Chapter Seventeen #2
My breath caught, my heart stumbling at the casual way Rhydek said they were planning to kill the poor animal.
I’d seen plenty of dogs with just as much trauma as people returning from war, and to have his partner die on top of that made it no wonder the beast was feral.
I understood animals could become too dangerous to handle, I’d had to make that decision and carry out the consequences before leaving Earth, but it still hurt.
“Has anyone tried to help him?”
Rhydek frowned at me as if I was insane, the answer clear. Too many times, people looked at the animals with trauma as requiring too much effort to fix.
The attack on the bars had stopped, the varku’s chest heaving as he continued to snarl. He was darker than the first, more burgundy, with less pink stripes. The hair bristling across his chest was a bright purple, but he was crisscrossed by scars.
“Hi, Zharrek.”
The snarls didn’t stop, but his pupils narrowed and his head tipped, as if he were trying to hear me better. My instincts screamed not to draw attention to myself, but my heart wouldn’t listen.
Lips stretching into a smile, I made sure I didn’t show my teeth and risk him seeing it as a threat.
Or let Rhydek see.
Zharrek’s tail lashed behind him, the barbed tip striking the ground hard enough to send sand flying over my feet. It should have been a warning, but it didn’t quite feel like one. There was something else there.
He was testing me.
I took a slow breath, forcing myself to stay where I was instead of moving.
Every instinct screamed that this animal was dangerous.
Everything about him, from the scars across his body to the tension in his muscles, spoke of violence, but I’d seen that before.
Not in something built as big, but I recognized the underlying cause.
Pain.
Loss.
Confusion that had nowhere to go except outward.
This puppy was just a bit bigger, with a sword on his tail, and a mouth large enough to crush my skull.
“Careful.”
Rhydek’s voice was low behind me, and there was an edge to it I hadn’t heard before.
“I am.”
Zharrek’s lips peeled back further, revealing more of those long, curved teeth. The sound coming from his chest shifted. Less explosive, more controlled.
My heart skipped as I recognized that sound. Not from something that could end me with a single snap of its jaws, but the intent behind it.
It was usually a warning. Sometimes it was a test. But it always meant uncertainty, and that the animals weren’t as insensible as they seemed.
“You said he had a rakhul with a handler who died?”
I didn’t look away from Zharrek, keeping my eyes locked on his. If I failed to prove my strength in our initial meeting I would forever be at a disadvantage.
“Yes.”
“How long ago was that?”
Rhydek didn’t respond right away, but I felt his attention sharpen. As if he was watching me as closely as I was watching the varku.
“Several vehlar.”
Zharrek shifted at Rhydek’s voice, distracting me from the answer. It was subtle at first, just a redistribution of weight, but then he took a step back.
It was the moment of decision.
Every interaction with an unfamiliar animal had one. The point where it decided whether you were something to ignore, something to test, or something to attack.
His nostrils flared as my pulse thudded in my ears.
“He’s scenting you. Don’t move.”
Rhydek’s voice was tight, but he didn’t reach for my shoulder as he had before.
“I wasn’t planning on it.”
Zharrek’s head swayed as he lifted it, bringing his eyes almost level with mine. The membrane in the corner flicked, and the rumble in his chest shifted again.
Quieter.
Less aggressive.
“You don’t want to eat me.”
He didn’t have ears that I could see, but he tilted his head again, watching me from one eye. His tail waved, a slow motion meant to seem less threatening.
Behind me, Rhydek leaned closer. He was near enough that I felt the heat of him at my back, and his tail curled around the front of my thighs.
“Taryn…”
The warning was clear. He didn’t like the interaction with the varku, but this was what I did. This was what called me.
“He would kill you before I could stop him if you get too close.”
I believed that. Just as I believed Zharrek was as aware and intelligent, if not more so, than the dogs that I had worked with.
“If he wanted to, he would have already tried.”
Rhydek let out a low growl that had shivers running down my spine.
“He did.”
That made me pause.
Slowly, I shifted my gaze, taking in the subtle details I could have missed before. The tension in Zharrek’s shoulders. The angle of his body, not fully squared toward me, but not turned away either.
Ready, but not committed.
“He didn’t. It was a warning.”
Rhydek inhaled, his growl ending.
“He’s still deciding if I’m a threat, or something else.”
Rhydek’s quiet chuckle was dark and full of menace.
“That distinction will not matter if he chooses the wrong move.”
I almost smiled. I’d forgotten for a moment that I stood between two predators.
“Hey, Zharrek. I’m not a danger, and Rhydek will behave if you do.”
The varku’s pupils narrowed further, and behind me, Rhydek made a low sound as if disagreeing, but I ignored him. Zharrek’s head tilted again, his rumble softening until it sounded more like wind in the distance. He hadn’t looked away, but his gaze was less intense. Less challenging.
“I just want to prove you still have a chance. You can still be a good boy.”
The pressure of Rhydek’s tail across my thighs increased, as if he thought I was going to step closer.
“Enough.”
I turned my head until I could see him from the corner of my eye, lifting a brow.
“I’m not moving.”
Teeth flashed before being covered again, but Zharrek was ignoring Rhydek as if he wasn’t there.
