Page 51 of Alien Prince's Claim

Harder than when I had served my time in the Krev military…

Harder than when I had gone a week without sustenance, and with a pack of ravaging Fiorax on my tail, chasing me down, one slip and I would be doomed to end up in their bellies before the sun had set.

I had to get to Emily.

Immediately.

I turned another corner, beginning to get the hang of the labyrinth’s layout, developing a natural feeling for its layout.

I rounded another corner.

Soon, I would be there.

I would find her and she would be safe and sound.

I knew it.

I had to know it, to at least believe it with every fiber of my being.

I turned another corner.

Just one more and I would be there.

A thick pipe that ran around the walls like an intricate carving at the palace’s throne room entrance hissed angrily at me, casting a thin mist of water as I passed through it.

Not that it had much of an effect — I was already drenched with sweat and it only combined to form beads that ran down my back.

Suddenly, my stomach sank and I felt sick.

Was it a premonition of what I would find? I wondered. That things had turned out for the worst?

Please, by the Creator, tell me she’s safe.

Please.

I pledge you anything you ask.

Anything.

Please.

Just let me see her in the room.

Please.

I turned the corner and, without slowing a step, bent my head low and braced my shoulder as I smashed into the door, knocking it open so hard it struck the wall and bounced back at me.

It snapped against my horns.

“Emily?” I said. “Emily?”

I peered around the room to find she wasn’t there.

“Emily?” I said. “If you’re hiding, it’s okay. It’s me. Yaltah. Emily?”

I envisioned her curled up in a ball with her knees tucked into her chest, hands clamped over her ears to block out any sound.

I lifted the blanket, checked behind the worn armchair, checked behind the door in case I had accidentally knocked her unconscious at my hasty entrance…

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