Free The Arrival: A Sci-Fi Alien Warrior Paranormal Romance by Ashley West Page B

trapped in here?"
    "I'm going to get out," Sorrin replied as if it were obvious, which in his mind it was. "And then I'm going to come up with a plan."
    "Oh." She didn't move or say anything else, and Sorrin shook his head and got to his feet, superior balance making it easy enough even though his hands were still bound.
    There were no guards posted, which was either very stupid or purposeful. Maybe they didn't think he could get out, but that would be their downfall. Underestimating him was going to get them all killed.
    "How often do the guards come in here?" he asked over his shoulder.
    "Just to bring meals," the woman replied. "Every few hours. I'm not sure of the exact timing."
    Every few hours. Sorrin could work with that.
    "How long have I been in here with you?"
    "About an hour, I'd say? Maybe a little more? I don't have a clock."
    She sounded annoyed, but Sorrin ignored that. If he escaped from here, he'd leave the door open and she could follow once he was gone if she wanted. It was in her best interest to help him.
    "Are you breaking out?" she asked, and Sorrin turned to look at her.
    "I said I was. I don't have a choice. I can't kill them from in here."
    "Will you..." She averted her gaze, seemingly unsure of what she was about to ask. "Will you take me with you?"
    "No." That was an easy question to answer, and Sorrin continued his examination of the door.
    “What do you mean, no?” she demanded.
    “Just what I said. It’s not my responsibility to get you out of here. I’m opening the door for myself because I have a score to settle.”
    The woman snorted, managing to sound disdainful even with the desperation in her eyes. “Right,” she said. “You’re going to take on these things all by yourself? That sounds like it’ll go well.”
    “Excuse me?” Sorrin stopped his investigation and turned to look at her. She was a slip of a thing, shorter than him by at least a foot and a half, with no muscle tone whatsoever. Some of that could have been due to her being held captive here for however long, but he was willing to bet that she’d never fought anything in her life. And she was questioning him?
    “You heard me,” she said, leveling a glare at him. “You got caught. You’re in here with me, and in case you haven’t noticed, your hands are tied behind your back.”
    Sorrin didn’t speak, but he made a point of holding her gaze and then flexing, straining just a bit as he broke the ropes that held his wrists. He’d been hoping to avoid that, wanting to conserve his strength for other things, but she’d left him very little choice in the matter with her flippant tone.
    Still holding her gaze, he massaged his wrists, taking some degree of pleasure in the way she was gaping at him. He might not have been in his prime, but he was surely still impressive when it came to a human. She’d probably never seen someone as large and strong as him.
    “Wow,” she breathed, and Sorrin shrugged a shoulder.
    “They cannot hold me.” As if to prove his point, he wrapped his fingers around the bars of the cell and gave a mighty yank. If there were any flaws in the design, then this would show them. It was standard training for a warrior, being able to get out of traps and prisons in the event they were captured, and he was sure the Camadors couldn’t best his training.
    Sure enough, with a slight groan, the door popped out of place enough that he could work it open, and he smiled, satisfied. Not that he would admit it, but getting captured had been a blow to his pride, however short his imprisonment would actually be, and he was glad that he wasn’t completely rusty when it came to his former skills.
    The human woman was watching with her mouth open now, and when Sorrin glanced back at her, something flickered in her eyes. She moved closer to him, looking like she was one step away from bursting into tears.
    Great stars, he didn’t want to deal with that.
    “Please take me with you. I...I haven’t seen my