Gross.
With both hands on the body’s side, she tried to roll him over, or at least shift him enough to retrieve the rifle. The fucker was heavy.
And sticky.
“You are a bad warlord and a terrible father and a worse male,” Havik said. “You should beg me.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake. Havik should not be antagonizing his dad. She just needed more time. Her back strained and her arms felt like jelly. She was so tired.
The body rocked. She succeeded in freeing half the rifle. Frustrated tears rolled down her face and she shouted, beating her hands against the impossibly heavy headless bastard.
“I’m sorry you couldn’t be what I needed,” Kaos said, bringing the mace down.
Thalia screamed. No. She just found Havik. She couldn’t lose him.
He picked her.
The universe owed it. It fucking owed her.
Stabs’ long stinger pierced Kaos from the back, directly through the heart. The mace fell harmless to the ground. The man gasped and twitched. His eyes went wide, as if he could not believe that such a thing would happen to him.
The other warriors stood still, as if a switch had been flipped. Havik slowly dragged himself to his feet.
Thalia flung herself at Havik. “You fucking idiot!”
He huffed, wrapping his arms around her. “A liar and a thief, indeed,” he said.
“Well, I thought you’d get the message. Sneak away when you could. I had it covered.”
Havik
“You require a medic. Now,” Havik said, clutching her in his arms.
In an instant, he weighed all his options. He did not trust the clan’s medic. Seeking assistance from another clan put him in the same position. He did not know their loyalties to protecting females—any female—or their sympathies with Kaos’ exclusionary policy. He could only trust himself. Unfortunately, he did not have the skill to treat Thalia’s injury.
He needed time.
“Your father—”
“Blast him into a black hole. The sand can take him.” That male. His treachery knew no bounds. Havik felt disgust for breathing the same air, let alone sharing a name.
“He needs a medic,” his mate said, because she was a good person.
“The kumakre venom struck his heart,” he said, as if his father had a heart. “He will be dead in moments. There is nothing to be done.” The venom burning through Kaos’ veins would be agony and the male deserved to feel every moment. Perhaps one of his honorless warriors would end his misery, but Havik sincerely hoped not. Regardless, he would not be there to witness his father’s end.
“Mais is still in the tunnels. She had a head wound that needs to be looked at. We need to find her.”
“Your compassionate heart will be your undoing,” he said. “Your condition is more urgent. When I can, I will find Mais. She can come with us or I will deliver her to a safe location.” His mate nodded in agreement. Adjusting his hold on Thalia to minimize contact with her reddened skin, he headed to the nearest ship.
“We need a fast ship!” he shouted as they approached the clan’s vessel. “I claim this craft. Does anyone challenge my right?”
Loitering crew members scattered, not a one with enough honor and self-respect to look him in the eyes.
“We have a ship,” Thalia said in a quiet voice. She sounded weak. The sun had already turned her skin an alarming red, and her lips were cracked with dehydration.
“Are you nauseous? Headache? Dizzy?”
“Yes, because you’re bouncing me around. Walk. Don’t run.”
“No.” He ran, footsteps thundering up the ramp.
The hatch closed and the lights turned blue, initiating decontamination. A computer-generated voice counted down. Havik set Thalia on her feet for decontamination. Summoning his patience as he wanted nothing more than to tear the hatch open with his hands, he held still.
The computer chimed with completion. He scooped up his mate and nearly kicked open the door.
“You!” He pointed to the closest male. “Authorize me to command this vessel.”
“I cannot,” the male stammered.
Havik growled, recognizing the falsehood. “I do not have time for your petty lies. Give me the code or I will rip off your thumb.”
The male gulped and rushed to a pad embedded in the wall. Frantically, he pressed buttons. “Press your thumb.”
The device chimed, recognized Havik, and authorized him to full use of the ship. Excellent.
He turned to the male, still clutching his mate. “Leave, unless you want to leave Rolusdreus in the brig.” He refused to trust any male from his father’s clan. It was rotten to the core.
Fortunately, the ship was a standard design. He headed to Medical. Immediately, he placed his mate in the emergency cleansing stall. Carefully he removed her spectacles and set them aside, then he tore the flimsy fabric of her garments. The tattered remains fell to the floor.
Coughing under the deluge of water, Thalia leaned against the walls. The computer measured radiation levels, continuing to rinse away the particles until reaching a tolerable level.
Sanity returned, he removed his armor and joined her under the water.
“You’re always getting me in the shower,” she said.
“I do not hear a complaint.”
She laughed, dry and rasping, and leaned against him, pressing her face against his chest. “I didn’t leave the ship. I swear. They broke in and took my armor.”
The sound of falling water and the computer announcing the radiation level filled the silence. Gently, he applied a cleansing foam to her hair and skin, paying special attention to get between her fingers and toes.
“How bad am I fucked?” she finally asked.
“You will receive treatment. You will recover,” he said. There was no alternative. He lost a mate once and it simply hurt. He could not imagine how he would be destroyed if he lost the mate who had his heart.
When the shower ceased, he presented her with a large container of water. “Rinse your mouth,” he commanded.
Once she was clean to his satisfaction, he applied a topical gel to soothe her skin.
“I’m thirsty,” she said.
“You are dehydrated. Come.” With a hand
