by Gail Koger
Just freakin’ terrific. They were the ones I had darted outside the gym, and by the way they were growling like pit bulls, they definitely held a grudge.
I walked over to the hose, turned it on, and started scrubbing my face, hands, and arms.
Several hundred fire ants tromped across my mind. I quickly scanned the area. There. I could sense them by that hatch. Betcha they had an underground hideout. I tapped politely at Voss’s mind. “I’m sensing more Tai-Kok.”
“We have them on our scanners.”
“But they won’t—”
Voss severed our mental link.
“Show up on your scanners,” I muttered. The idiot knew I was a Siren. So why in the hell didn’t he listen to me?
Wulf and Lothel were totally ignoring me too. An evil grin touched my mouth. There was one way I could get their attention.
Raising the hose, I squirted both of them in the face.
Sporting a slitty-eyed predator’s glare, Lothel leaned down until we were nose to nose. He completely disregarded the water still pouring over his face. “Female, the only reason you still live is my respect for the Battle Commander.”
Swallowing hard, I pointed to the chicken house. “Tai-Kok, and they won’t show up on your swell scanners.”
“I will inform the Battle Commander,” Wulf snapped.
“You do that,” I snapped back and stomped off.
Lothel grabbed my braid and hauled me back. “Show me.”
Yee-flippin-haw! Someone was actually listening to me, and the next idiot that grabbed my braid was going to be singing soprano.
With my braid still wrapped around his hand, Lothel towed me over to the henhouse. My teeth bared in a snarl, I pointed at the metal hatch. “The Tai-Kok have a secret base down there. And guess what? Two hundred of those murdering bastards are heading this way, and you’re a bit outnumbered.”
Poof, he teleported away.
“What part of outnumbered didn’t you get?” God, testosterone should be banned. I climbed down the ladder and surveyed the dimly lit dirt tunnel for any sign of the warrior. “Lothel?”
Wulf peered down at me. “What are you doing, female?”
“Looking for Lothel.”
The next instant Wulf was standing next to me in the tunnel and studying his scanner. “It’s shielded.”
“Told you so.”
A bloody Lothel sprinted down the tunnel with several dozen Tai-Kok hot on his tail. “Go.”
Wulf threw me over his shoulder and teleported us back to the henhouse. A second later, Lothel appeared next to us.
I pulled four blue thermite grenades from my bag of tricks and held them out. “These will even the odds a bit, don’t ya think?”
His fangs bared in a wicked grin, Lothel took the grenades from me. “I can see why the Battle Commander chose you.”
Quickly pulling the pins, Lothel hurled them down the tunnel and locked the hatch.
His face etched in stone, Voss appeared in the doorway. “Give her to me.”
Wulf gently handed me over. “She is a Siren of exceptional talent.”
“That she is,” the Battle Commander replied, and poof, we were standing on a hillside.
Good thing Colettis could teleport up to ten miles in one pop, or we’d be crispy critters.
The ground rumbled under our feet.
Kaboom! The Latin King’s Family Farm exploded with a tremendous roar, hurling dirt, chunks of twisted metal, and a fireball high into the air. A couple hundred dead hens rained down around us.
“You guys like fried chicken?”
Chapter Six
Voss plunked me down on a boulder shaded by a large palo verde tree and commanded, “Do not move from this spot.”
My evil twin struck again. “What if I have to pee, or a rattlesnake comes slithering by?”
With an audible snap of his teeth, Voss snarled, “I need to search for Malik, and I do not have time for your foolish antics.”
“Malik’s not here. Which you would have known if you had only asked,” I snarled back, resisting the urge to whack him a good one with the charbroiled chicken dangling from an overhanging branch.
The big guy pinched the bridge of his nose as if he had a sudden headache. “What makes you so sure he’s gone?”
“I’m a damned good Siren, and I scanned the area for Malik’s brain pattern. He either got blown to smithereens or he escaped.”
“Their base is shielded.”
