Read His Fire Maiden for Free Online

his way into or out of anything. Usually, it was in and out of trouble, and he typically took everyone on the ship with him. It was hard to find mischief when surrounded by nothing but the deep black.
    “What are you talking about? Dev is damned sexy.” Jackson winked. He reached over to grab a hard round food chip from in front of Lucien before putting it gingerly in his mouth to try it. Then grinning, he swiped the entire bowl.
    “Hey!” Lucien protested. He was half-human, half-Dere, with the strangest red-brown eyes they’d ever seen—unless they counted the red-green eyes of his older brother, Viktor. Lucien was in charge of communications, and Viktor was a mechanic who could rig anything.
    “These aren’t bad. Thanks.” Jackson laughed, moving across the room to lounge on a low couch while he enjoyed his pilfered food.
    “What do you guys do in the VR all day?” Rick stretched as if he’d take one of Jackson’s stolen chips. Jackson pulled the bowl inches out of his reach.
    “We train to save your screwboy ass,” Dev answered.
    “I don’t need saving.” Rick again tried to grab a chip and failed.
    “I’ll remind you of that comment next time you get kidnapped by a girl.” Jackson laughed. “Again.”
    “Drug queenpin . She wasn’t just a girl ,” Rick corrected. “Plus, it’s fate. You can’t fight fate. If I hadn’t been taken, Jarek wouldn’t have met Mei, Mei wouldn’t have brought us to her family’s palace, and, you know, you all should thank me for that prediction business. It’s clear that Evan and Josselyn owe all their present happiness to me. If I didn’t insult that floating b—”
    “Careful, Rick,” Jackson warned. “Zhang An may be dead, but she is still Mei’s ancestral spirit.”
    “That dead ghost broad is an ancestral pain in my—” Rick tried to answer.
    “Hand over the Torganian rum, space cadet,” Lucien broke in. “It’s clear you’re hallucinating grandeur again.”
    “Yeah, you must be crazy if you think the guys are going to thank you for that little stunt you pulled,” Viktor added.
    “Still too soon to joke about the curse?” Rick inquired, giving a playful smile. Everyone who knew Rick recognized that he felt sorry about what had happened but would never allow himself to admit it. The man hid his emotions behind jokes.
    The curse.
    Violette. Her name was Violette. Josselyn’s sister. The dead general’s daughter. Angry, beautiful Violette.
    Dev’s stomach tightened at the reminder of the curse, but he didn’t let his emotions show. There wasn’t an hour that had passed that he didn’t think about Zhang An’s words since seeing Violette on the docks. It wasn’t just that she was one of the most beautiful creatures he’d ever beheld; it was the pain in her eyes. Deep, soulful green eyes.
    “ You will find your love hidden within the mystery of the five elements. If you do not recognize it, you will lose it and be forever alone.”
    He found himself wondering not for the first time which element Violette might be.
    Sand-covered base? Was she earth?
    Fire? Was he fire? Were her eyes fire?
    Metal? The military base was metal.
    Water? He had no idea. Humans were a water-based species, but that hardly seemed like a mystical sign.
    Wood? He glanced down at his lap and shifted his hips uncomfortably. Rick had a crude term for, well…
    Dev grimaced. Why was he doing this to himself? He didn’t need a spirit to tell him he’d be forever alone. He could predict that for himself every time he looked in the mirror. Demon. Devil. Damned. He’d been called it all. No sane human woman would want that by her side unless it were to be her bodyguard.
    Captain Violette.
    He was foolish to even allow himself to think of her. After they cleared Rifflen’s skies and were on their way into deep space, Evan had informed them that Josselyn stabbed the general, and then Evan shot the man in an effort to cover up the crime. It didn’t work. Violette