PrimalHunger (3 page)

“This world is just full of fun and happiness, isn’t it?”
His breaths came in hard gasps. The thin atmosphere had to be tearing up his
already abused lungs.

She eased her braid over her shoulder. “You should hang
around for mating season. The flying Ka’lary rip each other apart to impress
their mates. When the season nears an end, they turn to other prey to replace
their fallen brethren.” She bent over and put her hands on her knees, dragging
in deep breaths and stretching her back for the last burst.
Too many lazy
nights at Destiny’s Palace.
“Guess who the lucky ones are?” She grinned.

He shook his head.

“We’re almost there. More slimes up ahead, so watch your step.
One drop and you’re as good as dead. Catch your breath now.”

“Great.” He was as happy about this as she was. “Do you have
any more of those grenades?” He pressed a hand against his side and stretched.

“We each carry two, and I’d rather not use this one if we
don’t need to. The slime spatter is uncontrollable.”

He held out a hand. “Azros, Valorian Prime.”

Kendra jerked in surprise. She tentatively held out her
hand. “Kendra St. Thomas, chief security contractor for Destiny’s Palace.” His
hand engulfed hers in a firm grip.

“Pleased to meet you.”

Warmth spread from his touch up her arm. She tugged loose
from his grasp and cleared her throat. “Likewise. Do you mind if we do this a
little later? I’d like to survive long enough to enjoy the rest of my weekend.”

“Of course.” He sounded contrite but there was something in
his gaze that told her he knew exactly how his touch affected her.

“It’s a short distance. Ready?”

His head jerked in a nod, and she didn’t hesitate. The
push-off was painful to her straining muscles, but the pace was less brutal
than it had been. The ground was treacherous this close to the plateau and one
false move would bring their escape to a horrific end.

His breathing patterns settled into short gasps, as did
hers. The cool water, the hot springs, and refreshing oxygen producing moss
banks waiting in the caves became a mantra in her mind.

“Look out!” Azros slammed into her with all the finesse of a
mining train’s lift-off.

Air rushed out of her lungs and in a split second he had her
weapon discharged in the central core of a yellow slime. It made a horrific
scream and splashed against the rocks. Kendra covered her head and heard the
hiss of slime. Cloyingly sweet stench mixed with the reek of her suit’s
destruction.

Kendra didn’t hesitate. She jerked the straps of her pack
loose and tried to shrug it off. Panic choked her, but she couldn’t stop. A
horrific roar tore from the Valorian. He grasped the material. “It’s no use.
You can’t break it.”

The material tore apart as if it were muslin. Muscles bulged
and his gaze burned deep. He ripped the sleeve of her suit off and tossed it to
the yellow sludge. It fell on the material, devouring it.

Hard lips pressed against hers in a firm kiss. Teeth scraped
on her bottom lip and she jerked back, surprised. “Close your mouth before I
take it for an invitation.” He handed over the pistol, and she slid it into the
holster without saying a word. His hands pushed her forward, but her mind spent
a moment in shock. No unaltered human could rip appelite mesh apart with bare
hands. No one had ever stripped her of a weapon, not since her exile.
What
kind of creature is he?

Azros cursed in his native language, wondering what in the
nine hells had possessed him to kiss her. His cock pulsed, aching to fuck her
into submission. He shouldered the pack with its single strap, and tucked the
loose one in a mesh pocket to keep it from snagging. They climbed the
razor-sharp rocks, carefully making their way through the rubble. She would be
a hellcat in bed.

He cleared his throat. “Are we safe?” He watched the way her
ass moved in the suit, wondering what it would feel like to scrape his teeth on
the skin.
Fuck.
He couldn’t remember his rise to Prime being this
violent, this aggressive. Blood thundered through his veins in a primitive
call, sending his already energy-tapped body into an adrenaline overdrive. His
cock throbbed with the desire to fuck.
To take.
The red haze dropped
over his vision.

“Azros.”

His attention snapped back to Kendra, her voice clearing his
sight. He shook his head, trying to clear the fog of aggression from his mind.
“I’m sorry, what?” He was close enough to see the storm raging in her eyes. The
rich scent of her body teased him like a spring breeze.

