Chapter 5
As Balarr carried Luna into the hallway, he noticed a limping man holding several keycards. The man swiped one of the cards in a door, and as soon as it opened, a woman rushed out. The man continued to the next door and repeated the process.
Luna peeked out from his arms and gasped at the sight. Her face lit up, and for the first time since he’d set eyes on her, she appeared happy.
“It would seem the other prisoners will soon be free,” he said, pausing just long enough for her to watch the man free several more people from the locked rooms.
“Thanks to you.” Luna beamed up at him. “I just hope they can get the medical help they’ll need.”
“After I tend to your injuries, I will send a message about this facility to the Vaxxlian diplomats who are currently stationed on Earth. Perhaps something can be done to help the patients.”
Her eyes gleamed with tears. “Oh, thank you, Balarr. That would be wonderful.” She settled her face against his chest again, and warmth unexpectedly spread through him.
Luna fit perfectly into his arms. He liked holding her.
Why, then, did he also feel guilty?
He thought of his late mate. Keissa. Would she judge him for taking a mate so soon after her death? Would he be dishonoring her memory if he claimed Luna?
He suppressed a growl as he carried the tiny human down the corridor and into the stairwell.
He descended the stairs slowly, mindful of the pain she must be experiencing.
He hoped she hadn’t lost too much blood, but he reminded himself that a nanobot injection would heal her injuries fully—even the lab-grown organs she seemed to be so worried about.
The nanobots would immediately work to make her organs, lab-grown or otherwise, strong and healthy.
Rage surged through him when he considered all she’d told him. He couldn’t believe she’d been trapped here for two long years. The poor little human.
Perhaps after he saw to her healing, he would see to matters of revenge.
They’d just met, but she was his assigned mate, and just as he’d felt honor-bound to retrieve her from Earth, he also felt honor-bound to seek vengeance on her behalf.
The workers from Zalora Biotech who’d hurt her would pay. He would make sure.
He carried Luna outside, and she immediately wiggled in his arms, closed her eyes, and lifted her face toward the sun. He stared down at her in confusion, but when she gave a soft sigh, he finally understood.
She’d spent the last two years as a captive, and her captors probably hadn’t allowed her to go outside. This was likely the first time in two years that she was feeling the warmth of the sun on her face.
He suddenly found himself looking forward to giving her a lengthy tour of Starzzia and the areas surrounding it, showing her all the beauty Planet New Vaxx had to offer.
The warmth and the anticipation… he hadn’t expected to feel so moved by his assigned mate.
He walked past the guards’ unmoving bodies that littered the ground, briefly noting that all were still breathing.
He regretted using his stunner on them rather than his blaster.
Surely they deserved to die for their part in the crimes against Luna, as well as the atrocities committed against the other prisoners in this facility.
But he wouldn’t kill them now. Not while he was holding Luna.
He didn’t want her to see the dark, violent side of him—the side that could murder without impunity.
At least not so early in their acquaintance.
They were still strangers, and he wasn’t sure how she would feel if she witnessed him draw his blaster to execute the stunned guards.
Perhaps it was for the best that she’d closed her eyes the moment he’d brought her outside. He didn’t think she’d opened them long enough to glimpse the guards on the ground. If she had, surely she would have reacted to the sight.
Though he lamented taking her away from the warmth of the sun, he was eager to mend her injuries, so he issued a command for the Cormma’s ramp to descend, then carried her aboard his vessel.
“Close ramp,” he called out to the computer once he stepped onto the ship. “Initiate the launch sequence, and auto-navigate to a neutral, hidden location in the mountains.”
They couldn’t leave Earth immediately. He still had to contact the Vaxxlian ambassadors, and he still planned to unleash justice upon those from Zalora Biotech—in particular, the surgeons—who had caused Luna even the slightest amount of harm.
He hoped that once he’d healed her, she would be forthcoming with at least a few names.
He hadn’t claimed her as his mate yet, but the urge to protect her was strong. So was the urge to maim and kill anyone who’d ever dared to harm her.
The slight hum that indicated the Cormma was ascending into the sky reached him, and he breathed a sigh of relief. He was eager to take his mate away from this dark place, and he trusted the ship’s computer would find a suitable location in the mountains.
As he carried Luna toward the medical bay, he couldn’t resist taking a deep inhale of her sweet, floral scent. While a definite antiseptic smell clung to her—a result of her imprisonment at Zalora Biotech, no doubt—an enticing feminine aroma rested beneath, and Star God how it tempted him.
He longed to bury his face in her dark tresses and take a deep inhale. But he couldn’t do such a thing when she was injured. And even once she was fully healed, she might need additional time for her spirit to heal.
Doubts abruptly surfaced in his mind. What if he couldn’t be the gentle, patient male she needed? What if he was too gruff or cold? What if his grief over losing Keissa and their offspring prevented him from being the loving mate she clearly needed?
Fluxx. Not for the first time in Luna’s presence, he found himself suppressing a growl. He didn’t want to scare her. In her room back at Zalora Biotech, he’d released a growl when he’d learned about her status as a medical prisoner, causing her to flinch and draw away from him.
Going forward, he didn’t want to do anything to put her on edge, and he hoped that he would be able to better control his emotions as well as his facial expressions. No more “Resting Bitch Face.”
He carried Luna into the medical bay and set her on one of the soft, padded patient tables.
Before he realized what he was doing, he smoothed errant strands of hair from her face and tucked them behind her ears.
A gasp caught in her throat, and she peered up at him with beautiful blue eyes the color of New Vaxx’s sky.
Star God, she really was beautiful.
Should he tell her how lovely she was? Should he tell her that his reservations for taking a human bride were already melting away? He considered for a moment, then dashed the idea aside.
