Page 5 of Tavarr's Mate
“Ah, there’s my patient. Right where I left her.”
I peer ahead at the naked Kleaxian female sprawled out on a gleaming metallic table. There are trays filled with instruments placed around her, and a bright light hangs from the ceiling, illuminating her unmoving body. She’s a lighter shade of red than a healthy, living Kleaxian female, at least compared to the aliens I’ve seen in Harry’s images and videos.
She’s dead.
Oh God. I close my eyes and turn my head, only for Harry to laugh. I feel sick.
“You’re a monster.” I push away from him. “I’m leaving. I’ll take my chances outside.”
I should’ve known better than to run to the devil for help.
Turning, I aim for the door, but he’s quick to block my exit. His sinister smile unnerves me—as if he’s got nothing left to lose because aliens are attacking. I shudder and try to remain calm, but it’s not easy when I think he’s close to snapping. Everything he’s worked for is about to go up in flames and he fucking knows it.
“Get out of my way, Harry.” Vaguely, the scent of another woman’s perfume wafts toward me, and my gaze lowers to the dress shirt I’d carefully pressed last night. It’s wrinkled and a smudge of pink lipstick adorns the collar. He’d left for work unusually early, and I shouldn’t be surprised that he would cheat on me.
I don’t even care. I only want to leave. I never want to see his smug face again, even if I’m risking my life outside the safety of this building.
He chuckles and says, “You’re not going anywhere, darling. I paid your way to Tallia and I’ve supported you these last two years.” He gestures at the body behind him. “Don’t be ungrateful. Studying the Kleaxians’ remarkable immune system has already improved medical treatments on Earth and saved countless human lives. What does it matter if some of them die? This type of work has kept a roof over your head, you know.”
Guilt besieges me. I hate him for pointing out what feels like my complicity in his crimes.
“Fuck you, Harry.” I hold his gaze, figuring I also have nothing left to lose. “I was leaving you tonight. I was going to board theStargazerwhile you were at work, and be through the wormhole before you even realized I’d left your sorry ass.”
He yanks on my hair and drags me into a smaller room that contains a desk, a chair, and several large touchscreen computers. I try to hit him in the stomach, but he blocks my punch and twists my arm behind my back. I gasp at the stabbing pain. Pushing me over the desk, he puts his mouth to my ear and says, “Look what you’re making me do to you, Katrina. Do you think I like hurting you?” He tugs on my arm harder, until agony resonates in my joints, sharp and merciless.
He’s crazy. I should’ve seen it years ago, but I’d been too blinded by infatuation, and even though it kills me to admit it—too excited by the prospect of making my hard-to-please family proud when I eventually married him.
I struggle against his hold, only to be lifted briefly and slammed hard on the desk.
All the air leaves my lungs in a violent rush.
A blast shakes the building and smoke soon spills into his office from the laboratory.
Harry releases me and I slide off the desk, sinking to the floor as I try to catch my breath, my chest heaving as I emit desperate rasping noises.
Once I regain my composure, I will summon my strength and escape this crumbling building. Escape Harry. I’m not going to die here, of all places, and once more I berate myself for seeking his help.
When I look up, the sight that greets me knocks the air from my lungs all over again.
A huge red Kleaxian male is standing in the doorway.
Chapter Three
The Kleaxian’s gaze is directed on Harry, and the fearsome looking alien appears livid. His nostrils are flared, his muscles are tensed, and there’s a glimmer of challenge in his dark purple eyes, as if he’s readying for a fight to the death. He flexes his arms, and my attention is briefly drawn to his six-fingered hands.
He steps forward and grabs Harry by the neck and lifts him high off the floor. The alien says something I don’t understand, then glances over his shoulder at the dead female Kleaxian. A flash of sadness fills his dark, otherworldly eyes, but the fury soon returns and he starts squeezing Harry’s neck.
I’m too stunned to move.
I can only watch in terror as this large Kleaxian warrior murders Harry before my eyes.
Time slows. This doesn’t seem real, yet I know it’s actually happening. Too many bad things have happened, and if this was a dream I would have surely awoken by now.
The Kleaxian tosses Harry’s lifeless body to the floor. The alien cries out, a heartbreaking noise, and turns to approach the female. He lifts her in his arms and cradles her against his chest. I peek out the door, watching as he strokes her long black hair and murmurs to her in his native tongue.
I’m horror stricken as I realize the dead female is his mate. He must have come to rescue her, only to discover her already dead. I glance at Harry and damn him to the depths of hell. This is his fault. The bastard. Him and others like him. I don’t know much about the Kleaxians, but I know they aren’t brainless animals. They don’t deserve to be captured, killed, and experimented on in the name of science.
Looking at the grieving alien, I know they must be capable of deep feelings, not to mention highly intelligent. The hovercrafts that landed in Capital Acres looked more advanced than any aircraft I’d seen on Earth, as well as the strange light-emitting weapons they’d used to kill many of the human males.
