by Gail Koger
Bedan and Kalja scampered over to their fathers.
Kalja bounced up and down, chattering a mile a minute. “We go fast. Wee! Fast. Fast.”
“Eat deet worms,” Bedan exclaimed. “Big boom. Pretty.”
“Have fun. Do again,” Kalja babbled happily.
Bedan’s tentacles drooped. “Me puke on Yakee’s boots.”
While the Gorum carefully checked their children, their dazed and rather slimy riders slid off.
One of Bebo’s tentacles shot out and wrapped around my throat. “Do not take our children again.”
“I humbly beg your forgiveness. I would never harm them.”
“Which is why you still live,” Bebo declared.
Without warning, the brilliant golden light burst back into existence. A massive whirlwind roared to life. Hurricane-force winds blew through the room.
I hung on to the chair as my body went airborne.
The tornado engulfed the Gorum, and boom! They were gone.
My feet hit the floor. Yay! The Gorum had left without killing us, but I had a feeling we hadn’t seen the last of them.
Grim purpose stamped on his face, Wulf stalked toward me.
Yikes! He was beyond livid. I held my ground and smothered a laugh. His warrior braids resembled a tangled nest of snakes. Time to go on the defense. “We won’t go back without a fight. I don’t care if it mucks up your precious treaty with the Askole.”
“Shut up,” Wulf all but thundered. He pulled an injector from a hip pocket and slammed it into my neck.
“Ouch! That hurts.”
“Good.” There wasn’t a speck of sympathy in Wulf’s gaze.
“What did you give me?”
“The antidote.” Wulf moved Ziyad out of the pilot’s chair and plugged a thumb drive into the console.
My killer headache abruptly vanished, and the terrible emptiness was gone. “What are you doing?”
“Making sure you don’t pull this stunt again.”
“Hey! It was a well-thought-out plan,” I protested.
Wulf shot back, “Obviously. We captured you within an hour.”
I winced. It had only been an hour? It sure seemed longer.
My eyes widened in alarm. Where the heck was Colburn? I glanced at the command screens. The shuttle bay doors were opening. The fool was taking our shuttle and making a run for it. I wondered how long it would take Wulf to notice.
Mr. Crabby spotted the blinking red light that signaled the launch of a shuttle and opened a communications channel. “Return to the ship, Colburn, or when I catch you, and I will catch you, I will dump you in a Danute labor camp for the next six years.”
“Isn’t that a little harsh?”
Wulf eyed me with a distinct lack of favor. “Would you prefer I blow the shuttle into a million pieces?” His finger settled on the torpedo launch button.
“No! That won’t be necessary. Don’t be stupid, Colburn,” I pleaded, then added angrily, “You know you can’t outrun this ship, and your shields won’t withstand a direct torpedo hit.”
“Returning to the shuttle bay,” Colburn declared snottily.
He was the one who abandoned me, not the other way around. Sometimes my brothers didn’t have the sense the Goddess gave a petka.
“Once you’ve docked, I want you to give the shuttle a routine systems check,” my warlord commanded.
Colburn sputtered in outrage, “But…that’ll take hours.”
“Yes, it will.” Wulf turned his attention to Ziyad. “How did you create the energy flux?”
Ziyad’s tentacles stood straight up, and she played the dumb half-breed. “Hungry.”
“Cut the act.”
Someone was being a cranky butt. I would claim responsibility, but Wulf had been in my head. He knew I hadn’t created it or any other kind of weapon. “We bought the device off the black market.”
Menace crept into Wulf’s gaze. “You’re lying. I want the schematics. Now!”
“The plans are in my head,” Ziyad interjected quickly.
“Don’t lie to me. You won’t like the consequences.”
Where was a battle-ax when you needed one? “Back off! She’s telling the truth. Halvor the Betrayer had a bad habit of stealing her designs and selling them.”
Wulf stroked his goatee. “I believe you. Lothel, give her the antidote.”
Uh-oh. That wasn’t good.
Slime dripping off his battle suit, Lothel stepped up to inject Ziyad. She zoomed off.
Lothel teleported after her.
Ziyad stopped.
Lothel appeared.
Ziyad sped off.
Lothel vanished.
Around and around and around the bridge they went. I was getting dizzy watching them.
Quinn threw back his head and roared with laughter.
