Chapter One
Killian
Hot air whipped past my face.
I was diving headfirst straight into hell. As I’d done so many times before.
Just keep going.
The sensation of falling was so familiar that, for a second, I was cast back to my former life and the old feelings almost overtook me. And as always, the temptation to take this to its inevitable end washed over me. What did it matter? My life was one long grind of fear and pain and exhaustion. There was no way out. But falling like this, the fear was gone.
Let the fires embrace me.
I shook off the feeling—this time was different. That life of zero hope was long behind me. No way was I going to give in this time; there was more than my miserable life at stake. I concentrated on keeping us away from the walls, angling my body, shifting my muscles as I clutched Ruby’s small body against mine. She was so still that I thought she might have passed out. Or worse—that one of the stray shots had caught her as we jumped. Panic flared, but then her fingers dug into my shoulders, hampering my movements. And relief flooded through me.
We weren’t finished yet. I wouldn’t let her down.
I shifted my hold so I could free up my cybernetic arm. I’d need it for this. Clearing my mind, I allowed instinct to take over.
Soon.
As I flicked the internal switch that turned my eye to infra-red, the world around me changed. The walls glowed violet, and the heat below almost white. I scanned the rock rushing past us. Took note of our position. My internal processor calculated the estimated time to destruction.
Everything seemed to slow. Reaching out with my cybernetic hand, I counted down in my head. Ten seconds out, I flipped us in midair so we were heading down feet first—we’d be less likely to be damaged on impact that way. I used my free arm to wipe the sweat from my eyes, but actually, I hardly noticed the searing heat.
I’d never done this while carrying someone. Would the arm hold? I could only hope so.
My eye homed in on the spot while it was still beneath me. I extended my arm.
Three, two…one.
The snap as I caught the ledge nearly tore my arm from its socket. But the joint had been strengthened and it held.
I swung us into the narrow tunnel beneath the rocky outcrop, released the grip of my metal fingers, and fell the last foot, landing lightly.
I swayed, more from relief than weakness. The familiar feeling that I would live to jump another day overwhelmed me. I remembered it well. Part elation, part fear, part despair. Though again, this time was so different. The elation and fear were still there, but the despair was relegated firmly to the past.
I had hope. For a long time, that had been an alien concept.
And I had Ruby. All hot and soft and sweaty and clinging to me as though she would never let me go; her fingers digging into my shoulders, her legs wrapped around my waist. Slowly she raised her head, gazed across at me, and I melted inside. What was it about this one woman that touched me so deeply?
“Are we alive?”
I grinned. “Have you no faith?”
She was silent for a moment, staring into my face, and then she nodded. “I have faith in you.”
Aw. She was capable of breaking me, and I had no clue why.
She peered over my shoulder into the tunnel beyond, with its flickering dim orange light.
“Will they follow us?”
I shook my head. They didn’t even know of this place. Even the guards working in the mines didn’t know about this particular tunnel. It was my secret place. “No. They’ll probably put guards at the entrances to the known tunnels. But if we’re lucky, they’ll believe we’re dead.”
“So there’s no one coming after us right now?” She wriggled, pressing up close. Naked but for my shirt, I could feel the heat of her sex rubbing against me. My dick wasn’t averse to the idea, and blood sank to my groin.
“What are you doing?” I asked. In case I was mistaken; I didn’t want to get my dick’s hopes up, just to have them dashed.
She gave a little shrug and a moue with her lips. “There’s something about being alive when I thought I was definitely dead that makes me…” She shrugged again.
“Horny?” Was my tone hopeful? Pathetic?
She nodded. “Is that wrong? Am I turning into a pervert?”
“Do I care?” I grinned. “You’ll be asking me for anal sex in a minute.” Ruby had an irrational fear of anal sex. When we had the time and the place, I intended to help her over her little phobia. But now was not the time.
“Ugh. Don’t spoil the moment.” Leaning in close, she breathed deeply. “You smell so good—all hot and sweaty and sexy.” She pressed against me. “And you feel so hard.” She blew in my ear, nibbled on my lobe. “Come on, Killian, just a quickie.”
How could I deny her? Why would I even want to?
She was right; there was something about surviving a close encounter with death that made me want to prove I was alive. The years I’d worked as a helldiver, when I’d done this day in, day out, I’d always headed for the nearest pussy afterward. Lots of women were willing to take me on. I was a valuable commodity, the best at what I did, which meant extra rations.
