Alien Bride

A force of energy shoots out of him, surrounding Vraik’s body. He screams in agony. “Stop. Please, stop!”

Slain closes his fist and steps back. “Tell me the truth.”

Vraik falls to his knees, chest pumping. Tears soak his eyes. “Okay, okay,” he says, throat seizing up as he speaks.

“Vraik, don’t do it,” I plead.

But Slain uses his mind to close my mouth. My cries are quickly muffled.

“He killed her,” Vraik says. “She’s gone, Lök.”

I drop my head, ready to explode.

Not only did the sentinels destroy the facility. They also destroyed the entire quadrant. Everything is telling me Emma is dead.

But something keeps eating at me. Maybe it’s a false hope. Maybe I’m hanging onto an extreme impossibility. But what if we were wrong?

What if she got out?

“We have the Resnyx. It’s at Ferän,” Vraik says.

The moving essence of Slain hovers over him. “You are honest. Well done,” he says.

He may have been honest, but he left out one crucial detail. Akron has the Resnyx now. And if we want a rebellion to join our side, the slaves are probably ready enough to revolt.

Slain is overjoyed. “Then we will go to planet Ferän.”

The only question is…

Where is Rekker?

Fifteen

Emma

Akron and I stare at the raging storm ahead of us.

The miners, hundreds of them, attempt to break down the walls of the electrified gate.

Back against the wall, I try to think of a way out of this. Nothing comes to mind. “Come on, Akron. I need your help. What do we do?” I ask.

The miners disable the gate’s security features. Once the crack has opened, the crowd roars with devilish cheers. They flood into the premises, heading toward the entrance of the med-bay facility.

In a panic, Akron runs into the hallway. “Lock all the doors,” he says. “And turn on the security systems.”

Frightened, I freeze.

“Now!” he screams.

“Where is the security room?” I scream.

But he’s already at the door, holding it with his shoulders as the hoards force their might against him.

I curse and dive through the other end of the hallway.

Doors upon doors. There are so many fucking doors, I don’t know where to start.

I try to turn the first handle I see. It’s locked.