Kralj was one of the most powerful beings in the universe.
The part of him that was Beta Taurian Shadow Beast terrified others. It was savage and vicious, his beast hungering for blood even now, yearning to hunt, to rip out throats, to feast on flesh.
But it was his humanoid half that was truly monstrous. His brain had been enhanced, genetically crafted into a weapon without equal. He could decimate an entire settlement with one errant thought, had never met a foe he couldn’t defeat.
No cage could contain him. No entity could influence him.
The Humanoid Alliance, his makers, had tried.
When ordered to breed, to produce another monster like himself, he’d refused, escaping his self-imposed prison. He’d freed some of the other less powerful modified humanoids, tried to save too many of the warriors and had paid a steep price for that arrogance.
Kralj ran his fingers over the scarred side of his face.
Once liberated, he had settled on Carinae E, a remote planet, with a select few warriors. He’d built the Refuge, erecting high walls, keeping others out and himself inside. For many human lifespans, he hadn’t left that territory, ruling the settlement, monitoring every thought, every activity, setting the rules and enforcing them.
He had total control over the residents, over his beast, and over his more dangerous humanoid half. None of the Carinae E locals had seen the full extent of his powers, and if he had his way, they never would.
That arrangement didn’t make him happy. Kralj doubted he could still feel that emotion. But he was content and the residents were safe.
That was enough.
Or so he told himself.
He pushed his private chambers’ ancient swinging doors open with his mind and stepped into the main chamber. The beverage outlet, situated in the exact center of the settlement, doubled as his domicile.
The public chamber was filled with beings. The patrons were mostly male, primarily humanoid, outcasts from a multitude of planets, a variety of species as colorful as their pasts. They sat along the long serving center he’d had installed and around square horizontal supports scattered throughout the main chamber.
Many of the beings had containers of fermented beverages in their hands, having traded credits for the refreshments. Others played the games, gambling more of their ill-gotten gains, giving him a cut of the winnings.
Working females in various stages of undress tried to entice some of the males into breeding with them, sitting on laps, grinding into groins. Kralj received a portion of their earnings also. The majority of the credits were utilized to protect the residents, ensuring every being had its basic needs met.
He oversaw everything. The other beings respected and feared him, moving as he neared, giving him a wide berth.
Their thoughts, however, rolled over him. There was no escaping them.
He’s a scarred scary bastard. Sari, an older breeding female, smiled at him, her artificial breasts nearly bare. But he’s the only being in this damn settlement who has the ability to kill me and I’m tired, so tired of the guilt. Every time a female dies, it returns.
Kralj knew about guilt. He carried that burden with him everywhere. And fucking him would kill her. If he lost control, everyone in the settlement would die.
But his beast wasn’t interested in her. Beta Taurian Shadow Beasts mated for their lifespans. Being only half beast, it was unlikely he had a mate.
He was destined to remain alone, untouched.
A short, round male narrowed his eyes at his opponent. He’s cheating. He must be.
The other being wasn’t cheating. The short, round male was merely unlucky.
Kralj continued to walk.
Would anyone notice if I ate my nasal drippings?
Stars. I miss my female.
This will be my last mission.
The thoughts weren’t restricted to the domicile. He heard everything flashing through the brain of anyone located within his mental reach, a radius large enough to encompass the entire settlement and a wide perimeter around it.
Kralj knew before stepping outside the structure that Orol, his second-in-command, was waiting for him, rather impatiently. The skies were clear and the winged male would rather be flying.
“Kralj, sir.” Orol fell in step beside him. They’d been stationed in the same Humanoid Alliance compound, had fought together before escaping.
The modified humanoid had earned his trust. He was a skilled warrior, had unique abilities of his own, and he never questioned Kralj’s authority.
“The perimeter is secure.” Orol ran though the constant security checks, reporting information Kralj already had.
They strolled through the settlement.
A container merchant haggled with a customer. He’d already reached a profitable price but greedily wanted more credits.
A female slapped her mate’s face. She thought he’d fucked her friend. He hadn’t. He’d fucked her younger sister.
“Kralj, sir.” A wiry, greasy-haired male called to him. He was being held down by a larger male, his face pressed against a horizontal support, his arm extended and restrained. Another male held a sword above his wrist. “I didn’t do it. Tell them I didn’t do it.”
