Page 34 of Draevan

M smiled. “Hello, Cora. You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”

Her entire body went cold.

“How?” she whispered. “How did you find me? How did you get here?”

His smile widened. “I’ve always known how to find you,” he said. “Ever since Vegas… well, the first thing I did when I grabbed you was plant a tracking device in your forearm. I did it so quickly that you didn’t even realize it.”

“That was two years ago,” she sputtered, disbelief filling her. “You’ve been able to track me this whole time?”

“Yes, sweetheart, I have.”

“Don’t call me that.”

He frowned, then took a menacing step toward her. She was trembling so hard that she couldn’t manage to move back. She was frozen in shock and fear, and she worried about what might happen if Meela suddenly woke up and cried out. No matter what, she needed to keep the baby safe.

Cora reached for her wrist comm, trying to call Draevan, but it wouldn’t work.

“You won’t be able to call anyone.”

Her eyes snapped toward him. “What did you do?”

“I told you we’d be together forever, didn’t I? Surely you must’ve known I would eventually come for you.” He paused and leaned against the wall, affecting a casual stance that somehow only made him look more menacing. “I had a little help from the Xeronnians,” he said. “Their technology is remarkable. They have devices that block incoming and outgoing communication from a certain location, as well as technology that can conceal a person’s life signs, for example, when they hide in a box being transported by an interstellar moving company. Oh, and technology that can temporarily allow a person to appear invisible, which was very convenient for me as I sneaked out of Starzzia’s main hangar.”

The chill inside Cora turned glacial.

Oh, God. Please, no.

She couldn’t imagine being torn away from her life on New Vaxx. She adored the little family she was part of. She loved Draevan and Meela with her whole heart. What would they think if she suddenly disappeared?

She took a deep breath, drew herself up taller, and curled her hands into fists.

She would not allow M to take her without a fight.

He laughed and withdrew a blaster from his pocket, a small alien weapon that could stun her or kill her, depending on its settings. She doubted he’d set it to kill mode, but she didn’t want him to stun her, which would leave her completely at his mercy, unable to fight back as he dragged her away.

She turned around and bolted for the stairs, veering to the left just as a blue beam shot past her head. He cursed and cried out in pain, and she paused and looked over her shoulder to see what had happened. He was clutching his right arm, and the weapon was on the ground at his feet, smoke curling upward from it. Well. It would seem the blaster had somehow backfired even as it shot a blue beam toward her head.

She turned and took off again, but he snarled and quickly caught up to her, throwing himself on top of her as they both tumbled to the floor.

“You’re coming with me, Cora!” he shouted. “We’re going to steal a Vaxxlian cruiser and travel to a remote outpost, where we can finally be alone together. Just the two of us. You are mine! Mine!”

As they tussled on the floor, she ended up on her back while he straddled her. He used his considerable weight to hold her down as he pressed her wrists against the floor. He leaned close, as though intending to kiss her.

She spat in his face.

He jerked back, and his expression quickly darkened. He shifted her wrists into one hand, still holding her down, then lifted his other hand, preparing to slap her. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the blow.

But it never landed.

Instead, M was instantly ripped away from her, and a deep, thunderous growl filled the house.

Cora’s eyes flew open.

Draevan.

Her mate was standing in the hallway between her and M, his glowing green eyes blazing with fury. Another thunderous growl ripped from his chest.

M scrambled to his feet and reached for the blaster that had just malfunctioned. Draevan kicked the weapon away, lifted the human male by his neck, and backed him into one of the guest rooms.