Page 37 of The Stolen Tribute
FIFTEEN
KYLIE
It was Dal.
I’d know that voice anywhere, even though I’d only heard it for a few minutes. It was uniquely deep and authoritative. It was the voice of a male who always got what he wanted, no matter what. Now that I knew about his past, it brought a whole new level of darkness to it.
“Dal?” Jaxir hissed.
I dropped my bag of weapons and tools in surprise. “How is he doing that?”
“How did he override the system from outside the ship?” Jaxir wondered, unable to hide the disbelief in his voice.
“I can see you and hear you, you know,” Dal’s voice came back over the speakers. “Yes, it was easy to find you. You left your SOS blaring to the entire galaxy. You should be thankful that it was me who found you and not a bunch of space pirates.” The voice chuckled. “Unless you’re more at home with other treacherous monsters like yourself.”
“I’m no pirate!” Jaxir shouted.
I glanced at Jaxir, wondering what to do.
“Well, that doesn’t matter,” Dal’s voice said, echoing in the small room. “Now, I have some instructions for you, and you are going to listen.”
Jaxir tugged on the door. It was locked; Dal had taken over the entire system. “Fine,” He spat.
“Excellent,” Dal chuckled. His deep voice reverberated through the metal surrounding us.
My hands began to shake. I moved to Jaxir’s side and clutched his arm. If Dal was in control of the ship, he had total control over our very lives.
“I want my mate,” Dal continued. “You stole my Tribute bride.”
The sound of those words made me feel sick now.
“You will return her to me or die,” Dal said.
“I can’t send you back to him,” Jaxir whispered to me. “You’re too important. He doesn’t deserve an amazing female like you.”
“I don’t want to go,” I said. “But if I don’t, what will happen?”
“If you don’t send her back to me, I will destroy this ship and everyone on it.” Dal’s voice came through the speakers again. “Including your crew.”
Jaxir flinched.
It was all or nothing with Dal, and deep in my gut, I knew that he wouldn’t hesitate to kill us all.
“If I go, will you spare the ship. Will you spare the lives of Jaxir and his crew?” I asked.
Jaxir’s eyes widened. “No!” He hissed.
“Yes, you have my word as a Zexian warrior.”
His word was worthless. I knew that now.
“I have to go, or he’ll kill you,” I whispered to Jaxir.
“He’ll kill me either way,” Jaxir said, holding my hand tightly.
“No. I’ll convince him not to,” I said. “You’re a great hacker. You can boot him out of the system in no time. I’ll distract him.” The plan sounded better in my head than out loud. “I can’t let him destroy the ship. Your crew.” My voice cracked.
“You have my word, human,” Dal said. “I will not harm Jaxir or his crew. Come back to me and fulfill your wifely contract as you have sworn to do.”