The male told the truth. He hadn’t committed that offense but he was guilty of more serious ones.
Kralj ignored the male’s pleas. As long as they didn’t kill him, he wouldn’t intervene.
The male with the sword drove the blade downward, slicing off the accused’s hand. Blood spurted, painting the white stone pathway crimson. The accused shrieked.
Kralj didn’t stop walking. His long coat swirled around his booted feet. He followed the same route he always did. The sun blazed downward but he didn’t feel the heat, his face shrouded in constant shadow.
He chose who saw him, controlling that as he controlled everything else.
Almost everything else.
“Hulagu.” He turned and glared at a spot behind Orol. “What did I tell you?”
The air rippled and a young Chamele male appeared. Chameles had the ability to blend into their surroundings. They couldn’t conceal their thoughts, however. “You told me not to follow you.” The boy hung his head. “But—”
“There are no buts.” Kralj roared.
Containers rattled. Residents squeaked with alarm, running from the confrontation.
“While you’re in the Refuge, you will obey and respect me.”
The Chameles had assigned the boy to the Refuge as part of his off-planet training, a survive-or-die tactic. They planned to return for him at the end of the solar cycle, which was soon but not soon enough for Kralj’s liking.
The boy had caused trouble since the first planet rotation he’d arrived.
“I respect you, sir,” Hulagu mumbled, looking at his feet. They were large and bare. The boy was almost as tall as Kralj, his shoulders as wide but he hadn’t yet gained the massive muscle of his kind. His form was merely a frame, to be filled out later. “I want to learn from you, to be part of your team. If you train me—”
“I’m not training you.” The last being Kralj had trained had left the Refuge, never to return. He wouldn’t waste his time on another being. “And you’ll never be part of the team.” His team was set. He wasn’t changing it.
“Oh.” Hulagu deflated even more. He doesn’t think I’m good enough and he’s likely right. My friends were placed on more hospitable planets. I got stuck here and—
“Your tread is too noisy. Even a human can hear you.” Kralj didn’t know why he was giving the boy advice. It wasn’t his responsibility. “Walk with your weight farther forward.”
“Yes, sir.” Hulagu’s head lifted, his face brightening. He’s training me.
“I’m not training you.” Kralj strode away, disgusted with himself. The boy would be impossible to dissuade now.
Orol followed him, grinning. Looks like our Ruler has found himself another protégé.
“He’s not my protégé.” Any warrior would have relayed that advice. It meant nothing.
That’s what he said about the last one too.
Kralj ignored his second-in-command’s thoughts. Orol had the mistaken belief his leader had what the humans called a heart. Yes, the organ in his chest beat. It pumped blood. But seemingly endless human lifespans of violence had dissolved any kindness in him.
He reached the front gates. They were open. A small group of settlers streamed into the Refuge, entering in the order deemed by Zeb, their leader. He was first. The males were second, the children next and the females last. They were dressed in baggy gray flight suits, their noses wrinkled with distaste, their judgments of the residents and of himself, its Ruler, harsh and unforgiving.
“We must be vigilant.” Although Zeb’s frame was lean, his voice was strong. “We will be surrounded by the wicked and their tools. But we will not touch them. Weapons serve only one master—violence.”
Zeb knew all about the wicked, having been one himself. A former soldier, he had become addicted to the bloodshed, glorying in the killing. Now, the self-righteous hypocrite shunned weapons, blaming them for his weaknesses.
“Violence leads to evil and evil leads to an afterlife of nothingness.” His followers, unaware of their leader’s background, recited. “We will not be tempted.”
Newly arrived on the planet, they had come to the Refuge, a place they regarded as the bastion of evil, to source supplies for their journey.
If they left with all of their limbs, they’d be fortunate.
Kralj pressed his lips together. As long as they obeyed his rules, that was none of his concern.
The last of the settlers, Azalea, a young orphaned female, barely grown, staggered past him, her face pale with exhaustion. The front gates began to close.
The motion pushed a wave of air toward Kralj. On that manufactured breeze was a fragrance, light, delectably feminine, absolutely mouthwatering.
Mate, his beast growled, pressing against his restraints.
She was no mate. Kralj dismissed that ludicrous declaration. The unknown female wasn’t a Beta Taurian Shadow Beast. He’d sense that.
