Big Bad Claws

by Michele Mills

  She ate breakfast while using the tablet to look up the Minecorp information hub, which was localized and perfectly safe. Then she washed her hands and went looking for actual cleaning supplies. There had to be some, right?

  Eventually she discovered a small door around the corner from the kitchen that led to the back of the domicile. What was in there? She hadn’t seen this yesterday.

  She opened the door and stared in awe. “Oh my gods, they have cleaning bots.”

  A whole room filled with cleaning bots, none of them activated. Brand new and top-of-the-line and just sitting there. They’d not once thought to turn them on? What the hell? Crazy.

  And then there was a knock on the front door.

  10

  Lila sucked in a sharp breath.

  Holy crap. Who would be knocking at the door, during the day, while the brothers were at the mine? Had Daniella’s assassins found her? Already? She reached for the tablet and crouched behind a counter, totally terrified.

  There was another firm knock. “Hello!” a muffled voice yelled. “Hello! Anyone home?”

  English? A goofy smile spread across Lila’s face. The being outside was speaking perfect English, with a Singapore accent.

  No way.

  Lila crept up to the front door and peeked out the nearby window but couldn’t see the being from that vantage point. Darn it. She went to the door itself and realized there was a tiny vid screen embedded into the wall, showing an image of a human female standing there. Wow, they weren’t kidding—this place really did have a good security system.

  There was a human female standing outside and speaking English? Lila’s first thought was to throw the door open and hug this person. But wait…why was she here? Who was she?

  Fear ran through her veins. Maybe this was a female assassin trying to act sweet and unsuspecting to lure her in?

  A ping sounded on the tablet she was holding in her hand. She looked down to see a message from someone named Leah Hernandez.

  Who?

  Lila opened it and read.

  Hi. I heard a human female was staying at the Fever Brothers compound (happy face). I’m Saxon’s mate, Leah Hernandez. I’m human too and was born and raised in Singapore but left New Earth to study to become a mining engineer. I work at the mine and am now mated to Saxon of Twelve. I’m a sister-in-law to the males you are staying with. I’m standing at the front door of your domicile right now. I would love to chat with the only other human on Timbur. Can you please open the door so we can meet?

  Lila bit her lip and typed a quick question to Zayzon and pressed send. Do you have a sister-in-law named Leah Hernandez?

  He replied right away. Yes. Why?

  Well, there’s someone outside your front door who says claims to be Leah Hernandez. She wants to come in, but you told me not to let anyone in.

  She’s cleared, Zayzon responded. You may allow Leah of One inside our domicile.

  K.

  Lila set down the tablet and immediately opened the door with a wide smile on her face. Standing there was a pretty young woman with curves to die for, perfect, glowing skin and gorgeous shiny dark hair. She was also dressed in a tinier version of the same type of uniform/gear the males had all worn when they left for work. She was also heavily pregnant.

  The young woman placed a hand over her mouth and her eyes teared up. “Oh my gosh. Sorry, I can’t help it, it’s just that I haven’t seen another human woman in ages.” Then she glanced over her shoulder. “Sorry, we probably don’t have much time. My husband doesn’t know I’m here. He won’t like this.”

  “Oh, come on in, come in. I’m glad to see you too.” Lila waved her inside and shut the door behind her. “Sit down, you must be tired. It’s a long walk here from the public transport. I’m sorry I didn’t open right away. I told Zayzon you were outside and asked him if it was okay if I opened the door to you. Sorry, I had to be cautious like that. They told me not to let anyone in.”

  “Aaah,” Leah answered as she lowered herself into a chair next to the fireplace. “Well now that the others know I’m here, Saxon’s going to know, and that means we really, really don’t have much time. I’m happy I came over though. It’s nice seeing another human. Do you realize we’re the only two humans on this entire planet right now?”

  Lila sat down in the chair opposite her and leaned forward. “Really? I suspected there weren’t that many humans when I saw nothing but other Xylan on the streets, but I didn’t know it was that bad.”

