Page 11 of Venomous Heart
Arlen scowled at her, creating deep lines in his alien features. It would have been scary—downright terrifying—if she weren’t so far gone.
“I have given you no reason for such outburst.” His voice was controlled, but she sensed that his hold on his own temper was lessening. Good. If she was done playing nice, she was also done with dealing with a block of ice. “That young male is obviously the result of gene engineering between humans and Cattelans. Gene engineering that is strictly forbidden. I will have to report this crime to the Gene Protection Council.”
Just like that, her anger was gone and a cold, slithering fear replaced it.
“Don’t. He’s just a child.” She stepped even closer to Arlen, her hands instinctively going for the folds of his vest. The Eok stepped away as though her touch burned him, and it was like a slap to the face. He’d suddenly remembered what a filthy creature she was. Her very existence was illegal, so what did she expect? “If you report him, Uril will be taken away. The Gene Protection Council will keep him locked up, study him like some lab animal. It would be torture. Please, I’m begging you.”
Arlen stared at her, a perplexing mixture of longing and reluctance in his face, then he walked to the farthest point away from her in the room. It stung, but Ava didn’t say anything as he paced in front of the door.
She had to say something. She had to make Arlen understand.
“Reportme.” She swallowed hard, forcing her voice to maintain a semblance of strength. “But don’t report Uril. Please, I am begging you.”
“I will have to report both of you.” Arlen watched her intently, his sharp mind missing nothing of her reactions, his voice devoid of emotion. “It’s only a matter of time before the existence of human hybrids is out in the open. Too many people know about you already.”
Ava staggered back as vivid, stark dread overcame her. She shut her eyes against the visions of locked, all-white rooms and steel medical tables with straps to hold down reluctant specimens. This was her future. Worse, this was Uril’s future.
Had she been working all her life towards freedom just to lose it so close to her goal?
Despair washed over her, and she turned her back to Arlen. Her hands somehow found the table with the medical equipment and she stared at the short-wave X-rays that had given her the picture of Uril’s failing heart. Maybe this was a mercy in disguise. He wouldn’t live long enough to be treated like a lab animal.
No.
The word came to her mind as she steeled herself, bracing her weight against the metal table. She had come so far, sacrificed so much. She wasn’t giving up now.
“Do what you must.” Her voice was strangely strong, betraying nothing of the storm inside her. “Just give me time. I need to prepare him.”
Seconds ticked by as Arlen was silent behind her.
At length, he spoke. “I won’t report you, or the young male.” There was no mercy in his tone, nothing but cold duty. “But I am not alone on this planet. Anyone can report you.”
“You’re the Commander, aren’t you? They all answer to you.” She turned around and glanced at him, not bothering to hide the loathing in her voice. “We are at your mercy.” Then she turned her back to him and walked away. As she did, she could feel his gaze on her like a burning iron.
4
Arlen
Arlen stalked down the hallways, passing a young Eok warrior whose name he wasn’t sure of. The youngster flattened himself against the wall, eying Arlen cautiously like he was some feral beast instead of his commander.
And maybe he was. There was no telling what he was now.
A fool. He was a fool.
Arlen growled, low and vicious as he approached another officer, a Relany this time. The male jumped through the nearest open door in his hurry to get away from him. Then Arlen was at the door to his own private apartments.
He hadn’t even been inside yet, despite landing on Aveyn two days ago. He had just worked straight through without stopping, fully focused on the gigantic task at hand… until this morning, when a tiny female had arrived and turned his neat, well-organized plans upside down.
As the door shut behind him, Arlen’s growl turned to a roar of rage. He paced the length of the room—not paying attention to the decor—all the way to a semi-circular balcony overlooking a river flanked by exotic flower gardens. The hot, humid air did nothing to appease his turmoil, and Arlen clenched his hands around the stone balustrade, extending his talons without meaning to.
I’m out of control. This is ridiculous.
The sight of all those colors, all those precious plants and trees, stolen from a thousand worlds to be forced to grow and bloom only filled him with loathing for the one who had built this despicable, ostentatious monster of a house. Then a breeze floated up and Arlen inhaled the scent of the garden, that mixture of flowers and heavy, sensual spices.
An image intruded into his mind. Two purple eyes—so close he could see the tiny veins of darker purple in their irises—staring up at him in shock; plump, pink lips, ripe and open like fruit ready for the taking.
Her. Her face flashed in front of his eyes, vivid and entrancing.
The discovery of the second hybrid only made things worse. He had no choice, really. He had to notify the Gene Protection Council, but he didn’t want to. Because Ava was right. They would lock up both her and the boy, experiment on them like they were animals. Hybrids didn’t benefit from the Ring’s legal protection. They belonged to no specific protected species. It was a gruesome prospect, one he couldn’t stand to see befalling the beautiful, smart female.
