Rebel (17 page)

Onca took a few steps closer to the Davordian’s cage. How could he possibly gain her trust without giving himself away?

Then again, he
was
Zetithian…

Drawing in a breath, he blew it out as a purr, doing his best to sound seductive
and
trustworthy. “Come, mate with me, my love, and I will give you joy unlike any you have ever known.”

He had never used that line before, but just this once he prayed it would work. Then he remembered something else. If this was indeed Cassie, having known a Zetithian girl, she might feel some degree of trust for a male of the same species.

Still purring, Onca swept his hair behind his ears. A smile revealed his fangs as he casually scratched one ear, drawing attention to the pointed tip.

The Davordian girl’s luminous blue eyes widened, and she lunged at the bars of her cage. “Pick me, please!”

Kim stood in Shemlak’s shadow, watching Onca haggle with the doorman across the street, praying to every deity she had ever heard of that her friends—and Onca—would soon be safe.

She didn’t really expect him to simply march out of the place with the three girls in tow—unless he bought them. They hadn’t discussed that possibility. If caught in the act, it would be tough to prove he intended to free them, which meant he was at risk no matter what he did. He hadn’t been kidding about sacrificing himself, and her heart pounded harder than ever with the fear that she might never see him again. She was about to rush toward him and beg him to forget all of it when Shemlak touched her arm.

“He’s in.” The Darconian shifted his weight from one massive foot to the other. “And there’s a force field on the door.”

“Great,” she muttered. “So we can’t go in after him?”

“Not unless we can disable the field. I can take out that Cylopean without any trouble, but we may need Val to get us past the barrier.”

At least they had a means of communicating with Val directly. Onca also had a link on him, and they had set it up with a panic button that would send out a signal to everyone on their team. But as he’d said before, if he was in trouble, that would be the first thing they would dispose of.

Unless they got rid of him first.

That thought sent a chill through her, making her shiver in spite of the warm night. If Rashe was right about there being some big bad conspiracy behind brothels like this one, they could all wind up deported or imprisoned.

Or dead.

Why had Onca suddenly changed from the man whose company she had enjoyed so much that morning to a grim, self-sacrificing martyr? The best she could come up with was that he believed Jack’s assessment—that he was too old for Kim, and that she would be better off marrying one of Jack’s sons.

She’d been too hasty in showing interest in Larry. She knew that now and wished she could tell Onca the truth—that she had been so hurt and stunned, she’d reacted before giving herself time to consider the situation in a rational manner.

Obviously no one expected her to be rational. True, she was young, but life on the street had taught her that allowing emotions to dictate her actions wasn’t always the best policy. She had been firm in her determination to take an active part in this mission, and she’d given valid reasons to support her decision—particularly the idea of having someone there that the other girls would trust. Jatki alone might not be enough. Unfortunately, even Captain seemed to think she should keep out of the line of fire.

Damned
computer
thinks
he
knows
everything.

Well, actually, he probably
did
know everything—most facts, anyway.

Onca and his friends had spent the afternoon discussing strategy, ultimately reaching the conclusion that they were simply going to have to wing it. She wished they could’ve hired some henchman to actually go inside, or simply watch the door and interrogate the customers as they left—taking an exit poll, as Roncas suggested.

Kim had no idea what they were talking about most of the time. Instead of interrupting their planning session, she spent a few hours in her room, listening to Captain drone on about the Rhylosian government and its legal procedures. Having to stop him frequently to define various terms slowed her progress, but she now had a better understanding of how such processes worked, all of which made her fear for Onca’s safety even more.

They couldn’t even call the police. Roncas was right. In a raid, Onca and every other customer would be arrested and possibly imprisoned along with the proprietors. No one would believe he was there on a rescue mission—especially with only a few of his buddies and people like her and Jatki to vouch for him. If her friends weren’t in there, he wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. Then there was the possibility that even the police were in on it—or being paid to look the other way.

All of which pointed to the need to avoid involving anyone in authority.

What was the word they’d used?
Vigilante?
She had never heard it before, but apparently the cops took a dim view of anyone taking the law into their own hands—which was exactly what they would be doing.

