Freeing Luka
Victoria Aveline
Copyright © 2020 Victoria Aveline
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, distributed or used in any manner without written permission of the copyright owner except for the use of quotations in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, incidents, and events are the product of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Cover art by Mayhem Cover Creations
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Epilogue
About the Author
Chapter 1
Am I being carried? Alice thought dreamily. Her eyes were still closed, but the fog of sleep was lifting. As it did, panic started to settle in its place. She mentally scanned her body, not yet able to move but gaining more awareness with each minute. Someone very large was indeed carrying her. Her head pounded as she tried to recall…anything. Where she was, how she’d gotten there, and whose fingers were digging into her thighs and ribs.
The last thing she could remember was taking the garbage out at work. She’d been exhausted after a double shift at Molly’s, an old dive bar in her small college town.
Think! Think!
An image of something large and green rushing her in the alley behind the bar flashed in her mind, and she struggled to hang on to it. Her blood ran cold when she recalled the creature in more detail. It’d been a monster. Green, with scales instead of skin. More upright lizard than man. Alice remembered screaming, throwing the bag of garbage at the creature and running, then…it was all black.
It must’ve caught me.
Panic and fear took hold. She tried to open her eyes, but her lids only twitched in response. Her heart rate picked up speed and her breaths became quick and shallow. Luckily, whoever was holding her didn’t seem to notice, or if they did, they didn’t say anything.
Pleading with her thundering heart to quiet, she strained to listen for clues indicating where she was and whom she was with. The sound of two sets of heavy footsteps echoed around her, and her cheek rested on a hard chest. She needed to get away.
Can I even move?
The instinct to wiggle her fingers and toes to make sure she wasn’t paralyzed ate at her. She forced herself to remain still, knowing she couldn’t risk it. Instead, Alice gently clenched and relaxed every part of her body she could, hoping to appear more or less still. Blood flowed through her numb limbs, making them tingle. The more she worked the muscles, the easier it became.
She inhaled, taking in the cold, stagnant air. It reminded her of being on an airplane. She’d only flown a handful of times, but the stale scent of crisp, filtered air always stood out to her. Was there no fresh air in this place either?
When she finally lifted her lids a fraction, she squinted at whoever or whatever was carrying her. Through thick lashes, she could make out the blurry image of…a man?
What the hell is going on? Where am I?
Just then, he began to speak, his deep voice vibrating through his chest. “Where are we taking her?”
“I’m not sure,” she heard another gravelly voice answer. “The boss is in room six. I’ll ask.” The resounding thump of the new man’s steps accelerated, then slowed. He spoke again in a hushed tone, “Or we could take her to twelve first. He doesn’t know she’s here yet. Who knows what happened to her on that ship, what condition she’ll be in upon delivery? We could have a little fun with her first.”
Alice stiffened. As the steps of the man carrying her slowed, she let out a mental plea that he’d stop whatever the other guy had planned. She swallowed, her throat working to lubricate her dry windpipe in preparation to scream.
Chuckling, he replied, “True, the Cae can be a vicious species.”
Wrong answer!
Curling her fingers into her palm, she gathered every ounce of strength she had and shot her fist up, slamming into the man’s chin. His teeth clacked together, and his head snapped back a second before he dropped her with a grunt.
A sharp pain lanced through her hip when she tumbled to the floor, but she forced herself to ignore it and run, screaming at the top of her lungs. Her steps were clumsy, and her vision was blurry. Whatever drug she’d been given was still working its way out of her system. She blinked rapidly, stumbling forward.
Muttered curses from behind her told her the men hadn’t moved to follow her yet. “That pishot made me bite my tongue!”
“Yeah, you’ll need a healer for that,” murmured the second man in an amused tone.
When her sight cleared, she found she was in a hallway lined on either side with heavy metal doors. The pristine floor, ceiling, and walls were white and bare, save for the imposing metal doors on either side of her. The odd air. The clean white surfaces. The metal doors. Was this a prison, or a hospital? Adrenaline spiked and she increased her speed.
Hearing heavy footsteps behind her, she screamed louder, ignoring the searing pain shooting through her vocal cords. They’d implied “the boss” wouldn’t want them to do whatever they had planned. They’d also mentioned he was waiting in room six. If she could find room six, at least she’d be safe from the two men behind
