Rebel (The Draax Series Book 3) Read online

  “It’s not a game, Mama.” There was affectionate exasperation in Roden’s voice. “It’s a flight simulator.”

  “Right, of course,” Candy said.

  Roden cocked his head at me. “You learned the program pretty quick.”

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “You can keep my extra goggles and keep practicing. Maybe I’ll come back in a couple of days and we can play again.” Roden said.

  “Sure,” I said. “If it’s okay with your mom.”

  “Fine by me,” Candy said. “See you later, Ellis.”

  “Bye.” I walked them to the door, smiling at Adrix when he stepped forward from his spot in the hallway. “I’m not trying to escape.”

  He grunted and then ruffled Roden’s hair when the young boy stopped in front of him. “Hello, young human. How are you today?”

  “Good. Can I hold your sword?”

  “Roden,” Candy said.

  Adrix grinned at him. “You are too young to hold a sword this sharp and heavy. But have your mama bring you to the training room and I will let you hold one of the wooden swords.”

  “Cool. Thanks.” Roden held out his fist and after a moment, Adrix shook it.

  Roden laughed. “No, man, like this. Make a fist.”

  Adrix made a fist and Roden bumped it. “You gotta pound it, like this.”

  “Pound it,” Adrix said before bumping his knuckles against Roden’s again.

  “Nice. It’s an old Earth greeting,” Roden said. “I’m bringing it back.”

  Candy laughed and put her arm around his narrow shoulders. “C’mon, kiddo, time for dinner.”

  They walked down the hallway and Adrix made a motion for me to step back. “I will bring you your dinner soon.”

  “Okay.”

  “You must eat more,” he suddenly said. “Jakar is beginning to think you do not like his cooking.”

  I didn’t reply. I hadn’t had much of an appetite the last week, which was ridiculous because I could always eat, but now the food tasted like sawdust in my mouth. Even the gallberry juice had lost some of its luster. It was hard to find joy in anything when all I could think about was a certain copper eyed Draax who I’d never see again.

  It was hard to admit, but missing Galan was a deep-seated ache that never really went away. Which was stupid because I’d hardly spent any time with him, right? A few hours together and one sexual encounter shouldn’t have been enough to make me this lonely for him.

  Only it did.

  “Human, are you all right?” Adrix said. “You look ill. Are you drinking your gallberry juice?”

  “I’m fine,” I said.

  “All right. I will return soon.” He shut the door in my face, and I was alone again.

  For a second, I thought about trying to jimmy open the door with the other picks in my kit, before walking to my bed and curling up on it. Even if I could get it open, Adrix would be back in ten minutes with my dinner, so where exactly would I go without quickly being discovered and thrown into prison? This was a definite three strikes and you’re out scenario. There was a Draax posted outside my door almost constantly now and I had no one to blame but myself.

  I’d ruined any chance of planning an escape because I’d gotten horny watching Galan touch himself. That was the truth – plain and simple. I was gonna die in prison because I couldn’t control my urge to masturbate while watching Galan masturbate.

  Jesus, that’s gotta be the worst cause of death in the history of causes of death.

  I rolled over and stared at the wall that separated my apartment from Galan’s. He was so close. Hell, he could be in there right now, he could be thinking about me and touching himself and I would never get the chance to see that beautiful giant dick again.

  He's not thinking about you. He’s over you, girl. Not even sure why he was into you in the first place, but I think the last seven days of zero contact proves he’s come to his senses.

  I closed my eyes. Yeah, Galan was over me, and that was to be expected. So, why did it feel so fucking shitty?

  Chapter Eleven

  Galan

  “You want me to do what?” Melu scratched the top of his head before wiping at the side of the ship with a rag.

  “She worked on Earth repairing land vehicles and ships,” I said.

  “So? I do not need a human in my docking bay,” Melu said. “I do not care if she can repair ships or not.”

  “You told Quill you were shorthanded,” I said. “The human can help.”

