Page 29 of Adtovar (The Alliance Rescue #1)
The guard on duty swung open the heavy cell door and let us inside.
The door clanged shut with a resounding echo, and the sharp click of the lock securing reverberated through the cold, dim space.
I positioned myself against the steel bars, the icy metal pressing into my back, while Ako chose the only other seat available.
It was a small, utilitarian metal chair that looked almost laughably inadequate to support Ako’s substantial frame, much less Bozzo’s.
Bozzo inclined his head, his gelatinous form rippling from the motion. “Duke Ako, good to see you. Adtovar, you are looking better than the last time I saw you.”
I growled in response. The last time Bozzo saw me, I sat on the dirt floor of the arena, blood and guts of the Ungeheuer raining down on me as I held my dying mate.
Ako waved away Bozzo’s words with a flick of his wrist. “We are here as you requested, Bozzo. Why did you wish to speak to us?”
Bozzo shifted in his seat, his piss-yellow eyes darting to first me, then to Ako. “It is about the charges leveled against me.”
Ako chuckled softly, his expression was one of amused disbelief. “Really? Your own records corroborate the allegations of human slave trafficking and a dozen other serious charges.”
Bozzo snorted as though he thought the whole idea preposterous. “I would like to discuss the removal of the human slavery charges.”
His request did not surprise me. Despite the other evidence amassed against Bozzo, the human slavery charges were the most damning. Under new Alliance laws, that charge alone was enough to condemn him to a lifetime on a desolate prison planet.
Ako agreed with me, as evidenced by his deep chuckle. “Surely you jest. We discovered evidence of over a hundred humans sold through your arena in the past several rotations.”
Bozzo contorted his features into a twisted, hateful expression, as if the very notion of treating humans like cattle was not only acceptable but entirely reasonable.
“Why didn’t you sell her?”
I don’t know why I asked the question. His answer wouldn’t sway my opinion of him in the least, but I was curious.
Of all the humans that had passed through his grasp, Maddie was the singular exception.
One he hadn’t regarded as mere merchandise—a way to make a quick credit.
He certainly hadn’t treated her with kindness, but he had kept her, a fate far better than what befell the others.
Bozzo’s fat lips quirked upward, and he released a sigh that made his gelatinous rolls tremble.
“Maddie was... special.” His piss-yellow eyes locked onto mine, and for a fleeting moment, a connection sparked between us.
An unspoken acknowledgment that we both recognized Maddie’s worth.
A moment broken by Bozzo’s hateful laugh.
“If she hadn’t helped you, the Ungeheuer would have killed you. ”
Twice. Surely, Ako would let me punch him twice.
Ako shifted in his seat, aggravated by the turn of the conversation. “I’m curious, Bozzo. Why do you think we would ever consider dropping the human slavery charges against you?”
Bozzo’s beady eyes narrowed on the Duke, but his smile was wide, showing a mouthful of yellow teeth. “Perhaps there is some information I could trade.”
Ako’s lips pursed for a minute as he considered. “I don’t know of any information you might have that we would want. We have the records for the human slaves you trafficked. Alliance intelligence has already located many of them.”
For one whose leverage just disappeared, Bozzo didn’t seem too bothered. In fact, the smile that curled his bulbous black lips was utterly menacing. “I bet I can change your mind, Duke Ako.”
The laugh Ako barked was devoid of humor. “I doubt it.” The metal chair creaked loudly as he rose.
“Ambassador Yaard departed from Budak only a few days before Adtovar arrived.”
Ako and I shared a glance as Bozzo’s words stilled our departure. Ako recovered first, although from the tense way he held his body, the revelation had affected him more than he wanted to let on.
“I did not know Yaard enjoyed gladiator games,” Ako said drolly. After his criminal deeds and several attempts on Duke Ako’s life were exposed, Ambassador Yaard topped the Alliance criminal list.
“He doesn’t,” Bozzo snorted. “He was there picking up the cuddwisg device I procured for him.”
The cuddwisg was holographic disguise technology, basically outlawed by Alliance regulation. I glanced at Ako, who took a step closer to Bozzo. His eyes narrowed curiously.
“A necessary tool to avoid capture by the Alliance, no doubt,” Ako said the words like he didn’t believe them. Neither did I.
Bozzo leaned his head back and laughed. A deep, gurgling sound that seemed to echo with foreboding and sent a faint chill down my spine.
“Yaard didn’t want it to avoid capture. He wanted it to blend in at his next destination.”
The chill seemed to deepen, wrapping around me like an invisible, icy shroud.
My gaze darted from Bozzo’s smug demeanor, his lips curling into a self-satisfied smirk, to Duke Ako.
The Duke appeared visibly shaken. A faint tremor ran through him, his eyes wide and unsteady, as if the very ground beneath him trembled.
“What is his destination?” Ako’s voice seemed shaky.
“Do we have a deal?” Bozzo’s yellow gaze narrowed. At that precise moment, a shift occurred. It was as if Bozzo sensed the invisible threads of control weaving into his grasp, and a knowing arrogant satisfaction spread across his expression.
With a deep breath, Ako straightened, squaring his shoulders, and lifting his chin. Any shock or hesitation that had gripped him evaporated like steam. In his place now stood a confident leader, his eyes focused and determined, exuding an aura of authority.
“It depends on the next words out of your mouth. “Ako’s slow, gravelly tone carried a threat.
Bozzo remained completely unfazed. His smug demeanor seemed to grow with each passing second as if he were savoring a triumph.
“Earth. Yaard travels to Earth. He heard your mate is hiding there.”
I reacted without thinking, taking a step forward and driving my fist squarely into the middle of Bozzo’s face.
His squeal pierced the air, a shrill cry that echoed through the cells.
Short, stubby hands flailed wildly, grasping at his face where his gelatinous features seemed to collapse inward.
The force of the blow sent him, along with his chair, toppling backward with an unceremonious splat.
I turned, expecting to encounter Ako’s disapproval, but he was already gone.