Chapter Fourteen

––––––––

Dani awoke to blackness, confusion, and impending panic. The last thing she remembered was being led from the only home she’d ever known, forced into a chauffeured car with two of Daniel Alltryp’s hired goons watching over her, then taken to a nearby space terminal, and carried onto an awaiting shuttle. Carried, not because she couldn’t walk, but because she was kicking and screaming, her compliance at an end. The final straw, seeing Prince Ivar waiting by the steps of the shuttlecraft with a smug look on his eerie blue face.

Once inside, it took two of the goons to strap her into a seat. Ivar had watched until she’d been secured then took the chair across from her. She had ignored him, staring out the window at what could very well be her last glimpse of Earth.

Not long after takeoff, she’d gotten woozy, sick to her stomach, and after that, remembered nothing, until waking here. Wherever here was. She rolled to her side, trying to get her bearings, no matter how futile her efforts with a blindfold covering her face.

“Don’t move. The effects of the sleeping gas will wear off shortly.”

She startled at the nasal sounding voice coming out of the darkness. Instinctively, she reacted, scooting on the cold, hard surface to get away. As she did, a wave of sickness overcame her. She gagged, but thankfully, nothing came up.

“Stupid woman, did you hear me say not to move?”

Breathing in through her nose, she croaked, “Who are you? What do you want from me?”

“From you, I want nothing. That is the point.”

She heard boots striking metal as he drew near. He tugged off her blindfold, the sudden brightness making her squint. It took her a moment, blinking the entire time, until she focused on a hook nose and blue skin. He was Elzorian.

Twisting, she looked for Ivar and his men. “Where am I?”

“My ship.”

“Your ship? But who are you? And where is Ivar?”

“You ask a lot of questions for a captive. It’s annoying.” His narrow-eyed gaze swept over her face. “You are attractive, in your pasty white, redheaded way. I imagine it wouldn’t have been difficult for Ivar to take you to his bed, even though you are beneath his lineage. Now he’ll never know, will he?”

“I don’t understand. You don’t want Ivar to beget an heir? I thought the whole planet was desperate for one of the sons to procreate.”

“Not all. There is a faction that wants the rightful successor to reclaim the throne.”

“Who?” Then, despite all she’d been through, enough to rattle her brain, least of all the gas used to knock her unconscious, she figured it out. “You’re the heir.”

“Yes, or at least my father was until he passed. As his first-born son, the crown should have passed to me, not my younger brother, Ingvar, a second son.”

“Ivar’s father,” she breathed.

“Yes, he stole the throne claiming I wasn’t of pure blood.” An icy edge of contempt clung to hi words. “You see I am the product of royalty and an off-worlder. Until recently, those unions were strictly forbidden. Now, because it suits those in power, they changed the rules. Since it is legal, I want my rightful inheritance, and you stand in my way.”

“I won’t marry Ivar. I don’t want to. Send me anywhere other than Earth, or Elzor, and I’ll stay hidden. I promise.”

“It’s too late. You know too much.”

“Only because you told me. Why did you freaking tell me?” she screamed.

“It matters not, once I sell you, you’ll disappear where no one will listen to your jabbering.”

“Kidnapped and sold at auction. Let me guess, as a sex slave to the highest bidder.” Her eyes rolled clear to the back of her head and despite her predicament, her voice dripped with sarcasm when she said. “Gee, how original. I’m getting damned tired of this, I swear.”

“Shut up. I came down here to learn one thing.”

“And you expect me to tell you?”

“Yes, unless you want me to be beat it out of you.”

She scowled. This wasn’t a new twist, but at least he hadn’t already backhanded her, kicked her in the ribs, or threatened to rape her.

“What does your father get out of your marriage to Ivar?”

“He isn’t my father, and what else does Daniel Alltryp want other than money or power. Elzor can’t give him the latter, so I’ll give you one guess.”

“Our planet has no wealth, except the research fees we earn from exploration.”

“Bingo.”

“Speak English, girl,” he snapped, “not this gibberish I don’t understand.”

