Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

Zandhor

Listening to Tallie's words, Zandhor felt sick. So very mad at himself.

"I'm only two days from Megoth. Now that I'm locked away on the bridge of the ship, I'll be fine," she said.

"That implies that at some point, you weren't fine. What is going on, Tallie?" asked the one called Makayla.

No one spoke for several moments. Then Tallie spoke again, "There are six men. All gladiators. They overheard Ceely and me talking. Ceely wanted me to have protection. She offered to travel with me and watch my back."

Several people snorted or laughed at that statement. Zandhor decided it was because they were speaking of the child wanting to protect the woman.

"Zandhor offered to guard me and said his five friends would help. Then when I tried to find clothes to fit them, he said they were gladiators and didn't wear clothing. I explained they couldn't go around naked and gave them some of the kilts Viktal left for the released prisoners. Those kilts were the only thing that would fit these men. Then we got on the ship, and they removed their kilts. They refused to put them back on. I thought it was kind of funny at first, but it made me nervous. Then it really wasn't funny, and I got scared."

He hated that she still sounded upset.

Makayla spoke. "First… you are on the bridge of your spaceship, with the door locked and the six naked males on the other side of that locked door. Correct?"

She must have nodded because he didn't hear anything, but Makayla asked another question, "Second… why did Ceely think you needed a guard?"

Sitting up, he heard Tallie mumble, "My parents. Picked a mate for me. He tried to hurt me. I ran."

Zandhor was furious. He wanted to hit something, preferably the man who hit Tallie. Everyone went silent again.

"He tried to hurt you?" The one called Kaitlyn asked.

Tallie's voice held humor this time. "He did. But you taught me how to knee a guy in the balls if they held me against my will. Remember Kaitlyn. The maneuver surprised Bashad and worked extremely well. He tried to choke me, and after I injured him—he dropped to the floor—crying. Then he threatened to kill me. That move gave me enough time to get away and lock myself in my room. He isn't a nice male."

Grinning, Zandhor applauded Tallie's actions.

One of the men demanded, "Do you have a weapon?"

There was no sound, but he knew the answer to that question. He also knew she was capable of using them.

Kaitlyn asked, "You need the guards because you think he's coming after you?"

"I don't know. He might not remember that I wanted to go to your wedding. But the male is an ass. I need to be prepared in case he shows up. I thought guards would be a good idea. That backfired," Tallie moaned.

Groaning at the sadness in her tone, Zandhor silently promised her that he would do better.

"No one can get to you on the bridge. I don't care if someone acts like they are dying. Keep the door shut until you get to Megoth," Makayla warned. "No matter what happens, you can't help. The men will have to take care of any issues on the other side of that door. Falcon and I are tracking your location. The rest of the girls left Dorvan, and they are only an hour or so behind you. I don't want any of them trying to board your ship, as long as you are safely locked away. But if you need them, they will be right there."

He knew now that there would be no chance to talk her out from behind that locked door. Strangely, he was okay with that. He wanted her to stay where she felt safe.

"I'm safe. It's only two days and if the other ship will stay close, I'll be fine."

Another male said, "Keep your weapons with you at all times. Don't trust the door to be your only protection. And don't open that door for any reason. You were right to be scared. Whether or not they meant to harm you, the situation isn't safe for any woman."

The last thing he heard was Tallie's sigh.

Moaning, Zandhor covered his face with his hands. He wasn't sorry he'd listened to Tallie's conversation with her friends, but he was sorry he'd added to her concerns.

How was he going to fix this?

Zandhor paced back and forth beside the communicator. Rubbing his hand through his hair, he cursed himself. He had messed up. The first important thing in so long, and he didn't know what to do. But he was smart enough to know if he waited to do something until they got to Megoth where Tallie's friends were—he probably wouldn't see her again. They would wrap her in a protective bubble and keep her away from the big, bad, naked aliens.

And he couldn't blame them.

Zandhor had been taken captive before he'd become an adult. He'd been stripped of everything. Everything except the communications chip installed in his head. He had an upgraded model that meant he could communicate with any species he ran into. It made him a bit more valuable. Thank the gods he hadn't been left like LeChar, who didn't have a chip and couldn't understand much of anything.

Over the years, the rest of the gladiators had tried to teach him a few words and worked on connecting with him in between gladiator bouts. But it wasn't enough to help the young man. He couldn't communicate, and LeChar's only method to keep himself from panicking and going feral was to stroke his cock.

