Read Mated (The Sandaki Book 1) for Free Online

territory. Period. I have heard of whole fleets disappearing because they entered Sandaki space.”
    “Wow, we’re royally fucked. Okay, so we still need some kind of plan.”
    “Plan for what?”
    “Isha, no matter what, the Silarin are going to try and pull off this auction. And as soon as they do, the Sandaki are going to be on them. We need to figure out how to make sure none of us die in the cross fire.”
    “I wish I had words of comfort for you.” Isha leaned forward to grasp Laira’s hands. “The Sandaki are predators, and no matter what the reason, we are in their region. I cannot see how we will get out of this.”
    Laira nodded, but her gut did not agree. No matter what, she was not going to die. Not after everything she’d been through. She refused to give up.
     
    Laira felt rough hands shake her awake. For a brief moment, she thought she was a kid again, and her mom was waking her up to leave so she could entertain a boyfriend. She opened her eyes to find a gray, squat alien standing beside her bed. Nope, not mom. She shook her head and sat up as the Silarin ordered her to stand and join the other slaves.
    “Fucker,” she mumbled under her breath and brushed her sleep-tousled hair out of her face.
    She stumbled over to join Isha, Chal and Garja. The Silarin escorted the group from the bay, down a long hallway, and through an unfamiliar door. Her stomach clenched. Could it be that the auction was here? She looked around, trying to assess the situation. If she were to going to fight back, now would be the time. She tried to shake off the sleep and watched carefully as they entered a huge room. They were descended on by Silarin, who proceeded to buff and shine each person. Just like pampered show dogs, she thought as she too was guided to a chair to begin the process.
    Laira found herself, fortunately, right next to Isha, Garja, and Chal. None of them spoke. They didn’t need to, nor desire to, while there were so many listeners around them. Laira had a glass containing liquid shoved in her hand. She pretended to drink it, while a Silarin fixed her hair to perfection. The liquid smelled good, but she didn’t trust it. The Silarin wanted everyone calm and cooperative. She wouldn’t put it past them to feed their prisoners drugs.
    When she was finished, the Silarin shoved her aside for the next girl. Easing over, she dumped the contents of the beverage behind a lounger. She refused to take anything that might inhibit her ability to think or run if given a chance. Briefly, her mind wandered to how long she had been gone from her home. She rarely thought of Earth, but now with the auction upon them, she couldn’t help it. Ever since being captured, time truly had no meaning. There was no day or night, just a series of moments broken up by sleep and trips to the shower. She rolled her eyes. Damn, she hoped wherever she ended up it had one of those things. She would so miss her five-times-a-day shower. Unless, of course, she ended up dead. Then it really wouldn’t matter. At that depressing thought, she slid a bit lower in her chair and tried to think positive.
    Soon, the Silarin moved her into a large waiting area. The other three women joined her, looking stunningly gorgeous. Perfect for a day on the auction block, Laira thought darkly. If she didn’t think of something, she'd be separated from the only friends she had. Shit, the only friends she’d ever had.
    “I guess this is it.” Isha finally broke the silence.
    Garja nodded. “Yes, the auction is getting ready to begin. In fact, the people attending today not only received a special catalog, but they should be viewing us now. At least, that is what I overheard. The Silarin are trying to make this a very classy affair. Only the wealthiest patrons were invited to attend.”
    “Special,” Laira muttered sarcastically. “So how does something like this work?”
    Chal looked around. “Normally, in a regular auction, the buyers must be present to