Chapter 14
She had been sent to her room. No dinner, nothing to drink and no further attention from Riddick. It was nice enough, and she didn’t have to leave to use the bathroom. But she was locked in and unsure if she would ever be let out again. She washed her tank top out in the sink and sat on the bed, staring at the wall. No windows.
He had eaten and finished his damn water while she stood there, too afraid to move without being told to. Then he’d simply pushed his dishes toward her and she had swallowed her pride and washed them. He had rewarded her by nodding her toward the hallway, opening the door to this room and locking her inside. Anna fell onto the bed and cried herself to sleep.
She awoke to knocking, then the door opening. Anna sat up straight in the bed and saw him standing in her doorway. Clean clothes and goggles in place, he was all business.
"Get up. Bo’s taking you to get clothes and whatever else you need. Ten minutes."
Bo was taking her? She was leaving the apartment? Anna scrambled out of bed and ran to the bathroom. When she came out, Riddick was still filling the doorway. He looked irritated and impatient. Not at all a good thing, she tought, but hopefully, this was the last time she’d see that irritated glance.
"Anna" he warned, "stay with Bo. Don’t wander off, do as she tells you, and you’ll make it back here in one piece, okay?"
Anna quickly nodded. They walked into the living room, Riddick leading the way and Anna following, her eyes trained on his broad, amazingly defined back. Bo waited by the door, looking disgustingly petite. For the first time, Bo looked Anna over, met her gaze and spoke directly to her.
"I’m doing this as a favor. You try something stupid and I’ll slit your pretty little throat, Doc. Okay?"
Anna lowered her burning gaze to the floor. This woman irritated the hell out of her, but she was the way out, the way off this planet. Anna nodded passively. Bo seemed satisfied. Doc. Who the hell was this woman? Calling her "Doc" like it was an insult. Anna wondered if she should come up with a little nickname of her own for Bo.
Bitch. Tiny. Mean Ass. Anna hated her.
Riddick turned his full attention on Anna, and as always, Anna’s body responded. Reminding herself that this very well might be her last encounter with the most dangerous criminal of the century, Anna allowed it to happen without fighting herself. Her skin pinkened under his gaze. Her nipples hardened against the rough, now slightly damp tank top she’d donned late last night. She’d had to rinse the soup off it in the sink and then slip it on after it had dried a bit. She looked at his face, allowed her eyes to roam over the planes of his chest, waist and down to his feet. He was truly magnificent. He was speaking to her, but all she heard was the timbre of that voice…that incredible, wonderful voice that she wished belonged to a man who could whisper and moan to her without kidnapping and raping her. If only…
Anna became aware that the room was silent and both Bo and Riddick were staring at her, frowning.
"Okay." She said. They probably just wanted her to promise not to try to save her own life. Not to run.
Riddick nodded. "I’ll be here when you get back."
Anna looked at him again. She wouldn’t be back, unless her recent luck kept up.
"Bye, Riddick."
Riddick nodded at her and wandered off into the kitchen.
Anna met Bo’s hate-filled stare and smiled. Her ticket off this shithole planet. Please, God.
Anna smiled. Dr. Saul would be so proud of her recent foray into prayer.
The planet was dark, filled with people who looked like they hadn’t showered…ever. Anna stayed close to Bo as they traversed the streets. The men skipped their gazes over Bo, who walked slightly ahead of Anna, but stopped, stared and made lewd remarks about Anna. What the….?
Bo glanced back at her about every two seconds. Anna followed her and kept her head down. How the hell was she going to get away? Bo carried what looked like a very big gun, and a knife was holstered near her cute, tiny, petite hip. Anna gritted her teeth. They stopped at a run down building, and Anna followed Bo into a small shop. The men working behind the counter stopped talking and trained their eyes on Anna as she followed Bo to the front of the store.
"Two of everything, quick and easy." Bo said.
The men scrambled from behind the counter and one of them approached Anna.
"What are you, sweetie, about an 8?"
He was tall, thin, and wore an awful lot of makeup. He spoke in a high, flirty voice and Anna immediately realized that this man was no threat at all. He was walking around her in a circle, and when he stood directly behind her, he wailed…
"Ooooh, honey! You’re an 8, right? Damn, girl. You got an ass on youuu…."
Anna frowned, swallowed her bitterness and corrected him in a low voice.
"I’m a 10. A 10. Okay?"
