Pursued: A Sci-Fi Alien Warrior Romance (Raider Warlords of the Vandar Book 4)

axe. “No. I will handle this.” I met his eyes and noticed his deepening scowl. “But you may accompany me. I have a theory that might require your particular skill set.”
A grin spilt Corvak’s face, and he moved one hand to the handle of his weapon. “Gladly, Raas.”
I gave Svar a sharp nod. “You have the horde, majak.”
He threw back his chest and snapped his heels as I strode off the command deck with my battle chief by my side. Corvak and I didn’t speak as we made our way quickly down through the ship, our steps long and our arms swinging by our sides.
My heart thrummed in my chest, anger building as I thought about the female who resided on my ship. A part of me wished to lock her in her quarters and dump her off on Lodvak as planned. It did not matter who she was, as long as she was not on my ship any longer. Another part of me needed to know the truth about her before I ridded myself of her presence. Was she truly a victim of the empire, a refugee in need as she claimed, or had she tricked me?
I squeezed the hilt of my weapon, fighting back the urge to let out a roar of frustration as I thundered down an iron staircase. The first mission of my command could not end in me being duped by a human. It was an intolerable thought, and one that made bile churn in my gut. What kind of Raas allowed himself to be tricked by a female? Kratos would never have allowed a small human like Alana to get the better of him. This thought made me tighten my grip until the bones showed white through my skin.
As we closed in on the battle ring, I held out an arm to slow Corvak and put a finger to my lips. “I do not want her to know we are watching.”
He nodded and slowed his steps, and we approached with stealth and crouched in the shadows outside the iron cage.
My battle chief’s report had been correct. Alana was inside the battle ring, swinging a sparring axe. Even though the blade was not sharpened, the weapon was still heavy and long—sized to accommodate a Vandar raider. Yet the human held it without drooping, slicing through the air with smooth strokes over her head.
I shifted on my haunches. She might have gained muscle through working in a mine, but she did not gain such prowess with a weapon as a miner. And she had not acquired this level of comfort in the short time she’d been inside the ring, no matter how naturally athletic she might be. I pressed my lips together as my pulse quickened. No, this female had been trained to fight.
I watched her move across the floor, her footwork agile and the movements of her arms almost mesmerizing. Although she was flushed from exertion, her face was alight with enjoyment. It was a look with which I was all too familiar. I’d seen it on my warriors’ faces in the heat of battle. Not only did she know how to fight, but she also loved it.
Corvak elbowed me in the ribs, jerking his head toward the battle ring. He was right. We’d been watching long enough, and I knew what I needed to know. That is, until Alana told me the truth about herself and why she was on my warbird.
I stood and stomped up the stairs to the ring, stepping inside as she whirled toward me, her eyes wide.
“I think it’s time you explained yourself.” I narrowed my gaze at her. “And I strongly suggest you do not lie to me this time, female.”

Chapter Thirteen
Alana
The gravelly voice startled me. I’d been so caught up in the movement of the blade as it arced through the air, balancing my weight to keep from being pitched forward from the velocity. A Vandar Battle axe—even a sparring one—was a serious weapon and one that required concentration or practice to handle. I’d spent enough hours practicing with long swords and daggers to understand how to move with a blade, but this ancient weapon was a challenge even for someone with my training.
When Raas Bron stepped into the ring across from me, my fingers faltered, as did my grip on the axe handle. The thick wood slipped from my hand and clattered to the floor.
“I didn’t see you there,” I started to say, the tremble in my voice not manufactured this time.
“What are you doing?” Raas Bron was not smiling, and all traces of the Vandar who’d backed away from me in his quarters with longing in his eyes had vanished.
My gaze instinctively darted to the weapon on the ground, and my fingers itched to pick it up. “I got lost.”
The Raas took a step to the side like a predator beginning to circle his prey. His tail curled up off the ground, the tip quivering. “I can see that. This is not located between my quarters and yours.”
My throat was thick, and my cheeks shook as I attempted a smile. I took a step away from him, circling in the opposite direction out of instinct. “I got lonely and decided to come looking for you. After all, you did leave me so suddenly.”
One of his dark eyebrows lifted. “You were searching for me?” He cast his gaze around the dingy cage, shadows slinking toward the high, chain link walls around the perimeter. “Here?”
My pulse fluttered. He didn’t believe me. Shit. I’d really messed things up now. Why did I let myself be tempted by the sparring ring and the weapons? I glanced again at the axe at my feet, wishing it was more than a sparring blade.
“Go ahead,” he said, his voice a rumbly purr. “Pick it up.”
I snapped my gaze to his and saw the challenge in his eyes. “I don’t know what you—“
“Yes, you do. You’re aching to reach for the weapon.”