I shuffled us back a little so we were out of sight should they send down a drone. No way would heat-seeking equipment find us here—the whole place was hot. Which, while keeping us safe from detection, also meant it would have to be just a quickie. I needed to get Ruby away from the direct heat. I was used to it and had become inured to the effects at an early age. Ruby would not last for long.
But in that moment, I needed her as an affirmation.
Without letting her go, I reached between us and ripped open the fastenings of my pants. A moan tore from her throat as my dick found freedom. I pushed what I could of my clothes out of the way with one hand while balancing her with the other. Then I grabbed her ass with both hands. She was slippery with sweat, and I dug my fingers in, lifting her. My dick homed in on the entrance to her body as I held her steady.
“Ready?”
…
Ruby
Oh. My. God.
My body was on fire.
Maybe even literally. I’d never been so hot. Sweat dripped from everywhere. And not only me. Moisture glistened on Killian’s forehead, and on the skin of his naked chest beneath the leather coat.
My pussy burned with need. Hot and swollen, I could feel his long, hard length pressed against me.
A part of my mind niggled that we should be running, putting more distance between us and the soldiers who had chased us from the planet. Or maybe I was just scared. I wasn’t sure I would ever be ready for the way he made me feel, but that wasn’t going to stop me.
“I’m ready.”
He gave me that cocky grin, the one that made me melt even more, and then he shoved into me hard. All the way. Pain flared when he hit my newly pierced clit. I must have let out a small yelp, because he stopped moving.
“Are you okay?”
Of course I’m okay. Don’t stop.
I’d had an encounter with the piercer from hell earlier that day. Ended up with rings through my nipples and through my clit. It had hurt like crap at the time, but they’d put some accelerated healing cream on. I guessed it was working, because the pain had lessened to a dull ache, though I was more sensitive than I’d ever been.
“Don’t stop. I’m good. Better than good. In fact, I’ll kill you if you stop.”
He grinned again, drew out, and my whole body clenched waiting for the next thrust.
I didn’t have to wait long. He took me at my word and soon was slamming into me, hard and fast. I reached between us, tore the shirt open so I could press my breasts against his chest, slick with sweat. The pleasure was building. I was too hot. I was going to explode, spontaneously combust, burn to a crisp, and I didn’t care.
I bucked my hips, and his grip tightened even further, rubbing me against him, a blend of pain and pleasure until I exploded into flames. I was vaguely aware of Killian pumping inside me. He reached between our bodies, tugged on the clit ring, and I came again, screaming. Then everything went mercifully dark.
When I came to, I was in Killian’s arms, cradled across his chest, and he was striding through an almost dark tunnel. A dim light guided our way, and I realized it came from a small section of his metal arm which glowed like a torch.
He glanced down. “You’re awake.”
“I am.” I wriggled to prove it.
“Hey, no more of that wriggling. It leads to bad things.”
“Bad?”
“Okay, good things. But right now, we need to get you out of this heat and find you some water.”
“I already feel cooler.”
“We’re heading upward, away from the core of the asteroid. The farther away, the cooler it gets.”
“I could walk,” I said.
“No, you can’t. Your feet are a mess.”
I couldn’t actually feel them, but when I peered down—yup, they were a mess. Bruised and bloody. Now that I’d seen them, they started to throb. “I wish you hadn’t mentioned them.”
“Don’t worry. There’s water up ahead. We’ll clean them up, and then decide what our next move should be.”
My head hurt just thinking about our next move. But probably there wouldn’t be much to talk about. I was guessing our options were pretty limited. I closed my eyes and relaxed against him. I loved being this close, and the smooth movement and the steady thrum of his heart sent me into a light sleep.
As he was lowering me to the sandy ground, I awoke. A strange humming filled my ears. I blinked and found that I was in a large cave, and the sound came from a deep, dark stream that ran through the center, beside me. The air was still warm, but quite pleasant, and a little light filtered from somewhere high above us. Killian had stripped off his leather coat and was in the process of kicking off his boots and peeling off his leather pants to stand naked in front of me, all long and lean and scarred. He stepped into the water; it came up to his waist, hiding the good bits. Reaching across to me, he took hold of my ankles and turned me around so I sat facing the stream, then he urged me a little closer so my feet dangled in the water.
A groan escaped my throat. “That feels so good.” My mouth was parched, and I eyed the water warily. “Can we drink it?”
He turned so he faced upstream from us, cupped some water in his hands, and held it to my mouth. It was warm and tasted slightly metallic, but it quenched my thirst. He got me another handful, and another. Then he dunked down under the water, coming up splashing, combing his long, wet hair out of his face.
