Orri (Intergalactic Surrogacy Agency #3)

17. Survival

SURVIVAL

ISABELLA

T his can't be happening. The world sways around me; my vision narrows to the scarred, hulking man lumbering off the bridge. My brain screams at me to run, but fear has me rooted to the spot.

My mind is short-circuiting, not knowing what to make of this new development. How did he get here? How did he know?

I thought I did everything right. I covered my tracks so well, and I figured if he was going to find me, he would have done so already. Why now?

As soon as I can consciously react, I duck behind a ticket booth, but it's simply too late. He has already spotted me.

Again, I scan the crowds for any sign of Orvox. I've seen her stand up to way scarier guys than Adik. She could vouch for me. But she's nowhere to be found.

I squeeze my eyes shut and try to breathe to calm myself down. Try to remember what Orri taught me about self defense. But it all flies right out the window the moment I feel Adik's callused hand grab me.

"Found you," he snarls, yanking me out of my hiding place. "Thought you could run from me, huh?"

I think about screaming. Wonder if anyone would understand or care if I tried to get their attention. But everyone's so lost in their own world, going back and forth with their own business...would anyone even notice?

My heart thuds double-time and adrenaline floods my system. Fight or flight kicks in and I try to yank my arm away, but he only holds it tighter. My brain throws those options out and goes for a third one. Submit .

But I can't — no, won't! Submit to him. He's the reason I even joined the ISA in the first place. He shouldn't be here. He shouldn't have been able to find me. And now that he has, he'll...

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" His voice drips with malice and a sickening amount of triumph. "Not happy to see me?"

"Get lost." It comes out as more of a weak whisper without any power behind it.

"What's that? Seems like you're the lost one here." He taunts me further. Adik starts walking, but doesn't let go of my wrist. I'm forced to stumble after him, taking us further and further away from the ship, the crowds, and my only remaining salvation.

After we're out of the most heavily trafficked area, he rounds on me, boxing me in against the wall. In an instant, it's like I'm back at his place on Earth all over again. The same reactions. The same fears. The same smells, even. His face has a few days worth of stubble, and a badly healed scar cuts across one cheek, stopping just short of his upper lip. His shoulders and biceps are bare, showing tanned, bulging muscles. He's nothing compared to Orri, but for guys down on Earth...

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" His grimy hand grabs my chin and forcefully turns it so that I'm looking right at him. He's so close now I can smell his rancid breath. My eyes dart past him, looking for any escape route. Any person I can flag down to get me the help I so desperately need. I could duck under his arms, and run like the wind, and...

"This was some stunt you pulled, you know that? But I can forgive you. You're mine, remember? And I'm here to take you home."

I nearly retch at the thought. "Adik..." I hate how weak my voice sounds. But when I'm with him, I'm defaulting back to my old behaviors. When I was with him I felt like a scared, trapped mouse. And even though I know better now, he still terrifies me. Reminds me of a time in my life I tried so hard to leave in the past. "We don't..." I shake my head and swallow around the building bile in my throat. "We don't have to do this. Let's not make a scene. We can go somewhere and talk. We —"

"Oh, we'll be talking all right. I expect you'll have lots to tell me." He emphasizes the word lots as he takes in my body from head to toe. His gaze makes my skin crawl. There's no way he could know about Orri or Bjornick...right?

"Stupid breeding agency," he mutters under his breath, spitting on the ground next to him. "If you wanted a baby that badly, you shoulda just asked me. You're pathetic. Running away to this glorified whorehouse so some alien asshole can do a pump and dump? You're even more of a slut than I thought. But that's all right." He yanks me closer, grabbing my hair and pulling so I'm looking straight up at him. "You might smell like alien ass right now, but I can change that. And whatever's in here..." He ghosts a hand over my belly, and it takes a moment to register his horrific intentions. "We'll take care of that , too."

The thought hits me why Orvox wanted to run the blood tests before I boarded the shuttle. It wasn't just to make sure I was healthy. She wanted to check if I was pregnant. And if I was...

The thought of a new life inside me brings forth a rush of fresh adrenaline, giving me the strength to fight through the panic. Not only for my sake, but for my baby's. I lunge to the side and twist my wrist like Orri showed me, using his momentum against him to break his grip. With a yell, he lets go for only an instant and I use that opening to bring my knee up, hoping to smash his balls as hard as I can.

He's too fast for me, though, and dodges the attack just in time. With a cry he grabs me again, this time even harder. He pulls me to him until I lose my balance and crash into his body, his face right next to my ear in a greasy whisper. "You'll stay quiet and come with me. You already know what happens if you don't listen, sweetheart." I shiver. I hate that name. "Looks like we need to make a little detour before heading back home."

I shiver again, but know better than to try and fight him. I’ll never win on strength alone. I need a plan. And to do that, I’ll need to play along, at least for the time being. So I bow my head, act like a good little omega, and get on the waiting hover bike. As we zoom away from the spaceport and down the roads leading to the wilderness, one thought lodges itself firmly in my heart:

I have to survive.