“Yeah, it was, and I still sensed the two hundred Tai-Kok warriors that were getting ready to jump your sorry ass.” I threw up my hands in disgust. “You know what. I’m done. You obviously don’t need or want my assistance. So why don’t I just toddle on home, and you do what you need to do.” I slid off the boulder.
Voss put me right back onto the rock. “Why didn’t you tell me you couldn’t sense Malik?”
“Gee, I don’t know. Could it be that you won’t listen to me?”
Annoyance flashed briefly across the big guy’s face. “It won’t happen again.”
My jaw dropped. Was that an apology?
“We both have adjustments to make. I will listen to what you have to say, but I expect you to obey my orders without question.”
“Can I get back to you on that?”
The Battle Commander growled deep in his throat. “Zoey.”
“Okay, if it’s a reasonable request, I’ll do it, but no more of this sit, stay crap. I’m not a dog.”
Irritation glinted in his eyes. “No, you are an aggravating, undisciplined female.”
“You know, Jasmine the whore would have been the perfect mate for you. She’s dumb as a brick, she’ll fuck anything that moves, and mind control works on her. She’d be the perfect puppet. She’d stay where you put her and never talk back.”
“I do not want a dumb-as-a-brick mate. You, my fierce little warrior, are exactly what I need,” Voss answered and gave me a hard kiss. “But make no mistake, I will tame you.”
Coletti warlords did like a challenge. “You can try.”
“I never fail.” Voss’s psychic hands skimmed over me, exploring my curves and igniting a fire in my belly.
Where was a bed when you needed one?
Jaylan linked mentally with Voss. “Commander, we found a body.”
Poof! He was gone.
How rude. No sweetheart, would you like to come with me? Or I’ll be right back. Or if you need anything, just let me know. Nope, he just pops out. If Voss thought I was going to sit here in the 112 degree heat for the next couple of hours, he was nuts. I jumped off the boulder.
Lothel appeared out of nowhere and put me right back on the rock. “The Battle Commander said you are to wait here for him.”
I was so done with this macho male crap, and if they kept this up, they were going to meet my evil twin. “Why?”
He scowled. “The Commander does not explain his reasons to me.”
“Right, and you never disobey an order?”
“No.” Lothel crossed his massive arms, tacitly daring me to move.
My attention was drawn to a young, skinny Coletti warrior who reminded me a bit of that singer Justin Bieber. The poor guy was struggling to assemble six floating view screens. “What are those for?”
“The command post,” Lothel answered, frowning when the screens abruptly crashed to earth.
“Hothar, engage the anti-grav,” Lothel shouted.
The kid nodded, and the screens floated back up and abruptly crashed again.
My babysitter stomped over to the kid and started yelling at him in High Coletti.
If I didn’t find a bathroom soon, I was gonna pee my pants. I slid off the rock and hurried down the hillside.
A big hand grabbed my braid and jerked me to a halt.
That did it. I spun around and kicked Lothel in the shin with my steel-toed boot.
He just grinned at me.
“So help me God, if you grab my braid one more time, I’m gonna kick your ass.”
Laughing, Lothel wrapped my braid around his hand and dragged me back up the hillside.
My temper flared to life, and I bit his hand hard enough to draw blood.
He flashed his lethal fangs at me. “You are a weak little female, and no match for a trained warrior.”
Weak? I literally saw red. “I’m the Battle Commander’s mate, and you will treat me accordingly.”
Lothel smirked.
“You wanna play hardball? Batter up.” Drawing heavily on my powers, I hit him with everything I had.
Lothel’s eyes rolled back in his head, and he toppled over like a felled tree.
“That, dickhead, is what we call a home run.” My triumphant grin faded. Oh sweet Jesus. Voss would lock me up and throw away the key.
Hothar ambled over and stared down at Lothel. “Nice punch.”
“Ah, thanks. Gotta go.” Locking my shields down tightly, I bolted for the truck and prayed desperately that the big guy was too busy to check on me.
Hothar jogged beside me.
“Go away.”
