Protected by the Alien Warrior Hope Hart (books that read to you .txt) 📖

because he’s already packed my clothes. The clothes that Ilax gave me.

My chest tightens at the thought, but I picture the peaceful expression on his face as he stared up at the sky and thought of his family. I hope he’s with them now.

Vrex slides my knife into a sheath, which he fastens around my upper thigh, on top of my slim pants but beneath the tunic. If I need to reach for it, I’ll lose time pulling up the tunic, but I should still have the element of surprise.

Vrex has removed his sling, and his arm doesn’t seem to pain him much as he leads us along a new trail. When I ask why we’re traveling in a different direction, he informs me that he spent the early hours of the morning setting even more traps. Anyone who attempts to get close to his home will regret it.

For once, there aren’t that many people at the trading post when we arrive. Vrex leads me into the messenger tashiv, and the guy who works there instantly hands him a couple pieces of paper.

We walk back to the mishua, and I watch him as he reads the first note. Finally, I sidle up close to him, wishing I could understand the language he’s reading.

My eyes widen. Beneath the first note is a second message. And it’s written in English. I don’t hesitate, leaning forward to pluck the piece of paper from Vrex’s hands.

“Hey, Ivy, this is Nevada,” I read aloud. Vrex tenses, and I frown as I continue, “If you get this, congrats on that whole staying alive thing. We’ve hired this hulking piece of man-meat to help you get back to us. Zoey and Beth are fine, so if you want to get off this planet, you need to start moseying toward our camp.”

I look up at Vrex, betrayal hitting me like a punch to the gut.

“How much?” I demand.

“How much what?”

“How much are you getting paid to bring me back?”

He’s silent for a long moment. “Two hundred credits and a favor from the tribe king.”

“A favor?”

One sharp nod. “Ivy—”

I lift my hand. “Why didn’t you tell me? You let me think you were helping me just because you happened to be in the area.”

Vrex’s jaw tightens, the look in his eyes strangely desperate. He turns his head, and I realize everyone is staring at us.

“We need to leave,” he says, and a harsh laugh escapes me. Even now, he can’t explain himself. I crumple the note in my fist and then flatten it out before carefully folding it and sliding it into the pocket of my tunic so I can read it again later.

I get on the mishua and try to ignore the wrenching pain in my chest. “Fine.”

Chapter Nine

Vrex

Ivy is as cold as ice as we travel toward Rakiz’s camp. My plan is to leave her with the tribe king and then hunt the Zintas and the Voildi once she is safe.

I should have told her. Should have admitted that I was sent to help her. I can’t explain why I didn’t. Except that for a brief period, I wasn’t just the Assassin of Agron. I was the male who saved the human female with the flame-colored hair.

I wanted to be more than just a killer. More than just a mercenary. For her.

“Will you not talk to me now, female?”

She sniffs. “I need some time, Vrex. I’m pissed at you.”

I attempt to ignore the way my shoulders straighten with hope that she will forgive me. Last night was the best night of my life.

A night that should not have happened. I am not worthy of the flame-haired female with the wide smile and sparkling eyes. But for a few short hours, she was mine.

I’m not ready to give that up.

“I did not think you would be the type of female to punish me by withholding your words,” I tell her, and she inhales sharply, glowering at me over her shoulder.

“You deserve the silent treatment,” she snaps. “You let me think that you just so happened to be close by and you decided to help me because you were a good man.”

I tense, hoping she can’t see how much her words sting.

“You are an honorable male, Vrex. I’m sorry that you do not believe yourself worthy of a mate.”

I scowl as Ilax’s words run through my head on a loop. The male was wrong.

“That was your first mistake, little Flame Hair. Believing that I was good. I warned you not to trust anyone on this planet.”

She shakes her head in disgust as she turns back around to face our trail. “You’re right. I should’ve listened.”

I grind my teeth in frustration. “If you want me to be your villain, I can,” I say, and she stiffens.

“Is that a threat?”

“No. I’m merely willing to conform to your expectations of me.”

I lean forward and run my teeth down her neck. I’m rewarded with her gasp even as she curses at me.

I grin with my lips pressed against her skin. “You still want me.”

She leans back and elbows me in the ribs. “I still want chocolate, but I don’t seem to have much of that in my life right now.”

I frown. What is this “chocolate”? And how will I find it for her?

We are close to the edge of the forest, and I turn Nari toward the plains that will lead us to Rakiz’s camp. Already, I feel tense at the thought of being surrounded by so many people. But it is the idea of leaving this female behind that makes me itch beneath my skin.

A huge tree is lying across our path, and I pull the mishua to a stop.

“Can we go around it?” Ivy asks.

My instincts are roaring at me. “I don’t like the look of this. Stay on the mishua.”

She nods, and I jump down, drawing my sword. I approach the felled tree slowly, noting that there have been no recent storms. There are no other fallen trees in