Page 43 of Victoria's Embrace

Taking a deep breath, she made her way to the front of the group, meeting their gazes when they stopped what they were doing to face her.

Okay. Time for a pep-talk. A pre-battle speech. Gotta inspire them with sage words of wisdom and pump them up. Right.

Clearing her throat, she set her shoulders. “I know most of us didn’t choose to be here, but this complex has become more than just a safe haven. It’s become home. It’s become the epicenter of an uprising. It’s the start of something bigger than you or me.” Adopting her best military general pose, she folded her hands behind her back and walked down the line of people.

“Salesh thinks she can just… take that away. That she can stop us. She’s wrong.” Stopping again at the front, she met their eyes, one after another. “No matter who we were, no matter where we came from, we’re all standing here, ready to fight. Not just for ourselves, but for each other. For freedom! We are not slaves. We are an army. We are a force to be reckoned with. And we will not stop until every slaver, every Master and Overlord who hurt us, who enslaves us, is brought to their knees.” Yells and cries answered her. Raising her voice to be heard, she shouted, “I see a whole army of my countrymen, here in defiance of tyranny. You’ve come to fight as free people and free people you are. What will you do with that freedom? Will you fight with me?” she bellowed, throwing her fist into the air.

As one, they roared, their battle cries filling the cave like the bellow of a beast awoken from slumber.

“Let’s go take back our home! Let’s go show that bitch up there she fucked with the wrong people!”

Heart thundering in her chest, hands shaking, she spun on her heels and led the way to the elevators, feeling pumped as fuck and ready to cap some asses… then had to wait her turn. Bree, along with Vi’kail, Thegan, Thorn, Luna’eva, Snitch, Tesha, A’nu, and half a dozen others stood with her.

Her team was going up last to give the others time to clear a few floors, so, trying to keep the energy up, she stood to the side of the elevator, offering nods and narrow-eyed looks of intensity.

When it was finally their turn, Bree pushed Thegan aside to stand next to her and whispered from the corner of her mouth, “Did you quoteBraveheart?”

Victoria grimaced and sent her a guilty look. “I just got really into it. Do you think they noticed?”

Bree gave her a dry look. “Do I think a bunch of aliens noticed your speech was stolen from a forty-five-year-old Earth movie? No. No, I don’t.”

“Phew, good.”

* * *

Nerves triedto set in as the elevator approached the lobby, but determination outweighed it. When the doors slid open, they were met with a waiting flock of octoflies that led the way down the little-used hallway to which the elevator opened.

Reaching the end of the hall, Victoria peered around the corner and scanned the room, feeling her stomach cramp nauseatingly at the scene before her. Bree was right. It was like a sadist's wet dream in there.

There had to be at least thirty people spread throughout the lobby. Some were huddled and chained. Some were locked in cages. Others stood like statues holding trays of drinks and hors d'oeuvres. All had thick collars around their necks and were dressed in little to no clothing. Thankfully, she only spotted maybe a dozen males that were clearly acting as guards.

In the middle of it all, seated on a throne positioned under the atrium, was Salesh.

When the guard to her left shifted, Victoria spotted a male kneeling at Salesh’s feet.

She thought he was just sitting there like a pet until the guard shifted a bit more. Jaw dropping with shock, Victoria realized the collared man was… pleasuring Salesh. In front of everyone.

Swallowing bile, she ducked back.

There were far more enemies present than she’d hoped, but after seeing what that bitch had done to all those people, there was no way in hell she was calling the retreat to try again later.

After relaying enemy numbers and positions through hand signals, she met her guys’ gazes and withdrew her tranq gun.

“Let’s take back our home.”

Vi’kail took her place. He’d be leading the attack with Thorn, Snitch, Luna’eva, and Tesha while she, Thegan, and the rest would be on their heels. Just like at the slave market, they’d tranquilize everybody and work out the good from the bad from the mind-controlled later.

Adrenaline sharpening everything to crystalline intensity, Victoria waited for Vi’kail’s signal.

“Now!”

Rushing out from behind the cover of the wall, they spread out and opened fire.

They hadn’t gone more than ten feet into the room when Victoria heard a chillingly gleeful laugh and Salesh’s voice commanding, “Kill them all.”

Her heart dropped to her stomach when males, armed with blasters, rushed out of every hallway, and people she’d thought were slaves stood and ran at them, glazed looks in their eyes and crazed snarls on their faces.

She was expecting us…

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