The General looked at Sergey as if he were mad. “Yes.”
“Would you kill to protect your military?”
“Yes. Why are you playing these games?”
“Would you kill to protect your family?” Sergey finished his series of questions.
“Yes.”
“Why would you think I‘d do anything less?”
The General swallowed hard. “You aren’t human. You‘re a monster and an alien. What do you know about planets, friends or family?”
“General, I don‘t believe you know why the created were created,” Lorali said, drawing his attention back to her for a minute.
“Their creation means nothing to me.”
“We were created to protect a planet, to sacrifice our lives for others. It’s bred within us. We would gladly give our lives to keep our planet safe. This has now become our planet. We value family and friends. I would die and yes, kill, to keep my family safe. You have a gun to my mate‘s head. The decision you make will determine your future,” Sergey said.
“You expect me to believe you‘ll just let me walk away if I let her go?”
“No, General. Nothing is that easy. I expect you to believe that you‘ll not die if she lives. At this time, it is all you can hope for, and all I’m willing to give.”
“If I’m not heard from in the next fifteen hours, there will be a worldwide search.”
“Yes, that will make things more difficult, but not impossible. Dignitaries die all of the time General. I‘ll not waste a night ‘s sleep over you.”
“My men will be here soon. There orders were to kill you and follow me.”
“Your men will wake up tomorrow and have no recollection of what happened tonight. They‘re being scrubbed deep. Unfortunate, but unavoidable.”
“That’s impossible.”
Sergey shrugged. “Believe what you will.”
The General looked around frantically.
“Run, General. Please run. I‘ll even give you a head start. Five minutes? Ten?”
General Caine lowered his gun. Lorali turned and took it from him.
“I‘ll just command her to come to me when you aren’t around. You won’t win.”
“General, did you really think I came because you called? Get in the car.” Lorali touched the small filter Sergey had inserted into her ear and smiled. She would never be responding to the General‘s voice.
The General got in the back seat with Lorali getting in beside him. Sergey took the driver‘s seat.
“Where are we going?”
“Back to the cabin. I’ve a surprise waiting for the General.”
She eyed the General, the gun never wavering. He‘d been a large part of the problems she‘d faced in the last few years. It would be so easy to pull the trigger and end her misery. She‘d no doubt that his body would never be found. She was sure that her mate would forgive her.
What she wasn’t so sure about was her conscious. True, she could shoot in war. She could definitely shoot to defend her family, friends and even herself. But could she kill in cold blood? Was that who she was now?
“Do it.” The General taunted her. “Kill me. It’s freeing, the thought that you‘re above the law, that you hold life and death in your hands. Did you wonder what it felt like when I sent you to what should‘ve been your death?”
Her hand trembled. She was always rock steady.
“Or maybe you wondered why I picked you. Why not another private? It was simple really, I watched you developing a name for yourself and I knew something wasn’t right. I‘d already seen your bloodwork and been informed about the anomaly in your blood. It was simply an easy way to get rid of you.”
She tightened her grip on the gun. It would be so easy. “Why do you hate me?”
“Did you think I didn’t know who your father was? He left the army in disgrace as far as I’m concerned. He wanted to live with his wife and child, to see you grow up. I made sure that didn’t happen. Then I find out your supposed to be the future of mankind. I should’ve killed you long ago.”
The kick in her gut and the bile rising in her throat made her finger pull on the trigger. A flash of her parents smiling faces made her eyes cloudy. Her desire to kill him road her hard.
Sergey pulled the car to a stop. “We‘re here.”
He went around to the back door and pulled the General out. Without looking at Lorali, he took the General into the house.
“Not even this no good alien will want you now.” The General called out before he disappeared inside the doorway.
Lorali set the gun down before she dropped her head. Her shoulders heaved, but she never shed a tear. The General had taken the one thing away from her that she needed. Her parents.
“Do you think he’s really that powerful?” Aran asked, he leaning against the side of the car, his arms and legs folded in a casual stance.
“What do you mean?”
“Do you really think the General was so powerful that he could‘ve placed a drunk driver where he would cause an accident that would take your parents lives?”
“No.”
“Then why are you giving him power over your memories, your future?”
“I thought you were the strong silent type.”
“You must have me confused with Sergey.” Her lips tilted upward.
Aran pushed himself off of the car and stood with his legs slightly apart, feet planted.
“Come here Lorali, join the family.”
She left the car, feet moving slowly, as she walked to him. She‘d already made her decision. Unfortunately, the butterflies in her stomach hadn’t gotten the message.
She stopped inches in front of him. Looking up, she tilted her head. He struck quickly. One minute she was standing, the next he had her wrapped in his arms, feet dangling as she left the ground. The bite was done with grace. He set her down before she had time to touch the spot.
Ignoring her neck she touched her head as greetings of welcome sister came from the males. ‘You finally made it’ came from the females.
