Tharn’s eyes narrow, his head tilting in a gesture so similar to Rok’s that it makes my chest tighten with an unexpected wave of fondness.
“You claim to be female, yet look as a male does,” he thinks back, his mental voice laced with skepticism. “Only smaller…softer…” His brow furrows, and I can almost see the confusion and disbelief warring with his stubbornness to not believe. “Why would Rok risk himself for an outsider? This does not make sense.”
“Trust me,” I respond dryly, “where I’m from, I’m definitely female. Though this is the first planet where my lack of curves has been mistaken for a different species rather than just bad genetics.”
Tharn’s gaze flicks to Rok, who stands tense beside me, ready to intervene at the slightest provocation.
“You claim this one is female?” Tharn asks Rok directly. “This small, pale thing?”
“I do not claim,” Rok growls. “She is.”
Tharn circles me slowly, his movements predatory. I stand my ground, refusing to show fear even as my heart races.
“She barely reaches my chest,” Tharn observes. “The daughters of Ain were said to be like gods—females bigger than the males of our clan, bigger than any Drakav. While you…” He gestures at my slender form with something like disappointment. “You are small. Fragile.”
He stops in front of me, nostrils flaring as he leans in slightly. “Though there is…something.” Those golden pits fasten on me. “Something on you smells of Rok.”
I feel heat rush to my cheeks and see the moment he rears back at the sight. Of course—I’m probably covered in Rok’s scent after our activities in the cave. The thought is both embarrassing and oddly thrilling.
“She is my female,” Rok states, the possessiveness in his thoughts unmistakable. “We are returning to clan grounds. She has others like her. Those we must find.”
Tharn’s head snaps up at this. “Others? More…females from the stars? More females like her?”
“Yes,” I interject. “My sister and…many many others. They need our—your help.”
Tharn stares at me for a long moment, then turns to Rok. “Kol sent search parties when you did not return many sols ago. I was tracking your scent when I found you.” His gaze shifts back to me. “If there are indeed daughters of Ain fallen from the sky, he will want to know immediately.”
“Aye,” Rok nods and Tharn looks at him like he’s suddenly a strange thing he’s never seen before. I realize a little later it’s because of the nod itself. That’s something Rok learned from me.
“We will continue to clan grounds,” he projects to Tharn. “Lead the way.”
Tharn doesn’t respond. Casting one more suspicious glance at me, he turns to head across the sand.
Thank the gods for this new stamina. I manage to keep the pace as we walk, though I know both males are going considerably slower than they are capable of. As we go, I notice how Tharn keeps pace not too far ahead, frequently glancing back at me with unconcealed interest. There’s something in his gaze that makes me uneasy—not quite hostility, but a calculating intensity that has me instinctively moving closer to Rok.
“He doesn’t believe I’m female,” I whisper to Rok.
“He will,” Rok replies, his mental voice tinged with grim determination. “The clan has never seen beings like you. Their disbelief is natural.”
“What if they all react like Tharn? What if they attack before asking questions?”
Rok’s hand finds mine, his fingers intertwining with mine in a gesture so human it makes my throat tight. “I will not let them harm you.”
The promise is simple, but loaded with meaning. I glance up at him, finding his golden eyes already on me, filled with that same fierce protectiveness I’m coming to recognize.
After about an hour of trekking through increasingly rocky terrain, Rok stops abruptly.
“We must move faster,” he says, turning to me. “The clan grounds are still distant, and the dark will come soon.”
Before I can respond, he sweeps me into his arms, cradling me against his chest.
“I will carry you,” he states, not a question but a declaration. “It will be faster.”
Tharn watches this exchange with narrowed eyes. “The female cannot keep pace?”
“She is not of the dust,” Rok snaps. “Her strength is different.”
Something flickers in Tharn’s eyes—confusion, disbelief, and something else I can’t quite identify. His gaze lingers on me for a moment too long, trailing over the way I’m nestled against Rok’s chest, the way Rok’s arms tighten around me possessively.
There’s yearning there. Deep and unmistakable.
It sends a chill down my spine. Not fear, exactly, but a sudden awareness that Rok might not be the only one of his kind who could form this strange bond with a human woman.
“We go,” Rok’s voice in my head is a growl, clearly noticing Tharn’s stare. Without waiting for a response, he launches into a run, his powerful legs eating up the distance with astonishing speed.
Tharn follows, matching Rok’s pace. His gaze keeps flicking to me, and each time it does, Rok’s arms tighten fractionally around me.
As we race across the desert, the wind picking up around us, I find myself wondering what awaits us at the clan grounds. Will they all look at me the way Tharn does? With suspicion, disbelief, and that unsettling hint of desire?
And what happens when they discover I’m not what they expect—not a daughter of their sun god, but just a lost human woman trying to find her sister and a way home?
I press my face against Rok’s chest, drawing comfort from his cool skin and the steady beat of his heart. Whatever comes next, I’m not facing it alone. I have Rok.
And as the landscape blurs around us, the wind growing stronger at our backs, I can only hope that’s enough.
Chapter 33
JUST WHEN I THOUGHT IT COULDN’T GET WEIRDER
JUSTINE
The sun sinks toward the horizon as we approach the clan grounds, painting the rocky landscape in shades of amber and gold. Still cradled in Rok’s arms, I feel his muscles tense beneath me, his heartbeat quickening against my ear. Ahead, dark silhouettes of massive stone formations rise against the darkening sky—a natural fortress of towering cliffs and hidden crevices.
“We approach clan ground.” Rok’s thoughts brush against my mind, tentative and tense. “Are you afraid?”
The question surprises me. I’ve been so focused on the physical sensation of being carried by him—the powerful rhythm of his stride, the security of his arms around me—that I’d tried not to think about what awaits us.
“Should I be?” I counter, trying to mask my growing unease.
Rok slows his pace, allowing Tharn to pull ahead of us. When he responds, his mental voice is carefully measured. “They have never seen a being like you. They will not understand.”