Chapter 2 #6
Adjusting his hold on her, he shifted her weight and held her close to his wide chest.
She gasped and his masculine scent blanketed her with tantalizing warmth, a heady mix of spice and earth that ignited her senses, leaving her yearning for more.
“JR14, what’s their position? And can we still make it to Baelon’s hangar?”
The small, spider-like machine continued to buzz beside them. His red-and-gold body glinted in the dim light.
“Elites have detected energy fluctuations in this sector and cut off all access to the space dock. Probability of pursuit in that direction has increased to 92.4 percent. Suggest continued extraction in a different direction.” His voice was mechanical and unemotional.
Toni groaned at the obvious statement.
“What... what is that thing?” She pointed to the red-gold spider-thingy.
“JR14 is my AI companion,” Azazel stated, speeding down the corridor. His steps were quick but controlled, each movement smooth despite her added weight. “Introductions later. Right now, we have to get away from Baelon’s enforcers.”
“Where are we going?” Like she had any suggestions.
“Someplace safer than here,” Azazel said.
Oh, great, she thought. Someplace safer. Obviously a man of few words.
The hallway turned narrow and pulsated with a weak light.
Toni glanced over Azazel’s shoulder. She squinted and caught sight of movement—shards of light that resolved into sharp, crystalline forms. Her stomach tightened.
“They’re coming,” she whispered. She cleared her throat, trying to stop her voice from trembling.
Azazel didn’t look back. “I know.”
JR14 flew before them, and his short metallic claws in the front clicked as he zipped through the air.
“Suggestion: deploy secondary plan. Corridor ahead leads to a ventilation access point. Narrow passageways will hinder Elites’ mobility.”
Azazel’s grip on her shifted as he picked up speed. “Will it buy us enough time?”
“Probability of success: 68.7 percent,” JR14 replied. “Recommendation: extreme caution.”
“Caution?” Toni muttered with a weak smirk. “Darn, what a great idea.”
Azazel didn’t answer. Instead, he veered to the left and dashed into a dimly lit passageway.
Holy cow, this corridor was even narrower than the one they’d been in. Toni swallowed her bout of claustrophobia as the hated crystalline walls pressed in.
Behind them, the sound of pursuit grew louder. Heavy footfalls and alien voices shouting commands.
Toni’s fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt. “They’re getting closer.”
Azazel’s jaw clenched. “Not for long.”
Ahead, JR14 paused at the edge of what looked like a sheer drop. The small AI turned back, his soft blue eyes focused on Azazel.
“Access point located. Ventilation shaft is ten meters below. Maneuverability required.”
“Great,” Azazel muttered. “Hold on, Toni.”
“Hold on to what?” She didn’t have time to wonder how he knew her name. Questions for him died as he leaped into the shaft without hesitation.
Toni screeched as the air rushed past them, cool and sharp as they fell. Her heart pounded, and her eyes widened with fear in the darkness.
Azazel twisted midair, his movements precise, as he grabbed a crystal outcropping. His grip steadied them for a moment before he swung into a narrow opening on the side of the shaft.
She gasped, her pulse racing.
“Are you insane? Who do you think you are? Tom Cruise doing his own stunts?” In real life, she never dreamed anyone would or could do something so reckless without extensive planning.
Not even the craziest stuntman in the business would attempt to do anything like that until he and his crew planned everything down to the nth degree.
“No,” Azazel said in a flat tone. “Just experienced.”
Experienced? In what? If this guy claimed he did this sort of thing all the time, he couldn’t be real. He had to be something the sparkle-tyrant dreamed up from her mind.
JR14 landed on Azazel’s shoulder with a soft flutter of his wings. “Pursuers have paused at the shaft’s edge. Likelihood of continued pursuit: 41.2 percent. Recommendation: immediate removal from this area.”
Azazel adjusted his grip on Toni.
She watched his gaze sweep across the cramped space. At least there was more light here.
“Where does this lead?” he asked his AI companion.
“To a secondary junction near the resistance’s safe zone,” JR14 said. “Probability of our continued safety increases in that direction.”
Azazel didn’t say a word. He moved, his steps sure despite the cramped conditions.
Toni felt every jolt, every shift, and couldn’t help but marvel at how he carried her without breaking into a sweat.
Damn superhero holding her wasn’t even breathing hard.
“I don’t know who you are,” she kept her voice low.
“But... thank you.” Even if he was some kind of decoy from the Krystalii, it didn’t hurt to let him think she was buying into this whole charade.
He glanced down at her, his expression unreadable. “We will have a clarifying discussion when it is safe to do so.”
“Can’t wait,” she mumbled.
Behind them, the faint echoes of the enforcers’ pursuit faded into silence.
For the first time, Toni took a deep breath and sagged against Azazel’s chest. Whatever this madness was, at least she was free of the blue-boulders’ grip—for now. And it was all because of the man holding her. Maybe later she’d get a chance to figure things out.
To decide if she was in the arms of a possible betrayer or not.