17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Astra

I'm nervous. I'm so fucking nervous I keep pacing our tiny cell. If I knew how to, I'd crawl up the wall like Cricket did. I love that clever alien mantis for bringing us the keycard but at the same time, I hate him, too.

It changed everything. The moment Tareq held it in his hand, he switched into "super spy" mode, all focused and professional. The teasing tiger from before is gone, and now I'm stuck with Mr. Uptight.

As he goes over the plan for the umpteenth time, I want to smack him upside the head. I want to kiss him too, but he doesn't seem to be interested anymore. I guess I was just a fling, a way to pass the time before he could act. It makes me want to grab the waste bucket and pour it on his stupid head.

I don't do it, of course. If he's going to be all focused and professional, I'll be even more focused and more professional. I won't let him know how much he's hurting me. Fuck him. I won't miss him. I'll miss his cock, sure, but not him. Too bad such a great cock is attached to such an arrogant jerk.

When the lights come on in the cellblock, we exchange determined nods. It's time.

I'm scared, but that's a good thing. I'm supposed to look scared. Of course, it would be better if I was just pretending to be scared, but beggars can't be choosers.

This time, there are four guards instead of two. That can't be good.

Tareq frowns, but goes ahead with the plan. As the guards move along the cells, distributing food and water, he speaks to them. "Excuse me?"

I grimace at how odd his voice sounds. Subservient, a little scared, wanting to please our captors. Tareq is an excellent actor and while it will help us to escape, it makes me mad. He played me just like he's playing these Genixarians.

"I've bred the woman like you asked," Tareq says and I wince. He did that, alright, he doesn't even have to lie about it. "But I'm not sure she released her eggs in time. Perhaps you should scan her to make sure?"

I lower my head so that the Genixarian guards don't see my eye-roll. How come these super advanced aliens believe such nonsense about releasing eggs? Especially after they've already scanned me both inside and out? Tareq told me they only reproduce through cloning and artificial wombs, but he didn't mention them being brainless.

"We were going to take her anyway," one guard replies. "You've had enough time, Syndoran. Another male will get the chance to breed this female. Back away," he warns, pulling out the collar remote.

"What do you mean, another male?" Tareq asks, scowling. "I've been told I have three days with her!"

The Genixarian sneers. "Do you think your opinion matters here? Back off. Now."

Tareq doesn't move. I know he doesn't like this. It's not a part of our plan. He's worried about me, I think. Or maybe he's just worried about the plan. He already fucked up once by ending up in a cell, so I guess he doesn't want a repeat.

I know I'm being mean, but I'm hurt. Who knew that the most painful part of the whole alien abduction experience would be having my stupid heart broken by an alien?

A growl rumbles in Tareq's chest and I decide to take action before he gets himself knocked out by the collar. I pull myself onto my feet, wobbly after being fucked into next week, and fling myself on the nearest guard. "Oh, please, take me away from here," I weep. "He's a monster!"

The guard makes a disgusted grunt, peeling me away from himself as if I was the creepy one here. "Stop touching me, female!" he orders, threatening to activate my collar.

"I'm sorry, sir," I say, pretending to sniffle and wipe my nose with the back of my hand. The more disgusting they think I am, the less they'll touch me.

I follow them out of the cell, terrified to be alone with them but grateful that I've taken their attention off Tareq. He stands aside as they take me away, but I can see that he's a hair's breadth away from losing his control and attacking them. That would be a terrible idea. They'd just knock him out and he would be of no use to me when they bring me back.

I don't get it. I thought he was focused on the plan, the mission. Why is he acting crazy now? It's as if he wants to throw his precious plan away just to fight the aliens for taking me away from him. They say women are complicated, but men are seriously messed up.

Or maybe I'm wrong and he really does like me. Maybe he just can't bear the idea of another male touching me?

Ugh. Why am I torturing myself with these stupid fantasies?

Either way, it doesn't matter. We have a plan and we need to stick to it. My job is to get the remote and I cannot afford to fail. If I do, there's no escape. I'll be raped by one of any number of primitive aliens and Tareq… I don't know what he'll do. He'll probably try to escape even without the remote and get himself caught and killed.

I can't fail. No pressure, huh?

In the end, stealing the remote is surprisingly simple. They take me back to the lab, strap me to the table, and the creepy scientist waves his scanner over me. I thank all the fucking gods in existence that he doesn't stick anything inside me because I think I'd vomit.

