Page 25 of Seized by the Alien Space Warrior (Alien Romance #8)

Chapter Twenty-Five

T his was a side to Ava he had not seen before. Maybe because she’d been too injured and too much in shock to show her true colours. Although he had loved Onda, she’d never challenged him. She’d been quiet, reserved and nurturing.

Ava on the other hand…Aekon shook his head. She didn’t mind if he challenged her because she would challenge him right back, it seemed. Not in a jarring, combative way, but with intelligence and insight, and damned if that wasn’t sexy as all seven hells. His heart picked up pace. Not because of the danger of their precarious situation, that he knew intimately, but perhaps with a hint of…excitement. A spark went off inside him, opening up the world with light and colour. His lungs expanded and he felt as though he could fully breathe.

His cock swelled as he watched Ava’s swinging hips as she walked to join Brenur’s group. Aekon growled low in his chest as Brenur handed Ava a blaster. He strode to her, ripping it out of Brenur’s hand.

He ignored Ava’s gasp, speaking to Brenur. “I will show her how to use it.”

“As you wish,” Brenur said and pointed to a crate that contained weapons. “Take your pick for yourself. We go in armed.”

The crates were filled with hand-held and long-range blasters. He studied the small hand-held Brenur had given Ava, then grabbed two more, plus a holster, and slung it about her hips, trying to ignore her tantalising scent as he clipped the holster shut, and her full lips that parted slightly as he bent towards her.

“I didn’t think you’d let me have a weapon,” Ava said, her voice husky.

Despite their dire situation, arousal spiced the mate-bond. He shifted, hoping she wouldn’t notice the obvious bulge in the front of his pants. “I didn’t think you’d let me take it off you.”

Her laugh surprised him. “You think right.”

His gaze trailed over her upturned lips, her eyes shining with the light her laugher brought forward. It seemed there were many shades of Ava he hadn’t seen. Maybe hadn’t allowed himself to see. Unable to stop himself, he cracked open their connection. Just a fraction.

A wealth of emotion wrapped around him as though he’d opened the door to a dam. All he could do was stand there and just…feel. His nodes flashed with brilliant gold, lighting up Ava’s face with warmth.

Her gaze trailed over them and he made no move to hide the illumination. There was no use trying to hide them now—and for the first time he didn’t want to. Let her see how greatly she affected him.

“Aren’t you going to tell me how to use this? No use having one if I can’t shoot,” Ava said.

Aekon cleared his throat, forcing his attention to the task at hand. He showed her the charge, the firing strength, the safety catch, and the trigger. “The most important thing to know is if you have a chance, run first. Don’t engage. Fire to protect yourself.”

“I’m not going to run into the heat of battle, Aekon,” Ava said.

Aekon tipped his knuckle beneath her chin. A frown pushed his nodes lower over his eyes. “We are not playing. The Ixod Forsica are the most violent and immoral in the ten Quadrants. If you can help it, don’t engage. I mean it, Ava.”

Her mouth firmed, and she nodded. The urge to tell her that he would protect her died on his tongue. There was a certainty between them. She knew he would. He also knew she would feel better if she could protect herself.

“You’re not stupid,” he said. “You’re the most level-headed person I know.”

A line appeared between her brows as she regarded him. “What’s brought on this understanding version of Aekon all of a sudden?”

His throat became thick and he had trouble swallowing. “Ava, I....”

“Let’s go!” Brenur called. “You all know the drill. Any questions?”

Silence and stony, determined faces were his reply.

Although they were a ragtag bunch, Aekon felt something like respect for these Ixod. They’d suffered loss and trauma at the hands of their own hordes, their own people, but they were still fighting. He had to admit they weren’t all like Zavis, and locked on this planet, the Council were ignorant of that fact as well. He could trust these beings.

Ava was rubbing off on him. He was getting soft. Or maybe, he was seeing things he should have always seen because she’d opened his eyes.

Now was not the time to talk. He would do that later, when they were both safe. Aekon set the timer that was banded on his wrist, watching Ava do the same. His warrior mantle eased around his shoulders and he gratefully let it settle. It was old and familiar and he welcomed the feel of it.

Aekon followed Brenur and his team as they wound through the labyrinth of tunnels, making sure to keep Ava in front of him all of the way. Ser and York formed part of their group, he was pleased to see. No doubt organised by Brenur. They were strong warriors, ready to fight.

Ava’s steps were strong and sure. Never once did she flag, even though he knew her nerves grew with each passing click. Their group moved swiftly and silently, keeping their head where they needed to be.

