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Douglas stiffened and opened his mouth to argue, but Rin cut him off. “Check the mission briefing, Lieutenant. Once bonded, the psy-hawks must stay with their chosen partner. Hera explained it, and we did enough testing to confirm it’s true. Amun stays with Axe.”
“Dr. Rey. The IAF did not bring these creatures here so you could give them away to random strangers.”
“Actually, that’s exactly what I hoped would happen. We have confirmation that the bonding between Hera and me wasn’t a one-off event. That was one of the primary goals. Leadership understood that meant some of the subjects may not return.”
“Like I said. Amun stays with me. Rin is, of course, welcome to visit to observe and take notes any time she likes.” Axe decided it was time to throw a kopaki into the proverbial henhouse and added, “And she is welcome to bring the remaining subjects with her when she visits.”
It wasn’t until after he spoke that he realized what he’d done. He’d just offered an open invitation to Rin and her flock of featherheads to visit anytime they wanted.
Most of the fraxxing colony didn’t even know where he lived, and he liked it that way. What the hell was happening?
One look at the curvy woman staring down an IAF officer and he had his answer. Rin happened to him. He’d approached her because he thought she might be a threat. Turns out he’d been right. She was dangerous to his sanity, and if he wasn’t careful, she could be a threat to the solitary but comfortable life he was building out here.
Fraxx.
5
Rin wanted to shout for joy and possibly do a victory dance, but she stayed still and calm despite what had just happened. Axe’s offer was the perfect solution to her problems. Douglas and his men couldn’t follow her onto the cyborg’s land, so she’d be free to observe both the psy-hawks and Axe’s interactions with Amun without interference.
The fact she’d also get to spend more time alone with him was totally irrelevant. He was off limits despite the fact her fingers still tingled from touching him, and she kept revisiting the memory of what he looked like with his shirt off. She’d never seen a man with that much muscle…or that many scars. Cyborg or not, he must be tough as hull plating to survive so many injuries.
Douglas looked like he was going to choke on his own tongue, but he backed down with a sullen nod. “I will contact the council to discuss this… turn of events. Dr. Rey, you will come with us.” He snapped his fingers and pointed to the ground in front of him. “Immediately.”
She raised her chin and tried to ignore the insult. She already knew Douglas’s opinion of her, but this was a new low. She wasn’t his pet to be summoned with a snap of his fingers, dammit. Still, she elected to take the higher orbit.
Axe didn’t. He snarled under his breath, moved around her, and took several steps toward Douglas. The asshole lieutenant raised his weapon and stood firm.
Veth. If one of them didn’t back down, someone was going to get hurt. Probably both of them, since Douglas would likely shoot first, piss Axe off, and then get the beating of his life. As much as she disliked Douglas, if he was injured, it would put the whole project at risk of being canceled. She couldn’t let that happen.
Acting on instinct, she moved to Axe’s side and took hold of his hand. He started at her touch and dropped his gaze to glare at her, but she just squeezed his fingers and smiled. “It’s okay, Axe,” she said in a tone too low for Douglas to hear. “He’s an asshole who uses his rank to make himself feel important. The more you react, the better he feels about whatever he’s overcompensating for. Ignoring him is the fastest way to piss him off.”
“Or I could just tear his head off and give it to Amun to play with.” His words were dark, but his eyes glinted with amusement and a ghost of a smile played around his mouth.
“Let’s call that Plan B.”
Amun chirped at her and she gave him a pat on the head as he perched on Axe’s arm. “He’ll need fresh water and a place to sleep out of the weather. They were born in captivity and haven’t had time to adapt to a more natural life. He can hunt for himself if he’s hungry, and I’ll bring you more supplies tomorrow.”
Axe’s smile vanished. “You’re leaving? With him?” Disdain dripped from the end of his question.
“If I don’t go with him, he’ll twist everything that happened today. He’ll make sure his report is tailored to fit his preferred narrative. I should be there when he speaks to the local leadership, too. He’s likely to try to blame everything on you.”
Axe glanced over at Douglas, who looked increasingly impatient, and then back at her. “He’s welcome to try and blame me. The council will probably be stunned he’s still alive and has all his teeth when they hear he was on my land without permission. I’m more worried about you.”
That simple statement turned her brain to mush for a moment. This massive and dangerous man, one designed from the DNA up to be a killer, wanted to protect her. At that second, she saw him in a new light. No wonder Amun had bonded with Axe. They were both products of someone’s experiments, created for a purpose they rejected, with the same desire to exist in peace.
She squeezed his fingers even harder and then released him. “I’ll be okay. I promise. He’s a bully, but he’s ambitious enough not to cross a line that could tarnish his reputation.”
“If he comes anywhere near that line, you will tell me.” It wasn’t a question but a statement. “You can ask anyone on the council for my contact information. Tell them you have my permission, but if they give it to anyone else, I will not be pleased.”
She laughed. “I’ll do that if you stop bossing me around. I can take care of myself. I need you to promise you’ll take care of Amun.”
He bowed his head and met her gaze. “You have my word. He’ll have everything he needs to be free and happy.”
They stared at each other for a few more seconds with both of them breaking eye contact at the same moment.
“I’ll see you tomorrow. We can sort out the details when you contact me,” he said.
“See you both tomorrow. Take care of each other.” She smiled at both the man and the psy-hawk and then turned toward Douglas. His scowling countenance confirmed what she already knew. It would be a long walk home.
