"Who the hell are you, and what are you doing working with a scumbag like that dickless bug?" Riley asked. "Don't you have anything better to do than kidnap innocent, defenseless females?"
Pud laughed. It was a shame he needed to deliver the pale female so quickly. The owner of the pleasure house wanted to test her out before he put her to work. It appeared the owner was bored and had become intrigued by the story behind this particular female. He rubbed the front of his pants, wondering if he could chance having a sample before he delivered her.
"You make me hard, female," Pud told her with a nasty grin. "I like that. It has been a while since a female has done that."
Riley rose up enjoying the way the filthy creature took a step back when he realized she was taller than he was. "Don't even think of it, you little squirt. I'll rip your dick off and feed it to you before you even realized that little worm in your pants was gone," she snapped out.
Pud's beady eyes glowed in anger. "Shut your mouth, female. I can understand why Antrox 157 wanted to see you suffer. You have a big mouth on you."
Riley grinned nastily at the creature. "All the more to bite your head off, you miserable little rodent. You just wait until Vox gets here. He'll make you wish you had never been born."
"Vox?" Pud asked, taking another step back and turning pale. "Vox d'Rojah, the Sarafin king?" he asked hoarsely.
"That's right, you steaming pile of cow paddy. I am Mrs. Vox d'Rojah! You've messed with the wrong bitch this time!" Riley snapped back in triumph, exaggerating a little about her new status.
It was only a matter of time before it became official. She was wearing Vox's ring, so as far as she was concerned it was practically a done deal. They were just waiting for Tina and Pearl to show up before having the official ceremony.
The beady-eyed creature muttered a long string of curses as he turned and hurried down the corridor. She bet he was wishing he hadn't taken on this assignment now. She was going to make sure he and that bug-eyed walking stick paid for hurting her guards and taking her.
"That's right, you shitless piece of crab poop! You'd better run, but you'll never be able to hide!" Riley yelled out behind him before giving a cackling laugh that would have made the Wicked Witch of the West shit her pants.
She was just thankful the slimy little bastard couldn't see how badly her hands were shaking. "Vox, you better get your ass here soon. I am totally scared out of my mind, you adorable puddy cat."
Chapter 24
"Give me a status report now!" Vox growled out as he strode onto the bridge of the Shifter.
"We have five targets we are pursuing. From the reports we have received so far from our tracking station, a transport left the ancient city traveling at a high rate of speed. It docked with a trader ship on the outer rim of the star system. Four transports separated from the trader and headed in different directions. Battle cruisers have been dispersed after those. We are following the trader's ship," Tor reported as he came to stand next to Vox.
"Conference room," Vox growled out, feeling his stomach tighten.
Lodar and Tor followed Vox into the conference room located next to the bridge. As soon as the door closed, Vox turned and glared at his friends. He opened his mouth to speak but couldn't get anything past the lump that had suddenly formed in it. He cleared his throat and tried again.
"What do you have on the attack in the market and about the ship's identification?" he asked hoarsely.
"Tamia reported they saw an Antrox before the attack. She said Riley appeared to recognize him before the guards were shot," Tor responded.
"One of the men is in critical condition. The other is stable," Lodar added. "Neither one of the other females was injured. It appeared Riley was the target."
"The trader ship is registered out of the Guambian star system. I have a feeling we will find out the documents have been forged. There were no identifying signals from the other four ships that departed from it, more than likely the mercenaries who were hired to capture Riley. They typically use this type of method to escape. It is easier for them to escape and makes it difficult to catch more than one."
"The question is-what do they want with her?" Lodar asked, rubbing his hand down his face.
Vox's face was frozen in rage as he remembered Antrox 157's threat to sell Riley to the pleasure houses dotted throughout the star systems. He should have made sure that slimy insect had been dead before he escaped the mining asteroid. He had hoped that the cold-blooded insect had blown up. He would not make that mistake again. The Antrox had signed his own death sentence by taking Riley.
"He plans to sell her to a pleasure house," Vox said thickly.
"Gods!" Both Lodar and Tor exclaimed in horror at the same time.
Vox turned to look at them. "Get me to that damn ship. She had better be on it. I'm going to rip out the guts of any male who has touched her."
Tor looked at his friend and leader with fire burning in his own eyes. "I'll be there to help you, my friend," he said before turning on his heel and striding back onto the bridge, barking orders to the helmsman to give him everything the Shifter had.
Lodar walked over to where Vox was staring out into the darkness of space. He stood next to him for a few moments in silence, not sure what he could say to help his friend. His own mind was picturing Riley's infectious smile, the delighted twinkle in her eye when she was causing mischief, and her lush figure that affected every male she met.
"I want you near when we find her," Vox said quietly in a husky voice. "If"-his throat worked up and down-"If we do not get to her soon enough and … and she has been harmed, I need you there to help heal her," he finished thickly.
"Of course. You don't even need to ask," Lodar said, placing his hand on Vox's shoulder and squeezing it briefly in comfort. "You are not the only one who has fallen in love with her. She is a very special female."
Vox didn't respond. He simply stood rigidly, staring out into space. He knew the moment Lodar left. That was the moment the tears he had been holding back broke free, and his shoulders began to shake. Never in his life had he cried. Not when he watched men he considered his friends fall during the war, not when he was tortured-never-but the idea of his beautiful, delicate mate suffering the assault of another male was too much for him. He cried silent tears of rage, hurt, and fear before he ran the sleeve of his shirt over his eyes. He felt the chill of ice as it coursed through his blood. He would kill any and everyone involved in hurting his mate. The gods would have no mercy for them.
"Sir, the last of the four transports has been searched. Lady Riley is not aboard it. That leaves the trader's ship. We are almost within range," the helmsman informed Vox who stood rigid on the bridge.
"Hail the trader's ship. Tell him to prepare for boarding," Vox instructed in an emotionless voice.
Information about the trader had come from Adalard. His warship had intercepted one of the transports. After interrogating the merc on board, he had been informed the trader's name was Pud. Adalard had forwarded the translated information the merc had on the trader to Vox. It had not taken long for the Curizan to decipher the files. Mercenaries were renowned for having information on those they did business with in case they needed something to blackmail them with later on.
The information had almost driven Vox crazy. The trader was a known sex slave trader, stealing and sampling the females before he delivered them. The females were always physically alive when he delivered them, but their mental state was questionable. The information gave graphic detail about his sexual preferences. He knew his cub would not survive an assault by the trader. That was the first thing that came to his mind. The trader liked to use tools on the females to clean them out first before he sampled them-repeatedly. Lodar and Tor had reviewed the information as well, becoming quieter the more they read. Lodar excused himself shortly after the report was finished so he could prepare a bag with the items he would need to help Riley.
Vox straightened and clenched his fists tightly when the beady-eyed creature answered the Shifter's hail. "This is Captain Pud Rasp. State your business."
"Prepare to be boarded," Vox said stiffly.
"Why are you boarding me? I am not in the Sarafin star system. You have no call to board my vessel. I am a legitimate short-haul freighter," Pud said nervously.
"We are boarding you. Don't try to stop us," Vox said with a wave of his hand to cut the transmission. "Prepare the fighters. Take out his engines. I don't want to take a chance he has modified them. If he has any weapons, take them out as well but do not breach the hull. We do not know where he may have hidden Lady Riley."