Page 7 of Champion (The Outlander Book Club… in Space! #6)

The large dark brown alien with leathery skin and wings was Rickon, a Gudari.

His kind, while somewhat untrustworthy, proved excellent warriors, especially with their aerial abilities.

However, the painful-looking metallic straps binding his wings currently prevented him from taking flight.

Rickon lost his mate, child, and most of his kin to a disease that ravaged his planet.

Nansar had kidnapped his only surviving relative, a younger brother.

Rickon tracked his sibling to the Gilese mining moons, but his rescue attempt was thwarted, leading to his capture by Nansar.

Pavolarian, who happily told Willa to call him Pavo, was a Romvesian, one of the species my kind had engaged in a war against a century ago.

Pavo worked as a mercenary and soldier for hire, as did many Romvesians.

Nansar hired him as protection on a Gilese mining moon.

Good work, or so Pavo thought until he discovered Nansar using children to mine the drug mumje and stood against it.

Cristox was a Stranac, a species Willa informed me looked like something called the Cowardly Lion, except sporting many more scars.

Because Cristox refused to mate with an aristocrat’s cruel daughter, his people shamed and banished him from his home world.

He’d worked the gladiator circuit for a while, ending up on the planet Zaheere, known for its beautiful and deadly jungles.

While there, he’d rescued a human female being attacked by the Kerzak and given himself for capture up to ensure her escape.

Beiste was an Elktonni with deep red skin and completely red eyes.

Like most of his kind, he’d been in Kerzak employ until the day he overheard a conversation between Ambassador Yaard and Nansar.

Willa cajoled with all her might, but she couldn’t convince Beiste to divulge what he’d overheard.

He claimed that to know the secret would be a death sentence for all.

Kariosak was the last to speak. Not surprising.

His species, the Bojovik, were renowned for being of few words.

Willa gushed over his size, emerald green skin, and long black hair, saying he favored something called an Orc on Earth.

While he smiled sweetly at my mate, all he would say was that he hated Nansar for reasons that would remain his own.

At the end of the discussion, we knew two things for certain. Nansar was far more involved with Ambassador Yaard than we’d suspected, and each gladiator possessed a reason to hate them both.

Discovering the guard was a surprise.

As the conversation between Willa and the gladiators wore on, I noticed Adtovar becoming less and less interested. His focus lay on a lone guard standing sentry in the far-left corner of the room.

As Aljani went, the male wasn’t very large or otherwise memorable. Still, the expression on Adtovar’s face made me rankle. Was this one of the males to tried to harm my mate?

Willa sat between us, and I let my arm drape over the back of her chair so I could lean over, keeping my voice as hushed as possible. “Is he one of the guards who hurt Willa?”

I felt my mate stiffen at the sound of her name, but she didn’t pause in regaling the others with tales of Earth customs and food. Something called Taco Tuesday had captured everyone’s attention.

“No.” Adtovar quickly relieved my immediate concern. Although the worried curiosity on his face kept me cautious. “I’ve seen him before. He stays to himself mostly and doesn’t take part in the other guard’s cruelty.”

“Why the interest?” Again, the guard seemed nothing uncommon.

“He’s careful,” Adtovar murmured. “Watch.”

I let my gaze settle on the guard. Mostly, he did his duty, allowing his pale blue gaze to sweep the room over and over, always alert, expression emotionless and blank.

Then his eyes met mine. Just for a moment, just long enough for me to know the connection wasn’t accidental.

Once the guard knew he commanded my attention, his gaze flickered to Willa.

Something like concern crossed his features before he shifted his gaze to Adtovar, and again to me.

He held my gaze a moment, long enough for me to realize that the way he raised his chin and gave a nod toward the escarpment at the north end of the arena wasn’t accidental.

Knowing rushed through my veins. Sages spent years in training, learning to discern even the most minuscule hint of body language.

I didn’t get the feeling this guard wished us harm.

On the contrary, my analysis and interpretation of his body movements and nonverbal cues made me think he wished to communicate something to us. Something important.

“You don’t think he heard your mating claim and is trying to figure out if it’s true, do you?” Adtovar wondered, then worried. “Perhaps to use it against us?”

“Perhaps,” I gave, not yet ready to relinquish my skepticism. “Although I don’t sense malice from him.”

Adtovar gave a heavy snort that suggested he might not agree with my assessment. “We need to find out what he wants.”

“What does who want?” Willa leaned back in her chair with a pleased smile. The conversation between the others continued, filling the room with pleasant banter.

Adtovar filled her in on our thoughts about the Aljani, and Willa wasted no time in catching his gaze.

The guard seemed stunned at first, almost frightened.

Then, his mouth settled into something that might have been the beginnings of a smile before he gained control of his features and adopted an expression of blankness.

“I don’t think he’s a bad guy.” Willa pursed her full lips, and thoughts of kissing threatened to hijack my brain.

“Why do you say that?” Adtovar kept his focus on the matter at hand.

Willa issued a sly smile, blue eyes sparking. “Call it women’s intuition.”

Adtovar snorted and rolled his eyes, making her laugh. Goddess, I adored that sound. And I agreed with her. Nothing I observed made me think the guard meant us any harm.

“We need to find a way to speak to the guard without raising suspicion,” I suggested. Five other Aljani stood sentry inside the room. Any attempt at conversation with the guard would likely be reported to Nansar.

Adtovar shifted his large frame in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest as his pale eyes danced between Willa and me. “Why don’t we let him come find us?”

“What do you mean?” Willa countered. “You know the guards don’t usually visit the gladiator quarters. And talking to him in the arena would be even more suspicious than doing it here.”

“We need to meet him somewhere where no one will see or hear us,” Adtovar mused, issuing a slow wink.

“What?” Willa’s eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. She liked subterfuge as much as I did. Goddess, what a perfect mate.

Adtovar’s grin morphed into a wide smile, pale blue eyes glowing with mischief.

“You’re newly mated. Don’t you want some time alone? If the guard is watching—which we know he is—I suspect he will notice the two of you wandering off and follow.”

Willa rolled her eyes but huffed in agreement. “Looks like we’ve got a plan.”