“Alltryp Universal is close to a new energy source they’ve discovered in the North region. He expects to make billions.”

It started out as a low wheezing noise and grew louder. It took Dani a moment to figure out he wasn’t having some sort of respiratory attack, but was in fact, laughing.

“New energy source, oh my, how absurd.”

“Now I don’t understand,” she replied, eyeing him as if he were crazy.

“If there was something of value up there, don’t you think our scientists would have found it? We’ve been leeching off unsuspecting exploration teams for years. Throwing out some radioactive dust particles here, burying a potential new energy source there. It’s the only way we stay afloat.” He laughed louder. “Oh, this is too funny. Your idiot father sold his only child into a marriage with certain death as her first anniversary gift for a bunch of gypsum and irradiated rock.”

“Although I love the idea of anyone getting the better of my father, since I’m the child who was sold, I fail to find the humor.”

“No, I suppose you wouldn’t.” He slid the blindfold back in place, squeezed her jaw, and shoved a rag in her mouth, muffling her cries of protest. His footsteps sounded again, this time growing fainter as he moved away. “You’re wasting your breath. No one on this ship is going to help you. They are loyal to the rightful King of Elzor—me. Relax while you can,” he advised, his voice distant and echoing faintly in the hold. “You go up for bid in twelve hours. I’m anxious to see what the going rate is for red hair, generous curves, and a pair of extraordinary tits.” She could hear his chuckle until the door slammed shut with a bang.

Dani lay there, stunned. Bound, again, with her hands behind her back, again, and her feet tied, a-gain! Like a recurrent nightmare or a bad case of déjà vu, she was helpless to do anything about it. As she lay there, wallowing in self-pity, she started to get ticked. Especially when she considered in less than a month she’d been kidnapped three times. Evidently, it was the crime of the month, and all her abductors owned the same “how-to” manual.

She tried to get up on her knees. Without a plan, she wasn’t sure why, other than she felt compelled to do something. The hard, unyielding floor hurt her stiff joints.

Didn’t criminals have blankets or mattresses? Her butt hurt, at the same time she couldn’t feel her numb fingers and feet, and she was convinced the gag had permanently adhered to her dry lips and tongue. Barely able to swallow, she had to concentrate hard to breathe through her nose, which the amount of dust in the air made more difficult. Clearly, this class of kidnappers had never heard of cleaning and didn’t own a broom. She could feel the dirt from the floor, gritty against her skin.

A tickle started building in her nose. Trying not to think about it failed, so Dani wiggled, trying to rub her itchy nose on her shoulder. Sneezing while gagged was not a pleasant experience. She knew about it firsthand, and, in fact, she could write a book on it.

The thud of something hitting the floor behind her startled her still. Then she heard footsteps. Fear swept through her. Anyone, or worse, anything could be coming her way.

Panicked, she rolled in what she thought was the opposite direction. But sightless, pinpointing the direction of the noise wasn’t easy. She learned this when her chest met something hard. An instant later, fingers curled around her upper arms.

A scream erupted from her throat, surprisingly loud with her mouth parched and muzzled.

“Quiet, and don’t move.”

Restrained and so stiff every movement made her body groan with pain, it wasn’t a hard order to follow. And recognizing the man who issued it, made it so much easier.

“We’re getting you out of here, but I need you to stay still and be quiet while I take care of a few things. Can you do that for me, pershada?”

She nodded her head furiously, praying Jaylin would see her response, because she wasn’t able to answer him any other way.

“Good girl. Be patient for a little while more. I’ll be back.”

She heard him move away.

Still hurt and furious with them both for tricking her, she should have been ticked, but never had she been so glad to hear anyone in her life. In light of her situation, she couldn’t work up a good case of righteous indignation, and despite the deception, she still trusted him. He’d rescued her from a similar situation, including impending rape. She’d do as he said and be patient, relying on him to save her once more. Later, when she was safe, she planned to give them both a piece of her mind in a good, old-fashioned ass chewing.

