Cygnian 7, Book 7
When neither can trust their memories, all they have left is their hearts.
Download here:
A galaxy of enemies can’t keep them apart.
Desperation drove Rom to jump through a transit portal, not knowing where the teleportation device would send him or even if he would survive the journey. The other Cygnian warriors in his prism have already bonded with their soulmates. Though they all assured him he would find his soulmate soon, it seemed obvious to Rom that he should be the one to take the risk. He knew something they didn’t. Through all the months that the others had sensed their mates, Rom hadn’t felt the slightest glimmer of her existence. Until now…
Hayley Addison has no idea how long she’s been imprisoned in space. Her days are a drudgery of blank metal walls and horrible experiments performed on her by an evil Tau Ceti scientist named Norem. As much as she longs to escape, she won’t chance it unless she can find a way to take along the two extraordinary friends she has made, fellow victims of Norem’s experiments. When a giant blue alien appears out of thin air in Hayley’s cell, she doesn’t know whether to be terrified or hopeful. All she knows is that she’s drawn to him in a way she’s never experienced before. He doesn’t even know his own name, but holds a key to her past that makes her want to trust him.
Can Rom and Hayley find their way to love and escape from the treacherous clutches of the Tau Ceti? And if they do, will they fall into the hands of an even greater threat?
Teaser/Excerpt
The line of light expanded like a seam opening. Within, swirls of blue twisted around in mesmerizing patterns. Hayley leaned forward, almost willing to jump through and see if it led to freedom. Then she thought of Mindy and Katie, knowing she couldn’t leave them behind.
A silhouette formed before her—a lighter blue that didn’t swirl like the rest. It grew larger or closer. Hayley couldn’t tell. All she could tell was that it was a man. He suddenly fell forward into the room. The light flashed once more, then vanished.
Hayley sat frozen on her cot, her chest heaving and her heart racing. The man was crouching in front of her, wearing eggshell-white pants and matching boots. Aside from a pair of chrome wristbands that covered a few inches of his forearms, that was it. A long row of serrated spines ran down the center of his back, resembling a stegosaurus, only dark blue. His skin was a lighter shade, as was the long hair that fell in front of his face, obscuring her view of his features. Beneath him, a pool of violet light illuminated the floor like the beam of a flashlight.
“H… hello?” Hayley said. “Are you okay?”
His dinosaur spine plates stiffened, becoming erect until they were standing straight up on his back. They began to flutter, then vibrate, blurring as would the wings of a hummingbird. They even created a low humming noise. It filled the room, washing over her skin and seeping through her tired muscles and aching joints. The vibration relaxed her, eased her pain, made her feel… real somehow.
Tingles spread up and down her spine, spreading out along her arms and legs. She felt her cheeks flush as other areas also heated, molten desire pooling deep in her belly. That vibration was… really something. The man slowly straightened, the muscles of his back rippling as he stood up and up and up. Her visitor’s head nearly brushed the ceiling of her cell. He must be pushing seven feet tall. Hayley’s jaw dropped when he shook his head, flipping his hair out of his face. He was unutterably gorgeous.
He had a square jaw, strong cheekbones, straight nose, and dark eyebrows over glowing violet eyes. His hair brushed his massive shoulders. Both arms were corded with bulging muscles, his chest and shoulders broad. Rows of abs were stacked on top of each other on his abdomen. He was absolutely ripped. His waist tapered, then flared out to narrow hips. She could clearly see the outline of his muscled legs through his pants.
Hayley thought she must have died. Men this perfect did not exist in reality. And even if they did, she certainly wouldn’t react with so much lust and… longing for them.
“Hayley?” Mindy’s voice suddenly appeared in Hayley’s mind. “Are you okay?”
“I am,” she thought back, carefully walling off the feelings the man was generating within her from Mindy. “I think I am.”
“You’re more there.”
“What?”
“You’re… more Hayley. More there. It’s good.”
“I’m sorry, Mindy, I don’t understand.”
She heard a whining sound in her mind. Mindy didn’t know how to explain better.
“Don’t worry,” Hayley thought.
“Someone is there.”
Hayley didn’t want to scare Mindy, but at the same time, if the dog could sense this guy, maybe she could help Hayley figure out if he was friend or foe.
Who was Hayley kidding? He had appeared out of some kind of tear in the space-time continuum. He probably wanted to abduct Hayley again. Looking him up and down, she wasn’t sure she’d object this time. Especially if there were no experiments involved. But he would have to take Mindy and Katie along, too.
“Can you read his mind?” Hayley thought.
“He’s confused. It’s all… blue. But, I like him.”
That was enough for Hayley to get her racing heart under control. Her dizziness seemed to have disappeared and she realized she felt better than she had a moment before. Her spine was tingling weirdly, but compared to all the side-effects of Norem’s previous experiments, that was nothing. Encouraged, she decided to be the one to make the first move. Again, really.
“Hi,” she said.
He angled his head to the side as if he didn’t understand her. Did he not have a version of whatever universal translator everyone seemed to use out here in space? He shook his head, weaving on his feet suddenly.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
He managed to steady himself. She noticed that he kept one fist closed. Not in a threatening way, rather as if he was holding something. He looked at it, then back to her.
“Who are you?” she asked.
He blinked a few times, the glow in his eyes fading a bit till all she saw was their lovely violet hue. In a rich voice that sent tingles down her spine, he said, “Hayley?”
Her stomach felt as if it had dropped through the floor. How did he know her name? He had to be working with Norem. What was his game, though? What did he want? She tried to keep herself frozen, not revealing any of her distress, however, he seemed to see it anyway.
“I won’t hurt you,” he said. “I would never hurt you.”
“Who are you?” she repeated.
“I… I don’t know.”
“You know my name, but not your own?”
This had to be a trick. He was trying to get her to trust him. To reveal the secrets Norem undoubtedly suspected she was keeping. She wouldn’t fall for it, even though the idea of having this guy for a huge, strong protector made her heart feel that it was breaking from the longing for it.
He looked at his hand and then held it out toward her. Slowly, he uncurled his fingers.
Light glinted off of a dozen charms. Charms she recognized.
Hayley gasped and slid forward, barely managing to get to her feet and stay there. Her knees were so wobbly, she would probably fall any moment. She cupped her hand beneath his, unable to look away from the bracelet. The man tilted his hand, letting the bracelet fall into her palms.
Hayley fell to her knees. She brought the charm bracelet to her face, tears flowing down her cheeks. Blinking them away, she looked at each one, remembering the year that she and Sophie had exchanged them. The last one was the half-heart BFF charm. Its edge was bent where Hayley had used it attempting to pry open a panel back in the first cell she’d found herself in. The cell in the Sol system.
She looked back up at the blue man and shook her head. “How do you have this? Why are you here?”
“I don’t know where it came from,” he said. “I don’t know who I am. All I know is that I’m here for you.”
Cassandra Chandler 