Page 43 of Pursued By the Dragon Alien

A cold knot formed in his gut. Where was she? She had wandered off after speaking to Ulo. Wanted air. Space.

Razion breathed deeply and closed his eyes, reaching for that steady control that had carried him through countless difficult decisions before. And then, he listened.

Something inside him—something sharp, primal, andwrong—picked up on a whisper of unease. A drop of fear on the edge of consciousness.

Razion went cold. It wasn’t just instinct—it was something deeper, something that crackled up his spine like an unseen storm on the horizon. A sense of absence where Lilas should have been. A wrongness in the universe.

“Vedd.” His tone was deadly calm, but inside, a wildfire raged. “We need to find Lilas.Now.”

Vedd picked up on Razion’s urgency immediately. His usual smirk vanished into grim efficiency as his fingers tapped rapidly over his wrist comm. “I’ll check the central market. Cozax is at the docking bay. She might’ve seen her.”

Razion didn’t wait for a response. He was already moving. His boots pounded against the metal flooring as he cut through the outpost. His mind turned over everything at a feverish pace. Lilas had left after Ulo’s conversation, and he hadn’t worried—she’d needed time to think, and he trusted her to take care of herself.

But now? Now there was fear. And fear tightened its claws around his throat with each step that didnotlead him to her.

People moved around him in sluggish, oblivious waves. A merchant adjusting inventory. A traveler checking ship schedules. None of them knew that he was on the edge of panic. His body tightened in an unfamiliar way, as if his skin was too small for his body.Focus.

Razion pushed forward, scanning faces, searching for any sign of dark violet hair, gold-flecked skin, sharp fuchsia eyes.

“Lilas.” He spoke into his comm, knowing full well she didn’t have one. Didn’t stop him from trying. “Where are you?”

Silence.His hands clenched into fists.

The space between his ribs burned with urgency, but if she wasn’t in the main markets, she could be anywhere.

He pivoted, lungs tight. If she’d wandered too close to anyone with bad intent, they would have taken her fast. Pavo Outpost was quieter than Vexir Trade Station, but that only made it more dangerous. Predators lurked in places like this. Predators like Xelvor.

Then, a ping on his comm. Vedd’s voice crackled through the line. “She’s not here,” he said, breathless from moving fast. “Checked both sides of the west market hub. No sign.” A pause. “Cozax didn’t see her leave.”

Dread coiled in his gut like a live wire. His feet barely touched the ground as he strode to the docking bay. His wings twitched with the rare urge to take flight, even in the enclosed space. Vedd was already there, scanning the area, while Cozax stood near one of the docking attendants, her arms crossed as she listened with a sharp frown.

As soon as Razion approached, Cozax turned to him. “Got a lead.”

Razion’s pulse hammered. “Where?”

The docking worker, a wiry-looking insectoid, shifted uneasily on his four legs but gestured toward one of the departure terminals. “A large ship left Pavo Outpost not long ago,” he said in a chittering tone. “Registered as a trade ship, but was clearly warship class. No identifier, but the Rokkol envoy vouched for them. A female matching the description of the one you’re looking for was with them.”

“Lilas?” Razion’s wings flared slightly. “Was she with anyone?”

The worker’s mandibles clicked. “A blue-haired female with gold-flecked skin. There was also a male who appeared to be of your species. The female in question left with them willingly.”

The words sucked the air from Razion’s chest.Willingly. It sounded like she’d found the Terians and Zaruxians they were all seeking, but Lilas wouldn’t just leave without telling him.

“Razion,” Vedd said gently. “Are you sure she didn’t hear some part of your conversation with Krask?”

He winced at the thought. “I didn’t see her there. She’d gone for a walk.” But that would make sense. If Lilas thought he was planning on getting rid of her, and Turi had somehow found her way here, of course Lilas would go with her. But she could have at leasttalkedto him first, instead of just running.

White-hot fury cut through him like a blade. Had she believed—fek, after everything they’d shared—had shereallybelieved he was capable of such a horrible thing?

He turned sharply on his heel, ignoring the way Vedd took an instinctive step back under the sheer force of his glare. “Find out where that ship was headed.”

The docking worker hesitated. “I can’t. We don’t track ships after they leave the outpost.”

“We’ll find her, Razion,” Cozax said. “I have the description of the ship. It’s very unusual. We’ll find it.”

Razion couldn’t respond. He barely contained the growl rumbling low in his chest.

She was gone.

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