Page 12 of Angel Captive

He chuckled. “And how do you plan on doing that? The walls are too thick, the stones too strong, and even if we made it out of this cell, there are still the guards on this level and every level above this and at every door and window.”

“I’ve got a few rocket boosts hidden away.” Like I doubted the Roulex knew about my tech experience. They only seemed to care about me being able to make babies. Which they would probably test me eventually. What then? Would they force me to mate with more drugs? I swallowed the bitter taste in the back of my throat.

Xaden frowned at me. “They did not confiscate your equipment?”

I snorted. “Ah, no, it’s a figure of speech. It means I have skills that could help us get out of here. Though I need to see what’s down the hallway. How many guards. What type of elevator they have. What kind of mechanisms are on the doors or windows.”

A flicker of hope lit his amethyst eyes before he schooled his features. “What you speak of is dangerous. There are only two ways the Roulex would let you out: to torture you, or to give you the aphrodisiac shots to make you mate.”

I swallowed the lump of uncertainty growing in my throat. “H-How many times have you—” I couldn’t finish the words. “I mean, I dated before and you know.” Didn’t want him to think I was a prude, but my dating life had been a joke. I never fit in with humans and though aliens tended to excite me more, none of them had clicked with me. Not like Xaden when he had kissed me.

“I would not give the Roulex the satisfaction of mating with anyone.”

Oh, okay, so it wasn’t just me he’d rejected. I rubbed my hands down my pants. “All right. So, can you give me a visual map of this level and the ones above?”

“There are at least three guards on either end of the hallway at all times. Two guard the elevator on this level with more guards on the upper levels. The windows have bars on them now, reinforced after an escape by my kind earlier. There was also damage done with another of my kind letting lose the prisoners on an upper level and battle.”

The pride in his voice was tangible and I found myself smiling.

“I only wish I was able to join them in killing as many Roulex as possible before my own death.”

Ouch, a bit harsh, but I guess I’d be too if I was forced into mating and a prisoner.Wait. That’s me now.I shook my head. “Why do you hate them so much—I mean besides this whole arrangement.” I waved a hand between him and me.

“They killed many of my people.” He sat down as though the weight of memories was too much to bear. “Then, when they discovered our healing ability, they tried to use their methods to obtain it.”

“Healing. like advanced?”

“Hyper-healing.” His crooked smile revealed a dimple and had my heart racing again.

“How fast are we talking?”

“My body heals most flesh wounds in hours. Broken bones can take a day or two. My wings.” He made a pained face moving them. “Are more delicate and take about a week or two to regrow and heal.”

I whistled. “That is fast. And the Roulex want your tech.”

He nodded.

“I still don’t understand why they don't just take your sperm and experiment that way."

"They tried." His voice turned hard. "Neither females nor males, reproductive organs or parts live outside our bodies. My sperm, as you say, would die within seconds and not impregnate without the sexual act. They mutilated so many to discover that truth."

I pressed my arms to my stomach, suddenly feeling ill. "What did they do?” I asked, not really wanting to know the answer, but wanting to understand.

"They ripped organs out of my kind, leaving the bodies mutilated and the lucky didn't survive and were thrown into the sewers until the land was choked from the stench."

I clamped a hand over my mouth.

"Then they built an incinerator for the dead." His gaze met mine. "Be glad we are underground, otherwise a wind from the right direction would blow the ashes into our cell. And the smell is still there, but it's a burning acidic smell that clingsto you and no matter how many times you wash, it's always there."

"I'm so sorry." I felt sick. Here I was because I'd been chasing after a good time while Xaden and his people and others were fighting for their lives.

Something dark and haunting filled Xaden's eyes before he looked away. "It is getting late. Best to sleep while you can."

A heaviness fell like a thick curtain between us and I knew I wouldn't get anything else from him tonight. But the idea of sleeping while I was a prisoner of monsters like Xaden described wasn't going to segue my nightmares.

8

Xaden

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