What did she speak of? How could she rescue him? She was just a tiny female, a human at that. Vastly inferior to his own species.
“Did you just mutter something about me being vastly inferior to you?” She put her hands on her hips as she glared up at him. Had he been muttering? That was unlike him.
She snorted. “I don’t care how unlike you it was. Don’t call me inferior. I’m just as smart as you. And, I might add, I just risked myself to get in here to rescue you.”
“Why?” he asked suspiciously. Why was she here? Why would she think that she could rescue him?
She threw her hands up into the air. “I’m starting to wonder that myself with the way you’re reacting. I thought I owed it to you to help you escape since I know for sure that you didn’t actually hurt Elise.”
“You know the female?”
“I wouldn’t say know her. But yeah, I’ve met her.” She frowned. “Not sure why she’d lie about you hurting her, and when I tried to see her, I was turned away. I tried to go to the captain and tell him, but he wouldn’t even listen to me.”
He snorted. The captain was a fool.
“Then, about an hour ago, I returned to my room, only to get attacked by one of the guards. He had some sort of syringe. Not sure if it was to render me unconscious or kill me. Either way, I wasn’t really down with that. So I tied him up then came here to help you. But, you know, if you don’t want my help, I’m happy to leave. I’ll just need a boost up into the vent.” She frowned up at the ceiling.
He had frozen, his mind still processing her words.
Attacked?
Almost of their own volition, his hands reached out to grab hold of her. Gently.
“Hey? What are you doing?” she asked, slapping at his hands as he ran them over her body, searching for injuries his eyes could not see. “No touchy-feely without permission. What is wrong with you? First you make me sleep in your bed and now you’re feeling me up.”
“Were you injured? Hurt?”
Her face softened slightly. “I’m not hurt.”
“You said attacked,” he accused, glaring at her. Had she exaggerated? Lied? But why?
“I said I was attacked; I didn’t say that he hurt me.”
“But how?” He was confused. “Someone help you?”
“Do you realize how insulting you are?” There was a sound from outside the room and she paled. “Look, never mind about any of that. I was attacked and I won, okay? I left him tied up in my bathroom, so I don’t know how long we have. We have got to get out of here before anyone discovers him and comes looking for me.”
It still made no sense. How could a small female overpower a male? Even an inferior human male? But she was right. This was not the time for talking.
He crossed his arms over his chest. That did not mean he could trust her. “And how escape?” He pointed at the vent. “I not fit.”
She looked from him to the vent then bit her lip. “Fuck. You’re not going to fit.” She looked worried for a moment, then her eyes lit up and she held up her wrist, pointing at the communicator. “But I have something better.”
“Your communicator?”
“Nope. Not mine. That guard I mentioned. I stole it off him. He must have a high-level security clearance. Let’s just hope we can open this from the inside.”
She tried to walk past him towards the door. He quickly reached out and grasped hold of her wrist. He looked at the communicator suspiciously. “How you get this?”
“I told you,” she said with exasperation. “I took it from the guard who attacked me. I fought him off. Incapacitated him. Tied him up. And stole the communicator. Now what is so hard to understand about all of that?”
All of it.
“Look, Goliath. I didn’t have to come for you. I could have left you to rot in here and escaped on my own. It’s obvious the captain is framing you for some reason. Why else would someone try to take me out because I attempted to stick up for you and tell the truth? I’m a witness they need to get rid of in order to pin this on you.”
“Pin on me?”
“Make it so people believe that you are the one who hurt Elise when we know you didn’t.”
He frowned.
“They want you to pay for that with your life.”
He scowled. That was what Alek had told him when he visited earlier. He had promised to make certain that did not happen, but he did not know whether to trust the other male. Or anything he said.
Except now this female said the same. Was she telling the truth?
“I know it’s difficult to trust me, Lub.”
“Zandar.”
“Huh?”
“Name is Zandar.”
“You gave me a fake name before?” she asked.
“No.”
“Huh?” She shook her head.
“Name Zandar. Not Lub.” He gave her an impatient look. What was so hard to understand?
“Okay, that’s not important. What is important is are you leaving now with me or not? We can go our separate ways once we’re out of this room. That might be better. Give us more chance of getting out of here. You’re not exactly inconspicuous.”
Mine.
Oh no. He had no intention of leaving her. She would be coming with him whether she liked it or not. Until he worked out why his body seemed to believe that she was his, he was sticking close by her.
He let go of her wrist slowly.
“All right. Hopefully, this opens the door. There’s two guards outside. I’ll open the door then try to catch the guards by surprise before they can send out an alert.” She pulled a knife from her boot. He frowned at her. Did she expect him to stand there while she fought the guards?
“Give me communicator.” He would open the door and then take on the guards. He did not need her puny knife. He wondered if he should take it off her. She might accidentally cut herself with it.
He still did not put credence in her story of fighting off a guard to gain his communicator. It made little sense, considering she was tiny. Like a child. Which meant she got the communicator by other means. But why lie?
