Page 171 of Stars in Umbra
He sensed his woman’s presence beyond them, her indomitable spirit unbroken.
‘I’m coming, my love,’ he murmured. ‘Hold on.’
Mo crashed through the unlocked doorway of the bomber.
He moved to the inner cabin. Its biometric locks gave way, the interface hissing open as he surged into the bomber’s bridge.
Rina.
Her eyes met his, and she cried out.
Mo reached her in two strides, his divine fire melting the latches as if they’d been made of wax.
She fell forward, into his arms.
No words were shared, touch, his hands gliding all over her.
Her pulse was steady, but a bruise marked her face, and her wrists bore the red lines of restraint.
His lips found hers, starting with gentle firmness that evolved into a bruising, melding that was hungry, laced with a hint of relief.
His form shuddered with held-in fear and rage.
Her hands gripped his face as if anchoring herself to him.
He pulled her to his chest, his heart pounding with the fury of a thousand regrets.
‘I’ve got you,mi kaya,’ he whispered. ‘No one will ever harm you or take you from me again. Not while I breathe.’
A shimmer of light signaled Mirage’s arrival.
The AI, in glittering armor, swept Rina from Mo’s hold.
‘I’ll get her out. You handle the rest.’
Mo nodded, releasing his woman with reluctance, eyes tracking Rina as she vanished with Mirage who flew her to safety.
Only then did he stride back outside onto the exterior, ignoring the wind that lashed his face.
Caidan was still slumped on the hull, shackled by the same ancient Sacran bindings that had long held divine tyrants across millennia.
He was bleeding from the mouth, yet he still tried to maintain an arrogant tilt of his jaw.
Mo stalked toward him, eyes lit with quiet ruin.
He turned on his mag boots to anchor himself, crossed his hands over his massive chest, and checked his adversary with a chin lift.
‘Start talking. Why me? Why her? Why any of this?’
Caidan coughed, lips curling into a grim, bloody smile.
‘You were a tool, one that was gifted to me to help me accomplish my family’s goals. To turn Stygian Corp into the number one power broker across politics, defense, and armaments in Pegasi. After the Klatsch and Dunia debacles, you became our weapon against our enemies. You were to burn bright and then be extinguished after killing the Riders, in your ultimate mission.’
He winced as another cough racked him. ‘However, it seems your flame, yourSacranfire, will notfokkin’ die. Tis why I wanted your power for myself. I studied the scrolls, the oldglyphs, the myth fragments. I desired to walk among the gods, and a drop of your DNA enabled that.’
Mo’s brow creased. ‘How did you know about me and my Sacran lineage?’
‘I encountered a god. Years ago. A wandering deity with entire star systems in his eyes, and fire in his voice.’