But the aroma had originated outside the settlement’s walls. No other beings had approval to enter.
His curiosity piqued and his beast agitated, he pushed the gates wide open and walked through them, following the scent.
He’s leaving? Orol’s thoughts expressed his surprise.
The reaction was warranted. Kralj only exited the Refuge to impale bodies on the spikes around the walls. That grisly display served as warnings to newcomers of what would happen to them if they broke the rules.
Leaving the settlement compromised its security. The farther he ventured to one side of the Refuge, the less mental coverage the other side had.
Shit. The boss is here. Balvan, the modified humanoid he’d stationed at the gates, was just as shocked by his presence. This can’t be good.
The green giant stood with his legs braced apart and his huge arms crossed. He used his immense size to intimidate others, to guard the entrance.
“Kralj, sir.” Balvan nodded.
“Where is the female?” Kralj gazed out at the white sand dunes. The Refuge was situated in the flat barren wastelands, far from being-concealing rock formations.
There was no sign of their guest.
“Female, sir?” Balvan’s forehead furrowed. “There’s no female.”
Couldn’t he smell her? Kralj took another deep breath of the arid air and his body tightened, his beast rumbling with happiness.
“There is a female.” The aroma was faint but she was out there.
He drew more and more of her scent into his lungs, trying to pinpoint its origins.
“She must be hidden in the sand dunes.” Kralj, for once in his long lifespan, wasn’t certain. He didn’t sense her thoughts. All of the mental noise was beside him, behind him.
Orol scanned the sands. “I don’t see anyone.” He turned to Balvan. “Do you see her?”
“No.” The gatekeeper frowned.
His team offered no assistance. Kralj closed his eyes and focused on the sounds around him.
Balvan and Orol breathed deeply, out of sync with each other. A lighter wisp of a breath, originating from the far right of him, lagged Balvan’s inhalations.
Barely.
The timing of her inhalations and exhalations had to be deliberate. They couldn’t be a coincidence. She was consciously breathing in time with the male.
Kralj stiffened. “She’s watching us.” The mysterious female was a threat.
“Who is watching us?” Frustration edged Orol’s voice. “And where is she?”
“I don’t know.” Kralj was forced to admit. How could the female have no thoughts? She wasn’t a machine. He could sense and hack into processors and other simulated brains. Her breathing, her tantalizing scent meant she was, at the minimum, partially organic. Even the simplest of creatures had some brain activity.
“You don’t know?” Balvan’s bushy eyebrows lifted.
Kralj gritted his teeth. He normally knew everything, controlled everything. “I’ll find out who she is.” He’d scare her away from his territory.
“Because you don’t know.” Both of the males stared at him.
“Orol, assess the situation from the air,” he commanded. “Balvan, no one gets past you, understand?”
Balvan’s bald head dipped, his expression grave.
It was a serious situation. Kralj had no idea what he was dealing with.
He turned right, stalking between the wall and the pikes he’d erected. The scent strengthened, strengthened, strengthened, then weakened. He took a couple of steps backward. There. It was at its strongest at that point.
Kralj still couldn’t spot her. He’d have to flush her out.
Bracing himself, he sent a blast of energy forward. Sand flew through the air, the wall of granules briefly blocking the sun’s rays, throwing the area into temporary darkness.
That demonstration of his power would have caused many seasoned warriors to flee. The female gasped but didn’t move, remaining concealed.
Who or what was she?
Mate. His beast paced, anxious to meet her, touch her, claim her.
Prey, he corrected. She was dangerous.
“Show yourself,” Kralj boomed, using the universal language, impatient for answers. His lack of knowledge made him uncomfortable, a feeling he hadn’t experienced in many, many solar cycles. “I know you’re there.”
“Do you?” Her voice was as arousing as her scent, hardening his cock. “Was it my breathing? I was distracted by your broad shoulders.”
“It wasn’t your breathing.” Kralj gazed in her direction.
It wasn’t easy to locate his opponent. She had concealed her body with a layer of sand, her goggle-covered eyes barely visible. The female had skills.
And she planned to use them against him. If her intentions were peaceful, she wouldn’t be hiding. “I should kill you now.”
“But you won’t.” The female stood, dusting the sand off her head and shoulders.
