Alien Conquest (Fated Mates of Xaensskar #2) - Jude Gray Page 0,26

with black naked trees, their limbs reaching and twisting into the gray sky.

There were voices, hollow and echoing, that kept the place from feeling empty, but at the same time, I could feel the isolation. Despite the many trees, there was no sense of being crowded like in the city. It was…vast.

From the distance came a scream, and I couldn’t tell if it belonged to a man or to a beast. I shivered, rubbing my arms through my coat. I loved the place, which was strange considering I’d never been here before. But somehow, I felt like I belonged.

There was nothing modern about this world. There were no engines. There was no power. In the city, emergency sirens and the strident sounds of talking billboards and screeching and roaring vehicles were constant and endless.

Here, there was peace. Here, I could breathe.

I closed my eyes and threw my head back, inhaling deeply and then shoving out the breath through pursed lips, as though ridding myself of years of a polluted life in a crowded city.

“I could live here forever,” I said.

“You may have to,” Dex said, “if you want to live.”

I gasped and swung around, losing my breath for a whole different reason when I saw him. I wanted to touch his warmth so badly that my palms itched. I clenched my fists, resisting doing something that would likely get me into a lot of trouble. “I didn’t hear you. You shouldn’t sneak up on a gi—a person.” Then I cocked my head. “So those are your terms? You will allow me to stay out of prison as long as I live in Corsov?”

He looked different here. Already, lines of tension had melted from his face, and the look in his beautiful dark green eyes was calm. Still fierce, yet, and still resentful, but calm. And he actually met my stare, though almost at once he muttered a swear word and looked away.

It pleased me that I affected him so.

“Not my terms,” he said, his voice deep and quiet. “You are being pursued by a powerful bounty hunting group called XCRU.”

“I’ve heard of XCRU,” I said, forcing myself to look away from his face. No easy feat, that. “Why would they want me?”

“The last place you robbed,” he said. “The lady of the house died. Apparently you scared her to death.” He raked my slight body, his eyebrow cocked. “If the hunter catches you, he’ll take you back to the city. They’ll put you to death.”

“I’ll stay here, then. With you.” I shrugged. “I would stay here regardless. I feel at home in the deadlands, Dexx. I can’t explain it, but…”

“You don’t have to explain it. I understand.”

For a few moments, there was only silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. “Where is everyone?” I asked. “Where’s Bo?”

I saw him stiffen from the corner of my eye. “You seemed to be attached to my guard.”

I lifted an eyebrow. “And you seem very unobservant.”

“What do you mean by that?” he asked, frowning.

“You can’t see what’s right in front of you.” Then, before I gave into temptation and told him that beneath the thick, roomy clothes beat the heart of a girl—his girl—I asked, “Why do you hate the Drimuti, Dexx? Did one of them wrong you so badly that you blame them all?”

“Them,” he said, flatly.

“I told you I’m not a Drimuti.” I tried for a flippant smile. “They wouldn’t have me, you see. So fuck them. Now I won’t have them.”

He studied my face, keeping his stare on me for longer than he ever had, and I couldn’t help myself. Now it was my turn to grow uncomfortable and look away. I pulled my cap down a little further. “Anyway,” I continued. “What did they do to you?”

When he wouldn’t answer, I sighed. “I’m worried about Vihn. He’s not well.”

“Most street kids aren’t,” he said.

“A lot of them are sick,” I agreed.

“And yet you seem…” I heard him swallow. “Particularly healthy.”

“I take care of myself as much as I can.” I turned to him finally and touched his arm. And though he was wearing a coat, it seemed to me like I felt heat streak through my fingertips. I held my fingers to my chest. “Can you take me exploring?”

“I can do anything I want to do.”

I nodded. “I suppose if you don’t want to take me, I can ask Bo.”

He narrowed his eyes, but the corners of his lips lifted in a hint of a smile.

I stared at him, slightly awed. “That’s