Page 15 of Wed to the Bullman

“Oh!”

They come through the doors, the same ones I saw on the ranch when I first arrived at Taurus Terra. The South Taupas, the aliens from the southern territory. They glare at me, their furry brows furrow.

I jump up and back away quickly, my hands up.

“No! Leave me alone, let me leave.”

He laughs. “Stupid human. Try to leave, you’ll die.”

“Let me go! Why did you grab me?” Tears stain my eyes.

“We have a reason.”

“I’m leaving.” I march away, and again, the place lurches, and I fall. “What in the world?”

The South Taupas grabs me and pulls me along into the room through the double doors. With utter horror, I see we’re in a spaceship and flying in outer space. The window shows black with stars.

“You’ve abducted me in a spaceship? Where are you taking me?”

“We’re in Terra’s realm. You’re our bargaining chip. We want something, and the minotaurs have it.”

“Please,” I cry. The hairy Taupas keeps hold of me, not letting go.

“Sit,” he commands. I sit, and they belt me into the chair. “Tell us how much land your minotaur has in his possession.”

“I don’t know. He’s not going to hand over his land. And the minotaurs claimed the land long ago. It’s theirs. Don’t you have your territory south of it?”

“It's a dry desert. We need land with rich soil, land that will help us grow crops and have animals like you have.”

Anger bubbles inside me. “The land is not for Vozak to give away. Nor is it for you to capture. Using me as a pawn to get the land won’t work.” I’m defiant enough to play the game with them. One thing I know about the minotaurs is they are fiercely loyal to their family. My husband will do whatever it takes to get me back.

“You are not going back to Terra until we get what we want.”

“Why don’t you find other land to claim? Why minotaur territory?”

“It’s similar to our home planet Tapania.”

“What about the land to the west of Taurus Terra?” I really wasn’t sure about the terrain there, but I heard it was a desert there too.”

“All the land in Alia Terra is claimed by others. We arrived too late for the choice land.”

I glare at them. “You can’t just demand Taurus Territority. There are other parts of the world you can find. Go elsewhere. Take me home, or the minotaurs will declare war on you.” I am not sure of the truth of that, but it sounded good, threatening.

“We will have that land. Or you will be our slave.” The leader unbelted me from the chair and led me around the circular hall to a room that had medical devices. The South Taupas steps to me with a needle. Oh no! Now, I put up a fight. I refuse to let them harm me.

“Get away from me.” I take a swing, and from behind, something pierces me in the back of my neck, and the world fades once again.

CHAPTER 13

Vozak

I burst into the house, hoping she got sick and rushed home instead of disappearing. “Agnes? Agnes?” The house is eerily quiet. A quick search, and I’m confident she’s not here. Back outside, I holler for her over and over and search every bit of the land.

“Vrakius, Agnes has disappeared.” I left a message on his comm. If he’s out working on his newfound interest, horses, he’s not listening for his comm. I check the house again and scour the garden, looking for clues. Sure enough, there are footprints in the surrounding area, at least eight pairs of different-sized shoe prints along the clods of dirt lining the garden.

My heart pounds hard, she’s nowhere near here. My wife, my mate, is gone. The word around the area says there are bandits, the South Taupas, who are sniffing around and wanting our land.

I turn to head back to the barn and gather my weapons. I will hunt every single bandit and chop off their heads until they give Agnes back to me. Auryn, Dario, and Vrakius run to me as they received the message.

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