Page 39 of Venomous Lust
They entered what turned out to be the jail of the garrison, a dank, cold place where despair seeped through the air in waves of fluid waste and unwashed bodies. Here and there, prostrate forms lay on a dirt floor, not even bothering to look up as the group walked to the back of the room.
As they went, the cells became smaller, the dirt floor wet, emitting an unbearable stench that Khal had a hard time ignoring despite his Eok training.
“Here’s my new guest.” Gerkin pointed to the last in a long series of empty cells. “Don’t get too close. She spits.”
Khal ignored Gerkin’s advice and stalked closer until a slim female form stood in front of him. The female’s eyes were wide and rimmed with red, but her mouth was pressed in a harsh line as she faced him. The pink colors on her skin flashed bright red in panicked, striated pattern. Her clothes clung to her form, caked with dirt and unspeakable things he didn’t want knowledge of.
Celaith, the bounty hunter. This is a dishonor.
“Arvak.” Khal blinked and shot Celaith a warning glare. Celaith’s eyes gleamed for a second, but she remained thankfully silent. “This is surprising. They never venture inside the Ring. And you said she was a gift from Captain Roohl?”
Gerkin stared at Celaith, his sick gaze lowering to the female’s body with naked greed.
“It appears the little thing isn’t as adorable as she looks.” Gerkin’s words had an edge to them, like someone savoring every moment before a feast with his eyes, wanting every second of delicious anticipation to last in his memory. “She betrayed Roohl—tricked him or lied to him, he wouldn’t say—but whatever she did, it was bad enough that he threw her away like a used carpet. It’s going to take some time to teach her some manners, but I’m a patient teacher. She’s going to learn, sooner or later.”
Khal controlled his revulsion at the obvious perversion in Gerkin’s voice. At the glee with which the warrior entertained the idea of torturing the Arvak female.
How will I get her out of here? Gerkin won’t let go of his plaything easily.
Khal glanced over his shoulder at Hazel, whose face was dangerously white and whose eyes were fixed on Celaith with obvious shock.
His only hope at saving the Arvak female was Zaxis. If the Avonie male understood his guile, then Celaith stood a fighting chance.
“The Arvak female might be useful to you.” Zaxis spoke with a detached voice, but didn’t hide the reprobation in his tone. “She was one of Roohl’s crew, she could have valuable information. It’s not like Roohl to leave the Ring, he must have a worthy bounty to chase. My own money would be on Knut, but then again, all the bounty hunters are after Knut.”
Good. Zaxis knows where I want to go with this.
Once again, Khal was impressed by the Avonie’s fast thinking and steady nerves. Maybe he had been too fast in judging the Avonie as a species altogether.
“If Knut were hiding beyond the Frontier, I would have heard of it.” Gerkin smiled, but there was a glint of uncertainty in his eyes. “In any case, I can’t see how Roohl would have let her go if she was worth anything to him.”
“That’s the weakness of one too many males like Roohl.” Khal raised his brows, allowing just enough derision to show to ignite Gerkin’s anger. If his pride was injured, the other Eok would be less likely to notice the manipulation. “Not realizing how much the little people around him really know. I would wager that this one knows a great deal. And that whatever she knows will become less and less valuable as Roohl and the Mother get farther away.”
A quick glance at Zaxis revealed nothing of the Avonie male’s feelings. His impassive purple eyes were set on the dirt floor as his aristocratic face twisted with revulsion. There was no way to know if Zaxis understood Khal’s intention, whether he understood what Khal expected of him.
It’s in the Midnight God’s hands now. I won’t risk Hazel any longer.
As Khal set his eyes on Gerkin again, he saw that his ruse had worked. The commander of Garana’s face was misshapen with rage and he glared at Celaith with a savage expression.
“I need to get back to the command center.” Gerkin spoke to Khal, but he was already far gone. He turned and headed back to the door, leaving Khal and the others behind.
Now.
Khal jerked his chin toward Zaxis, who rushed to Celaith’s side.
“What are you doing here?” Zaxis spoke harshly, not sparing the female’s feelings. “Why did Roohl cast you out?”
“It’s because of you.” Celaith’s voice brimmed with anger and despair. With pain. “After he left, Roohl asked me to sabotage the Myrador. He wanted you to explode as soon as the Myrador was out of range of the Mother.”
“Why not obey him?” Zaxis continued, showing no mercy.
“Is it so hard to believe that I won’t murder people just because Roohl tells me to?” Celaith retorted, anger showing on her features below the layer of dirt. “I didn’t blast you out in space because it was wrong. Roohl’s been blinded by the reward put out on Knut. He’s gone too far and, like I told you, I want out. I guess I’m out now.” She scoffed derisively, then shook her head. “I don’t care if you believe me or not. I know I’m telling the truth.”
Zaxis stared at the Arvak female as she raised her chin, not giving in to the pressure.
“We’ll get you out of here.” Zaxis finally relented. “But on one condition.”
“I’m listening, but don’t go thinking you dictate the terms.” Celaith bit out her words, her skin flashing first bright, then morbidly pale. She was still defiant, even from the bottom of the foulest jail in the Ring. Were all females this stubborn?
