Defender (Battle Born Book 4) (29 page)

She waited for the paralyzing fear he’d triggered so often to creep back into her psyche. All she felt was a cold sense of loss. This man had stolen two years of her life for reasons she would never understand.

Vox stood in front of Akim, but Chandar couldn’t hear what they were saying. “How do I activate audio?”

“It’s better if you don’t.” Garin didn’t turn his head or shift his gaze from the viewscreen.

“People need to stop telling me what to do. I’ll decide what’s ‘better’ for me.” She pivoted toward the two men behind her. “How do I activate audio?”

With an exasperated growl, Garin made several quick hand gestures and the signal switched from individual audiocoms to the overhead speakers.

“…how much you’ll suffer before I do,” Vox was saying.

Akim laughed and Chandar clenched her hands. She despised that laugh. There was no humor in it, no warmth. But then why should she expect warmth from a creature of pure darkness? “Is that supposed to scare me?”

“I honestly don’t care if you’re afraid or not. The result will be the same.” Vox moved behind Akim and placed his hands on either side of Akim’s head. “How many ships did Quinton send to this star system?”

“How should I know?”

Energy pulsed from Vox’s palms and Akim screamed. “Sorry. It’s been a while since I’ve done this.” The glow around his fingers dimmed. “How many?”

“Fuck you!” Akim was panting and his phitons glowed. Chandar had never seen him so disheveled, so out of control.

“Wrong answer.” The glow returned and Akim screamed again, tossing his head in an attempt to dislodge Vox’s fingers. “Okay, so four ships. Which four and who are their commanders?”

Garin muted the sound and looked at Chandar. “The rest will be several hours of the same. Do you really want to watch it all?”

“Yes.” She met his gaze for a moment as determination pulsed through her soul, then she looked back at the viewscreen. She was finished hiding, finished running from the pain. “I need to see it all.”

Garin reactivated the speakers with a sigh.

For the next two hours Vox interrogated Akim. Akim never actually told him the answer to any of his questions. Vox just stripped them from his mind. The sides of Akim’s face were vivid red and blistered by the time Vox had learned what Garin wanted to know.

Quinton had promised Akim four ships, but only two had arrived. They now knew the ships’ commanders and their last known locations. The other topic was more troubling. The human females had been taken from random locations all over the United States. Having firsthand experience with what the humans were going through, Chandar immediately focused on their rescue. The new information also solidified her last decision. As Indigo had said, this sort of evil didn’t stop, it had to be ground out of existence. How quickly she’d been replaced was indisputable proof of that truth.

Vox turned toward the camera and asked, “Can Raylon have him now?”

“Affirmative,” Garin said in a calm, clear voice.

Raylon moved forward and unfastened Akim’s restraints. “If life were fair, I’d make this last two years.”

Akim had the audacity to smile as he pushed to his feet. “No matter what you do, nothing will change the fact that I’ve been inside your woman.”

Raylon replied with his fists.

“How did he know I’m with Raylon?” Chandar pressed her hand over her heart, barely able to breathe. Akim had always known just what to say to snap anyone’s control. Though using the skill now seemed rather foolish.

“The look on Raylon’s face,” Garin told her. “Only love can make a person hate that deeply.”

With a few brutal blows, Raylon dropped Akim to the deck. The vicious creature from Chandar’s nightmares soon huddled on the floor, curled into the fetal position. A tiny part of her cheered to see such a brutal being enduring some of his own behavior, yet mainly she just wanted it over.

Chandar slowly stood and held out her hand toward Garin. “Give me your weapon. It needs to be me.”

“All I have is my flexblade.” He motioned to one of the men behind her. “Give her a gun.”

“Yes, sir.”

The soldier handed her a compact pulse pistol and Chandar walked from the security booth. By the time she reached the cell, Akim was on his feet again. Clearly, Raylon wanted this to last. The door parted as she approached, courtesy of Garin no doubt.

She took a deep breath and focused entirely on the impending task. She’d known this would happen. Her gift had warned her that she was destined to take a life. The universe demanded balance in all things. And now it was time for her to even the scales.

Raylon paused, arm drawn back for another punch as she moved into the room. Akim turned his head and saw her standing just inside the cell.

