Chapter 15

Paige

A fter mating, Varek slept so hard that I had to check to make sure he was still breathing.

Me?

I’ve never felt better.

I cling to him, laying across his chest and playing with the short, soft hair that covers his hard body. After sleeping for four days, I’m wide awake and all I want to do is watch him.

Hear his voice.

Find out more about him.

An intense warmth spreads through my chest, lighting me up inside and I smile like an idiot. Okay, this is definitely the mating bond.

I can feel it now. The intense urge to spend every moment with him. I wonder what it’s like for him—if it’s stronger. If he’s dreaming about me. I drag my fingers along his skin, drawing little circles as chills rise along his biceps.

The leathers hanging across the opening of our chamber ruffle and I flinch. I’m buck naked. I scramble to grab a fur to cover myself when Varek’s eyes pop open.

He springs up, shoving me behind his body with a harsh growl.

It’s Draxel.

Draxel hangs his head, not looking at either of us. “I wouldn’t have interrupted but it’s important.”

I wrap an arm around Varek’s middle as his shoulders relax. He lets out a ragged breath and places his hand over mine, giving me a tight squeeze. My heart clenches.

“Go on,” Varek rasps.

“They can’t wait any longer.”

Varek’s jaw tightens and he eyes me quickly before returning his attention to the other male. “Dead?”

“If not, then close to it.”

An uncomfortable feeling forms in my belly. Like a hard rock telling me something isn’t right. They are speaking too vaguely and when Varek shifts away from me to stand, I know something is wrong.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

Varek reaches for his leathers and slides them on. “The humans,” he murmurs.

I squeeze the furs in my hand, clutching them to my chest as my heart rate picks up. I look between Varek and Draxel who is still looking down at the floor.

“What do you mean? Not dead but close to it?” I stand, tugging the furs around my body and following my mate. I pull him by the arm, forcing him to look at me. “What’s going on?”

“Draxel has been watching them. They haven’t taken our provisions and something is wrong. He can smell a sickness in their blood.”

My eyes go wide. “And you’re just telling me this now?”

“You were unconscious. You needed to take our bond or else you would—”

“Die like they might!” I shout at him, pushing him back. I toss aside the furs and reach for my leathers. “We have to go get them.”

Varek growls, a sound so possessive and deep it sends a shiver down my spine. He yanks me behind him, covering my body with his own.

“Draxel, eyes down,” my mate barks.

I quickly drag on the soft leathers, settling them in place over my body that still feels a little sore. All I can think about is the work sickness.

What kind of sickness?

I finish tying my leathers and Varek relaxes. “Come on. We’ve waited long enough.”

“No,” Varek barks. He turns to Draxel and opens his mouth like he’s about to give out another order, but I’m not having it.

“Yes. We can help them. Bring them back here.”

“We can’t,” he answers. “All we can do now is keep their existence a secret. It’s too late. They don’t belong here.”

I shake my head, tossing my hair out of my face and huffing. “Yeah, well I didn’t think I did either, but look at us now.”

I look up at him. He appears rested, but the angry pinch of his face reminds me of the way I saw him when he tore open the door to the ship. A stranger.

“We’re going to get them.”

“No, Paige. You’re staying here. I won’t put you at risk.” He reaches for my cheek as if to calm me down but I shove his hand out of the way.

Anger boils in my belly. I want to be angry with him—blame him for this. In my head, he let them get sick and starve. It’s all Varek’s fault right?

Wrong.

It’s mine.

If I would have known the Vruts a week ago, everything would have been different. I didn’t need to protect the women—in fact, I’ve left them in more danger by hiding their existence. And if I had just let Varek send other males to go retrieve them, the Vruts could have taken care of them since day one.

This is all my fault.

“I’m going,” I tell him, my voice firm.

“Paige—”

My thoughts bubble out before I can stop them. “I won’t let my friends die while I’m here getting fucked and falling in love with an alien!”

Varek’s expression is tight but the longer he looks at me, the softer his eyes become. He sighs and then nods softly.

“Draxel. Get more food and supplies. Meet us just beyond the southern dip.”

