Page 18 of Stealing Mercury (Arena Dogs #1)

She nodded and said nothing. She chugged the water as if downing a noxious medicine.

“Please, courra . Tell me what’s troubling you.”

“Everything’s changed.” Her lips barely moved as she spoke, soft and low and with none of her usual spark.

The urge to shred something with his hands flared fierce and bright. He didn’t understand what she was trying to tell him, but it rocked him to see her so lost.

“You regret aiding us.”

“No.” She shook her head in short, fast movements as if she couldn’t negate the idea fast enough.

“No. It’s just... they know you’re alive now and there’s no way to undo that.

I promised to get you off this planet and now I don’t know how.

..” He watched as she stopped, collecting her thoughts.

She reached back and braided her hair as if putting her appearance back together would give her strength.

“There’s no way to know who’ll turn up to rescue us and what might happen when they do.

Even if we figure that out, now Drake and Resler know that I’m part Cerrillian.

My career is over. I know it’s a stupid thing to be worrying about. Stupid and selfish.”

Mercury flexed his shoulders, trying to escape the heat of his brothers’ scrutiny.

They all knew what needed doing, but he refused to break his promise.

He caught her chin and made her meet his eyes.

“It would be as nothing to us to take care of that problem.” The cream she’d wiped across her bruises only made her seem paler.

“Think of all they’ve done. All they would have done. It would be just.”

“No.” She spoke clearly, but her voice shook.

He swallowed back the need to demand she free him from the heavy chains of his oath. He hadn’t expected her to agree, but he’d had to raise the option. At least she hadn’t run screaming. He released her chin and pulled her hand up to study it. She’d used the sealer on the deepest scratch.

“Does it hurt?” When she didn’t answer, he sniffed at her palm, then licked a path along the angry red line that ran from the base of her first finger almost to her wrist. He swirled his tongue up to her pulse point and laved her skin.

Mercury sighed in satisfaction when heat bloomed under his tongue and the color came back into her cheeks.

Lo edged closer. “If we’re done here, we should go.

” Samantha jumped at the sound of his voice, but her spine quickly stiffened.

She was still uneasy around Lo, but Mercury knew she wouldn’t give in to her fear.

He let hope flicker. There’d been no venom in his brother’s voice and no question of whether they would take her with them.

Samantha would come to trust that Lo was not her enemy. Not now. Not after all that had happened. Lo might still be filled with rage and hate, but his loyalty was unquestionable.

Mercury strode to the edge of the clearing and waited for them to follow.

***

Samantha moved as quickly as she could. She didn’t want to slow them down.

The terrain beyond the clearing wasn’t treacherous, but brush crowded beneath the taller canopy of trees.

Where the brush thinned, roots gnarled the ground.

She wished she had more grace, but her big heavy boots were designed for metal decking.

Here they only weighed her down, making it difficult to step over vines and downed branches.

As they moved through the wilderness, she had the time to wonder at the beauty of the three men.

They’d all been so sullen during the time she’d visited them on the ship.

In motion, all the fluid beauty of their animal natures came to the fore.

Alert and watchful, their movements seemed effortlessly coordinated.

Despite the danger they faced, they seemed more relaxed than she’d ever seen them.

Even Diablo. Lo—that’s what Mercury had called the rage-filled man.

Back onboard the ship, she’d done some research and learned they’d been part of a five “Dog” team that performed together.

Performed . What a weak and awful word for what they’d been born and trained to do.

They were killers, and she could see the lethal power surging through muscle and sinew as they flowed across the ground like natural predators.

But they hadn’t killed Drake or Resler and they hadn’t hurt her. There was a bond between the men that was as clear as the sky overhead. Despite the disparaging comments Grande Owens had made, their relationship was one of strong, abiding, loyalty—something she valued.

When they stopped by a creek to let her rest, the sun’s light had grown dim, and they could no longer see it overhead through the canopy.

They looked as if they could continue indefinitely, but she knew they had to be feeling the strain.

She had no idea how far they’d already traveled that day before coming to her rescue.

“My turn to feed you.” Mercury handed over a standard issue emergency ration bar. His lips tilted up on one side in a half smile.

She took the offered food, then dropped a purification tablet into the water pouch she’d found in one of the packs. “How did you find us?”

He took the container from her hand and studied it.

“For water,” Samantha explained.

“Ah.” He dipped it in the stream. “We landed first. We watched the sky,” he said, “and saw your pod blaze overhead.”

She nodded. “Where are we going?” They’d certainly seemed to be moving forward with a purpose.

“Back to the cargo-drop.” Mercury passed the container back to her. “There are more supplies there.”

“Makes sense.” She swished the water in a slow circle to dissolve the tablet, then took a small sip. “We must be close, right? It took you guys less than a day to cover the distance.”

They’d made it to where the escape-pod had landed in plenty of time to save her from Resler.

A twist of remembered fear roiled in her belly.

If they’d landed too far to get to her in time.

.. She shivered and realized it wasn’t only that terrifying thought.

The moisture on her skin ensured she couldn’t ignore the cooler air coming with the sunset.

“At this pace we should make it in more than twice the time it took us to reach you. If we’re able to find it again.” Carn pressed another ration bar in her hand. “You must keep your energy up, Sam.”