A riot of short curls framed an impish face. A black body covering encased her slender form, clinging like a second skin to firm breasts, a toned waist, curvy hips. Daggers were strapped to her chest, thighs, and arms. Guns filled the holsters at her hips. She was tiny but only a fool would discount her.
Kralj recognized her for what she was—a fellow killer.
He tried to push into her mind. There was nothing there. It was a huge empty chamber he couldn’t fill. He directed more of his power into that space. That would have hurt another being, would have brought even the largest, strongest warrior to his knees.
She appeared unaffected.
“There’s no reason to kill me.” The tiny female pulled her goggles down, hung them around her neck, revealing eyes as blue as the sky above them. “I’m not inside your precious Refuge and I haven’t broken any of your beloved rules.”
“Yet.” His tone was dry.
“Yet.” She walked toward him, her gait loose, her lack of concern for the danger he presented perversely turning him on. The female was fearless.
“You’re a threat.” He didn’t know why he was waiting to eliminate her. “Are you alone?”
“I’m always alone.” Sadness flitted across her beautiful face, a cloud passing over the sun. Then her smile returned. “How am I a threat to you?” She purred, her full pink lips vibrating with each word.
He wanted to capture that tender flesh between his teeth and pull.
“You’re a big strong male.” She drifted her gaze over his physique, her perusal as sensual as a caress, heating him to the bone. “I’m a small human female.”
“You are small.” Kralj surveyed her form as slowly, savoring her slight curves, her lean muscles, her upturned face. He was much taller than she was, the height differential forcing her into an excitingly submissive stance. “And you’re definitely female.” He longed to see her on her knees before him. “But are you human?” He bared his fangs, showing her he wasn’t one of her kind. “I don’t know what you’re thinking.”
“Don’t lie to me.” Her eyelids partially lowered, that physical acknowledgment of his dominance pleasing his primal nature. “You know what I’m thinking.”
She slid her tongue over her bottom lip, wetting her flesh.
He tracked the movement with his gaze, achingly aware of her, of the need to possess this female, to subdue her. His brain warned him she was dangerous. His body didn’t care. “What are you?”
“I wouldn’t lie to you, Kralj.”
He liked the way she said his name. He didn’t like that he didn’t know hers.
“I’m human.” She moved within his reach.
An intriguing vitality surrounded her, calling to him. He’d been alone for so long, solitary, emotionally isolated, unable to touch another being without causing damage, without killing.
“I was born with a brain telepaths can’t access.” She verified that exciting fact.
The powerful humanoid part of him couldn’t harm her. He’d never met a being like her.
“That’s why I was chosen.” She swirled her fingertips over her right shoulder, tracing the aligned sun moon planet embossed in her body covering.
It was the symbol of the Dark Veil, a guild of assassins. She was a monster as he was, trained to end lives, violent and soulless.
His desire for her escalated.
“What are you?” She smiled up at him.
“I’m not a mere telepath.” His psychic abilities exceeded any type of measurement. “I’m unlike anything you’ve ever encountered.”
She lifted her chin. “You don’t know what I’ve encountered.”
“You haven’t encountered any being like me.” Kralj was certain of that fact. “I’m the beast hunting you in your nightmares, the fear you feel in the dark, the prickling over the back of your neck when you think you’re alone.” He gazed down at her, fighting the urge to grab her, to sink his fangs into her pale neck. “I’m not a male you play with, little one.”
“My name is Dita. And who said I was playing?” She walked her fingertips across his chest, heedless of the danger she was in, oblivious to how close he was to taking her, tasting her. “You’re an attractive male.”
He wasn’t an attractive male. He was a scarred beast, as hideous on the inside as he was on the outside. She dared to taunt him and that angered him.
“You find this appealing?” Kralj leaned forward, dissipating the shadows partially concealing his face, forcing her to look at his scars.
The right side of his face horrified the staunchest of beings. The skin from his forehead to his chin was angry and red, twisted, stretched, permanently melted.
It would repel her. She’d drop the irritatingly effective seductress act.
He could then view her as merely another enemy, kill her if that was the best solution to the problem she presented. There would be no hesitation, no emotions clouding his judgment.
“Yes.” Dita reached up and touched his scarred cheek.
He flinched, surprised, shocked, stimulated beyond all reason. Although he was tempted, his inner alarms ringing a warning, he didn’t retreat, didn’t draw his face away from her hand. He stood his ground.