‘Um, sweetie, you’re an 8 if I’ve ever seen one. What’ll it be, gorgeous…black or white?"
"Huh?" Anna was lost.
Bo rolled her eyes. "Black or white clothes. Those are basically your choices. Hurry up."
Anna frowned at Bo and frowned over her shoulder at the man who was flitting around her, still admiring her ass. She was getting more and more like Riddick every day, frowning all the time. Jesus.
"Black, please. Thank you."
He flitted off and Anna followed Bo’s directions, picking out underwear and socks. The flitty man came back with two pairs of black pants, size 8 and two black shirts, basic tee shirts that Anna thought looked very comfy and perfect. Bo paid and handed Anna the bags.
"Let’s go."
They exited the shop, and once again, Anna kept her head down and walked quickly behind Bo. How could such a tiny woman take such huge steps? Anna stretched her strides and stayed right with Bo as they walked back toward the apartment. Anna made her move as they crossed the catwalk leading away from the bigger buildings and toward the residential area she and Riddick now "lived" in.
"Bo, listen, I don’t know how much Riddick is paying you to watch me, but…"
Bo held up one teeny tiny hand. "Stop right there, sweetheart."
Why did every single person she’d met since Riddick call her sweetie, honey, sweetheart…?
Anna stopped, then pushed her a little more. "I’m a doctor, Bo. I have a lot of credits. I’ll double whatever he’s paying you."
Bo stopped walking and turned to face Anna. Several men stopped in their tracks, waiting to see what would happen. It made Anna extremely nervous and her gaze jumped from Bo’s angry face to the men’s lewd gazes. Anna dropped her eyes and tried to look like a good little slave.
Bo was livid. "He doesn’t PAY me, Stretch. He’s my FRIEND."
Stretch? Anna’s eyes lifted. Stretch? Who was this girl kidding?
"Look, Bo. I have to get out of here." Anna played nice. Bo was mean and Anna knew she had no chance of getting away from her without her consent.
"Look, Stretch," Bo repeated Anna’s speech patterns. "I don’t care. You’re going back, and I am done with ya."
Anna glanced over at the men and was alarmed to see them about two feet away. Her eyes caused Bo to turn, putting her hand on her gun as she did. Anna scooted in close behind her.
No words were exchanged, but in a split-second, the men and Bo went from looking at each other to circling, and although Anna had never been in a fight in her life where she was actually armed, she figured Bo’s chances were not very good. There were five men, and they were all looking at Anna like she was covered in honey. Bo drew her gun as they all circled around the two women, lining her shoulder blades up with Anna’s back. She spoke to Anna quietly.
"Stay close to me unless they all jump us at once. If they do that, run to the end of the dock and wait for me there."
Anna breathed heavily and wondered at Bo’s confidence. Wait for her at the end of the dock? What, wait for her to be torn to shreds? How many of them could Bo shoot before they grabbed her? Took her gun away and took Anna with them?
I am so out of here, Anna thought as the men closed in, closer and closer. Anna felt like a wounded fish in a shark tank.
The men started grabbing at Anna and Bo tried to keep her gun between them and the men, but as the men finally grew impatient, Bo threatened them, and one of the men grabbed the barrel of the gun.
He smiled, and half his teeth were gone. Anna recoiled in disgust. She could smell his breath and he was a foot away. Her stomach churned as the man’s raspy voice came out. He sounded like his lungs were full of liquid, and his voice gurgled.
"What’re ya gonna do, shoot me?"
Bo pulled the trigger and the man’s head disintegrated. Anna screamed and the remaining men jumped toward Bo, trying to wrestle the gun from her hands. Anna grabbed the knife from Bo’s belt, and surprised even herself when the next man grabbed at her. Anna sliced his arm open, and blood gushed from the wound onto the knife, Anna’s hand and the ground. His eyes widened in alarm as he looked at the wound.
