by Gail Koger
Ziyad whispered in my head. “Did you know you’re broadcasting you’re having sex?”
“What?”
“Stop!” Loki growled. “She’s not of age yet.”
What a mood killer. “I will be in two months.”
“And you’ll wait until then,” Colburn gritted out.
My internal radar shrieked a warning. Something deadly was heading our way. I bolted from the chair and mentally scanned the area around the ship. The danger wasn’t outside the ship. It came from inside. But where? Had Halvor the Betrayer gotten ahold of another weapon? No. This was something different. I froze for a second, and fear curled into me like a living thing. Death was coming to visit.
Wulf advised grimly, “Not death. The Gorum.”
Sure. Why not? It was that kind of day. “The Gorum are coming for dinner,” I warned everyone.
My brothers pulled their laser pistols.
“Put your weapons away. Lasers won’t penetrate a Gorum’s hide, and you will only anger them,” Wulf ordered, then added, “Ziyad, they find your kind tasty. Do not provoke them. Do not talk. Do not move.”
Ziyad nodded.
I drew a deep, calming breath. “What’s your plan?”
“We have a treaty with them. I’ve informed the Overlord.”
The Coletti had a treaty with the boogeymen of the universe? “That keeps them from eating us?”
“No, but it should buy us some time.”
“Oh yay.”
Chapter Six
A brilliant golden light popped into existence. We all took two steps back and shielded our eyes.
Out of a spinning vortex slithered two living nightmares also known as the Gorum. They had long white tubular bodies and two eyestalks with bright yellow orbs. Around their heads were wormy growths that never ceased twisting with a peculiar life of their own.
Oh ick. The way their orbs rolled about was downright creepy.
Menace suddenly hung in the air, heavy and oppressive.
I had to say, they did intimidation really well.
“The Gorum are powerful psychics. They can read your mind,” Wulf warned.
Of course they could. I directed my thoughts at the bigger Gorum. I was pretty sure he was the boss. “Sorry, no disrespect meant. If you’re done trying to scare the hell out of us, maybe—”
A mind blast of rage knocked me on my butt, and the Gorum demanded, “Are you prepared to die?”
I thought I just wet myself. “Uh…not really. Have you dropped by for a quick snack, or is there a purpose for your visit?”
My brothers groaned.
Wulf shouted in my head, “Have you lost your mind?”
“Probably. It’s been a tough day, and as they say on Earth, my give-a-damn button is busted.”
The larger Gorum glided across the bridge, its eyestalks focused on me. A wormy growth lengthened into a tentacle and reached for me.
I retreated. “Now would be a good time to remind them about that treaty. They are not familiar with my brainwaves.”
“Oh goodie.” The slimy tentacle wrapped around my waist and lifted me until we were eyeball to eyeball.
“Do I have your attention?”
“You are kinda hard to ignore.”
“Listen well.” The Gorum thrust the images of two baby Gorum into my mind. “Where are our sons?”
Like I knew? Out of sheer desperation, I said, “I was three years old when the Tai-Kok took me from my family. I’ve never forgotten the fear and pain. I will do everything in my power to bring your children home safely.” And I meant every word.
The tentacle tightened. “If they die, you die.”
That totally sucked. “How about you kill the people responsible? Not us. Do you have any clues?”
“Yes. One of the people responsible is on this ship.”
Which explained their visit. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Halvor the Betrayer was curled into a fetal ball and shaking violently. A murderous fury rose up in me. It was him. I pointed at Halvor. “Talk with him.”
The smaller Gorum crawled over to Halvor, opened his gaping maw, and puked up a half-digested Bjarke. Melted flesh oozed from his skull.
A shudder shook me. That was way beyond gross. Wait a minute. I had seen that laughing skull earring before. Brynjar? He was my father’s only friend and stupid enough to pull a stunt like stealing baby Gorum. I took another quick look. It sure looked like him, but it was kind of hard to tell with most of his face missing.
Ivar gagged. “How is he still alive?”
“Good question.” Loki gulped.
Brynjar’s limbs twitched uncontrollably.
