Page 12 of Commander’s Mate

Not here.

Not now.

Around her, the other women stared at us as if deciding whether armored warriors were rescue or simply a different shape of nightmare. One purple female pushed forward.

“I am Kyanna Guryon,” she said, voice shaking but clear. “My father—”

“Sent us,” I said. My helmet folded back so they could see my face. That was riskier in a hostile facility, but captives needed faces more than armor. “I am Commander General Zared Maktu of Farseek. We are here to remove you from Ursaga. You will not be sold today.”

The unknown female stared at me.

Recognition did not work the same in every species. With Uatu, solmatu was scent, chemistry, instinct, and the deep resonance of genetic compatibility. If she were not compatible, I would not have scented her. If she were compatible, she might feel attraction, confusion, fear, or nothing yet.

She felt something.

I saw it in the way her breathing changed.

“Who are you?” she asked.

The translator gave her words in my language, but her accent underneath was unlike any I had heard.

“I told you.”

“No, I mean—” She swallowed. “Are you buying us?”

The question cut through the mating shock.

“No.” I stepped back, giving her space. “We are stealing you.”

A tall female with short pale hair made a sound that might have been a laugh if fear had not strangled it.

The blue-eyed female blinked. “That is supposed to make us feel better?”

“It will once we leave.”

Her mouth twitched. Brave female. Terrified, but brave.

“What is your name?” I asked before I could stop myself.

“Harper Avery. From Earth.”

The translator hesitated at the last word.

“Dirt?” I repeated.

Her brows shot up. “Not dirt. Earth. The planet is called Earth.”

The pale-haired female muttered, “Great. Kidnapped, almost auctioned, and now our planet is a joke.”

Despite everything, Harper Avery from Earth looked offended in a way that made me want to see her do it again when she was safe, clothed, fed, and not standing in an auction house.

Focus.

“Can you walk?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“All of you?”