  “Yeah, they do have other species working here too, but it’s mainly a Xylan outpost. There was another human here for the last four moon cycles, but he left to take a job on a different planet. Now it’s just me. And he was a guy, it’s nice to see another woman.”

  “Do they treat you well here, even though you aren’t Xylan?”

  “Oh yes, of course. The Margol Xylan that work the mine are well-known for their easy acceptance of other beings. They don’t believe in the formal deference required of royal pigment Xylan. I love living here on Timbur. I’m really happy. This is my home now. Why are you here? Word on the street is that you snuck onto the planet, but Claws scented you and claims you’re his future Bride, so the peacekeepers and the Admin had to allow you a one moon cycle visa?”

  Lila grimaced. “Yeah, that’s all true.”

  “And Claws placed your honor before his and then asked for your hand for testing and you denied him?” she said, her eyes twinkling and her lips lifting up at the edges, like she was stifling a laugh. “Is that true too?”

  “Yes, I said no. I…uh, denied him.”

  “You’re my hero. I have to admit to you that I watched the vid. It was great.”

  Lila snorted out a laugh. “Your hero? Actually I feel terrible for doing that to him, publicly. I think everyone on the colony has seen what happened. It’s just that I can’t marry anyone right now.”

  “Hmm. Why are you here? I just ask because to be truthful I don’t understand why a human would come to Timbur other than for work. Everyone here either works on the mine or provides services to the mine employees and their families. Minecorp doesn’t allow anyone here for visiting.”

  “Um, I can’t tell you why I’m here.”

  Leah blinked with surprise. “You can’t? But I’m human too and technically you’re my new sister-in-law. Your secret is safe with me.”

  Lila glanced down at the female’s swollen belly. “I’m worried if I tell you why I’m here, I’ll just get you sucked into my troubles and you’ll be hurt.”

  Leah placed a hand on her stomach. “Oh, okay.” She narrowed her eyes. “I know your first name is Lila. But that’s all I know, and Lila is a common name.”

  Lila smiled in return. “Good. Let’s keep it that way.”

  “So you’re living here with them for the next moon cycle? Claws asked for your hand, you said no, but you’re still living with them?”

  “Yes. They hired me to be their housekeeper while I’m here. I’m going to try and get this place cleaned and organized.”

  “You are? That’s wonderful. This place is such a mess. I almost never come over here…” Leah glanced around… “Hey. It already looks better. Right after we mated, Saxon moved out and insisted we stay in my employee quarters. We’ve recently upgraded to family quarters because the baby is arriving soon.”

  “Congratulations.” Lila smiled. “When are you due?”

  Leah rubbed her belly and grimaced. “I’m due in about three weeks.”

  “I’m surprised you’re still working.”

  She shrugged. “To be truthful, they don’t allow me on the lifts or in the actual mines anymore. I mainly have a desk job. But I like going where all my friends and family are. If I stayed home I’d be alone.”

  “Do you know the sex of the baby?”

  “I do, we’re having a boy. We’re naming him Oryan of Two, after their father who passed away.”

  “Oh, that’s wonderful. That’s a great idea to name him after their
father. Congratulations.”

  “Thank you. Ooh, and Lila if you stay and become Zayzon’s mate, you would be the baby’s aunt. We could be friends here and hang out a lot. That would be nice. I’m going to be home with the baby and Saxon will continue working.”

  That sounded wonderful, like a fantasy life she would’ve made up for herself back when she was alone at night, devouring romance books. She’d never held a baby in her life, but she was eager to learn. She really liked children and had always hoped to have her own someday. “Maybe…I’m not sure I can mate with anyone right now though. I’ve got a lot going on. Really terrible, complicated things. I’m not sure what the outcome will be.”

  “Oh yeah, you said that. Hmm. This is a mystery. I like a good mystery. I’ll get to the bottom this, you know. Eventually I’ll figure out what your problem is and how to help you. And don’t worry, I’m on your side.”

