Page 21 of Rebel Fates

What do I say to that? I go for the truth. “I just want to be safe. Little did I know earth was much safer than where I ended up.”

Weirdly, I don’t believe Zeek will hurt me. Sure, he is some strange alien, but he feels more like a protector at the moment. His eyes convey sympathy, or maybe even empathy, for my situation. But I’ve fallen for disguised abusers before. Or did I just think I deserved a terrible deal? It wasn’t like my parents didn’t tell me I was worthless my entire life.

Breaking me from my reverie, Zeek presses even closer. “What if you didn’t go back? What if I could keep you safe?” He nuzzles my cheek with his large snout.

My skin is on fire where they have touched me—where Zeek touches me now. My breasts ache with a need for more attention.

Straining against the gravity, he pulls back a bit and then leans as if to kiss me. But instead of kissing me, he stares at me for a moment, then sniffs my neck.

Wondering what in the hell he’s doing, I inhale deeply and pick up a cinnamon roll scent coming off him. I hadn’t noticed it before because of all the strangeness. He emits a calming yet intoxicating blend of warm spice and sweetness. I take another lungful of his perfume, and my skin flushes with sensitivity.

He sounds again as if he’s purring. My entire body responds as if it’s coming to life.

My heart speeds up. I shake my head at this strange moment that feels like a seduction. To distract both of us, I ask, “Rok made it sound as if you aren’t supposed to touch me.”

“You’re right. I’m not.” He blinks innocently and pulls back. “But the ship’s gravity changed, so it’s not my fault.”

“Is it dangerous?” I worry. “Should you check on it?”

Zeek sees that I’m anxious and asks, “Leva?Did you do this?” He has a smirk on his lips, never allowing his gaze to leave mine.

The gravity slowly shifts back to normal. My feet sink into the soft floor.

“Who is Lev—” Before I can finish the question, Zeek flies backward through the door.

Rok’s frustrated glare appears over Zeek’s shoulder. The grump is pulling him away from me. The door snaps shut, leaving me alone in a pitch black cubicle.

“What about lights?” I yell, banging on the door.

These guys are definitely fucking with me.

After a moment of shouting, a light comes on, just enough for me to see, but not so much that I can’t sleep.

I curl up on the squishy floor and find it surprisingly comfortable. My stomach churns on nothing. Dammit, I was going to ask Zeek for water and some edible food. If these guys don’t feed me food that my body can actually process soon, I might starve to death. I’m surviving on pure willpower and adrenaline at this point.

Of all the ways to die in space, I hadn’t really considered that starvation was the way I would go.

Tomorrow, I’ll find a way off this ship.

Zeek admitted they didn’t want the authorities, and they had some mission that couldn’t be interrupted. They are hiding something—something big.

Maybe they are working an illegal job?

Zeek was probably just trying to scare me about the Consortium’s lack of human rights and their law enforcement.

And maybe they’ve dosed me with an aphrodisiac and that’s why my body is responding to them. What if they want to use me and then sell me off?

There must be an escape pod.

Almost every space sci-fi movie I have ever watched has an escape pod.

Let’s just hope that isn’t the real myth.

10

TROUBLE

ZEEK

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