Page 38 of Angel Condemned
Axton
Iwelcomed the sting of the whip and bellowed. Each blow meant Jody was spared for now and I would do whatever I could to ensure that stayed true. The pain meant Jody was safe.
Blood soaked my wings and ran in rivulets down my chest. My cuts gaped open across my body. Sweat dripped down my body, making me hiss as my wounds stung from the contact. The Roulex would get tired soon enough and at least I’d saved Jody for one more day.
The Roulex unhooked me from the metal post, rusted and soaked in fresh blood.
I nearly fell forward from the loss of something holding me up. My power warbled inside me, unsure which wounds to heal first. But I shuffled with the guards back to my cell.
This time, the first time ever returning to my cell, felt like I was going home. And it was all because of Jody.
Though I wasn’t sure how she felt. Did she truly care for me or had she been swept up into the situation and once free of this prison, would want to be with someone else? Or at least not a broken alien like me.
The Roulex opened the cell door and shoved me inside. I expected a reaction from Jody, but there was no movement despite the pale light of the early morning coming in from the window. She lay on her side, facing me, her brow furrowed and her breathing even.
Had she stayed up all night waiting for me?
“You’ve got one day to get her pregnant,” Garl said and slammed the barred door closed. “Or we give her a higher dose and then her beatings begin if you fail again.”
He stomped away and I fell beside Jody, unable to stand on my feet any longer. My heart knotted because I couldn’t handle the thought of them hurting her. She was my weakness and my strength. I’d be on the edge of madness if not for her.
“Axton?” She blinked up at me. “I thought—”
“Shhh.” I cupped her cheek. The pain in her voice telling me more than words could. “I didn’t know you cared so much.”
Her arms locked around my neck and I winced from the agony of a few of my wounds reopening.
“You’re hurt.” She pulled back. “Let me clean your—”
“Shhh…” I closed my eyes, dizziness spinning through me. “I need rest. I don’t need any medicine or anything, I will heal.”
The only thing that kept me from passing out while they had whipped me was the desperation to see her again. Needing to know she was all right. But now that she was in my arms, the dead-like sleep of my people crawled over my mind.
I wanted to tell her how I felt about her. Except my tongue was thick and heavy in my mouth. Exhaustion clawed through my body and I couldn’t keep my eyes open.