"You fucking bitch!" He hissed and grabbed Anna’s wrist with his hand. Anna sliced that open as well and the man fell to the ground, clutching his arm and howling. Bo was taking care of the rest of the men, and as Anna watched, she shot another of them. Two men remained and one of them had both his hands on Bo’s gun. The other one started toward Anna. He backed her down the catwalk, back toward town as she held the knife in both hands, out in front of her. Blood dripped from it as she gripped it for dear life and the man advanced on her, his steps becoming faster. He was obviously impaired, he looked as if he were very, very drunk and Anna watched his feet shuffle. He was still dangerous, but he was slow. Even at his faster pace, she was still backing away with no trouble. He snarled at her and took a few running steps, and when he got close to Anna he lunged at her. Anna’s reflexes kicked in, and she dropped into a crouch, holding the knife up and out in front of her. The man slumped onto her, and she felt the knife catch, twist and penetrate the man’s flesh. The ripping noise made her stomach churn again. She felt his body give to the blade and she shoved him off her, the knife still sticking up out of his abdomen as he rolled over. He was dead already. Anna looked toward Bo, who had beaten the man who was trying to get her gun until he could no longer move. He lay face down on the catwalk. Bo glanced at Anna and her eyes swept to the dead man and the knife. She kicked the man Anna had cut, and he howled and rolled on the catwalk, bleeding slowly but surely to death. Then Bo looked back at Anna. At that moment, Anna realized just how far away Bo was. In the next second, Bo did too, and she started walking toward Anna quickly. Anna glanced behind her, and then down at the knife, quivering in the stomach of a man she had just murdered. Bo yelled out to Anna, and started running toward her.
"Anna! Stay right there!" Bo didn’t have her gun in hand. And Anna made her decision quickly.
She turned and ran as fast as she could, her arms pumping, her legs churning, her breath heaving in her chest. Anna ran without glancing over her shoulder, grasping at this one small chance for freedom. She reached the stores and darted in and out of buildings, alleyways and across the dingy streets. Several people watched her progress, but none interfered. Anna’s mind went back to Riddick, and his statement that she couldn’t survive on this planet without him to protect her. Well, she had just bested two men. She would find a way home. Anna’s heart began to pound against her chest and she risked a small glance back over her shoulder. She didn’t see Bo. She ducked back into a dark alleyway, huddling down against the ground on her haunches and leaned back against the wall, gasping for air. She waited for Bo to pass, and when she didn’t, Anna relaxed a bit. She had gotten away. Now all she had to do was find a way home. She wondered what Riddick would say to Bo when she told him Anna had escaped. She wondered if he would come looking for her. She wondered if he would be angry, and then dismissed that idea and the idea of Riddick searching for her as unlikely. He was keeping her for convenience. Why would he even care if she escaped?
Anna stayed huddled in the alleyway, peeking out in intermittent intervals, expecting to see Bo rounding the corner each and every time. She never did, so Anna finally stood up, brushed off her pants, and crept out of the alley, sticking close to the buildings and looking over her shoulder every few seconds. The streets were pretty much deserted now and the planet had gone from dark and dingy to almost totally black. No one roamed the streets, and Anna wondered at the lack of activity. It wasn’t that late…why weren’t people out and about?
She noticed an open door, light flooding out into the street, music drifting out and laughter ringing from inside. She headed in that direction. It was time to get the hell off of Sotura.
Anna’s eyes adjusted to the light inside the bar, red neon lights brightened every available surface and gave her an instant headache. The smell of food made her stomach growl and Anna approached the bar timidly. She was in a bar, alone, on Sotura. She had to act tough and knowledgeable. She almost made it to the bar, but was stopped by a man who smelled like sweat and liquor.
He was big, and Anna tried to walk around him. He grabbed her arm and she wished she’d taken the time to grab the knife from the dead man’s body. But, if she had hesitated, she wouldn’t have gotten away. The man gripped her arm lightly, though. Maybe he was just going to hit on her.
"Who’s are you?" he asked, friendly and flirty all rolled into one. This just might be her guy.
She adopted a teasing expression. "Whose?"
"Yeah, who’s your man?"
Anna smiled sweetly. "I don’t have one."
The man’s eyes sparkled with interest. Anna smiled deeper. This was going to be a piece of cake.
"That so? Well, darlin…you do now."
Anna nodded and stepped closer to him. He wasn’t grizzly, like the men on the catwalk, and he smelled, but he obviously liked her and wanted her. Anna nudged her breast against his elbow as she unhooked her wrist from his grasp.
"I do, huh?" she flirted, smiling an almost crazy smile now, she was sure.
"Uh, huh. C’mon, darlin..let’s get out of here."
Anna followed him toward the door, asking questions as they went.
"Do you have a ship?"
"Yep."
"Can I see it?"
"Sure, darlin. You can see it."
Anna smiled a genuine smile. He was toast.
The walked the half mile to the docks, the man leading her by the arm, and Anna quietly planned her move. She would sleep with him, follow his orders, and do whatever else he asked if he would just take her out of here. She longingly thought of home…and realized when they stopped in front of a ship, that the man was looking at her, waiting for her reaction.