“Come to rescue your master?” Akim’s words were distorted by the swelling in his lips. “Was Erkott right? He always said you loved every—”

Raylon shut his mouth with another punch. Akim staggered back and crashed into the wall.

She moved forward until only a few feet separated her from her tormentor. “Look at me.”

When Akim didn’t obey immediately, Raylon forcefully positioned his head until Akim’s gaze met hers.

“Only a coward is nourished by the misery of others.” She raised the pistol, her hands remarkably steady, despite the emotions surging through her soul. Anguish and elation, hope and grief, washed over her in cleansing waves. Her life had come full circle and as soon as this was done, she would permanently move beyond the pain. “When I told you I’d been on a vision quest, do you remember what I saw?”

He grinned, revealing blood smeared teeth. “You
tried
to see my death but couldn’t.” Then slowly his eyes widened and fear flickered to life within their inky depths.

“Ah, you remember the rest.”

“What are you talking about?” Raylon ask her.

“I couldn’t see Akim’s death because a harbinger can’t see their own future.” She positioned her finger over the trigger and looked deep into Akim’s eyes. “I knew it would be me. You couldn’t break me then and I’m not broken now. Face it, Akim. You failed.” She took another breath and aimed for the middle of his chest. “Say hello to your brother.” With a firm pull on the trigger, she discharged a massive burst of energy. The pulse tore a diner-plate-sized hole through his chest, leaving no doubt that he was dead as his body collapsed at her feet.

She stood there still holding the gun, shaking, yet not able to move. She was alive. She was physically strong and emotionally grounded. Not only had she survived the
Relentless
, she’d found her mate and was ready to fight for the future of their people.

And once she left this room, she would never think about Akim again.

Raylon approached carefully, making sure she could see him. He took the gun from her hand and pulled her into his arms. “It’s over, angel. It’s finally over.”

Tears ran from her eyes, but her emotions were so convoluted, she wasn’t even sure why she was crying. “It’s over.” She repeated the phrase over and over as she clung to her mate.

Raylon handed the pistol to Vox then swept Chandar up in his arms. He carried her into the corridor then set her down. He took her face between his hands and tilted her head up until she looked into his eyes. “I love you.”

Warmth and soothing comfort flowed into her mind, ridding her soul of the lingering traces of Aim’s taint. “I love you too.”

He pressed a tender kiss to her mouth then wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Let’s get out of here.”

“Good idea,” Vox said.

Raylon laughed. “That invitation didn’t include you.”

“Didn’t really think it did.” Still he fell into step beside them as they headed off the ship.

Garin joined them as they reached the security booth. No one spoke. They were each lost in their own private thoughts.

They made it to the concourse when someone called Raylon’s name.

Ulrik Tandori came charging toward them with all the subtlety of a thunderstorm. “Is it true?” he shouted with half the concourse still separating them.

Raylon waited until Ulrik was closer before he responded. “Is what true?”

“Akim was captured but you let Milanni go?” Ulrik’s cheeks were flushed and his hands were clenched into fists.

“I didn’t ‘let Milanni go’. She escaped. There’s a big difference.”

“But you managed to bring back Akim?”

Raylon lowered his arm from around Chandar’s shoulders and took a step to the side. “Yes, Akim was captured, but Milanni escaped. I assure you it was not intentional.”

“And I’m supposed to believe you?”

“You can believe what you like,” Garin said as he moved up beside Raylon. “Raylon speaks the truth.”

“I demand immediate transportation for myself and my niece,” Ulrik sneered. “I want off this godforsaken outpost.”

“I’ll make the arrangements, but your anger is foolish.” Garin used more hand gestures, revealing his agitation. “We now have a device that allows us to track the
Relentless
. As soon as she returns to this star system, we’ll know.”

“And if she doesn’t return?”

“She will,” Garin stressed. “She has nowhere else to go. Returning to Rodymia now would be admitting failure. Quinton would immediately reassign the ship and sentence the officers to some backbreaking position in the middle of nowhere, if he allowed them to live.”

A bit of the bluster went out of Ulrik, but his gaze was still narrowed and hostile. “So we just wait around until your sensors pick up the
Relentless
?”

