Page 8 of Guardian’s Destiny (Space Guardian’s Mate #3)

SLOANE

Outside the door, I took a deep breath, stealing myself, shutting all my emotions down. It was important that I established dominance from the moment I walked through the door. I had to intimidate the fuck out of the Ohrur. I shook out my shoulders, put my game face on, and entered the cell .

All the men, Zaarek, Raasla, Noodar, Tharaax, and Vraax, stood around a chair on which a shorter alien sat, looking defiant as hell. His oversized head wobbled precariously on top of his too-skinny neck, but his green eyes, which were regarding me, were filled with a cunning intelligence. This was a man used to getting what he wanted when he wanted it—a man who thrived on power over others. One look at the Space Guardians, who each outweighed him by at least double, probably more, hovering menacingly over him, told me everything I needed to know.

Possedion had ordered these men around for years, or if not him, someone like him. They might intimidate and scare him, but Possedion still held an Ace in the Hole, and he wouldn't give that up to them. In his mind, he was their boss .

That needed to change. Quickly.

I brushed by Vraax, and a tingling sensation spread through me that I suppressed with a herculean effort. I couldn't allow this in right then. Or ever. I didn't like the effect he had on me.

I shouldered Zaarek and Vraax out of the way, pushing myself right in between them.

It didn't matter that I was taller than him; if the Space Guardians hadn't intimidated Possedion physically, then I wouldn't either. No, I had to establish my dominance brutally; that was the only way. He had to believe that I was a greater threat than these five Space Guardians. Not an easy feat, given that standing between the five of them… yeah, it was intimidating as hell.

"Alright, I've been told you don't feel pain." I leaned forward, placing my hands on the armrests of his chair while glaring down into his eyes.

"You don't scare me, human female," he scoffed.

"Does he need both hands?" I didn't like doing this. I hated torturing people, or aliens, I suppose, but I would do it like I had before because it needed to be done and because this pathetic excuse for a man deserved it.

"Not necessarily," Zaarek answered behind me.

"Give me a knife." I never broke eye contact with the Ohrur, letting him know how serious I was, while his eyes were telling me that pain didn't faze him. I held out my hand over my shoulder until I felt the hardness of a handle in my palm. With my foot, I pulled the table closer.

When it was close enough, I quickly grabbed Possedion's left hand, and without any farther fanfare or giving him a chance to process what was happening, I cut off his hand.

I pulled out the healing wand, certain he knew what it was and would do. Then, I replied to his comment about him not being afraid of a woman. "You should be afraid of me, little man. Very, very afraid." I healed his bleeding wound while he hissed profanities at me from underneath his breath. The others had been right; there was no sign of Possedion feeling any pain, but I was sure having lost a hand did bother him.

"Damn, I wish I would have thought of that," one of the Guardians said behind me, I couldn't be sure, but I thought it was Raasla. I hadn't spent enough time with them yet to distinguish their voices.

"That's my mate." Vraax's voice; however, I recognized and cringed at his statement. If the fool didn't shut up, he would destroy any headway I had made with Possedion.

"Now, I've heard you're holding back on how we can get to Darlam." I turned Possedion's attention back to me. I held up the vial Luph had given me and spun my lie, hoping it would be as effective as Luph had promised it would be. The potion didn't need to kill him; he only needed to be convinced that it would.

"This will first make you sick like the dog you are and then slowly kill you. You're going to vomit and get a stomachache from hell. One that will even penetrate your pain-resistant mind. Trust me. This poison will work its way through your system within an hour. A very painful, disgusting hour. You'll be puking your guts out, literally, until there's nothing left to come out. Next, your lungs will liquify and slowly drown you from the inside. Remember the wet towel on your face?" I paused just enough to allow him to recall his waterboarding experience. "That's nothing compared to what you will experience next."

I grabbed his head, tilted it back, and plugged his nostrils, all three of them, which was a little bit more difficult than I was used to. The moment he took a gasping breath, I poured the liquid substance into his mouth, forced it closed by pressing against his jaw, then I massaged his neck until I felt him swallow.

Possedion glared spitefully at me.

It didn't take long before his body began to spasm. His eyes bulged. I moved a few spaces back, not wanting to be hit by the vomit that was about to come out. "Tick tock," I reminded him, "that's just the beginning."