The ship was small and it looked like it wouldn’t even survive takeoff.
Anna clapped her hands and gasped. "Oh wow! Is that it?" She felt like an idiot. But big, smelly man smiled and puffed his chest out.
"That’s her. That’s my Eva."
"Eva?"
"Yeah, that’s her name. Wanna see ‘er?"
Yes, she certainly did. Anna pouted her lips and looked at his face with what she hoped was an innocent quality.
"Can we go anywhere I want?"
The man looked puzzled. "Whatta ya mean?"
Anna nodded toward the ship. "Can you take me somewhere?"
The man snorted through his nose and laughed like Anna was just absolutely hilarious. "Take ya somewhere? Darlin, she don’t run or nothin."
Oh no. Doesn’t run? He had a ship that didn’t run and he stood there like she was crazy for ever thinking it would. Anna looked around at the deserted dock and started to get nervous. What the hell was she doing? She backed away from the man and the run down ship, talking fast and trying to keep his attention on what she was saying, not what she was doing. It didn’t work.
"Now wait, darlin. You’re comin with me. Common now." Anna shook her head and spoke quickly.
"No, I need to get back, I just realized, I forgot my, ummm…"
The man grabbed her arm and Anna winced as he closed his fingers around the huge bruise the last man who had grabbed her had left. This was not turning out to be one of her best weeks.
"Now, listen, darlin. We can do this the easy way, or you can make it real easy on me and fight it. What’s it gonna be?"
Anna struggled, trying to wrench her bruised arm from his fingers, and she began to really panic.
He grabbed her around the waist, dragging her down the dock effortlessly as she kicked and squirmed and screamed. He didn’t slow at all, just drug her by her wrists and Anna fell to the dock, trying to slow his progress. Her boots clanked along as he drug her, her arms above her head and her shoulders threatening to pop at any moment. It was hell.
They reached the ship and Anna was hefted, crying and screaming, over the man’s shoulder. She kicked with both her feet and caught him in the groin. He dropped her, and her forehead hit the dock. Blood filled her eye as she rolled away from the man, who was now groaning in pain on his knees a few feet away. Anna jumped to her feet and tried to run past him, but he snaked his arm out and caught her ankle, sending her face down onto the dock again. She screamed, kicking her leg and clawing at the dock with her fingers, trying desperately to get away.
Her shirt ripped as he drug her back along the dock, and Anna screamed her head off. She was bleeding and her head hurt like hell. Worse, if he got her on that ship, she’d be in more trouble than she could handle. When Anna felt the man release her ankle, she turned her head. Her screams had been loud enough, after all. The man’s stare was focused behind her, and Anna turned to see who had come to help her.
Maybe she should’ve kept quiet, she thought as she turned her head. This did not look good.
Chapter 15
As Anna stood up on the dock, she faced three very angry looking men. They were all very big, very dirty and very intent on her breasts. Her heart fell as she realized that all she’d done by screaming was draw more criminals to the scene. She should’ve never run from Bo.
The men spoke gruffly, asking her new captor questions about how he’d obtained her and what, exactly, she was screaming about. Evidently, not being owned by a man was cause for imprisonment on Sotura, because as soon as the man mentioned her unattached state to the three men, they hauled her off and threw her in what appeared to be a jail cell right in the middle of the shopping district.
At least she wasn’t being raped on that smelly man’s ship, she thought. Sitting in the corner of the cell, which was completely empty, Anna wondered what they’d do with her. It was unbelievable that they even had a jail on this lawless planet. And not being owned was a crime? Evidently shooting, stabbing and raping were just fine, though. Anna closed her eyes. She’d been attacked, chased, nearly raped and arrested.
She wished Riddick were there to help her. He was the only person who could. Anna hoped that by now, Bo had fessed up to losing her. Maybe he’d help her if he knew where she was. Anna sat in the corner all night, holding her ripped shirt together at her shoulder, using the sleeve to dab the blood off the wound on her forehead and wishing for a mirror, some food, water and a bed. She got none of those things, and when the dim planet returned to light grey instead of pitch black, she wished for a knife or a gun. And a way out of the cell.
Soon enough, all Anna wanted was to be back in that cell as two men opened the door, hauled her up and walked her in between them, holding one arm each, out of the "jail" and into the street. Anna was startled to see at least 30 men and 10 or so women waiting for her.