It looked so good. I wanted in there, to clean the sweat from my body. I glanced down at my shirt. Well, Killian’s shirt actually. Only one button remained—I’d torn the rest off in my impatience to get skin-on-skin with Killian earlier. I unfastened it, slipped out of the shirt, and tossed it on top of Killian’s clothes. Then I wiggled my toes, decided they could take it, and slipped into the water. I dove under, running my hands through my hair. When I surfaced, Killian reached for me and dragged me into his arms. His mouth came down on mine, and his lips forced mine open, his tongue thrusting inside. One hand cupped my breast, squeezing, sending pleasure jolting through me to settle low down in my belly. His fingers toyed with the nipple ring and he straightened. “Are you okay? Still in pain?”
I shook my head. “The pain is almost gone,” I said. “That must be good stuff they put on. Far more advanced than anything on Earth.”
“You don’t want me to take them out then? We could do it. The water has antiseptic properties.”
I thought about it, glancing down where the silver rings pierced my nipples; they looked pretty and sort of pagan. I shook my breasts a little and Killian followed the movement with hot, hungry eyes. Clenching my thighs together, I could feel the clit ring, but it just made me more aware of my sex. I wanted him again already. “Actually, I quite like them—now that they don’t hurt anymore.”
“I quite like them as well.” He tugged on the nipple ring, and I felt it in my sex. Then he lowered his head, licked first one breast, then the other, playing with the ring with his teeth until I was moaning for more.
I slipped my hand between us, found his cock rock hard, and wrapped my fist around him. I was melting from the inside out, aware of every part of my body in a way I never had been before. Holding on to his shoulder with my free hand, I jumped up, the water making me buoyant. Still gripping his cock, I rubbed it against my clit a couple of times, the feeling indescribably good. I looked up to find Killian watching me through half-closed eyes. Holding his gaze, I placed him at the entrance to my body. He flexed his hips and pushed inside as I looped my legs around his waist. I released his shoulder, lay back, arms above my head, and let the water hold me up. My breasts looked amazing. Killian must have thought so as well, since he covered them with his hands, massaging them, sending pleasure pulsing through me.
Still lodged deep inside me, he used one hand to part the folds of my sex. “So pretty,” he murmured. His metal hand trailed down over my belly, across my bare mound. He flicked the clit ring and my inner muscles tightened, everything tingling with anticipation. He took the ring between metal fingers, pulling gently, and a pulse throbbed between my thighs. He played with me, tugging on the little jewel, while he pulled slowly out, and then pushed back inside. Unlike our earlier frenetic lovemaking, this was slow, controlled, beautiful and deep. Tears pricked my eyes. I’d never felt like this before, as if he held my whole life in his hands, as if my whole future was tied to him.
I relaxed, closed my eyes and let the waves of pleasure roll over me, and still he didn’t stop. Finally, he leaned across, gathered me in his arms, held me close against him as he released his control and we came together, the warm water lapping about our bodies.
Perfection.
In that moment, I could have died happy.
Okay, that’s a total lie.
Actually, in that moment, I wanted to live more than I ever had in my entire life. More than ever, I wanted the chance to explore the universe. With Killian at my side. He’d promised to teach me to fly.
He carried me through the water and set me down on the bank. Then pulled himself out and glanced around, found his coat and laid it on the sand by a big boulder. He picked me up and settled us both down, him leaning against the rock, me between his thighs, resting back against his chest, listening to his heart.
Soon we’d have to decide what we were going to do next. We were stuck on an asteroid. Somehow, we would have to find a way off. And we’d need food and clothes and… But I wasn’t quite ready to think about all that serious stuff yet. I was still in the euphoric I’m-alive phase, not to mention the blissful, post-coital, I’ve-just-had-the-best-sex-ever-with-a-gorgeous-man phase.
And I wanted to know everything about him. The outside world could wait a little while longer. “Tell me about yourself.”
He jumped as though he’d been drifting off to sleep. Aw—he’d had a rough day.
“What about myself?”
I shrugged. “What was your life like here? How did you escape? How did you know about this place?”
His arms tightened around me while he thought about what to say. “I was a helldiver,” he said. “That’s what they called us, the ones who dove into the tunnels searching for new veins of ore. I jumped every day from the age of fourteen. And every day, I presumed I would die. Sometimes I wanted to die. Wanted it to be over. I didn’t know of anyone who ever escaped the mines. But something kept me going. Each day, I decided I wanted to live. One time, though, the line broke, and I was freefalling like we did just now. I nearly went too far. I’d gone past the last known safe hold. I thought—this is it. I’d accepted it. Then I saw the ledge, the one we used just now. I managed to catch onto it and save myself.”