“The Gorum interrogation techniques are unique. By slowing down their digestive juices, they can keep a prisoner alive for hours,” Wulf explained.
Brynjar moaned pitifully. “Help. Me.”
“You heard him, Halvor. Your friend needs help.” Colburn’s tone was one of utter contempt.
Halvor scrabbled backward away from Brynjar. “No! He’s not my friend. I’ve never seen him before.”
Ziyad whispered in my head, “A warbird has dropped out of warp speed.”
“Lower the shields,” I whispered back.
“We can still hear you,” the larger Gorum added in a loud whisper.
“Fine. Then hear this. Leave. My. Ship. Now.”
“Or?”
“Or the Coletti will make you.”
“Indeed?” There was there a touch of humor in the big Gorum’s voice.
I heaved a sigh of relief when Wulf, Voss, Lothel, and Zarek teleported onto the bridge.
The Gorum brayed. “I should have known she belonged to you. She’s a Jones?” The tentacle patted me.
A grim smile touched Zarek’s mouth. “She is.”
The tentacle dropped away.
Very slowly, I crept toward Wulf. “I didn’t know it mattered.”
“Zarek would be unhappy if I ate a Jones female,” the Gorum said.
Wulf opened his arms, and I ran into them. “Took you long enough.”
He hugged me tightly. “We had a little skirmish with pirates.”
“Blow them to bits?”
“We did.”
“A Jones who runs to, not from, a warlord,” Voss observed sardonically.
Wulf said proudly, “My mate is one of a kind.”
“That she is.” The Overlord’s merciless gaze examined Brynjar, then settled on Halvor for a moment, before he turned to the Gorum, “How long have your children been missing, Bebo?”
“A day.”
“I offer our help.”
Bebo reluctantly gave the correct political response. “We accept your offer of help.”
Halvor the Betrayer jumped to his feet and yanked Loki’s pistol out of the holster. “I’m taking this ship.” He waved the gun around. “Try to stop me, and I’ll kill all of you.”
Talk about having a death wish. I waited to see who would take him down first. Zarek or Bebo.
A shrill scream tore from Halvor the Betrayer as both struck at the same time. His eyes rolled wildly in his head, and his limbs jerked spasmodically. “No! No! He said I was shielded. You…you couldn’t…touch…me.”
I snorted. “Evidently, he lied.”
Something truly horrifying filled Zarek’s features. “Who told you that? Malik?”
Halvor’s eyes bulged, and his mouth opened in a silent cry.
I buried my face in Wulf’s chest and tried to block out Father’s agony.
Wulf threw a mental shield around my mind.
I sagged in his arms. “Can’t be here.”
My warlord scooped me up and carried me to the cabin I shared with Ziyad. “He has information we need.”
“I know it has to be done, but…I can’t watch.”
“Then you won’t.” Wulf’s lips brushed over mine. “Your well-being comes first.”
No one had ever been this intent on caring for me. It was a heady experience. The aching hole in my
heart eased. Wulf completed my family.
Her tentacles waving crazily, Ziyad zipped into the room. “My breeding cycle has started. You must lock me away before I eat someone.”
“Whoa! What?”
Wulf’s eyebrows climbed in disbelief. “You’re too young to breed.”
“I’m not. Look.” Ziyad held out a tentacle. It had turned an odd red color.
“Blood, violence, and hunger can affect her Rodan half. Or maybe our love connection triggered Ziyad’s mating cycle. Did you know the females eat their mates?”
“Yes.” Wulf set me on my feet. “How are you feeling, Ziyad?”
“I need. I hunger. I want—”
Lothel walked in. “What’s going on?”
Ziyad pounced. “You!”
“No!” I grabbed her waist and pulled and pulled and pulled. Goddess, she was latched on good and tight. “Let Lothel go.”
“I burn for him. For his blood. For his flesh. Must have.” Her serrated teeth clamped down on Lothel’s throat.
Lothel punched her repeatedly in the face, but I doubted she felt it.
Seizing a handful of tentacles, Wulf managed to break Ziyad’s grip on Lothel’s neck. He threw her across the room. Smack! She hit the wall hard.