What the hell was going on?
Anna couldn’t hold her shirt together with the men grasping her arms, and the tank threatened to come loose from her shoulder completely as the strap holding it onto her body ripped with each step.
Anna wished she’d kept her bra, because now, every man in front of her was staring at that strap as if they willed it to break.
When the men stopped her in front of a pole that stretched 8 feet or so into the air and tied her hands behind her, effectively strapping her to the post, she began to feel like a witch being burned at the stake. Were they going to kill her for not having a master? What kind of sick logic was that? Why didn’t she just stay with Bo?
One of the three men who had taken her to the jail the previous night stood beside her and spoke loudly to the crowd. "This woman is said to have no man. No man was with her when we found her. As such, if anyone wants to claim her, speak now."
Anna looked around in sheer terror. Claim her? Were they just going to give her to someone? Could they do that?
Anna tried to speak out, but at that particular moment, a man stepped from the crowd. Everyone was quiet as he spoke.
"I would like to claim her." Another man stepped forward.
"So would I." And a third, and fourth and suddenly there were five men standing in front of Anna, all laying a claim to her. What on earth made these people think you could just claim someone?
Anna stared hard at the other women who were in the group, but aside from peeking out under their lashes and looking duly slave-like, they did nothing. The men were all nasty, filthy and every one raked her body with lewd expressions.
The "leader" seemed to hesitate, and Anna followed his stare to the back of the huddle of people. When she found the object of his hesitation, her knees buckled in relief and she felt the sudden urge to cry.
Riddick was here.
Anna watched, thankfully, as he made his way to the small group of men who wanted to claim her. She was sure, when he told them the situation, that she could at least go back to being a slave who had a bed and someone who wouldn’t rape her.
And Riddick wouldn’t. If he wanted to, he could have. Anna considered for one tiny second that he could have killed her, raped her, tortured her, or whatever else struck his criminal mind as interesting. And he had fed her, bought her clothes, kept her safe and fed her. And he hadn’t touched her since his promise not to. As a captor, Riddick was definitely preferable to these disgusting people. She kept her eyes on Riddick and willed him to look at her. He did not, instead focusing his intense, goggled look on the man in charge.
"She’s my woman. I brought her here. If anyone claims her, it’ll be me."
Anna leaned back against the pole in relief. It would be okay. Riddick was here.
The leader nodded. "Very well. Take your places, please. We’ll draw straws."
Draw straws? For what? Anna wondered if they were starting some kind of lottery for her. If something happened to Riddick, maybe the next man in line would get her.
One of the men walked close to Anna, his beady eyes inspecting her every curve. He looked at Riddick and then returned his eyes to Anna’s chest. Shaking his head, he walked away, throwing a parting shot over his shoulder.
"She’s ripe, but it ain’t worth dyin’ for, right boys?"
Raucous laughter met his retreat and several high-fives were exchanged.
Dying for…Anna frowned and looked back at Riddick, who was now standing about three feet from her and handing his shiv to Bo, who miraculously appeared out of nowhere to take it. Unlike Riddick, Bo immediately looked straight at Anna and frowned her displeasure. Rolling her eyes she stepped away from Riddick and continued to snarl at Anna. What was going on?
Two other men followed suit, leaving Riddick facing them, both almost as big but not nearly as muscular.
Were they actually going to fight over her? As the men began to remove timepieces, rings and shirts, Anna shivered. They actually were.
The two men seemed to team up, and began to circle Riddick. He stood, unmoving, and watched their every move. Anna held her breath as the first man lunged at Riddick.
He was on his back in two seconds, clutching his throat.
Riddick’s quick jab had obviously caused the man to suffer a severe lack of oxygen. Anna began to pray silently for Riddick’s safety. And his victory, because it seemed that if she were indeed going to be returned to him, it would only be after he killed these two men.
No one stepped forward to help the injured man, and the other fighter and Riddick simply sidestepped him and kept eyeing each other warily. Riddick didn’t look at all concerned, and the man he faced looked absolutely insane. Anna breathed heavily, pulling on the tie that held her hands behind her and effectively tied her to the pole. This was crazy.
The big man swung at Riddick, and Anna involuntarily cried out. Several eyes shifted to her, including Bo’s, and Anna bit her lip. Riddick never even noticed. He simply ducked, advanced, and hit the man square in the jaw with one giant fist. The man fell back, stumbling and clutching the side of his face, but he grinned an insane grin and advanced on Riddick once again.