There was a distant thud, some shuffling noises, and another two solid thumps which resonated with a tinny sound, as though hitting against metal. She imagined Jaylin systematically taking out her attackers. Muffled shouts and pounding footsteps followed.

Terrified, she let out a scream when hands at her waist lifted and carried her. More shouts and a few sizzles hissed nearby, like the crackle of an electrical current. An instant after, she landed on the floor with a thud of her own. She groaned, every muscle in her body sore, now her bones ached, too.

“Sorry, baby. No time to be gentle. We’re under attack.” She felt a tug at her blindfold, and a flood of light blinded her. Next, something sawed through the bindings at her wrists. “Squint and slowly open your eyes. Try to recover fast, Dani. We’re in a bind here.”

Prying her eyelids open, she blinked, trying to focus. First, she saw Jaylin’s scruffy blond bearded face, undeniably the most beautiful sight in the universe. Next, with her vision adjusted, she realized he’d dropped her on the floor behind some crates and had crouched in position beside her. Heavily armed with weapons sticking out of and bulging in every pocket, as well as hanging from a belt around his waist, he looked ready to take on anything that came at them.

The sizzling sound from earlier repeated as he returned fire with a blue-and-orange light spewing gun. A man let out a blood-curdling scream, which was followed by a loud crash, and a solid thud which shook the floor beneath them.

Instead of firing again, Jaylin’s silver gaze darted her way, quickly assessing. Just as fast, they swung back and resumed scanning for threats. “The odds are twelve against one, at least. I can use you once your vision comes back.”

“I can see you now.” It came out mumbled behind her gag. She tugged at the cloth, except it was tied in place. Finding the knot behind her neck, she tried to untie but her fingers weren’t working yet. She started tearing at it, frantic to get it off.

“Hang on.” He fired a few more shots for cover then reached out and, with a wicked looking blade, carefully cut through the binding.

She spit out the wad of cloth and sucked in a ragged breath.

“Better?”

Parched and unable to speak, she nodded. But it wasn’t true; far from it. The gag had left her so dry she couldn’t produce enough spit to wet her tongue which had stuck to the roof of her mouth.

“Water,” she croaked.

He shot several times in succession, and ducked down. Leaning over her, he used the knife to release her ankles. “You’ll have to do the rest. Rub to get the blood flowing again while I hold our position.” Before he went back to blasting anything that moved, he also plunked down something beside her. It looked like a canteen.

Priority one for Dani—water.

With both hands, she reached for it, dropping it twice. Thank heavens he hadn’t removed the lid. The next moment, she silently cursed that he hadn’t because her numb fingers wouldn’t work from being restrained so long and she couldn’t get the damn thing open. After several unsuccessful attempts to open the flip top with her thumbs, she pried it open with her teeth. She drank greedily, letting the coolness of the water bathe her tongue and throat, not caring in the least when some dripped down her chin and onto her top. She would have climbed inside and swam around in it if she could.

As she guzzled, shots, shouts, and screams went on all around her. Once she’d satisfied her immediate thirst, she lowered the shiny silver container and wiped her face dry with her sleeve.

Jaylin glanced at her, once again giving her a head-to-toe appraisal.

“How did you get out of jail?” she asked, a rasp still in her voice.

“A long story, for later.”

“Thank you for coming for me.”

“Baby...” His short, one-word reply, told her how silly he thought her comment.

She sat up, moaning as her shoulder and hip joints, in one position for so long, cried out in pain.

He fired a rapid series of shots, then crouched next to her. His free hand touched her cheek. “How badly are you injured? I’m sorry, Dani, I haven’t had time to check.”

“You’ve been rather busy.” She couldn’t manage a shout yet and was almost drowned out by the constant fire around them. Leaning in, she tried again. “I’m not injured, just stiff. They tied me and left me here awhile. Nothing seems to be working very well yet, but I don’t think it's permanent.”

The top crate on a high stack nearby took a direct hit, sending a shower of wood chips and packing straw raining down on them. He moved, covering her with his arms and tucking her into his chest. Once it stopped, he went back to firing.

