Chapter 13
Raiza
I don’t know how long I was out for. It could have been minutes or hours, but by the time I finally managed to open my eyes, it was dark. There were no residual fires still burning, no groaning, no voices of vile human men who meant to kill me and my alien mate.
It was silent. Deadly silent.
I pushed myself up to a seated position, groaning softly.
I was sore and my head hurt with the migraine of the century, but I appeared to be intact.
I moved my fingers and toes, ensuring that they all worked properly.
I shifted my arms and legs, noting that everything seemed to move as it should.
No sprains or broken bones. Nothing of the sort.
That was good.
With a hard push, I sat all the way up. My head swirled for several moments until it eventually subsided to a gentler dizziness.
I blinked, moaning softly as I brought my hand up to my forehead.
I rubbed right in between my eyes, but the pounding of the blood in my skull overwhelmed me.
I had to wait several minutes before it subsided.
Only then did I brave pushing myself up to my feet.
The consequence of that was much worse. A roaring sense of vertigo almost put me flat on my ass. I reached out, using the wall to help me keep balance as I suffered through the worst of it. A pitiful cry escaped my lips and I rushed to cover my mouth with my free hand.
I didn’t know if the men were still out there. I had to keep quiet, for my sake and for Talyn’s.
I tried not to think about the harrowing sound of his roaring agony, but that’s what spurred me onward because I had to know if he was alright.
When the dizzying pulses finally lessened, I started to walk back into the tunnel.
I was vaguely aware that I was in some sort of side room.
The entryway had crumbled, and I stepped over much of it.
Holding a protective arm over my head, I dunked beneath the remains of the hole in the wall and back onto the train tracks.
I looked out cautiously. There was no sign of him anywhere. I couldn’t hear anyone over the sound of my own breathing. I moved to the side and leaned against a more stable-looking wall, closing my eyes and allowing my racing heart to calm.
I probably had a concussion of some sort, but there was nothing I could do about it now other than force myself to stay awake. I looked around for any sign of Talyn. At first, I saw nothing.
There were spots in my eyes, and I blinked them away. My vision was mostly acclimated to the darkness, and I lurched in the direction that I’d seen Talyn go. Each step I took was a massive victory. I made it about ten feet before I came upon the mangled remains of what looked like a hand.
It wasn’t human. It was his.
I choked back a sob and kept walking. I came upon an arm next, a piece of a leg, and my eyes watered with horror and sorrow. With each piece of him, I lost more and more hope until I was openly sobbing at the loss of the man that I’d only just realized I loved with all my heart.
I bawled and somewhere in the distance; a horrific moan broke through the silence. I paused, sniffling back my tears. It could be Ryan and his men, but what did it matter now?
I was numb. The idea of going on without him was far too painful and I didn’t want to bear it all alone. So what if they killed me?
At least the pain would pass.
The groan echoed again, and I paused. It sounded vaguely familiar. It was coming toward the right side, up ahead maybe about twenty feet.
Not caring about the risk, I plodded forward as quickly as I could. I put one foot in front of the other because there was suddenly a blinding hope surging within me. Another croaking moan sounded not much farther, and I swung my head around, searching for the source.
A crippled body laid still, hidden deep in the shadows. Not caring that it may be the terrible men, I rushed over to the dark form. I couldn’t discern if it was human or alien in the darkness. As I drew closer though, I took in the burgundy color of its skin and a wretched sob escaped me.
Talyn. Oh, my god. It was him.
His flesh had been burned past recognition in several places. He was missing an arm and a foot, but his chest was still rising and falling. He was still breathing.
My Talyn was alive.
I couldn’t keep my hands off him, but when he gasped in pain the moment my fingers touched his flesh, I jerked them away. I didn’t want to hurt him. He didn’t deserve any of this.
The men who had done this to us were wicked. Their only concern had been raping me and using me to get to Talyn. I hated them. If I could do it myself, I would kill every last one of them.
Talyn groaned and I found the only place on him that didn’t appear singed or injured in any way. I very lightly pressed my fingers against his neck and his lips rose slightly in a haggard smile.
