Why did he have to be so heartless? Why did he have to make the one decision I could never forgive? By leaving those women in prison cells, he left me there as well.
“Are you unharmed?”
“I’m fine.” Technically true. Physically, at least. Mentally? I was confused. I was in love with two warriors who hated one another. And I couldn’t shake the creepy feeling that something was wrong. Just… wrong. With the ship? With the mission? With my completely fucked up love life? Best two out of three?
Zarren pulled away and I looked up into his tormented green eyes. I’d never seen that look before. “Willow, my lady, I understand why you took Oberon from my ship.”
“You do?”
He cupped the side of my face with his hand and stroked my cheek with his thumb. What was it with these guys? Did they have a top-secret, Willow Baylor operating manual somewhere? ‘Cup Willow Baylor’s face in your big, strong hands and she’ll melt.’
“Yes.” His thumb paused and he tilted his head. “You should have talked to me, mate, before you left. But I understand why you did not. The fault is mine.”
What?
“I should have held you in my arms and asked about your nightmares the very first night.”
“I hid them from you. I took off my collar and—”
“You hid nothing. I knew the moment your nightmares began each night. I allowed you to believe you sneaked from our bed. I was a coward. I did not want anything to interfere with the dream I was living with you. I was selfish and weak. I should have insisted. I knew you were suffering, and I did nothing. I did not protect you by naming a second. I will never forgive myself for failing to care for you as I should.”
He stepped back and looked me over from head to toe, one fingertip lifted to trace the insignia on my uniform. I’d looked around, no one else on board the ship had one like mine.
“Prime Nial has marked you with full council protection. He gave you unrestricted access to the S-Gen machines, weaponry, comm blackouts, transport beacons. Why would he do that?” Zarren lowered his hand. “It appears, my lady, I did not know you at all.”
Oh, but he did. I’d thrown myself into that match with everything in me. The mating collars had to have been turned up to maximum volume with all the emotions I’d thrown his way. I didn’t hide or pretend when I was with him. I was myself.
Mostly. The most myself I’d been since I’d left Earth.
I looked down at my uniform and boots and thought back to the blue dress I’d worn when I first met him. I’d loved that dress. “I was a law enforcement officer, back on Earth. I just… I didn’t let that part of myself out.” I sighed. “Actually, this change is your fault.”
“How so?”
No lies between us, at least not from me. “Because being with you made me feel strong again. I had forgotten what that felt like, not being afraid all the time.”
“No one will ever hurt you again, Willow. I swear it.” The softness I’d sensed from him vanished in an instant. “Why did you not tell me about your time with the Hive?”
I shrugged. “You didn’t ask, and I don’t like talking about it.”
“Did you tell him?”
Himbeing Oberon. Here we go. “Yes.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.” I really didn’t. Because he was safe? Kind? Because he held me in his arms after one of my nightmares and dared to ask? Or because I was finally ready?
“Because you believe his sister is their prisoner?”
“Isn’t she? Isn’t that why we’re all here?” It was my turn to step back as rage bubbled up and filled me to the breaking point. “Oberon told you his sister was a prisoner on that base. And you were going to blow it up anyway? Kill her and all the other prisoners? Women like me? That could have been me. You don’t know. That could have been me!”
Zarren moved forward to take me into his arms once more. I stepped back and pushed his hand out of the way.
“No. Don’t touch me. I can’t believe you. I can’t. How could you?”
Rather than push me any further than he already had, he sat down in one of the chairs and waited for my blood pressure to come back down.
“The day I discovered Amalia Arcas had gone missing, I sent out an order to gather all relevant information. There were others taken, Willow, at least a dozen more from Prillon Prime alone. My people compiled a list. Names. Faces. Personal items, if we could acquire them without upsetting the families. Once I had enough information, I sent out a team of Elite Hunters. Not just Kayn—who is the best I’ve ever seen—but several others as well. I do not know what you may have learned about the Everians, but they can track anyone, anywhere, across galaxies. Their Elite Hunters’ abilities are well known and have been tested, and found to be true, over and over, for thousands of years.”
