Page 103 of Victoria's Discovery

Victoria had the odd sensation of feeling like she was in a dream as her gaze lifted to Catty when the female moved to point the gun—was it a gun? It didn’t look like any gun she’d ever seen—at Victoria’s chest. She didn’t feel any fear. Didn’t feel much of anything, really, other than the continued expectation for her guys to move, if that could be classified as a feeling.

It felt like a feeling. Like a hollow, cutting ache in her chest.

Catty strolled to Thegan, her lip curling in a snarl as she glared down at his body. “You should have been grateful of my attentions, fool.”

Pinning Victoria with her cold, orange eyes, the female cocked her head consideringly, her massive rack of pointed, broken horns visible again and moving like an oversized crown with the gesture. Victoria noticed, distantly, her skin was back to the whitish grey from the first time she’d seen her, and for the first time, realized it was the exact shade of Rellik’s skin.

Her stance was relaxed as if Victoria’s world wasn’t shattering around her. A look of malicious glee slowly stole over her features. “Sell them to Rukeel. Tell him I want them to receivespecialtreatment.” Ugly rage replaced the glee. “They need to suffer. Her and this one most particularly,” she added, her gaze darting to Thegan, crawling over his body in a way that chilled Victoria to her bones.

Victoria felt the impact before the gunshot registered. The breath exploded from her lungs in a whoosh as she stumbled back, clutching her chest. Vision already beginning to blur and swim, she looked down and saw a pronged bullet embedded in her sternum.

The last thing she saw was the bullet melting into her before everything went black.

Chapter 50

Vi’kail fought the sedation trying to keep him under, struggling against the familiar lethargy clinging to his mind like a suffocating blanket. He’d been tranqed before, too many times to crikking count, and had learned how to shake it off faster than most.

When he’d clawed his way to the surface, he stayed perfectly still and kept his eyes closed, continuing the ruse while taking in his surroundings.

Muffled voices, steady breathing, and the sensation of movement. Sniffing, he caught Victoria’s scent first, relaxing some of the tightness in his chest. Thorn and Thegan were there, too, but over theirs was the smell of city, of warm metal unique to runners—the transports favored on most planets—and filth.

Opening his eyes to slits, he scanned the dark space and saw they were in the back of a cargo runner. Vi’kail had to grit his teeth to keep from growling in rage when he saw Vee sprawled haphazardly a few feet away from him, as though she’d been thrown in, her face slack, her curls a mess of tangles.

The giants were similarly laid out, but none of the three looked injured beyond the deep purple bruise covering Vee’s chest.

What he didn’t see was Snitch.

Worry settled in his gut, but he fought against it. He couldn’t afford to be distracted, not when their lives hung in the balance, and his mate was depending on him. Besides, the little fírlark was fierce. So long as he was not dead, he would find a way free. And then he would find them.

Keeping his eyes slitted, he scanned what he could see of the transport then stretched his senses, trying to pick up any other noises that would signal someone was in there with them. Nothing.

Pushing himself up, he kept his movements silent as he crawled to Vee’s side, moving her into a more comfortable position then gently brushing the curls back from her face. Feeling like a real bastard, but knowing he didn’t have a choice, he roughly rubbed his knuckles over her breastbone, doing his best to avoid the deep bruise there and hoping her body worked the way most did.

“Wake up, little flower. C’mon, baby, wake up now.”

It took time, time they didn’t have, but eventually she started to come out of it. Wincing when she groaned sleepily, he dodged her swatting hand and covered her mouth, careful to avoid her nostrils, wincing harder when her struggles intensified.

Bending to press his mouth to her ear, he whispered, “Quiet now. It’s Vi’kail. I’ve got you. Easy, little flower.”

Lifting away slightly when she went still, he met her gaze, still blurry and unfocused from the tranq.

“Yrr alive,” she slurred, breath hitching.

“Yeah, baby, I’m here.”

“I thought… ” she trailed off, her glassy eyes filling with tears.

His heart ached even as it swelled. Crik, but he loved this female. He had to get her out of there. Vi’kail hated to leave her, even for a second, but he had to wake up the giants. Pressing a tender kiss to her forehead, he whispered for her to stay put and crawled to the giants.

Thorn came out of it far quicker than he expected, his large size likely a struggle for even the self-adjusting tranq to contend with. Thegan, however, took longer to rouse, having been shot twice in short succession. Seeing the glazed, distant look in his eyes when he finally opened them worried him, but there was no time to ease him out gently. Bracing himself in case Thegan took a swing at him, Vi’kail pinched the skin of his inner arm, twisting mercilessly.

As expected, Thegan tried to deck him, but Vi’kail dodged the clumsy punch effortlessly and whispered, “Apologies about that, friend, but I need you to wake up.”

Thegan blinked, his eyes clearing slightly, and squinted, obviously struggling to focus between the drugs and the dim interior of the runner. “Mm ‘wake. Vee?”

Vi’kail jerked his chin to where she lay and, once he was sure they would stay quiet, crawled back to her.

Blinking heavily, she frowned up at him. “Where’r we? Wheressnich ‘n giants?”

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