Chapter 3

In this world, humans had been forced to genetically modify themselves after the environment collapsed. They mixed human DNA with animal DNA and became beastmen. But the process killed most people.

Female survival rates were terrifyingly low. Less than five percent of the population were Females. To preserve their reproductive ability, Females could not fully transform.

This left them defenseless.

Just when beastman civilization finally stabilized, space bugs called Zerg invaded the galaxy.

They specifically attacked beastman settlements.

This made the already rare Females even more precious.

To keep the species alive, Federal law gave Females the highest status. Each Female could have multiple Male partners for protection, reproduction, and mental stability.

And the previous Maya had treated these former heroes like torture toys.

Maya dropped the energy whip without thinking. Blood drops from the tip splattered across her ankle.

Wait. She remembered this scene!

In the novel, this torture session completely destroyed Caleb's last faith in the law. From this moment on, he stopped believing justice would ever protect him.

And later, when he finally broke free, he would take brutal revenge.

According to the plot, she was totally screwed.

"Just because Zara talked to you, I've been torturing you for three days?" Maya stared at the wounds covering his body. Her voice shook despite her effort to sound steady.

Caleb's eyebrow twitched as he studied Maya's panicked eyes.

What game was she playing now? Three days of torture with that energy whip, then suddenly she dropped it and put on this innocent act like butter would not melt in her mouth.

Did she really think this little performance would make him trust her? Not a chance in hell.

Maya Cross was just waiting for them to let their guard down so she could come back with something even worse.

Caleb figured he had her number. His jaw clenched as he stared at that deceptively sweet face, every muscle in his body coiled tight with suspicion.

"What new trick are you planning..."

Maya froze and stepped back.

"Stop talking." Her voice trembled, but she forced herself to stay calm. "Your wounds need treatment."

Her doctor instincts kicked in immediately.

Maya quickly examined Caleb's injuries. Multiple deep cuts. Clothing stuck to torn flesh. Severe blood loss. Possible infection risk. He needed the bleeding stopped right away.

As an ER doctor, Maya had seen all kinds of injuries. Gunshots. Car crashes. Burn victims. Men and women brought in half-dead under bright hospital lights.

But those wounds had come from accidents, violence, or sickness.

The wounds in front of her were made whip by whip by her.

No. By the previous Maya.

The guilt almost choked her.

Caleb looked at Maya mockingly. When he raised his head, the scorpion mark on his chest became more obvious. "What, want to try pouring acid on the wounds this time?"

Maya's breath caught.

The previous Maya had actually done that before.

She fought down her panic and stiffly walked to the medical kit. She grabbed healing gel with fingers that would not quite stop shaking.

The previous Maya never used medical supplies to heal people.

Only to torture them.

"I didn't mean to..." Maya stammered. Her Detroit accent slipped out.

Her brain was still stuck in the hospital, but her body was on a starship. The confusion made her dizzy as hell.

"Cut the act." Caleb interrupted her. He slowly stood up. His tall shadow loomed over her with crushing pressure.

Maya's hand froze mid-air, holding the healing gel.

She had forgotten.

The previous Maya's cruelty had been burned into these men's bones. Any strange behavior from her would only be seen as a new torture method.

Even though Caleb clearly didn't trust her, Maya still forced herself to treat his wounds.

When she finished with the last roll of bandages, footsteps echoed from the cabin entrance.

Sage Thomas stood at the front of the doorway, silver-white hair falling across his face. Plasma burns marked his arms and neck in ugly red lines. Jasper Davis hovered behind him with his fox ears pinned back, one hand covering the energy-blade scar across his once-perfect face. Hunter Blake filled the rest of the entrance like a wall of muscle and old wounds.

All three of them stared at Maya's hand on Caleb's bandage.

"Let go of Caleb," Hunter said again, voice low and dangerous. "If you're pissed, take it out on us."

Maya's throat tightened.

They thought she was healing Caleb only to hurt him worse later.

Of course they did.

She pulled her hand back slowly. "I'm not punishing anyone."

Jasper laughed under his breath. "That's new. Did you run out of creative ideas?"

Maya ignored him and forced herself to count heads.

Caleb. Sage. Jasper. Hunter.

Only four.

A cold memory from the novel slid into place.

"Where's Finn?"

The whole room changed.

Sage's fingers curled into fists. Jasper's smile vanished. Hunter's jaw went hard enough to crack bone.

Caleb looked at her like he wanted to rip the answer out of her throat. "You forgot already?"

Jasper's voice turned sharp. "Yesterday you wanted to see what happened when an aquatic beastman lost his scales. You ordered us to put him in the isolation tank."

Maya's stomach dropped.

Finn Williams.

The fallen prince of Oceania Star. Water beastman. Royal bloodline. Purification ability. In the book, he had hated Maya with a quiet, bottomless cruelty.

Now she knew why.

"Bring him here," Maya said.

Nobody moved.

Her nails dug into her palms. "Now."

That sounded more like the original Maya. The order worked.

Caleb and Hunter disappeared down the corridor. Minutes later, they returned pushing a mobile isolation tank filled with cloudy recycled water.

Finn floated inside.

His light blue hair stuck to his pale cheeks. His violet eyes were open but empty. Blood colored the water around his tail in thin red threads. Where beautiful scales should have been, raw flesh showed through in ragged patches.

Maya forgot how to breathe.

She had seen trauma before. She had seen bodies torn open on emergency tables under white hospital lights.

But this was different.

This had been done slowly. Deliberately. For entertainment.

A burst of static cracked through the cabin before Maya could speak.

The main projection screen flickered on.

A beautiful young woman appeared in the hologram. Golden hair fell around her shoulders like sunlight poured through silk. Her blue eyes were sweet, bright, and completely poisonous.

Zara Sinclair.

She had been everything the book Maya hated. Noble family. Perfect face. Perfect manners. And enough political connections to make rescue fleets turn around with one call.

"Maya darling," Zara said, smiling as if they were old friends meeting at a tea party. "I heard your ship lost contact with the patrol route. How tragic."