She inflicted more damage on his equilibrium, her fingers calloused yet gentle, fluttering over his skin. “I find this extremely appealing, handsome.”
There was no sarcasm in her voice, no mockery in her expressive blue eyes. Did she truly find him handsome?
No, she couldn’t. Kralj rejected that notion. He knew what he was, what she was. They were both monsters and monsters were heartless. She was manipulating him.
That realization didn’t stop him from wanting her. His cock pressed against the confines of his ass coverings. His shadow expanded, partially blocking the sun.
“You’re a good little liar.” He told her. She was too good for his piece of mind. “Is this your strategy—flatter the target, lull him into complacency before killing him?”
“I don’t lie and it would be my strategy.” Dita laughed softly, the sound making his balls ache. “If the target looked like you.”
She explored his face with her fingertips, wandering over the ridges, the hollows, handling his marred skin as though it were a priceless object, a treasure to be polished, cared for, cherished. Her beautiful countenance was soft.
He had never been touched like this. He stared at her, enthralled, his beast purring. She was so quiet, serene, her thoughts unreadable. Kralj pushed his cheek into her palms.
Then he realized what he was doing.
“No.” A surge of dark energy erupted from him, flinging his tiny opponent backward.
Dita yelped, her arms and legs flailing. Kralj resisted his beast’s demands to run, to catch her. She was the enemy and he allowed her to hit the sand.
She slid along a dune. Blood scented the air, her blood.
It smelled sweet. His mouth watered.
She was the most gorgeous creature he’d ever encountered and he wanted to eat her.
He was truly a monster.
A normal female would have been upset with his response. This one laughed, jumping to her booted feet. “You play hard to get, don’t you, handsome?” She brushed the sand off her body covering.
Kralj spotted streaks of red on her hands. “I don’t play. Ever.” He fought the urge to rush to her, to lick her palms. His beast pulled at his mental chains. “And I’m not handsome.”
“You are handsome.” The gaze she directed at him was torturously sensual. “We all have scars. Yours turn me on.”
She wasn’t lying. He smelled her arousal. The damn female was driving him wild.
If his restraint broke, if he lost himself in her, beings would die. He had to banish her from his territory. She was too dangerous. He couldn’t read her mind, couldn’t control her, and he was susceptible to her charms, didn’t behave rationally around her. “I want you to leave the area.”
She opened her lush mouth.
“Immediately.” The sand vibrated with the force of that word.
His powers didn’t scare his little assassin. “My targets—”
“Are not my problem.” Kralj lifted his right palm in warning. He would propel her out of his range if she protested. “I’m denying you access to the Refuge.”
“You could try.” Her beautiful eyes glittered with a challenge he fought to resist.
“I will succeed.” The alternative couldn’t be contemplated.
“No, you won’t.” Dita’s confidence called to him. She was everything he never knew he wanted. “The beast hunting me in my nightmares might be scary, Kralj, but I’m aware of him.” She looked at him, her gaze smoldering with sexuality, as hot as the sand under their booted feet. “I know how to evade him.”
He was as aware of her as she was of him. She’d awakened needs, hungers. Kralj flicked his tongue over his fangs, the darkness gripping him.
“I’ve been watching your precious Refuge for three planet rotations.” Dita’s lips curled into a smug smile. “If I want to enter it, I will.”
She turned and strolled away from him.
He watched her swaying hips, the proud straight line of her spine, the bounce of her brown curls against her nape.
His beast howled, wanting to follow her, track her, protect her.
She disappeared over a sand dune. Her scent faded and his beast calmed. The lust-induced fog in Kralj’s brain cleared, his rational thought reviving.
Dita was a threat to the Refuge, to his control. When she returned and she would return, he didn’t doubt that, he would have to deal with her.
He told himself he didn’t have a choice.
Rebellion was contagious. Kralj ruled over the dregs of the universe, beings with a proclivity for violence. He couldn’t allow insurgence to spread.
She would have to be subdued.
Permanently.
He’d hold her curves against his muscle, sink his fangs into her delicate neck. Her blood would fill his mouth as she squirmed against him, her pert ass brushing over his hard groin.
Fuck. Kralj stared in the direction she’d walked.
He wanted her.