  Lila smiled because she could hear the sincerity in Leah’s voice. She really, really liked this female. Instant friendship. “Can I ask you something?”

  “Sure.”

  “Why is everyone so concerned with how I said no to Zayzon? Why is it such a big deal?”

  Leah laughed. “Girl, every female on this colony loves how you denied him. LOVES. Your male is well-known for proclaiming he was never going to mate. He said he’d already scented all the females on Timbur and none of them were his future Bride. And believe me, he wasn’t sensitive and sweet about his rejection either. Second, he mercilessly teased both Daxon and my mate, Saxon for having human Brides and declared he’d never mate a human.”

  “He did?” she gasped.

  “Yes. Often and loud. And third, he’s turned down every single Manager who’s asked for him to test with a female member of their line. He even recently took himself off the Margol mating database.”

  “Oh wow, he was serious about not finding his Bride.”

  “And yet you showed up in his bed and he wants to mate you immediately. And then you publicly deny him. We all love it. It’s hilarious.” She burst out laughing. “Sorry, you have to admit it’s pretty funny. It’s exactly what he deserved.”

  Actually, she still felt bad for Zayzon.

  Leah waved a hand. “Okay, well, funny to the rest of us. And believe me, all the females on this colony think you’re wonderful. They love that you put Claws in his place. He needed that. That male thought entirely too much of himself.”

  “Why did every single Manager on Timbur ask him to test?”

  “Oh. Well. Have you seen his claws?”

  “Of course.”

  “Well, amongst the Xylan it’s really unusual to have such large claws. They think large claws represent sexual prowess and good genes.”

  “Wait, they think because his claws are large, he’s also got a big…?”

  Leah let out a throaty laugh. “Yep. That’s it exactly.”

  Lila’s eyes widened. “Wow.” She’d only seen it at rest. What would it be like hard? In her hand? In her…?

  “Girl, you need to eventually say yes to him. He’s basically the most sought-after unmated male on the planet. All the unmated females here had wanted to test with him, but he sniffed them all out and said they weren’t his Brides. But you are the one. Believe me, if he says he scents that you’re his future mate, it’s true. I love the idea of you making him wait, but really, he’ll make a terrific mate.”

  “I can’t,” she squeaked. “I don’t want anyone to get hurt because of me.”

  Leah leaned forward and placed a comforting hand on top of hers. “These brothers won’t let you get hurt. If someone’s messing with you then they’re messing not only with Claws, but all the Fever Brothers, and Illibrium miners are badass.”

  “I know, but I can’t take the chance that—”

  “Leah,” a voice bellowed.

  Leah rolled her eyes. “He’s here.”

  “Who?”

  “My husband.”

  “Oh, that was quick.”

  “Yeah. You’ll see. These males are very possessive.”

  “Does it bother you that they’re like that?”

  “Oh gods, no. I love it. Their bark is bigger than their bite.”

  A huge, wild-eyed Xylan male came crashing through the front door, his chest heaving.

  “Leah.” He definitely looked like a Fever Brother, with the same work gear the miners all wore. And they all had the same barrel chests and thick thighs. He ran straight for Leah and scooped her into his arms. He lowered himself onto the ledge of the fireplace and sat with his Bride on his lap, then he shoved his nose into her neck and inhaled.

  Leah wrapped her arms around him. “Oh honey, did you run the whole way here?” she asked.

  Her husband gave a jerky nod.

  “Oh baby, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you, but you know I had to see Zayzon’s new mate, right? She’s human, so it was really important to me. Look around, you can see I’m perfectly fine.”

  He placed his claw on her swollen belly. “I can’t let anything happen to you,” he rasped. “You are my everything.”

  She gave him a tender kiss on the lips. “You are my everything too.”

  Oh gods, Lila thought her heart might burst, looking at this tableau of their love and affection. This was what she’d always wanted for herself, but never thought it was possible. But… maybe…

  “Saxon, I want you to meet Lila of One, Claws’s future mate.”

