Page 45 of Primal Vow

Jak lurched forward, but Rhys was ready. He spun, slamming the chair into the man's midsection. It broke, sending Jak and the chair crumpling to the floor. Lila ran at him, fumbling for her stun gun. Rhys met her with a savage kick to the knee, dropping her with a howl of pain.

Jak was staggering to his feet, fury in his eyes. Rhys raced for the door, flinging it open to reveal a dimly lit corridor.

Where the hell were they? Narrow corridors… Some kind of bunker? Rhys pelted down the hall, his boots pounding on the metal grating as he searched frantically for a sign of where to run — and hopefully for an exit.

The bunker was a maze of identical passages, lit only by low bulbs. Rhys's heart thundered as he ran, panic rising with every turn that led to another dead end. He was trapped, a rat in a metal cage with his captors in pursuit, their yelling echoing off the metal walls.

Rhys's heart pounded in his ears as he raced down the murky corridors. The sound of Jak's boots echoed behind him, spurring him on. He couldn't let them catch him, not after everything he'd seen.

"You can't run forever, kid!" Jak's voice boomed, laced with menace. "There's nowhere to go!"

Fuck that. Rhys pushed himself harder, his lungs burning. He rounded a corner and spotted a door up ahead. Without hesitation, he darted through it into yet another bunker room, then spun around, slamming it shut behind him.

Jak's footsteps thundered closer. Rhys slammed the door's latch into place just as Jak's body slammed against the other side.

The door shuddered violently, but it held. Rhys stumbled back, his chest heaving.

"Open this door, you traitor!" Jak roared, pounding his fists against the metal. "You're only making it worse for yourself!"

Rhys remained silent, his heart hammering. He could hear Jak cursing, then the sound of retreating footsteps as the man went in search of another way around.

Rhys had bought himself a brief reprieve, but he knew it wouldn't last. He had to keep moving.

He ran down another corridor.

At last, a faint breeze caressed his face — the sweet promise of freedom. Rhys followed it, shoving open a heavy blast door and out into the open air.

He skidded to a halt, blinking in the harsh sunlight. The bunker stood in the shadow of towering rock formations, their craggy peaks scraping the clouds.

And nearby, he saw the unmistakable walls of the Borraq city.

The one Taryn had gone to.

The humans were right by it! They'd brought him close to Taryn.

Rhys's heart leapt — and then plummeted.

If he tried to get to Taryn to warn him about the humans, Rhys would be seen by the Borraq.

He was a human in Borraq space. The Borraq would kill him.

But if Rhys didn't go...

Rhys's gaze drifted back towards the bunker's entrance. If he ran away, waiting for Taryn to get back… the others knew he was against them, now. They'd move out — them, and whatever explosives they could carry.

And this close to the target, there'd be no time to stop them.

By the time that Taryn managed to get back and find Rhys, it would be too late.

There was no choice.

Gritting his teeth, Rhys broke into a sprint towards the city's gate, the wind whipping his hair as he ran full tilt across the uneven terrain. Rhys pushed himself harder, his lungs burning, a single thought driving him forward.

He had to warn Taryn. No matter the cost.

For the first time in his life, Rhys ran towards danger.

Chapter eighteen

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