“You are wise not to trust me,” he said, startling her from her thoughts.
“But you aren’t like the others,” she offered.
“I am not,” he conceded, “but I am still Xaal. I may not participate in senseless torment, but standing by while it occurs does not an ally make. You should assume anyone who isn’t in the same armor as your qon is an enemy. For he certainly will.”
It was good advice; she knew it to be true. But she couldn’t exactly be picky with her allies. It made her think, though. If Ved did come, would he kill Andrix? He’d said he would kill all of Clan Rax, but…
“You don’t wear the same armor as them,” she prompted.
“I do not,” was all he said, apparently unwilling to give any more information. “We are approaching our destination. When they come for you, I suggest you cooperate. Regardless of the fight you put up, they’re going to keep you alive to use against Ved Qon Cleave, but that doesn’t mean they need to keep you in a single piece.”
Suddenly, she hoped Ved didn’t take the bait—that he didn’t know she was even taken. He would destroy Clan Rax eventually, and if she could survive until then, maybe…
Driskos padded forward again, crowding into her space and sniffing loudly. Without waiting for permission, he laved her hands with his huge tongue, his thick whip of a tail wagging. She breathed a laugh and tried to shove him back, but the hound was all thick, immoveable muscle. Wiping her slobber-drenched hands on her nightgown, she surrendered and scratched behind his ears instead.
Perhaps he wasn’t as frightening as she thought.
Andrix muttered something in Xaala and then, “Tell me one thing, earthling. In our world, there is no place for pairing with a non-Xaal. How is it exactly you came to be Ved Qon Cleave’s?”
A shiver ran through her.His.
Damn being careful with how she answered. Her heart raced as she said, “I’m not entirely certain when it happened. But it was like a divine force had orchestrated it. As though he burned across the skies just to get to me.”
Andrix stepped back, and Driskos followed. Clicking his tongue, he shook his head. “And you still think he won’t come for you?”
Chapter 35
Isobel
The other Xaal collected her some indefinite time later. She’d spent the time pacing her enclosure, meaning she took two and a half steps in one direction only to turn around again. When they opened the door and pulled her out, she let them. Even with her cooperation, they pushed her forward while uttering what she imagined were threats in Xaala.
Isobel tried to see outside of the ship’s hatch, but before she could, Breg lifted her up and tossed her over his shoulder without warning. When he started running, she was jostled around violently, forced to keep her back and abdomen tense to avoid hitting her head repeatedly on his armor.
She was unable to get her bearings from such a position. All she knew was the humidity was so thick that it was like a muggy caress. So dense it made it difficult to take a full breath.
Her muscles gave out fully after twenty or thirty minutes, and the world rushed by in blurs of green and black. Just when the pain of knocking her head against Breg’s armor became so unbearable shethought she would pass out, he finally came to a stop. The moment he did, he tossed her on a platform that rocked with the impact.
“What are you doing?” she asked, scrambling to her knees. But between the spinning in her vision and the wobbling beneath her, she fell back again.
Breg only growled at her before stepping away.
When she was able to regain some semblance of balance, she looked at her surroundings. She was in a boat—an old one, if the gashes and wear in the dark wood were any indication. Two crimson suns sat low in the sky like two bloodshot eyes. The body of water they were on was a murky teal anywhere dark algae didn’t cover. Fog danced along the top further out, and she felt as if she was being watched by something primordial and full of hunger.
Despite the warmth, she shivered.
Tearing her eyes away from the mist, she looked at the shoreline. Trees thicker and larger than any she’d ever seen surrounded them. The area was lush and verdant, with curtains of vines and mossy webbing draped across the trees, connecting them. It was so unlike the woods on the Nott estate and so much …more. Denser, deeper,darker. An ancient presence lingered. Without knowing how, she knew this planet was far older than hers.
A Xaal swung over the side of the makeshift boat, rocking it so violently she feared it would tip. Instinctively, she backed away from him until she realized that it was only Andrix, Driskos in tow. Andrix spared her a single glance before cutting them away from the shore. Driskos let out a low whine and settled down beside him, red eyes flicking nervously to either side. It wasn’t long before the fog encompassed them. The suns’ watchful gaze and that dark forest disappeared as they moved further in.
Isobel had the distinct feeling of being adrift in an endless gray void.
Perhaps she was only in a dream. One where everything moved slowly and the fog was alive and scheming. One where the monsters had full control and she was at their mercy.
She had entered yet another world in which she didn’t belong.
More than once, something moved in her peripherals, but when she turned to catch sight of it, it would be gone, sinking beneath the mist.
“Krugdar,” Andrix said, causing her to jump. Driskos’s ears and antennae twitched, but he didn’t lift his head.
