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She followed Cylex down one corridor and then another. She’d been unconscious when she arrived, so she’d missed the beauty of the temple’s architecture. Sharp angles and geometric shapes combined to form light-drenched passageways and high-ceilinged rooms. Raina took it all in with a numbed sort of appreciation. Every time she adjusted to ‘the new normal,’ the rules seemed to change without warning.
“Could you have stopped him?” she asked after several tense moments of rushing to keep up with Cylex’s long strides.
He looked down at her, brows drawn together. “Kern?”
“Yes. If you had been guarding me last night, would you have been able to keep him from kidnapping me?”
He paused to consider the question. She could still sense his emotions, but they were muted now, far less intense. She would likely know it if he lied. Half-truths and evasions, however, would be much harder to decipher.
“I’m not sure. I’m much stronger now than I was in my teens, but so is he.”
She didn’t sense deception, so she moved on. “I heard about the rescue mission. Is your sister okay? Jevara didn’t hurt her?”
“Anias was not harmed physically. As you’re well aware, being kidnapped is traumatic. So it will take her some time to recover emotionally.”
“If she needs someone to talk to, I’d be happy to listen.” Again she was struck by how little they knew each other. She hadn’t even known he had siblings, knew nothing at all about his past. “How old is she?”
“She is nineteen, but she was incredibly sheltered so she seems younger.”
Instinctively reaching for him, she gave his hand a little squeeze then immediately pulled back. It didn’t matter. The brief touch was enough to awaken her senses and send tingles up her arm. “I’m relieved you rescued her as quickly as you did. Still, I’m sorry she was abused at all.”
“As am I.”
She had always been comfortable in his presence so this tension was frustrating. “Cylex.” She waited until he looked at her to ask, “Is it possible that Jevara used your sister to lure you away from the Citadel? Maybe Kern warned Jevara that his mission would be harder to accomplish if you were there.”
“I came to the same conclusion, so I confronted Kern. He insisted that it was all Jevara, but admitted that the two were related.”
“Do you believe him?”
Cylex shrugged. “This is the first time I’ve seen him in many years, but he gains nothing by lying about the setup. Besides, he defied both Jevara and Laidon to keep you safe.”
Kern’s choices were a bit more self-serving than Cylex made them sound. Still, it wasn’t worth arguing over.
They reached a nondescript exit and Cylex paused to look around. His broad shoulders and tapered back blocked much of her view, but she could see a small ship waiting in a clearing a short distance from the temple. Kern must have been watching for their arrival because the hatch opened and a set of stairs extended.
Raina took a step toward the open doorway, but Cylex’s arm shot out, blocking her way.
“I still sense danger.” Cylex pushed the door wide so he could see more of their surroundings.
He wasn’t afraid, just hyper-alert. Still, it was enough to make her uneasy. “Laidon is still out front waiting for you,” she whispered, heart starting to pound. “Is that what you’re sensing?”
“Probably.” Cylex drew his pistol and motioned toward the ship. “Run as fast as you can. Kern is ready to lift off.”
Her gaze shot to Cylex. “He won’t leave without you, will he?”
“Angel, he can’t claim you without me. That’s the beauty of this arrangement. We all need each other.”
He was right. The only way this worked was if they all pulled together. And she was more than ready to take back control of her life.
There was no one in sight, so she took a deep breath and sprinted for the ship, her legs pumping as fast as she could make them move, arms churning. She had just reached the stairs when a large hand tangled in her unbound hair and yanked her backward. She screamed in shock and fear as stinging heat spread out across her scalp. Reaching back with both hands, she dug her fingernails into the hand of whoever held her hair. Judging from the culprit’s size and strength, she was relatively sure they were male.
The unseen villain wrapped his arm around her waist, anchoring her against his tall, lean body. The fist in her hair tightened painfully and angry tears blurred her vision. She was so fucking sick of this shit. Lowering her arms, she slammed her elbows back into his ribs then viciously clawed his forearm.
“Godsdamn it,” the jerk growled, but he let go of her hair so he could wrap his arm around her upper chest, immobilizing her hands.
Pulses of energy zinged past Raina’s head, one hitting the ship precariously close to the open hatch.
“Get your hands off her!” Cylex shouted as he fired another cluster of warning shots.
