Akur (Restitution #3)

Constance

2

Constance

Gulping, Constance fought to maintain her steady breaths as she opened one eye. Gator-guards were moving outside the cell. Her jaw still ached from where one of them had punched her days ago.

Back then, she’d been so pumped with adrenaline and fear, that the pain had felt like nothing. But now it ached like a bitch. Her jaw was swollen, probably black and blue, but at least she still had all her teeth.

Opening her mouth as wide as she could, she rolled her jaw and stretched the aching muscles, forcing blood to flow as she kept her eyes on the guards. None seemed to notice she wasn’t unconscious. They’d stopped paying attention to her and the other two women imprisoned in the cell ages ago.

And that was a blessing.

The ship shuddered, the deck plates vibrating beneath her, but not enough to cause alarm. Because for the entirety of their journey to wherever the ship had been shuddering. Something was definitely wrong with it. She didn’t know much about spaceship engines or mechanics—being a therapist didn’t exactly lend itself to aerospace engine ering in between counseling sessions and paperwork. Just a few months ago, her biggest concerns had been growing her practice and helping her clients.

Now here she was, on a damaged spaceship light years from home with walking alligator guards intent on her demise. It was still so unreal, like a bizarre dream she kept expecting to wake up from. But the constant tremors of the struggling engines kept reminding her this was anything but a dream.

Turns out waking up on an alien planet after being forced into cryogenic sleep wasn’t the nightmare. It was the terror of being abducted again .

So much death, and for what? The Restitution was destroyed, countless lives lost, and just to retrieve—squinting in the dim light, she turned her head slowly, eyes landing on the others with her— two other humans? Unless there were other captives somewhere else, surely this was a failed mission.

Her gaze locked with the woman across from her. Meredith, she’d said her name was. She was lying on the floor in a similar position, sharp gaze pointed at the guards, her chest rising and falling with heavy breaths.

Meredith was ready. And so was she.

They were to pretend to sleep or act like they were still unconscious. Lull the guards into a state of complacency and then take hold of the ship. Somehow.

It wasn’t a solid plan. About as solid as the shifting deck plates beneath them. But it was something.

She clung fiercely to that thought. There had to be hope. She just needed to survive long enough to find it. Because they were on their own. No one was coming to save them.

Everyone else was dead .

“The citadel is in the next quadrant.” The words of a gator-guard reached her ears.

Constance stiffened. There wasn’t enough time.

Daring to peek at where the guards were stationed outside the cell, her eyes landed on the one that spoke. He was larger than the other. Obviously older and more experienced, judging from the battle scars on his scaly skin. The other was younger-looking. Thinner. Possibly new. Or maybe that was just her hoping. Praying on his inexperience.

“Prepare for arrival,” the guard continued before turning and heading down the corridor. “Get the jekins ready. ”

Now?

Constance swallowed hard and dipped her head once more. The alarm in her eyes reflected that in Meredith’s. Giving the other woman a slight signal with a dip of her chin, she watched as Meredith mimicked the action. Meredith was more than ready.

Eyes sliding to the only other female in the cell, worry tickled the edges of Constance’s senses.

Even in the dim light, the woman was hard to see. Dark hair hung over her head, concealing her features, and she sat with her legs drawn up to her chest. The woman seemed frail, as if she hadn’t been eating since waking up from cryo. But none of that was why the worry was now crawling up her spine. For she knew this woman. Had seen her from those very early days after they’d all been rescued from the cryo hold.

She was the one that didn’t speak. The one who had been awake during the entire journey from Earth to the stars. Locked in stasis but completely conscious. And she didn’t need her psychology degree to tell her the woman’s mind was still processing that trauma.

Had she even been listening while they’d whispered this very shaky plan? Did she even care?

She couldn’t see the woman’s eyes, but she was sure they were open. Staring dead ahead like they usually did. No recognition. No awareness.

She wasn’t living here in the present. Wherever she was, it was far away from here.

Fuck. That was just going to make this a lot trickier.