  “Hi,” Lila choked out, finding it hard to handle constantly being referred to as someone’s mate. She had a life back on New Earth, an entire corporation she was beholden to. She had to survive in order to take over the company and make sure her father’s employees and his legacy were protected. She couldn’t just leave all of that behind and marry a miner on Timbur and live with him, his crew of brothers and befriend his lovely sister-in-law. Right? Right?

  Saxon let out a grunt of greeting. He stood up with his pregnant Bride still in his arms. “We’re leaving,” he announced.

  “Okay,” Leah laughed. “Sorry Lila, we’ll talk later. If you need anything just message me, okay? I’d be happy to talk. And I’m sure that if you whip this place into shape, we’ll be able to come over more often. Which would be great. I’d love to see what you’ve done.”

  And then Saxon turned and carried his Bride out of the compound and in moments Lila was alone again.

  11

  The compound did look better already, just with the little bit she’d managed to tidy up, and the floors Max had managed to freshen during the last two days.

  There was still so much more to be done.

  Lila walked back to the closet room where she’d found the cache of brand-new bots, her head filled with the details of her conversation with Leah. And of the relationship between Leah and Saxon. And of how much she liked Leah. And then she began to think of Zayzon again, like she did most of the time. She shook her head. It was all so tempting, this idea of having a sister-in-law who could be her instant friend. Of having family again…of having a husband and babies of her own to raise.

  But she brushed it all aside, determined to not think of any of that right now. There was nothing she could do about it, besides hide out. No final decisions could be made. Best to keep busy. She’d learned long ago that the way to keep her anxiety at bay was to stay active. An orderly environment brought instant peace and calm. For Lila, cleaning really was the best therapy.

  She opened the door to the closet and stared again in amazement at the shiny new bots. There were ten bots. Ten. These males were so lucky to have this many. One would be terrific, but ten meant work could be completed in a fraction of the time. These bots were exactly like the ones she’d had back home, so she knew how to program them. And she also knew how much these specialized, top-of-the line bots cost. Bots like this that could clean, repair and build, weren’t cheap. She was probably one of the few beings on New Earth who’d been able to afford such an extravagance.

  Max came up alongs
ide her and bumped against her shoe. She looked down. “Don’t be jealous,” she smiled. “I still think you’re the cutest.”

  She stepped inside the room, began turning on the bots and shook her head with bemusement. The Fever Brothers had a house crumbling down around them and in complete disarray, but they could afford to purchase a shit ton of bots and…leave them sitting around untouched?

  Would she ever understand these guys? Probably not.

  Unfortunately, the bots had been left idle for so long, it would now take awhile to charge and load updates. Bummer.

  She walked back to the kitchen and glanced at the tablet she’d left on the counter, thinking again of Leah and Zayzon and the dark cloud of desperation that pricked at her brain every time she thought of Daniela’s betrayal. Should she try to back door her way in, to gain access to her account? She’d heard of beings doing this, creating fake accounts, or more than one account.

  She lifted up the tablet and stared at the screen.

  Dad had been so happy when he’d wed Daniela. And then he’d died three months later. Had Dad really died of a random stroke? Or had Daniela found a way to kill him? Lila’s jaw clenched and tears flooded her eyes. Gods, she hoped Dad had passed innocently believing Daniela was still the woman he thought she was. It was too heart-breaking to consider he’d discovered the truth.

  She began to tap on the tablet, rage crashing through her veins. Daniela’s deception kept unraveling like layers of an onion.

  She leaned against the counter, looking for a way to secretly check her original account, without anyone finding out. But how to do that without being found out? If anyone was looking for her, they’d certainly check there first. She had to contact Gerard if they were going to take on Daniela together. And she had to be able to warn Gerard and Roberto too. Oh, fuck it, she’d have to make a fake account. It was the only way. And it was going to take time, because like she knew how to do that?