Chapter 20
Sector A was a sort of badlands between the Sol System and Sirius, a sector filled with interstellar dust and sometimes dangerous radiation levels. It attracted smugglers and thieves, and one had to watch his back when traveling there.
Z didn’t care about the danger. He’d already decided he’d do anything for the little doctor. The only thing that bothered him was the week he’d have to spend apart from her. Then again, maybe the distance was good. He was falling too deep too fast, and if he didn’t get his shit straight, he could end up hurt.
Or worse, he could end up hurting her.
Maybe it was inevitable. The passion they’d shared had been better than anything he’d experienced before. Already, he knew that letting her go would be the hardest thing he’d ever done. But do it, he would. He had to.
Duty to his planet came first.
Yet here he was, speeding to the badlands instead of searching for the crystal. “I had to,” he told himself. “If I’d let her research falter, I might never find the crystal. Now that I have her trust, I can’t risk losing it again.”
The first day of the trip, he was consumed with thoughts of Dawn. He regretted showering after her encounter because he could no longer smell her scent on his own skin. But he’d made up for it by tucking her pink panties into his palm and sneaking them into his stuff. Now he could smell her at his leisure.
Just a whiff of her scent made his cock as hard as steel. He tormented himself with the memory of her as his ship hurtled through space, replaying their interaction over and over again. It was hard to sleep, hard to concentrate. Basically, everything was hard.
Especially his cock.
On day two, he forced himself to focus on the task at hand. The card Ladee had given him included the coordinates of a shop that was in the center of one of the most contested areas of the badlands. Several smuggling gangs fought over territory there, and he’d have to be on guard for any aggression.
Before he reached the outskirts of the badlands, Zelup made sure the cloaking system his brother Nojan had been so kind to install was fully engaged. It should not only keep the smugglers from noticing his ship, but it had the dual purpose of disguising him from the demon Seekers who could be hunting him.
Although he’d normally shake off the idea of some malevolent force hunting him across the galaxy, he knew it was a possibility. One of the Seekers had wormed its way onto the ship when his brother had been bringing his bride Mayra home to Vartik. It had been disguised as an attractive human female, but soon, it had revealed horrible powers. The Seeker had pulled Nojan and Mayra into a series of hallucinations that had almost ended in their deaths. Only the assistance of the Goddess of Light had saved them.
Zelup sent up a quick prayer to the Vartik’s patron goddess. She was guiding his family as they attempted to rescue one of her children, the twin son of light, from the evil depths of whatever Hell the Crown Prince had hidden him in.
As his ship drew closer to its destination, he considered what would happen when he returned with the element Dawn needed. Would she welcome him back with open arms? Would she repay his bravery with another hot night of passion? Would she—
The buzzing of an alarm brought him out of his inappropriate thoughts. There was another ship in close proximity to his own. Z changed course to get out of its way, but the ship altered its course to pursue.
“What the fuck?” Another zig and an answering zag from the other ship.
“They shouldn’t even be able to see me, let alone track me.” Still, within seconds, the ship was in striking distance. He pulled up the viewscreen to get a better look. The vessel was unfamiliar, its hull a shiny black that reminded him of the shell of an insect.
Without warning, a dark cloud filled his ship. When it cleared, a man with long blond hair stood beside him.
Zelup jumped up, scrambling to attack the intruder, but before he could get close to him, the manshifted. Suddenly, he was behind Zelup, putting him in a headlock. “It’s okay,” he said to the air. “I’m going to bring you over now. He’s restrained.”
Another being materialized in front of them. “So this is one of the Vartik bastards?” the new intruder asked. He was tall, with skin so dark it nearly matched his ship. His head was bald, and he had ice-blue eyes that were striking against such a dark palette.
“He doesn’t amount to much, does he?” the one pinning him in a headlock asked.
Zelup struggled with all of his strength but he was outmatched.
“Hold still,” the man said through gritted teeth, “or I’ll materialize you outside of the ship. We’ll see how long you can hold your breath.”
Zelup went still, realizing that these were no ordinary smugglers. He had just encountered two more Seekers. He was at their mercy, unable to even contact his family for help.
“I can smell her on you,” said the blond one, inhaling heavily. “Somewhere beneath that human female’s stench, I can just detect her. You’ve been close to one of the Guardians, haven’t you?”
Zelup shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Sure, you do,” said the bald one. “You know what the Guardians are. Your brother is married to one, remember?” The man tapped his head. “I do. It’s all in there. In your mind. And I can pull it out at my leisure.”
Zelup frowned, trying to blank his mind.
The bald man laughed. “Don’t try to fight me,” he said. “Or I’ll make it hurt.”
