aHunter4Ever (9 page)

A throbbing, searing ache filled his head.

He tried to connect with Ardal. Fog and a buzzing in his ears were the
only response he received. He was alone.

Partlan moaned and stretched the cramps out of his legs. He was lying on
a hard cement surface and damp was wicking up into his body. A shiver convulsed
him. At the back of his brain was the flickering of a memory.

Grace.

A jab of terror ripped through him. He bolted upright and struggled to
stand, but his legs gave beneath him. He shook his head and tried again. This
time, he realized his arms were pinned behind his back. He clenched his jaw,
focusing on a concrete wall beside him as he twisted his body to get free.

“There’s no point in struggling.” Grace’s words echoed in the stone
chamber. “I’ve tried everything and these cuffs are meant to hold.”

She was alive.

His stomach tightened and his mouth went dry. For a second his heart
stopped and then started pounding at a furious rate. He was not certain if it
was a side effect of the drug given him or just the relief and joy of hearing
her beloved voice.

He turned to look at her. She was sitting a few feet away, her back
against the gray wall of their prison. Partlan’s eyes widened at the change in
her appearance. Her hair had fallen out of the bun that she usually wore, one
side of her cheek was puffed out, and a bruise was forming near her eye. Her
jacket was torn and her knees were exposed through her pants. Someone had hurt
her.

Every muscle in his body tensed as he fought to contain his anger.

“Who did this to you?” His words came through gritted teeth.

“The guys who took us in Los Angeles.” Grace sighed. “They injected you with
something that put you out. You’ve been unconscious for hours.”

“Where are we?”

“I have no idea. We were shoved on a plane and put in a dark holding
cell. The plane was flying at least six hours before it landed, so we could be
anywhere.”

“They said they would let you go.”

“They only wanted you to stop fighting.” Grace pursed her lips. “I don’t
know who those guys are that took us, but they aren’t working for any
government agency that I know.”

“They have no honor.”

“I warned you about men.” Grace’s voice was dry. “I tried to escape and
that’s when I got roughed up.”

“They have broken the Sacred Code. They hurt a woman and the punishment
is death. They will die.”

“Be my guest.” Grace stretched her legs. “If I get to them first, I’ll
kill them myself.”

“How long have I been out?”

“I can’t be certain about the time.” Grace shrugged. “I fell asleep, so
I’d guess a day has passed since we were caught.”

Partlan glanced up at the ceiling of their prison. It looked to be solid
concrete, as did the walls. There was only one way into the cell and that was
by a door with a small window. The window had a sliding closure that was shut
now. He frowned as he examined all the corners of the room. There were no
cracks or obvious places to hide a camera. There was a bare lightbulb in the
center of the ceiling and it had no other wires or equipment attached to it.
That meant there was no surveillance. They must think their prison was secure.

Fools.

He twisted his wrists back and forth. The cuffs that were holding him
were tight, but the continued action of his wrists was weakening the metal of
the restraints. He had to break these cuffs and get to Grace. His need was soul
deep. She was in pain and he had to be certain that she was not hurt. By Cygnus
and Warrior, if they’d laid a hand on her other than the bruises he saw, he
would rip this place apart.

Power and determination surged through him.

The cuffs bent open and he freed himself from his chains.

Grace’s eyes widened. “How did you do that?”

“This planet gives me many advantages.” Partlan knelt next to her and
brushed a hand over her discoloured cheek. “Did they hurt you in any other
way?”

Grace shook her head. “I fell when I tried to escape. That’s why the
bruises. I really don’t think these guys care about anything other than their
mission. They weren’t interested in me as a woman.”

Relief eased his tense muscles. “That is good. Let me get those cuffs off
you.”

“Look through my coat pockets. You might find something there.”

“They are sloppy if they left you with a means of escape.”

“Most men don’t notice what women are carrying. All they cared about was
my gun.”

