Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

“ L et’s drink their alcohol and enjoy a wild night!” Jaxxon slammed his glass on the wobbly table. “Then we’ll leave this godforsaken place.” His men echoed his sentiment as they knocked back their third round of drinks. The brown foaming liquid splashed across the table. Bitter and smelling like piss, the beer—what humans called it—tasted a far cry better than the muck his men drank at home. They had another round and then another.

Under the cloak of darkness in the dimly lit bar while wearing their hoods, no one noticed they differed from everyone else. And Jaxxon planned to keep it that way, if only for the night.

Stumbling outside, he swore when he saw two beggars scavenging through the nearby trashcans. Turning to his left, he saw several thugs arguing over a dice game in the stairwell of the adjoining building. They were unaware of his arrival.

“Drak!” Jaxxon held his crotch as he looked in both directions. The alleyway outside the bar was busier than he’d expected, and he’d had one too many. He summoned dark tendrils of shadow from the depths of his soul. He willed the shadows to rise, slipping over his body like a blanket of night shutting out the surrounding chaos. Wrapped in the darkness, he felt truly alone and content with the privacy his power granted him.

Unzipping his cargo pants, he kept his back to the wall. Several people passed, and one almost walked into him. Jaxxon contained his laughter, thinking about how close the man had gotten to an unwelcome shower.

“The bar has a bathroom, you know?” said a small woman as she walked up the alley, catching Jaxxon’s eye and stopping when he didn’t try to cover himself. Raising her brow, she smirked as she stood with her hands in her jeans pockets. They hung low on her slender waist, revealing a pierced belly button. “Show some respect! You’re in front of a lady.”

Frowning, Jaxxon continued relieving himself as the woman stood there. Looking side to side, he saw the beggars still rummaging through the trashcans and the dice game underway. They had no idea the danger that lurked in the shadows as they threw their dice.

The woman stood unwavering. Her gaze dipped as she blushed.

“You...can see me?” Disbelief tightened his chest as he narrowed his eyes. He pulled his cock in his pants, zipping them as he stepped away from the wall.

“Hell, you’re really fucking wasted!” She laughed, rich and bubbly. And full of sass.

Grimacing, he looked at the woman again and then back down at his pants. How? His mind raced. His shadows enveloped him from head to toe, camouflaging him in the background. Yet, this woman looked directly into his eyes and smirked, waiting for a response.

“Look, big guy. It’s nearly curfew, and you’re a stranger here. You’d better get off the streets before they enslave you.” She paused, her lips curling into a wry smile—a flicker of mischief danced in her eyes before finally speaking again. “Trust me. Even with those muscles, you don’t want to end up in the Mineva mines.”

“I can handle myself, woman. What’s your name?” His jaw ticked, but he tried his best to replace his frown with a charming smile. Heart racing, he edged a step closer. And then another .

“I’m no one. And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll be no one too.” She winked and headed down the alley, never removing her hands from her pockets.

Whatever weapon she carried wouldn’t have been enough to stop him if he wanted to take her. And take her, he would. But first, he needed to calm his heart before he passed out. He’d just seen a miracle. A miracle in an alley of a decrepit mining wasteland he wasn’t supposed to be in.

H anging back in the shadows and keeping his distance, Jaxxon wove through the narrow alleys between the steel buildings. He moved fast to keep up. Turning a sharp corner, he looked around.

“Damn! Where did she go?” Jaxxon growled as his shadows unfurled, sending trash along the street tumbling. Swiftly moving further north in the direction the woman headed, he jostled through the thinning crowd as the alleys turned into large streets. One of a few fools still on the street, he realized it wasn’t a coincidence she had lost him. Hell, even she had to get off the street before the curfew.

Suddenly, sirens blared an eerie melody, halting the few people still outside in their steps. They seemed to count each note and then took off in a sprint.

For the second time that night, his heart raced. Enforcement whistles blared too close for comfort, signaling those in charge were preparing to round up anyone violating curfew. Mining was a dangerous business—one most would never agree to do. Hence, the unconscionable rules, where even the most minor infraction led to years of servitude. The street vibrated as the slaver jeeps roared to life, followed by the sound of hounds.

