Kolt grunted and spun on one heel, resuming his pacing, although at a slower speed. “Zagrath control also means resistors. There is no place the Zagrath take over that is fully accepting of total control. There are always those who resist.” He turned to me. “As you well know.”
Despite my determination not to focus on the heat, it was impossible to ignore the flush of my cheeks. How much did this Vandar battle chief know about the resistance on Lexxona? How much did he know about other resistance movements?
Rumors had swirled for ages that the Vandar themselves had been resistance fighters against imperial rule, but there were just as many rumors that they were violent mercenaries. Admittedly, the dark tales of the Vandar had been spread by imperial supporters, so I’d always believed that those were exaggerations told to paint the freedom fighters in a bad light. Then the Vandar had come to Lexxona and taken my best friend.
I crossed one leg over the other and leaned forward. “You think a resistance movement would take us in? You don’t think they would suspect a ploy by the Empire?”
He scoffed at this. “No Vandar would ever conspire with the Zagrath.”
“Maybe not, but tell me why you think you’re any different.”
This stopped him in his tracks. He whirled on me, dark eyes flashing. “You dare compare the Vandar to…” his lip curled in disgust, “to the vile Zagrath?”
I refused to back down, even though the battle chief looked particularly menacing with his hands in tight fistsand every muscle quivering with tension. I also refused to let him think he was intimidating.
I shrugged as if we were still discussing the weather. “You came to Lexxona and took my best friend by force. Sure, you had some lame excuse about a war bride lottery being insurance for our treaty, but it was still kidnapping.” I leaned forward and forced myself to smile sweetly. “Don’t tell me the Vandar can’t find women without stealing them.”
His eyes narrowed into slits. “Your friend was treated like a Raisa. She did nothing she did not choose.” He turned from me, his hands uncoiling. “But you are correct that the war bride lottery was a ruse. Raas Wrexxon took your friend because the Empire targeted her. She was going to be taken by the Zagrath and executed for all your rebel activities.”
My skin went cold, the beads of sweat now chilling me as they slid cool trails down my skin. “What?”
He pivoted to face me again, and there was no fury in his gaze. “Your rebel group was not as secret as you believed. The Zagrath knew about your sabotage. Your friend’s name was at the top of their list. That is why the Raas took her. That is why he staged the lottery and rigged it. And that is why we returned to Lexxona to save you. You were also on the list.”
My throat had gone from dry to parched, and I could only open and close my mouth. I’d been on an imperial hit list? The Zagrath knew about us?
I shook my head woodenly. “Impossible. We were…”
“Careful?” Kolt’s words were not unkind or mocking, which almost made it worse. “As clever as you are, there was someone who knew, someone who saw. Someone betrayed you.”
My mind raced. “Then I wasn’t the only one the Zagrath would come after. The others?—”
“Were taken by other Vandar to safety. They were on their way to a Vandar transport while I was tasked with finding you.”
That did nothing to calm my pattering heart. “But if they ambushed us, who’s to say they didn’t do the same to the others?”
Kolt’s jaw tightened, a muscle pulsing. “If that were the case, they would be with us. We are the only ones they took.”
I allowed myself a breath as I sagged back against the stone wall. As much as I hated being held captive by the Zagrath, at least the others were safe. Probably.
Then a thought hit me with enough force to make my breath stutter. “If I was on a Zagrath target list, why am I still alive? Why did they capture me instead of killing me? And why bother to take you? Why not kill us both on Lexxona and leave our bodies as a warning?”
His gaze dropped to the floor, and a chill shuddered my body.
“They want something from us,” I whispered. “Something more important than a warning to a tiny outpost.”
Kolt’s head snapped up, his gaze fierce. “They will not get it.”
My heart leaped in my chest at his defiance. Looking away quickly as my pulse trilled, I attempted to steady my heartbeat.
Don’t you dare fall for this cocky Vandar, Skye.
Before I could remind him how well his first rescue attempt had gone, the door at the end of the corridor scraped open.
Chapter
Four
Kolt