She looked up to see Sergey standing on the porch. She was finally home. Aran turned and walked into the house, leaving her to follow at her own pace.
“What are we going to do with the General?” She had finally joined Sergey on the porch.
“Our options are few. We wipe him again or we kill him.”
“Which did you choose?”
They walked into the back room to find the General on his knees in front of Dante.
“You chose, not I. When you decided to grant him life, you made the decision to wipe him. It will be a deep painful wipe.”
“Why will it be painful?”
“Every memory of you will be ripped out. The memory of your parents will also be removed. Dante will follow each path until there isn’t even a glimpse of you in his mind.”
“What if the created triggers a memory?”
“There will be no memory to trigger. Dante will also leave behind some gifts. If he ever catches sight of you, his memories will torture him, until any thought of you is permanently gone.”
“That sounds cruel.”
“Do you wish his sentence to be lighter?”
“No.”
Sergey looked at Dante and nodded his head. “Proceed.”
The General opened his mouth to say something, the smirk he carried making him look superior. It was the scream of pain that emerged that wiped the smirk.
Lorali walked out of the house, holding Sergey‘s hand as the General‘s screams followed them.
“Where are we going?”
He looked down at her, letting her see the need in his eyes. “Home.”
Epilogue
“What do you mean you lost your keys?” Lorali looked at him with doubt and disbelief written all over her face.
She had lived with Sergey for months. He never lost anything. He had the mind of a steel trap. It remembered everything, no matter how small. He‘d spent a night recently telling her so
me of the stories she‘d told him about her parents. One in particular had made her teary-eyed.
She‘d been sitting on the porch with her mother, pictures of wedding dresses and rings surrounded them.
Her mom had asked her ‘What kind of engagement ring do you want, baby?‘
‘I want a heart shape ring, just like the one in this picture.’ She‘d picked out what she thought was the prettiest ring of them all.
‘Why a heart shaped one?’ Her mother had asked in her soft voice.
‘Because then I‘ll know he has given me his heart.’
Her mom had quickly wiped a tear from her eyes and the two of them had swooned on the porch, giving each other soft sighs.
‘One day, Lorali, you‘ll get that ring and the man who gives it to you will give you his heart and his all.’
‘Will you be there to see it, Mom?’
‘I can’t promise you‘ll see me, Lorali. But I promise no matter where I am, I‘ll see you. ‘
Lorali blinked quickly and came back to the present. Her mother would‘ve loved Sergey as much as she loved him.
They had been together for months now. Every day he made sure to show her as well as tell her how much he loved her.
“Are you sure you lost them in here?” He insisted that he‘d lost them in the sitting room upstairs.
“Yes. Take a seat, Lorali.” He directed her to sit on one of the loveseats.
He went down on a knee and began checking between the cushions.
“I found it.”
“Really?” She‘d been staring at his body, imagining what he could do on his knees before her.
“Really.” He said.
He pulled them out with a flourish. Only there were no keys in his hands. He held up a small ring box, showing it to her with a smile on his face. He opened it up and pulled out a flawless heart-shaped diamond ring.
“Will you marry me, Lorali?” He slipped the ring on her finger.
She tried to say yes, but the tears and the small hiccups were making it impossible. For a moment she wished her mother could be there to see this.
She turned her head when she felt a warm touch on her shoulder. For just a moment, she saw her mom smiling at her and nodding her head yes. She fell into Sergey‘s arms, with yes‘s tumbling over themselves to leave her lips
One look in his eyes was enough to know that her male, both her males, had given her their hearts long before they gave her a ring.
“Yes, Sergey. I’ll marry you.”
Back Matter
I hope you enjoyed Sergey and Lorali‘s story. I truly enjoyed writing it and getting to know them.
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Nicolas- Book four excerpt
Chapter One
Janis peered out of her window, acting like tone of the senior citizens that watched everything on her street without being seen. The curtain she was presently hiding behind fluttered like the wind was shaking it as she let it go.
After waiting five minutes she peeked out of the curtains again. This time, she sighed with relief. There wasn’t anyone on the street for her to accidently bump into. More like they‘d accidently bump into her.
She gathered her gear, making sure her long pants came to her ankles. The long sleeved shirt and gloves she was wearing should protect her. It was fall finally, so maybe no one would look at her like she was crazy for the way she dressed.
She slipped out of her door, jogged down her steps (more like bounced down the steps) and slipped into her car. She stopped to give a sigh of relief. She hated shopping. There were always humans who didn’t care if they touched you. They acted like touching was no big deal. To them it wasn’t.
She turned on the car and headed to her local Big-Market. She‘d shop and hopefully avoid all of the humans out to do her harm. She hummed a little tune in her head while going over her shopping list. She never listened to the radio. Hearing songs of people being in love and kissing or holding hands was too painful.