The idea it could be a trap crossed his mind. Except he could not figure out how her breaking in here and helping him escape could be a trap. But why else would she be here? Why would she help him? Guilt?
Perhaps.
Still. He would have to watch her. He could not fully trust anyone, let alone a tiny human female. Even if he did react to her presence. When was the last time his shaft had grown so hard around a female?
“Yeah, I don’t think so.”
“I take guards.” He met her glare with his own scowl.
She wrenched her hand away from him. He reluctantly let her go, not wishing to harm her.
“All right. I’ll open the door and you jump through and take on both guards. That sounds smart.”
“It does.”
“Do you want my knife?”
He snorted. “No need.”
“Fine, tough guy. Take them out with your bare hands. Wrestle them like an alligator. I don’t care. Just try to do it quietly, all right?”
Perhaps this was foolish, to have his back to her, but then, what could one small female do? Certainly, if she knew what she was doing with that knife, she might cause him some harm, but there was no way she could do permanent damage.
So he merely gestured her to the side of the door where she was safe. She swiped the communicator over the touchpad. It lit up green and the door slid open. He leaped out, catching both guards by surprise and completely incapacitating them in seconds.
He waited for hysterics. Females could not handle violence at all well. He was fully prepared to silence her. Gently. Not permanently.
But she just swallowed heavily. “Jeez, I didn’t say kill them.”
He had not killed them.
“We could have tied them up instead.”
He shook his head. “Female, no time argue.”
“Fine. Fine. Let’s go. Maybe try not to kil
l anyone else?”
Females. So foolish.
7
He killed the next guard they came across.
She scowled at him as he dragged the body back towards the room they’d shoved the other two guards into. She guessed that this one had been coming to relieve one of them.
“What part of don’t kill him did you not understand?”
“Female. Hush.”
“I will not hush.” Although she did drop her voice to a whisper-yell. She needed to try and remember why the hell she’d come to rescue this Neanderthal. First, he didn’t believe that she took on the other guard. Then he started bossing her around. And then he completely ignored her when she told him not to kill the guards.
“He might have been a nice guy. He could have a family waiting at home for him. He could have a pet dog called Jo-Jo. And now poor Jo-Jo is never going to see his master again because of you. Who will take Jo-Jo on walks, huh? Who’s gonna feed him treats now that you killed his master?”
All right, she knew she might be more than a little hysterical right now. And she was talking shit. She needed to get over it. Where was tough, fearless, take-no-prisoners Georgie? Huh? She’d lived on the streets since she was fifteen; why was she getting so upset over this?
“Female, I—”
“Nope. Nuh-uh, not listening. You are going to listen to me. You can go your way and I’m going mine. Good luck.”
She turned on her heels and let out a screech as she suddenly found herself flying through the air. She fell onto something hard, stomach down, all the air escaping from her lungs.
A heavy smack landed on her ass.
Was this guy for real? Had he seriously just thrown her over his shoulder then smacked her ass? What the hell was going on here?
You should have learned, Georgie. Only ever look out for yourself.
“Hush, female.”
“I wasn’t making any noise,” she spat back at him. “Let go of me, asswipe!”
She wriggled, trying to throw herself off, even though it was a long way down and she didn’t know if she could land without breaking something. Fuck, why couldn’t he have been puny and short?
“Asswipe?” he growled.
Damn it. She couldn’t move. His arm around her thighs was like a steel band. She thumped her fists against his back. Nothing. Not even a flinch while her hands were stinging.
Motherfucker.
Was the dude made of steel? Stone?
“You don’t like asswipe? We can try cocksucker? Jerkface? Beetle breath?”
“Female, stop.” He gave her another hearty smack on the ass. No fair. That one really stung.
“Stop smacking my ass!”
“Cease hitting!” he snapped back.
“Like I’m even hurting you. You’re made of cement or something. There’s definitely rocks in your head.” Inwardly, she groaned at herself. Reduced to childish insults. So humiliating. At least there was no one around to witness this. If anyone had seen her like this, she really would have had to murder the asshole.
“You hurting yourself.”
He moved around the corner and swiftly made his way down the corridor to the elevator.
“You’re smacking my ass because I’m hurting myself?” she guessed. “How does that make any sense?”
“Spanking no lasting harm.”
And punching his tough-as-metal body would? Well, actually, he had a point. . . No, Georgie! He did not have a point. He was being an ass.
“Put me down and I won’t have to hit you.” She was starting to feel ill. Her stomach rolled nauseously. Thank God she hadn’t eaten recently or it might have been all down his back. Then again, that might have forced him to put her down.
“No.”
The elevator came and he stepped inside.
“Shit. We’re going to get caught. Then I’m going to get locked up as well. I won’t do well in solitary. I need my freedom. I—”
“Female, hush.”
“My name is Georgie.”
He snorted. “Name trouble. Hush. No get caught.”
The elevator door opened and she tensed, ready to hear someone yell out. For footsteps to rush towards them.
Nothing.
Calm as could be, Lub, no Zandar, stepped out of the elevator. It was dark and quiet down here. She guessed they were in the lower part of the ship. Where was everyone?
