Alien Warrior’s Treasure by Sue Mercury

Chapter 10

Gavvin staredat the Vaxxlian Matchmakers building, anger and jealousy clutching him, clouding his vision until it brimmed with red. He’d followed Molly here this morning, unable to keep away from her. Ever since the night he’d met her, he had spent his days watching from the trees outside her home, waiting for her to emerge, half-hoping she would climb down the building and race off to visit him again.

He had hurt her. Whenever he glimpsed her face as she stared out a window, he could see the hurt reflecting in her eyes, the sad longing. More than once, he’d been tempted to emerge from the trees and call to her, to shout an apology and assure her that he hadn’t meant what he’d said—he truly did wish to see her again, and with the Star God as his witness, he had enjoyed their time together.

But this morning she’d finally gone to Vaxxlian Matchmakers. Any moment now, an unmated Vaxxlian warrior would arrive at the building, summoned by one of the psychic sisters, to meet Molly and take her home.

His muscles tensed and a growl rumbled from him, earning him several strange looks from passersby in the street. He ignored their stares and focused on the entrance of Vaxxlian Matchmakers, waiting to see which unmated warrior would approach the building.

Murderous impulses seized him. He felt ready to kill Molly’s mate, whoever he might be. Logically, he knew he had no right to interfere in her life. He’d driven her away.

Regret and longing filled him. What he wouldn’t give to change his circumstances, but he could not in good conscience claim Molly, or any other human female for that matter, with his reputation in tatters. Nearly everyone in Starrzia looked upon him with suspicion.

The door of Vaxxlian Matchmakers opened and Molly stormed out, her steps rapid as she navigated her way down the street, Khann and his mate following close behind.

Confusion reigned within Gavvin.

Why hadn’t an unmated warrior come to fetch her?

Why was she leaving the matchmaking service without meeting her mate?

Careful to remain hidden, he skulked on the edges of the street, moving between vendor booths and bushes and trees, as he followed her toward Khann’s home. It appeared she was heading home without having been matched to a warrior, and the stricken expression she wore revealed she wasn’t happy about it. She kept blinking rapidly, though she held her head high, as was her habit, as she moved through the crowded street.

Once he watched her enter Khann’s home, waves of relief spread through him. Molly was still unmated. The tension drained from him, along with his murderous impulses. He stood outside, waiting and watching from the trees as the sun moved across the sky, but she didn’t emerge or even stand at her bedroom window.

Much later in the day, as the sun set beyond the mountains, his wrist comm beeped and buzzed, and he peered down to discover one of his programs had intercepted another encrypted message sent by the Irrcons. Strange. It appeared as though the message had been transmitted somewhere on New Vaxx.

Alarm rose inside him and he hurried into the forest, heading for home. Instinct told him he needed to make haste—that his people faced an unexpected danger.

He regretted leaving Molly, but he needed to decipher the encrypted message as soon as possible.

He returned home and worked late into the night, decoding the message and attempting to discover the exact location on New Vaxx where it had been transmitted. The message was another request for information on Vaxxlian defenses, this message specifically inquiring about the new planetary shield that protected New Vaxx.

A spy. This meant there was a spy on New Vaxx.

Gavvin growled as he worked furiously to uncover the exact coordinates where the message had been transmitted. Each time he thought he was close to discovering the location, he would run into another block. The message appeared scattered over a large area of Starrzia, not quite focused on one building or house in particular.

Darkness fell and the sound of nighttime insects and nocturnal forest creatures spilled in through the windows. Gavvin turned a light on and concentrated on the screens in front of him, searching for a clue he’d missed, an opening that would allow him to pinpoint the location of the spy.

The scattering field began to narrow. He leaned forward, watching as one of the programs he’d designed worked its magic, until a red dot blinked on the screen, directly over a large house in Starrzia. He growled, recognizing the house as belonging to an elected leader—a respected older Vaxxlian warrior named Bricco.

Then he intercepted an outgoing message from Bricco’s house—a message that contained detailed blueprints of the planetary shield that protected New Vaxx, including a summary of the shield’s known weaknesses. Part of the message included a commentary about the blueprints spoken in Bricco’s own voice.

A traitor.

Not only was Leader Bricco a traitor, but the dishonorable male had just handed the Irrcons a way to attack New Vaxx.

Gavvin organized the damning information and immediately transmitted it to Vaxxlian High Command and Commander Vensinn. He trusted the commander would alert the engineers who’d designed the planetary shield. Hopefully, the engineers would find a way to fix the weaknesses before the Irrcons attempted an attack. The commander would also order Bricco’s capture and interrogation.

Gavvin performed a quick scan of the surrounding sectors, looking for any sign of Irrcon vessels. He breathed a sigh of relief when he detected no enemy ships.

The screen in front of him flashed with a confirmation from Commander Vensinn, as well as an invitation to join the warriors who were being dispatched to capture Leader Bricco.

Bloodlust hummed through Gavvin.

The prospect of helping to take down a Vaxxlian traitor filled him with a sense of purpose. Though he paused for a moment and considered how the other warriors might react to his presence, he decided the commander’s invitation could not be refused.

He quickly donned his full warrior’s uniform and strapped on his weapons.

Then he was off, running out into the night, taking a shortcut through the forest in order to reach Starrzia as fast as possible.

He wished he had his Vaxxlian cruiser parked at his house, so he might arrive in Starrzia more quickly, but it was still being repaired after sustaining heavy damage during the war. He supposed the mechanics charged with fixing the vessels didn’t see his cruiser as a top priority.

He increased his pace, zipping through the trees. He would help capture Bricco, just as he’d once helped capture his own traitorous brother.

