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The voices grew closer, words becoming clearer, and she pressed herself against the tunnel wall, desperately hoping the darkness would conceal them for just a moment longer.

ChapterThirty-Eight

Zexx stood just inside the mouth of the tunnel, Linnea's body tense against his as the voices outside grew clearer. Her fear pulsed through their connection, and he tightened his grip on her hand, offering what comfort he could through touch alone.

Then, through the narrow opening of the door, he caught fragments of speech that made his heart leap—not the clipped, formal tones of Crestek guards, but the deeper burr of Dothvek voices, the rhythm of speech he'd known all his life.

"It's okay," he whispered against Linnea's ear, feeling her startle at the unexpected words. "It's my people. Our rescue party."

She turned to him, confusion replacing fear in her eyes. "The bounty hunters? But how—"

He pressed a finger to her lips, then gestured toward the door. Together, they pushed it wider, stepping out from the confining darkness of the tunnel into the soft light of the twin suns just beginning to rise over the rocky outcroppings that surrounded the city.

Before them stood a group unlike any he'd ever seen—Dothvek warriors with their curved blades and bare chests standing shoulder to shoulder with their mates.

Tori, the Zevrian security chief of the bounty hunting ship, stood at the forefront of the group, her dark curls piled haphazardly atop her head and a wicked-looking blade gripped casually in one hand. Her face split into a grin when she saw them emerge from the tunnel.

"We were just coming in to find you," she said, twirling her blade with a flourish before sheathing it. "Figured you might be stuck in that maze of stone the Cresteks call a city."

Linnea stepped forward, her back straightening as she instinctively assumed the posture of chancellor despite her dirty cloak and disheveled appearance. "Thank you for coming," she said, her voice steady despite the exhaustion Zexx could feel emanating from her. "I wasn't sure how quickly you’d arrive.”

A tall Dothvek warrior with dark slashes marking both sides of his bare chest stepped forward. K’alvek had been among the first of their people to take a human mate, although Zexx did not see the pale-haired captain he’d married.

“We were closer than you knew," the Dothvek said. "And we used knowledge from one who knows the secret entrances well."

As if on cue, another figure moved to the front of the group—a male whose gold skin and inked chest marked him as Dothvek, yet whose bearing was distinctly Crestek. T'Kar, son of a former chancellor, who had chosen the sands over the stone city and later joined the bounty hunters.

“Chancellor,” he greeted Linnea with a formal nod. "Brother of the sands," he added to Zexx with a grin.

"T'Kar," Linnea responded, surprise evident in her voice. "I would not have expected to see you return to these walls.”

A shadow passed across his face. "Nor did I expect to return. But when your message came through, speaking of treachery within the council and danger to the peace..." He shrugged one powerful shoulder. "Some debts transcend personal history."

"The council has turned against Linnea," Zexx explained, looking around at the assembled group. "They orchestrated protests against her leadership and the peace accord, are attempting to frame me for her kidnapping, and are now hunting us both."

Linnea took up the narrative, her voice growing stronger as she detailed the betrayal of her advisors, the evidence of their conspiracy, and the counter-protest that had revealed how much support she still had among the common people.

“I am sure they would like for me to perish in the rescue attempt while Zexx is killed. That way they can install a new chancellor," she concluded. "Someone who will isolate the Cresteks once more and abandon the peace that has only just begun to take root."

K'alvek's expression darkened, his hand moving instinctively to the hilt of his blade. "Familiar tactics," he growled. “The Dothveks also had a ruler who stole power and used violence and death to do so.”

"And look how well that ended for him," commented a female Zexx recognized—tall and lithe with lavender hair that seemed to change shades as she moved.

Zexx stiffened as he watched the Lycithian shapeshifter. He was on guard in case she decided to shift into a massive beast or a deadly viper, as he knew she’d done before.

“It sounds like you're the leader your city needs," K'alvek said to Linnea, his voice carrying the weight of one who had seen many leaders, both worthy and unworthy. "One who understands the value of alliance over isolation, of peace over pointless conflict."

Tori's face fell slightly. "Wait, so there's not going to be a battle?" She tapped the hilt of her blade with obvious disappointment. "We came all this way, and I don't get to stab anyone?"

The lavender-haired female rolled her eyes. "There will be plenty of chances to draw blood when we capture our next bounty, Tori." Her voice was melodic and slightly otherworldly. "The Magatti slaver we've been tracking should put up a valiant fight, and he despises females, which will make it all the sweeter.”

“Thanks, Bexli.” Tori reluctantly removed her hand from her weapon. “That helps.”

Zexx watched the females with a mixture of fascination and gratitude. These were the outsiders who had changed their isolated world forever—who had crashed onto their sands and, in doing so, awakened possibilities none of them had imagined. Without them, his brothers would never have left the planet to be galactic bounty hunters. He would never have met Linnea. Without them, their two peoples might still be locked in the cycle of mistrust and violence that had defined generations.

Linnea stepped closer to him, her shoulder brushing his as she addressed the group once more. "I need to address my people," she said, determination hardening her voice. "To counter the council's lies and reclaim my position before they can do more damage."

Zexx stiffened, concern flooding through him at the thought of her walking openly into the city where her enemies had control. "It's too dangerous," he said, unable to keep the edge from his voice. "They've already branded me your kidnapper. What's to stop them from claiming I've manipulated you, or worse, from simply having you killed the moment you appear?"