“Watch it! She does break,” I yelled angrily.
My warlord shot back, “Not easily.”
Blood gushing from the wound on his neck, Lothel struggled to rise.
“Easy, my friend.” Wulf grabbed a discarded towel off the bed and pressed it to Lothel’s neck.
A pretty scary roar issued from Ziyad. “Mine. Mine. Mine.”
I jumped in front of her. “No! Stop!”
A torrent of energy hit Ziyad, and she fell to the floor.
Oh Goddess! Had Zarek killed her? I dropped down next to her. “Please, please don’t be dead.”
Ziyad’s chest rose, and her eyelids fluttered. I expelled a long breath. I couldn’t lose her. I couldn’t.
Poof. The Overlord was kneeling beside her. He placed a hand on her head. “She won’t attack Lothel or any other male again in a mating frenzy.”
“Thank you for not killing her.”
“She’s family.” Zarek surveyed Lothel’s injuries. “Get him to sick bay, Wulf.”
Wulf and Lothel vanished, leaving me alone with the Overlord. He radiated so much power the little voices in my head started screaming, Run. Run. Run. But there was no place to run.
Zarek watched me with interest.
I pasted a pleasant smile on my face and tried not to hyperventilate. How hard could it be to make nice with the Overlord? Damn hard. What did you say to the most powerful male in the universe? How’s your mate? Nice battle suit? Do you know you have a spot of blood on your chin? I went with, “How long have you been friends with the Gorum?”
“A year.” I could swear he was laughing at me.
“Oh. That’s nice.” Someone kill me now.
Ziyad jerked upright and looked around frantically. “Lothel?”
Oh, thank Goddess. I was saved. “He’s alive.”
Her gaze froze on Zarek. “Pretty.”
Or not. A slightly hysterical laugh broke from me. “I think her brains are still a bit scrambled, my lord. You know, crashing into the wall and all.”
“You don’t think I’m pretty?”
I gaped at Zarek. Was he playing with me? “I believe the correct word would be handsome, my lord.”
“Good answer.” He gestured at my barmaid outfit. “Change into something more battle appropriate and come to the war room.”
“And Ziyad?”
“Bring her.” He teleported away.
Ziyad frowned. “Where did Pretty go?”
“We need to get you something to eat.”
Chapter Seven
I walked into the war room and stopped dead. How in the nine hells had the Gorum managed to squeeze in? Oh. Wait. Half the conference table was gone. The corners had been melted away. I gave Bebo the stink eye. He was buying me a new table.
Ziyad suddenly slammed into me. I went airborne for a few seconds, slid across the table, and fell headfirst into Voss’s lap. “Oomph. Sorry.” My legs waved wildly. “I seem to be stuck.” I planted my hands on his crotch, trying to push myself upright. Huh? The Coletti didn’t have balls?
“Sometimes Ziyad’s speed gets the better of her,” Colburn quickly inserted, making a grab for my legs.
“No kidding.” I wiggled some more, trying to leverage myself back on the table. Yep, definitely no balls.
“How you have survived this long is a mystery,” Voss gritted out, tossing me onto the chair next to him.
Her tentacles still a pretty red color, Ziyad quivered in hormonal fury. “Do not touch my friend. You are not her mate.”
“No, I have my own Calamity Jones,” Voss responded.
Loki and Ivar were trying hard not to laugh, and Wulf fought a grin.
“Sit down, Ziyad,” Zarek commanded, pointing to a chair next to Loki. “We have a rescue mission to plan.”
“Yes, my lord.” She sat.
I linked privately with Wulf. “Sorry about that. Voss won’t put you on latrine duty or demote you, will he?”
“No. He understands how difficult it is to control a Jones female.” His eyes twinkled with humor.
“Oh.” I frowned. Was that a dig? “Is… Is my father—”
“Halvor’s alive and locked in a holding cell.”
The Overlord broke in and asked bluntly, “Did you want to visit him?”
“No, my lord.”
“Then pay attention. The Gorum want you to honor your pledge to save their children.”
“Say what?”
“You said, and I quote you, ‘I will do everything in my power to bring your children home safely.’”
