Page 75 of Taming Chaos

It was the only thing she could do right now; the only thing that stopped her from surrendering to her stupid insecurity. To admit to herself that she was powerless here, that she had to rely on another to survive… that was hard.

Humbling.

Liberating.

If it was Torin doing the saving, then that was okay.

She held Kvorae and Parrus tightly, her fingers digging into their furry wrists. Together, they drifted into the outer chamber, where bits of wood, metal, glass, and smoke churned through the air.

Chaos.

“Persephone.” Torin’s voice was a low rumble. He grabbed her and pulled her close. Suddenly, she was pressed against his armor-hardened body. He hooked one leg around hers, keeping her still as he floated in one spot, somehow keeping still amidst all the chaos.

The flying debris and ash couldn’t touch him. He was the calm in the center of the storm; the anchor.

And when she was with him, nothing could touch her.

He turned to the Veronians. “Parrus, Kvorae, you will follow. I expect there will be chaos in the halls. Bartharrans fighting, enemy attackers, panicked passengers. Try and keep up, but if you can’t, find somewhere to hide, somewhere as far away from this point as possible. I will try and protect you as best as I can, but I can’t protect all three of you all the time, and my first priority is Seph.” He gave his plasma gun to Parrus. “You’ve borrowed this before. Take it now, and remember what happens to big forces in zero gravity.” To Kvorae, he gave his long knife. “This will cut anything, even Bartharran metal. Be careful, as you have no sheath.”

“S-sir, I…”

“Take it.”

The Veronian looked to Seph for guidance. Seph nodded in encouragement. There was no time for hesitation. Take it. Cautiously, reverently, Kvorae took the knife, as if the Callidum might burn her hands. “Th-thank you, Master.”

Boom!

Seph glanced over her shoulder. Impossibly, the floor was starting to crack.

“We have to go. I will warn you, the corridor is full of smoke. Close your eyes and hold your breath. Are you ready, Seph?”

She looked at him, searching his face. Despite the harsh note of command in his voice, his expression was soft, almost tender. His eyebrows were drawn together in that slightly quizzical way, a crease forming between them. His lips hovered somewhere between a smile and a frown, as if he couldn’t settle upon a single emotion.

Her heart swelled.

This was Torin, the hardest, most brutal, caring, and loving man she’d ever met.

“I’m ready,” she said, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. He placed his hand behind her head, tucking her into him.

Holding her close.

And all Seph could do was trust him, because that was what she’d decided to do from the very beginning, and he had never let her down.

Chapter Twenty-One

As they emerged from Relahek’s quarters, Seph coughed. Torin gently patted her back as they moved, drifting away from all the ash and smoke.

Distant sounds of fighting reached his ears, coming from both directions.

Fuck.

Explosions from beneath their chambers, and fighting all around them. He was stuck between a…

What was the human phrase for it? The General’s wife had explained it to him.

Between a rock and a hard place.

With all that firepower coming from below, staying put wasn’t an option. Torin had briefly contemplated taking Relahek with them, but he couldn’t risk it. The noble was untrustworthy, and there was no way Torin was going to put Seph’s safety at risk for the sake of the man who had tried to buy her.

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