She‘d buy a few nightgowns, It was time for some new one. She‘d grab some other clothes. Then she‘d get the food. She‘d waited longer than normal to go shopping, which meant she‘d run out of food days ago. She couldn’t deal with the thought of being shoved around, which was why she was now starving.
First it‘d been back-to-school season. She shuddered. It was like taking your life in your hands to venture into a store when mothers and children with harassed fathers were looking for the perfect backpack and accessories.
She drove around the parking lot four times until she was sure she’d a spot not too far away from the store, but far enough away to discourage others from parking next to her.
She headed to the store with her head lowered. She never looked to her right or her left. Her number one rule was to avoid eye contact with the natives. Eye contact encouraged them to approach you. Some were friendly. They just wanted to say hi or see if she needed help.
Others were rude. Some were even threatening. She‘d been pointed at, then laughed at more times than she could count. One time she‘d been caught between aisles in the store. Several people had pushed her from side to side. She fluttered her eyes, fighting off tears at the remembered pain. She never left the house with open skin anymore. If she could wear a facial mask, she would‘ve done that too.
She grabbed a cart and made a straight line for the plus size department. She grabbed some pieces without looking at them and moved on. She headed for pharmaceuticals next. She was out of things like alcohol, peroxide, bandages and the like.
How could the lights be out in this department? She would walk slowly. She took her cell phone out, the new one she‘d purchased online and had been sent to her house. It had a flashlight app. Turning it on, she felt more comfortable until she felt a mass of people in front of her. Lifting her eyes, she saw several teenage boys all grinning, whispering and pointing at her.
Not good, her mind screamed at her. Nothing was worse than native human male teenagers in a group. Don‘t make eye contact she reminded herself while backing up. She never looked behind her or she would‘ve seen the ones that had broken off to go down the next aisle so they could stand behind her.
One of the boys walked towards her as she backed up. “Can I help you miss?”
She kept moving backwards. Don‘t look into their eyes. Don‘t give them a reason to attack.
“My mama says it’s impolite to ignore people when they‘re talking to you.” He reached out and grabbed her arm.
The heat of his hand went through her shirt sleeve, bringing with it intense pain.
“I don‘t need any help.” She stuttered. “Let go of my arm.”
“It’s too late for that now miss. Next time someone talks to you, maybe you should answer.”
The sound of their laughter had her ducking, trying to protect herself. They circled her. Taunting her. Calling her names.
Their hands were everywhere, tearing at her clothes. She retreated deeper into herself. It‘ll all be over soon, she comforted herself. Where was a human when you needed one? Why were these monsters allowed free reign to hurt others? She‘d never understand.
They had tired of kicking her and began placing their hands on her exposed skin, her shirt had torn in several places. Pain of a different type ripped through her.
“No. Please don’t.” She whimpered and begged before she began to scream.
Her endurance had come to an end. Please kill me, her mind begged as she wavered in and out of consciousness.
She was dying. She managed a smile or was it a grimace. The angel of death had come for her and he was more beautiful than she‘d been led to believe. He was tall, standing close to eight feet tall. He had navy blue eyes. She liked
that they were a blue so dark she could get lost in them. But it was his features that took her breath away. He had fangs with slightly pointed ears and a wider nose. He wasn’t human.
In the end, it was all her mind processed. He wouldn’t hurt her when he took her to heaven. She‘d endured too much pain on earth to believe she could go anywhere besides the golden gates. She passed out at the thought of her Angel of Death carrying her in his thick arms.
Nicolas looked down at the woman lying on the floor. She was beautiful or would‘ve been if she wasn‘t battered and bruised. He‘d noticed her when she first walked into the store. His beast had sat up and taken notice also.
He‘d kept an eye on her as she threw clothes into her cart. Then he‘d made himself walk away. He knew humans didn’t take kindly to being stalked.
He growled again at the males who were hovering in the corner scared to move. They‘d released their bladders in fright like the infantile males they were. As he approached, his second form receded and his humanoid form appeared.
He crouched down so he could look each one of them in their eyes.
“I‘ll hunt each one of you down and kill you if I ever hear of you disrespecting another female. Is that clear?”
“Yes sir.” Each one said with a shaky voice.
He took a picture of each male and sent it off to Rena before calling her.
“Rena, its Nicolas. I just sent you several pictures of young males. Find out their names and addresses for me.”
He waited until she finished. “Rena, they hurt a female. They tried to kill her. If they ever do it again, I promised them to return the favor. Thanks.” He hung up his phone and turned as an adult male came into view.
“What happened here?” He was wearing a name tag that proclaimed him the manager.
“The young males over here were kicking and brutally mauling the female on the floor. I believe she’s unconscious.”
“I‘ll call an ambulance.”
“No.” His voice stopped everyone. “You need to deal with the youth. I‘m a doctor, I‘ll take care of her. Watch her, but don’t touch her.”
Sergey: Love Me Harder - Alien Paranormal Romance Page 16