Chapter 7 #3
“No suffering has to come to your brother or the young female. If you cooperate, I can assure their safety.” His voice was low and gravelly, sending tendrils of frisson tingling up my neck and to my scalp.
When I said nothing, he put a finger under my jaw.
His claw pricked my skin as he tilted my head up.
“Tell me the true purpose of why you came here. I know your Consortium isn’t foolish enough to send their people to a planet that belongs to their enemy just to satisfy curiosity about our burial practices. ”
“Consortium officers approached me to see if I would be interested in studying abandoned ruins. After losing my work to them a year and a half earlier, I jumped at the chance.”
His eyes were hard and cold, pinning me in place as a snarl rippled through his chest, his fangs in full view.
“You think that I will not punish you for your continued lies? You are a fool if you believe that you and those with you will not endure severe punishment as repayment for your trespass and the death of the guardians of the shrine.”
Frustration bubbled up in me. “I’m telling you the truth! Your unwillingness to hear me is the problem. I can’t be anything more than I am. I’m a university professor.” And how I wished I was still there, teaching a class to bored trust fund students.
He drew back and said something to the red eyed one. The other male left. Fear continued to thread through me, pulsing worse with each beat of my heart. What was he going to do?
“If you don’t believe me, maybe there’s a way to prove who I am. If you have access to an interstellar network, we might be able to find information about me from my government that would prove who I am.”
He smirked. “You think I’ll give you access to an intergalactic connected device?”
My shoulders sagged. Nothing I said or did would convince him and my chance of escape and getting both Jaron and Tatiana out was nil. I closed my eyes against the rising panic.
The sliding of the door announced the other vorpyr had come back.
I kept my eyes closed, trying to focus on my breaths, sure that physical pain was only a moment away.
No one spoke, but movement made me tense.
The Vorazyr’s scent, fresh, softly spicy but with almost a sweet undertone, circled around me, and I opened my eyes.
He tugged me to my feet. I sighed heavily. What now?
He brought me to a window where he tapped the shutter and it slid into a pocket in the wall.
My stomach dropped at the sight outside.
Jaron. The fading light illuminated him being held by two vorpyr, one gripping each arm, flapping their wings.
They were far enough away from the buildings that hugged the cliff wall that if they dropped him, he would fall directly to the canyon floor dozens of feet below.
A powerful body pressed in behind me as I stared in horror. “The next lie you tell me will have a more significant outcome.” His warm breath caressed my ear and neck and a violent shiver took hold of me as goosebumps crawled over my skin.
Breathe, be calm.
I couldn’t. My brother was right there, looking exhausted and sunburnt.
“Please.” The sob jerked its way out of my chest as I stared at him.
I wanted to call out to him, but he wouldn’t hear me.
I whirled to the voryzar, trying to contain my sobs as I pressed my hands against his chest, “don’t hurt him, it’s my fault we’re here, he’s innocent.
” Noises that I didn’t know I was capable of ripped out of me as I cried.
“Please! I’ll tell you everything I know. ”
“Then tell me.” he growled.
I tried to tell him again about the university, about the Consortium’s offer for this mission. This horrible, horrible mission. Even the first research mission I’d been on to study his culture. It wasn’t what he wanted to know.
“I don’t know anything else!” My chest ached and I rubbed my palm against it, panic flaring.
I had to help my brother. If he plummeted to his death because of me and my stupid lack of military knowledge, I would never forgive myself.
I would give up all the Consortium’s secrets to protect my brother. It was a pity I had none.
My gaze dropped to the daggers on the hips of the other one, and I didn’t hesitate. My desperate actions must have shocked him, because I was able to tear a dagger free of its sheath as I made a mad dash toward the door. I surged forward wildly, my muscles straining, shoving the door to the side.
Powerful arms wrapped around me and wrenched me back. I cried out.
“Jacqueline!” Jaron’s panicked voice came to me before the door closed with a resounding thud.
Everything came crashing down. My breath came in panicked gasps as I broke.
“I’ll do anything, please. I’ll do anything.
I’ll find out what you want. I’ll find out…
” my legs gave out as I sobbed, shaking violently.
The strong arms binding me shifted and the knife clattered to the floor as I was carried and placed in the hard chair.
I didn’t care. My oxygen was gone, my chest aching, and tears blurred my eyes. I dry heaved, my stomach spasming.
The door slid open and closed and after several deep breaths I forced myself to straighten. It took a second longer to focus. He was still there, watching me with something I couldn’t discern in his eyes. I didn’t care. “Don’t hurt him.” It came out raspy and pained.
He said nothing. The other vorpyr returned, this time with a third male. The male clapped his wings once, reported something, and left. My interrogators exchanged glances.
I had to get control of myself, to get control of the situation.
I pushed myself to my feet, holding onto the chair to limit swaying on my weak, traitorous legs.
“I can teach you. About our language. About our culture. It would help you to know about those you’re…
not on good terms with.” I choked on the last words, the weight of betraying my species heavy on me.
I would deal with that later. Now, right now, I had to save my brother.
They both regarded me silently, like I was some curiosity.
“Your brother has been taken back to his holding place. You will stay here while I am gone.”
Gone?
Without another word he left me alone in the shadows.