The last time he’d walked in formation like this, he’d been with Kil and Idren. He hoped they were safe, that they’d managed to save the other human females and were laughing at his stubbornness back at the Sanctuary.

He wondered if they’d met their bond-mate. Maybe they’d done a better job at honouring them than he had.

It wouldn’t be hard.

Eventually, Brenur slowed. He cracked open a sliding door and peered through the opening. Satisfied, he slid the door open and stepped through. They filed out into a warehouse, and headed to the main double doors that were closed at the end of a long central aisle made from shelving that was jammed with objects.

The warehouse was dark, the stale air thick with dust, as though nothing had disturbed it in a long time. Slithers of moonlight shone through small windows situated high up along the walls highlighting the layer of dust over everything. Their footsteps scuffed the dust as they walked, leaving a trail behind them on the floor.

They reached the double doors. Brenur pressed a device to the locking panel on the wall next to the door. Red lights blinked in a random pattern on the back of the device and the door clicked open.

Brenur motioned for them to be still as he cracked open the door. A frigid breeze gusted through the crack, bringing with it a taste of freshness and icicles. Brenur motioned for Ser and he slipped out of the door before Brenur brought it to a near close.

Ava shivered, rubbing her hands over her arms. Aekon put his arm about her shoulders, lending her his body warmth, loving the way she naturally leaned into him. She glanced up at him, a small smile touching her mouth.

Before he knew what he did, he leaned down, pressing his lips to her forehead, breathing in her scent while his lips were pressed against her skin. His cock jumped in response to the heat of her skin and the scent of aroused female.

He drew back, happy when he saw her pink cheeks and the way she tried to hide her reaction to him. Every action he noticed about her cracked through the wall he’d erected around the mate-bond.

He really stood no chance of keeping the wall built between them.

Things had changed.

Ava had changed him. All the ideas he’d had about himself cracked and crumbled.

In a far corner of his mind, Onda watched. Her long hair was stirred by a slight breeze that plucked at her flowing, feminine gown. She smiled at him. True happiness shone from her before a bright, burning light obscured her. When it cleared, she had gone.

Ava sucked in a quick breath, her brow slightly scrunched as she looked at him, a question in her eyes and he wondered if the vision of Onda was just his imagination.

The door opened and Ser darted back into the warehouse. “There are guards everywhere, but the east wall is relatively clear. We’ll be able to make it to the lab if we’re fast.”

Brenur nodded. “We’ll go now.”

“Dhasu see better in the dark. I’ll go first,” Aekon said.

“As you wish, Dhasu,” Brenur said.

Aekon sensed Brenur didn’t like letting him lead, but as a good leader, Brenur acknowledged that truth.

First, there was something Aekon ached to do.

Before he could stop and think twice, he ploughed his fingers through Ava’s hair, bent her over the back of his arm, and kissed her deeply, no more able to stop himself than to make his own heart cease beating. She resisted before she relaxed into his arms and began to kiss him back. Her fingers splayed over his biceps as she held onto him through the storm of their kiss, arousal uncoiling and expanding between them.

Her tongue swept into his mouth. He welcomed it, savouring the flavour that burst on his tongue. He made himself end the kiss, using everything inside him to pull away, and peered into her dazed face. “I’ve been an idiot.”

Her eyes rounded. Her swollen lips parted, glistening with their kiss. Kissing her now was entirely inappropriate, but he didn’t have it in him to much care. “What’s brought about this change?” she whispered.

There was only one thing he could answer with. “The truth.”

He would beg for her forgiveness later. When they were alone. When he could show her just how sorry he was. He could only hope he hadn’t destroyed the one chance he had at happiness. That he hadn’t pushed Ava away so well that she would never accept him. That was a big if , and right now he couldn’t blame her if she didn’t.

Aekon stepped to the door. He looked back at Ava before leading the way. By going first, he would ensure Ava’s safety. If they were discovered and under fire, he would use his body to step in front of hers.

He concentrated on the mate-bond in the middle of his chest, burning away the debris of his stupidity. Ava’s presence eased more and more into his. She was breathtakingly beautiful, inside and out. He didn’t know what he’d done to deserve her, but he was going to grab the mate-bond with both of his claws and never let it go.

“Keep her close,” Aekon said to Brenur.

Aekon stepped out into the night. Flints of snow swirled in eddies, and skipped off the ground, forming shapes in the air before scattering into nothing. A stiff breeze tugged his clothing and wet coolness settled over his exposed skin. Now that his nodes had come alive, he concentrated on keeping them dulled.