Partlan rifled through the front pocket of her suit jacket. He found
another bobby pin. It would be easier to turn the lock than to rip it from
Grace’s wrist. He had the cuffs off within a minute, then he gathered her
close. His heart pounded and he swallowed back his anguish as he took a
steadying breath and tucked her head under his chin.

“You are certain you are not in pain.”

Grace tried to push away, but he kept his arms around her. He should let
her loose, but he needed her near. His whole being was tormented at how close
he had come to losing her. Even if she had ordered him to release her, he
doubted he would be able to obey. The tension eased from her and then she
settle into his arms.

“My pride is hurt more than anything else.” Her words were mumbled into
his chest. “All my years of self-defence training and martial arts, and I
couldn’t escape those guys.”

“There were too many of them.” Partlan’s breathing slowed as he heard the
calm in her voice. She was truly unharmed. “Now we must find a way to leave
this place.”

“Good luck with that.” Grace moved back and stared into his eyes. “We
were locked in a small box and it was dark, but I counted at least seven floor
indicator bells.”

“So no one can hear us through these walls. It is the perfect prison. No
wonder they are lax in the small details.”

Partlan stood and ran his fingers over the walls and corners of the room.
He moved higher to the ceiling and then examined the floor. There were no
hidden devices. The room was solid cement block and there were no windows or
mirrors on the walls. The door’s sliding window was the only way to check the
area without opening the door.

“We are not being watched.”

Grace stood and arched her back in a stretch. “There are probably cameras
outside. If it were possible to escape, then they would know when we left the
cell.”

“A Hunter is not easy to keep contained.” Partlan walked back to Grace.
“I have vowed to protect you. I will find a way to get us out of this place.”

Their gazes locked and Partlan watched as a shadow of emotion flared and
then disappeared in Grace’s eyes. She was still hesitant to believe him. She
had spent most of her life defending herself, but now she had him. In time, she
would understand that a Hunter never broke his word.

Grace looked away. She shook each leg and then started to pace in their
small cell. “Why do you think they’ve kidnapped us?”

“The Albireons must have great control of this planet to be able to move
around freely.” Partlan pushed away his unease. Albireons had been defeated
before. “I suspect they have made some deal with the powers that rule your
planet.”

Grace put up her hand. “Stop right there. I’m not certain I can accept
this talk of aliens and visitors from other planets. If that were really the
case, why haven’t we seen these extraterrestrials?”

“You are forgetting that I am not from your planet.”

“You talk about your Sacred Code and being a Hunter, but you look exactly
like a human.” Grace ran her eyes over him. “You’re taller and definitely more
muscular, but essentially, you’re physically the same as any other man.”

“Even though we were born and bred on Cygnus, we were originally from
this planet.”

“Well that’s a handy explanation.” Grace raised an eyebrow. “You’re
human, but you come from a different planet.”

“The Ancients have existed since the beginning of time. Until a few days
ago, I thought that Hunters had been created by the Ancients to be protectors.
My leader, Ardal, has learned that we have the same genes as humans.”

“That proves that you’re not an alien.” Grace leaned against the stone
wall with her arms crossed over her chest.

“We have been altered.”

She frowned. “In what way?”

“We have special abilities that have been genetically enhanced. Hunters
have been trained since birth to fight. We also have abilities that have been
bred into us. Each of our clans has skills that are unique to them.”

“What’s your skill?”

“I am clan Obair. I have a gift for working with instruments and
machines.”

“You’re an engineer.”

“That is what you call it on your planet.” Partlan rubbed his shoulder
where the bullet had entered. His wound was only a slight ache, but lying with
his hands behind his back had not helped it. Grace straightened away from the
wall and came to him.

“Take your shirt off and let me look at it. It was too soon for you to be
out of the hospital. Fighting with those agents must have aggravated the
incision.”

Partlan pulled the shirt of his head. Grace peeled back the edges of his
dressing and then stopped.

“Is there a problem?”