“You are pushing boundaries you do not understand.”
Turning my attention back to Zharrek, I let one shoulder rise and fall.
“Neither does he. I’m different enough to make him think instead of react.”
Silence folded around me, the pressure of it making me want to wince as Zharrek took a step forward. His snout came within a foot of the bars. Close enough that if he turned, his tail just might be able to reach.
My chest tightened. I didn’t want another creature tossed aside because war had broken him and no one else would give him a chance.
Zharrek’s chest expanded on a deep inhale, his eyes locked on mine. Something flickered in them, then his lips pulled back and he let out an explosive hiss as he lunged into the bars.
The impact vibrated through the stone beneath my feet and I couldn’t prevent my gasp. It was instinct to jerk back, but I collided with Rhydek’s chest before I moved more than an inch. His arm came around me, pinning me to him, a low, dangerous growl vibrating into my spine, but he stood firm.
Zharrek snarled back, gaze shifting to Rhydek. For a heartbeat, the two of them faced off, Zharrek’s tail lashing before his attention moved back to me and he smacked his tail against the bars.
A display, not an attack. He was telling me he was scary and I should fear him.
I didn’t.
Zharrek turned away abruptly and began to pace along the bars. His chest heaved, but his aggression had shifted. It was less focused. Less personal.
Rhydek’s arm remained around me as he pulled me back two steps.
“You will not do that again.”
His voice was low, his breath ghosting over my neck and making me shiver. My nipples became hard points, my core throbbing, and I didn’t miss the stiffness digging into my hip.
I swallowed, my heart racing, but I tried to focus.
“All I did was prove he’s not too far gone.”
Rhydek scoffed, pulling me farther from Zharrek’s enclosure once he turned away from us.
“That doesn’t matter.”
It did.
To me.
“He didn’t try to hurt me. He was only testing me.”
Rhydek’s grip tightened as he let out a low snarl. With my back pressed against him and his tail and arm wrapped around me, I was engulfed in his warmth and scent, making it hard to think.
“He did.”
Shaking myself, I fought his hold. It took a moment for him to loosen his grip and allow me to step away so I could turn and look up at him.
“No. He reacted. That’s all.”
Rhydek’s lip curled, flashing a tooth at me, and it hit me how similar he was to the beast behind him. Scarred by war, too wary to trust.
“That is the same thing.”
Taking a breath, I forced my muscles to loosen and used my calmest tone.
“It’s not. The intent is different.”
Rhydek’s growl filled the space between us and I exhaled slowly.
“You said he had a rakhul.”
He didn’t respond, still glaring at me.
“And he lost it.”
Again, nothing, but I pushed on.
“He lost someone he trusted with his life. He’s grieving.”
Rhydek’s jaw tightened, but he lost the angry set to his features and his growl faded.
“It’s not the same—”
“It is.”
His eyes flashed when I cut him off, but I didn’t back down.
“He’s alone and confused. Of course he’s unstable.”
Rhydek huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and looking away.
“That doesn’t make him safe.”
Shrugging, I nodded in agreement.
“True. He’s more dangerous than a wild one who would be wary of people and more likely to run. He’ll fight.”
My pulse quickened as I pushed toward the heart of my argument.
“But has anyone tried to work with him?”
A grunt was all I received but it was answer enough.
“He won’t get better ignored.”
Rhydek’s glare was sharp when he pinned me with it.
“He is too dangerous. No one has time to baby him.”
I let out my own huff, irritated at the typical attitude.
“He is not one of your Earth animals, Taryn.”
Taking a moment to breathe, I pushed away my irritation. Arguing wouldn’t get Rhydek to agree with me.
“I know. He’s not.”
Looking back towards Zharrek’s cage, I sighed.
“He’s big, he’s a predator, and he’s traumatized. But that doesn’t mean he’s beyond help.”
Rhydek was silent. I felt the tension radiating off him. Not just concern, or frustration. Something else.
“You cannot tame him.”
I blinked before letting out a short laugh. The thought was ludicrous.
“I wasn’t planning to.”
Rhydek’s brows rose as if he saw right through me, but I shook my head.
“I just met him, Rhydek. And you said none of them are tame. It would take time to earn his trust and make him manageable again.”
His expression didn’t change and I was forced to look away. There was no reason to feel so attached to the animal, other than I felt bad for him. His situation was so similar to the dogs I’d left behind, and I couldn’t resist the need to help.
“I’d like to come back.”
Rhydek stiffened and I raised my hands before he could protest.
“To observe. To learn more about them. No touching.”
His lips had parted but they closed again as he looked past me down the row of cages. I knew he was thinking of the dangers.
“This is not a place for you to wander alone.”
Shaking my head, a hint of a smile tugged at my lips as hope surged through my chest.
“I’ll stay with you the whole time.”
Sighing, he dropped his arms to his sides. His expression said he didn’t like it, but it wasn’t hard as if he planned to deny me.
“We will see.”
It wasn’t a yes, but it wasn’t no either. It was the best I could hope for.
I glanced back towards Zharrek’s cage one more time, finding him at the bars, eyes locked on me as if he knew I was his lifeline and was asking me not to give up.
There was still fight left in both of us.