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I close my eyes and sigh deeply, biting my lip so I don’t curse him the fuck out. I look up at him to find that perfectly neutral expression on his face, his eyes a placid silver.
“I’m not mad,” I say, smiling sweetly.
“Liar,” he smirks.
“It isn’t productive for me to be mad right now,” I say. “We have a job to do…so let’s do it, and then we can figure out where we stand.”
“So I still have a chance?” he says.
“Are you seriously hitting on me right now?”
His smirk drops, and I think I see the color of shame in his eyes. He stares down at the floor, shrugging his shoulders. “I didn’t—”
“Pro tip,” I say. “I know you don’t have a lot of females on Aelydon, and I’mcertainyou’ve never interacted with a woman who wasn’t forced to talk to you, but don’t hit on a girl after you’ve lied to her andkidnapped her friend.”
Corvus stiffens, sitting up straight. His tongue darts out to wet his lips, and my traitorous lizard brain reminds me how much I want to feel that piercing on my clit…
Fuck, I’m such a monster.
“I don’t have any excuses for what I’ve done,” he says. “But I’m going to try to make this right. And hopefully, when we’re on the other side of this, you can forgive me.”
I narrow my eyes.
“We’ll see.”
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
?
CORVUS
I’ve been living a lie for months, and yet, going back to my own people is perhaps the scariest thing I have ever done.
I’m not afraid for myself. I have some sense of self-preservation; now that I’ve found what feels like the chance for a new start, I would prefer not to die. But this is about more than just that. This is about the woman who has chosen to maybe give me a chance despite the lies I’ve told her.
I look roughed up because I am. I’m still recovering from the torture sex Keon and I had, still wrapping my head around what that means, if it can even mean anything if I don’t take Layla Dara back to the Ganivet Valley safe and sound.
Atlas’ shield can be worn by anyone, but it can only be activated by him, since it’s linked to his electrical signature. I put it on, making sure that it’s somewhere visible so my people see that I’ve come back home with a bounty. Making sure I have proof.
Zaire looks angrier than I’ve ever seen him.
“Put your hands behind your back,” I say.
He glares at me. “Fine,” he says.
“I’ll uncuff you as soon as we get to Layla,” I say. He knows, but I’m trying to make this a bit easier on him. I can’t imagine seeing Penn in this situation. The very thought makes my stomach churn with fear and anger.
Zaire groans. “I should’ve seen this coming. What kind of spymaster am I if I didn’t even think about what would happen when the Family sent me to the moon?”
“You didn’t know. You were busy, trying to help me get my mother back.”
I sigh as I look at Penn. “As you probably know, women are highly valued in our society,” I tell her. “Women who have given birth are particularly valued.”
“The Ganivets needed leverage to make sure that the Diavolos would include them in the deal with humans,” Zaire says as I tighten his cuffs. He groans. “This was before we approached Earth, when we were still figuring out that your species hadn’t been ravaged by Apollyon. The Diavolos knew that making first contact would be the easiest way to make sure that humanity trusted our species. Titian wasn’t a man for talks so…”
“He kidnapped a bunch of our women,” I say when Zaire trails off. “Including my mother. And he kept her prisoner for a long time. When I infiltrated the en’Ganivets, I thought Atlas was still keeping her prisoner.”
“I was on a different assignment,” Zaire says softly.
