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“I believe you do, brother.”
“I’m hungry!” Nyan interjects. “Is anybody else hungry? Ava, are you hungry?”
I am hungry. Hungry for so many things.
* * *
Ameal is prepared and presented to the brothers and me by Skol. I don’t have the heart to tell them I don’t eat meat, but fortunately they choose to cook a potato analogue that is close enough to the real thing to satisfy me.
It’s kind of an awkward meal, as though there are many things remaining unspoken in this room. I can feel the weight of all that is going unsaid, and it starts to become absolutely unbearable.
“So I’m Azlan’s mate,” I say. “What about everyone else? Where are your mates?”
The brothers share uncomfortable looks.
“We have refrained from taking mates. It is not safe to do so while Leonidas remains in the Den,” Kain says.
“I don’t know what any of that means,” I confess. Azlan’s brothers’ expressions are nothing short of alarmed.
“Your mate is uneducated,” Skol notes. “She will be a danger to herself and a liability to us all. Did you tell her nothing of our world?”
“We were busy with other matters,” Azlan says, smirking slightly.
“You can have a human fuck toy,” Kain says bluntly. “But you can’t have a human mate, especially one who doesn’t know anything.”
“I can do as I please. I am alpha.”
“You sound like Leonidas,” Skol says.
It’s a soft comment, but it seems to cut through Azlan like a blade.
“Ava is extremely intelligent,” he says. “She will learn quickly.”
“I am?”
I don’t mean to sound surprised, but I’ve never gone about thinking of myself as being intelligent. I have farm sense, but not much in the way of intellectual or academic chops. That’s kind of how I got myself into this mess.
WEEEOOWWOOWOOWOWOW!
I jump as an alarm sounds, and the entire bridge begins to flash red. It’s clear that some kind of emergency is taking place, though I don’t know what kind, or where.
Without a word, Azlan slams his hand down on the console and begins to enter a series of commands.
“Protocol Alpha. Space bender activated. We should be on the planet inside six hours.” He turns to his brothers. “The emergency beacon was just activated.”
“Really,” Skol deadpans.
“I left you lot down there to keep the place secure,” Azlan continues. “It should never have been undefended.”
“You are the alpha. You should be defending it,” Kain reminds him. “You should never have abandoned the pride lands in order to cavort with some human hussy.”
He’s old-fashioned when he’s being a bitch.
Azlan draws in a deep breath. I know he could say something cutting if he wanted to, but Azlan is a leader, and leaders don’t give into pettiness, even when the pettiness would be very satisfying.
“Prepare for battle when we land.”
PART2