His expression one of fierce determination, Hothar replied, “I cannot leave the Battle Commander’s mate unguarded.”
“Sure you can.” I waved my hand at him. “Shoo! Go away.”
“Do you think I am without honor?”
Oh dear God, why me? “No, of course not, but I can take care of myself.”
“You are but a tiny female.”
“Who knocked out Lothel?” I skidded to a stop by the battered red truck. The poor truck driver was still standing there, staring blankly at a cactus. I slid into the semi driver’s mind and commanded, “Go home.”
With an agreeable nod, he turned and started walking. I really hoped he didn’t live in Tucson or Flagstaff.
I scrambled into the truck and started the engine.
Hothar opened the passenger door and climbed in. “Where are we going?”
“I need to find a bathroom.” I hit the gas, spun the truck around in a tight U-turn, and headed for Phoenix.
He plucked several feathers from my hair. “If you wish to clean up, I can teleport you to our ship.”
A slightly hysterical laugh escaped me. “Thanks, but that won’t be necessary. There’s a burger joint up the road a bit. I can use their facilities and get something to eat too.”
He settled back against the seat and curiously surveyed the interior of the truck. “I like cheeseburgers and fries.”
I flashed him a surprised glance. “Really? They serve burgers on your ship?”
“No, we eat them at your base cafeteria.” He opened the glove box and peered inside.
“Oh.” The general was a big suck-up. He probably thought supplying the Colettis with their favorite human food would get him that gig at Central Command. Not!
Hothar fiddled with the radio, smiling at the variety of music available.
“How long have you served on the Commander’s warbird?”
“Two of your years.”
Whipping around several slow moving cars, I kicked the monster truck up to eighty and did a quick scan of the area. No sign of Lothel or Voss. Yet.
Hothar pulled out the cigarette lighter and examined it. “Why are you disguised as a male?”
“I’m a reporter, and sometimes I use disguises to get close to the bad guys.”
“Your males allow you to endanger yourself in such a manner?”
Spoken like a true Coletti. “Men don’t get to tell me what I can or cannot do.”
He grinned. “Have you told the Battle Commander that?”
“I have.”
With a disbelieving shake of his head, Hothar added, “Coletti warriors are raised to cherish and protect females.”
“Yeah, right into the grave. On this world, if you don’t want to be dinner for the fucking monsters, you learn how to fight. If your women had known how to protect themselves during the Great War, the Coletti race wouldn’t be facing extinction now.”
Hothar was silent for a moment and nodded. “The Overlord did take a mate who could defend herself. The Battle Commander also chose you for your psychic abilities.”
“Lucky me.”
“Who do you hunt?”
“I’m tracking human traitors who are helping the Tai-Kok and Rodan.”
“They have killed many?”
“Over thirty million of my people have been slaughtered in the last ten years, and unless I find the traitors, thousands more will die.” I took the next turnoff and pulled into the parking lot of the Burger Palace.
He gently touched my arm. “I grieve for your loss, and I will help you hunt them.”
“Thanks.” To my utter surprise, the crushing grief was gone. Voss mucking about in my head had muted my memories. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hug him or slug him.
I turned off the engine. “Let’s go get some burgers.”
Like any typical teenager, Hothar was out of the truck in a flash. “And a soda?”
“And a soda,” I answered with a grin.
The Burger Palace was a heavily fortified restaurant with metal doors and shutters. The interior was painted a cheerful red with old movie posters adorning the walls. The booths were charcoal gray with red-and-black-striped cushions.
A glass case behind the cash register held three AK-47 rifles and several grenades. A sign read: BREAK GLASS IN CASE OF EMERGENCY.
There was always some fool who wasn’t armed and thought nothing bad could ever happen to them. Until the Tai-Kok came looking for dinner.
Ignoring the startled looks of the customers, I made a beeline for the women’s restroom and hurried inside. An elderly woman dressed in a pink jogging suit let out a screech that would have raised the dead.
