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“Everything we shared,” I choke out, “all the things I told you—was any of it real? Or was it all just to get me to follow you here? Why?!”

“You are all to be escorted to meet with the king,” Tanis declares, lowering his weapon completely. He’s clearly uncomfortable with this display of emotion.

“Why are we going to see your king?” I demand, confusion and hurt mingling in my voice. “I need to get back to my colony! I have to warn them about what Walter is doing!”

Volan stares at me for a long moment before a sigh slips through. “It’s complicated, Maya.”

“No, it’s really not.” I laugh bitterly. “I trusted you to help me get home. You promised me.”

Volan flinches. Actually flinches.

“Wait a moment!” I spin to face Tanis. “Are you seriously just going to take us to your king like we’re some sort of... prisoners?”

“You are not being arrested,” Volan says firmly, stepping between me and Tanis. “You are my honored guests. There’s simply a... protocol that must be followed when someone unauthorized enters the lab. Once we’ve spoken to the King, he’ll see that us being here is just a misunderstanding—easily cleared up.”

“Protocol?” I shake my head in disbelief. “You brought me here.” I jab a finger into Volan’s chest, fury fueling each of my movements. “And now I’m being treated like I’ve done something wrong! I need to go home!”

I mean, Melvall and Zoran were kind of trying to steal the medicine... But I shouldn’t be arrested. It’s not fair.

Volan stares at me with an unreadable expression, a maddening, emotionless mask. When he acts like this, how can I even tell what’s a truth or a lie? I so desperately wish to believe him, but I can’t. Not when he doesn’t let me leave. Not when he led me straight into this situation.

He doesn’t even defend me.

He never cared for me at all.

“Volan, please,” I beg. He knows how important this is to me. He knows just how badly I need to return home. He owes me this. “I can’t be arrested. I have a quest to complete. I have a colony to save.”

You know, that’s pretty important compared to a dinner date with some pompous royal, I think to myself, wisely keeping my mouth shut for once.

“Maya, I’m just trying to do what’s best for everyone,” Volan tells me.

“Like hell you know what’s the best for me!” I snap. I shake my head as I back away from him, coming to stand beside the two equally crazy other males being arrested. “I trusted you!”

It’s ironic that I now trust two virtual strangers over Volan, and yet here we are.

Volan turns away from me. He refuses to meet my eye. He won’t even glance in my direction! It feels like he’s physically struck me. A part of me hoped and prayed that he did care, that he would keep trying. Instead, he’s all too easily moving on.

I suck in a breath, anger coursing through me. Volan was the one that led me here. There was no way I could know. But he knew. I’m not being overly dramatic here; the pain is genuine. He knows how bad he’s hurt me.

“Does this mean I’ll get to fight in the pits again? Given another chance, I think I can win this time.” Zoran leans his head down towards me, flashing his teeth in a hopeful smile. “Will you cheer for me, little human?”

“Fighting in the pits shouldn’t be fun,” Melvall replies with a shake of his head. “Why did I listen to you when you insisted we come here?”

“Technically, you were the one that insisted on coming here to this particular room,” Zoran replies, tossing a lock of black hair over his shoulder with a dramatic flair. For all appearances in the moment he looks like a drama queen being put out, and not at all like he’s talking about throwing himself into a deadly fight. “We need more medicine, you said. I kept telling you that I’m happy to fight for it, but no, you insisted there was an easier way. Look at us now—we’re going back to the pits! I could have saved us the walk.”

The warriors approach us, some with weapons still at the ready. I do my best to stand tall, and definitely not quake in front of them. Let’s face it, having a dude twice your size towering over you with a weapon large enough to turn you into a skewered kebab would make anyone nervous.

Me? I’m simply frozen to the spot.

Whenever it counts, I always freeze, I realize. I could have done more when my father pressured me to marry, asked for help from others, but I slunk off to hide instead. When Ariana went missing, I hid behind code and programming rather than go out and search for her. For the first time in my life I have acted, and honestly… In hindsight, I was so not ready for this adventure.

I’m still that shy girl, controlled entirely by my fear.

“I’m sorry,” Tanis tells me as he approaches, “This is standard protocol for any found in the restricted areas.”

Melvall and Zoran hiss their displeasure—what, are they both part snake now?—as the male binds my wrist with a rope. I stare down at my bindings, blinking back frustrated tears from my eyes.

At least Tanis has the decency to look apologetic. He’s just following orders, I can’t blame him. As far as he’s concerned, I’m the criminal here.