  “We are making it work as is.” Melu wiped at another spot on the ship. I’d known it would be a tough sell to convince Melu, the head of the docking bay, to allow Ellis to work in the bay, but I needed to try. The thought of her sitting alone in her quarters all day long was killing me.

  Uzel, a younger Draax who wasn’t more than nineteen and had only been working at the castle for a year, stopped next to us. “You were just saying this morning that if King Quillan did not find another worker for the docking bay, you were going to quit in protest.”

  Melu scowled at him, but Uzel just grinned. “What? You said it. I do not see the harm in letting the female work at the bay. If she is good at repairing ships and land vehicles, she will be helpful to have around, will she not?”

  “You only want a female to work here because you think it will give you a better chance at getting your dick sucked for the first time,” Melu said.

  I immediately turned on Uzel, scowling at him until he took a step back. “The female is not to be touched, Uzel.”

  He blinked at me. “I know, Galan. I have seen her walking in the garden with Adrix and she is not attractive. Besides, she is a thief who will be returned to Earth as soon as the war is over. A Draax would have to be a fool to try and mate with her when there is no chance of her staying.”

  “Go fix the vroha like I asked, and be quick about it,” Melu said. His tone was gruff as usual, but it didn’t seem to bother Uzel.

  He walked away and Melu folded his arms across his broad chest and leaned against the ship.

  “Do you agree to having her here?” I said.

  “She is a thief,” Melu said. “And I heard she tried to escape and nearly killed a Draax in doing so.”

  “Oh for Krono’s sake,” I said, “she did not try and kill a Draax.”

  Unless, I supposed, almost killing a Draax by having the tightest pussy in existence counted.

  “But she is a thief,” Melu said.

  “Yes.”

  Melu glanced around the docking bay. “There are many things here she could steal or use as a weapon, Galan.”

  “She is not dangerous,” I said. “She will be checked over every day before she leaves and, besides, she will be surrounded by Draax. Keep her busy enough with work and she will have no time to even try and steal something.”

  “Melu, you grumpy old bastard, give the female a chance. At the very least, it will liven this place up a bit, having a female in the bay.” Krey strolled up and grinned at Melu, his amusement over his use of the human’s curse words as strong as ever.

  “I should have known you would show up. Where Galan goes, you usually follow,” Melu said, but the scowl on his face had disappeared and his body had relaxed.

  I could have hugged Krey in thanks. He’d saved Melu’s life a few years ago, and Melu’d had a soft spot for him ever since.

  “It is good to see you again, old friend.” Krey hugged Melu. “Now, are you going to allow the female to work for you or will I have to watch Galan keep asking until he wears you down?”

  Melu snorted, glancing over at me before shaking his head. “Fine, we will try it. But if she steals from me or tries to escape in a ship, it will be you who explains to King Quill what happened, Galan.”

  “She will not try to escape,” I said, even though I had no faith that she wouldn’t. “She will be chipped with a tracking device and she knows how to repair ships, not fly them.”

  “She can start tomorrow,” Melu said. “I
will not treat her any differently than I treat the others. I do not care if she is a fragile human female.”

  “She is tougher than she looks,” I said.

  “We will see about that.” Melu walked away, hollering at Uzel to join him at one of the dozen ships in the docking bay.

  “Thank you, Krey,” I said. “I know it is only because of you that Melu agreed to this.”

  “You are welcome,” Krey said. “Are you sure this is a smart idea though? If she steals from Melu or tries to escape in a ship, Quill will put her in Iron Gate.”

  “You must make that clear to her,” I said. “Make sure she understands clearly the consequences of breaking the rules.”

  “Me?” Krey said. “Why me?”

  “It is best if I do not see the little female,” I said.

  Krey was staring at me with surprise in his gaze. “Why? Do you wish to be fucked so badly that you have such little self-control?”

  I didn’t reply and Krey clapped me on the back. “Krono, Galan, you really should have found a female to fuck you when we were on Earth. With the war going on, unless one of the females in the work program agrees to fucking you, it will be a very long time before you feel the warmth of a pussy again.”