Did I have a big mouth or what?
“Yakira has a talent for finding missing items. It’s possible it could be used to locate the children,” Ziyad volunteered.
“Bet that’s how she found this ship,” Ivar crowed.
It was, but my gift wasn’t always reliable. “I’ll need a picture of them to work with.”
Bebo slithered around the table. With your permission, Overlord?”
Zarek nodded, shooting a warning look at a suddenly agitated Wulf.
What had him so upset?
Tentacles shot out and dug into my shoulders. Yeow! It felt like I was being stung by a zillion insects. The pain got worse and worse until a kaleidoscope of images burst through my head, and just like that, I knew everything about Bebo and Raj, the smaller Gorum, and their children. I could feel their deep love for the babies. How their wiggly little bodies felt in Bebo’s and Raj’s tentacles. The little guys’ love of deet worms. An indescribable sense of loss slammed into me. I was getting our kids back.
With their brainwave patterns locked in my mind, I psychically scanned the closest solar system for them. There. They were being held at the Eeriffi spaceport on Threll. “Found them.”
Bebo’s tentacles tightened, and the next thing I knew I was deposited on his back. “Do not fall off.”
“What?”
Wulf bellowed. “No!”
A blinding golden light formed around us. The light spun faster and faster and faster until it became a vortex. A terrified scream tore from me. Teleporting with a Gorum was like falling down the eye of a tornado at warp speed. Sixty heart-stopping moments later, we appeared at the main lounge of the Eeriffi spaceport. Another twister spit Raj out beside us.
The first thing I noticed was the unceasing rumble of arriving and departing ships.
The next was the hodgepodge of buildings sagging under an unforgiving sun. Everything seemed black, bleak, bent, or broken. The people scurried about like frightened animals, but none of them paid any attention to the Gorum. Weird.
“The Gorum have the ability to cloak their presence,” Wulf explained.
“Oh.” Not how did you like your first ride on a Gorum? Or do all your parts
still work?
There was a touch of anger in Wulf’s voice. “Are you okay?”
“I can’t feel my face, my hair is literally standing on end, and I’m covered in slime, but other than that, I’m good. Thanks for asking.”
“I didn’t know—”
“Neither of us were given a choice.” I pressed a mental kiss on his cheek. “It’s okay.”
Bebo demanded, “Where are Bedan and Kalja?”
I opened my psychic senses. Kalja’s frightened mind immediately latched on to mine. “Want my poppa.”
I zoomed in on his brainwaves. He was only twenty feet away. A portly Yagga was carrying the little guy in an animal crate. Dingle was definitely involved in the kidnapping, and he had his brother Pok doing his dirty work. “The Yagga has Kalja in the crate.”
Roaring their fury, Raj and Bebo dropped their invisibility cloak and charged the Yagga. Total chaos broke out as people panicked and stampeded for the exits.
I hung on for dear life.
Pok spun around, took one look at the Gorum rushing toward him, and took off running.
The crowded lounge made it difficult for the Gorum to catch up with him.
If Pok thought he was getting away with our kid, he was nuts. I drew on my telekinesis and started knocking bodies into Pok’s path.
The Yagga simply jumped over them.
“Arrgh!” I lashed out with my mind, and the crate flew out of Pok’s hand.
A tentacle caught it.
“Way to go, Raj.”
A vortex formed around Raj and the crate within seconds. Pop. They were gone.
Bebo leaped on Pok, pinning him to the floor. “Where is my son?”
“Better tell him before he eats you,” I advised.
Pok laughed. “Yaggas are poisonous to Gorum.”
“True.” Bebo spit a stream of digestive juices on him.
Pok’s skin began to melt. He shrieked and thrashed about.
“But I have other ways to get the truth.”
I flinched as Bebo ripped into Pok’s mind.
“Our ETA is thirty minutes,” Wulf said. “Don’t do anything stupid.”
“Who? Me?”
“I get to care for Raj’s child,” Ziyad squealed in delight.
“Whose idea was that?”
“Raj’s and the Overlord’s. They said a baby would calm my mating urges.”