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The soft smiles of relief melted a little piece of my icy heart. It was almost like they actually cared for me.
The four of them turned back toward the camp, squaring their shoulders and almost instantly, their body language was more fierce, sadistic, and brutal. Even I felt nervous around them now. Afraid they’d punish me for the slightest wrongdoing.
I shivered. I wondered what that would mean.
We walked into the camp and my senses were on overload. Vakarrans marched all around us, observing, judging, working with other human females. Most of the women I saw were subservient, kneeling, their eyes on the ground, their demeanor obedient to their alien captors. It made my skin crawl after my years of freedom with my family.
I tried to swallow my pride though and followed the men’s lead. I was fine, at least until I heard a woman scream.
I jerked backwards, lifting my head and turning to where the sound came from. I saw a line of what looked like stockades and I was taken aback. I hadn’t seen those since… my history lesson data uploads from when I was super young. And they’d only been in drawing form or pictures of replicas of olden times. Renaissance, I think?
There was a woman placed in the center one, her head and hands facing in my direction. Her face looked white with terror and tears ran down her face. I stilled. A Vakarran stood behind her, a wicked sadistic grin gracing his lips. His skin pulsed a dark purple and the excitement was clear in his eyes.
It was then I saw the whip.
His arm drew back, fierce and cruel, before coming down on her back with a strength I would not have expected for him to take out on her. She screamed and struggled, and I flinched for her. She had little chance of escape if someone didn’t help her.
The poor woman. None of us deserved this. Human women weren’t a commodity. We weren’t playthings to be owned, bred, and mastered.
It made me angry. Everything inside me screamed to do something.
I moved toward them, but someone caught my wrist.
Ryder held me.
“I can’t let you intervene,” he said softly.
The whip cracked, and she screamed again. My insides twisted with fury and empathy for her. She sobbed and my heart broke. I pulled at his grip.
“Please. Do something,” I begged. “He’ll kill her.”
Ryder pulled me back, forcing me to turn away from the scene before me. He stared at me, his eyes boring into mine, evaluating me and my intent.
“If I do, will you promise me you’ll stand down? Trust me and my men to ha
ndle this?” he said so that only I could hear.
He seemed sincere. And that other Vakarran was so much bigger than me.
I made a decision then, an unlikely one, but I would have to stand by it. Thus far, my four captors had shown no cruelty. They hadn’t hurt me. Hadn’t abused me like that alien was doing to that poor woman.
“Yes,” I whispered, trying to hold back furious tears.
“Thank you for trusting me,” Ryder said, before pushing me back into Morgn’s arms.
Morgn held me tightly, his hand snaking around the front of my throat, only this time, it felt comforting. Holding me back. Forcing me to stand down. Making me feel like I had no choice in what was to happen next.
Protecting me from harm. And I knew it.
He turned his body, making me look away from it all and for that, I was grateful. I relaxed slightly into his body and just listened.
“Taazar. Good to see you, comrade,” Ryder called out and the alien man hesitated, before answering him.
“Ryder. You’re here from duty on the Starrider?”
“Indeed.” Ryder paused for a long moment. “As your superior, it is my responsibility to question what is happening here. What is this human’s crime?” Ryder questioned. The fury and power in his tone even made me nervous.
“She refused to lay with me. She needs to learn she doesn’t have the capability to say no anymore. We own her,” Taazar grumbled angrily. I flinched and struggled not to react.
