It had never been his golden irises that ensnared my attention, but the kindness and capacity for deep love within them.
Something this pair of eyes knew nothing about.
“Then I’ll be yours,” I said, the words dripping like treason from my lips.
I didn’t want to belong to this creature.
I wanted to be with Ras.
But I couldn’t be with him, not if he was blasted into space.
The creature reached out to touch me.
“You are already mine, Breeder.”
I pulled away and glared at him with the thickest level of disgust I could muster.
“You’re a monster.”
“I am what I was born to be. Nothing more, nothing less. We are all monsters in another’s eyes.”
I may have made the promise to belong to him but I knew I would betray it the moment I got the chance.
Not that there would ever be that chance.
“The capsule will be ejected in ten seconds,” Computer said.
My eyes snapped up at the alien creature.
“Please, don’t do this,” I begged. “I’ll give you everything you want. Otherwise, I swear to God, I’ll fight you with every fiber of my being!”
“You cannot hope to escape. You are a breeder and belong to the empire.”
“Five,” Computer said.
“A breeder?” I said. “Is that what you want? Then take me! Take me now and let us go!”
“Four.”
“I attempted to take you before because I believed there was no other way for me to claim you. Now I have you and will keep you for the mating ceremony.”
“Three.”
“I’ll refuse to do the ceremony! I’ll embarrass you in front of everyone!”
The tears that leaked from my eyes were cold.
“Two.”
“You will embarrass only yourself. A Shadow expects to take, even what is not willingly given.”
“One.”
I searched for something else to say, something I could threaten him with…
And came up blank.
“Pod ejected,” Computer said.
All hope and longing for the future I thought I would have with Ras had just ended.
We had failed.
I had failed.
And soon, he would be floating out there among the stars, never to be seen again.
The creature approached and turned me around to face the window.
The pod was a single chip of technology against the cold darkness of space, turning end over end.
I turned away and shut my eyes.
Still, the tears stung my throat and ran down my cheeks.
The creature held me by my head in his powerful hands and turned my face around to peer out the window.
“Watch.”
I refused and kept my eyes shut tight.
“Watch, or I will remove your eyelids. The empire has no need for them, only your ability to breed.”
Despite the threat, I couldn’t bring myself to look.
Not right then, not at Ras’s fate.
But hope got the better of me.
Hope that I would see Ras perform some miracle, manage to escape from the pod, and command a remote army somehow.
Instead, I watched as that small chip of metal spun end over end silently into the dark infinity of endless space.
I whimpered as I watched.
I fell to my knees, unable to keep myself upright any longer.
But my lowest point still hadn’t arrived.
“Computer, destroy the pod,” Sar said.
My eyes rose to the creature and the cruelty he was capable of.
As deep as the love and affection Ras was endowed with.
“Watch,” Sar growled.
I didn’t and only stared at him.
He sneered in derision but seemed content to watch my expression instead.
“Torpedo loaded and ready to fire,” Computer said.
Sar kept his eyes focused on mine.
“Fire.”
I didn’t see the weapon launch or the impact, but I saw the flash of yellow light play over the creature’s features when it exploded.
I didn’t mutter a single word.
Ras had been sentenced to a life adrift in space.
There wasn’t anything worse than that.
Death was, in a way, a blessing.
At least, that was what I told myself.
Secretly, I hoped Ras would somehow come back from the brink, would return, and rescue me.
Somehow.
But now that he’d been blown to smithereens, my hope was shattered.
Inside, I was a broken woman.
On the surface, I peered at the creature with cool indifference.
He seemed confused by my reaction.
It wasn’t what he’d expected or hoped for.
I was grateful I didn’t give him that much, though it cost me dearly.
He turned and marched out of the room.
I didn’t begin to weep until after he left.
My fated mate was doomed.
And so was I.
The rest of the journey passed quickly and uneventfully.
I remained on the floor where Sar had left me.
I hadn’t moved a single muscle.
Not even now, as we came in to land.
I didn’t care where I was.
I didn’t care what would happen to me.
The only hope I’d fostered died in that pod hours ago.
What would follow in my future wouldn’t be good, I knew, but it couldn’t be worse than what had already happened.
How could it?
I’d both fallen in love and lost him within a short span of hours.
When the ship sat down, I didn’t turn to look at where we’d arrived.
I wasn’t interested.
I didn’t care.
I ignored Sar when he entered my room.
I was barely even aware of the orders he gave.
He picked me up, put me on my feet, and shoved me forward.
He placed a hand on the back of my neck and squeezed tight.
He guided me forward, into the hallway, and down the corridors until we got to the ramp that fed onto a new world.
There were other people here—or, more specifically, other aliens.
I didn’t give them a second look.
Sar brought me to a stop and spoke with a horned monster that smelled strongly of oil.
“What’s the reason for bringing a M’rora ship to the Citadel?” the oily Shadow said.
“I had a tangle with a M’rora,” Sar said. “Trust me, he came off worse.”
The oily Shadow chuckled and snorted.
“Good. One piece of junk is enough for the Citadel. I’ll have it sent to the garage, stripped, and replaced with Shadow parts.”
Sar nodded and shoved me forward.
He led me across the huge landing bay where dozens of black ships came in to land.
The wind was strong and rustled my hair and clothes.
We joined hundreds of