A disgusting black mess exited his mouth and stank up the room. He spasmed a bit more, pressing his hand into his abdomen. He stared at me through his bulging eyes—still filled with defiance.

I waved the healing wand. "It can all go away. Just say the word."

He stared at it longingly. It was part of the reason I had to take his hand off. I had needed to remind him of its power.

"What do you want?" Possedion pressed, and finally, I detected a trace of fear in his eyes.

"How can we get on to Darlam without being shot down?"

"Only at least three Ohrurs can breach the forcefield." Possedion repeated what he had told the others. I had asked Hannah about what they knew before I entered the cell. According to Possedion, only a spaceship belonging to the Ohrurs and flown by at least three Ohrurs could go through the forcefield without being shut down.

"You know what?" Leaning forward, I got right in his face—closer than I was comfortable with at the moment. The stench of vomit clung to his breath, not to mention the mess at my feet. "I don't believe you."

Dramatically, I turned my back to him, looking at the five Space Guardians who stared at me as if I was an aberration. "I think I was wrong. Can you guys capture another one of his kind? Maybe one who will be more talkative."

"No problem," Raasla pushed himself off the wall. I liked him; his eyes gleamed with approval while Vraax stared at me… like a besotted poodle. Why couldn't he be more like Raasla?

I waved my hand in the air and sensed the men falling in step behind me. "Let's go, boys, no sense in watching this pathetic show of him slowly drowning himself."

One, two, three … I counted in my head and grinned when Possedion cried, "Wait!" right on cue.

I wiped the grin off my face and gave him a bored stare. "Why? You don't have anything to tell us."

"You can bring Darlams." Possedion spat out hurriedly. "At least three Ohrurs are required, but Darlams can be onboard."

I couldn't stop my triumphant grin from spreading over my face. Damn, I was good.

"Just to make sure you're not lying, you know you will be aboard too, right?" I reiterated, returning to Possedion and petting him on the head as if he was my new favorite pet. He glared up at me, filled with hate and fear.

By the door, I turned one more time theatrically, like my favorite detectives in old movies, remembering one last question. "Oh, one more thing, decode the encrypted Space Guardian's names."

I nodded at Zaarek, and he handed me a comm. Possedion took it from my hand with a loud, suffering sigh and entered the required codes.

"Now heal me," Possedion pleaded.

"We still need him," Vraax cautioned, and I rolled my eyes. Raasla chuckled; he had already seen through my lie. Vraax put his hand on my arm, making my flesh tingle.

"Oh, for the love of God." With an exasperated huff, I waved the wand up and down Possedion's body without bothering to activate it. Maybe Vraax was right; maybe I needed to keep this part of the lie going for as long as Possedion believed it. I hated the possibility, but for now, I needed the ugly Ohrur.

"You'll still feel some aftereffects, but you won't die," I told the Ohrur.

Outside, Noodar asked, "That wasn't poison, was it?"

Raasla was the only one who had seen through my little stunt. That was interesting. "Just something your… mate brewed up to make him sick."

"Nicely done," Vraax praised.

"I take it the females filled you in on everything?" Tharaax wanted to know

"Yap. They did."

"So you're going with us?" Zaarek asked. It was the same question I saw reflected in Vraax's eyes.

"Sorry, I hate to miss all the fun, but I have a mission of my own. If you guys could just drop me off on Astrionis, I'd appreciate it." I tried one more time.

"Astrionis is too far; we can't afford to waste so much time," Vraax objected.

I glared at him. I didn't like his condescending expression that screamed your tea party can wait until mine is over . I ground my jaw and played another one of my cards, which I hated doing. But they needed to know that they weren't dealing with an idiot. "You need to get two or three more Ohrurs, right?" I waited for Vraax's nod.

"So you'll have to detour anyway," I stated. "Astrionis isn't that far from Ohrur."

"How do you know where the Ohrurs and Astrionis are?" Tharaax demanded suspiciously.

I smirked at him, "That's for me to know and for you not to."

Then I turned away from them, "Talk it over; I'll be in my quarters." I waved over my shoulder and prayed that this would be one of those moments where the damn mating marks would allow a bit more distance.