Enticed by the Alien Warrior (Warriors of Agron #8) - Hope Hart Page 0,5

ship was a step ahead of us, and he took the chip with him. If we knew who had it, we could try to negotiate with him, but with our luck, it’s likely he was one of the many creatures Dragix turned to ash in the last battle.

Sarissa stretches. “If we can find a replacement, most of our problems will be solved. Plus, we have Kate.”

My stomach twists in both fear and anticipation. I want to get off Agron, but obviously, none of us has ever flown a spaceship before. Kate is one of the women who landed when the Dokhalls attempted to take us back. On Earth, she was a test pilot for a private company developing space planes for tourism before the Arcav invaded. Once the Arcav shut down the skies, that project was a bust. But she’s still the most obvious person for the job.

Unfortunately, she’s not all that interested in taking the job. Last time we chatted, she glanced around the clearing at all the other women who want to leave Agron, and her face hardened. “Would you want to be responsible for all these lives?” she asked. “If Alexis can prove to me that the AI system can basically fly the ship itself, I’ll do it. But I’m not about to take everyone else down with me.”

Sarissa nudges me, and I blink.

“Sorry, I was thinking about Kate.”

She nods. “She’s a lone wolf, that woman. Without the chip, she’s likely to put her foot down. Even with the chip, it’s going to take all our considerable charm to convince her to take the job.”

I laugh at that. Most of the time, Sarissa has about as much charm as a quarterback who just lost the Superbowl. But there’s no question that she can still turn it on when she needs to.

“I’m going to go get ready,” I say.

When I open my door, a random woman is waiting for me, and I jolt.

“Uh, hi.”

She runs critical eyes over me. “Not yet dressed at this hour of the day? And your hair not even combed?”

Shame makes my shoulders hunch, and the familiar feel of it pisses me off.

“And just who are you?”

“Your maid.”

“I don’t need a maid.”

She runs dark eyes over me, the look of disdain reminding me of my mother.

“Clearly,” she says, “you do.”

“I can dress myself. Leave.”

“The king ordered me to provide you with the help you so obviously need. I take my orders from him.”

I grind my teeth. “Fine.” I’ll deal with her today and take this up with Arix next time I see him. I don’t need to be humiliated first thing in the morning. “What’s your name?”

“Cauri. Hurry up, your bath is waiting.”

I scowl at her but roll my eyes, padding into the bathroom. As I slip into the warm water, I imagine Sarissa dealing with a lady’s maid, and the thought makes me grin.

“Out, out, we don’t have all day,” Cauri says.

“What are you talking about?”

“You will go to the marketplace with the other human woman.” Her brow creases in obvious disapproval, and I wonder if she was eavesdropping.

I scowl. Arix and I will have words, oh yes we will.

I get out of the bath at her urging, wrapping a large cloth around myself. She points toward my bedroom, where I step into a dress of her choosing, muttering under my breath.

The dress is a light-pink color, with silver thread woven through it. It’s pretty enough, but my cleavage is poking up higher than even I’m used to.

I like playing dress-up—it’s my job on Earth after all—but the gown Cauri is currently tightening until I can barely take a full breath…

“This seems a little over the top for a trip to the market.”

“You’re staying with the king. You represent him now.”

I roll my eyes again but suck in a breath as she tightens the strings even more.

“Tiny waist,” she says approvingly. If I roll my eyes any more, they’re likely to get stuck up there.

“Sit down so I can do your hair.”

I comply. “Aren’t maids supposed to take orders? Ow!”

She pulls my hair, and I glare at her reflection in the mirror. Her expression is mild, but I huff. She definitely did that on purpose.

The familiar feeling of sitting in front of a mirror while someone does my hair…it makes my stomach clench.

When I was a kid, I briefly thought I was going to be a doctor. My nanny once read me a book about different careers, and I told my mother I