Dani scooted closer. She wanted to hug him, to hang on tight, except her shoulders ached from where she’d been tied with her hands behind her back. Leaning into him would have to do. For good measure, she buried her face in his side. He put out incredible heat, and his scent gave her comfort, despite the battle going on around them.

“I’d hold you, sweetness, but I’m kind of occupied.”

“I understand.” Once again her words were muffled, this time by his shirt.

“Are you certain you’re all right?”

She wanted to say no, instead, she tipped her head back and looked up at him as she lied. “I’m fine, but what I’d like more than anything is to get out of here.”

“Me, too, Dani. I’m working on it.”

As she watched, he angled his head and squinted through the sights of a long-barreled silver-and-blue weapon. The Global Police back home used something similar, called a fusion disintegrator. Jaylin aimed and shot twice. When it discharged, hisses rather than screams permeated the room. She recalled the weapon, true to its name, disintegrated an enemy. More than one hiss told her he had eliminated multiple targets.

“Damn, I’m almost out of charge,” he muttered.

His comment triggered another memory about the weapon; it used a great amount of energy per shot, but was limited to around four before it needed recharging, or changing to a new power cell.

“I can shoot. Do you have something uncomplicated I can use?”

“I was hoping you’d say that. Are your fingers still numb?”

She flexed the fingers of both hands a few times, testing them, then made a fist. “They’re almost back to normal.”

“On my belt, in the holster.” She looked and saw the grip of another weapon. She eased it out and palmed it. “Do you know it?”

“Yes. It’s a photon blaster.” With her thumb, she switched it on.

“Good.” He sounded relieved. “Stay low and aim true, Dani. And whatever you do, don’t hit the walls.”

An image of them being sucked into space by a hole she made was terrifying, but she murmured, “Okay,” sounding surprisingly calm. With shaky hands and legs like rubber, she scooted over to a shorter box on the other side of him, one she could see over the top of while kneeling. Never having shot at live targets before, she whispered to herself, “It’s us or them. You can do this.”

From her vantage point, she had a good angle on a man behind a set of metal barrels. She could see the top of his head whenever he rose to fire. Taking careful aim, she squeezed the trigger.

The discharge knocked her to her backside. Shouts erupted from the men on the other side of the large room, as a deluge of water poured down on them.

He ducked again, aiming a huge grin her way. “Wet weapons are often useless. Smart girl.”

“I am?”

“You hit the water tanks.”

“Oh.”

He frowned. “You seem surprised.”

“I was aiming for the man behind the barrels.”

Jaylin stared at her a moment. Then, in a move so fast she didn’t have time to blink, he took the weapon from her hand and re-holstered it.

“Why’d you do that? Did we get them all?”

“Those barrels are marked flammable. If you’d hit what you were aiming for, we’d be smoldering cinders right now, no matter the amount of water spraying from those tanks.”

“I’ll be more careful.”

“No.”

“Why? Aren’t there more bad guys?”

“You can’t shoot for shit, baby, that’s why. If I give you the blaster, and you miss again, which odds are you will, there’s a hole in the hull and we’re all dead.” She grimaced, knowing he was right. She’d had the exact same thought a moment ago. “I thought you said you could shoot.”

“I can. I’ve just never actually used live ammunition before.”

“What?”

“I used simulators. Some of the guards back home weren’t so bad. There was a simulator on the grounds. They took pity on a bored, lonely girl and let me tag along to their training sessions.”

“Fuck me, you’ve only shot while playing video games?”

She scowled at him. “The professionals use it for training.”

“They also have field experience where they used real weapons. Creators, deliver me!”

As they argued, Jaylin resumed fire.

“How can I help? You said you needed me.”

He said nothing for a moment, but managed to pick off another man, based on the screams. “You went to college, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Ever go out drinking to one of your bars?”

“Of course, it’s a requirement for graduation.”

He glanced at her, then up toward the ceiling. “Grant me strength, she’s being cute.”

“What do bars have to do with the pickle we’re in?”

Even as he aimed and systematically pulled the trigger, his lips twitched.

