Page 18 of Rescued By the Convicts
Melina forced her eyes open, but he still held his forehead to hers and that fuzziness in her brain hadn’t left. The warm water felt wonderful against a body that had been bruised and battered first in a cell and then on the back of a man who’d run through the cold and snow only to dump her in a heated pool.
The smells of the room tapped a memory. Melina twisted her head to get a better look. Pockets of bright green light from the verluz, the moss native to the underground caverns on Veenith, bounced off dark walls. She’d been in this cavern before, on a date with Jayce.
More caressing over her cheeks, jaw, throat, and neck made her shut her eyes again, so she could let her mind slip away as Liden took her. She refused to look at him.
“Een!”
Her eyes flashed open. “Reece?” Her heart raced as she tried to focus her eyes on the blur in front of her. Deep heather eyes held her. She’d gladly lose herself in those eyes if she could, but the terror she saw there sobered her quicker than any rescue drug ever could.
Reece looked utterly terrified. His hands roamed her face again, seconds before he pulled her against his chest and wrapped her in his arms. She sank against his chest and trusted him to keep her afloat.
“What happened?” she asked, before remembering Reece couldn’t answer her. The answers would have to wait. The confusion, the anger on his face said as much.
After another kiss, one Reece seemed to need, he proceeded to scrub her body with his hands. He wasn’t being the least bit suggestive, but determined as he ran his hands over every inch of her. Reece was bathing her. Why? What the hell had happened?
Lifting a shaky hand, she traced the line of his jaw. “Can we get out now? The motion of the water is making me nauseous.”
Slowly, reverently, Reece carried her out of the water and set her down on a flat but very cold rock. The air was warm down here thanks to the steaming pool, but she couldn’t stop shivering. Reece, who only wore pants, grabbed his shirt and coat, both of which looked as if they’d been flung aside.
“I thank the Goddesses every day for you,” she said as he used his shirt as a towel and started drying her.
A slight smile curved his lips, but it didn’t last long amidst the sea of worry plaguing his handsome face.
“Do you know what happened to me?” she asked.
He wrote GARBAGE in the dirt. She hadn’t been imagining a putrid smell when he was running with her on his back.
“My head is rather fuzzy right now. I remember bits and pieces. I might have a concussion.”
Immediately, he began running his hands over her head. She placed her hand on his arm, stopping him. “Can we go home? If I pass out again, I’d rather it be there. With all of you.”
Hurt flashed in his eyes before he nodded. He draped the coat over her shoulders and shoved his feet into his boots. Before he could scoop her up, she held out a hand, stopping him.
“I hurt you, didn’t I?”
Reece carefully schooled his emotions. That was answer enough.
“I trust you to take care of me, Reece. And I feel safe here with you, but I don’t want to risk you. If I pass out again, I’m going to put you at risk. I don’t know if I escaped from Liden or if—”
Reece’s eyes flared. He didn’t know about Liden. He signed for her to continue talking, to tell him everything. She didn’t want to talk about it here, but she sensed he wouldn’t budge until he had the facts.
“Liden was interrogating me about a tree in Section B. I trespassed a few weeks ago and took some spores.” She inhaled a deep breath. “It’s a long story, and this place doesn’t feel as safe as the bunker right now. Please. . . can we go back to the bunker?”
He stroked her face once, then lifted her. She let her head fall against his chest. The gentle rocking of being carried in his arms and Reece’s sensuous musk lulled her. Despite all the unanswered questions about what was going on and what they were going to do, right now, in Reece’s arms, she knew everything would be okay.
Chapter Five
IVAN
The last thing a man wanted to see was his woman being carried away naked with a pack of sex-crazed men chasing her. Reece having Melina though calmed Ivan enough to maintain his sanity as he fought his way out of the mine. Reece wouldn’t fail her.
Another man, Farland, swung at Ivan. He ducked and slammed Farland into a wall, knocking the man unconscious. As the pile of men grew, Ivan’s energy declined. He had to get out of here before he could no longer defend himself. He had worked alongside most of these men for the two years he’d been on Veenith, but that didn’t make them friends. He had no qualms about breaking bones or shanking anyone who tried to pursue Reece and steal Melina.
With only a few minor cuts and a broken nose, Ivan escaped the mine and slowly wove his way back to the bunker. Most of the prisoners on Veenith didn’t know about the bunker, but he suspected Hawke did. Even though Jayce had given access only to Ivan’s unit, Hawke could post men up top and wait for them to emerge. Their food stores in the bunker wouldn’t last long. They needed a better way to defend themselves or a fallback site. And soon. Zev had been associating with Hawke.
Trusting Zev had taken Ivan a while, but he knew the man cared for Melina. But still, without knowing precisely what Zev was up to made Ivan more than nervous. It had been a while, two years precisely, since he’d commanded a squad, held the respect of men, and could honestly say he’d willingly die for them. He felt that way about his unit. Melina, Jayce, Reece. . . even Zev. Ivan finally felt like himself again, able to trust others, really trust them to the point that if he gave a command, they’d follow. More importantly, they’d know when to refuse an order, when to trust their instincts and have the guts to stand up to Ivan and tell him he was wrong.
As Ivan waved his prison tatt by the scanner at the bunker, his heart rate picked up. He prayed Reece had made it back here with Melina. Nothing short of death would have stopped Reece, but he was still only one man and there were too many prisoners on this planet who wanted Melina.
