Page 49 of Captured By the Dragon Warlord (Fated Mates of the Sarkarnii Warlords #2)

T he engine signature of the ship which approached us and got into my consciousness is hard to detect, but once I do, I get it locked into the system.

I berate myself over and over for leaving Scarlett. She deserves better than a mate who let her be taken by another species, who was unable to protect her when she was mere nova-inches away.

A Sarkarnii who cannot control his shift. Who is plagued by the thoughts of others, who struggles in bright light. Who is scared and maimed.

I am not worthy of my sweet heartsfire. That she was fated to me has to be a cruel error in the universe. That I have even managed to fill her belly yet another twist which is entirely wrong.

Now she is even more unsafe because of me, because of what I have done. And my clan is no further forward in finding a way out of our nightmare of shift and unshift.

I have not made anything better by my actions. My usual blundering in, killing and taking, has resulted in less than zero.

Now I’m chasing a spirit, a specter which I believe is the cause of all the trouble. Not only is it possibly the stupidest thing I’ve done but it’s the one thing it would expect me to do.

Because somehow, it knows me.

“Nev this to the ancestors!” I fire smoke out, filling the small cabin of the flyer.

I needed my fellow warlords to back me up, not to leave them behind. I needed to have a plan. I needed to be the warrior I expect my warriors to be.

Instead I’m chasing smoke through the galaxy all whilst leaving Vorostor Central and my mate unprotected.

As the initial desire for death has subsided, this is quickly becoming the stupidest idea I have ever had.

“Dante?” I put a call out over the comm. “You still there?”

There is simply space-static. There’s no sign of the warriors in the other flyers. It’s as if they’ve vanished into nothingness. Either I’m out of comm range or he has returned to the planet, both of which make my life more difficult.

Especially as, in a move not entirely unexpected, the flyer loses power and my instruments go dark.

It has found me.

This time I am ready.

“Ah, the Sarkarnii warlord.” The screen glows in the darkness with the image of the creature from before.

“You don’t get to take me and then live,” I snarl.

The creature reveals its teeth. “You should be grateful you live, and your gratitude is for us,” it says.

“I owe you nothing.”

“You owe us everything, and if you want your mate to live, you will comply with all our instructions.”

“Scarlett.” Her name bursts from my lips before I can stop myself.

“If you want her, you will comply.”

I want my mate with all my being. I need her to shift and to shift back. I need the calmness she brings to my turmoil, the softness of her skin, the chime of her voice. The way she imposed rules on me which I instantly ignored.

When I get her back, her rules will be my mantra.

And I will get her back.

“And what would you have me comply with?” I keep my voice as even as I can, trying not to growl.

Perhaps if I lull them into a false sense of security, I can rip off some limbs, providing the species seeking to control me has limbs. If not, I will simply shred them.

“You will hand yourself over for the final experiment.”

“Which is?”

“You will find out.”

“Not much of a choice.”

“There is no choice.”

I hate it is right.

“Then I comply.” I unsheath my claws. “Come and get me.”

“You will come to us,” the face on the screen says.

My flyer moves as if in a tractor beam. Ice is beginning to form on the instruments as the deep freeze of space seeps inside.

No matter for me. Most Sarkarnii can stand a brief exposure to the vacuum which is the universe.

It is the way some transfer from ship to ship, and it provides an element of surprise which brought us the control and the wealth we’ve found in the galaxy surrounding Vorostor.

My breath fogs in the air, and I release some flame to heat the interior. There is a tingling in my abdomen which usually means a shift is imminent, but in the confines of the flyer, it won’t be possible.

I have to hold it down, risk the sickness which comes of going too long without a shift.

But once I reach my destination, there will be no stopping me.

Total destruction comes to those who think they can control the Sarkarnii.

Complete destruction to those who think they can take my mate and best me.

Scarlett is mine. And the first thing I will do when I get to her is claim her with my bite.