No. You’re dreaming. It’s not real. Just a hallucination brought on by your fever and pain.
In her mind, she saw Darling carrying her out of this nightmare like he’d done when she’d sprained her ankle in the palace kitchen. Of him holding her close and telling her it was over and that she was finally safe.
I swear, if I ever get out of this I will never leave the palace again.
A heartbeat later, the door in front of them lifted. Smoke billowed into the room, filling it instantly. She choked and coughed, trying to breathe around the odor.
Ture held her close as two League soldiers spilled into the room, then turned to speak to another soldier who stayed in the hallway, firing at targets Ture couldn’t see. He was ready to fight them to the bitter end if they tried to take either of them again, but they didn’t move closer.
Preoccupied with whatever was happening in the hallway, neither of soldier even looked at them.
“Grab the woman!” Someone shouted from outside their cell. “We have to have her or we can’t leave.”
The two soldiers came toward them then.
Zarya’s heart pounded as she tried to understand what was happening. Aching to the point it hurt to breathe, she didn’t move until they closed in on her. In their hurry earlier to dump her and run, they’d forgotten to handcuff her.
Their mistake.
She reverted to her strict military training. Grabbing the blaster from the first one to reach her, she used it to shoot his partner.
Shrieking, the soldier hit the deck and died.
Before she could move, the one she’d grabbed brought his fist down across her face with a blow so fierce, it made her head explode with pain. The room spun, nauseating her.
Ture lunged at him and slammed him back against the wall as more soldiers poured into the room.
Zarya fought as hard as she could, but she was injured and outnumbered. Still, she didn’t let it daunt her. Her father had taught her to fight no matter how bad she ached.
There were more battle sounds out in the hallway.
Ture moved to cover her. Though he lacked her skill, he was by no means weak. Nor helpless.
A new group of soldiers rushed them. Zarya leveled her blaster at them and pulled the trigger, only to discover it was out of charges.
Ture cursed under his breath. Leave it to his luck...
Turning the blaster around in her hand, she intended to use it as a blunt object. But the men didn’t make it to them. Before they could reach her or him, blasts struck the soldiers and sent them to the ground at their feet.
Ture put himself between Zarya and whatever new threat was coming for them.
A second later, the smoke cleared to show another fighter in a burgundy battlesuit checking the fallen League soldiers for life signs.
This new soldier had barely stepped inside before he was attacked by three more League soldiers.
Even though he was wounded in multiple places, the newcomer used skills that defied description. He turned and caught the first League soldier with a blow so hard, he shattered his attacker’s nose. The next one, he flipped and stabbed. The third soldier paused as he saw what awaited him in the bodies that were littered all over the room.
Eyes wide, he ran outside.
The newcomer turned to face them.
Ture wasn’t sure what to make of him as he looked to Zarya to see if she knew this one. One glance and it was obvious she’d never seen him before.
Damn.
Bleeding profusely from several wounds, the newcomer froze the instant he saw them. Then he spoke in a language Ture didn’t recognize.
More blasts ricocheted in the hallway behind him.
In one smooth, impressive move, the soldier hit the floor, slid on his knees and spun around to shoot the three guards who ran in behind him. Without hesitating, he body rolled until he came to a stop by their side.
Ignoring Ture, he touched Zarya’s shoulder with a gentle hand. “Zarya?”
Tears filled her eyes as she sobbed and fell into the soldier’s arms. “Maris?”
Maris...
Ture’s heart pounded at the name of the man she’d talked about for countless hours. In her esteem, Maris was second only to her beloved Darling.
The newcomer holstered his weapon. “Can you walk, honey?”
Before she could respond, the room was invaded by even more League soldiers.
Jerking his weapon out again, Maris jumped to his feet and opened fire, forcing the soldiers back into the hallway. Oblivious to the fact that he was wounded, he fought on. Ture had never seen anything like it. How could Maris stand so strong and bleed like that?
But even more incredulous was the fact that Maris had come to rescue them. Period.
Zarya had been right. There were decent humans in the universe after all. Who’d have ever guessed?
As soon as Maris set the League soldiers fleeing, he returned to their side.