His severe expression softened, and he stepped closer to me, putting a hand on my hip and leaning down to whisper, “We will see, little rebel.”
Before I could tell him not to call me that, his door beeped. I backed away from him, nearly tripping in my haste to put distance between us and despising the fact that my face flamed. By contrast, Wrexxon appeared completely unruffled.
He straightened and his face was a mask of control once more. "Vaes!”
The door glided open, and the Vandar he’d calledmajakentered. The raider’s gaze shifted between me and the Raas, questioning and tentative.
“I was explaining to our guest that she’s the reason the Zagrath are so intent on our horde,” Wrexxon said, his tone casual, as if his tail hadn’t been pinned between my thighs only moment earlier.
Themajak'sbrow furrowed. “You told?—?”
“She needed to understand why she was taken and why she will remain with me.” Wrexxon cut him off sharply. “Do you have a report?"
Themajak'sexpression shifted immediately, discipline overriding whatever he'd been about to say. He squared his shoulders. "Yes, Raas. We've analyzed the Imperial ships'trajectory and intercepted communications further. We believe we know where they're heading and why.”
A pause, heavy and ominous as Wrexxon leaned forward.
"They're going after another name on their list."
Wrexxon stiffened. “Tvekkinghell.”
A shiver went through me as I thought of another rebel the Empire had marked for death. How many did the Vandar think they could save? Then another thought struck me. “You don’t take them all as war brides, do you?”
Both warriors stared at me then exchanged a startled glance.
“The Vandar do not keep harems of brides like the Denvari,” Wrexxon growled. “I will only ever take one war bride, one Raisa.”
I avoided his gaze and the unspoken words hanging heavy in the air. And he was certain that bride was me.
The Raas’smajakglanced at the tablet in his hands. “Also, the rebel the Zagrath are now hunting is named Aldric, one of the many reasons he would be an unsuitable war bride for a Vandar.”
“Don’t knock it ’til you try it,” I said under my breath, a part of me hoping Wrexxon would hear me and be supremely annoyed.
Chapter 24
Wrexxon
We were walking back through the ship, and she was arguing with me. Apparently the female was incapable ofnotarguing.
"You can't just drop me off somewhere and expect me to sit quietly while you go rescue someone else," Jasmine said for what had to be the fifth time since we'd left the strategy room.
"That is exactly what I can do," I replied, helping her across another gap between platforms. "And what I will do."
My plan had always been to take her to one of the hidden Vandar colonies where our people lived without fear of being found by the Zagrath. She would be safe there. That had been before I’d decided to keep her for myself but stashing her somewhere safe still remained the best plan, especially since the Empire still hunted her.
Not only was it the best move to keep her safe, but it was also the most effective way to thwart the Zagrath. But when I’dinformed her of my plan of taking her to a Vandar colony before continuing our mission to find the next person on the Imperial execution list, she'd balked.
"It's non-negotiable," I told her as a pair of Vandar strode by, their heels clicking together in salute even as their eyes widened.
Jasmine kept right on negotiating, which was an odd sensation. I was not used to my orders being questioned. The fact that the one questioning me was a human and a female at that had me shaking my head in disbelief.
The ship was less frantic than when we'd rushed through earlier, but I still had to lift her across gaps, slow my pace so she could keep up, and take stairs at a measured pace instead of the leaping down them.
"You saved me because I was targeted by the Empire,” she said, slightly breathless from trying to match my stride. “And I was targeted by them because I was part of the resistance, just like the guy you’re doing to save. Don’t you think I’d want to help save another rebel?"
“We do not need your help.”
She huffed out an impatient breath. “You're not listening to me?—"