Faken Batch. After listening to the men talking to Tallie, he could see why the small female had been threatened by the feline alien's actions. Zandhor had learned to ignore LeChar's coping mechanism over the years. But the female wouldn't feel that way. Worse, going naked wasn't normal or playful as he thought... it was seen as a sign of aggression. He couldn't let that stand.

Moments after meeting Tallie, Zandhor had warned her that, "Gladiators don't wear clothing." And it was true. They weren't considered fragile enough to warrant the expense. They fought naked and were imprisoned naked. But he should have added that— Gladiators don't know how to do anything but fight.

Instead of warning her, he should have humbled himself and been willing to learn how to become more than what his captors had made him. Being a gladiator, a slave to someone else's wishes... was all he knew. All he remembered. He didn't know how to be free. To make good choices. To make any choices. This experience taught him that he would need to be more careful. That sometimes his choices might hurt someone else. He certainly hadn't meant to hurt Tallie. Just looking at the female made his head spin.

Zandhor rubbed his hand over his heart. He was confused when he thought about her. Now, more than anything, he was scared. He didn't like the thought that fear of him, of all of them, had driven her behind a locked door. Locked in a cage on the planet Dorvan, he never contemplated having a woman of his own. Or wanting one. But now, he rubbed his hand over his heart again and realized things had changed. And he might have destroyed any of Tallie's softer feelings for him.

He looked down the empty hall. Now was a horrible time to realize he'd do anything for her. He glanced down at the small strip of fabric that was wrapped around his hips. It hung to just above his knees—and covered his cock. Such a small thing. It seemed so silly that he'd resisted wearing it. And that this small scrap of material might be the reason he lost any chance of spending more time with the tall, pink-haired woman that made him wish he was different.

Zandhor sighed and straightened. He wouldn't give up so easily. Not for something that felt this important.

So, Tallie wouldn't let him in the room to talk. But he could sit in the hall by the open communicator and try to connect. He could talk to her. He had two days. Surely during that amount of time, some of his words would help. At this point, he didn't think they'd hurt. Zandhor stepped up to the communications panel and took a deep breath. He could do this. He had to do this.

"Tallie?" he called softly.

Tallie ~ Secure

Standing, she paced the small room. After finishing the call with Kaitlyn and the others, she felt better now that she had a plan. She felt safer because her friends knew where she was and what was happening on her ship. Not only that the men she'd taken as her crew were an issue, but that there might be problems if Bashad showed up. Plus, she knew the other women were on a ship close by. They would call in and chat with her throughout the day, just making sure she was okay.

Eating one of the nutrition bars to keep up her strength, she sipped on water and thought about getting through the next few days. There wasn't much she could do. Rest, think, and count the hours down. She moved back to the console and sat in the navigator's chair. She let her body slump down, trying to get comfortable while she stared out the window at deep space. Nothing but a black sky and distant stars surrounded the ship. The view made her feel lonely. Insignificant. And more than a little afraid.

She thought she had her life mapped out. That she would have a ship and crew that would allow her the freedom to go out and explore the world. Rescue slaves. Help those who needed it. She felt as if that had all caved in on her. Now, what was she going to do?

She sighed heavily. At this point, she had two days before she made it to Megoth. The only thing she could do was to sit here and be safe. Stare at the stars. Nap. Pulling her cloak tighter, she settled back in the chair.

Tallie realized she was feeling sorry for herself. Rolling her eyes, just as her Earth friends had taught her... she thought about one of their strange but somehow applicable sayings. It was time to put on her big girl panties.

Tallie needed to stop moping and feeling sorry for herself. Instead, she would focus on the positives. She had escaped Bashad and made a very powerful statement to her parents. She intended to do whatever she could to stay out of his clutches and not bow to her parent's wishes. She should feel some pride that she'd managed to escape the hell that situation would have become.

Did she have terrible luck with men? Yes. Yes, she did. But she was learning how to say no and stand up for herself. Tallie figured she would just stay away from all men for a while. She blinked. Except for the men marrying her friends. She'd have to talk to them. But for now, she figured she could deal with a little alone time. She would stay on the communications bridge, safe behind a locked door, and away from all the males. When she got to Megoth, she'd keep her distance from her shipmates and any single men.

Smiling, she let her body relax. It was a good plan. One she could easily manage. She took a deep, calming breath and closed her eyes. The time would pass faster if she slept.

"Tallie?" Zandhor's deep, rich voice filled the room.

It snapped her awake. Her heart pounded. And it wasn't from fear. Tallie wanted to scream.