“Mellkia,” Dravka murmured. “Are you—”
Just then, they heard it.
The sixth bell…ringing out over Nimida.
Her breath hitched.
The vessel to Nzonito!
They had a flight to catch. And theyneededto be on it.
“Let’s go!” Dravka growled.
Chapter Thirty-Five
The pain in Dravka’s side was only a brief nuisance as they sprinted through Nimida.
Because nothing could compare to the relief he’d felt when he’d seen his female, unharmed, standing in that room with her aunt.
After he’d strode from the washroom earlier, intending to convince his stubborn little female to mate one last time before they journeyed to Nzonito, instead he’d found their room empty.
He’d dressed quickly, only for Tavak to knock on his door, a frown on his face.
“Valerie was acting strange,” the male had told him. “She went down the stairs.”
“Kruvu?” Dravka had rasped.
“She said to meet her outside in fifteen minutes. That she had to go to the shops. But she was…different. She looked nervous.”
Dravka had frowned, immediately sensing that something wasn’t right. That was when he’d looked at the table, noticing that something he’d laid out there was gone. The sedative injection. Everything else was untouched and she’d even had the satchel of their clothes packed up and ready.
He’d snagged the bag and immediately left the room, going in search of his mate. They’d met up with Ravu at the end of the hallway and quickly jogged down the stairs.
On the second landing, however, they’d heard voices coming through a nearby door and when they’d looked down the corridor, they saw a human male wearing the Everton colors, a uniform of navy blue and green.
Fear had gone through Dravka at that moment. It didn’t take him long to piece together what had happened. Tavak and Ravu seemed to come to the same conclusion because they rushed the guard together, dispatching him quickly before breaking into the room he stood in front of.
Everything had happened so fast.
Focus, Dravka ordered himself, feeling Valerie’s hand clenched into his own as they raced through Nimida, Tavak and Ravu right behind them. That was then. This wasnow…and right now they needed to catch that vessel before it left Nimida.
His side burned, the flesh sensitive and sizzling…but Dravka had had worse. It would heal. It was the least of his worries. His top priority was getting his female off that colony and onto a safer one, one far away fromher.
The transport depot was bustling and crowded.
“Over here!” Tavak bellowed, dodging a Luxirian with chipped black horns, who growled at him when he clipped his shoulder. “This way!”
Dravka pulled Valerie through the crowd, weaving quickly, teeth gritting, unused to crowds of beings. Up ahead, in one of the docking bays, there was a larger vessel. Judging by the sound, the engines were on and roaring. The whole depot seemed to shake with them.
They quickened their pace.
Almost there…
If only they could escape this place, they would be free.
There was no line. Everyone must have been on board already. He could see the doors coming into view and he felt Valerie’s hand squeeze in his own, could hear her ragged breaths.
The doors were closing.