“Be serious, I’d like to get out of here today.”

“Did you ever play darts while out drinking?”

“Sure.”

“For real?” he asked sharply. “Not any of that fake simulator shit.”

“Yes, I played real darts,” she snapped. “Steel tipped points with an authentic bristle board, not the sellout electronic kind. At home, Daniel had a game room with billiards, snooker, and darts.”

“Yeah, but were you any good at it?”

She rolled her eyes. “I’ll kick your ass at darts and 9-ball the first chance we get. What does any of this have to do with the jam we’re in?”

“Answer the question, Dani,” he growled. “Are you any good at darts?”

“My friends and I won a trophy in a competition once. So, yeah, I’m pretty good.”

She couldn’t hit a battle cruiser with a photon cannon if she had it on radar lock and dead to rights, evidently, but she carried her team at darts that night, scoring more points than anyone on either side. It was one of her fonder memories from school. Donna, one of her few lasting friends, had helped her sneak out. Without guards walking two feet in front and behind her, scaring away anyone who might have tried to talk to her or given her a glance or a smile, she felt like a normal college kid.

“Why are we having this conversation now?” she asked him.

Crouching, he drew her closer. “Remind me to have Malik give you a lesson in following orders when we get back. You’re due. After I kiss you senseless, that is.” He withdrew an evil-looking red-tipped dart about four inches long. “This is a pellet dart. Embed it somewhere in your target’s body and it does the rest of the work.”

“How?”

“You don’t want to know.”

“I do, or I wouldn’t have asked.”

“What’s gotten into you?”

“Other than being lied to by every man in my life, you mean?”

“Dani....”

“Never mind. What do the darts do?”

“Upon impact, they release tiny pellets into the victim which migrate to the bloodstream. There they expand and clog the large vessels. In under thirty seconds, your attacker’s heart will stop, dead.”

Grimacing, she shuddered at the image his description created. “How awful.”

“It is. But if it comes down to them or us, who would you rather it be?”

“Them, of course.”

He gripped her shoulders and pulled her within an inch of his face, all humor, teasing, and threats of spankings gone. “Be straight with me, Dani. There’s no shame in not being able to take a man’s life.”

“I’m tired of being kidnapped, bound, and bruised. The gag and blindfold were the last straw. I want out of here.”

“You’re sure? If not, I’ll find another way.”

“I’m sure.”

He claimed her with a fierce kiss, murmuring gruffly against her wet lips when he ended it. “Be careful, keep your head down, and do exactly as I say. Exactly, Dani. I’m counting on you being in one piece when we’re through here, today.”

She swallowed, wanting it, too. “Keep low, and follow orders. That I can do, I swear.”

He searched her face for a second, then nodded. “Follow me. When I stop and provide cover, we have a target within range. I’ll give you the location, and you’ll take them out with one of these darts. We’ve got six, so make them count. Got it?”

“Got it.”

“Let’s go.”

Liking her head on her neck between her shoulders, she kept low as she scurried behind Jaylin, who was much quieter and more agile, despite his size. She blamed her clumsiness on the lingering effects of being restrained for hours, or it could be the fact she had to pee. But it would have to wait. No time-outs for potty breaks allowed during mercenary rescue missions.

Besides, Jaylin’s head would probably explode if she mentioned it.

Abruptly, he stopped, which meant she had to, or run into him. “To my left, behind the red-and-white striped crate, at nine o’clock.”

Crouching behind him, with her hands on his shoulders, she popped up and scanned for the target. He hadn’t seen them move and she had a clear shot. “Easy pickin’s,” she whispered in his ear.

“Go for it.”

Easing around to his side, she got down on one knee. Lining up her shot, she took a deep breath and released. The man didn’t react much at first, as if her dart was no more than a mosquito bite. He reached down, pulled it out and turned their way, searching for the source. She ducked, leaning into Jaylin who also crouched down.

“I don’t understand,” she whispered. “I hit him dead center in the thigh. Maybe it malfunctioned.”

“It acts in thirty seconds, remember?”

