Page 63 of The Darkest Parts of Me

I’m going to die. Right here. And God, what will happen to Renn if this man gets to him too?

BANG!

A gunshot rings out. The man snaps his head up to the source, and I follow his gaze.

I find Renn standing there with a gun raised toward the sky. His face is cold and calm, lowering the gun to point it at the man still on top of me. He stares at my attacker, and then begins to speak. I listen intently to his words, but I don’t understand what he says. He repeats himself when the man says nothing, and my heart jumps when I realize it.

Renn is speaking in the same language as the intruder. A different kind of chill flows through me, sinking in my chest. Renn speaks again, and the man pulls me to my feet, still holding the knife against my throat while his other arm restrains me against him. With a sideways glance, I watch him stare directly at Renn and smile with such evil delight that it turns my blood cold. I look back to Renn. He still has the gun raised.

“Renn?” I whimper.

He still doesn’t look at me, never taking his eyes off the man behind me, like he’s a snake and if he glances away he will strike. And I realize, gazing at Renn’s face, that he knows this man—they know each other.

And whoever this person is, I know he’s part of the reason Renn ran away from wherever he came from.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Renn

There’s no one who wants me dead more than Colin Locke. It’s been six years since I’ve seen his face in person, and it’s even more sinister when it appears in my nightmares.

It wasn’t an anomaly that the transmitter had picked up after all.

How he intercepted the signal, I don’t know. But it doesn’t matter right now because I have to keep my rage in check; one false move, and Maven or I are dead—possibly both. The sickening pain in my stomach is overwhelming, knowing that he touched her, that he hurt her. But the fury pulsing through my body is mostly to the credit of my own foolishness. This is all happening because of me. I see a fresh cut across his cheek, and even in this horrible situation, I’m proud she did that, but right now he has her in his arms, and I need to get her out of here.

“Well, well, well. Captain Anton, how good to see you again,” he hisses, pushing the knife harder against her skin. Maven lets out a wince, and it feels like a punch to my stomach.

“Let. Her. Go,” I growl.

“Not a very friendly welcome, Captain. I am disappointed. I thought you’d be glad to see an old comrade after all these years.” His voice drips with sarcasm.

“I said let her go, or the next bullet goes through your head.”

He shakes his head in disgust. “Goodness, Aldrenn. The man I knew would never resort to such violence. I thought using the dog as bait would have done the trick, but what a surprise when it was her who came instead. And clearly . . .” He pauses for a moment. “I underestimated how much you care for her.” He looks down at Maven with a twisted smile. “That changes things. I can’t decide what will be more satisfying—killing you, or making you watch as I kill her first.” I step forward, and he clicks his tongue. “I don’t think so, Captain. I would choose your next move carefully.”

“Renn, what’s going on?” Maven asks through a trembling voice, and I finally bring myself to look at her directly. The rain has started to let up, so I can see her clearer.

Blood drips down her face, and there’s utter confusion and terror in her eyes, making me want to break every bone in Locke’s body—to make him suffer. Silently, I’m pleading, begging for her forgiveness, hoping that she can see it in my eyes.

“It’s going to be okay,” I say slowly in her language.

I should have told her, if only for her protection, to warn her of what could happen. I should have told her everything. But I’m a fucking idiot for letting my guard down, daring to imagine that a happy life was possible for me—a life with her, and now it will cost me more than I could ever have imagined.

“You know, I’ve been watching you for a couple of days. I had to make sure I had truly found the great Captain Aldrenn Anton, and I gotta say, you’ve got some nerve. You honestly thought you’d get to live some comfortable little life? Find yourself a piece of ass and go on your merry way?” I step forward, and he presses the knife into her neck again to stop me. “Does she even know who you really are?”

I want to vomit at the thought of him watching us—stalking us. Only one of us is walking out of this, and I will die trying to make sure he takes his last breath, even if I take mine as well. As long as she’s safe . . . that’s all that matters.

“You certainly haven’t changed. You’ve always loved hearing yourself talk, haven’t you, Locke?” He snickers at this. “And you will not say another thing about her. This is between us. Man to man.”

His grip on Maven only tightens, and I realize I’m holding my breath. My expression must say it all, because Locke smiles wickedly as he says, “My, my, Aldrenn. I see that your concern for other people hasn’t changed in the slightest. That was always your weakness—you care too much. Pathetic, if you ask me. Even the admiral saw that. What a disappointment you were to him.”

This time, I laugh in response, because the only thing more satisfying than killing him would be killing the admiral. He gave the order after all.

“Why are you stalling, Locke?” His brow furrows. “But that was always your weakness, wasn’t it? Only willing to fight those who are weaker than yourself, never up for a real challenge. That’s why you targeted those planets and people who never stood a chance.” Locke’s lips pull over his teeth, snarling like a rabid animal. I knew that’s what would hit him the hardest; his ego could never handle that I’m a better fighter than him. “Now be a real man. Let her go and let’s finish this.” His gaze narrows for a moment.

“Put the gun down first,” he says through clenched teeth. My eyes dart to Maven, but this time, as I look into the blue abyss, her eyes tell a different story. There’s strength; she wants to fight.

That’s the Maven I know. A fighter.

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