She was injured, and he needed to focus on healing her. He didn’t want her to think he was attempting to claim her too soon. If he started gushing about her beauty and how he felt the stirrings of desire for her, she would assume he only cared about one thing—her body.
He studied her bloodied shirt, then gave her what he hoped was a reassuring look. “May I remove your shirt, Luna?”
She hesitated, but eventually, she nodded and whispered, “Yes,” in a shaky voice.
He carefully removed her shirt, cutting it off her body using a small knife. He tossed the remnants of fabric into a nearby bin, and when he turned back to Luna, he had to force himself not to stare.
The little human wasn’t wearing a bra, and it took great effort not to stare at her full, rounded breasts, or her perfect, pink nipples. He swallowed hard and reminded himself of her injuries.
As he looked at the bloodied bandage, the anger he’d felt toward her captors earlier returned in full force.
Near the bloodied bandage, four additional scars covered her abdomen—evidence of multiple surgeries. Multiple organs stolen and replaced with lesser, lab-grown ones.
He placed a hypospray to her neck and gave her another reassuring look. “This will take your pain away.” He quickly administered the hypospray, then he set it aside and reached for the nanobot injector, which appeared a bit more sinister than a hypospray, since it involved a long needle.
He held the nanobot injector up, allowing her to see it.
“Every Vaxxlian warrior is given a dose of healing nanobots for their human mates. This is for you, Luna. The nanobots won’t heal old scars, but they will heal your most recent injuries, and it will help make your lab-grown organs even stronger and healthier than those you were born with. ”
Luna gasped and stared at the nanobot injector, a look of utter shock filling her features. She met his eyes. “I-I feared I would require ongoing medical treatment to keep my lab-grown organs functioning. Is it truly as simple as injecting me with Vaxxlian nanobots?”
He smiled. Or at least he hoped he was smiling. Sometimes when he tried to smile, Warrin would tell him to stop grimacing, or Lorrd would ask him whose murder he was contemplating.
“Yes, sweet Luna, it is truly as simple as injecting you with the healing nanobots.” Sweet Luna? Where had that endearment come from? He cleared his throat and wiggled the nanobot injector. “May I?”
“Yes, please.” A slight flush suffused her cheeks. “And thank you. Thank you for rescuing me from Zalora Biotech. You saved my life.”
He placed the syringe to her upper arm and injected her with the nanobots. “You are very welcome, swee—Luna.”
Fluxx. He’d almost called her sweet Luna again.
Why? They barely knew one another.
He glanced at her bandage again. Given what he knew about human anatomy, he suspected they’d removed her pancreas. Bastards.
“Perhaps it’s just the pain medication you gave me, but I’m already feeling better.” She took a long, quick breath, then exhaled just as quickly. “I haven’t managed to take a breath that deep in months. Not without experiencing twinges of pain.”
It pleased him to know she was feeling better. She looked better too. When he’d burst into her room at the organ-harvesting facility, she’d seemed rather pale compared to now. At present, her face contained a healthy, radiant glow, her eyes were gleaming brighter, and her demeanor was relaxed.
He stroked a hand through her hair, overcome by the sudden need to touch her. “I am glad you’re feeling better, Luna,” he said, careful to say her name without any added endearments.
Luna was his assigned mate, and he had every intention of claiming her—eventually—but he worried that if he moved too fast, he would be dishonoring Keissa’s memory.
He didn’t know how to stop grieving her loss.
He was torn between cautious hope for the future and a longing to remain true to the only female he’d ever loved.
But as he stared into Luna’s eyes, he couldn’t help but wonder… if he opened his heart to her, would love soon follow? He didn’t understand why his throat abruptly burned.
Conflicted. His attraction to Luna was making him feel more conflicted than he’d ever felt in his life. How could he reconcile his desire for her with the careful preservation of Keissa’s memory? What about the memory of his children?
Star God knew he missed the three of them dearly, and he would give anything to have them back, even for just a day.
But they’d perished when the Irrcons had destroyed Planet Vaxxlia.
There was no bringing them back, just as there was no resurrecting the millions of other females and children who’d perished on that dark day.
“Are you all right, Balarr?” Luna asked. “You look rather… sad.”
Why did he like hearing his name on her lips so much? He pushed the thought aside, as well as his thoughts of Kiessa and their offspring, and tried to summon a pleasant expression. But it didn’t feel natural, and the attempt made his face hurt.
“I am fine.” He released her hair and stepped back. “I think it would be safe to remove the bandage. The surgery site is likely healed by now. The nanobots always target the most dangerous injuries or infections first.”
She glanced down at the bandage, then her face grew red.
She crossed her arms over her chest, hiding her substantial bosom.
“Um, do you have a shirt I could borrow?” She gave him a wary look.
“I-I know we’ll see each other naked soon enough—I know we must consummate our mating union—but I’m not used to… ” Her voice trailed off.
“Not used to what?”
She flushed anew and struggled to hold his gaze.
“I’ve never even had a boyfriend before.
Before I found myself trapped at Zalora Biotech, I was too busy with school and work and then trying to survive and keep the apartment after my parents passed away that I never had time to even think about dating,” she said in a breathless rush.
“Which means no man—in a romantic situation—has ever glimpsed my naked body. I hope you’re not offended, but I’m feeling a bit shy. ”
“Of course, Luna. I understand.” Balarr turned and opened several drawers, but all he could find was a blanket. He unfurled it and gave Luna a questioning look.
“A blanket will be great, thanks.” She smiled at him, and his heart skipped a beat.
He stepped closer to her and draped the blanket over her shoulders. As large as it was, she was able to tuck it around the front of her body, successfully covering her breasts.
“Thank you, Balarr,” she said in a trembling voice. Then her face crumpled, and she burst into tears.