Kendra stood on a rock that had them almost at eye level. “I
said we should be safe. For now. We have to get to the caves before a windstorm
rolls through.” She placed a hand on his shoulder. “You’ve lost a lot of blood.
Hang in there a bit more.” Her grip was firm. Loose tendrils flowed around her
face like a halo of flame.

“I’m fine.” His hands shook with the need to pull her braid
loose and bury them in her hair.

Her smile was lovely, if cautious. He could remember a time,
before his ship was overrun, when a woman’s smile held sweet secrets.
A
lifetime ago.
He ran a thumb over her bottom lip, expecting resistance, but
her lip softened under his touch. “I think we’ve had more than enough close
calls today. Let’s keep moving.”

Her eyes darkened, and for a moment she rubbed her lip
against his thumb. “Let’s go.” She cleared her throat and turned. They climbed
the rocks, grabbing footholds where they could.

“That was a remarkable show of strength and skill, Azros.”

He liked the way his name rolled off her tongue. “Was it?”

She gave a small chuckle. He moved carefully, his energy
depleting. The energy loss would slow his body’s healing. An ache formed at the
base of his skull.

“You know, up until today appelite mesh was thought to be
unbreakable.”

Azros bit back a reply, shocked to find that he’d almost
answered her without reservation. He was the prince of his people, keeper of
their secrets. Six months of torture at the hands of Skreeta hadn’t brought him
close to confessing.
Exhaustion. Too much blood loss.
“You must have a
knock-off brand, then.”

He saw her lips tighten and a strange sense of loss clenched
within his chest. “Must be.” She jumped down the next rock and brushed her suit
with hands tense with anger. Dirt swirled around her. “We’re here.”

The rock face looked solid. He didn’t speak the obvious.

She glanced back at him. “It’s an illusion, a natural rock
formation. Come this way.” She hiked down the final rock path, gripping
straggled roots for support down the steep descent.

He trekked behind her, cursing the lack of grip on his boots
as tiny rocks slid under his feet. Azros used his reflexes, stretching out his
hand to grasp a root. The bag swung. White-hot pain pierced his side and he
gasped, cursing the fact that he’d forgotten his wound. He jerked to a stop at
the bottom, dragging in a breath to fight the pain. The pack dropped at his
feet. She steadied him, gazing at him with those soulful eyes. “The first time
I came down that bit, I ate the ground.” She grinned, a sexy stretch of her
full lips. “You had far more grace than I did, and I didn’t even have a wound
in my side as an excuse.” She picked up the pack and slid her arm around his
waist. His arm came over her, not wanting to use her support, but unable to do
anything to stop his reaction to her touch. If he was the cat his race was
compared to, he would purr. Of course, he’d been known to do that a time or
two. Instead, he wanted to find a warm nook to curl up with her and allow his
body to finish healing. A rock floor was far better than a Sheon prison cell
any cycle.

She stilled, her head lifting toward the rising sol.
“Windstorm is coming.”

It was then that he noticed the oppressive humidity pressing
down against him.

She lifted her hand to the comm in her ear. “Alpha Two, this
is Alpha One, do you copy?”

His ears could pick up the faint sounds in her earpiece.

“We’ve made it to the other side of the cliff face. There’s
one helluva storm rolling in. Hunker down until it passes. We’ll head out at
nightfall and return to the Palace.”

She paused, tilting her head and gave a small chuckle. “I’m sure
I’ll be fine. Alpha One out.” She tugged out her comm and let it dangle over
her suit. “Storm is tearing up the comm lines.”

“They make it okay?”

“Yeah.” She glanced at him. “Is that mating thing over?”

He gave a rough laugh, too worn down to want to tempt his
mating urges to return. “No, but I may have a bit of time before another
episode hits me. Survival instinct kicked in to save the day, for now.” She
paused and he waited for her to absorb that before they stepped through a
sensor shield. The familiar buzz of the barrier eased his mind. He breathed a
sigh of relief. Nothing would sneak up on him without an alarm sounding. They
rounded a curve and he jerked to a stop. An instinctive awareness stood his
hair on end. His gaze couldn’t take in everything at once. He knew he bared his
teeth, but couldn’t help it. There was no way he could mistake the iconic
dragon’s eye illuminated on the wall.

She laughed, letting her hands fall away. With a grin of
relief she gestured to the advanced construct. “Welcome to Terraform Lab 1289A,
but you can call it Bob. I do.”