“Avenging your brother’s death might be your only concern, but we’re trying to reshape an entire world,” Raylon snapped. “You can assist in that process or you can get out of the way.”

Ulrik just gaped at him.

“Would you still like to return to Earth?” Garin persisted.

Even after Ulrik’s ire deflated, his proud façade remained. “I suppose a few more days won’t hurt, as long as you’re still committed to apprehending Milanni.”

“My goals haven’t changed.” Garin nodded his head once then added, “Now if you’ll excuse me.” Then he led Raylon and Chandar around Ulrik. Vox followed two steps behind.

“Is support of Tandori Tribe really worth dealing with that jackass?” Garin grumbled once they were out of ear’s reach.

“Yes,” Raylon and Vox answered in unison.

“Too bad. I’d love to shove him out an airlock.”

“So you can have Berlynn to yourself?” Raylon teased.

Garin shot him an annoyed look, but the corners of his mouth twitched. “She is strangely intriguing.”

Chandar laughed. “You better work on your compliments. That was a compliment, wasn’t it?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Garin waved away the subject. “I don’t—”

“Have time for a female,” Raylon finished for him.

“It’s true. I don’t.”

Raylon smiled at Chandar as he said, “You keep telling yourself that.”

They reached the commerce district and Garin motioned Vox toward the elevator instead of the express tunnel. “I’d like to go over Akim’s answers while they’re still fresh in your mind.”

“Wasn’t the session recorded?” Vox asked.

“Fine. Come have a drink in my office so Raylon and Chandar can be alone.”

Vox chuckled. “You got it, boss.” He waved at the couple. “You two have fun.”

“We intend to.” Raylon took Chandar by the hand and drew her toward the express tunnel. They walked for a minute in silence then Raylon asked, “Does it feel different, knowing that monster is dead.”

“Yes, and no.” She glanced up at him as they continued walking. “I expected some massive weight to be lifted off my shoulders as the life faded from his eyes, but that’s not what happened. I’m glad he’ll never be able to hurt anyone else, but mainly it just made me feel sad.”

“Taking a life is never easy. If you weren’t bothered by it, you wouldn’t be you.”

“Like you said, it’s over. I’m more than ready to focus on the future.” Wanting to change the subject entirely, she said, “So tell me about Berlynn. Is Garin really hot for her?”

“He’s definitely interested, but he’s not ready for a mate.”

“Were you ready for a mate when you met me?” She arched her brows, accenting the challenge in her words.

He just smiled.

“Vox needs a mate,” she mused. “And so does Danvier.”

“Are you going to turn matchmaker?” Raylon laughed and gave her hand a squeeze.

“Maybe. My visions might come in handy.”

“Well, you’ll have lots of customers very soon if what Kotto told us is true.”

She stopped walking and faced him. “Do you mean the new transformation formula?” He nodded. “Ashley mentioned it as well. If any female on Earth becomes a potential mate for a battle born warrior, all sorts of things will change.”

He shook his head and started walking again. “It’s not that simple. Each female will still need to be tested and matched for genetic compatibility, but the program will no longer be limited to hybrid females.”

“Even so, Lunar Nine will be crawling with females as soon as word gets out. And inevitably it will.”

They reached the courtyard, but Raylon didn’t stop until they were locked inside his suite. “Figuring out how to manage this new opportunity is our next challenge. Morgan and Nazerel will want to keep it secret as long as possible, but you’re right. Earth is too connected now. All it takes is one leak and social media will do the rest.”

“Creating support for the cause isn’t a bad thing. It’s not like they can fly up here in droves and demand to be part of the study.”

“True. As long as we control transportation, we control participation.”

She released the seal on his uniform top and parted the front seam. “Then why are you so glum?”

“It’s just been one hell of a day.”

Running both hands up his chest, she squeezed his shoulders then pushed his shirt down his arms until it fell to the floor. “I say we find a way to make it better.”

He sat on the side of the bed and pulled her toward him. She straddled his lap and settled her skirts around their legs. “Do you know how much I love you?” He pressed his hand against her face and opened his mind, an obvious invitation.

“I do, but I still want you to show me.”