Page 8 of Theirs to Crave

He scowled and paced away, muttering under his breath. Stomping back to me, he folded his arms over his chest and spoke through gritted teeth. “It’s not like that.”

“What’s not?” I asked, matching his pose.

He sighed and lowered his arms. “I’m not...I don’t think of her that way. Not...romantically.” He ignored my disbelieving snort and looked away, saying, “She reminds me of you.”

I stopped mid eyeroll, searching his gaze. Truth. Oh, brother mine. My shitshow of a marriage left scars on more than just me. I stepped close, hugging him. After a second, his arms came around me and we stood together. I was bruised all to hell and it hurt, but I didn’t let go, and neither did he.

“I thought you two were related.”

Logan’s sleazy insinuation was an unwelcome intrusion, and my back straightened as I glared at the asshole. Mariano spun, fists tight. If the cages hadn’t been in the way, Logan would have been a lot bloodier.

“Hey, I’m not judging.” Logan held out his hands, his tone mocking. “Me, I’d have to be a lot more desperate, but that’s on you, man. “ He laughed, the sound harsh in the otherwise silent room.

We all stared at him. Even the Indigo Girls picked up on the tension. Mariano stalked up to the side of the cage closest to Logan and said, clearly and slowly but with a punch like each word was fired from a gun, “Chinga tu madre.”

Logan flinched. It was a small movement, just around the eyes, but I saw it. He stepped forward immediately, snarling an insult, but Cassandra stepped in front of him.

She raised her hands and tilted her head back, looking him in the eye. “Give it up, Logan. If we manage to survive this, get a therapist. Until then, just stop.”

I wanted to cheer so hard. Mariano’s little butterfly was bursting out of her cocoon. But I bit my tongue, watching Logan’s clenched fists tremble at his sides.

Ria whooped in encouragement and Cassandra gave her a small smile, but her focus stayed locked on Logan, who took a slow step closer.

I scrambled for something to say to diffuse the situation, so fixated on the danger that when Logan stumbled, I didn’t immediately understand what had happened. Then the loud mechanical noise of an engine cycling hit my ears, and the world lurched to the side. I barely caught myself before I hit the electrified wall of the cage.

The Indigo Girls wrapped around each other in a tight huddle, looking at us with a deep sorrow and sympathy that needed no translation.

I finally realized what was happening. The ship was moving. It was leaving Earth.Wewere leaving Earth. We were lost.

Chapter 3

Estrella

Dear Reader,

The following chapter contains on-page depictions of domestic violence, sexual assault, body horror, homophobia, and death. If you’d prefer not to read these things in full detail, skip to the next chapter, which will begin with a summary.

The cell wall shimmered in front of my face. My hair crackled and waved in the noxious air, forced on end by the hazy electrical field.

I’d thought I hurt before. I’d been wrong.

Blood trickled from my nose, pooling on the floor beneath my cheek. We’d either left the planet by plowingthroughit, or the aliens really needed to fix the shocks on this flying junk heap. Take-off had shaken the ship like a dog with a rat, knocking me on my ass and sending Mariano and I crashing over each other. We’d slammed into the electrified wall separating us fromShane, the fiery agony of it making me seize and scream. Blood filled my mouth as my teeth snapped shut, cutting into my tongue.

The ship jolted again. We careened across the cell, slamming into another wall of lightning.

My stomach tried to teleport out of my body along with the rest of my internal organs. I choked, blood bursting from my mouth in a fine spray, as light and sound warped around me.

After that. . .nothing made sense.

Now, I was lying on my side, queasy, my skin sizzling with static, feeling like I’d been beaten by an entire football team. The floor beneath me vibrated with a low hum, broken now and then with random pauses. I strained, instinctively trying to find a pattern. I couldn’t. It was torturous. Every time the vibration paused it felt like my heart did too, only to leap into my throat, racing, when the hum returned.

“Estrella?”

It took a second, but my name finally penetrated the fog. I twisted my head and found Mariano lying a few feet away, flat on his back. Our eyes met, and I opened my mouth. No sound came out.

I coughed, swallowed, and finally rasped out, “Estoy aqui.” My throat was raw. I wondered idly if I’d been screaming. Like everything else, it didn’t seem to matter one way or another.

“Gracias a Dios,” he choked out, then turned his face away to stare blankly at the ceiling. I pretended not to see the shiny tracks trailing across his temples. His fists clenched and stretched, clenched and stretched, over and over.

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