Chapter 16
Thalia:
The room went silent for a moment before erupting into a panic. The auction house employees shouted for people to remain calm. The computer announced the same command in a flat voice, repeating it in various languages. Emergency lighting in the form of yellow stripes on the floor pointed to the exits. The audience scrambled for the exits. In their desperation to reach their private ships, chairs and the displays of unique artifacts were knocked over. Cages filled with endangered animals were tipped on their side. People were pushed down and stepped on.
The squeals and cries of the animals hurt Thalia’s heart. She didn’t care so much about the audience. Those fuckers could trample themselves into a pulp, and Thalia would sleep just fine.
A frantic male, as broad as he was tall and green as grass, knocked into her tube. The base rocked and she fell into the side. The alien male kept moving, never pausing.
“Watch it,” she snapped, expecting a shock.
None came.
Thalia pressed a hand against the acrylic surface. Nothing. The power to the tubes must have been cut along with the lights.
Planting both hands on the tube, she pushed with all her weight. Heavy, it did not want to budge but wobbled slightly at the base. The tube did not appear to be attached. She continued, pushing and holding back, making the entire tube rock back and forth. Without power, the flimsiness of the structure proved to be nothing more than cheap and held together by brute force. That seemed to sum up what she knew about the people who ran the auction.
The tube swayed. Thalia threw herself against the barrier, her added weight toppling the enclosure. She and the tube crashed to the ground. The tube shattered. Distantly, she felt bits of the shattered material scrape and cut into her skin but the adrenaline buzzing through her body let her push it aside. She was free.
“Havik!” The noise of the crowd swallowed her shout. She hoped all this chaos meant her alien had found her.
Rising to her feet, she made a calculated guess as to the direction of the next tube. Broken acrylic pieces dug into her feet as she stumbled across.
The tube was empty.
Thalia moved on to the next, a random person walking right into her back and pushing her out of the way. She fell to her knees, landing hard and catching some of her weight on her hands.
“Thalia!”
Her head jerked up and her entire body turned to the sound of Havik’s voice.
A figure emerged from the shadows, dark and prowling. The sulfurous yellow light shone up, casting a demonic glow to his form. Clad in armor and wearing a helmet that disguised his face, Thalia knew it was her Havik. The chaos of the crowd milled roiled around him, but he remained a perfect point of calm.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” she said.
His tail lashed out with menace, like a cracking whip. The barb on the end could take out an eye and Havik had no control over it.
“I’m sorry. I saw an opportunity and had to take it.”
He stalked closer. She could practically visualize his lips pressed into a thin line, thoroughly displeased, but the glossy black of the helmet only reflected her image.
“You look upset. Are you upset? I know I would be if my partner ran off and,” she searched for the phrase he used, “abandoned the mission, but I didn’t. We found the smugglers! Mission accomplished.”
Another step closer. Yellow light shimmered across the visor of the helmet. He reached down to a thigh and grabbed the hilt of a knife. The blade gleamed.
“Yeah?” She spread her hands wide and wiggled her fingers. “Please don’t be mad. I’m sorry, okay. I’m sorry and I missed you and I hoped you were tracking me and didn’t think I ditched you, because I’m not going to do that.”
He moved like a thunderous storm about to break, and Thalia had never been as frightened in her life. Not because he would hurt her—she never thought he would raise a hand to her—but because she failed him. Thalia had never had anyone care so much about her, and she screwed it up.
“Please don’t—”
The blade flew. She flattened herself to the floor, broken acrylic digging into her palms.
Havik:
The blade hit its mark, sinking into the throat of the male who lunged for Thalia. The male touched the handle of the blade, as if in disbelief, and pulled it free. Blood pulsed and he slapped a hand over the wound, falling to his knees. Havik recognized him as the male who Thalia had saved from an allergic reaction.
The iron bar the male held clattered to the floor.
Thalia kicked the bar away and scrambled to her feet. “He was going to brain me! That fucker.”
Under his armor, his tattoos burned with pleasure. He had missed his mate and her colorful language.
“Thalia—” The visor slid open. A smile blossomed across her face, and the air felt clean, like after a storm. For the first time since the smugglers took her, he could breathe.
Then, because the universe could not bear to see him happy, a Terran female grabbed his mate. With an arm wrapped around Thalia’s chest, the female pressed a knife to her throat. Havik recognized his own blade.
Thalia’s oasis-blue eyes went wide but she remained still.
“That was my man,” the female hissed. “No one gets to end him but me!”
“Sue, we can be reasonable,” Thalia said.
“Is that your alien? Is he going to compensate me for my lost inventory? For the fuel I burned hauling your ass here?”
“Sue, this is a raid.” Thalia’s voice remained calm and steady. “Look around you. Those are Mahdfel soldiers. If you leave now, you have time to get away. They can’t stop every ship.”
“Do as my mate says and leave. We will not pursue you,” Havik said.
“Please leave,” Thalia said, her voice continuing to be a source of calm in the noise and confusion of the raid.
“You ruined me! You have no idea what the boss will do to me if I don’t give him his money. Do you think he’s the kind of man to accept an IOU?”
The knife dug in. A drop of scarlet trickled down Thalia’s throat.