Stepping back into his shadows, Jaxxon swung around. He looked in every direction, eyes sweeping the rundown buildings as residents pulled down their shades and storekeepers closed for the night. In the poorest part of the colony, he listened intently for danger. The smell of his sweat was unwelcome company as he ran south and then west. Hitting a dead end, he swore, turned, and retraced his steps. Even the beggars who’d lined the streets minutes ago were gone. Lost, he looked in every direction.

Caught up in the excitement of tracking the woman, he’d lost his way. And he’d lost track of time. She was a dream he’d never thought possible. He knew without a doubt that she would change his destiny forever.

I must find her! But first, I need to get my ass to safety. Typing a code into the communications device embedded in his armband, he used his coms to follow a beacon back to his men.

His shadow magic spread out, solidifying into spears aimed at anything that might round the corner as he swiftly made his way back toward his men. He wouldn’t be captured tonight without a fight. Cloaked in his shadows, he ran fast, jumping over slaver jeeps as they hurtled past. By the time the hounds scented him, he was already on the next street. The woman had one thing right—even he didn’t want to end up in the god-awful mines.

Taking the fire escape stairs two at a time, he quickly entered the seventh floor above the bar where their boarding rooms were located. Passed out from a night of partying, men slept on the floor while others slept in beds in their adjoining rooms. Two were missing—likely between the legs of a female if they were lucky.

Jaxxon would have passed out too if it weren’t for the news he had to share. Turning on the lights, he roused each man as he dodged the elbows and pillows that they tossed his way.

“What the hell, Jaxx?” one man slurred, getting up and moving to turn the lights back off.

Grabbing his hand and twisting it hard, Jaxxon shoved the man back to his bed. Ignoring their curses, he refused to turn the lights out. Some tried to pull their covers over their heads, but he swiftly pulled them off. They’d taken a long voyage to the mining colony and needed sleep. But their very existence was on the line. Jaxxon held fast to waking them up.

He wasn’t sure who was more pissed. The men he woke from their slumber, or the two he called back to the rooms from the ruckus they were making down the hall with a pair of females they’d met.

Excitement stroked each syllable as Jaxxon conveyed what he’d witnessed. His astonishing announcement led a few of them to ask questions. They nearly interrogated him. But the others...well, they’d had enough.

Slurred laughter filled the room. “Jaxx, man, what the hell did you drink?” one of them yelled before others soon joined in. They summarily believed he was drunk.

They grabbed Jaxxon as he continued arguing and pushed him from the room, locking the door behind him. Banging on the door triggered cursing from the patrons down the hall until, finally, his men let him back in.

Huffing, Jaxxon pushed one man from a nearby bed. He finally laid down. Throwing more pillows and curses, his men turned out the lights. Jaxxon knew it was either fight to make them listen or shut up. As exhaustion hit him and he felt the lasting effects of the drinks at the bar, he looked out the dark window.

“She wasn’t an illusion,” he murmured as sleep took hold.

The next morning, as Jaxxon’s men lay sprawled in every corner a body could fit in their rooms, he showered, shaved, and dressed. He made his way to the bar downstairs, which now operated as a diner. As usual, Zade was already waiting for him.

Joining him in the booth in the back with a view of every exit, he noted the few people present. And didn’t miss those who quickly rose from their seats and paid their tabs when they saw him enter.

“Jaxx, you really need to work on your reputation.” Chuckling, Zade pushed the pot of coffee toward him.

“Our reputation!” Jaxxon corrected, pouring a cup. Even the coffee tasted like piss. But it was strong and exactly what he knew his men would need to discuss the business that had brought them to the mining colony.

An older woman passed out pastries, her hands shaking as she reached their table. Her eyes lingered on Jaxxon’s and Zade’s tattoos—intricate dragon scales, which ended at their jawlines. She swallowed, looking back at the burly man at the bar, who watched her every move. The resemblance was striking. Her son signaled for her to continue. And then he nodded a curt greeting their way. Jaxxon and his men had paid the man’s father well for the rooms they used, expecting the cost to include spying for them on their trip.

