Page 15 of Possessed by the Dragon Alien (Zarux Dragon Brides #6)

ELEVEN

Nena’s hand slipped into Madrian’s palm.

The moment their skin touched, something deep and permanent shifted inside her, like roots taking hold in fertile soil.

She’d just made a choice that would reshape her entire existence.

Here she was, trusting her life to a male who represented everything she should hate.

A member of the Twelve. An architect of suffering. The enemy .

Her fingers jerked back. “Wait. We can’t just walk into the towers together. Someone will see.”

“You’re right.” His massive wings rustled like leaves in a storm as he glanced toward the gleaming spires that pierced the dome’s curved ceiling.

Nena followed his gaze, imagining the layers of security and the countless eyes that would be watching those pristine halls.

Her pulse quickened at the thought of trying to slip past them undetected.

“What are you thinking?” She studied his sharp profile, searching for any hint of doubt or deception. The dragon fire she’d heard about earlier showed no hint of emerging, but she could feel the heat radiating from his body where they stood close together in the shadows.

“I know someone who might help.” His expression turned grim. “I hope I can trust her.”

“You hope? ”

Instead of answering, he pressed two fingers to a spot behind his ear. “Rien. I need your assistance in the garden. Greenhouse 14E. The Terian female is here and must be brought to my quarters immediately.” He paused, listening.

“Yes, I’m aware of the risk. This will happen now. Your concerns are noted but irrelevant.” A sharp pause. “Good. See it done.”

He dropped his hand and turned to her. He reached out and lightly gripped her shoulders, as if testing out the act of touching her. The warmth of his hands seeped through her thin uniform. “Listen carefully. The female who questioned you about our conversation is coming here. Go with her.”

“The pale one?” Nena’s stomach clenched. “How do you know she won’t turn me in?”

“Her name is Prime Watcher Rien and she is my most trusted agent. If she wanted to report us, she would have done it cycles ago.”

Nena weighed her options, though they were painfully few. Trust this unknown female, or face whatever waited in her cell during sleep cycle. Definitely die tonight or perhaps die later. Perhaps gave her better odds than definitely .

“Fine,” she said. “I’ll go with her.”

“Good.” His hands tightened briefly on her shoulders before releasing her. “Wait here. I’ll make sure the path is clear.”

He slipped outside and disappeared into the shadows between the trees, leaving her alone with her thundering pulse and the weight of what she’d just agreed to. She was betting her life on Madrian and whatever this thing was between them being stronger than his loyalty to the Axis.

It was a dangerous bet.

She touched her shoulders where his hands had been, remembering the careful strength in his grip.

The way he’d looked at her, like she was precious and dangerous at the same time.

Like she mattered to him. Each breath felt like an eternity as she waited, though her rational mind knew not much time was passing.

Still, the weight of anticipation made time stretch.

A soft footstep made her turn. The pale female—Prime Watcher Rien—entered the greenhouse carrying a dark bundle of cloth. Her translucent skin seemed to glow in the dim light.

“Come,” Rien said. “Quickly and quietly.”

Nena hesitated for a heartbeat, then followed. They moved through the gardens like shadows, taking narrow maintenance paths and service corridors she hadn’t known existed. Rien’s steps were silent, and she gestured for Nena to match her movements.

They passed through a door and into a small room filled with stacked containers. It had to be a storage room of some sort.

“Change into this,” Rien said, handing her the bundle.

Nena shook out the fabric to find a simple, long sheath dress and cape in the same dark color, and a pair of matching soft slippers.

The fabric was richer and finer than anything she’d ever touched.

She could have lingered over the fine, soft weave, but knew time was short.

She stripped off her white uniform, down to her underclothes, and pulled on the new garments.

The dress was a little loose, but came down to her ankles in a flow of heavy, soft material.

The neckline was snug and high, and the long sleeves came down over the backs of her hands.

Rien didn’t watch her change, but the prime watcher surveyed the finished result. “Good. If no one stares too long, you look like a respected council advisor. I can get you into the chancellors’ tower without issues.” She held out a hand. “Give me your old clothes.”

Gladly , Nena thought as she handed them over.

But this attire felt foreign. She felt like a fraud.

This was not a dress to entice or to work in.

These were the everyday garments of an advisor .

A female of high status. Nena ran her work-roughened hands down the fine fabric.

She felt like a child in a costume, but this costume could save her life, if she could pull off the role. “How should I walk?”

Rien’s lips pursed. She tucked the white bundle behind some containers. “You must look unworried and serene. Back straight. Hands loose or clasped behind you. Put your hood up to hide your face and hair. Especially that hair.”

“Okay.” Fek , she would do her best, but unworried she was not . Nena pulled the hood and let it drape down to her brow to cover her hair and gold spots. She took a deep breath. “I’m ready.”

“The Chancellor is taking an enormous risk,” Rien said as she opened the door and they walked down the stark white hallway before them. It was wide and pristine, and they were not alone. Others passed by, engaged in conversation or hurrying to an appointment. “I hope you understand that.”

“I didn’t ask him to.” Nena kept her shoulders back and her gaze steady.

Here, the clothing was varied and interesting.

Unique headpieces and emblems on clothing seemed to declare different ranks and positions within the Axis system.

She was grateful to be covered. No one gave them more than a passing look.

“No.” Rien’s slitted nose twitched. She kept her voice low, barely audible. “But you affect him all the same. The council sees it. They fear it.”

“They are planning to kill me tonight,” Nena said.

“How do you know that?” Rien hissed.

“I…overheard.” That was the easiest way to explain it without revealing her discovery of the device. “I did not misunderstand.”

Rien’s expression didn’t shift. “I did not think you did.”

“What is the connection between the chancellor and me?” Nena hoped someone knew, because it defied every bit of logic she’d tried to employ, and nothing about it made sense.

“History, I think,” Rien said. “Things the Axis thought were buried, but perhaps, were only dormant. Mistakes that were made a long time ago. And mistakes that are being made now.”

Nena didn’t know what to make of Rien’s cryptic remarks. One of those mistakes could be the one she was making right then, at that moment. But she was out of time for follow-up questions. Rien pulled her down a deserted corridor and stopped at a plain metal door.

Rien’s probing gaze turned to her. There was a slight furrow between her eyes. “Whatever happens next, remember this: You’re not a random prisoner to him. You never were. You never will be.”

The door opened, revealing a small lift. Rien gestured for Nena to enter.

“This will take you directly to his level,” she said. “He’ll be waiting.” She pressed something into Nena’s palm—a small crystal in the shape of a flat oval. “If anything goes wrong, use this to reach me.”

The lift doors began to close. The last thing Nena saw was Rien’s unblinking gaze, and she wondered if she’d just made the biggest mistake of her life.

Or maybe, just maybe, she’d made the only choice that mattered.