Zandar moved confidently through what she thought was the cargo bay.
“Where are we going?” she whispered. “If you let me down, we can both go our separate ways. No hard feelings.”
“Hush.”
Okay, okay. She got it. Shut up and lie there, Georgie. She chewed her lower lip as he paused. There was a small beep, then he crouched down and slid her off his shoulder. She was now in a seat in a. . .
“Is this an emergency pod?” she asked, looking around as he settled himself into the pilot’s seat. There were around ten seats in the pod. She knew these ships were designed to only travel short distances, getting passengers safely away from the main ship. And that was about all she knew.
He grunted.
“Can you fly it?”
He grunted again.
She sighed. “I don’t speak alpha male, so you think you could use words? Are they going to let us just fly off? What if they fire on us? Maybe we should just stay here.”
How much trouble could she really be in? That guard probably hadn’t been trying to kill her. Maybe she’d overreacted.
Right, Georgie. Because it’s every day a strange guy waits in your room, then attacks and tries to inject you with some strange substance.
Actually, that was most Saturday nights in the neighborhood where she’d grown up.
What wasn’t normal was jumping into an emergency pod with a strange alien and flying off to God knows where.
But what’s your choice? As much as she’d argued for him to let her go, she had no idea how to survive out here. And that was freaking terrifying to realize. Georgie was a survivor. A fighter. She now realized her idea to jump off at some port and find a new life was a really fucking stupid one.
Her breath started coming in sharp pants.
Um. No time for a panic attack. Come on.
“Female.”
She glanced over at Lub, no Zandar. Zandar was way better anyway. Lub was a freaking awful name.
“Y-yeah?” she stuttered out.
He placed his large hand on her thigh and a strange tingle ran over her skin. Why did she find this Neanderthal so attractive? Even when he was slapping her ass, her clit was tingling, need filling her.
It was bizarre. And not terribly welcome.
It didn’t mean he was her mate, right? Right?
Fucked if she knew.
“Safe. Not let anyone hurt you.”
She took one shuddering breath. Then another. She didn’t know why, but she believed him. She gave him a nod and straightened her shoulders. “I’m not worried. I can take care of myself.”
He gave her a skeptical look.
“Hey, I took care of that asshole who attacked me, didn’t I? Stole his communicator.”
Zandar’s face darkened, his eyes turning red. She swallowed heavily. She’d heard their eyes changed color with emotion, but she hadn’t been certain that was true.
She was starting to think that there was a lot the recruiters had left out.
“Should killed him.”
“Not all of us are as bloodthirsty as you are. Shouldn’t we go now? If you think it’s safe.”
“It safe. I protect you.”
It was a nice thought. She just didn’t know how he was going to do that.
Zandar knew she was stressed. Her face was pale and she was holding on to the arms of the seat so tightly that her fingers were turning white.
He did not like it.
She should not be scared. She should have been protected at all times. That human male should have gotten nowhere near her. That she carried knives around to protect her
self. . .it was inconceivable to him.
There were so few Zerconian females that they were closely guarded. No Zerconian male would ever attack a female. That Georgie had been scared. Had to defend herself. . .a growl escaped him.
“Zandar?”
He checked everything over. They had plenty of fuel. He would need to go out fast and it would burn a lot of fuel, however, so they would need to land close by. They would have to get rid of the pod as he knew it could be traced. He looked her over. The communicator would need to be destroyed as well. “We go now. Belt.”
He turned and placed the safety belt over her, not waiting for her to do it herself. His hand brushed against her skin and he felt his rod harden.
His attraction to her confused him. Zerconian females were tall and strong. This female was tiny. Too small. Childlike. And yet, he reacted to her like he never had to another. Or at least so he believed, since he had little memory of his life before the slavers.
He turned away before he could test this attraction further. He put on his own belt then fired up the emergency pod. He pressed the eject button and it shot out of the shoot like it was designed to do in order to get the pod away from the mother ship as quickly as possible. As soon as the momentum started to die, he put it to full-power and dived low in case the transporter did decide to fire, although they would soon be out of firing range.
He kept an eye on the controls, trying to spot any warning signals. A sound chimed and Georgie let out a small gasp.
He glanced over at her quickly. She looked almost green.
“Female?”
“My name is Georgie.” Sweat broke out on her forehead. “Sick.”
Alarm filled him and he quickly reached over and pressed a button that released a storage container. Leaning over, she vomited into the container. Her body heaved, the sharp stench of her vomit filling the small area. A quiet sob came from her and he felt something inside him melt. Something that had been hard and, he thought, impenetrable, crumbled slightly.
“Georgie?” he said, using her weird name for the first time.
Another small sob. “Sorry. Sorry. I’m okay. Think I’m just motion sick.”
Motion sick? This was a thing?
“You sick from movement?”
“I just didn’t expect the pod to move so fast,” she explained. “I’ve never been in one. That transporter is the first ship I’ve ever been in and it didn’t seem to move much at all. Plus, I haven’t eaten in a while.”
Alien Conquest Page 5