Draxel bows his head with respect and leaves, the leather falling back into place.

My mate turns his attention back to me. “We will not bring them back here, but we will help cure them and protect the ship.”

My shoulders relax, but the sinking feeling in my chest hasn’t lightened up. There’s no way they can survive out there if they couldn’t contact Command. If Earth doesn’t know we crashed, or where in the hell we even landed, the ship won’t protect them forever. I don’t press the subject, but I know that the women need to come here. Varek steps into my space and drags me into his chest, nuzzling the top of my head. I want to let him take away the worry, but my throat is tight and I feel like I can barely breathe. I need to make sure they are okay.

Why didn’t I realize they would be safe here sooner?

“Let’s go,” Varek says, his voice rumbling from deep in his chest. I cling to the rich sound of it and follow his lead out of our chamber.

We walk in silence through the glowhollow. I almost have to jog to keep up with him, my bare feet slapping across the dirt. We round the corner and Kylor is standing upright in the middle of the rocky corridor, his cloak pulled tight around his shoulders.

“Varek,” he says, bowing his head.

My mate grabs my hand and pulls me close to his side. “Kylor.”

The old male’s nostrils flare before his sharp eyes snap to mine. “Ah. I see you are a fully mated pair. Congratulations.”

I swallow and look away—realizing he knows exactly what we got up to in our chamber.

Kylor addresses my mate. “Any updates from Draxel? Any more signs of life from the crash?”

Varek’s grip on my hand tightens almost painfully.

“No. It appears Paige was the only survivor.”

I grit my teeth but stay quiet. He’s speaking as a Highseer—his chest out, his chin high. These are his people and he knows best.

Except he doesn’t know that I don’t plan to let my friends stay out there in the marshes for another night.

I guess we will cross that bridge when we come to it.

Kylor nods, a line on his forehead deepening. “Hm. That is a shame.”

He lets out a deep breath.

“The council was hoping for better news. Hope for the future. With no Vrut-born female mates appearing, we cannot go on like this.”

Varek blinks back at the older male in front of us and a twinge of guilt pangs in my gut.

Kylor looks to the ground. “I will let the council know. You two seem to be off in a hurry somewhere.”

His slanted eyes slide to mine and I’m frozen. Varek is lying to Kylor because I asked him too and I can’t escape the weight of that lie anymore. Not when I realize the cost for his people.

“Paige needs some fresh air.”

“Ah,” Kylor nods, his eyes narrowing. “Enjoy.”

Varek doesn’t waste time. He drags me along behind him, but an eerie feeling seeps through me. I twist and look back at Kylor who watches us closely and just as we head to the nearest crack in the rock, he begins to follow.

We jog through the tight path until the mountain spits us out into the misty air and then Varek drops my hand.

I squint as movement catches my eye and Draxel is waiting for us on the other side of the small clearing. Just his head is visible as he waits in the valley like he was ordered to.

“Let’s go,” Varek grits.

“I think Kylor–”

He whirls around so fast that I nearly slam into his wall of chest. His eyes blaze as he steadies me. “You demanded to come along and I will not fight you, Mate. Keep up.”

He breaks into a slow jog but with his long legs, I fall behind quickly.

We meet Draxel in the valley and the two males speed up, too fast for me to keep pace.

“Wait!” I call out, but Varek doesn’t even flinch. The muscles in his back bunch and ripple with each long stride, putting more and more distance between us.

I run a little faster, but no matter how much I push myself, they pull ahead. It’s as if he’s trying to leave me behind.

Jerk.

I keep running, just fast enough that they are never out of my view. It gives me time to think.

He’s punishing me, maybe. Angry with me.

Maybe I am a troublemaker.

He doesn’t want me out here, but he gave in. He lied to the council about my friends—to his entire clan—to make me happy. As a leader, it must go against everything he believes to put me first, and yet he’s done it every time.

My lungs are burning as I speed up. There’s no way I can catch them, but we’re in the marshes now and I know the ship is only a little ways ahead. I need to talk to Varek before we approach the women. I should apologize.

Perhaps he’s sacrificed more than I thought to make me happy.

And I’m so selfish that I’m only going to demand more.