“She gonna die?” the leader asked. “She’s useless to us dead.”
“Depends,” the brute replied with a shrug. “Most of them die, but if she makes it through the night, she’ll be fine.”
“Should we give her something? Water? Moonshine?”
“No shine,” the brute said with a shake of his head. “Clean water will help.”
“What about those sky warrior rations she had? We could fix her up one of those.”
“Hell no,” Ted refused. “We can get good money for those! Let her have some water out of the canteen. If she dies, she dies.”
Cipher had heard absolutely enough of their bullshit. Although he wanted to kill each man slowly and with his own hands, he understood the situation. He was outnumbered, and she was at risk of being hurt if he tried to fight them. Instead, he took up a firing position against the tree, bracing himself to stay steady, and lifted the rifle to his shoulder. He sighted each man down the scope, deciding which one would get a bullet first and then the order of the others.
Once his decisions had been made, he didn’t hesitate. He fired four rapid shots, striking each man in the head. They crumpled and dropped right where they stood, their wounds soaking the ground around them with blood. Adrenaline spiking, Cipher flicked on the safety and returned his rifle to his back. He hurried into the campsite, sparing a glance at each man to be sure they were good and dead.
When he reached Brook, she had found the strength to lift her head. Her eyes were glassy, but she smiled when she saw him. “Cipher,” she said, her sweet voice reduced to little more than a croak. “You came for me.”
“Of course, I came for you.” He wrapped one arm around her body to support her slight weight and reached up with the other to slash away the ropes with the knife he’d yanked from his belt sheath. Her arms flopped forward, and she sagged against him. Not caring one bit about the mess on her skin or the smell that clung to her, he embraced her tightly to his chest. “You’re my girl, Brook. I’ll always find you and keep you safe.”
She didn’t reply. She had gone completely unconscious, her poor body pushed beyond what it could handle. He lowered her to the ground and started to strip out of his gear. As he cleaned her with the disposable wipes in his pack, he called in and requested an exfil. With that done, he pulled off his vest and peeled out of his uniform shirt. He gently maneuvered her into the shirt, granting her what modesty he could, and then wrapped her in an emergency blanket, the thin foil-like material crinkling and glinting in the firelight.
Certain she was safe, he gathered up her backpack and the equipment that belonged to the Shadow Force. He searched the bodies for any useful intel and crammed what he found into the pockets of his tactical pants. He left the fire burning for now but planned to douse it once their transport arrived. The flames would keep predators away from the fresh kills and served as a beacon for the ship.
With his back against the nearest tree, he hauled Brook into his lap and tucked the blanket around her legs. He held her close and hoped his body heat was enough to keep her warm. Even with her fever, she trembled from the chill of the mist on her bare skin and the cool night air. His gaze moved to the sky, and he silently urged the ship to fly faster.
He finally had the mate he had always wanted, and he couldn’t bear the thought of losing her now.
Chapter Six
Of all the ways she had expected her kidnapping to end, it definitely hadn’t been cradled in Cipher’s strong arms as he carried her onto a spaceship. The strange metallic sheet he had wrapped around her crinkled as he hefted her through the cargo bay and into the main cabin. Medics ran toward them and started barking questions. So weak and confused, she barely understood them.
“I think she’s been infected with bacteria or a parasite from contaminated water,” Cipher said as he placed her on a gurney. “She was in the same mine as Terror. She busted open an old fire suppression system line. I’m not sure how long that water was stagnant.”
“If she was with Terror, she has the same thing they’re treating him for on the