Still, Jack was on her way and, if Roncas’s opinion meant anything, she was a force to be reckoned with and so was the arms dealer, Lerotan Kanotay. Kim didn’t know much about Onca’s friend Dax, aside from the fact that he had a nice ship and could take her to Terra Minor in style if Jack wasn’t available. At least Dax was married and didn’t have any sons of marriageable age. Getting a ride with him would protect her from matchmaking plots to keep her and Onca apart.

Maybe.

Many of these same thoughts would have been buzzing around in her head even if she’d stayed behind. Unfortunately, getting a firsthand look at what they were up against hadn’t done a thing to calm her fears. This wasn’t some cheap-ass operation. Force fields were expensive. Even street urchins knew that. Most businesses relied on locked doors and iron bars for security. There was money behind this place—and lots of it.

She focused her attention on the door as the Cylopean admitted another customer—a big, mean-looking Terran with tattoos and a bald head. The horror of Peska or Dalmet being at the mercy of such a man made her shudder. Cassie could probably take it. Davordians were among some of the more sexually uninhibited species in the galaxy, and Cassie liked boys. Still, the thought of being taken by force was enough to chill Kim’s bones. Sex with guys she liked had been bad enough.

Nothing like being with Onca at all.

The minutes ticked slowly by. A few men came out, but no one else went in. They were giving him an hour—which, according to Rashe, was the standard time allotment in a brothel of this type.

Yet
another
thing
I
didn’t know.

A steady stream of foot traffic trickled along the street, most of the passersby seeming to ignore the Den’s existence. She spotted the occasional Darconian among them, knowing that they were some of Shemlak’s friends and relatives—Draddut being the largest of them all. Kim had barely contained her laughter earlier that evening when Onca was seized and ruthlessly hugged by Ganyn, who was among those patrolling the area. Kim was glad she had come along. If anyone could bull her way past the doorman and his force field to rescue Onca, it was Ganyn. Even with a running start, Kim would probably bounce right off the barrier.

Although Rashe still considered this particular brothel to be the most likely, he knew of at least three others with questionable reputations. What if they had to check out those places, too? What if her friends weren’t in any of them? They could be dead or even on other planets by now.

What had seemed so simple in the beginning when Kim and Jatki had formed their own plans had somehow become a monstrous, terrifying undertaking.

“We need to go after him now,” Kim said. “I can’t wait the full hour.”

Shemlak chuckled. “That’s why Onca wanted you to stay behind. He knew you wouldn’t be able to sit still and let him do what he has to do. And it’s also why he stationed you here with me. Not many people are willing to take on a Darconian.”

“I don’t see why—”

“He knows you care about him, Kim.” He nodded toward the brothel. “And he also knows women don’t like to see their men walk into places like that, whether it’s for a good cause or not.”

Their
men?
When had Onca become her man—at least, in the eyes of others? She felt very strongly about him, but she had kept those feelings to herself. She didn’t understand how anyone else could know about them, especially Shemlak.

“He’s doing this for you,” Shemlak went on. “Not for himself.”

“How could he possibly think that getting himself killed is something I would ever want him to do?”

“You were willing to risk your life to discover what happened to your friends, weren’t you?”

“Well, yes, but that’s different.”

“Not really,” Shemlak said. “Discovering the fate of these girls is important to you. Therefore, it’s important to him.”

Kim couldn’t see the connection. At least, not unless— “He doesn’t love me, if that’s what you’re getting at.”

“You think not? I believe he does. Enough to risk his life to keep you safe. Enough to let you go if it’s in your best interest.”

“That’s ridiculous. We only met yesterday. How could he possibly know what’s best for me?”

“He sees the bigger picture, Kim.” The Darconian paused, shaking his ponderous head. “I never would’ve given Onca credit for thinking on that scale, but apparently he can. You won’t leave this world to collect your share of the trust fund and go on with your life without first rescuing your friends—or at least doing everything you can to discover their fate. He knows that and sees this as the only way to get you to go willingly.”

“What if we succeed? What if we find my friends and no one gets killed? Will he still send me away?”

“Probably. Either that, or he’ll go someplace where you can’t find him.”

