Marked Prince - Michelle M. Pillow Page 0,68

Burn fell against the still, knocking it over. Both Jaxx and Payton gasped as it fell, freezing for a second as it hit the ground. Thankfully, there was no explosion.

“Finish it,” Jaxx told her.

Red Boots grabbed a metal plate he’d taken from the still’s control panel and flung it toward Payton like a weapon. She jerked her head to the side. It whizzed past her and embedded into the wall. As she started to right herself, Red Boots lunged. She again ducked to the side. The man flew right past her to skewer himself on the lodged panel. It severed an artery, and he dropped to the ground but not before spraying Payton with blood.

Doyen pushed up and came up at Jaxx with both weapons. Jaxx grabbed the man’s wrists, feeling the bones snap as he turned the blades toward their owner. Doyen’s inertia threw his body into his weapons. He gurgled in surprise.

Payton and Jaxx turned in unison to fight off Burn only to find he remained where he had fallen. His neck was at an odd angle, and he gasped a couple of times before wheezing a last breath.

For a long moment, they stood, hearts beating hard as they waited to make sure the fight was over.

“Are you all right?” Jaxx asked, holding the cut on his arm.

“That cursed black hole hit me with a wrench.” Payton rubbed her forehead. “You?”

“Don’t suppose you can tie this up for me?” Jaxx lifted his arm.

Payton reached for the bottom of his tunic shirt and used her claw to tear off a jagged strip. She quickly wrapped it around his forearm to stop the bleeding.

“Thanks.” Jaxx flexed his hand.

“Where the hell did Doyen find a bionic soldier?” Payton frowned. She leaned over Barrel and sliced his shirt to look at the muscles beneath. She pressed at his chest and moved toward his shoulder. “Both arms it looks like.”

“Probably legs too,” Jaxx assumed.

“You can pull off his pants and look, but I’m good.” Payton stood. She frowned, not enjoying the thought as she added, “I hate to suggest it, but we should bring the bionic pieces to Yevgen. He can use them for parts. Maybe he can make himself a new pair of legs and we can get future credits on information trades.”

“Good idea.” Jaxx did not look forward to lugging the large man through the city. “We’ll need a cart if we’re going to move him. And a shovel. This looks like as good of a resting place as any.”

“Agreed.” She nudged Doyen with her foot. “You know someone is only going to take over where this one left off.”

“That’s a battle for another day,” Jaxx said. “For now, let’s get rid of this mess. I’m ready for this to be over so I can take my bride home.”

19

Fiora stood with Jaxx at the top of the watchtower, looking over Shelter City from an opening that served as a perch for the dragons to enter. There was a stack of clothing for the dragons to use so that they could dress if they did not have clothes with them. He told her Olena had constructed such towers all over the Draig kingdom for the flying dragons. Thankfully so, since Fiora now wore one of the shirts to replace her bloody one.

The Federation building seemed so close, and yet so far, on the other side of the cliff. Below them was the place they had first met—she had been dressed like a morphed pleasure droid, and he had been completely naked after a shift. It felt so long ago. So much had happened since the night of her escape.

“Are you ready to look?” he asked.

The last thing she remembered before she’d awakened out of the city was resting on Yevgen’s cot, trying not to jostle her head as pain radiated behind both eyes. Jaxx had yet to let go of her.

“It is difficult to believe that it could be over.” Fiora looked at the tops of the buildings from their vantage point.

Jaxx told her how he and Payton had gone after the still and had fought with Doyen. She tried to locate where it had been. From this angle, all the buildings appeared very much the same.

“So Doyen really was responsible for the deaths. He and his followers rigged the still to explode.” Fiora sighed and leaned into him as Jaxx held her. She loved the feel of his chest as it lifted and fell against her in a steady rhythm.

As far