Page 57 of Heart of the Deep

“Because I know you will make the choice, in time.”

Larkin smirked. “Are you so confident in that?”

He stopped mere centimeters away from Larkin and ran his gaze over her slowly, without shame, devouring her with his eyes. Heat radiated from him, warming her suddenly sensitive skin. “Yes.”

Larkin raised the winefruit to her lips as his low voice reverberated through her, making her core tighten with desire. Her heart sped, threatening to burst out of her chest, but she didn’t look away.

Damn her, but she was convinced by his confidence, too.

* * *

Dracchus paused beneath a flickering overhead light in the hallway, tilting his head back to look up at it. Though he’d never spent much time in this building before Macy and the other humans had come, he was familiar with which lights worked and which did not. This pulsing was the start of a new failure.

How long before everything in the Facility stopped working? How long before this place, the only home his people had ever known, became little more than another dark, underwater cave?

After they’d shared a meal, Dracchus had taken Larkin to visit Randall, Rhea, and Melaina. Ikaros’s presence had nearly given him pause — the memory of Larkin fending off a pack of prixxir was still fresh — but Dracchus had hunted alongside Randall and Ikaros for months. Larkin was safe with them.

Reluctantly, Dracchus had left her with her brother, freeing himself to traverse the Facility. He greeted as many kraken as he could on his meandering path; they needed to know he’d returned, needed to know Kronus was in no position to claim dominance or leadership. Though most kraken operated independently, they had always relied upon one another for mutual survival, and often looked to the most capable males for guidance.

Kronus could not be allowed that sort of influence.

Hushed voices drifted to Dracchus from somewhere further along the corridor. He’d seen Vasil and Brexes already, and old Ector, and dozens of others, but a certain group had remained unaccounted for.

Dracchus moved toward the voices, rounding a corner to follow another long corridor nearly to its end. He stopped in the doorway of a room that reminded him of the Infirmary — this chamber was much smaller and had no beds, but the cabinets, counters, and equipment were similar.

Kronus and Neo were inside, accompanied by two of their supporters — a male named Orphus and the female, Leda.

“We must, as quickly as possible!” Neo said.

“That is not how this matter should be resolved,” Kronus warned. “They will continue—” His eyes darted to the doorway, and he scowled. “Dracchus.”

Clenching his jaw, Dracchus entered the room.

The other kraken turned to face him, Neo’s skin bleeding to crimson. Dracchus had faced open hostility many times, but the intensity in the air now was at a new level. He was outnumbered four-to-one.

Part of him hoped they’d try.

“You are not welcome here,” Kronus said.

Neo growled. “Take your treacherous skin out—”

“The humans are under my protection,” Dracchus said. Neo snapped his mouth shut. “Jax, Arkon, Melaina, Sarina, Jace, and all our people who disagree with you. They are all under my protection.”

“You come to threaten us, Dracchus?” Leda asked. Her half-lidded eyes moved over his body, lustful despite the situation.

“Only to remind you. My patience has thinned as of late. You will not be afforded the courtesy of a threat, going forward.”

“Siding with thosehumansover your own kind.” Kronus moved closer, catching Dracchus’s eyes. “Threatening your own people. What have you become?”

“If you wish to fight, Kronus, the decision is yours,” Dracchus replied, “but you will fail. Change will not await your acceptance.”

“This change will not be accepted. Humans have no place here, and they will leave no matter how hard you battle it.”

“You do not need to make them your enemies, Kronus. I made that mistake already and warn you of its folly.”

“After all they’ve done, you take their side?” Neo advanced, skin scintillating, his anger apparently having overpowered his fear. “You choose them over your own? They kept us in cages and beat us for hours each day. Starved us. Where has your pride gone, Dracchus, your backbone, that you defend those who brought you low?”

Dracchus’s stomach twisted, and a heavy weight sank in his gut — built not of fear, or shame, but remorse. These were his people, but they would not be reasoned with. Kronus had been bested in numerous challenges and had yet to be deterred. At some point, this would escalate into true violence, something far worse than two kraken in a challenge. When that point came, Dracchus would not hesitate to put an end to it.

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