Page 48 of Captured

I inhale. Darhk is ever the loyal soldier, staying true to his mission, focused to a fault. In this instance, he is right.

“She knows, but Captain Henrick doesn’t. She pretended she has it.”

Darhk comes to stand by my side, his presence both reassuring and lethal. His face is grim as he inspects the thick wilderness of the uncharted planet.

“Then we must make haste.” His voice is low and full of things better left unsaid. “Henrick will stop at nothing to extract the information from her, whether she has it or not.”

Henrick will torture it out of her, he means.

The idea makes something awaken, deep in my gut, something ancient and ugly, rising to the surface in a tidal wave of wrath.

“I will make him pay for all the blood he spilled,” I growl the words like a vow. “And if he hurts her, even the Black God won’t be able to help him.”

“We will find her, my brother,” Darhk says. “If you say she is your Amara, then it is my duty to help you save her.”

“No, brother.” I stop Darhk as he means to follow me into the forest. “It is my duty to save her, not yours. If Henrick sees a large group of Drakians closing in on him, he will only kill her.”

Darhk hesitates, his concern for my safety obvious. A short moment later, he nods. He will respect my decision.

“In the meantime?”

“In the meantime, salvage what you can from the meeting with the Rebellion.” I turn one last time to my brother as he watches over me. “We were betrayed, brother. Someone inside the Rebellion is a spy for the Senators. Find the traitor.”

Darhk and I lock gazes. He’s my youngest brother and our bond runs deep, yet he understands that even my life cannot be held above our quest for ending the Senators’ tyranny on the Galaxy.

“May The Night God guide you.” Darhk inclines his head and covers his heart with a scale-clad hand. I nod at the formal blessing, then head into the dark forest to save my mate and seal the fate of the Senators.

Not even the Night God could save Henrick now.