Gulping, Constance’s gaze flew back to Meredith’s. She gave her another slight nod of the chin and readied herself. As soon as the opportunity provided itself, they would take it .

For a few moments, nothing happened, and she wondered if the rookie was going to follow his orders or not. But when he finally moved toward the cell, she knew it was time.

And he was alone.

Even better.

It was obvious they didn’t think humans would give any trouble. To them, humans were only good for one thing. A gross underestimation. Because if the Tasqals wanted humans so badly, they should have researched and learned one thing about humanity:

Humans didn’t know when to give up.

Tensing, every muscle coiled itself tight as the lone gator-guard approached. This was it—possibly their only chance. One quadrant remained. They were almost at their destination. And if she had it her way, they would never get there.

The gator-guard stopped in front of the energy barrier, peering in, and she had to force herself to remain still, feigning unconsciousness. With a snort, yellow eyes glowing, the guard tapped something on his wrist, and the barrier dissolved.

“Wake up, pitiful creatures,” he growled. “You jekins expect me to carry you?”

Her pulse roared in her ears as he stepped into the cell. Just a little closer…

He stopped just inside, claws hanging loosely as he peered down at them, so arrogantly certain they were helpless. And she continued pretending to be…until he reached for her.

It must have been a reflex because her hand closed around his scaly wrist so quickly, her eyes widened in surprise.

“Trauma’s a bitch that way,” she frowned at her hand before meeting the yellow eyes staring down at her. “It sticks around.”

This was it. Time to get out of this mess. She could do this.

The gator-guard growled. A low hiss that traveled through his gut and up his frame. But she held on, jaw set.

“The last time one of you fuckers reached for me in my sleep, I got punched in the face,” she grated out. “Not this time.”

As the gator-guard growled again, glare filled with poison at the fact s he dared touch him, he reached for her with his other claw, and she suddenly moved. Ruse over.

Releasing his wrist, she rolled out of the way, his claw missing her by mere inches. Only his heightened growl and hiss told her he was getting pissed by the second. But he wouldn’t get to reach for her again.

In the corner of her eye, Meredith hurtled from the floor, slamming her entire body into the guard’s massive frame. Not expecting the sudden torpedo of human female, his reaction was too slow. Definitely a rookie. He stumbled back with a harsh grunt, crashing into the corridor wall. Not part of the plan, but this was their chance.

Rising, terror surging through her veins, she pulled her attention from Meredith’s distraction and raced to the third prisoner—the broken, silent woman huddled, still unmoving in the corner. Not even reacting to the desperate bid for escape occurring right in front of her.

“Come on! We have to move!” Even shaking her, the woman didn’t lift her head. There was no spark of recognition in her vacant eyes. Damnit!

A deep thud yanked Constance’s attention back just as the gator-guard let out a roar.

“Qrakking annoying jekinnnssss!” The gator-guard had thrown Meredith off him and now advanced on her, lips peeled back from rows of sharp teeth, jagged in his long snout. The only mercy was that even with his roar, there were no footfalls of other guards coming to his aid. Some god was showing them grace, but they still needed to take that bitch out.

Meredith grunted and struggled to her feet. “Constance, hurry!” Blood, scarlet against her clothes, spilled from the deep gash the guard’s claws had torn across her midsection.

They were running out of time. Gritting her teeth, Constance grabbed the unresponsive woman and hauled her to her feet. “I’m not leaving you here,” she ground out. They just had to make it to the corridor. Had to escape. And they needed a weapon. Anything. Her eyes landed on a metal rod leaning against the wall. There .

Hauling the female with her, Constance stepped outside the barriers of the cell, her gaze fixed on the guard. He was still focused on Meredith. Good. Now, the rod. She gently lowered the unresponsive woman to the floor, then snatched the metal rod from against the wall. One end was clearly the handle, a button set into its surface. She pressed hard, and the thing zinged to life with so much energy she felt the current go up her arm, the hairs rising off her head as if attracted to a lightning call.

At the sound of the weapon being charged, the gator-guard halted, claw pausing mid-air from where he was about to rend Meredith. Yellow eyes looked over his shoulder as his long snout turned.

