Not familiar with the human term, I closed the distance. I lifted my female into my arms and cradled her to my chest. Her head fell to my shoulder at once.

“I can walk.”

“I am sure you are able. But you will not.”

“I’ll make your arms hurt.”

I nearly burst into laughter at the thought that her slight weight would have any effect on me. “No, you will not. I could carry you this way for days, mate. You will not walk.”

“Bossy.” Her body relaxed in my arms. The complete trust made my chest fill as if it were about to burst from internal pressure. “But I like it.”

“I will always take care of you, mate.”

Abby was quiet for long minutes. I barely heard her whisper through my helmet comm.

“I’m beginning to believe you.”

Now that my female was close to me and I was no longer distracted by watching her seductive movements, I covered the distance to the outpost the escape pod had identified as our best chance of survival. When I established line of sight, I adjusted my helmet scans to provide me with a close-up view of the structure.

It was old. Perhaps decades or more. And from the looks of it, abandoned. Broken-down equipment littered the ground outside of the building. The builders had placed the outpost directly into the side of a mountain of rock so only the front and main entrance were visible. The doors and walls remained intact. It was a fucking miracle our escape pod had discovered it.

Only the Hive must have left in a hurry. The Coalition was greedier with their materials. The Prillons and their Fleet would have torn down the walls, broken down and recycled the equipment, taken everything until there was nothing more to find than a bare rock. They absolutely would not have left any tech behind that might give their enemy an advantage. This place, however, looked like a trash heap with random items scattered everywhere.

Normally, I would rush the entrance and take whatever came my way. Just because the place looked abandoned didn’t mean it truly was. But I had a mate now. I could not risk her life so foolishly. If I died, she would never make it off this planet alive.

I found a rocky outcropping and moved out of sight of the structure. Gently placing Abby on her feet, I pointed to a small overhang that would hide her well. “Crawl under those rocks and wait for me.”

“Are you kidding me? You’re going to leave me out here alone?”

“There may be hostiles inside the building. I won’t risk your life.”

“But you’ll risk yours?” She shuddered. “I don’t like this. Why can’t we just stay here and wait for someone to track down the escape pod? Would we be able to see a ship from here?”