After I'm deemed to be still not pregnant—thank fuck for that—they release my restraints. I pretend to stagger, falling straight onto the small table where the scientist always puts his collar remote. Tools scatter around, aliens yell and someone activates my collar. I scream in pain, but even as I collapse onto the floor, I keep tightly clutching the stolen remote. I can't lose it now. I can't. They haven't noticed it and I can't give it away. It's our only chance to get out of this hell.

The pain ebbs eventually. I groan as I try to get up without knocking over anything else. I don't think I'd be able to take more pain without breaking down in tears and inadvertently revealing the stolen remote.

"You should start behaving better, slave," a guard lectures me as they lead me back to the cells. "Once you're auctioned off, your new master won't be as lenient with your clumsiness and disobedience as we are."

I want to punch him. I want to scream. I want him to have balls so that I could kick him in them. But I also don't want to raise any suspicion, so I just give him a quiet "yes, sir" that seems to satisfy him.

Fucking aliens. If people knew the kind of assholes they were, no one would want to meet them.

The guards bring me back to the cellblock. All four of them. I don't like that. Why are there suddenly four when they've only been coming in pairs until now? Is it a coincidence? Do they suspect something?

Tareq watches us intently as we stop in front of his cell. I give him the tiniest of nods and he smiles in return, looking proud of me. And I won't lie, it makes me feel good. I might not be a professional undercover agent or whatever he is, but I managed my part of the plan without a hitch.

Now, we just need to wait for the guards to leave, remove our collars and escape. Tareq will signal his buddies, they'll fly in guns blazing, and we'll all get our happily ever after.

Except things don't exactly go as planned.

"Not there," the guard says as I move toward Tareq's cell. "You're getting a new male to breed you."

To my horror, he pushes me toward the cell with the large lizard. "B-but…" I try to protest, but they ignore me. They shove me against the bars and the noise makes the creature in the corner of the cell raise his ugly head.

Oh, boy. Did I think Tareq had sharp teeth? This guy looks like a crocodile. He's also hard, his cock straining under the simple loincloth he's wearing. He grunts as his eyes slide over my body, once again wrapped only in the flimsy blanket that will provide exactly zero protection against him.

"NO! You can't do that!" I scream even as they open the cell door. "You-you want me alive, don't you? This thing will eat me!"

"Nah. According to our database, when he's fed, his mating instincts are stronger than his feeding ones."

"How can you be sure about that?!" Tareq yells from behind me. "You know jack shit about mating! Stop it!"

Annoyed by all the shouting, the leader of the guards clicks his remote and Tareq falls on the floor, groaning in pain. Someone pushes against my shoulder, forcing me inside the cell.

The lizardman stands, watching the commotion with his small eyes. I back off as far away from him as I can, too terrified to even scream when he steps toward me. I know I should do something, fight him, but how? He's more than a foot taller than me and at least twice as heavy. And he's a fucking lizard with sharp teeth. How do you fight that?

My eyes slide down to his neck. He wears the same collar as the rest of us. I could use the remote if I fucking knew how. There are several buttons with scribbles I don't understand. One is bigger than the others, though. That should be the right one.

The lizardman advances on me, and my finger hovers over the button.

I don't press it.

I wait, because from this close I can see that the alien isn't looking at me. He's looking at the guards loitering in front of the cell. They're busy watching Tareq's body twitch as they keep activating his collar.

The lizardman reaches the bars in a long leap and I duck out of his way. He's not coming after me.

He reaches through the bars, burying his claws deep into the shoulder of the nearest guard. The Genixarian's scream is cut off when the lizardman tears his throat out.

Tears. His. Throat. Out.

I swallow the bile rising in my own throat, jumping back to avoid blood splatter as the lizardman throws the chunk of flesh away and reaches for another guard.

They're shit at their job because they're still standing by the bars to our cell, like tomatoes ripe for picking. Very bloody tomatoes.

The lizardman maims another guard before the leader finally reacts and activates his collar. My new cellmate roars in pain and anger, still trying to swipe at them. They have to increase the shock power several times before they finally subdue him and he collapses, unconscious.

The two remaining guards look at each other, shocked but relieved. As they see it, they just suppressed a rebellion. The way I see it, they're enjoying the last few seconds of their lives, because the cell door behind them opens and Tareq staggers out, looking positively furious.