Page 13 of Rescued By the Convicts
Did he still fault himself for how he’d kidnapped her from Hawke, for how he’d belittled her and terrified her when all he’d had was revenge in his heart? He wasn’t the same person now. Neither of them was.
“Reece didn’t join us,” she said, changing the subject.
“He prefers you to himself. Can’t say I disagree.”
The shock must have registered on her face, for Ivan walked over to the bed and handed her pants to her. “It’s not easy sharing you, little bird.”
“Then why do you?”
“Because we all love you. And I don’t think you could choose between us.”
He was right. She couldn’t. She’d been raised to expect to mate at least three husbands. And she’d been given to three in the lottery on Baccula. She thanked the Goddesses every day that she’d been lowered to a Level 5 and taken away from Namir. Every day with him had been a living nightmare. She’d gladly stay on Veenith her entire life if it meant Namir could never reach her.
“Fortunately, I don’t have to choose,” she said, getting to her knees and throwing her arms around Ivan’s neck as he sat on the edge of the bed pulling on his boots. “You and the others are the best thing to ever happen to me. I’m lucky I’m here. I just wish I could have saved your squad.”
“The Company ignored your research, they kept you from giving my men the medicine to save them, and then they lowered you to a Level 5 to punish you for defying their orders. Don’t be grateful, Melina. Be mad. Be fucking mad that you’re here. You should have been lowered to Level 3, or Level 4 at worst, and sent to Narkos for ten years. Then you’d be free. No one leaves Veenith. They gave you a life sentence, and it fucking kills me that you’ll never have what you deserve.”
She tightened her grip around him. “You’re wrong, Ivan. I have what I deserve. I have you.”
“Don’t fucking say that. You shouldn’t be here. You’re not like the rest of us.”
“And what does that mean? Because I’m not a rapist or murderer I shouldn’t be here? You’re just as innocent, Ivan. The Company sent you here to hide their mistake with the Kratos Project. They didn’t have to explain the deaths of your squad with you condemned to a prison planet where no one will listen or even care.”
“You don’t belong here,” he repeated, unconcerned with his own fate.
She slid off the bed and knelt before him. “Look at me, Ivan. You think this is some sort of death sentence for me, but it’s not. I’m alive here, with you, Reece, Jayce, and Zev. More alive than I’ve been in years. I know I’ve complained about being stuck in this bunker, but that’s my fear of enclosed spaces talking and not a reflection on you. You’ve done a wonderful job keeping me and the others safe.”
“Safe?” he chortled. “Safety on Veenith is temporary. Sooner or later—”
She pressed her lips to his. It was the most effective way of quieting him, of keeping him from sliding down that dark slope of his past.
“You didn’t fail your squad, and you won’t fail us.”
“I guess in those sessions of treating Glasner and Kimber they never told you everything, huh?” Ivan asked.
“They said you were a top-notch leader, that they didn’t blame you for what happened on Markov 4. Or afterward, on Baccula.”
The emotion slid from his face. “I made the decision to go to Baccula for treatment. We could have gone to Daaran but the med-centers there aren’t as good as on Baccula. I thought…” He sighed and didn’t finish his thought.
“You couldn’t have known,” she said as she cupped his cheek. “No one could have. And I’ve finished the treatment for Glasner and Kimber. Both responded as well as you.” She’d given each man a series of three shots over the span of three weeks. All their symptoms from the drug her boss had used on them on Baccula—the drug she’d warned wasn’t ready for human use—had disappeared. She still monitored Ivan closely for any signs of lasting damage, but he and his former unit appeared fully recovered.
“I’m glad. They didn’t deserve that pain.”
“None of you did.” She wished she could wipe that worried look off of his face. Her Ivan carried the weight of too many people on his shoulders. His new unit as well as his former unit in particular.
“We will be fine, Ivan. All of us. Kimber and Glasner included.”
His thumb traced her lips. “Don’t you get it, Melina? I don’t want fine for you. I want you to be happy. To have everything you want.”
“I am happy. I’m free here. Free to be me, free to love the men I choose, and not those assigned to me. Free to speak my mind, free to be sassy or mad or simply reject any one of you if I’d like without being beaten or—” She stopped herself. It wasn’t good to think about Namir and the past. She’d drown in fear if she dwelled on the past.
Ivan’s hand sank into her hair and gripped the back of her head, ensuring she looked straight at him. “One day you’re going to tell me about the bastard who hurt you. All the details, because if we ever make it off of Veenith, Iwillhunt him down.”
She closed her eyes as his free hand grazed down her throat, so sensuous and gentle. She didn’t want Ivan anywhere near Namir. That monster crushed everyone in his path, and she wouldn’t lose Ivan. She couldn’t stomach the thought.
“I need to go find Reece, to make sure he’s okay,” she said finally, opening her eyes.
“You rest. I’ll go,” he said as he rose, a vacant look seeping into his eyes.