His reptilian gaze locked with hers, and a fierce swell of triumph surged through Constance’s veins. The hulking guard didn’t get to act, didn’t get to roar out a challenge or attack before she charged, forgetting all else except this single purpose.

She saw the moment of confusion swarm in those alien eyes, the split second where he thought to dodge her reckless attack. In that suspended heartbeat, she wondered if he would evade her in time. If she had just made a fatal mistake.

But a raw-throated scream of pure rage sounded from behind the guard, and in that same breath, Meredith braced against the wall, using one leg to deliver a powerful kick to the center of the guard’s belly.

The force of the blow was enough to make him stagger, unable to shift out of Constance’s path in time. Teeth grit, she lowered her shoulder and slammed the rod into him with every shred of strength left in her battered body.

The sizzle was almost as great as the shudders that wracked his frame. Vicious eyes filled with anger locked with hers, and Constance stared into them, not letting go of the rod.

As he hit the floor with a meaty thud, dead or dying, she allowed the weapon to hang loose in her fingers. Heavy breaths made her chest heave as her gaze locked with Meredith’s. They were both breathing hard. Both staring at each other wide-eyed .

They’d done it. This first step, at least.

“You ok?” Stupid question. Meredith was obviously not okay.

“Could be better, but I’m breathing.” Meredith braved a smile, but she wrapped an arm around her belly, the stain of red there seeming brighter than ever.

The corridor remained empty. Against all odds, they were still alone.

Now for the next impossible step—finding a way off this ship. Turning, her gaze fell on the silent woman. She was still standing in the same position. Unmoving.

How would they escape with only one of them at fighting strength, one unresponsive, and who knew how many more enemies? But she couldn’t think about that. The odds didn’t matter.

“Let’s move.”

Meredith nodded.

No other guards had come yet to investigate the commotion. But they couldn’t let the silence quell them into the same complacency that brought that rookie guard down.

They weren’t safe, not by a long shot. Wordlessly, they moved down the dim corridor, supporting the unresponsive third captive between them. Her vacant eyes still stared straight ahead, seeing nothing.

Constance had no idea where they were going, just away from the cell. Each step ratcheted her fear up another notch, but she clenched her jaw and pushed on.

Where were the other guards? Maybe most of them were killed when they attacked the Restitution’s base. That’s probably the only reason they had a chance now. She could only hope.

As they turned a corner, she spotted a door left partially open, pale light streaming through the crack. Holding her breath, her gaze met Meredith’s. They had to check it out.

“I’ll go,” Meredith whispered, and for a second, she wondered where this woman was drawing her bravery from. She was already bleeding, no doubt badly hurt.

“No,” she blocked Meredith with an arm. “ I’ll go. ”

Leaving them pressed against the side of the corridor, she crept forward, holding her breath as she strained her ears for any sound.

Nothing.

This was too good to be true.

She was right at the door when she paused, gripping the shock rod and lifting it before her as she used a foot to slide the door open wider.

It was a control room, and there was no one inside.

Jerking her chin, she beckoned Meredith over as she entered.

Gently, they lowered the silent woman to the floor just inside the doorway before closing the door behind them. Constance sagged against it for a moment, pulse thundering in her ears.

Catching her breath, she took in the space. It was cramped, filled with panels of blinking lights and strange symbols. Consoles and monitors lined every surface, displaying incomprehensible readouts. She swallowed hard.

“Any chance you can fly an alien spaceship?” Her gaze slid to Meredith’s, whose eyes were busy roving over the controls.

Meredith let out a weak, rasping chuckle, then winced as the motion aggravated her injuries. “Sure, just let me check the manual first.”

But this must be a secondary control room. No way this was the bridge for the vessel she’d seen from the ground. The ship they were on was a colossal beast.

“Maybe this room controls communications?” Meredith whispered, clearly thinking the same thing. “Do you think we could send a message?”