“You aren’t the only newcomers here these past few days,” said the old woman, placing a fresh pot of coffee on the table. “Six people arrived two days before you on a ship with strange bloodred symbols!”

She swallowed, looking back at her son again, who hadn’t taken his eyes off her. “We’ve never seen that type of language around these parts. And we get folks from everywhere.”

“Can you describe the symbols, please?” Zade asked.

The woman nodded and told them the details of the symbols and the description of the newcomers. Three other ships had docked around the same time, but the woman said they were all known traders who frequented often to have their ships oiled and repaired.

Jaxxon watched as Zade eased the woman into telling him everything he wanted to know. He had a knack for getting information. Zade spoke softly, making eye contact with people as if he’d known them as close friends forever. But Zade’s friendly disposition was a mask he could remove in a flash. It made him a deadly but necessary tool for their line of work.

Jaxxon had other methods of getting information, methods he enjoyed unleashing on those who worked against him and his men. And Zade enjoyed joining in.

Zade thanked the woman and asked her to tell them immediately of any additional arrivals. She hurried back across the room, whispering to her son before disappearing into the kitchen .

“Drak! This isn’t good news. This place is about to become a war zone.” Jaxxon sat forward, finishing the coffee before it got cold. Then he sat back, folding his arms over his chest.

“We need to work fast.” Zade’s brow furrowed as Jaxxon thought it over.

Jaxxon surveyed the patrons as they came and went. He scanned the diner with an intensity that never left him. Business was picking up as the workday began for those who worked in the mines. Most failed to see who sat in the far back corner.

While the workday was beginning for some, it was just ending for others. Those who were enslaved had likely worked through the night on rotating shifts, and some were just coming home.

The streets buzzed with energy, alive with the clatter of boots and the hum of machinery as the mining colony went about its daily grind. It was an awful place—the air was thick with smog around the mines, and the grimy smell slipped in with each door opening and closing.

Zade sat quietly, worry etched into his forehead as they waited for their men to join them. Zade eyed him, tapping his finger on the table.

“What the hell got into you last night, Jaxx? Did you fall asleep somewhere drunk and have one of your nightmares?” Zade cleared his throat, cupping his hands tight around his mug. “You really rattled the men. This mission is dangerous enough...”

“Look, I didn’t have a goddamn conversation with myself. She was there! She stood only a few feet in front of me.”

“Are you sure you cloaked yourself inside your shadows? We were all pretty drunk last night, not to mention tired from the long voyage here.”

Jaxxon gave him a stern look, his jaw tightening. “I wasn’t that drunk.”

“Let me get this straight,” Zade said, his tone half-amused, half-skeptical. “You were out there, slavers on your heels, and this mystery woman just vanished?”

“She didn’t vanish. I lost her in the chaos. But she’s out there. ”

Zade sat back, raising an eyebrow.

“I’ll never forget the sound of her beautiful, sultry voice. Her every word lives in my memory. My blood sang for her. She was real!” Jaxxon breathed deeply, feeling his shadow magic stir. “She had warm bronze skin, dazzling light hazel eyes, and a stare that showed she meant business.”

“And this woman, who you’d never met before , just started talking to you? A stranger?” Zade burst into boyish laughter, thrusting his hands in the air. “Talking to a warlord taking a piss!”

Shaking his head, Zade continued laughing. “She was likely planning to hustle you. No woman is so bold...” he paused as he thought about it, his brow furrowing.

“I know what I saw!” Jaxxon leaned forward, his muscles flexing as his hands rested on the table. He looked Zade in the eye.

Jaxxon’s dragon scale tattoos shimmered like liquid silver and black swirls in the morning light filtering through the window. “She fucking saw me! I was cloaked in shadows, and she...saw...me!”

“But...but that’s impossible! No one can see a Crelentian male cloaked in shadows. Only?—”

“Now you see why I’m excited.”