Page 30 of His Brazen Bride

“Think it over,” he says. “If you decide to come with me, meet me at the edge of the Palace grounds at the back gate near the hedgestone at mid-Neomea. The guard is lightest then and I can get my craft down quickly. If you’re there, I’ll take you to your friends.”

“I haven’t figured out time here yet, so I have no idea when mid-Neomea is,” I admit sheepishly.

He sighs and swipes the air in front of him, then points to a large blue moon that has appeared on a screen. “When this moon is sitting over here.”

I nod. Why do I trust him? I may be completely wrong, but I think I have to chance it in order to help my friends.

“I’m not committing to anything at this point…” I say.

“Understood,” he replies. “I hope you choose wisely, my Queen. Until we meet again.”

With lightning fast speed he leans in and kisses my cheek, disappearing into the other room before I can even bat him away. I go back to the dressing room and change into a long-sleeved top, pants, and thick-soled shoes.

I know what I’m going to do.

The risk is worth it. Better than waiting for who knows how long until Ryzdeignsto let the search party go.

But as I pack a bag, stuffing one of Ryz’s shirts in it as a souvenir, my heart hurts more than I expect it to.

8

RYZ

Gwen must not want anything to do with me.

It’s already midlight, and she hasn’t sought me out.

Can I really blame her?

I was a callous oaf, and I let my anger get the better of me. Again.

While basking in the afterglow of a mind-blowing orgasm, I lost my head. Instead of telling her how hurt I was that she’d used me, I chose to hurt her in return, driving home the point that I wouldn’t be sending out a search party for her friends after all.

But lashing out at her didn’t yield the satisfaction I’d hoped for. In fact, it only left me feeling guilty for ruining what had felt like so much more than just sex…no matter what it started out as, for both of us.

And so, as soon as I woke up, I went to meet with Takizet, my best tracker, and had him gather a small search team to depart immediately. Despite any misgivings, I wanted to make good on my promise.

I enter our suite, ready to swallow my pride. Whatever it takes to fix this.

But walking through the rooms, Gwen’s nowhere to be found.

I call out her name. No answer.

Then I connect to the comm she agreed to have implanted in her wrist. She doesn’t pick up. And for some reason, there’s no location information on her.

I hastily message Zadren for help, staring out the window into the changing violet sky. Where could she have gone?

“Commander,” Zadren’s voice booms through my wrist. “I have bad news.”

“What is it?”

“The Queen is on a craft moving away from Ydris. Fast.”

“What kind of craft?” I ask sharply.

“Ocrevv.”

A chill runs through my body, and I take a shaky breath.

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