by S. E. Smith
Panic swept through her, driving her to her feet. She ignored the burning pain and the warm moisture that was running down her back. Cursing when she ran into a small side table that had been knocked over, she raced for the door. Pain poured through her arm when she gripped the door handle and tugged on it. If she wasn’t so desperate to escape, she would have cried in frustration when she found she had to unlock it before she could open it.
Kali stumbled through the doorway and turned to the left. At the end of the long corridor there was the staircase. She knew the set on this side of the building were still intact until the second floor. She would have to switch to the east side staircase to get to the first floor. She just hoped she could make it down the stairs and escape into the maze of streets before Razor did.
“Oh God, please let me make it,” she whispered as she pulled the door open to the stairwell and raced down the steps. “Please don’t let him catch me.”
Chapter 11
Razor’s eyes narrowed as he stared over the side of the building. His heart thundered in his chest as rage and fear fought for supremacy. The first emotion he was familiar with; the second he was not. The rough edge of the broken mortar bit into his palms as he watched Kali’s dark form swing through the air. He wanted to cry out a warning when he realized the impossible feat she was attempting to accomplish.
He sucked in an uneven breath when she twisted in midair as she was pulled back toward the building. A low expletive escaped him when she hit the side of it and disappeared into the darkness. The sound of breaking glass and a muttered cry carried faintly above the icy wind that was beginning to build. He pushed away from the edge of the building and turned back toward the roof access. His mind raced ahead as he tried to think of every scenario.
He knew without a doubt that she would do everything she could to escape back to her brother. He had learned a lot about her over the past two weeks, both from the Intel submitted to him and his own personal observations. She was proud, protective, and courageous. All traits that he admired. He also knew without a doubt that she would fight.
Yes, she will not give in easily, he thought with a sense of pride.
His eyes swept the area where the human male should have been. A dark scowl crossed his face when he realized he was gone. The thought of the male reaching Kali before he could retrieve her shot a rush of adrenaline through him that he hadn’t felt in years. The primitive need to hunt down his prey and capture it rose inside him. This is what made his species excel as warriors. While the Trivator had learned to control their primitive side, they were genetically designed to be predators.
He turned toward his Skid. She would have to leave the building. He would capture her before she could escape. He climbed onto the sleek air bike. Skimming his thumb over the control, he rose silently into the air. Leaning forward, he depressed the accelerator and shot over the roof toward the back side of the building. A long, narrow road ran between it and the next building.
He circled around the corner and hovered approximately six meters above the ground. He programmed the auto-pilot to maintain its position and snapped the small remote securely to the thick wristband he wore. Swinging his leg over, he silently dropped to the ground below. He knelt for a moment, listening and scenting the air. Once he was satisfied no other humans were close, he straightened before crossing over to where a service door stood ajar.
*.*.*
Kali grabbed the wall to stop from falling as she reached the bottom of the stairwell. Her legs felt shaky and she knew she was running on empty. The last week of interrupted sleep, combined with blood loss and the intense physical demands from her escape were threatening to overwhelm her. She shook her head in an effort to clear it. She couldn’t stop yet.
“Kali,” a quiet voice called out to her.
Kali jerked around, pressing her hand to her chest and her back to the wall as she strained to see. A shuddering breath of relief escaped her when Jason stepped out from the shadows. She weakly held out her left hand to him.
“Jason! Thank God you are okay,” she whispered back in a faint voice. “We have to get out of here. I have to get to Destin.”
Warm fingers wrapped around her hand and pulled her forward into his arms. A smothered whimper escaped her as the cut on her shoulder and back pulled apart at the pressure. She shivered as additional warmth ran down her spine.
“What’s wrong?” Jason asked in a strained voice. “Did that bastard hurt you?”
“No, he didn’t hurt me. I’ll be okay once I get back to our base,” she mumbled. “We have to move. I don’t know where he is. He could come down the stairs at any moment.”
“Are you sure?” Jason asked, straining to see her face. “If you’re positive you’re okay then let’s get the hell out of here. That bastard is one scary son-of-a-bitch and I personally don’t relish meeting up with him again,” he added, rubbing his tender throat.
Kali nodded and leaned on Jason when he wrapped his arm around her waist as she swayed again. She started to protest when he pulled his hand back with another curse when he felt the sticky moisture of blood coating the back of the black sweat shirt she was wearing.
“Don’t…,” she started to say.
She grimaced when he ignored her and reached into his front pocket and pulled out one of the small flashlights they all carried. He looked at his hand before flashing it on the wall behind her. A crude expletive escaped him when he saw the dark smear on it.
“Turn around,” he ordered in a rough voice.
Kali touched his face with the tips of her fingers. “We don’t have time, Jason. We have to get back to Destin. If that…” She drew in a deep, shaky breath before she continued. “His name is Razor. He plans on flattening the city just like he did Mexico City. We have to warn Destin. He said he is going to give the order to wipe out Chicago. Once the order is given, Destin and Colbert only have twelve hours to turn themselves in. If they don’t… if they refuse… Razor said anyone who resists will die.”
