Page 3 of Fated to the Alien Hero

I’m not sure what it is about his voice, but I want him to keep talking.I also want to put a face to it. For the second time, Itry to open my eyes. I manage one and see a lavender face that is young, but far too rugged to be called handsome. Compelling, maybe. “Astrid.”

Something that might pass as a smile on another person crosses his face. “I am Evren. Where are you injured?”

Another whimper of defeat falls from my lips. I take a quick survey of my body to try and narrow down my most significant pain. “My arm is broken and probably my nose, too. I’m pretty sure I have some cracked ribs, and I can’t really feel my face. Also, my head is killing me.”

There may be a host of internal injuries, but I’m trying not to think about it.

“Is there anyone at the human settlement we should locate for you? Do they know you are out here?” Evren asks.

Panic fills me, and before I know what I’m doing, I grab his hand. He jerks slightly at the contact and a shift comes over him. His eyes widen, and the vertical pupils that fill them pulse with a bright light that must be a figment of my imagination. And while I can hear some whispered exclamations from the other Tavikhi, like I’ve done something taboo by touching him, I ignore it all. Evren has to understand the magnitude of what will happen if he notifies the people back at the colony.

“You can’t tell anyone you found me.” I’ll beg and plead with everything I have for him to listen to me. “He’ll finish killing me if you do.”

Evren shares a glance with the other warriors. His gaze returns to meet mine and the glaring brightness from before is replaced with a flicker of rage. The fear returns at the sight of it. Is he angry with me? Will he hit me, too?

“Astrid?” Evren says my name in a way that nearly makes me break down.“Who did this to you?”

His question confirms it. Do I dare hope that the fury I’m witnessing is not directed toward me, but rather at Grady? Even if Evren doesn’t know Grady’s the one responsible. For so long, I’ve hoped and prayed for someone to rescue me. To be the hero I’ve needed. Could this alien be him? There’s only one way to find out, I suppose.

“My husband.”

Silence falls.

“Yourmatedid this to you?” There’s no mistaking Evren’s rage this time.

“Yes.” I still can’t believe it despite all the pain I’m in. None of this feels real. Other than the pain, I mean. “He can’t know you found me.”

“He will not. I vow it.”

To my surprise, I believe Evren.

“Are you able to stand?” The warrior named Jodah asks.

There are two others—one with dark markings on his skin similar to the ones on Evren and Jodah—but they’ve remained a few steps away. For a brief second, the fear returns. These are four strangers. Not just any strangers either, but alien strangers who are much bigger than Grady and who could hurt me far worse.

Okay, so maybe they couldn’t hurt me worse than I’m already hurting.

If they wanted to hurt you, they would have already.

“Astrid?” Evren says my name in what I’m taking for a concerned tone.

I shake off the distraction of my brain. “Sorry. Standing, right. Um, I’m not sure.”

A large, calloused lavender hand appears in front of me. I glance at it before lifting my gaze to meet Evren’s. Carefully, I place my palm in his, and he helps me to my feet. A wave of dizziness hits and I stumble against him. Stabbing pain ricochets through my side and arm, and I nearly pass out. I swallow down the saliva that pools in my mouth and focus on my breathing while the pain changes from sharp and shooting to dull and throbbing.

Once I’m almost certain I won’t vomit, I straighten slightly and cradle my bad arm with my other one. Whatever Jodah gave me for the pain needs to hurry up and kick in. I’m not sure how far I’m going to be able to travel while hurting this much. We need to leave, too, before Grady comes back to check that he finished the job.Shit. What if he does come back? He’ll find me missing. Will he look for me? Or will he assume some wild animal dragged off my body?

“Is all well, Astrid?”

I love the way he says my name. “Yeah, sorry, just getting my bearings.”“Take your time.”

“Perhaps this will help,” one of the other two guys steps forward and passes Evren a long length of cloth. “To bind her arm to her chest. It is what Kyler has done for others who have bones displaced.”

Displaced bones? I guess that’s one way to look at it. He holds the fabric in front of me. “May I take care of your arm?”

A warm fuzzy sensation fills my belly. I’m not used to people asking me for my consent on anything, so I’m slow to respond. Evren patiently waits until I finally nod. He moves within my personal space and I wait for the tension to seep into my muscles. It doesn’t happen. Instead, I’m engulfed in heat that melts any rigidity I might display.

Carefully, he rearranges my arm within the cradle he makes from the cloth. I hiss in pain and desperately search for a distraction. I find it with Evren and his earnest apology.A crisp, minty fragrance comes from him and I take in a deep breath. It reminds me of Christmas and the evergreen wreath my mom used to hang above the fireplace every year. Tears threaten to well in my eyes. I used to love Christmas.

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