He crept along the length of the building, the others trailing behind him. He came to the building edge. He peered around the corner and ducked back again. A lone guard stood just around the corner on the other side of the wall. Taking a steeling breath, Aekon stepped around the corner and ripped his claws across the guard’s throat. The guard was dead in an instant. Aekon quietly tucked the body into the deepest shadows where the building met the ground.

A rumbling sounded before two land terrain vehicles stopped right in the middle of the roadway between them and the transmissions room where Krono waited for them. Two Ixod disembarked and spent a few moments talking to each other. One jogged away, disappearing into a gap between the buildings, and the other looked around, his gaze raking over his surroundings. He held his blaster ready, his shoulder tight, his stance balanced, showing all of the markings of a professional warrior. Aekon couldn’t risk blaster fire. That would call too much attention. This needed a personal touch.

“Wait here,” he said to Brenur before stepping out from cover, his hands raised.

The Ixod saw him and pointed his blaster. Every muscle in Aekon’s body locked as he expected hot blaster fire to slam into his body, but the guard didn’t shoot.

“Get on the ground!”

Aekon limped towards the guard, grimacing as he walked, making it look as though he was badly injured. “My leg.”

The guard positioned his blaster to his shoulder, his finger locked on the trigger. “I said, get down!”

Aekon took another step, before stumbling to his knee. He let his shoulders sag and his head drop, appearing as though he was weakened.

The guard approached slowly. “Where did you come from?”

“The cavern. It collapsed. I only just made it,” Aekon said.

He gasped, as though finding it hard to breath. Just another step, and the Ixod would be in reach. Aekon closed his eyes, his hand coming to the ground as though he was losing consciousness.

“Don’t move!” the guard barked.

Ava’s panic resonated through their mate-bond and he tried to send back a sense of calm. He knew what he was doing. All it required was patience and skill and he had those in abundance. It was…strange…for someone to be concerned about him. Strange but not unwelcome. She panicked because she cared.

The guard inched a step closer. Aekon ripped his claws through the back of the guard’s leg. The guard cried out, stumbling back. Aekon swung his fist upwards and into the base of the guard’s jaw. His shaggy head snapped back with a resounding crack. His arms flopped to the side, and the blaster clattered to the ground as his legs went out from underneath him and he collapsed to the muddy ground, unconscious.

A wave of arousal spiced their mate-bond. Arousal and interest . Aekon whipped around to find Ava peering at him from behind the building, her bottom lip caught between her teeth. He lifted a brow and her eyes widened, large in her delicate face. His little mate was a minx! He was going to look forward to spending a lifetime learning every facet of her. He sent his own wave of desire to her, satisfied when her lip fell from between her teeth as she gasped.

He forced his mind back to the mission. He grabbed the guard by the back of his neck and dragged him into some shadows close to the wall before making his way back to Ava and the Ixod.

“It’s clear, but I don’t know for how long,” Aekon said.

“Then we go,” Brenur said.

They jogged across of the open road, Aekon’s skin itching. He hated being out in the open like this. Not with a swarm of guards that could find them at any moment. He kept close to Ava. She moved quickly and quietly. Determination strummed through their mate-bond.

They reached the door of the building opposite the space that would take them to the transmissions room. Aekon turned the handle, relief pouring through him when the door opened. They slipped inside and Ser closed it behind them

They were in a dimly lit corridor made from sheets of metal, riveted together and painted a shiny off-white. If Aekon expected something higher tech, he was sorely mistaken. Solid, closed doors were distributed in intervals down the corridor. It was impossible to see what was behind them. The silent rooms beyond could be crammed with waiting Ixod or they could be empty.

Brenur led them down the corridor. Aekon’s fists were filled with both blasters. Their little group almost made no sound as they crept along. He stalked behind the Ixod, his entire being locked on Ava’s every movement. He monitored their connection. She was scared, but there was a level-headed grit behind her as well. He knew warriors that would crumble with the tension. His bond-mate was brave.

Brenur tipped his head at a closed door, gesturing that this was the transmission room. There were no markings to define it at all. It was only by the intelligence Brenur’s spies had gleaned that they knew. Aekon stepped in front of Ava and was pleased when her hand tightened on his clothing at the back of his waist.

At a nod from Aekon, Brenur opened the door. They rushed inside to be brought up short as multiple Ixod guards aimed the tips of their blasters in their direction.