“Fuck!” Jason cursed.
“Jason, if I don’t make it,” Kali started to say before the words died on her lips as Jason laid his fingers against them.
“You’ll make it, Kali,” he whispered. “You are the strongest, most beautiful, most stubborn woman I’ve ever met. You’ll make it.”
A weak smile lifted the corner of her mouth. She didn’t respond. In truth, she couldn’t over the lump in her throat. With a nod of her head, she wrapped her fingers around his as he cupped her hand again. She ignored the burning pain and pushed pass her exhaustion. He was right. She would make it. Failure was not an option. She had sworn to protect Destin and those who sought protection under him. She would do anything and everything she could to keep them safe. She refused to give up without a fight.
*.*.*
Razor stood in the shadows behind a long counter. His eyes narrowed on the two figures as they pushed open the doorway leading into the former reception room. The front entrance was blocked by fallen debris from the helicopter and damage from the building, making it impossible to escape through it. His assumption that the slightly opened door was how they gained entrance to the building was correct.
His nose flared in anger at the possessive way the human male was holding Kali. Fear and concern swept through him when he saw her stumble and cry out in pain. He stepped out from behind the reception counter as she whispered to the male that she would be alright.
“You are hurt,” Razor growled. “You need medical attention.”
*.*.*
Kali froze as Razor’s voice echoed in the silent room. A shiver of apprehension ran through her. His dark shape seemed more menacing amid the clutter of debris and destruction, especially now that she knew who he was. Only the faint light of the flashlight Jason was holding illuminated the area. She closed her eyes and leaned heavily on Jason as defeat swept through her.
“I’ll hold him off,” Jason muttered in a dark voice. “Run, Kali. Get to Destin.”
“RUN!” Jason snapped as he charged toward the dark warrior.
Kali felt a sparse reserve of adrenaline rush through her as she turned. The front was blocked except for a narrow sliver of space barely wider than a couple of feet. It would be a tight fit, but she was small and slender enough to squeeze through it.
She forced herself to ignore the sound of the struggle behind her. Grabbing the twisted metal frame of the door, she stepped through and started crawling up the slated slab of concrete blocking the way to freedom. As the space became narrower, she dropped further down until she was lying on her stomach. Lying flat, she ducked her head and began inching her way between the thick sheets of concrete.
The sound of a vicious snarl reverberated behind her before it was replaced with the distinctive sound of a body hitting something hard. Kali’s breathing had turned to deep gasping breaths as she clawed her way through the debris. Fear engulfed her when silence fell from behind her. There wasn’t enough room for her to turn her head to see what was happening. She could only hope that Jason was able to hold Razor off long enough for her to get through the obstacle course so she could disappear.
That hope died when she felt a pair of steely hands wrap about her ankles. She cried out in frustration and pain as she clawed fruitlessly at the concrete in an effort to break away from the manacles pulling her back. Inch by inch she was pulled backwards away from the narrow chance of freedom.
“NO!” She cried out as the hands moved up her legs until an arm wrapped around her waist. “No, let me go!”
“Calm, little fi’ta,” the dark voice murmured. “Calm, Kali. You are bleeding again. I must get you to my healer.”
Kali’s head fell back in exhaustion as he gently turned her in his arms. She stared up at him with bitter tears of frustration, pain, and hopelessness glittering in her eyes. A low cry of denial burst from her lips as his arms tightened around her as he picked her up.
“Jason!” She whimpered, trying to turn her head to look for him. “Jason!”
“He will live but he cannot help you now,” Razor growled. “I told you, Kali. I will no longer allow you to put yourself in danger. You are lucky you didn’t break your neck! If this is the kind of care your males give to the females, it is amazing that your species has survived this long. This is another reason why your species needs the help of the Alliance.”
“Jason, please… warn Destin,” she whispered, ignoring Razor.
“Twelve hours, Kali,” Razor murmured as he carried her back through the reception area, down the corridor and out the back door of the old hotel. “It is all I can give him, fi’ta. I have my duties. I am… sorry.”
Kali turned her head into his shoulder and closed her eyes as he approached the Skid that was slowly descending toward them. God, she was so tired. So, very, very tired. She would fight him, but she needed a few minutes first to rebuild her strength.
She breathed deeply, unaware that her body was already shutting down in response to the warm arms surrounding her. It was as if her body knew she was safe while her mind fought against it. Her thoughts drifted as she breathed in the soothing scent of the male holding her. Images flashed through her mind like a kaleidoscope, turning and changing.
Images of her mom, tired, but always cheerful from a long day at the restaurant, flowed like a vivid movie behind her closed eyes. Carla Parks stopped by the small, shabby apartment they lived in so she could check on Kali and Destin for a couple of hours before she left for her second job at the local corner store. Kali and Destin running. Her mom would listen as she and Destin told her about their daily adventures. Carla was an innate free spirit who saw nothing wrong with allowing Kali and Destin to run through the streets as children, laughing along with them as they learned how wonderful it was to be free to run and discover new adventures.
