Page 35 of Angel Captive

The stairwell seemed endless.

Slipping on the concrete steps, I banged my knee and muttered a curse under my breath. My body shuddered as I got back to my feet. My vision blurred and I grasped onto the railing to keep from tumbling backward. Helplessness flooded me because I didn't think that I could go on. Then the images of my parents' death flashed before my eyes. I had been helpless then too. Watching them die while I lay broken and bleeding unable to move. If I had conserved my strength, if I had tried harder, I could've saved them. I closed my eyes leaning against the stairwell's wall.

Two shadowy images floated behind my eyelids. A sensation of my parents' spirits being with me comforted me.

"Do not let your past mistakes hinder your future. You have more strength inside you than you know."My father's voice echoed in my head.

I swore I felt the touch of my mom's hand on my cheek and I leaned into the sensation.

"Save your love, Xaden. You could not have helped us, but you can help her,"my mom said."For now, take the strength that we can give you before we completely pass on to the next life."

A surge of energy bolted through me from her touch on my cheek, then another as I felt my father’s hand on my shoulder. I jerked my eyes open, but the stairwell was empty. I took a step, and then another. The fatigue of earlier was fainter now as though I'd had a few hours of the healing sleep I so desperately needed, but I was nowhere near fully recovered.

Reaching the top of the stairs, I pushed open the door a crack checking the hallway for any Roulex.

Charred's voice bellowed from behind the door. Get the human, she's escaped."

Riley.

23

Xaden

Several guards raced down the hallway. Were they after Riley or going to help Charred? Either way, I couldn’t take the chance on them catching her. Not when I could do something to tip the scales slightly in her favor.

I tore out of the stairwell and tackled one of the guards. The other spun out of reach, his eyes widening at seeing me, then he reached for his weapon. I shoved an elbow into the guard under me as I grabbed the tranq gun and shot the departing Roulex in the back.

But he lunged forward, unlocking a door with a key from around his neck, before falling to the floor.

Charred stepped over him and greeted me with a smug expression. “You’ve healed even quicker than I imagined.”

“Fuck you.” I pointed the tranq gun at him and it clicked. Nothing.Shit, shit, shit.There had only been two shots in the gun.

“Take him.” Charred nodded and three more guards raced up behind me. “And keep him alive for now. We might need him for collateral to bring the human female to us. If not, kill him. We’ve others of his kind en route.”

They’d captured more of my people? How? And what if these Angeliminir weren’t able to resist the drugs and torture. I had… until Riley.

Charred took out his comm and rotated the outer ring and a buzzing sounded overhead. “Attention, human female—”

“Riley,” said one of the Roulex doctors behind him as she stepped out of the medical room.

“Riley,” Charred repeated.

Him saying her name made anger spark through me. I struggled against the guards holding me. How dare he fucking say her name! I growled out a warning, but two more guards stepped forward and locked me in a tractor beam.

Charred’s grin spread. “Riley, we have your Angeliminir and if you want to see him alive, you’ll turn yourself over to the nearest guard within the hour.”

Wherever Riley was, she was safe for now.

Please don’t listen, please.

Riley

Charred’screepy voice echoed through the small medical room and the doctors winced, taking out their comms. So those were also speakers…good to know.

Then he continued and my heart stopped. Xaden.

I clicked the tractor beam on the two doctors, locking them in place. Didn’t need them answering Charred that I was here. I couldn’t surrender because I had no guarantees that they wouldn’t hurt Xaden anyway.

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