Page 131 of I'm Not Your Pet

It was, admittedly,oddthat the newcomer Sahrk spoke as much English as he did—but then again, so did Ushuu—so I pushed that thought to the back of my mind.

Maybe, like I’d hypothesized, he’d simply been stuck in the doorway when the lights went out. That was why he was free. Briar wouldn’t say he was safe if he wasn’t. He was a prickly person, but he was loyal. He’d never hurt me, or Ushuu for that matter.

The Sahrk’s presence didn’t mean he was apirate.

Besides, I doubted Sahrks became pirates. They were peaceful as a species, and Roark had told me as much.

“They’ve boarded,” the newcomer said, his voice growly like he’d been deep-throating a carton of rocks. Or like he never talked. At all. Ever. “They’re here for your people.”

“They’re notmypeople,” Briar scoffed, though his voice sounded small and frightened.

That pissed me off a little. “Of course they’re your people, Briar.”

“They’re—ugh. Fuck. Fine.” He gave in reluctantly.

“I will take you away—” Growly-guy promised.

“Fuck you,” Briar hissed. A sound emitted from between them—kinda like a smack?—and I squinted to try and figure out what the fuck was happening.Did Briar just hit that dude?“Set me down.”

“This isn’t the time to flirt,” I admonished, responsibility settling on my shoulders as the situation came into focus. “Roark is out there—and he…fuck. He needs our help. The humans need our help—” I stroked a hand over Ushuu’s chilly fin. “Ushuu needs our help.”

If we didn’t do something the pirates were going to take the humans.

They were going to take the cargo that Roark had just spent months gathering.

They would hurt people.

I couldn’t let that happen.

“The helm is safe,” Growly informed me, already turning around with Briar in tow, like he was about to make good on his promise to leave with the human, the rest of us be damned. “Humans not so much.”

Where was he going? I didn’t understand.

“What do you mean?” I didn’t mean to grab him—except that I did. My nails dug into his forearm, stomach churning with worry. Ushuu rumbled softly to soothe me, but it wasn’t the right pitch. It wasn’t Roark’s pitch. “How do you know where he is?”

“Let me down,” Briar made another smacking sound when he hit Growly, and the Sahrk snapped his teeth at him. At least—that’s what I assumed that awful sound was. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Growly growled—making his nickname apt.

“Please,” my fingers jerked in the back of his vest. Hisvest. On board The Dreamer, I hadn’t seen a single Sahrk aside from Ushuu wear clothing on their torsos. It was odd. Even odder than the fact he knew English enough to communicate to the both of us.

“Please,” I said again, holding still. He could’ve ripped out of my grip. It would’ve been easy. He could’ve hurt me—abandoned Ushuu and I in the dark, and been done with us both. But he didn’t. “My mate…Roark is mymate. I need to…I need to understand what’s happening so I can help him. He’s probably so scared—and I…I have to get to him. I have to save the humans on board.”

He was quiet for a moment. A moment that felt like a century.

He didn’t move, didn’t speak, just held Briar aloft, ignoring the increasing frequency of his slapping as he debated with himself. When he turned back around, I dropped my grip on his clothes, sagging a little when it was clear he’d made the choice to help me.

Ushuu was in shock, this…creature was the only person big enough and with enough knowledge to help me save the people I loved.

“It is how it works.”

“How what works?”

“Sahrk spacecraft.” He sighed, switching Briar to his other side. The blond had stopped hitting Growly about the same time he’d decided to help me. “The helm is the most secure part of the ship. They designed it that way so that no more casualties would befall the craft during invasion.”

“Okay.”

“Roark is Captain. He is at the helm. He is safe. The invaders will make their way to the cargo hold,” he added. “They have no interest in the ship itself. The cargo you carry is worth more.”

---