A single tear escaped as she remembered coming home from visiting a friend when she was seventeen. There were half a dozen police cars outside the small convenience store where her mom worked nights. She remembered Destin turning when she called out his name. She had been surprised that he was home from his college classes so early.
“Momma,” she murmured restless. “Why? Why?”
Two young boys, one the same age as her and the other two years younger sat in the back of one of the patrol cars. She remembered glancing at them before turning back to Destin when he called out to her.
“She’s gone,” Destin’s strained voice explained. “She was handing them the money from the register when someone came in. The gun went off. The police said she died instantly.”
“No!” Pain swept through her as the memories held her imprisoned in their sticky web. She turned back and stared at the two boys. She knew one of them. “Randy, why? You knew her. Why?”
She could see Randy’s blank eyes staring back at her as if it was yesterday before he turned his head and sunk down in the back of the car, ignoring her. The images turned and twisted again as Destin lead her away from the scene.
Now, her world was dissolving around her again. She cried out, reaching for Destin but he continued to walk away from her as if he couldn’t hear her pleas for him to come back. She was sitting on the roof of their apartment building watching as the skies filled with alien spaceships. They didn’t own a television, it was an expensive luxury that her mom could never afford, so she hadn’t known what was happening at first.
People filled the streets as news of the ‘invasion’ as it was being broadcast spread. From high above Chicago, she had watched as day turned to night and the city became an inferno as panic spread and the worst of human nature erupted like a festering wound. She stayed on the roof, packing only the necessities that she could carry in her backpack and a small box containing the few trinkets of her mother’s life. That was where Destin found her three days later. It had taken him that long to make it from the city college downtown to the government housing where she lived. In two short months, her life had changed forever.
Kali shivered and stirred as a light rain began to fall. The icy moisture woke her from her restless exhaustion. She tried to move, but found she was trapped against a hard, muscled body. One arm was wrapped protectively around her while the other held the grip of the Skid. She gasped and struggled to sit up as she became aware of what was happening.
“Careful,” Razor cautioned in her ear.
“Where are we? Where are you taking me?” She asked nervously, pushing her damp hair out of her eyes.
She gripped the arm around her waist tightly as they wove between the buildings. The cold rain was helping to clear her mind. She recognized that they were flying over a section of the southern part of the city. She looked down, but she could see very little in the darkness.
“Back to the base that has been set up for the Trivator forces in this area,” he replied.
Kali shivered as some of the rainwater seeped under her shirt and down her back. She moaned as the water touched the deep cut in her right shoulder. She leaned forward and bit her lip as a wave of dizziness swept over her. The arm around her tightened, pulling her back against the warm body behind her. She shivered again, but this time for a different reason. Razor’s warm lips were pressed against the side of her neck as if he were trying to comfort her.
“I have contacted my personal healer. He will be waiting to care for you when we arrive,” he informed her in a husky voice against her ear. “It won’t be long now.”
“I want to go home,” she muttered. “Doc can stitch me up.”
“No,” he replied.
Kali stiffened before forcing her body to relax. There was nothing she could do at this moment. If she were to fight, she would kill them both. For a brief second, she considered that as an option before shaking her head in disgust. Killing him wouldn’t stop the plans to destroy the city. Besides, she wasn’t in any hurry to die either. No, the best plan was to play along with
him and the minute the opportunity to escape presented itself, she would be a distant memory.
“Has anyone ever told you that you have serious social issues?” She asked with a tired sigh. “Bossing people around, kidnapping me and trying to kill one of my friends, not to mention threatening my brother, after I saved your life isn’t winning any brownie points with me,” she added dryly.
A deep rumble and the sound of masculine laughter ricocheted through her like a speeding bullet making her want to squirm when she felt an unfamiliar heat low in her belly. She snorted her displeasure even as she snuggled closer to his warmer body. She grimaced as she put pressure on the cut on her back. At least being half frozen was beginning to dull the pain.
“We are almost there,” he murmured.
“Yippee,” she snorted grumpily.
She closed her eyes when he chuckled again in that damn sexy voice of his. Maybe she could just push him off the damn air bike. That would solve at least one of her problems.
Chapter 12
“I can walk, damn it,” Kali growled in a slightly slurred voice. She blinked several times as rain blurred her vision and glared up at the stubborn facial lines of the male carrying her. “I’ve got a cut, not a broken leg.”
Razor’s mouth tightened. She had more than a cut, it was a bloody slice half the length of his arm and at least a quarter inch deep. From the shivers wracking her body, it was more than the cold affecting her as well. She was beginning to go into shock from blood loss. Her face was white and her eyes, while angry, were wide with a glaze to them.
He cursed himself for not checking her over before he carried her away. His main focus was to get her to a place where he could protect her. He did not want to take a chance of anyone else surprising him.
Or give her a chance to escape before I could claim her, he silently admitted to himself.
“Razor, you are hurt?” Cutter asked, jogging out from under the overhang to them. “I was informed you requested Patch to transfer down to the planet.”