Kim refused to accept—or believe—any of it. “How do you know so much?”

“Rashe filled me in on the details, and I know Zetithians. I knew Jerden and Tarq, and both of them would’ve done exactly what Onca’s doing now. Nobody ever thought he was the type to care much about anything or anybody, but I’ve never known a species whose men worshipped women as much as those cats do. Well…maybe worship is the wrong word. But I can tell you this much—Zetithian men are too damned noble for their own good.”

On that point, she and Shemlak were in complete agreement. She blew out a breath. “How much longer do we have to wait?”

With a rumbling chuckle, he patted her head, nearly driving her feet into the pavement. “Don’t worry. We’ll get him out of there. Then you can tell him what a fool he was to risk his life for you and your gang.”

“He’s a fool for a couple of other reasons, too,” Kim said. “I just hope I get the chance to tell him that.”

“So do I.”

***

Given the sexual nature most Davordians possessed, Onca should have been able to do this one with both hands tied behind his back.

Nothing.

Not so much as a quiver of interest from his cock. This circumstance—though highly inconvenient at the moment—illustrated all that had occurred since his last night in the Palace.

Oh, yes. He was mated to Kim. Body, mind, and soul.

Not that he needed proof. He had known it with that first kiss. Jack would have laughed her ass off if she’d known the truth. He, of course, had no intention of telling her anything about it.

He’d had a tiny bit of difficulty convincing the Herp that he wanted this particular girl, but now that he stood facing her from the doorway of the small room to which they had been taken, he was at a loss as to how to proceed. The room was surprisingly clean, and the bed appeared comfortable enough to lure any of the girls from their cages—if for no other reason than to lie down in a soft place for the half-second before some man jumped on them and did his worst.

Onca shook off the shudder and got down to business. “What’s your name?”

The Davordian girl’s eyes filled with tears as she gazed up at him. “We aren’t supposed to tell anyone our names.”

“Hmm. Too bad about that. Mind if I call you Cassie?”

Her startled reaction was more than enough to confirm her identity. “I-If you wish.”

“You girls don’t get fed unless you beg the customers to fuck you. Am I right?”

“I wouldn’t know.”

Clearly she wasn’t going to make this easy. “Are these rooms bugged?”

Her puzzled frown and her reluctance to answer his questions spoke volumes. What a client did with these girls was his own choice, but the girls’ behavior had to be monitored—and their adherence to the rules enforced.

Something
else
we
didn’t think about—along with the force field on the door.

Crap.
He was going to have to at least
pretend
to fuck this girl.

With a limp dick?
Yeah, right.

This was
such
a bad idea.

“I’m guessing they are—especially if you’re afraid to tell me your name.” He held out a hand. “My name is Onca. I’m Zetithian. Perhaps you’ve seen others like me before?”

She didn’t take his hand, merely shaking her head as she stared down at the thickly carpeted floor.

To pull off this charade, he should throw her down, rip off what little clothing she had on, and nail her to the bed. Then perhaps he could whisper in her ear, telling her he was there to rescue her and all the others. He should be able to do that. After all, she was a pretty, blond Davordian. He’d done a hundred others just like her—perhaps even more than that.

The trouble was, he had never needed to be forceful with any of them. Hell, he’d barely even had to purr. Most Davordians threw their arms around his neck and pulled
him
down. Being the aggressor wasn’t in his nature. At all. Even Kim had made the first move with him—asking him to kiss her and then leaping into his arms and biting him. Granted, he’d taken it from there, but right now, he had absolutely no idea how to even make this farce look good.

Reconnaissance
mission, hell. I am
so
screwed.

If he didn’t leave the building in an hour, the others would know something had gone wrong, and hopefully, come after him and the girls. Rashe could have done this much better. At least
he
could have managed an erection.

As Onca made a move toward her, the girl cringed away from him. He didn’t understand why she wouldn’t trust him at all, especially since he knew her name.

“Um…Kim sent me.”

When she still refused to respond, he hesitated, rethinking his tactics. Should he ask for another girl or keep trying to wear this one down until she talked? Clearly, she was more afraid of her captors than she was of him. As far as she was concerned, he was just another dumb john.