She stared back at him while, silently counting. At fifteen, she heard a clatter.

“His gun hitting the floor,” he explained. A few seconds later, they heard a choking sound and a thud. “And that was him keeling over.”

Dani mentally filled in the one word he’d left off. He’d keeled over dead. She felt the blood drain from her face, and she began to shake inside.

His hand came to her cheek. “Doing okay, sweetness?”

“I don’t think so.” She wanted to throw up.

“Breathe, Dani.”

She nodded, sucking in a big gulp of air.

“You don’t have to go again. I’ll do it, but I’m a lousy shot, so cross your fingers.” Already, he was moving into position.

She shook her head. “No, you’d need cover, which I can’t give you. l can do it.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s get this done and go see Malik on the Renegade.”

Breathing in slow and deep once again, she strove for a calm she didn’t feel. After a moment, she met his gaze and nodded. “Okay, I’m ready.”

He wound a hand in her hair and pulled her to him for a hard, quick kiss. “That’s my brave girl,” he whispered against her lips before he released her. “Follow me, stay close, and keep your head low, like the last time.”

He was on the move again, pausing to peek around a crate. With a jerk of his head toward the wall, he ran to it, bent at the waist. She followed, thankfully without tripping and falling flat on her face. Once to cover, they dropped down, their backs against the metal storage box.

“To my right, up on a scaffold. There are two of them.” He passed her two more darts before he shouldered his weapon and took aim. “Now, baby.”

As Jaylin provided cover, she peeked out and saw the two men. They shifted from behind some bins when his blaster shot above them. This worked to Dani’s advantage because they exposed themselves, giving her clear targets. In rapid succession, she threw, hitting one in the back, the other dead center in a rather plump ass cheek. Jaylin continued shooting, while she counted. With the same precise timing, they dropped their weapons at fifteen seconds, and fell, one after the other, at thirty.

“We’re almost to the doors. Once outside, Malik can transport us up.”

She stared at him a beat. “Why can’t he do it now?”

“Something in here is causing interference. We have to get to the hall. Then we’re good to go.” He stepped around her, while tugging on her sleeve to get her going. “C’mon.”

Running while folded in half wasn’t easy, doing it while blasters fired her way made it twice as hard. She must have flinched and blinked because she didn’t see Jaylin stop until the last second. The water pooled on the floor made it slippery, and she skidded past him, beyond the half wall where he knelt. For a moment, she was without cover. A blast of weapons’ fire exploded just as his hand dug into her waistband and he yanked her back.

“Sorry,” she whispered. “I slipped.”

He nodded, which she found odd until she glanced his way and saw he’d gone ghostly pale. “Backtrack.” His usually smooth voice sounded gruff. Her strong, fearless, badass captain was rattled. “This time,” he urged, “stay focused, eyes wide open, and whatever you do, stay behind me.”

On the move again, they stopped once while he fired and dropped a man crouched on a thirty-foot-high stack of shipping crates, and another time when he passed her dart number four, pointing out a man moving up behind them. It seemed her aim was true for more than stationary targets because she spun, threw, and caught him square in the chest. The impact toppled him before the dart did its job.

She was out of breath the next time they stopped, from the exertion and the adrenaline rush from the danger.

“Two darts left,” she whispered.

“Mmhmm,” he acknowledged while checking his weapon. He tossed it away and withdrew a long black knife.

“Jaylin!” she squeaked.

“It’s dead. No use to me now.”

“And you’re left with only a knife in a gun fight!”

“And your two darts.” Once he’d handed them both to her, he twisted, and peeked his head out to plot where they went next. A spray of old-fashioned bullets whizzed by his head. He jerked back just in time. “They’re getting low, too,” he murmured, “or desperate.”

She watched his face as he glanced around, plotting their next step.  He stared thoughtfully at something, and was on the move again, this time to a crate resembling an old-time steamer trunk in the corner. He raised the lid and looked inside. “Dani, here,” he ordered while he reached in and removed some of the packing, mostly straw. Then he lifted out two smaller boxes containing what looked to her like grenades.

