A scream echoed for two seconds before it was cut off, and even I could watch as the Caterri raced across camp and circled around what had to be another body. There was dark muttering among them, and A was shouting orders. I couldn’t make out all of his language from where I was, but I didn’t think it was anything good.
Two Caterri I recognized from around the fire jogged over, digging into the back of the hovercraft.
“Can I get you something?” Squire asked politely. He was standing close to me, but his attention was on the Caterri.
“Move.” One of them shoved Squire to the side, completely ignoring me as they dug into whatever they wanted.
I watched, dread growing in my stomach as they pulled out a gun-like object. N’Ashtar would have no defense against that, and he wasn’t exactly a small target. How accurate were the fancy guns? How had the Caterri made something so high-tech when the N’Akron went without? It made no sense.
“Go—” Another scream cut the talking Caterri off and he shoved the gun into Squire’s hands. “Watch the alien. If there are a lot of them, we’ll need a hostage.”
“Yes, sir.” Squire obediently took the gun and held it to my side, which made me inhale sharply. Had I read Squire wrong and he would choose the Caterri over me? It would have made sense, really. The Caterri were his people, and I was nothing, a no one. But I thought…
The two Caterri raced off, doing whatever they felt like doing and leaving Squire and me behind. Panic was racing through me, my gut souring and threatening to make me vomit. What if N’Ashtar was being killed as I sat there? Shouldn’t I have grabbed the gun and raced off to protect him, to take care of him? Screw the whole waiting to be rescued shtick. Yet Squire was standing behind me, the gun gently nudging my ribs.
Standing there and waiting was the hardest thing I had ever done. I didn’t know what to think of Squire, what to guess him capable of. Would he shoot me? Would he give me up, that he had been talking to me and knew of my thoughts? I itched to ask him, but I didn’t think there was a point. Either way, Squire would do what he wanted.
Another scream was cut off short, making me inhale sharply. Squire’s hand dug into my shoulder, but it wasn’t harsh. No, it was firm, but his nails weren’t digging into me like they could have. Strange.
A returned from whatever he had been, eyes vicious as he headed straight for me. “Give me the gun,” he snarled at Squire. Squire did. This time, when the gun was held against my head, I believed it. “Tell me what you know.”
My heart started racing, my palms sweaty. I wouldn’t let my nerves show, but there was only so much that was possible. I was nervous as hell. “I don’t know anything.”
A punched me like he had been waiting to do all along, busting my lip open and making me cry out.
Fucker. I spit blood at him, meeting his anger with my own. “You’re going to die, all of you.”
He jabbed the gun closer into the side of my head, yanking me close. “If I’m about to die, so are you.”
My blood rushed in my ears, the noise threatening to drown out everything. Was this how I would die, held against an alien who wanted nothing more than to rape me, never to see the alien I had a crush on ever again? It was ridiculous, wanting to see what happened with N’Ashtar, but I couldn’t help it. Something in him just called to me, like we were drawn to each other.
I didn’t believe in soulmates, but if I did, maybe it was that.
A handful of shouts rang out, making A curse. He shoved me to the ground, handing the gun to Squire. “Be prepared to shoot her at my command, and if you waver even a little, you’re dead,” A said harshly. Squire simply nodded and took the gun, moving behind me and holding the gun to my head in the same way A had.
The adrenaline was finally getting to me, my whole body shaking.
“We have to finish whoever is attacking us,” A snarled. “You incompetent fools, get in front of me.” He headed off, a sword in his hand and a handful of Caterri in front of him.
The dread swallowing me got worse. If they were to find N’Ashtar, he was screwed. And the odds just kept getting worse. The other two crony Caterri, the ones like Squire, had grabbed weapons and joined the fray, which worsened his odds even more. Even though they didn’t seem nearly as competent as the bigger Caterri, I knew that even the most inexperienced warriors could overwhelm a more experienced warrior through sheer numbers.
I closed my eyes for a moment, letting myself send a prayer up. I didn’t pray, but if there was something listening, I hoped it would watch over N’Ashtar and keep him safe.
If he died, I didn’t know what I would do.
11
N’Ashtar
Adrenaline surged through me, and although I would have never told Dana that, I was having fun. Life-or-death situations always sparked a fever in me, and because of my father’s urging, I had been involved in far too many. Taking out a second guard had been easy, and now I was being hunted by the majority of the camp. I was forced to stay low to the grass, trying not to be seen as I traced my way back to the traps I had set so carefully.
I hadn’t caught a glimpse of Dana in many moments, but I had to trust that they would not harm her further because they needed her alive. I hated it, but I didn’t have a choice. Taking advantage of the
