Sohut's Protection: A Sci-fi Alien Romance (Riv's Sanctuary Book 2) A.G. Wilde (best way to read an ebook TXT) 📖

he was taking as her upper body was pressed against his back.

But Sohut didn’t stop. He kept on running.

She didn’t know how he knew where he was headed in the pitch black of the jungle, but he somehow did.

She didn’t hear it at first, not from the sound of her own blood beating in her ears, but as soon as she picked it up, her senses began screaming that something dangerous was happening.

There was a sound above them, like an engine of some sort and Cleo forced herself to think rationally.

She didn’t just hear that.

She hadn’t heard an engine in so long, the sound was…alien.

But it was definitely an engine.

She could hear it clearer now, as if whatever vessel it was, was lowering from the sky.

“Sohut?”

He swallowed hard. She could feel that even in his back.

“Clee-yo…” His voice was hoarse and so, so pained. “I’m sorry, Clee-yo.”

Her mouth spoke the words in her mind without much input from her. She suddenly felt…numb.

“What’s happening, Sohut?”

He swallowed hard again and even though he was blazing through the forest like Usain Bolt’s alien brother, he didn’t pause or slow down.

He was running for his life…or for hers.

“They’re coming.” was all he said.

She didn’t need to know who they were.

Her whole being knew who they were.

Time paused and there was a sound.

A sound she’ll never forget.

It was a blast so strong, it flattened everything in the surrounding area.

All the trees…the vines…every single plant lay flat on the ground and she knew this for a fact because the light that suddenly flooded around them was so bright it was as if the sun had risen in an instant.

Sohut stopped. He stopped so suddenly, it took her organs a second to fall back into her body from the sudden lack of motion.

The light.

It was so bright.

As her eyes adjusted it became clear, however, that this was no sun.

It was the light from whatever vessel was hovering above them.

She could hear the engine clearly now—a soft hum that cut through the quietness of the jungle. And even as she lifted her head, trying to see through the veil her hair had made, she saw something that cut through her senses, turning her to cold stone.

Someone, some being, landed behind Sohut. A leathery tail swung behind the legs.

She knew those legs…that tail…she’d seen it before.

A long, long time ago…so long ago, she’d thought the memory had been locked in the recesses of her mind, but it was right in front of her now.

Clear as day, she remembered, as if it hadn’t happened over a year ago—as if no time had passed and she was back on that alien slave ship.

It was the legs of one of the guards. The same guards that had manned the ship that had taken her away from Earth.

They were here to take her away. Not the green orcs that had pulled her from the rubble to sell her to the zoo, but them.

She’d rather jump off a cliff than go back with them.

She couldn’t breathe now, literally, and it had nothing to do with the constriction around her neck.

“Merssi…you have been foolish, keeping us waiting so long.” The voice came from behind her and a chill ran down her spine.

There was more than one of them.

Sohut stiffened.

“You’re not taking her.” He was growling, an animalistic sound that would have scared her if she didn’t know who he was, and she knew his fangs were bared.

His arm tightened around her and she heard the unmistakable sound of his claws protracting.

He was ready to fight.

So was she.

He just had to put her down. She’d claw their eyes out with her bare fingers if she had to.

Their laughter was sickening.

It was the sort of sound that seemed to clap the air, echoing into the darkness.

“Of course, we are taking her. You sent the signal, made our work easier.”

The signal.

Cleo blinked, unmoving, her mind trying to make sense of their words.

Which signal?

Then it came to her.

The device that was blinking even right now in Sohut’s hand.

For a moment, a little voice in her head made her doubt everything.

That device was why they were there. It had summoned them, and Sohut had possessed it all along.

He’d had the means to make them find her at any moment.

“Sohut?” Her voice cracked as she said his name and she felt him stiffen even more, his growling interrupted for a second.

The guards around them laughed again.

“Qrakking human. The Merssi has developed feelings for it, don’t you see?” The guard laughed.

“Are you surprised? They are both useless beings. Excrement tends to stick to excrement.”

Sohut growled, but he didn’t move.

There was movement in front of her and suddenly she was face-to-face with one of the guards.

He bent so he could look into her face and Cleo stifled a gasp as the guard’s alligator-like snout came far too close for comfort.

“You didn’t trust him, did you, jekin?” The way he said the word made it sound as if he was calling her a bitch. “You thought you were free?” He laughed in her face. “The Merssi had the tracker for you the entire time. You belong to our lordships, the High Tasqals. The Merssi cares nothing about you.”

They were wrong.

She knew Sohut better.

They’d made love, many, many times. She’d given herself to him. Trusted him.

At that moment, she knew with certainty a thought that she hadn’t forced herself to acknowledge before: she’d rather die than let them hurt the man she loved.

The man she loved.

A ball of emotion developed in her throat, causing her to choke.

“Release the jekin,” one of the guards ordered. “Her master awaits.”

“NO!” For a moment, she thought the word came from Sohut—it was uttered with such ferocity, such power, such defiance—but the sudden strain on her throat made her realize the exclamation had come from her.

She felt Sohut’s arms tighten around her.

“She’s not going anywhere,” he spoke through gritted teeth.

There was a pause and then the guards cackled. They cackled as if they’d just heard the funniest joke and their