Riddick waited, jabbing the man several times and starting to circle him, he was the one moving now.
The big man glanced over at Anna, turned to look at the silent crowd, and screamed, running toward Riddick and jumping on him, knocking them both to the ground.
Anna tried to remain quiet as the two men fought, rolling around on the street and beating each other, kicking, punching, pulling, their clothes tearing.
It seemed like hours to her, and she willed Riddick to win. Begged him to with each breath. Finally, both men were on their feet again, and the crowd began to make some noise. Shouts, cheers, curses and cries of "look out!" could be heard.
No one but Anna seemed to be rooting for anyone in particular, and she suspected that what they really wanted was to see someone seriously injured or killed. As the big man began to tire, Riddick hit him several more times, and Anna knew the man was going to fall. Her heart soared as she realized that she would go to Riddick, back with him to the apartment where he would keep her safe.
And then she saw the first man, getting up, and walking around behind Riddick. Every single person in the crowd was screaming and pointing at him, and she saw Riddick cast a quick glance over his shoulder. He turned so he could see both attackers and flexed his fists, leaning his head from side to side as if to loosen the muscles in his neck and shoulders.
Anna watched at he glanced from one man to the other. He looked formidable, in control and massive. His chest gleamed with sweat under the black shirt he wore. It rose and fell heavily with each breath.
As the men advanced on him from each side, Anna watched helplessly. If he lost, she was dead. Or she might as well be. She would kill them and herself before she let either of these men rape her.
Riddick’s speed amazed the crowd and Anna when he reached out, unexpectedly, and grabbed the big man by the throat. Holding him off with one huge, flexed arm, Riddick elbowed the now recovered choking man in the gut and then brought his fist up to the man’s face. Anna heard the bone crunch as his nose broke and blood began to flow freely down his wailing face.
He tried to kick Riddick, and with Riddick’s attention now on the bigger fighter, he connected with Riddick’s thigh. Grunting, Riddick went to work on the bigger man, punching him and ducking out of the way of his fists. Superior, obviously, he had him on the ground in seconds, but the two of them were teaming up once again, and soon, Riddick was fighting his way off the ground.
He punched and moved quickly, managing to stand once again, but Anna could see that he was tiring. She bit her lip, frowning. The men had punched Riddick, kicked him, and she was sure he was in pain. Her ears were making a roaring sound, and Anna recognized it as panic. She was horror-struck as she imagined her fate if Riddick lost.
She groaned and tried to focus on the fight in front of her. Everything seemed unreal to her. There was no way she was really tied to a post on Sotura watching three men fight for ownership of her. She closed her eyes, listening to the sounds of the men and realizing that Riddick made absolutely no noises at all. The grunts and groans were coming from the other two men. Riddick fought as silently as he did everything else.
She thought, though, that she could hear his breathing. Anna reopened her eyes to see Riddick standing over the bigger man, one foot on his chest, while he grabbed the smaller man who was trying to get away. Riddick grabbed the man’s head with both of his huge hands, and Anna screamed when he twisted it quickly, breaking the man’s neck. Killing him.
Tears streamed down her face as she watched the man’s lifeless body slump to the ground. He was dead, because of her. Because of Riddick. Anna watched in terror as Riddick kneeled, one knee now on the big man’s chest. The man was unmoving, and his eyes stared up at Riddick, begging. For the first time since he appeared in the crowd, Riddick raised his head and looked directly at Anna. His brows went up in that way that made her feel strangely comforted.
Anna looked at Riddick, his superiority hung in the air. Quiet permeated the crowd and he knelt there, looking at her, waiting.
Anna shook her head.
Riddick leaned down, spoke into the man’s ear, and the man nodded furiously. And then, just like that, Riddick stood and let the man go.
As the defeated man rolled toward the crowd, two women rushed out and helped him to his feet. Anna wondered if she would’ve been part of a harem had Riddick not shown up to retrieve her.
The crowd watched as Riddick walked toward Anna.
She had never seen a man in face or form to rival him. His skin shimmered with sweat, his goggled face was impassive and they faced each other for several seconds. His arms hung at his sides, and he looked exhausted. But otherwise, no one would even know that he’d just killed a man.
For her. For the right to claim her and own her.
One thought, tempting and frightening rose through the jumble and presented itself to her as she stared at the man who had just fought for her.
I belong to him.