“I’m here,” I breathed softly, and his one arm moved toward me. His fingers grazed against my thigh, and I scooted closer to him as carefully as I could. I didn’t want to jostle him.
I curled up next to him, just being there with him. There was a cut on his cheek that knitted together right in front of me, and I prayed that his superior healing abilities would be enough to get him through something like this.
I closed my eyes and slept.
* * *
Over the course of the next several hours or maybe even days, I slept on and off while Talyn healed beside me. The more superficial wounds knitted together first, leaving his skin smooth and free of burns and cuts.
There was an open slash across his gut that I had to bandage together as best as I could.
I used my pants and a sock to cinch it together, not caring that I was only left with a dirty pair of panties and my shirt on the filthy floor.
I tried to be gentle, but it hurt him enough to make me feel awful.
Eventually, he healed enough to whisper a few words.
“Raiza, you should run,” he murmured. The sound of my name was one of the most beautiful things I’d ever heard.
“No. I’m going to stay right here. I won’t leave until you’re better,” I protested, and he coughed hard enough to make him cry out in pain. I reached out and touched his face gently, curling closer to him and ensuring that I didn’t touch any place that was still working itself back together.
I didn’t look closely, but it appeared that his missing arm was regenerating itself, same as his foot. I kept my gaze on his face and his flare.
“I don’t care what you do to me once you’re better. I’m going to stay right here until we can escape this place together,” I vowed.
“Raiza,” he breathed shakily, and I hushed him.
“Please. Rest. Sleep for me. Get better,” I begged, and he closed his lips. He looked up at me with confusion, almost as if he couldn’t believe that I was there with him.
“The men have gone. They haven’t come back. They have no reason to believe we are anything other than dead,” I reassured him.
He glared back at me with suspicion, but he eventually closed his eyes and went back to sleep. I rested my head against his good shoulder and rested on and off for a while longer until Talyn stirred against me.
I opened my eyes some while later and I gasped to find him whole. His arms surrounded me, and I was overwhelmed with relief as I felt the warmth of his embrace. I grinned, overjoyed to find his gaze clear and free of pain.
“It’s time I took you out of here,” he murmured. He didn’t rush though, and his lips brushed against mine tentatively. I kissed him with everything I had to give. I left nothing on the table.
His mouth demanded more. I gave him that. Soon enough, his lips turned bruising, and I took that kiss with everlasting pride. I moaned into him, and his teeth dragged against my lower lip. It burned, but it was delicious all the same.
His thumb brushed against my silver collar, and I knew without words that it was the only reason he’d been able to find me. He’d tracked me with it, and I was extraordinarily grateful. I grasped his hand and kissed his knuckles.
“It’s time to get you out of here, little pet,” he repeated and the heat in his tone left me thinking of nothing but his cocks between my thighs. By the husky groan that vibrated on his tongue, I could tell that he was thinking the same.
He stood up and lifted me up so that I lay against his chest. I curled my arms around his neck, holding on tight as he made his way carefully through the tunnels.
I buried my head into his neck, not caring that my legs were bare.
There was nothing on my mind except for the gratefulness that he was still alive.
My heart was so full of love.
We didn’t run into anyone lingering in the city underground along the way. Maybe Talyn knew a way through the tunnels or maybe we just got lucky, but I would never know.
When we finally emerged into the light of day, it was bright.
Slowly, I realized that it was early evening, and the sun was just setting.
I blinked several times, squinting. Emerging from almost total darkness took a toll and both of us struggled.
Unsurprisingly, Talyn recovered far more quickly than I did.
Soon enough, we stumbled onto a ship. I guessed that it was his and when we climbed on board, it shut us inside immediately. Talyn typed in a few codes and the vessel lifted off the ground. He didn’t put me down, not even for a second.
It was comforting.
I allowed myself to enjoy his embrace, hardly noticing when he tucked a blanket around me. His heat was more than enough to keep me warm and soothe my weary soul. I rested through much of the journey back home.
Home.
The ship landed on top of Talyn’s penthouse, and I opened my eyes to the city lights of Zenarkin sparkling all around me. I smiled softly.
We would be safe here. No one would be able to hurt us.