Page 19 of Beauty and the Alien Beast
The group of—I didn’t know if they were aircraft or not—whooshed overhead in a widely spaced formation. Searchlights and what looked like some odd sort of greenish laser strobe beamed out from their undersides, flicking over the trees and rock outcroppings, searching everywhere the light could penetrate.
The Omers were searching for us.
I held my breath as the light moved closer and closer, scanning back and forth in an overlapping pattern.
Don’t find us. Don’t find us.
I knew in my heart what sort of brutal shit would happen if they did. I wasn’t just scared for myself. I didn’t want Teken or Brax to pay for rescuing me. The big alien didn’t seem to have any kind of weapon on him, aside from the small, odd-looking pistol at his belt, and I knew the hunters would be better armed.
I shivered violently, burying my head against Brax’s fur, tears stinging my eyes.
I can’t go back.
I hated feeling so helpless and scared.
Maybe if I had a gun in my hands and wasn’t completely exhausted and overwhelmed, I would be able to push down my fears and get my act together. But right now, panic gripped me, and I couldn’t risk running or even moving.
All four of Teken’s arms encircled me, holding me snugly as he curled over my back, hiding me from sight. He was murmuring something—the same thing over and over, with small variants—in my ear with a deep, rumbling voice.
I knew the cadence and the tone, if not the words. As a kid, I had a lot of nightmares. My dad, the big, tough former military soldier, would cradle me in the dark when I screamed myself awake and tell me, “It’s all right, baby girl. It’s all right. Don’t be scared. I’ll protect you.” I was currently encased in a similar shield of muscle and determination. Tears stung my eyes as a trickle of relief ran through me.
A bright-white light burned down at us, shining through my eyelids so I blinked them open and squinted against it in confusion. It threw every leaf and branch above us into high contrast, silhouettes bejeweled with faint gleams of green and backlit by an eye-searing glare. Then the searchlights passed, and that strange flickering fan of green light swept back and forth over the place where we were hiding.
I could feel it on my skin as it licked past, faintly electric, making the hairs on my forearms stand up. It moved over us three times before the sound of the vehicles changed pitch and moved on.
Once the sound had faded into the distance, Teken huffed out all his breath in a sigh, then relaxed his grip on me. I remained right where I was, wishing he would just stay like that and hold me until my blood didn’t feel like ice water. He gently stroked his hand over my hair, murmuring those same phrases again.
Finally, the sound moved far enough away that we both heaved sighs of relief. I finally straightened and tilted my head back against Teken’s chest so he could look down into my face. My cheeks were wet. I was sure the rest of my makeup was gone, but I managed a smile.
“Thank you,” I said softly.
He smiled back.
15
Teken
Even as we rode along,dodging the air patrols, the need to kiss and soothe her surged through me.
She’s my female, my sheleki.
But similar to the drug she had been pumped full of, the pheromones of our kiss would start my mating frenzy. The last thing we needed right now was to end up frantically mating in the middle of a dangerous jungle with catchers all around, searching for us.
From what I’d been told, the mating urge could very easily overwhelm my common sense. I didn’t know what it would do to a human, but I suspected Ella would be left just as vulnerable. But I couldn’t deny my burning attraction to her. And my primal need to prove to her that I was a worthy mate burned through my veins.
When the hover squad’s engines faded from earshot entirely, it was time for us to rest. We stopped by a narrow creek that ran over rounded crystal stones, and I swung down from behind her, landing boots first in the water with a slight splash.
“Come,” I said out of habit as I held out my arms to her. She gave me a blank look, so I curled and uncurled my hands, making a come-hither gesture.
She nodded in response, faint smile returning, and braced herself on my upper arms as she stepped down. I caught her in my lower arms, and she let out a little yelp and started laughing. That made me smile again. I bounced her very lightly, and she squeaked. Then I put her down, and she looked back up at me with a brighter expression than she had worn since I’d met her.
It made me feel warm inside in ways I wasn’t accustomed to. Perhaps some of the younger Gladiators would have teased me for that, but I found I did not care. It felt too good and energizing to worry that my gentler emotions might rob me of my warrior’s edge.
I led her to the water’s border, Brax padding beside us. Crouching, I inspected my reflection under the moonlight, wincing when I saw I was still wearing the ridiculous wig. I worked my fingertips under the scalp piece and pried it loose bit by bit until I could remove the wig altogether.
Ella made a sound that held both relief and approval as I shook my real hair free from under it, stroking my short white-blond spikes back into place. “Better, eh?” I asked her, amused. “I think so, too.”
She considered me for a moment, face very thoughtful, then nodded. “Better.” She stumbled over the word in my language, but I understood it.
