But Cormac knew him personally. They had history. Cormac obviously respected and trusted him. We had found Cormac’s friend locked in an underground prison on an uninhabited trash heap of a planet with a bunch of Atlan prisoners.

Holy crap, outer space was crazy. And I’d been away from Earth for less than a week.

Cormac placed his hand on my lower back. “Let’s go, Abby.”

I was still looking at Enzo. “I don’t like leaving them.”

Enzo’s voice was gentle. “It is all right, Abby. We understand. The safety of a mate must always come first. We have spent countless weeks here. We can survive a couple more days.”

I shook my head as I walked away. Cormac followed, placing himself between Ruk and me. On the way up in the elevator, Cormac pressed me to the side of the wall, his body squared off with our new friend. I couldn’t see anything except Cormac’s back, but that was fine by me.

“Helmet on, Abby.”

“What about Ruk?” I slipped the stuffy helmet back over my head and listened to the sound of it sealing me in, the faint hiss of air. Cormac put his helmet on as well.

“Do not worry about me. I am tougher than I look.”

Good god, I hoped not.

The elevator doors opened, and the sound of blaring alarms was so loud it hurt my ears. Cormac pressed me to the wall, trapping me in place behind his bulk.

“What the fuck?” He turned around and placed his hand just below my neck. “You stay here, Abby.” Cormac moved to step out of the elevator, but Ruk placed his hand on Cormac’s shoulder and held him back.

“No. I will go. Stay here. Protect your mate.” Long claws slid out from the tips of his fingers, the sickening sound of tearing flesh nearly making me gag. I blinked, and he was gone.

12

Cormac

Stay behind. Protect my mate. I hated every word. Gods be damned; I knew Ruk was right. My first duty was to Abby. I would have offered him one of my rifles, but I knew he would have laughed at me, that low, rolling laugh that had always reminded me of wild things and thick forest. Many of the people on Rogue 5 had forgotten our ancestors, at least the Hyperion half. The savage half.

The stronger half.

Trying to use one of my weapons would only slow him down.

He could move even faster than an Elite Hunter from Everis when in a fight. I’d seen it many times during my visits to Hyperion. It was the reason he was the heir to his clan’s chieftain and the reason he had his choice of sex partners among their females. He rarely turned down any female’s invitation, yet he had not chosen a mate.