Forbidden Craving(76)

I almost can't get over how easily I can get over you.

Shaye shook her head to dislodge the rest. Before rage overwhelmed her.

Brenna latched on to her wrist. "If you're thinking about catfighting her, don't. I don't have the tools to patch her."

Deep breath in...out. In, out.

Ameena flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Please. I'm not to be harmed. My man-"

In a lightning-fast movement, Shaye hooked her foot behind her knees. At the same time, she shoved the girl backward.

Between one blink and the next, Ameena dropped.

She lay on the floor, blinking up at the ceiling with confusion.

Shaye pressed her foot against the woman's vulnerable throat. "What your man orders has no bearing on this situation. My word will always trump his. Just ask Valerian. Better yet, don't. You won't even mention his name without first requesting my permission."

Ameena turned pallid.

Point made, Shaye removed her foot. She scanned the cell's occupants and everyone looked away as if suddenly fascinated with the walls and one another.

Enough. She'd had enough.

Determined, she whispered to Brenna, "This is our best chance for escape." The ache in her chest intensified, but she ignored it. "Are you with me?"

Indecision played over Brenna's lovely features. She nibbled on her bottom lip and wrung her hands.

Finally she nodded.

Good. That was good.

Shaye pushed through the crowd, stopping at the bars. Still thick, about the width of a baseball bat, still bright and blue. They were also hot to the touch, she realized as she curled her fingers around two. Not hot enough to blister, just enough to burn.

She tried to rattle them, but they didn't move. How had the warrior caused them to turn to mist?

She replayed the goodbye kiss Valerian had given her-no shivering! Terran hadn't had to push a button or use a key to allow her to step into the cage. But, once she'd stood inside, another warrior had waved his hand through mist. That's right! The bars had first become mist. With that wave of his hand, he'd caused the bars to solidify again.

Was an outside touch required? Or had the warrior worn some type of sensor?

Only one way to find out.

"I have a plan," she told Brenna.

Head high, she strode over to Ameena. "You want to get rid of me, then you have to help me." She explained what she wanted the woman to do.

Ameena's eyes narrowed to tiny slits. "You're trying to get me into trouble."

"No, I'm giving you a chance to get rid of me."

"So you plan on leaving Atlantis?"

"Not all of us are happy being sex slaves." Again Shaye's chest throbbed. "But yes. I am."

"In that case, helping you will be my pleasure." Ameena sashayed her way to the front of the crowd. She gripped the bars, smiled sweetly, and called, "Terran, you look so handsome today. I could just eat you up."




 

 

He grinned over at her, hungry yearning in his eyes.

"You look handsome, too, Dylan," Ameena added, playing her role perfectly. "Your muscles are so big. May I feel them?"

Both men trudged toward her as if pulled by an invisible cord. What they didn't do: reach for her.

Shaye kept her attention divided between the men and the bars, ready to exit at a moment's notice.

Amenna whispered throatily, "May I lick your neck, Terran? Please. I have to taste you."

He didn't even think of denying her. "Of course." He gripped the bars and leaned into Ameena's waiting lips.

In that moment, the bars turned to mist.

"I want to lick you, too," another woman said.

The entire group surged forward, exiting the prison. Everyone but Shaye and Brenna focused on the two guards, capturing the pair.

Well. The dragons could learn a thing or two. Want to defeat the nymphs? Offer a sexual favor.

Shaye easily and silently slipped away, Brenna beside her. They tiptoed into a section of the cavern.

"All right. Time to return to the cell."

Moans and groans.

"I mean it! Return to the cell. Please." Amid the guards' now-frantic pleas, she and Brenna rounded the corner.

Guilt flared. Before Valerian, sneaky hadn't been her style. But that's what she was doing right now. Sneaking away without saying goodbye. As if he meant nothing to her.

He's something. He's heartbreak waiting to happen.

Strengthening her resolve, she followed the curls of fog wafting through the air and soon reached the portal. Heart racing, she approached tentatively. The center swirled and churned.

Shaye shivered from the cold-not from regret, she assured herself-and wrapped her arms around her middle.

"I can't believe how easy that was," she said. But she didn't take another step.

Brenna didn't respond.

She faced her partner in crime-who was twisting her hands together, her expression tortured.