Crap! I gave myself a mental head smack. I should have used the men’s room. “It’s okay. I’m not a guy. I’m going to a costume party.”
The old woman pointed at Hothar and sobbed, “Are we under attack?”
Smothering a groan, I smiled brightly and shook my head. “No, she looks like the real thing, doesn’t she?”
The woman examined Hothar in disbelief. “That’s a woman?”
Hothar growled.
“Stop it,” I commanded him mentally. “We don’t need the police showing up.”
He smiled at her, showing a lot of fang.
The woman’s eyes bugged out. “Those fangs look awfully real.”
“They do, don’t they?” I quickly slid into her mind. “Go back to your family.”
“Certainly, dear.” She hurried out.
“For future reference, men are not allowed in the women’s restroom.”
“I go where you go,” Hothar stated implacably.
“Are you by any chance related to the Battle Commander?”
“He is my uncle.”
Of course he was. “I want you to wait outside the door.”
“I cannot leave you unguarded.”
Taking a deep calming breath, I gestured around the small room. “There is only one way in or out.”
“Anyone can teleport in and take you,” he countered logically.
“Fine, but you are not coming in the stall with me.”
Hothar opened the stall door and peered inside. “Agreed.”
I rolled my eyes in exasperation, slammed the stall door shut, and quickly did my business. “Crap, no toilet paper.”
Hothar’s big hand appeared over the top of the stall with a roll.
“Thanks,” I said, taking it. “You haven’t told your uncle about our little road trip, have you?”
“He is aware of your location.”
“What!” I quickly flushed the toilet and opened the door. “How?”
“The mate bond allows him to track you.”
That sucked. “He’s coming, isn’t he?”
Hothar nodded. “I have ordered our food to go.”
A hurricane of power crashed into the room, and Voss was suddenly standing in front of me. He looked at Hothar. “Leave us.”
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The kid vanished.
A shaft of pure gut-deep panic shot through me at the rage simmering in Voss’s eyes. Sweet Jesus, that look was enough to send seasoned warriors running for their lives. No wonder worlds surrendered when his warbird paid a visit.
“You attacked my warrior and ran.”
“I taught your warrior some manners, and I came here to use the facilities and get some food.” I edged around him, turned the faucet on, and began washing my hands. The mate bond kept him from killing me, didn’t it?
The Battle Commander loomed over me. “How did Lothel offend you?”
I met his gaze in the mirror, and something dark and terrifying flickered in the Battle Commander’s eyes. “Lothel kept grabbing my braid. I warned him if he did it again, I was gonna kick his ass, and I did.”
“I see.” He rubbed a hand over his face and inquired blandly, “Did he do anything else?”
“He laughed at me, and he was disrespectful. I haven’t had any chocolate today, and I’m a tad bit cranky. You got a problem with that?”
“Yes, it is my duty as your mate to take care of disrespectful warriors.” His voice was a low, aggressive growl.
Yanking off a piece of paper towel, I dried my hands, and my evil twin made a sudden reappearance. “You weren’t there now, were you? So I took care of it myself. Since you neglected to ask me if I needed anything like food, water, or a bathroom, you forfeited your right to yell at me for coming here.”
“Is that so?” Voss’s hands clamped down on my shoulders.
A yelp broke from me when his fingers dug into my bruised shoulder.
Voss roared, “Who hurt you?”
“El Jefe’s henchmen were shooting at me, and I took a hit in the shoulder. It’s a bruise. No big deal.”
Voss pulled a knife from his boot, sliced open his hand, and held it up to my mouth. “Drink.”
I looked at the badly bleeding wound in horror. “Don’t you think you’re overreacting just a bit?”
His scary index shot off the charts. “Drink. Now.”
Self-preservation kicked in, and I reluctantly took his hand. With a grimace of distaste I sucked down some of his warm, coppery blood. Ewww. Gross. Chocolate it wasn’t.
“More.”
Did he practice his intimidating look in the mirror every morning? ’Cause it was really effective. “Do I hafta?”