Chapter 14
Leah
I darted through the crowded market of Numae like a rabbit fleeing wolves, cursing my own stupidity for talking to the vendors.
I’d thought a change of clothes would help me blend in, but instead, it had made me all the easier to find.
My heart thundered against my ribs, a vicious drumbeat of panic that drowned out the ambient chatter of the marketplace.
Behind me, those two massive aliens—Aano and Yahn—were closing in, their towering frames easy to spot even in this crush of bodies.
Fuck. I’d thought they were just sexy hookups at a charity auction.
Blue-collar, reliable, salt-of-the-earth types.
Not criminals who whispered about evidence and kidnapping when they thought I was in the shower.
I dodged between an elderly Araced couple, mumbling apologies as my shoulder clipped their shopping basket.
The market stretched before me, a labyrinth of stalls and bodies I desperately needed to disappear into.
I yanked the hood of my jacket up, tucking my distinctive pink-streaked curls out of sight.
“Just blend in, Leah,” I muttered to myself.
Sadly, my idea of “blending in” usually involved designer sunglasses and a baseball cap, slipping unnoticed into high-end boutiques on Earth. Not evading two trained... whatever they were... on an alien planet where my pale skin and five-foot-four frame stuck out.
I veered sharply left, ducking behind a stall selling what looked like writhing purple tentacles on sticks. The smell hit me like a physical blow—briny and metallic. I gagged, pressing myself against the rough stone wall of a building as I peered back the way I’d come.
There. The familiar blue bulk of Aano, his tall frame weaving through the crowd with effortless grace despite his size.
And beside him, the sleek orange form of Yahn, his tail lashing behind him in what I now recognized as agitation.
They moved like predators—efficient, focused, eyes scanning methodically.
Straight toward my hiding spot.
“Shit.” My curse came out as a hiss. They couldn’t possibly see me here, which meant...
I patted myself down frantically, searching for a tracker. I found nothing, but I supposed it could be hidden somewhere that I wasn’t thinking of.
I slipped back into the crowd, walking now instead of running. Running attracted attention. But it was too late—I felt Yahn’s gaze lock onto me like a targeting system. Their pace quickened.
I broke into a sprint, shoving past a cluster of chattering locals. Someone swore at me in Araced. I didn’t slow to apologize this time.
The end of the market loomed ahead—a narrow street that led God-knows-where in this unfamiliar city. If I could just reach it—
A massive hand closed around my upper arm, gentle but unmistakably firm. I whirled, free hand already curled into a fist, connecting with solid muscle. Aano didn’t even flinch.
“Leah,” he said, voice impossibly soft for someone so large. His eyes held none of the menace I expected. “Stop. Please.”
Yahn appeared on my other side, his reddish-brown eyes intense but not cruel. “We just want to talk.”
“Let me go!” I snarled, yanking against Aano’s grip. My pulse hammered in my ears. Fight, flight, or freeze—my body couldn’t decide which survival response to commit to. “I heard you—about the kidnapping. I’m not stupid.”
Something like hurt flashed across Yahn’s face. His tail drooped slightly. “It’s not what you think.”
“Really?” My laugh came out raw. “Because what I think is you two dragged me halfway across the galaxy, and now I’m caught up in whatever criminal shit show you’ve got going on.”
Aano released my arm, holding his hands up in surrender. “We’re not criminals.”
“Then why were you chasing me?”
“Because you ran,” Yahn said simply. “And we were worried.”
I stared at them, my breath coming in short gasps as adrenaline coursed through my system. Around us, the market continued its chaotic dance, locals casting curious glances at the strange human woman having a meltdown between two imposing aliens.
“Look,” Aano said, his voice dropping to a rumble that somehow penetrated the white noise of my panic. “Can we just sit down somewhere? Five minutes. If you still want to run after that, we won’t stop you.”
I searched their faces—Aano’s open, almost guileless expression and Yahn’s tightly controlled concern. Behind my fear, something else stirred. Curiosity, maybe. Or the ridiculous, unwelcome awareness that despite everything, I still found them both devastatingly attractive.
“Fine,” I managed. “Five minutes.”
They led me to a small park adjacent to the market—just a patch of grass with a few benches nestled beneath trees with feathery purple foliage.
I sat stiffly, maintaining as much distance as the bench allowed.
Yahn remained standing, his tail swishing in agitation, while Aano settled beside me with a careful gap between us.
“Start talking,” I said.
Aano exhaled slowly. “We work for a security company called Bodyguards in Space.”