Constance bit her lip. It was a good plan. If they didn’t make it farther than this, a distress signal would be their best bet. But neither of them could read the alien symbols. The translators embedded behind their ears didn’t work with text.

Shaking her head, she locked eyes with Meredith. “We should keep moving.” Something tightened in her gut. They shouldn’t have stopped. “We can’t do anything here.”

Meredith nodded, wincing as she reached for the unresponsive female . They both had their arms supporting the woman when a roar echoed far down the corridor behind the door. “ Find them !”

“Oh shit,” Meredith whispered, one leg buckling as she gripped her belly and winced.

No. No. No, no, no. They needed more time.

Her heart skipped a beat as her gaze shot behind her. There was no exit in here. Only the single door they’d entered through. Unless she could turn the consoles at their backs into turrets, they were sitting ducks.

“Shit.” Supporting the unresponsive woman, she hurried back to the door, but the footfalls that echoed down the hall stopped her in her tracks. Her heart seized as she glanced back at Meredith. What now?

Meredith grunted and nodded sharply. They’d known it wouldn’t be easy. Far from a stroll in the park. Getting off this ship was going to be a test for their very survival. If they wanted freedom, they’d have to fight.

Constance nodded back, hand tightening on the shock rod still in her grasp just as the door slid open. Two hulking gator-guards crammed into the doorway, yellow eyes glowing.

“Found them,” one spoke into a communicator on his arm.

“Qrakking pests,” the other hissed.

“Back off.” Constance’s jaw clenched as she took a step back, forcing Meredith and the other woman to step back with her. “Stay the fuck away from us!”

The guard grunted, a snarl on his lips revealing darkened teeth. “Risky, little jekin…” He hissed. “Where we come from, females know when to remain quiet.”

The other grunted. “They will be quiet soon enough.”

She didn’t know why. Why the rage swelling within her suddenly peaked like a rising inferno swelling to the head of a volcano.

“You know what?” She spoke through gritted teeth. “I’m so damn tired of you pieces of filth .”

That set them off. Her heart stuttered for a single second as the gator-guards lunged. She only saw a blur as Meredith dove behind a consol e, pulling the other woman with her. Constance’s arms tightened as she fired up the shock rod again. Electricity zinged as the cramped space descended into chaos, the guards taking no care as they launched themselves on top of the equipment, claws extended, dirty, and still stained with blood from their last victims.

A deafening alarm blared as both guards focused on her, or rather, on the weapon in her hand. It was the only thing keeping them from grabbing her immediately.

Swinging the rod, she kept one guard at arm’s length as the other lunged for her. With everything she had in her, she brought the rod down on his arm. It sizzled, and he roared in pain or maybe anger. She wasn’t quite sure, and she didn’t get a chance to find out.

He didn’t retreat, even as his blackened flesh smoked. If anything, the shock enraged him further.

“Get the other two,” he growled. “I’ll take care of this one.”

A massive fist caught her shoulder, and she hit the floor hard, breath bursting from her lungs.

The rod spun from her grip, and she rolled to grab hold of it again just as a clawed foot stomped down, talons gouging the metal flooring between her fingers and the weapon she so desperately needed to grasp. In her periphery, Meredith grappled with the second guard, trying her best to shield the unresponsive woman.

When a thick claw closed around her throat, it brought her right back to the start of this nightmare. When she’d woken up on the Restitution base in the middle of the night to her roommate’s scream and a claw around her throat just like this one. The woman’s name had been Alaina…and she was probably dead, too.

Something hurt deep inside, clenching and seizing. Alaina and all the others, too. Even that cocky idiot that had come to save her that night. Akur or whatever his name was. They were all dead. Just like she would be if she didn’t find a way out of this somehow.

As the guard slammed her into the wall, agony exploded through her side. She slid down the moment he released her, dazed, as the gator loomed over her.

“Enough!” a voice bellowed from the door. Another gator-guard, even b igger than these two, stood at the entrance. He stalked in, pushing his comrades out of the way.

Reaching down, he grabbed her by the throat, and through the corner of her eye, she could see the other guard doing the same to Meredith. “Do you realize where you are, fools ?”