“I’m sorry,” Thalia said. The back of her head slammed into the female’s nose, followed by a crunch and cry. Blood gushed from her nose.
Moving with a speed he did not suspect; she grabbed the blaster from the female’s shoulder holster. With the barrel pressed directly to the female’s thigh, she pulled the trigger. The female crumpled to the ground, wailing.
Thalia stood motionless for three heartbeats. He counted out the thuds emanating from her chest. She shook her head, then kneeled over the prone female, pinning her body down with her weight. She checked the female’s pulse. “Idiot,” she muttered. “If you were going to keep your blaster charged and on the highest setting, why didn’t you have a thumbprint scanner? Or at least the safety on?”
Havik knelt next to his mate. “The female requires a medic, but I am not inclined to find one.”
Retrieving a square of cloth from the female’s pocket, Thalia mopped up the blood. “Be quiet. You’re not dying. You’re welcome, by the way. I hope you enjoy a nice long life in prison.”
The female bared her teeth, all bloody, and spat. Thalia shoved the filthy rag in the female’s mouth. “Do you have handcuffs? Oh, shut the fuck up, Sue. I begged you to leave.”
The female thrashed, kicking ineffectively with her good leg.
“Stop that! Bad Sue!” Thalia bopped the female on her broken nose. A new howl of ragged agony tore from the female, only partially muffled by the rag stuffed in her mouth.
Havik handed his mate a set of cuffs and supervised as she bound the female. Finished, she turned toward him and placed a bloody hand on his chest. Pride swelled that his mate marked him with the blood of her enemy, slain by her own hand. That part of his chest had the marker for his clan. He would cover the old tattoo with a new emblem, with her handprint.
Overcome by the need to hold his mate, he pulled her into his arms. A glittery powder covered every inch of her. The sharp, chemical smell masked her clean, blossoming scent and made his nose itch. She felt so fragile in his arms as she buried her face against his chest.
They were an oasis in the chaos. People shouted and ran. Weapons clashed. Caged animals growled and roared. They could endure in that moment forever, sheltered in each other’s arms and safe.
“Thalia,” he moaned. Clutching her, he vowed to never let her go again. He had so many things to share with her, to confess his heart, that he did not know where to begin.
His mate let out a hiss and stiffened. “Fuck, that smarts, but I don’t want you to let go.”
“I will not.” Never again. Somehow fate gave him another chance to redeem himself and prove that he could be more than a selfish, image-obsessed male. If he achieved nothing else in this life than being a good mate to Thalia, then he would count himself an accomplished male.
“Why don’t I feel more upset? I shot a person,” she said, her voice muffled.
“You defended yourself.” He took her red hand in his, turning it over to study the injuries she had accumulated. He needed to inspect every part of her, but she needed reassurance from his first. “You gave her the opportunity to flee. You did well.”
“It doesn’t feel like it. This sucks.” Moisture appeared at the corners of her eyes. “It’s like Sue wanted to die.”
“The female had a blade pressed to the throat of my mate. She flirted with more than death.”
If Thalia noticed he claimed her as his mate, she made no comment. Instead, her lashes grew heavy as she blinked away tears. She wiped the back of her hand across her cheeks to mop up the moisture, leaving a red trail.
“You require a medic.” He rose to his feet and lifted her in his arms.
“Just take me home, please.”
He noticed she did not demand to be put down. “Medic first. Then home.”
Thalia:
The medic approached cautiously. Havik set Thalia down on her feet and then stepped in front of her, blocking her with his body like a great red wall.
“The female is injured,” the medic said.
Thalia inspected her hands and scrapes on her arm. None of the cuts seemed deep. “I’m fine. I look worse than I am,” she said.
Havik spun and glared down at her. “You are covered in blood. You are not fine.” He took the kit from the medic. “I will clean her wounds. You are not required.”
The medic opened his mouth as if he wanted to argue, then scanned the room. “Fine. I am too busy to deal with your posturing. Contact me if the wounds are deep or she faints.”
Havik crouched down to her eye level. “Are you going to faint?”
“I’m cold.” With adrenaline leaving her system, she shivered.
Havik looked around the room and pointed to a man with a purple complexion and horns. He wore a blue robe of obvious quality with silver embroidery on the sleeves and sash. Havik pointed a finger and said, “You.”
The man jumped.
“Give me your garment.”
The man paled but stripped off the outer robe. Underneath, he wore a navy-blue tank and pants. With a shaking hand, he held it out to Havik, who snatched it quickly. Carefully he placed it over Thalia’s shoulders. The owner looked like he would protest but closed his mouth with a squeak when Havik glared at him.
“This is too nice. I’ll ruin it,” Thalia said.
“That male had been apprehended in the raid. He was here to purchase a sentient being. It has already been ruined by contact with him,” Havik said.
Thalia stroked the silken sleeve, leaving the blue fabric grungy. “Not its fault it was owned by a creep, but I see your point. Thank you.”
“Are you still cold? Require fluid? Sustenance? Are you in shock?”
Maybe. She wanted a shower and then she’d look at her injuries. “I want to go home. Do we have to stay here?”
“No. Your medical condition is not critical. You do not have to be attended to here.” Without warning, Havik scooped her up and carried her through the crowd.