She smiled her thanks and offered the water to him.

His nose wrinkled. “You keep it,” he said.

She chuckled. “That’s the purification tablet. It will keep you from getting sick from the water here.”

“Our physiology is resilient. I will risk drinking from the stream without your smelly chemicals.”

She laughed and took another sip from the pouch. The slight bitterness of the purification tablet coated her tongue, but she’d had worse. “I guess your sense of smell and taste are more developed than mine.” She shrugged and took another swallow. “Are we making camp here, then?”

“No.” Mercury drank cold stream-water from his cupped hands. “I wish to be farther from Drake and Resler before we stop.”

Samantha tried not to be distracted by the ripple and flex of corded muscle as he scooped the water. “You tied them up. Do you think they could be following us already?”

“It’s safer not to underestimate the whip-master.”

She suppressed a shudder at the title. “You’re worried because I’m slowing you down?”

Carn shook his head. “If they come, we can deal with them.”

Mercury stood and held out a hand to help her up.

“So how did you guys get to the escape-pod so fast?”

“We ran,” Lo spoke softly behind her and Samantha flinched but held her ground.

She’d lost track of him at some point. On the ship, he’d been impossible to ignore, but now he seemed to melt away, a silent shadow hidden among the boisterous night creatures awakening around them.

“You must have incredible speed and stamina.” Her voice sounded nervous and jittery to her own ears.

Carn nodded.

A sigh of regret escaped across her lips. They’d be better off without her. “Okay. I guess we better get moving.”

Mercury shook his head. “You’re still tired.”

She couldn’t argue. “And getting chilled. Moving will probably help that part.” She attempted a grin, but knew they’d see through it. “Look, if I stay still too long, my muscles will probably revolt when we start moving again.”

A tug on her braid startled her, and she twisted to see Lo’s fingers slip away.

Her eyes widened at the seemingly playful gesture from the always-intense Lo.

He stared back through eyes that had gone almost completely black in the low light.

There was no growl, no fire, only the tip of his tongue peeking out to spread glistening moisture across his lips.

He reached for the pack she’d been carrying without a smile or any acknowledgement of that tug. “Allow Mercury to carry you and we’ll make it to the cargo-drop much sooner.”

Samantha turned to Mercury for confirmation, and he nodded.

Carn added his own nod of encouragement and took Mercury’s pack, then slung it over his shoulder.

“Are you ready, courra ?” Mercury whispered the words as if he wanted to help her disguise her discomfort, though she knew they could all hear him.

She took a deep breath and put a hand on his muscled shoulder. “Okay.”

Mercury turned to give her his back and bent his legs.

Samantha hesitated. “Are you sure about this?”

He growled in that odd way he sometimes did. “Now.”

“Okay, okay.” She wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

As he straightened to lift her onto his back, she pulled her legs up to let him position them where he wanted.

Big hands gripped under her thighs, and he seemed to sigh as she leaned into him.

A quick nod to the others and they were off again, the heat of his body easing her chill—something she was increasingly grateful for as the temperature dropped.

They followed the path of the stream into the night.

They moved more slowly after the sun went down, but they didn’t stop until the moon also slipped out of sight.

When Mercury finally set her on the ground, she couldn’t see a foot in front of her.

She heard Lo and Carn moving around, then Mercury pulled her down to the ground.

Instead of cold earth, her hands brushed against one of the thin thermal blankets from the emergency supplies.

Mercury pulled her onto his lap, and she went without hesitation, eager to press herself back into his body heat.

“N-no f-fire?” Her chattering teeth made it hard to speak.

“Not tonight.” Mercury pulled her closer, tucking her face against his chest. “We’ll keep you warm.” Mercury nuzzled into her hair as he answered. “Rest.”

She was surprised when he didn’t lie down, but she was too exhausted to question.

Another blanket settled around them and she heard the rustle of the synthetic fabric as the others lowered beside them.

Somehow, it seemed easier to let them get close in the dark.

Still, she jumped when one of them tugged on one of her boots.

Mercury made soothing noises as the heavy weight slid off. She jumped again when strong hands tucked her cold feet against a warm torso.

“Be calm,” Mercury whispered. “Lo only wants to keep you warm.”

Lo. The man who’d seemed so dangerous was warming her feet on those washboard abs of his. And in the morning, she expected to see the white rabbit her father had often warned her wandered around alien landscapes leading young girls into trouble.

She took a deep breath and relaxed, resting her head on Mercury’s chest. None of them had hurt her. Lo hadn’t even snarled at her since they left the clearing. She smiled in the dark. Maybe getting out of the cage had improved his disposition. She wouldn’t count on it lasting.

“Sleep.” Mercury’s voice rumbled softly near her ear. “We’ll keep you safe.”

It would be the first time she’d slept planet-side since her father’s death.

Samantha allowed herself a moment to think about the Dove , orbiting somewhere above them.

This job had gone all wrong. It was supposed to put her back in control of her future.

Instead, it had taken away any hope of the dream she’d been working toward her whole life.

There’d be time enough to worry over that after they were found. Snuggling into Mercury’s warmth, she let his heat relax her muscles and let her worries slip away. For now, she would live in the moment.

This wasn’t the time to worry about the white rabbit. Not when she’d already gone down the rabbit hole.