Page 16 of Stolen By the Alien Mercenary

“Somewhere safe. I couldn’t get the watchers on the ship to be fooled, so I’m taking you elsewhere.” He quickened his pace, and I flung my arm around his neck and held on while I tried to decipher the colorful lines to figure out where we were going. “I don’t want Batok chasing the Varakartoom, or us. Especially not you. And we need answers.”

Answers, yes! That was a plan I could get behind, and when we entered a large room with several small ships and other vehicles, I knew what he intended. We boarded the small ship closest to a massive set of doors, easily big enough for any of the vehicles to leave through. He was taking me off the Varakartoom, and it was going to be just the two of us, I realized as soon as I saw the interior. There was no one else aboard the small vessel.

Nick set me down in one of the two available seats at the front and started to strap me carefully into it. “Just a precaution. In case we’ll need some evasive maneuvers, but I doubt it. All is clear.” He tapped the gleaming metal device on his left temple and instantly a blue light shimmered in front of his eyes, like a pair of very sci-fi sunglasses.

I pressed my tablet to my chest and watched as he strapped himself in and took control of the little ship. When we flew out of the slowly opening doors, I held my breath, half expecting someone to stop us. This didn’t seem like a course of action Asmoded agreed with, but maybe he and Nick had talked while I hadn’t been around.

“Got your coordinates,” Aramon’s voice suddenly cheerfully announced, and I jerked in my seat. For a brief moment, I thought he was on the small ship with us, but then I realized he was talking through some kind of radio connection. “Good luck out there, brother. As long as you know that I’m not putting in a good word for you with the captain. You’re on your own with that. But I’m happy to fight this Batok asshole. That should be fun! Right, bro?” he trailed off, and the connection ended without Nick ever saying anything. I had a feeling that ‘bro’ hadn’t been meant for Nick, he’d directed that at his twin.

“The captain only cares that we get paid and that there is a minimal risk to the crew. I’ve got a plan for both of those things,” Nick said to me, his hands competently holding the yoke-like thing he was using to steer the ship. We darted away from the huge spaceship we had just exited and I got a good look at the space station before we spun around and aimed for a starry patch of space that looked identical to the rest to me.

I didn’t have long to really take in the Varakartoom, the mercenary ship that Nick belonged to. A huge, sleek black shape that looked intimidating and threatening, especially compared to the mostly gray and silver ships it shared the docking arm with. It seemed like a tank to me or a great big shark; definitely a ship that shouted aggression and danger.

Then we were flying into space, just the two of us. I had this moment of panic. Was I crazy for just flying off with a guy I barely knew? A guy that not that long ago had acted like a dangerous, feral, instinct-driven maniac because he was that up in knots about me? My grandma would call that a major red flag, but then, she’d always been a realist, while I was the dreamer.

I wanted answers about why Batok had locked me in the vault, my safety, and my future. Mostly though, I wanted answers about Nick and this thing between us. I was willing to take a few risks to get what I needed. The one thing that was crystal clear to me was that my safety in Nick’s presence would never be in doubt. He would protect me, to his own detriment, if needed.

Chapter 11

Mitnick

My hands flew over the consoles in front of me as I worked to set our course and engage the autopilot. I’d communicated with Aramon during our take-off, and he’d let Solear calculate our route for me. That was one worry less while I did a final system check. With Solear’s navigating, we’d have the quickest, sneakiest route to where we needed to go.

I glanced at my mate from the corner of my eye but focused on the tasks at hand to finish them as quickly as possible. She was curled in the navigator seat with a datapad tucked against her chest and her eyes locked on the row of viewscreens at the front of the ship. She was gazing at the dazzling view of Strewn, the debris field, and the stars beyond.

Her blonde hair lay in a braid over one shoulder, and I could see how her sky-blue eyes were flicking rapidly from one sight to the next. She seemed calm, even comfortable, to be here with me, but I wondered if she wasn’t contemplating the implications of our departure right now.

Asmoded and Solear hadn’t notified the captain yet, but I’d timed our escape during Asmoded’s meal with his son. There would be orders not to interrupt unless it was an emergency. I knew the twins’ loyalty to Asmoded was absolute. They were very protective of him, but maybe that was exactly why they were letting me do this. It would take the heat off the Varakartoom as soon as the watchers realized that my Harper wasn’t aboard any longer. The question was, had they seen the shuttle leave from the other side of the ship? I’d picked our course carefully to blend with other initial traffic, but it was no guarantee.

“So… What should I call you? Your name is really Mitnick, isn’t it?” Harper’s tentative question made me jerk my head up from the scan data I’d been perusing to ensure we had no tail. I contemplated her question but wasn’t sure what I wanted. I had always been Mitnick, except maybe when I was just a tiny fledgling and my brothers had still struggled to pronounce it right. But I liked Nick too, it was Harper’s name for me. It felt right.

