earth.”
He laughed at me, and that totally pissed me off.
“Gara, you’re a citizen of Trion now. Not Earth.”
That word, that endearment, was what Naron had called me, too. The word from this male’s lips affected me like he’d licked my skin, the sound sensual and threatening all at once. And that double-edged sword made me want him close. Made me want to trust him. Which was stupid. Just fucking stupid.
“Don’t call me that.” I moved to stand toe to boot with him, but I had to tip my chin back even further to meet his eyes.
“Then tell me your name, human,” he countered.
“Zara.”
He said it aloud, as if testing the sound of it on his tongue. “There isn’t much difference between Zara and gara, now is there?”
I rolled my eyes.
He smirked.
“Well?” I waited.
He frowned. “Well, what?”
“Your name.”
“Isaak.”
“Isaak, I will go home to Earth. It hasn’t been thirty days yet,” I countered.
Slowly, he shook his head. “Trion’s in a different part of the galaxy. When you transport to and from Trion, time bends.”
“Bends? What does that mean?” I crossed my arms over my chest, felt the chain press into the backs of my arms.
“It means when you are on Trion, three months pass out here in a blink.”
My mouth fell open. “Three months? That wasn’t on Star Trek or Battlestar Galactica.”
He frowned. “I don’t know what that means, but Earth’s out for you. You’re never going back. You are a citizen of Trion, and since you’re past your thirty days and your mate is dead, you are a widow. You will not be assigned another mate by the program.”
“I’ve been in space all of a day, as far as I can tell.”
He studied me, and when his fingers lifted to my jaw again, I had to clench my teeth to keep from leaning into the touch. It was as if my body was starving for any amount of comfort it could get. Not that I could blame myself. The last day and a half had been hell on a whole new level.
“How many hours were you on Trion? Before you transported here?”
I wasn’t sure, but Bertok said he had to wait to transport me again, so I wouldn’t get sick or die. So who knew? “Overnight maybe. A day? Maybe a bit longer. I don’t know for sure. I slept part of it.”
Isaak’s dark eyes filled with pity, and the sight made me angry all over again. Completely ruined the soft, warm touch of his fingertips on my jaw. And the thought that I mourned the loss at all made me twice as angry even before he opened his mouth.
“Gara, every hour on Trion is more than a day and a half out here.”
I paused because his words rang with finality. They were also what Warden Egara had said—the part of being a citizen of Trion—right before she’d had a machine jab an NPU behind my ear. As for being a widow, that wasn’t mentioned. The death of a mate within five minutes of transport by throat slice was probably a little depressing to tell bride volunteers. “Fine, I can’t go back to Earth. So what? I’m still going to Trion. I’ve got a score to settle.”
He looked me over again, and this time, I wanted to punch the smirk off his face. “You’re a tiny thing but ruthless.” He leaned in close, almost as if he couldn’t help himself. “I like that.”
“Yeah, don’t forget it.” I held his gaze, but I was having trouble getting enough air into my lungs. Why was he still touching me? Totally distracting. I shoved his hand away. “Don’t do that again. Don’t touch me.”
He frowned. “You’re not my prisoner. I helped you to escape. I’m not like them.”
I had managed to offend him at last. “We’ll see.”
“I would never force myself on a female. Never.”
His hands clenched into fists at his sides, and his eyes darkened to the point where I could no longer see the center. His skin flushed, and his pulse raced at the base of his neck. He was beyond angry.
“Good to know.” I meant it, but I wasn’t going to apologize for protecting myself. Nor was I going to give him a gold star because he believed in consent.
I believed him. He didn’t have to help me escape to harm me. He could have beaten me, raped me or knocked me out cold by now, if that’s what he wanted. But I had learned to read people, and everything about this guy—except the fact that he was an alien—told me I could trust him. At least for now.
“What?” he asked as I stared at him.
I waggled my finger toward his face. “All that handsomeness would be wasted if you were an asshole.”
A slow smile grew. “You think I’m handsome?”
“Well, you aren’t covered in scales or poison slime.”
He stiffened as if offended. “You have very low standards for a male.”
I grinned and enjoyed teasing him. I didn’t have the time or inclination to stroke his ego. He was hot. Like, rip his clothes off hot. But I didn
’t know him. I didn’t know where I was. My mate was dead. I couldn’t go home. I had nothing. No one. Nada. So I focused on the one thing I did know. The one thing out here that made sense to me.
“If you know Bertok, then you’re from Trion.” I didn’t state it as a question. When he’d noticed the piercings on my breasts, he’d recognized them for what they were: a Trion adornment.
His eyes widened again as if I continued to surprise him. “Yes.”
“Great. Then you can take me back. Do you have a ship?” I looked around as if it were a car parked on a street.
His gaze narrowed.
That was a yes if I ever saw one. “So, you do have a ship. The big blue lady’s going to track you down to get even, so why not head to Trion right now?”
“I will never return to Trion.” He turned on his heel and walked at a pace that forced me to run to keep up, as if he were walking away from more than me. “I will take you to Ivy and Zenos. Then you will be their problem.”
I wasn’t quite sure who Ivy and Zenos were, but I jogged and stared at his ass as I did so, glad for the time I’d spent exercising on Earth. Being able to run had meant survival for me on more than one occasion. “What about the scaly alien? The one covered in slime?”
“Jirghogis? He is not my problem. Based on what you said, you’ve got bigger ones. Like Bertok and Cerberus.” He ran a hand over his face then started walking again. “Fark, human. When you get in a mess, you don’t go small,” he said as he went.
I let him walk off. He might be good on the eyes, but he was a pain in the ass. And he’d refused to take me where I wanted to go. For all I knew, this Ivy and Zenos were blue and slimy, respectively. No, thank you.
I turned back the way we had come. There had been several smaller corridors along the way. I would find somewhere to hide. Steal some clothing and food. Look around, find a transport room or two and get the hell off this planet. If this Cerberus guy wanted me, if some blue lady was around probably trying to find me, I had to be gone. Pronto.
Rebel Mate (Interstellar Brides® Program Book 20) Page 3