“It’s healed.” Grace finished taking the dressing off and then moved him
under the light in the center of the room. “That’s impossible.”

Partlan gazed down at her and marveled at her beauty and courage. He was
connected to Grace. Her feelings were his, which only proved that she was his
mate. There was no question about the bond between them. That’s why her doubts
were so clear to him. She did not believe him.

Somehow he must make her understand their connection. Words were
meaningless to her, so he could only show her by his actions and thoughts. He
would do whatever it took to convince her that they were meant to be together.
She was a reasonable woman and would eventually realise that they were pair
bonded.

“This planet has given us many strengths. One of those is that we heal
quickly.”

“What are your other strengths?” Grace’s voice was a whisper.

“We move faster, our reflexes are better and we age slower.”

“How old are you?”

“I have seen thirty-three years since I was bred.”

Grace tilted her head as her eyes roamed over his face. Partlan held his
breath and remained as still as possible. He sensed that she was on the verge
of accepting his origins. Her eyes left his face and then scanned his chest.
Her fingers brushed over several of his scars. His stomach tensed. Her hand
rested on his upper left arm.

“Where did you get these tattoos?”

“They are my markers.”

She frowned. “What do they mark?”

“My birth, my clan and my battles.”

Her fingers grazed over the black glyphs that were the symbols of the
Kaladin language. She tapped one of them. “What is this?”

“It is the date of the Denebrics Campaign. We were successful and freed
many Kaladin that had been taken captive on the outpost.”

Grace bit her lower lip. “How did you get to Earth?”

“We crashed here almost a year ago.” Partlan kept his voice calm. “We
were being transported for execution and Ardal, our leader, chose to let us die
with honor. We fought the extinction order and took over the spacecraft.”

“Extinction order?” Grace’s voice was hesitant. “Does that mean what I
think?”

“All Hunters were order executed. There was a civil war on our planet and
the Kaladin lost. The Holman took over and feared that Hunters would not obey
them, so we were deemed obsolete. All breeding facilities on Cygnus were
demolished. Our genomes were destroyed and any existing Hunters were
terminated.”

“Genocide is what we call it on Earth.” Grace shivered. “How can you
speak of it so calmly?”

“We were bred and trained for one purpose. We serve by protecting and
fighting. To die with honor is the best we can hope for.

“You make it sound as if you were machines.” Grace’s fingers fluttered
against his arm. “I’ve seen you injured. You’re flesh and blood like any other
human.”

“We were bred to obey the Kaladin. We do not question our orders. That is
why the Holman thought that we would go willingly to our death.”

Grace nodded. “I’m assuming other Hunters fought too.”

“No. All others obeyed the extinction order.” Partlan put his shirt back
on. “We were the last to be executed because we were away on a mission when the
orders were given.”

“So you are the only Hunters left?” Grace’s voice sounded hollow.

Partlan nodded. “Less than half our unit survived the crash.”

“That explains why those guys who kidnapped us are so eager to get their
hands on you.” Grace paced the small cell. “If you are human, but have
modifications, then that means they want to understand what those changes are.”

“Perhaps.” Partlan rubbed the back of his neck. “They may also want us
for our fighting ability.”

“If they have your genes, they’ll make more of you.” Grace’s voice was
dry. “No, I think they need you for experimentation. If that is what they intend,
then there is no need for me. I’m just here to make certain that you don’t
fight them. They have no intention of keeping either one of us alive.”

“Escape is imperative.” Partlan’s tone was decisive. Grace finally
understood the danger that they were in. She would not fight his protection of
her.

There was a shuffling noise outside their cell. Partlan moved to the side
of the door and crouched. He steadied his breathing and slowed his heart rate.
His course was clear. He would kill the person who came through that door and
fight for their freedom. He could not let Grace stay in this place and die.

There was a scraping sound and then the unbolting of a lock.

The door opened a crack.

Before Partlan could attack, a voice sounded in his head. “
I am Eogan,
clan Rioge. Are you a Hunter?
”