“You,” I started to say, my mind whirling as I tried to put the chaotic, overpowering emotions that rushed through me into words. “You can call me anything, Harper, and I’d listen. But I like Nick. Nick is your name for me, and it makes me feel like I belong to you.” She stared at me, her eyes wide, and then she smiled and I felt my dual hearts pound wildly in response.

“Okay, okay, that’s uh…” She tilted her head as she contemplated her answer and I appreciated that she didn’t rush into it, that she took her time to consider what she wanted to say. “I guess Nick it is. That’s a human name too. It was how I first thought of you, so if you like it…I’ll call you that.” I more than liked it and when I smiled, that made her cheeks turn this lovely shade of pink.

A silence fell, and I focused on finishing my scans to ensure we hadn’t been followed. I’d left some surprises behind on the com devices of the watchers. Now that we were safely out of range, no longer able to be followed, they would inform them that Harper had left the Varakartoom. That would leave the crew safe, just as the Captain wanted, and leave them with a cold trail.

Only a handful of scavenger ships were working on the far side of the debris field; they did not appear suspicious, so I dismissed them as threats. That meant we were safe, for now, but I still had to decrypt the data on Harper’s implants to discover the true scope of the threat. Just as I’d loaded the files and started that process, Harper touched my arm with soft fingertips. “So, what’s our destination now? Or are we aimlessly flying around so they can’t find me?”

She did not seem bothered by that idea, but that was a silly plan and not a long-term solution. I wanted to ensure that Batok had no interest in her or the Varakartoom. Either that meant killing him, which I would very much enjoy considering what he’d done to her, or convincing him that we were not worth the effort.

“No, we are flying back to the mining planet I found you on. We’re going to retrace your path in case that leads us to answers more quickly than waiting for that data to decrypt. My algorithms are good, but crunching data takes time, sometimes a lot of it… And I’m not waiting around while there’s a threat.”

My hearts fluttered when her fingers stayed against my biceps; I could feel them like soft, warm points of pressure through my armor. I knew her by now. She wanted answers because her curiosity was endless. But I worried that taking her to the mining planet would trigger terrible memories. She’d had a horrible time trapped inside that vault, I would not blame her if she never wanted to see that place again.

“Okay, that’s a good plan,” she nodded, her eyes going back to the star-studded stretch of space visible on the viewscreens in front of us. “How long until we get there?” she asked next, and when I told her it would be at least a week, she cast an uneasy glance over her shoulder. I instantly understood her worry; I’d seen her on my camera feeds those first two days. Having enough water and food mattered a lot. That was no surprise.

Rising, I freed her from the straps that kept her safely locked into the navigator's seat. “Let me show you around, my sweet mate,” I said. I took her hand and started leading her past the stowage hatches, opening each one to let her see the stocked supplies.

The shuttles were always maintained with emergency kits and long-lasting food rations. I’d also taken the time to get extras from Brace, including foods she’d seemed to like and several human favorites that Brace had stocked since Mandy came aboard. I’d even taken a moment to gather a few of the clothing articles and a pair of sturdy boots that I’d been collecting ever since I found her.

“And the ship has a closed water system and an excellent recycling plant. We’ll never run out of water,” I added while I tapped the panel behind which said system was installed. She gave me a grateful smile, but she still didn’t look at ease. Maybe that had more to do with our visit to the planet than her worry about having enough food.

Curling my wing around her back, I drew her closer to me with gentle pressure. “Something is bothering you, but I promise, you have nothing to fear. I will protect you.” Then I tipped her chin up with my finger and covered her mouth with mine. Her sweet scent filled my lungs, her taste tantalized my brain. She clung to my arms as I swept her closer, tangling our tongues, drinking her gasps and soft moans.

I’d stolen kisses a few times, but this was the first time I could linger and simply enjoy for as long as she was willing. And she was willing, very willing. Her arousal perfumed the air around us, trapped between my wings and our bodies. It made my cocks grow painfully hard, and it incited my instincts to push for more, to lay claim to her in every way. To claim her with my mating cock as well as my pleasure cock.

I picked her up by her soft, curvy rear, and she assisted by curling her legs around my hips. A moan shuddered from her that made me lose a little more grip on the instincts that surged through me. More of this, and I’d give in, I’d throw her onto the bunk and fill her with my cocks. That was what a Mithrakon would do on my home world, his mate expected it. She’d even try to arouse those instincts if she could, but this was Harper, and she was human. My little Novi did not know Mithrakon mating rules, and I did not know enough about human courtship.