Constance blinked, the pain shooting through her side, making it a little hard to think. But he wasn’t speaking to her. He was speaking to the guard who’d been ready to smash her head in.

Through the pain, she took in the destroyed room.

The lead gator-guard gestured at a sparking console, shouting something so gutturally she almost didn’t catch it.

“You idiots blasted a signal!” he growled.

Raw fury twisted the guard’s reptilian features as he stalked forward, not caring that he was simply carrying her along. Her body swayed, dizziness threatening as her gaze flicked to Meredith at the same moment that the other guard pulled her along. Alarm went through her as she saw the other woman on the floor. Hair still falling over her face, she sat unmoving. And even when the remaining guard grabbed hold of her, she didn’t react.

This was it? Their bid for freedom had failed so quickly?

Desperate, she reached for Meredith. She didn’t know why. She didn’t know this woman. They hadn’t been friends back on Earth. They weren’t family. Before these assholes abducted them, they’d been strangers. They were simply both thrust into this nightmare because some egotistic aliens had taken them from their home. But Meredith was human and the closest thing she had to anyone.

For a moment, they managed to grab hold of each other, both hanging on to that one grasp of each other’s fingertips as if they were each other’s lifeline. Her hands grew moist from the blood coating Meredith’s fingers, and her heart ached even more. She wasn’t sure Meredith would make it. Swallowing hard, she could see the woman fighting away the tears and the fear—a look that was probably mirrored in her own eyes.

They had only that one moment before they were wrenched apart .

“What are you doing?!” She heard herself shout the words. Heard herself speak but didn’t recognize her own voice. Raw rage and fury did that. “Have you no conscience?! Can’t you see what your masters are doing is wrong?!”

No answer. If anything, the lead gator-guard tightened his claw on her, breaking her skin.

“Meredith!”

It was all she could do as the guards marched them through corridor after corridor until she lost any sense of direction. When they stepped into a wide open space, her heart dropped through a pit in her gut.

Separate crafts waited in the launch bay. And as they pushed Meredith into one craft, then the silent woman in another, only one thing was clear. It was over.

“Foolish qrakking pilkras,” the lead gator-guard growled as he got in and slammed the door of the craft shut. “Blasting an unencrypted signal. If we anger the masters or injure these hideous jekins, we don’t get all the credits for this job!”

Gulping hard, she sat upright on the seat behind the pilot; eyes focused on the little viewport as dread filled her. This was it. She could try to strangle him now. Wrap her arms around his neck and use all her strength to—

She hardly saw it coming. Just saw the moment he turned, those horrid cold eyes finding her as if he could read her mind. The prick of the small device as it sunk into her neck had her freezing, wide eyes shifting to the thick, scaly arm that had moved too fast for her to even respond.

He’d…he’d injected her with something. He’d—

She reached for the spot as her vision blurred and her head swayed.

No. This can’t—

Her head swayed again.

No. She needed to remain conscious. Couldn’t fall asleep. Not now.

“Qrakking signal must have been like a beacon.” She heard the reptil ian grumble as the little ship they were on shook and swayed before stabilizing. It took her a moment to realize they were floating above the deck now. They were going to fly.

Her head fell back against the seat as automatic restraints strapped her in, her gaze focusing on what she could see of the viewport even as she fought to remain awake. But she was weak. Oh, so weak.

The gator-guard kept grumbling about the signal, his anger and annoyance evident. It made her giggle.

Wait. That giggle felt good. The tension in her muscles was seeping away like it was just a figment of her imagination.

She felt good. Better than she’d felt in years.

This wasn’t so bad after all. The pain in her jaw and the other injuries she’d sustained suddenly didn’t exist. Being abducted was so bad, was it? She felt like she could stand in a flower garden and dance. Another giggle went through her throat as the guard grumbled some more.

Why was he so worked up, anyway? Whatever communication was sent didn’t matter. Survival was dim—and that was hilarious!

Only a fool would see a ship like this and come to rescue them, guns blazing.