“Can we use those?”

“Not unless you want to go for a spacewalk today.”

“No thanks.”

“Didn’t think so. Get in.”

She jerked back, before turning to stare at the trunk. “You mean inside there?”

“Yes.” His unwavering gaze met hers. “Now is the time to follow orders, Daniella. And to trust me.”

She hesitated a split second more, then she nodded, and climbed inside.

“Curl into a ball on your side.”

She did this, too, with the help of his big hands guiding her. Next, he pulled his black blade, and, as easy as slicing through butter, punched several air holes in the top.

Once finished, he caught her wide-eyed stare. “Obsidian sabre, I never rescue beautiful captives without it.”

“I can see why.”

“Stay inside and be quiet. I’ll be back for you.”

He started stuffing in the straw he’d removed. Before he covered her completely, she whispered, “Jaylin.”

His beautiful silver eyes cut to her.

“Please, be careful.”

“After your dead eye with those darts, the rest are easy pickin’s.” Returning her cocky words with an equally cocky grin—badass mercenary captain that he was—he dropped the remaining straw and shut the lid.

She could only see four slivers of light coming in through the holes in the top. With a dart in each hand, ready to throw if the lid came open, she waited, straining to hear something that would indicate he was coming back. Without anything to mark the slower-than-normal passage of time, she started counting in her head.

One-one thousand, two-one thousand, three-one thousand...

At thirty-eight-one thousand, a loud crash made her jump. Not too close, yet near enough to jar her nerves jagged from the last few hours, not to mention the past two traumatizing weeks. She continued her count, panic setting in as she passed sixty, and well into an all-consuming freak-out when she hit one hundred twenty.

On top of everything else, she felt a sneeze coming on. Damn straw. She rubbed her nose, when it didn’t help, she pinched it, willing herself not to sneeze and give away her location. She thought she’d conquered the impulse, but as soon as she let go and drew in her next breath, the sensation returned, except worse.

Squinching her face, closing her mouth, and blowing out while she held her nose closed only made her ears pop. She tried praying and a combination of everything else, but nothing worked. To make matters worse, footsteps approached, growing louder.

She opened her eyes wide, having read somewhere it was physically impossible to sneeze with your eyes open. More prayers followed that it was true.

The thudding footsteps stopped, replaced by the scrape of boots on the floor. She held her breath. When the crate creaked and the lid started to open, she became convinced she couldn’t believe a damn thing she read. The sneeze was upon her as the top came off the box.

“Ah-choo!”

Nothing followed for a heartbeat then she heard a low rumble of laughter.

Her lashes flew wide and she took in Jaylin’s gorgeous face smiling down at her. He reached in and lifted her out in a cascade of straw.

“What are you doing?” she hissed. “They’ll see us.”

“Targets neutralized,” he said while he crushed her against him. “You were awesome, baby, unbelievably brave. I don’t have words to describe it. For a second, however, when you slid through that puddle, my heart stopped and I thought you were gone.” He buried his face in her neck, his lips moving against her skin as he whispered, “Thank the Creators for saving you.”

Her arms wrapped around his middle, squeezing him back. “You caught me. I think you had a hand in saving me, too, honey.” His arms flexed so tight she couldn’t breathe. “Please,” she squeaked, “say we can go now. I am so not cut out to be a commando.”

“Yes, baby,” he murmured, while pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. “We can go.”

Jaylin didn’t put her on her feet, instead, carrying her swiftly through a set of sliding doors leading to a short hall off the immense cargo bay. And, thank heaven he did because with the threat over, she crashed, hard, her body trembling, and both legs limp like noodles.

Once out in the hall, he flipped open a handheld communicator.

“I’ve got her. Transport, now.”

The tingling sensation hit, and the corridor wavered as a dozen Elzorian guards burst through the doors after them. She buried her face in Jaylin’s neck, holding on tight, prepared for this to be her last living moment before laser fire sliced them to ribbons.

It didn’t happen. Rather than certain death, she was swept up in a swirl of bright light and the sense of disorientation that transporting caused.