  I didn’t bother telling Krey that it was only Ellis’s pussy I wanted. What was the point? He would think I had gone mad and, truthfully, he was probably right. I was feeling like I’d gone mad as of late. I had no appetite and I could barely concentrate on training the latest batch of recruits. The other day, distracted by thoughts of Ellis, a recruit’s sword had slipped by my own and sliced my thigh open badly. I had bled more that day on the floor of the training room than I had in my last battle.

  Every night I laid in my bed, staring at the wall that separated us and stopping myself from touching my cock. I don’t know why I tortured myself that way. Not giving myself the release I so desperately craved was foolish, but what good was my hand once I’d been in Ellis’s tight pussy?

  “Galan?”

  I shook off my thoughts of Ellis and changed the subject as Krey and I left the docking bay. “Have you convinced any of the women in the program to mate with you?”

  “I have not tried,” Krey said.

  “Why not?”

  He shrugged. “There are many Draax who are vying for their attention and I do not believe there is a single female who is interested.”

  “Truly?” I said.

  “Yes.” A smile crossed Krey’s face. “Quill’s idea to have all the females in the program be breeding compatible was a good one, but none of them being interested in us is a complication he did not anticipate.”

  “Sabrina chose females for the program who have lived difficult lives. For many of them, it is the first time they have had their own money and their own freedom. Is it any wonder they want to continue working?”

  “No,” Krey said, “but there are many disappointed Draax in the castle as of late.”

  “They will get over it. And perhaps with time, the women will be more interested,” I said. “Will you speak with Ellis for me, Krey? Will you be certain she understands the consequences of any attempt to escape from the docking bay?”

  “Yes, I will speak to her.” Krey clapped me on the back. “Come, it is close to dinner and I am starving. Let us join the others in the dining hall.”

  * * *

  Ellis

  The click of my door unlocking had me whipping off the VR goggles and tucking them behind a couch pillow. I didn’t know for sure if I would get in trouble for having them, but I wasn’t risking getting them taken away. They’d been my major source of entertainment for the last forty-eight hours and I didn’t want to give them up. A girl could only surf the Draax’s version of internet for so long. And considering that everything was written in Draax… well, it wasn’t exactly entertaining.

  The door opened and I grinned at the Draax who walked in. “Sigan!” I hurried over, ready to do something stupid like hug him.

  “Hello, human,” Sigan said.

  He almost looked happy to see me. Before I could hug him, the second Draax walked in. I immediately backed away, staring suspiciously at the blue-eyed alien, my eyes dropping to the sword that hung around his waist. I knew Krey was Galan’s best friend, but what if he’d said something to the king about what he’d seen? What if the king was pissed and had ordered my head to be chopped off for banging Galan?

  Did you really bang him though? I mean… you didn’t even really get to feel what it was like to –

  Shut up! Now is not the freaking time, brain!

  I stared suspiciously at the device Sigan was holding in his right hand. It was silver and cylindrical in shape and the end narrowed into a … shit… that was definitely a needle. Lethal injection, maybe? I supposed that was better than getting my head cut off.

  “Hello, human,” Krey said.

  “Hey.” I continued to back up until my ass bumped into a kitchen chair.

  “What is wrong?” Sigan said.

  “Nothing. What, uh, what are you doing here, Sigan?”

  He held up the needle. “To give you this.”

  “So, lethal injection,” I said. “I can think of worse ways to die, I guess.”

  Sigan stared at me. “I have not missed your madness, human.”

  “Thanks, big guy.” I stared at Krey. “You just couldn’t resist telling the king what happened between Galan and me, huh?”

  “What happened between the human and Galan?” Sigan turned to Krey.

  “Nothing. The human’s brain is probably rattled from spending so much time alone. You know how humans are, Sigan,” Krey said. “They need to spend time with their own kind.”

