Free Entwined (Intergalactic Loyalties) by Jessica Coulter Smith

“Report to the prison immediately. I’ll know if you don’t and send someone to find you. Don’t even think of harming yourself.”
    Bane looked at his brothers, his gaze finally resting on Cael and Ariana. “Give her a proper burial. I know she’s just a slave to you, but she means so much more to me. She’s my beloved, my chosen mate.”
    “She’ll receive the best of care,” Cael vowed.
    Bane nodded and moved away, heading in the direction of the prison. It mattered little to him where he went. What was a night in the prisons compared to what he was feeling at the moment? He could endure anything, except losing Ariana.
    As he entered the building, he checked in with the guard, not fighting the iron grip on his arm as he was manhandled and forced into a cell. There was only one thing to do now -- sit and wait.
    * * *
    Ariana woke, screaming.
    “Easy,” a voice soothed.
    She opened her eyes further and looked around, her gaze settling on Cael, who was sitting on the edge of the bed. She was lying on her stomach, her dress stripped from her and a sheet across the lower half of her body. Ariana thought she should be embarrassed, knowing he’d seen her naked, but the pain was so intense that she cared about little else. And then she remembered -- Bane!
    “Bane! What happened to Bane?” she asked.
    “He’s fine. He’s been moved to the prison, and the Prime Minister is going to review his case again. I think he’s going to live. He might get prison time, though.”
    “And me? What’s to become of me?”
    He frowned. “I’m not sure. You interfered with the law. As a slave, they won’t bother with putting you in prison. That’s reserved for citizens of Keshpa. But they could put you to death.”
    “It was worth it. Knowing he’ll live is worth any price.”
    Cael cleared his throat. “There’s just one thing.”
    “What?”
    “They think you’re already dead. Bane included. I had to lie to get you out of there.”
    Ariana tried to move and winced. She wasn’t in the same amount of pain as she’d been when the laser had struck her, but she definitely hurt.
    “Take it easy,” Cael said. “You’re healing, but the wound was so deep that it’s going to take a day or two before you’re well.”
    “I can’t lie here for a day or two, Cael. We have to save Bane.”
    “Don’t worry about Bane. Right now, I have to figure out how to save you . Bane entrusted you into my care, and I’m not going to let him down.”
    Ariana sighed. “It seems there isn’t anything we can do for a few days. Once I’m well, we have to let people know I’m still alive. I won’t have Bane suffering because he thinks I’m dead.”
    Cael nodded. “I’ll take you to the Arch Minister myself.”
    “Thank you, Cael,” she said softly. “Your slaves are lucky women to have a man such as you in their lives.”
    He snorted. “It’s sex, Ariana, and nothing more. Don’t go making me out to be something I’m not.”
    Cael moved across the room and began pressing buttons on the control panel. A moment later, a compartment opened and he pulled out a syringe.
    “This will help with your pain and make you sleep,” he told her. “You should feel much better when you wake in a few hours.”
    She barely felt the needle enter her arm, but she could feel the cool solution as it moved through her veins. It didn’t take long for her body to feel numb and her eyes to close.
    * * *
    When Ariana opened her eyes again, it was dark outside. The pain in her back was considerably less. Looking around the room, she didn’t see Cael but there was a bowl of porridge-like stuff on the table beside the bed. She wasn’t quite sure how she was supposed to feed herself without being able to sit with her back against the headboard.
    The door opened and Arko walked in. She was surprised to see him, thinking no one knew she was alive.
    He moved to sit on the edge of the bed, much like Cael had earlier, and he picked up the bowl.