* * *

“Hello?”Molly stood outside Gavvin’s house, peering through a front window. She’d knocked several times, but he hadn’t answered. She tapped on the thick glass. “Gavvin? Heeellooooo?”

She cast a nervous glance around the darkened forest. Maybe he’d gone for a walk. Or maybe he was home and just didn’t want to answer. What if Carmen was completely wrong about Gavvin being her soul mate? What if he’d truly meant all the hurtful things he’d said? Her heart plummeted at the prospect.

With a deep sigh, she sank down on a tree stump near the front door. The sound of nighttime insects swelled around her, nearly drowning out her thoughts.

Was she a fool for coming here?

She hadn’t even worked out exactly what she might say to Gavvin when she finally saw him. A week had passed since he’d saved her from the bear and whisked her off to his house to tend her wounds. Despite how that evening had ended, she missed him. She longed to see him at least one more time before she made any firm decisions.

Even though Carmen hadn’t matched her with another unmated Vaxxlian warrior, as she’d expected, that didn’t mean Molly couldn’t choose another warrior as her mate. There was a shortage of single human females on New Vaxx, which would work in her favor. She could simply walk outside in the middle of the day and invite one of the unmated warriors lingering below her window to become her mate. If she wanted to.

Part of her wished she’d never visited Vaxxlian Matchmakers in the first place. Part of her wished she’d allowed Khann to set her up with one of his acquaintances, like a fellow warrior from his unit. He’d offered to do so once, but she’d politely turned him down, stating that she wasn’t quite ready to take a mate.

Carmen claimed Molly could be mostly happy with another warrior, but she’d also said Molly would forever pine for Gavvin. If that was true, it wouldn’t be fair to the random warrior she settled on as a husband.

A rustling in the trees drew her attention, and she fingered the kitchen knife in her pocket. It was small but sharp, and she’d wrapped a strip of leather around the blade to keep from cutting herself. With a quick flick of her wrist, however, she could have it unwrapped and ready to face down a… well, hopefully not a bear this time.

She tensed and peered into the trees, but was stunned when a tall elderly Vaxxlian male emerged from the forest. His face was deeply wrinkled, and his hair shone vivid white in the light of the moons.

She loosened her grip on the knife when he shot her a kindly smile. She recognized him from the settlement and had seen him around with an elderly female she assumed was his mate, one of the rare Vaxxlian females who’d escaped the war with her life.

Well, he was an old man, and he was mated. Surely he couldn’t pose much of a threat to her.

She relaxed further.

“Good evening to you,” he said, inclining his head in a show of respect. “I’m Leader Bricco. I’m a friend of Gavvin’s. Is he here?”

“Good evening, Leader Bricco. I’m Molly.” She glanced at the front door. “I’m sorry, but I don’t believe Gavvin is home right now. I was just waiting for him.” She flushed at the admission, wondering what this elderly male must think of her—an unclaimed human female out in the forest, waiting on the doorstep of an unmated warrior.

Leader Bricco approached the door and squinted at the panel next to it. He withdrew a strange device from his pocket and held it close to the panel. A second later, the door zipped open. He turned and grinned at her, but the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes, and suddenly Molly’s guard went up.

“Gavvin is expecting me this evening,” the elderly Vaxxlian said, “though he must be running late. Why don’t you join me in waiting for him inside?”

Molly rose to her feet slowly and peered over her shoulder, trying to judge how long it would take to reach the white stone path. Not that the path promised safety. She was far from Starrzia right now, a full hour walk even if she hustled and took shortcuts through the trees. Far enough away that no one would hear her cry for help.

Where is Gavvin?

She swallowed hard and tried for a polite smile. “Oh, thank you for the offer,” she said, backing away from the white-haired Vaxxlian male, “but it’s getting late and I should be going.” Though she recognized Leader Bricco from the settlement, it didn’t sit right with her that he was basically breaking into Gavvin’s house. How could he claim to be Gavvin’s friend? Gavvin was an outcast who had no friends other than Commander Vensinn, or so she’d thought.

When Leader Bricco’s face twisted with a cruel smile, alarm bells went off in her head. Maybe this male had come here to harm Gavvin. Maybe he saw Gavvin as a traitor, like most of the settlement did, and wished to do away with him. Her blood ran cold at the thought. She needed to find Gavvin and warn him of the danger.

Just as she reached the tree line, Leader Bricco bolted forward, moving fast for a man of his advanced age, and grabbed her by her forearms. His fingers dug painfully into her flesh and his cruel smile broadened.

Leaning close to her, he took a long inhale. “You’re unmated,” he said, “and you’re out here all alone without your assigned guardian.” He released a dark chuckle. “It would appear the Star God has blessed me this evening.”

Horror clutched her. “You’re mated. What could you possibly want with me?” God, she hoped he was mated. She hoped the elderly female she’d seen him walking with in Starrzia wasn’t his sister or another relative.

“Yes, I am mated,” he said with a sneer as he looked her up and down, disgust filling his eyes, as if the very notion of claiming her was revolting to him. This reaction, along with his admission that he was indeed mated, caused Molly to relax—but only for a moment. He was still clutching her arms too tightly, and there was a darkness to his gaze that unnerved her.

“What do you want from me then?” She tried to reach down into her pocket, but he tightened his hold on her forearms and pushed her back against a tree. The bark scraped along her neck and upper back, where the fabric of her dress didn’t quite cover her flesh.

Leader Bricco chuckled again, and his eyes gleamed with malice. “A hostage,” he said with a wide grin. “I want you as a hostage.”