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“No!”
His eyes are apologetic as he pushes the needle into my arm. Everything goes black almost instantly. The last thing I see is a flash of yellow hair and wide, panicked blue eyes before I am thrust into nothingness.
5
Emery
Being torn away from Calix is even worse than when I woke up in a strange world surrounded by even stranger beings. If I’d had a doubt about my fate, it’s erased as the commander called Breccan wraps his powerful arms around me to keep me from struggling free. Not that I have the energy to do so.
“Calm yourself, young one. My apologies for Calix’s behavior. Isolating you like this was reprehensible and he will be dealt with accordingly.” The words are meant to be reassuring, but they merely cause my chest to tighten even more.
I struggle for breath. When I speak, the words are faint and wheezy. “I asked him to,” I tell him between heaving breaths. “He was helping me. He didn’t do anything wrong. Please don’t hurt him.”
My vision contracts to a pinpoint and at the center is the stern face of the commander. I don’t know how Aria puts up with him. Unlike Calix, who is always so comforting, calm, and composed, this alien’s expression is uncompromising and stern. My already racing heart thumps double-time in my chest. Standing up to this beast of a man is a testament to how much Calix has already affected me. I’ve never stood up for myself before.
As my lungs struggle to work, I nearly laugh at myself. The one time I’ve shown defiance may be my last.
“We’re not going to hurt him,” comes Aria’s voice from behind me. “If I’ve learned anything from Breccan and my own actions it’s that we can’t let one person’s motives or impulsiveness go unchecked for the sake of the whole faction. Breccan is a fair leader and Calix will be fine. For now, we are taking you to the medical bay where Avrell can make sure you’re safe and healthy.”
I fight in Breccan’s hold at the thought of what they may do to Calix. “Tell him to put me down,” I demand to Aria as she comes into my line of sight. My face flushes with heat, both because I’m embarrassed my orders come out as a squeak and from anger that my body fails me even now when it’s so important.
Aria sends me a pitying glance, which only makes me angrier. At least Calix didn’t look at me with that sort of fake sympathy. He is the only one here who cares about me and they took him away and are treating me like less than human.
“We’re almost there,” Aria says.
“I said put me down!” The shout burns through my throat and doesn’t help the tightness in my chest. Anxiety can worsen asthma attacks. Getting worked up won’t help anything, but if I’m going to die here in this strange place, I want the one person who cares about me to be with me. Frustrated tears leak from my eyes and I knuckle them away with a bruising swipe.
“No,” Breccan interrupts Aria’s response. “You are ill and aren’t making any sense. We will get you to Avrell where you will be safe and you’re going to stop this nonsense before you hurt yourself.”
My voice is little more than a croak now. “You may be the leader here, but I deserve to have a say in how I’m treated. That’s my right. If I want to refuse treatment, you should respect that.”
Breccan’s gait doesn’t change, nor does his expression. “Each life on Mortuus is precious. I will not risk anyone’s safety, not even yours and not even if it goes against your wishes.”
Outraged, my head jerks toward Aria as we pause at another door. “How can you let him treat me like this?”
Aria bites her lip, then says, “We really are just trying to help, Emery. The morts here can be a bit impulsive, especially when it comes to someone they consider a mate.”
I glare at her, then turn to face Avrell, who I remember vaguely from when I was removed from the pod. Unlike Breccan’s wild mane of hair, Avrell’s is carefully shorn, almost preppy. When he smiles, I note his fangs have been filed down. It gives him a kind, approachable appearance. If I weren’t so absolutely steamed, it would have been welcoming. Of all the aliens I’ve met so far aside from Calix, Avrell is the one I’d be most comfortable with.
His face visibly softens in relief when Breccan places me on an examination table in front of him. “I’ve been ever so worried about you,” Avrell says as he begins to hook me up to monitors. I almost expect a sizzle of heat to pass from his fingers to my skin like when Calix did the same thing, but Avrell’s touch is competent and clinical.