  “Well, then I guess this is a good idea.” Sigan held up the needle.

  “After all we’ve been through,” I said. “Thanks a lot, Sigan. I thought you liked me.”

  “I do not dislike you, but I do not know you well enough to say I like you either,” Sigan said. “Come here, human.”

  “I don’t even get a last meal? One phone call to my family to say goodbye?”

  “What is she babbling about?” Sigan said.

  Krey shrugged. “I have no idea.”

  “Prisoners on death row get a last meal before they’re killed,” I said.

  “Killed?” Krey said.

  I pointed at the needle. “Lethal injection. Poison straight into the old veins.”

  Sigan rolled his eyes. “Oh, for Krono’s sake. You are so dramatic, human. You are not being killed. This is simply a tracking device that will go under your skin.”

  “So, you’re not here to kill me with a poisonous injection?” I said.

  “No. If I wanted to kill you, human, I would just break your neck. You are very small and fragile,” Sigan said.

  “Sigan!” Krey elbowed him in the side, nearly making Sigan drop the needle.

  “What?’ Sigan glanced at Krey and then at me. “I was too blunt again, was I not, human?”

  “You really need to work on your inside voice,” I said.

  “I am sorry,” Sigan said. “I would not kill you. I promise.” He paused. “Unless my king demanded it.”

  “So close to acting like a normal human, Sigan,” I said. “So close.”

  “I am not human,” Sigan said.

  “Yeah.” I held out my arm when Sigan approached me.

  He slid the needle into my upper arm, and I winced. “Christ, how big is that tracking chip?”

  “Smallish.” Sigan wiped the spot of blood away. “You will not even know it’s there.”

  I felt my arm where the needle had gone in. “I can feel it under my skin, Sigan.”

  He just shrugged. “Human skin is thinner than Draax skin.”

  “Why exactly am I being tracked anyway?” I said. “You wanna see how many times I go from the kitchen to the couch?”

  Sigan glanced at Krey who stepped forward with his hand on the handle of his sword. “You are being allowed out of your quarters, human.�
��

  “What? Seriously?”

  “Yes. Every day you will work at the docking bay repairing our vehicles and ships. You are not allowed to leave the docking bay without asking Melu permission first. Is that clear?”

  “Yes.” My voice was giddy. “This is awesome.”

  “Do you know how to fly ships?” Krey asked.

  “Why?”

  He stepped even closer and I automatically moved nearer to Sigan. Not that I thought he would protect me if push came to shove, but he didn’t make me feel weak and afraid like Krey did.

  “There is concern that you will try and steal a ship and escape,” Krey said.

  “I don’t know how to fly a Draax ship.” I wasn’t technically lying. A game simulator was different from the real thing, right?

  “Galan had to work hard to convince both the king and Melu to allow you this freedom,” Krey said. “If you try to escape or perform poorly at your tasks, it will reflect badly on Galan. Do you understand?”

  I nodded. “I do.”

  “Sigan, can you leave us, please?” Krey said.

  “All right. Goodbye, human.”

  I swallowed hard. “Bye, Sigan.”

  When the door shut behind him, Krey marched forward. I backpedaled until my back hit the far wall.

  Krey loomed over me, his handsome face solemn. “If you hurt Galan, human, I will hurt you. Is that clear?”

  “Yes,” I said. “I won’t hurt him.”

  “See that you do not,” Krey said. “This is a gift from the king. If you try and escape from the docking bay, you will be sent to Iron Gate. No second chances, no excuses. You will spend the rest of your time on our world locked away. Is that clear?”

  “Perfectly.’

  He backed away and I took a deep breath. “So, when does my new job start?”

  “Tomorrow morning. Adrix will take you to the docking bay and you will work until Melu says you are finished.”

  “All right. Who’s Melu?”

  “He runs the docking bay. He will not like you,” Krey said. “He does this only as a favour to Galan. Keep your thoughts to yourself and do not try Melu’s patience. He is not as easy going as I am.”