Ash Princess (The Deviant Future #6) - Eve Langlais Page 0,77

food.

For now. They’d taken the base from Ruby, but how long before they made a push to get it back? Because Cam didn’t doubt they would try. They’d gone to too much trouble to abandon their perfidy now.

Cam lost track of Kayda as they dealt with the younger ones and set barricades and warning systems at all possible egresses. Just in case.

Feeling confined, he returned outside, staring at the night sky. That was where Kayda found him.

“What are you looking at?” she asked, joining him to sit on the crate of tools.

“The stars. It’s the one thing that stays the same no matter where I go.”

“I’ve only rarely had a chance to see them,” she admitted as she leaned against him. She inhaled deeply. “There is something decadent about being outside in the open.”

“Soon you’ll have this all the time.”

“For some kids, today was the first time they were ever outside.”

Which was the saddest thing he’d ever heard. Even he and his sister, the test subjects, got to spend time outdoors.

She sighed. “What are we going to do?” She didn’t need to say more.

“We are going to give those kids a chance to live. The next transport is due to arrive in three days.”

“How do you know?” She straightened to look at him.

“I read the countess’s notes. She kept meticulous records and a calendar of dates.”

“You’re planning to take the transport? How? The last one was full of soldiers. There’s only twenty-two of us left, most too young to fight.”

“I have a plan, but I’m going to need some help from the kids.”

She paused before slowly stating, “It’s going to be dangerous.”

“Fighting for freedom always is, so if you want me to promise no one will get hurt or killed, I can’t. But I can offer them a chance, which is more than they had before.”

“What do we need to do?”

“We’ll work out the finer details later. Relax a moment with me.” He jumped onto the flat part of a wall and held out his hand.

He pulled her up beside him and through a ragged hole, which acted as great camouflage for a guard post. Nothing fancy, but with plenty of openings for looking outside. It was private, though. No one would find them here.

Kayda went eagerly into his arms, lifting her face for a kiss. Sighing as their tongues intertwined.

“We should go back inside before they come looking,” she murmured.

“We should.” He wanted to groan. Why did he have to be so responsible?

Her hands went to the buckle of his pants and tugged. “We’ll have to make this quick.”

“You are so fucking perfect.” He made quick work of her pants, and the hand he slid between her thighs found her slick and ready for him.

There wasn’t much room in their hidden nook, but by sitting down and having her straddle him, they made it work.

He slid into her warm channel and clutched her ass tight as she pushed herself down on him, sheathing him entirely. Squeezing him so nice.

They rocked together, bodies in tune, hearts racing, lips locked as intimately as the lower parts of them.

When they came, it was as one, the swelling crest of pleasure sweeping them both and leaving them panting.

Hugging.

He never wanted it to end.

But he still had a prophecy to fulfill. In order for Ozz, and by default Kayda, to live, he’d have to die. The days left to them ticked down, and in between the lovemaking, there was so much to do.

Starting with the plan for the transport. The following day Cam and Kayda apprised the older crew of Milo, Lila, and Gorri before they addressed those that remained. A motley crew aged six and up, looking to him for help.

Cam tucked his hands behind his back. “Fellow citizens, we have a little problem.”

“Did the ghouls find us already?” chirped Simon in the front.

“No ghouls. Not yet at least,” he said, reminding them to be cautious. “But a Ruby transport ship is expected a few nights from now.”

This caused a buzz and a few frightened faces. By now they knew of the treachery.

Cam held up a hand. “Don’t freak out. I’ve got a plan. But I’m going to need your help.”

No surprise, he got all the volunteers he needed. This was a matter of life or death. They had to succeed.

When the transport arrived, he dressed in a ruby uniform. He and Milo would camouflage themselves as soldiers and Kayda and Lila as regular workers. The only flaw in their plan was not