Page 38 of Owned By the Hvrok

Not really.

He set the course with a final command.

The ship turned toward the dark blue orb in the distance.

And Kyhin leaned back in the seat, his mind already drifting to the human girl sealed in quarters behind him.

She would be afraid. Confused. Perhaps injured from the impacts.

But alive.

And now they were heading toward a world just as dangerous as what they’d left behind.

And maybe,he thought grimly,even more dangerous still.

It didn’t matter. He was Hvrok, and not just any Hvrok.

He wasIskari—an elite warrior, feared throughout the galaxies, and… quite possibly the last of his kind.

Amongst the Iskari, he’d developed a reputation for single-mindedness, for stubbornness. Iskari were tough and fiercely independent by training and nature, and of them all, he was one of the most feared.

That’s why the ruling council had always chosen him for the most dangerous missions, sending him to the remotest worlds, where resourcefulness and ruthlessness were necessary for survival—and success.

Now, once again, his skills and strength would be put to the test.

This was what he’d been made for. To defend. To kill.

Once he was on the ground, he had no doubts about his ability to survive—and protect his human.

But he had to get them there first.

CHAPTER 23

She lay on the bed-thing, staring at the unbroken stretch of metal ceiling above her.

The room was quiet. Too quiet. No hum of traffic. No soft rustle of trees outside a window. Just silence and the occasional low pulse of the ship’s systems—a mechanical heartbeat she couldn’t decipher.

The dress the alien had given her clung to her like a second skin. Too soft, too warm, too damncomfortable—which only made her angrier. She hated how good it felt against her skin. Hated that it didn’t scratch or constrict or suffocate. It moved when she moved. Shifted like liquid.

She wanted to tear it off just to feel like she had a choice.

The walls were seamless. No door handle, no control panel she could see. No windows. Just smooth curves and pale lighting, like the inside of some quiet, endless machine.

She was alone.

Locked away like a possession.

Owned.

Her stomach turned at the thought of him—that towering, armored figure who radiated danger and control without speaking a single word. He hadn’t hit her. Hadn’t even raiseda hand. And compared to the other creatures—the ones who’d ripped her from Earth, who’d pawed at her, appraised her,auctionedher—he’d treated her well.

But that didn’t mean he saw her asequal.

Not even close.

No attempt to communicate. No gesture of understanding. Just silent commands and that terrifying stare behind his helm. He wanted obedience, nothing more. Just another object to carry out his will.

Sylvia clenched her fists against the bed. Anger pulsed under her skin, stronger than fear now.

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