His mind refused to register her words. Blood pounded in his
head. He was in a Sheon lab.

* * * * *

At seven, a few months before her family’s murder, Kendra
had visited a traveling zoo. From that early age giant cats fascinated her.
Most of the cats were content, lounging around their manufactured habitats. All
but one. He paced the cage, stalking his way from one end to the other. Every
muscle was rigid with tension and aggression. Growls and feral snarls came from
his throat. She caught his eye and he paused, staring down at her with hungry
eyes. Not for food. No, he was hungry for freedom, and at that moment she
realized he would kill her if she stood in his way. He lifted his incredible
head and pressed against the bars, closed golden eyes, ripping an emotional
hole deep in her heart. An emptiness she never understood.

Until now.

All the power and grace of the giant cat radiated from
Azros. She could see the same desperation, the same dangerous intent. Her
fingers itched to caress the butt of her weapon, but any sign of aggression
might unleash whatever imperative held him frozen.

“Azros, you’re in a terraforming lab cell. It hasn’t been
inhabited for quite some time.” She kept her voice calm, trying to ease the
wire-tight tension.

“It’s Sheon.” He spat the word like a curse. Her hackles
rose.

“That’s a name rarely spoken around here.” Her voice was
deadly quiet. A knot of cold fury tightened in her gut. “This facility belongs
to Destiny’s Palace now. We track the terraform process to keep our facility
safe.”

His fists clenched and every muscle trembled. A fierce scent
overpowered her, reminding her of dark spices and desert nights.

“A Sheon command ship overtook my vessel.” His voice carried
to her, thick with strain and fury.

Kendra tapped into her mind, coming up blank on the command
vessel. She had no solid memories of military rank structure in the Sheon
regime. Only the family assassin line. It had kept her alive.

“We were on a scout mission to find out why our mining
satellite wasn’t sending regular updates.” His voice was ragged, harsh. “My
people are a fiercely loyal and devoted one.” He paused and drew in a breath.
“The captain of the vessel had all the female,” he cleared his throat, “companions
of my men slaughtered. We could do nothing.”

Horror twisted in her stomach and her heart ached. She could
see how the memory weighed on his shoulders, or he was a damn good actor.
Instinct told her otherwise, but something about him was getting under her
skin, and she didn’t like it.

“The Sheon were merciless.”

Her parents’ murders were violent, but she thought that
isolated to an individual, not a legacy. “Why would they do that?”

“They wanted us to mate with them.”

Kendra moved slowly around, staying in his line of sight.
She tugged at her suit. It was getting warm. Likely a reaction to the slime
run. “I don’t see how killing a loved one would make you a desirable mate.”

Azros gave a rough laugh. “They didn’t need our cooperation.
Only our bodies. We were drugged.”

Kendra froze. A curse flew from her lips. Then another. She
put her fists down on the table, wanting to hit something. “How many are left?”
She didn’t need to ask him if he escaped. The pod was obviously battle-damaged.
It was the same style of pod the man back at Destiny’s Palace had been found
in. That meant the Palace could be in danger. She wouldn’t ask him if he’d been
taken. Wouldn’t ask him if he’d lost a mate. It wasn’t her business. So why did
it burn so much in the back of her mind?

“In the pens? Too many.”

Destiny would lose her mind. Consent was ingrained deep in
her moral code. Why would the Sheon revert to capture and rape? Had things
really fallen so far from the teachings? Kendra observed the weather screen. “I
have to get word to the Palace. They have to know someone may be looking for
you.” She brought up the message interface. The windstorm was in early fury. It
would be hours before it would move on. Hours with no word back to the Palace.
A part of her said to tread with caution. He may not be telling the truth, but
the gut instinct that kept her alive told her otherwise. Her fingers flew
across the keys. She tapped out a message and sent it encrypted to the Palace.
It would arrive when the windstorm ended.

She clenched her fists. It would have to be enough.

Flashes of her parents’ death, their suffering, and her
inability to save them broke free of the chains in her segmented memory. She
shoved them back in the compartments she’d created long ago in the depths of
her mind. “We can’t do anything about it right now. Trust me when I say this
facility hasn’t seen a Sheon citizen in over ten standard years.” It wasn’t
exactly
a lie.