“Are we not supposed to be here?”
“Let’s go, Ella.”
He tugged her along, entering one gate, then another. She noted he had one hand on his weapon.
Dhiro stopped for a moment, letting her catch her breath. “I love you, Ella.” He kissed her hard on the mouth. “I’d return to Earth a thousand times if it meant finding you. Never forget that.”
“Why do we have to leave?”
He kissed her again, cupping her ass as he pulled her close. Even under the stressful circumstances, she felt herself falling under his spell.
They continued down some grated metal stairs, then around a few corners. She was growing tired of moving so quickly. As they traversed the base, she realized Dhiro really did love her. He was giving up absolutely everything for her sake. Ella never expected to find true love—even with a human man.
They came to an abrupt halt, and she crashed into Dhiro’s side. “What’s wrong?”
When she peered around him, there were several uniformed men blocking their way.
“Your ship is out of commission. You have not been approved for travel.”
Dhiro walked backward, his arm to the side as a shield. She felt the tension thick and heavy.
“You had no right to touch my ship. My father built that ship.”
“Where are you taking the human?”
“I am not taking her anywhere,” he said. “Who gave your orders?”
“The commander wants to see you both.”
He leaned down and whispered in her ear. “Run down two levels to section C5. You’ll find a male named Kaalen. Tell him what happened here. Go now!”
Panic flooded her system, but she did as told, running away from the man she loved and those armed men. She held the handrail of the stairs, moving as fast as she could. Ella scanned for the C5 as she ran, gasping for breath as she went. She heard banging above her and worried about Dhiro. Would they kill him? Incarcerate him?
Then she noticed C3, then C5. She stopped, struggling for air. As she turned the corner, a large, muscular man in a grease-covered tank top noticed her enter. He looked remarkably similar to Dhiro.
“I’m looking for a male. His name’s Kaalen.”
“I am Kaalen.” Just then, his communicator sounded and he brought it to his ear. His brow furrowed as he listened. Within a minute, he tucked it away. “My brother will meet us here. Until then, I must hide you,” he said.
“Who are you?”
“I am the brother of Dhiro and Bronn.”
She’d never met his brothers, only his mother. He kept saying they would meet at their official mating ceremony, which was yet to happen.
Kaalen pointed to a heavy metal hatch, urging her to enter. She hated closed spaces but did as told.
“What if they hurt Dhiro?”
Ella hated that all this was happening because of her. The last thing she wanted to do was get Dhiro into trouble. Now his family was forced to get involved, too.
“Dhiro is the eldest. He is capable of taking care of himself.” He closed the hatch behind her.
Ella stayed locked in the hatch for what felt like days. She became sweaty and her muscles cramped. Her desperation for fresh air became overpowering. Still, she refused to make a noise. They wouldn’t leave her here, would they? After what must have been over an hour, everything around her jostled. The deafening sound of metal on metal made her cover her ears. It felt like the entire hangar was unhinged. There were muffled voices she couldn’t make out. Had the uniformed men found her? Should she call for help?
She tried to brace herself as the building shifted again, knocking her to her back. The air grew even thinner, and a deep desire to sleep overtook her. Maybe all of this had been a dream. Maybe she’d awake on Earth and realize Dhiro and Trenu Zel were all a figment of her imagination.
Chapter Eight
“You did what you had to do,” Kaalen said.
Dhiro glared at his brother. “I can’t talk about this right now.” He took a step back from his brothers. Bronn and Kaalen were not supposed to be joining him. “What is going to happen to Mother now? She is going to be furious with all three of us.”
“No, Mother told me I was going to have a big adventure and that I was to follow my heart, not my loyalty,” Bronn said. “You know how cryptic Mom can be. She is always making these … predictions. I’m certain if it wasn’t for our father, they’d have committed her to one of the wards years ago. So, tell me about Earth.”
Dhiro wasn’t exactly in a talking mood. After fighting off the blockade of men, his rage hadn’t ended there. His ship, his father’s ship that had been passed down to him, had the engine completely removed.
Never in all of his years as an adult male on Trenu Zel had his privacy been so heavily invaded. They were not like the humans, and yet, that was exactly what had happened, and he was still so annoyed. Ella had been with him. She wasn’t strong like him. They could have hurt her.