Page 12 of Her Lawless Prince

His eyes met hers, and he struggled to answer.

Payton felt her claws extending from her fingers. She wanted to punch something until all her aggravation was spent. This metal box of a room was not good for her mental health. “When I was losing consciousness, I heard a woman say something about jettisoning us into the deep black. I’d like to know why I’m dying.”

“The virus,” he whispered, the sound so faint she barely heard it even with her shifter hearing.

“You mean—?”

His look cut her off, and he nodded. He came to sit next to her. Leaning close, his mouth came close to her cheek. Her breath caught as his heat radiated onto her skin.

He whispered into her ear, “I was able to scan the room for cameras with the tracking device Yevgen took from me. We’re not being watched, and I don’t think they’re listening, but this is a ship, and I believe we should err on the side of caution. If they don’t know about it, I don’t want to give them the idea to look for it. Right now, they’re most likely tasked with collecting Yevgen. My best guess is they don’t know what he knows, only that he knows something.”

Payton tried to lean back to look at his face, but he moved with her, keeping his cheek close to hers. His hand touched her hip, holding her next to him. She remembered the newspaper chip article from Cysgod’s last days.

Ranald gave me a warning. The formulas remain in lockdown at Yeven Genetic. Several of us will attempt to destroy the facility so that no other people will be exposed to this virus.

“Your cyborg friend should never have been in that database. Not only did he have access to the Federation’s secrets, but he also opened a portal that let them peek into his. I don’t know if they looked, but if they found it, they could know everythingheknows.”

She felt Nyle breathing. It tickled her skin, and she heard each slow intake and release of air. She couldn’t help but wonder if worrying about someone listening was an excuse not to have to answer her questions about the virus. Was he being paranoid? Cautious? Evasive?

“Please, stop asking questions,” he insisted. “Think of the kind of person who would buy a planet killer. We can’t let that happen.”

Payton nodded.

“I’m sorry you were dragged into this, Princess.”

“You can back away now,” she said, all too aware of him.

The hand on her hip instantly lifted, and he pulled away.

Now was not the time to entertain inappropriate thoughts with a man she shouldn’t trust. Payton needed Nyle on her side. One, they were kidnapped together so they both wanted to escape. Two, she needed him to repair Yevgen. That second need was complicated. She wasn’t sure if it was in Nyle’s best interest to reactivate the cyborg. He might fry Yevgen and make sure all his secrets remained erased.

“I know you don’t trust me,” he said as if reading her thoughts.

“I didn’t say that.”

“Your expression did. You’re not one to hide your feelings, are you?”

To her surprise, she gave a small laugh. “So I’ve been told.”

“I like that about—” Nyle’s words were cut off by the sound of the door sliding open.

Payton stood, claws extended and ready to fight. Nyle tried to step in front of her like a shield.

One of the burgundy-clad mercenaries stood in the entrance, filling it with his large size. Payton stepped to the side to better watch their captor. The tips of his brown hair had been colored with silver, not exactly military standard. He had been one of the mercenaries on Yevgen’s surveillance.

“You need to let us go,” Payton demanded. “Now.”

“Stow it,” the man ordered. She recognized his voice as the one who had stepped on her back unnecessarily hard in Yevgen’s home. He held an injector in one of his hands.

“Leave her alone. She doesn’t need to keep sleeping,” Nyle said. “We’ll behave.”

Payton frowned. She had no intention of behaving.

“What do you want with us?” Nyle asked. “You’ve had us in here for days.”

Days? Payton took a deep breath. There went any hope of being close to home. If they managed to take control of the ship, how difficult would it be to fly back to Qurilixen? Sure, she might be able to figure outhowto fly it, but to navigate using an alien computer system? She had to pray to the gods that the computer database used the Old Star language so she could at least understand it. The universes were vast, and finding Qurilixen might prove impossible without help.

It looked like she had no choice. Yet again, she needed Nyle. Trusting him would still prove to be difficult, but she couldn’t get out of this on her own. He was the only one who could fix Yevgen and possibly find her homeworld.

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