“I’m glad you didn’t die.”
He kissed the side of my neck and a shiver ran through me. “So am I, sweetheart. Anyway, I waited for them to send the cable to pick me up. When it didn’t come, I realized they probably thought I was dead. That close to the core, the heat was messing with their detection equipment. For the first time in my life, I felt free. It was exhilarating. I explored these tunnels, found this place and, farther on, a tunnel to the surface.”
“Is that when you escaped?”
“No, not that time. It’s weird, but I told myself that I needed to plan, needed to get supplies, think of a way off the asteroid. But really, I was just scared of the idea of freedom. So I climbed my way back to the surface and slavery.”
“When did you escape?”
He’d gone quiet. I wanted to see his face, and I pulled free and turned so I sat on the sandy floor facing him. “Tell me.”
“I had a twin sister. Kara. She was sold to a brothel just before I became a helldiver.”
“You were only fourteen—children. How could they do that?”
He shrugged. “Kara was the only person I ever loved. And I could do nothing for her. Occasionally, she’d get messages to me. Then one day—I was eighteen—one of the guards told me she was dead. A group of soldiers had bought her for the night. Fucked her so hard, they killed her. Apparently, they had to pay extra.”
His voice was filled with years of pain and bitterness, and my heart ached for him. I could see now why he’d been so against me going back to the slaver ship. But also why he’d wanted me to succeed. Reaching out, I cupped his cheek. “I’m so sorry, Killian. But we’ll stop this. We’ll bring them down and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
“Good luck with that. Things will never change.”
“They will. If enough people want them to.”
He shrugged again. He didn’t believe me and that made me sad.
“I went crazy,” he continued. “Nearly killed the bastard guard who told me—he was gloating about it. I was due for a flogging, though not too bad—I was valuable—and not until I’d done my work for the day. Anyway, as it turned out, that day I was scheduled to work on this tunnel. As I fell, I cut the cable, and I was freefalling. I almost kept going, but at the last moment the urge to live was too strong. I saved myself and once again made my way to the surface.”
“How did you get off the asteroid?” Hopefully, it would be something we could repeat now.
“Well, that was where I had a little good luck. I met Zak.”
“Was that when he was crown prince here?”
“At the turning point. He’d been kidnapped by his uncle in a coup to give control to his sister.”
“The lesbian-from-hell sister?”
“That’s the one. His uncle had brought him here. The plan was to shove him into the mines where there were no witnesses—at least, none that mattered—and let his body burn. He’d simply vanish. I killed Zak’s uncle, thought about killing Zak, but in the end I decided he’d be more useful alive than dead. We stole his uncle’s ship, renamed her the Helldiver, and away we went.”
“And you’ve been friends since?”
“Sort of. We had a few patchy moments. I was never particularly fond of Groths, so it was a hard slog. But he’s a good guy.”
“What did you do?”
“First, we found the men who had killed Kara. They all died and not well.”
“I’m glad,” I said fiercely. Before this, I’d never wanted anyone to die before.
“Then we just got whatever jobs we could. We always thought one day we’d return to Groth, get rid of his sister, put Zak back where he belonged, right all the wrongs…”
“But?”
“That sort of stuff is hard work. Instead we just fucked around. Made a bit of money, spent it. Got into trouble with some bad guys, agreed to free a slave girl from Earth…and here we are.”
“Thank you for saving me.”
“My pleasure.”
I took a deep breath. Okay, time to get serious. “What do you think is happening on the planet? Do we have any way of contacting someone?”
He shook his head. “I lost my comm unit in the crash. But hopefully your friend Rekowski made the rendezvous with his traitorous bitch of a fiancée. And hopefully, they’re well on their way back to Earth now. Zak will drop them off and then come back for us.”
“Will he be able to find us?”
“He’s still homed in on the tracking device in your head.”
“Why didn’t he just come back and find us now?”
“We discussed it, but decided that if the situation arose, then likely the place would be on the alert. This is safer. I know my way around. We can survive. By the time he gets back, things will have quietened down, and he can slip in and pick us up without anyone noticing.”
“Sounds like a plan. So all we have to do is wait?”
“We’ll need to steal some food from the stores, but that shouldn’t be too hard. We have water.” He waved at the stream. “Other than that, we’ll just have to find a way to pass the time.”
He reached for me just as a knife whizzed past my head and embedded in the wall behind us. I jumped and twisted around. A man stood in the tunnel entrance and behind him I could see others.
“Killian fucking Sharpe,” he said. “What the fuck are you doing back from the dead, you little bastard?”