“I thankee lady.” He squared his shoulders and thumped his chest. “I am called Xabat.”
“Xabat,” Willa repeated and smiled. “Well, Xabat, like Zahavi, you don’t look like you belong here either. What happened?”
Our intent was simple. Find the gladiators who had a reason to hate Nansar and capitalize on it.
Zahavi and Xabat shared a glance, and it was the smaller male who spoke first.
“I was a medic with a mercenary crew,” Zahavi spoke softly, his gaze lingering on the guards milling about the edge of the room to ensure they were out of earshot. Thankfully, Aljani weren’t known for their hearing. “It was a good life until Nansar contracted us to kidnap human females from a planet called Tau Ceti. My crew didn’t believe in slavery… most of us having suffered it ourselves. When we refused to complete the job, Nansar sent a team of Kerzak to wipe out my entire crew. He brought here because....” He shrugged with a sigh. “Every pit needs a medic.”
“I am so sorry, Zahavi,” Willa said, the sincerity in her tone shocking the Irvikuva. He blinked furiously, giving my mate a respectful nod.
And so, it went as one by one, each gladiator fell under the charm of my mate.
Xabat had been working on an Alliance merchant vessel that inadvertently discovered Ambassador Yaard of the Kerzak using Alliance trade routes to ship slaves and drugs. Most of his crew were killed or imprisoned. Because Xabat was the largest and had a reputation as a fighter, Nansar brought him to the pit. Xabat’s brother Xytol remained in captivity, and Xabat wanted nothing more than to escape and find him.
A Trogvyk named Gatto—a purple alien with feline features—proved the angriest. Trogvyk were slavers, the species responsible for kidnapping Willa and her friends. Gatto had been a lone voice among his crew who argued against turning human females over to the Kerzak earning Ambassador Yaard’s ire which led to his imprisonment in the pit.
Ixaka, a Wojonik with dark red skin, yellow eyes, horns, wings, and a tail, who Willa whispered reminded her of someone called Satan, was the friendliest. He’d been working as hired muscle for Ambassador Yaard but became sickened by how the Kerzak treated human females, especially since females were rare and precious on his home world. He’d tried to send a message to the Alliance regarding Yaard’s behavior and rescue the females held captive, but the Kerzak captured and dumped him here.
The large dark brown alien with leathery skin and wings was Rickon, a Gudari. His kind, while somewhat untrustworthy, proved excellent warriors, especially with their aerial abilities. However, the painful-looking metallic straps binding his wings currently prevented him from taking flight. Rickon lost his mate, child, and most of his kin to a disease that ravaged his planet. Nansar had kidnapped his only surviving relative, a younger brother. Rickon tracked his sibling to the Gilese mining moons, but his rescue attempt was thwarted, leading to his capture by Nansar.
Pavolarian, who happily told Willa to call him Pavo, was a Romvesian, one of the species my kind had engaged in a war against a century ago. Pavo worked as a mercenary and soldier for hire, as did many Romvesians. Nansar hired him as protection on a Gilese mining moon. Good work, or so Pavo thought until he discovered Nansar using children to mine the drug mumje and stood against it.
Cristox was a Stranac, a species Willa informed me looked like something called the Cowardly Lion, except sporting many more scars. Because Cristox refused to mate with an aristocrat’s cruel daughter, his people shamed and banished him from his home world. He’d worked the gladiator circuit for a while, ending up on the planet Zaheere, known for its beautiful and deadly jungles. While there, he’d rescued a human female being attacked by the Kerzak and given himself for capture up to ensure her escape.
Beiste was an Elktonni with deep red skin and completely red eyes. Like most of his kind, he’d been in Kerzak employ until the day he overheard a conversation between Ambassador Yaard and Nansar. Willa cajoled with all her might, but she couldn’t convince Beiste to divulge what he’d overheard. He claimed that to know the secret would be a death sentence for all.
Kariosak was the last to speak. Not surprising. His species, the Bojovik, were renowned for being of few words. Willa gushed over his size, emerald green skin, and long black hair, saying he favored something called an Orc on Earth. While he smiled sweetly at my mate, all he would say was that he hated Nansar for reasons that would remain his own.
At the end of the discussion, we knew two things for certain. Nansar was far more involved with Ambassador Yaard than we’d suspected, and each gladiator possessed a reason to hate them both.
Discovering the guard was a surprise.
As the conversation between Willa and the gladiators wore on, I noticed Adtovar becoming less and less interested. His focus lay on a lone guard standing sentry in the far-left corner of the room.
As Aljani went, the male wasn’t very large or otherwise memorable. Still, the expression on Adtovar’s face made me rankle. Was this one of the males to tried to harm my mate?
Willa sat between us, and I let my arm drape over the back of her chair so I could lean over, keeping my voice as hushed as possible. “Is he one of the guards who hurt Willa?”
I felt my mate stiffen at the sound of her name, but she didn’t pause in regaling the others with tales of Earth customs and food. Something called Taco Tuesday had captured everyone’s attention.
“No.” Adtovar quickly relieved my immediate concern. Although the worried curiosity on his face kept me cautious. “I’ve seen him before. He stays to himself mostly and doesn’t take part in the other guard’s cruelty.”
“Why the interest?” Again, the guard seemed nothing uncommon.
“He’s careful,” Adtovar murmured. “Watch.”
I let my gaze settle on the guard. Mostly, he did his duty, allowing his pale blue gaze to sweep the room over and over, always alert, expression emotionless and blank. Then his eyes met mine. Just for a moment, just long enough for me to know the connection wasn’t accidental. Once the guard knew he commanded my attention, his gaze flickered to Willa. Something like concern crossed his features before he shifted his gaze to Adtovar, and again to me. He held my gaze a moment, long enough for me to realize that the way he raised his chin and gave a nod toward the escarpment at the north end of the arena wasn’t accidental.
Knowing rushed through my veins. Sages spent years in training, learning to discern even the most minuscule hint of body language. I didn’t get the feeling this guard wished us harm. On the contrary, my analysis and interpretation of his body movements and nonverbal cues made me think he wished to communicate something to us. Something important.
“You don’t think he heard your mating claim and is trying to figure out if it’s true, do you?” Adtovar wondered, then worried. “Perhaps to use it against us?”
“Perhaps,” I gave, not yet ready to relinquish my skepticism. “Although I don’t sense malice from him.”
Adtovar gave a heavy snort that suggested he might not agree with my assessment. “We need to find out what he wants.”
“What does who want?” Willa leaned back in her chair with a pleased smile. The conversation between the others continued, filling the room with pleasant banter.
