Free Hannah's Warrior: Cosmos' Gateway Book 2 by S. E. Smith

of
endangered species, brought world-wide attention to the atrocities
of certain rebel groups. The photograph above shows Bell, with her
guide, being helped after rebel groups wounded her.
    Borj looked at the photograph but his mind
was elsewhere. This was a very dangerous world for females. How
could the males let the females do anything so dangerous? Why did
her family not prevent her from going to these places
unprotected?
    “ Females are different here, Borj. You
can’t cage a girl like Hannah up. If you do, it would kill her.”
Cosmos said responding to the questions Borj muttered under his
breath. He knew he had to get Borj to understand this or it could
have devastating effects on both of them. “She is like the wild
creatures she photographs. They need the freedom to roam.
Hannah…Hannah’s been through more than any girl should ever go
through. When she was fifteen something really bad happened to her
that changed her life. She…” Cosmos’ voice faded when Borj suddenly
jerked up off the couch heading for the stairs.
    Borj felt a shiver of apprehension go through
him. He was listening intently to what Cosmos was saying when a
sudden shaft of pain flashed through his left palm. Borj drew in a
deep breath and clenched his fist against the pain as it spread up
his arm. He focused inward briefly and Hannah’s image rose before
him.
    Borj jerked off the couch and moved rapidly
up the stairs taking them three at a time. He burst into the upper
living area and continued through until he was in front of the
bathroom. Borj didn’t pause as he hit the door with his hand,
breaking the latch. He stood breathing heavily through his nose in
an effort to push the pain radiating up through his left arm away.
He stared in horror at Hannah who was leaning over the edge of the
bathroom sink, a sharp cutting tool in her hand. His gaze followed
the tiny flow of blood down the sink from where her left hand lay
against the edge.

    Hannah stood under the flow of the hot water
as long as she could letting all the things Cosmos told her run
through her mind over and over. It wasn’t until she was shaving her
legs that she got the idea that maybe she could scrape the circles
off of her hand. After all, it didn’t look like it was that deep.
It was worth a try. It was ridiculous to think a bunch of circles
popping up on someone’s hand meant you were mated to them. Yes, she
had seen some of the mating rituals of different tribes around the
world that used unusual ways to bind a couple but she personally
didn’t believe in it. Hell, even wedding rings were a ritual but
you could still take them off. There had to be a way to remove
them. The first thing she tried was scrubbing it with a fingernail
brush and soap. All that did was cause it to become more
sensitive.
    Hannah turned off the shower
and quickly dried and dressed in a pair of loose fitting cargo
pants and a forest green t-shirt. She didn’t bother with putting on
any shoes. She flipped her head over and brushed the long length
out before she divided it into three sections and braided it.
Looking in the mirror, she could still see the dark shadows under
her eyes from not getting enough rest. Hannah shrugged. Rest could come later. Right now, get rid of the
circles then find Tink.
    Hannah pulled a new razor blade out of the
cartridge container and carefully pulled it apart so she had just
one of the super sharp blades. Bending of the sink, she gently
began scrapping a small section of her left palm where the edge of
the circles began. She frowned when nothing seemed to happen. Maybe
it was a little deeper than she thought. She knew some parasites
burrowed under the skin. Hannah decided she would try to cut a
small section out.
    Hannah bit her lip as she felt the first
slice break through the skin. It wasn’t like she had never needed
to cut on herself before. She was used to having to remove thorns
or lance areas where some type of critter had bitten her so she
could