I snorted, the absurdity breaking through my fear. “If you’re going to tell a lie, you should at least pick a better name for your fake bodyguard company.”
To my surprise, Aano laughed—a rich, genuine sound that crinkled the corners of his eyes. “Sorry to say, but it’s the real name.”
“You’re joking.”
“I wish.” He pulled out a sleek device, tapping the screen before handing it to me. “Our bosses have an odd sense of humor. Here’s our company profile on the interstellar net.”
I scanned the page with skepticism that quickly faded. The site was professional, featuring images of multi-species security teams and client testimonials.
“We were both IUC officers before joining BIS,” Yahn explained, sitting on my other side. “I specialized in intelligence gathering. Aano was tactical operations.”
I handed the device back, mind racing. “So why were you at a charity date auction? And what’s this about a kidnapping?”
Yahn’s face darkened. His tail went rigid. “My brother, Ruhn, has been kidnapped by the Ducal Syndicate.”
“The who?”
“Tholkon crime family,” Aano explained. “Big players in drugs, weapons trafficking, blackmail—you name it. And Yahn’s brother is innocent in all of this. He’s a scientist with no military training.”
As I studied Yahn, a cold knot formed in my stomach. Memories threatened to surface—dark rooms, muffled voices, my mothers’ tightly controlled terror when they finally got me back. I’d been seven. The ransom had been paid. I never talked about it.
“I’m... I’m sorry about your brother,” I said to Yahn, the words inadequate but sincere. “I know what that’s like. Sort of. I was kidnapped as a kid.” The admission slipped out before I could stop it. “And, I don’t know. I get a little paranoid.”
Yahn’s eyes widened, his expression softening. “I didn’t know.”
“How could you? It’s not like we exchanged life stories before...” I trailed off, heat rising to my cheeks as I remembered what we had exchanged.
“Before we fucked your brains out?” Aano supplied helpfully, his mouth quirking up at one corner.
Despite everything, I laughed. “Exactly.”
Yahn leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “The Ducals took Ruhn to force me to hand over evidence we gathered during our last mission. Evidence that could dismantle their entire operation.”
“We’ve been working this case for months,” Aano added. “Infiltrating their network, tracking their shipments, building a case for the IUC prosecution team. We were this close to delivering the final proof when everything went sideways.”
“What kind of evidence?” I asked.
“Financial records, communication logs, shipping manifests,” Yahn said. “Proof that The Duke’s operations extend all the way into the IUC governance structure.”
My eyes widened. “Corruption in the IUC?”
Aano nodded grimly. “To the highest levels. Which is why we can’t just walk into an IUC office and hand it over. We need to make sure it reaches the right people—people we can trust. We’re pretty sure there’s a mole tracking us.”
I tried to process this information, my mind spinning. “But that still doesn’t explain why you were at the charity auction. Or how I fit into all this.”
Aano ran a hand through his dark blue-black hair, looking almost sheepish. “We were being tailed. We needed a quick exit strategy that wouldn’t look suspicious.”
“The auction was perfect cover,” Yahn continued. “It was public enough to discourage violence, and private enough to slip away unnoticed.”
I stared at him, incredulous. “You’re telling me you two put yourselves on the auction block as—what—an escape plan?”
“Initially, yes,” Yahn admitted, his tail curling slightly. “But—“
“I thought all the guys at the charity auction were vetted!” I yelped, the absurdity of the situation finally hitting me.
“I know Marigold, the director of the Every Child Foundation,” Aano said. “I grew up with her kids. So... I’m kind of vetted?”
“Vetted means background checks! Character references! Not ‘oh hey, I know the director so she let me sneak in while I’m being chased by the space mafia!’”
Aano had the decency to look contrite. “If it helps, we were thoroughly vetted before joining BIS. And we really do support the work of the foundation.”
“That’s not the point!” I jumped up, pacing in front of the bench. “So what was I? Just a convenient human shield?”
“At first,” Yahn said quietly. “But then...”
He trailed off, but his meaning hung in the air between us. Then we got to know you. Then we wanted you. Then it became something else entirely.
I stopped pacing, studying them both. Aano—massive, blue, with eyes that crinkled when he smiled and gentle hands that belied his strength.
Yahn—lean, intense, his orange skin contrasting with the dark hair he kept so meticulously styled.
Both of them looking at me now with expressions that mingled hope, worry, and something else I wasn’t ready to name.
“So what happens now?” I asked, surprised by the steadiness in my voice.