Page 8 of Evan and the Alpha

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I don’t know what I was expecting, but this is not it.

We’ve been walking for hours now. We were up even before the suns. The southern sun—I think that’s Nomantru—is about halfway up now, and the other one has just peeked over the horizon. I can feel my skin tingling with renewed heat already.

We’ve paused at the top of one of the dunes now. There, just over the hill, are glittering glass peaks. Sobek points and I shade my eyes, leaning forward. “That,” he says, “is kel-Akurr.”

I look at him. The city seems to glimmer in the sun, just like he does. “Why are we going there?” I ask.

Sobek laughs. “To take you to market, of course.”

“Market?” I stare at him.

“Of course,” he answers, his mouth parting in a wide, crocodile smile. “What else would we do with you?”

“Uh.” I can think of a few things, but the other options aren’t much better.

Sobek pats my cheek, claws almost nicking my skin. “There’s demand for omegas on the market. And you, sun spirit, will fetch us many pebbles.”

I’m almost distracted by the way his gaze runs up and down me, head to toe and back again. There’s something like … desire in his eyes.

Then the reality of what he just said settles into my brain, gnawing at it. “What do you mean by that?” I have to speed-walk to keep up with his long strides across the soft sand. Yafir jogs along beside me, rope still in his hand. “That there’s demand?”

“What do you think it means?” Sobek asks, glancing over his shoulder. Then he slides down the dune, and I can barely keep up.

He’s still on his feet when he reaches the bottom. I slip and stumble and finally roll to a stop at his feet. I glare up at him. “You’re not thinking of selling me, are you?”

Sobek gives me that eyebrow-quirk-without-eyebrows look of his and inclines his head. I feel my eyes go wide. “You’re joking,” I insist, scrambling back to my feet. “You guys are, like, into human trafficking?!”

“No,” Sobek says.

“You just said you were gonna sell me!” I bark.

“Hm. I guess that would involve humans then, since you are human. But otherwise—no.”

I stare at him, then growl in frustration. “Fine—you guys kidnap people and sell them?”

“Sometimes, yes,” Sobek agrees.

“That’s illegal!” I spit. All the kroakka are looking at me like I’ve lost it now.

“What does he mean, illegal?” Yafir asks, turning to Sobek.

“I don’t know,” Sobek says.

“Illegal. Like. You know. Not legal. Against the law.”

Sobek and the other kroakka stare at me. Then they start laughing—howling, really. Yafir has tears coming out of his eyes. Sobek slaps Ge-Ro on his back. Another beta falls on his back in the sand, clutching his belly as he guffaws.

“There is no law here,” Sobek offers finally.

“Only the law of might,” Ge-Ro adds, nodding his head. A sharp grin curves his mouth, and I feel sick.

I look desperately at Sobek. “You’re seriously gonna sell me,” I murmur.

I don’t know why I feel so betrayed. It’s a terrifying feeling, and even more terrifying to realize it means I trustedthem. I mean, that seems kind of silly in retrospect. They didn’t eat me. That means they’re good guys now? It’s not really a high enough bar.

I shake Yafir off when he stoops to help me up. I don’t want any of them to touch me. I don’t want them to talk to me. I don’t want to be anywhere near them.

I can’t go far, not with the rope looped around my neck or a pack of seven-and-half-foot-tall crocodile aliens armed with spears surrounding me.

My only choice, really, is to let them march me into the city.