Page 7 of Adtovar (The Alliance Rescue #1)

“He is also interested in building a first-class prize stable and is looking at some of the females as well.”

Well, that settled it. Adtovar wasn’t as bad as a gladiator. He was worse. He was another Bozzo. Another Bozzo who didn’t have the decency to appear as ugly as he behaved. No, this asshat had the designation of being the most gorgeous male I’d ever laid eyes on.

Speaking of eyes, I leveled mine on his face, waiting until the glacial blue orbs met mine. “I am neither a whore nor a slave.” My ancestry was filled with those who had been subjugated by and risen above the demeaning ideas of others. I would, too, regardless of what these fucking aliens thought.

Adtovar studied me for a moment, still smiling, but there was sadness in his eyes. “I did not suspect you of either.”

I felt my mouth fall open. Of all the things I expected him to say, that wasn’t it.

Maybe Adtovar wasn’t like Bozzo at all. Or maybe he was and hid it really well.

Either way, I remained unconvinced. I crossed my arms over my chest, making my posture as defensive as possible, and darted my glare between the two males.

Bozzo met my gaze for a second, and then his eyes darted away nervously. Adtovar possessed no such qualms. His pale blue eyes grabbed my gaze and held it until I broke away, more shaken than I cared to admit.

“Bozzo, could I trouble you for an audience alone with Maddie so we can discuss the options for her future?” Adtovar’s gaze never left my face as he spoke.

“Of course, I will send a guard to fetch you later.” Bozzo damn near gave a happy dance on his way out the door.

I bit back a smirk as he scuttled away, glad to know he still suffered a healthy dose of fear where I was concerned.

Adtovar, however, suffered no such sentiment. The minute Bozzo disappeared into the shadows lining the corridors, he stepped closer. My retreat was instinctive. Not prompted by fear exactly, his presence was just too overwhelming in the small space.

A furrow gathered between his white brows as he watched me take a step backward. “I will not harm you, tiny human.”

I couldn’t stop the snort of amusement from escaping. Tiny human . While I’d never been what might be considered fat, I was a big girl with defined curves. Next to him, though, tiny human might be a good call.

He held up his hands as if to punctuate his statement, watching me intently.

“I’ve heard that before,” I quipped. Even so, I relaxed.

Adtovar tilted his head, a faint frown playing over his lips. “And it was not true?”

I shrugged. The memories didn’t bother me so much anymore.

I’d survived, and it made me stronger. “My first owner swore he wouldn’t hurt me.

He still beat the hell out of me, but he called it discipline.

” While the short, stocky pig looking fucker never broke a bone or gave me a wound that scarred, he’d kept me black and blue for months.

There were days when I couldn’t sit from the pain of his lashings, my ass and thighs covered in red welts.

He meant to break me so I could become a docile part of his harem of empty-eyed automatons.

Over my dead body… or his. It took a couple of months, but I finally conjured a way to nearly blow him to smithereens.

The next day, he sold me to Bozzo. I learned my lesson and started blowing things up much earlier here.

The anger that flashed across Adtovar’s face made me gasp.

“Laying a harmful hand on a human female... any female is wrong, regardless of the semantics.”

“So, what are these options for my future you want to talk about?” I relaxed my posture just enough to indicate I’d be willing to listen. I doubted he planned to offer to whisk me away to safety and luxury, but anything would be better than here.

Adtovar took a step back, laying his finger over his lips in the universal gesture of S hhh .

With silent steps, he moved toward the door, pausing as he cocked his head, listening.

The tips of his elf-like ears were visible through the thick white hair, and they twitched.

His ears actually twitched. Abso-fucking-lutely adorable.

After a few moments, apparently satisfied that we would not be overhead, he turned back toward me.

“My name is Adtovar.”

“Yeah, I know that,” I snorted. “You’re a champion gladiator here to buy stock ….” I paused, swallowing back the bitterness that flowed over my tongue at uttering the word.

“No.” Adtovar’s tone was hushed but firm. “I am not here to perpetrate the use of slaves.”

I almost believed him. “Then why are you here?”

Adtovar moved closer. So close that I could feel the warmth of his body tingle over my skin and the fan of his warm breath stirring the curls atop my head. His breath smelled sweet and spicy, like cinnamon rolls with extra cinnamon.

“I am the First Mate of the battleship Historia . I am not here to buy slaves. I am here for you, Maddie. I’m here to rescue you.”

The words felt like a physical force, the intensity hitting me like a strong wind pushing against my body, knocking me backward. I stumbled a few steps, dropping to sit on my cot when my legs no longer held me.

Adtovar followed, going to his knees by my side.

“I apologize for the ruse, but it will need to appear that I have purchased you. It is the only way to escape Bozzo without bloodshed. But I give you my word as a warrior. You will be free.” He lifted his hand, curling his fingers into a fist and giving three sharp thumps over his heart.

“Are you for real?” Not even waking up on an alien spaceship had spurned this level of disbelief.

“Very.” One of Adtovar’s large hands covered the shaking fingers gripping my knee. “There are others like you—human females we have rescued from slavery. My human daughter Willa is such a female.”

I didn’t know which I found the most unbelievable… that someone was actually rescuing abducted humans… that someone actually cared. Or that there was one he considered a daughter.

“You’re going to rescue me?” I said the words slowly, almost afraid Bozzo would show up, rip them from my throat, and crush the burgeoning flicker of hope.

But he didn’t. All that remained was Adtovar, his pale blue eyes, and the perfect expression of sincerity he wore.

I let hope reign. “Can I… can I go home… to Earth?” The thought of seeing my aunt again brought tears to my eyes.

“Perhaps.” Adtovar brushed away my tears with a swipe of his thumb.

A touch so gentle it seemed odd, coming from a male of his size and strength.

“The Alliance has regulations about returning humans to Earth, but perhaps you can go home. If that is what you wish, I will do everything in my power to make it happen, but first, we need to get off this planet and safely aboard the Historia .”

The notion of being rescued filled me with a surge of anticipation that warmed me like I sat by a blazing fire. Yet, almost immediately, my thoughts turned to the other girls. They’d endured brutality far more severe than anything I had faced.

“What about the other females?”

“The other human females are aboard the Bardaga or have resettled on a human haven planet called Tau Ceti,” Adtovar told me.

My tears had stopped, and yet his fingertips did not leave my cheek. It felt nice and comforting—as comforting as knowing there were other rescued human females, as comforting as knowing that perhaps I could help the others.

“No, I’m talking about the girls here, the other females... the prizes.”

Adtovar sat back on his heels, stunned, the warmth of his fingertips falling from my cheek. “There are other human females here? Our intel did not suggest that.”

“They’re not human.”

Adtovar’s handsome face fell slightly, shadowed by regret. “The Alliance has no directive for rescuing other female species.”

“But they’re slaves. Bozzo and the gladiators mistreat them terribly.” Worse than terribly, and I wouldn’t abandon them. The thought of prioritizing my own escape, my own safety, over their suffering was something I simply could not bear. “I’m not leaving without them.”