Glad someone was having a good time.
Ziyad slipped in some slime and hit the wall.
Poof. Lothel popped in and grabbed her.
My very best friend spun wildly, doing a great imitation of the Gorum’s vortex. Gobs of slime flew in every direction.
I jumped behind Wulf.
The slime pelted him. A low growl rumbled in his chest.
“Easy, big guy. You didn’t expect her to go down without a fight, did you?” I peered around his back and caught brief glimpses of Ziyad doing her level best to break Lothel’s grip. To my surprise, Lothel hung on and hurriedly injected her.
Ziyad stopped spinning and punched him in the face. “I hate you.”
“No, you don’t.”
I felt Wulf link with the Overlord. Not even thirty seconds later, enormous power flooded the room. Oh Goddess, we were so dead.
“Your battle tactics continue to surprise me, Yakira,” Zarek said with a grudging note of respect.
In a good way? “Uh. Thank you? Sorry about the treaty with the Askole.”
“The treaty was never in danger of being broken.”
“Oh.” My stomach plummeted. “So, the warrant is being honored?” Please say no. Please say no.
“It is not.”
“Pokham’s good with that?”
A hint of satisfaction eased its way into Zarek voice. “Pokham has joined his ancestors.”
“Gotta admit, launching that torpedo wasn’t a smart move,” I commented, doing a little happy dance.
Wulf raised his eyes as if silently praying to the Goddess for help.
“Downloading the worm wasn’t either.” Zarek’s voice was heavy with sarcasm.
He was going to kill me. I took a deep breath and went into my spiel. “I won’t apologize for trying to save Ziyad’s life, and at no time did I endanger your ship or crew.”
“You destroyed three Talon fighters,” Zarek countered.
Trying desperately to salvage the situation, I pointed out, “But the pilots weren’t harmed.”
“Do you know how much a Talon fighter costs?”
“No, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”
“One million credits apiece.”
I sighed. There went our long-awaited vacation. “You want the bounty we collected on Gulog the Mad?”
“I do. Give Wulf access to your accounts.”
“But I promised Bui I’d get her a new leg.”
Zarek retorted, “You shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep.”
“Yes, my lord.” Bui was going to be so disappointed.
“You’ll be assigned tasks to work off the other million and the cost of Bui’s leg.” And with that zinger, Zarek left my mind.
Relief swept through me. She’d get her leg!
Ziyad yelped in fear.
Yep. Zarek was mucking around in her head.
Wulf held out his arm. “The access codes to your accounts.”
He was still in a snit.
I reluctantly typed the code for the account into his communications bracelet and watched while he verified it. “I did what was necessary to save our lives.”
“I am your mate. It is my dut
y to protect you.”
“And if you had defied the Overlord’s order to turn us over to Pokham, he would have killed you. I won’t be responsible for your death.”
“Think of the Overlord as our father. A father who would have defended you with his life. As I would have.” Wulf stomped over to the warp drive control rack and typed a code into the input device.
Huh? A father figure? Was he kidding? The Overlord wasn’t exactly the loving daddy type, and if he was, he hid it really well.
Bui jumped from the console to my shoulder. “They scary.”
“They can be.” I stroked her silky fur.
“No worry. Me bite. They die.”
I blinked in astonishment. Her bite was poisonous? Why hadn’t someone warned me? “No biting Daddy Wulf or Uncle Zarek. Okay?”
“‘Kay. Why Daddy Wulf mad?”
“Because I didn’t trust him to protect me.”
“Why no trust?”
“The males in my life never keep their promises.”
My mate’s gruff voice sounded in my head. “I do.”
I met Wulf’s determined gaze and knew he meant it.
“I will always be there for you. Never doubt that.”
“You don’t understand. Pokham was the boogeyman in our lives. We tried to stay as far away from him as we could. When he showed up on Zarek’s ship, we panicked and ran.”
“Let me handle the boogeymen in your life.” Wulf walked over to me.
Goddess, that was so sweet. “I can live with that.” I reached up to seal the deal with a kiss.
The Overlord’s cold voice stopped me dead. “Malik has not been captured yet.”
Blast it. He was still hanging around. “It won’t happen again, my lord.”
“A word, Wulf.”
My link with Zarek and Wulf broke.
Wulf moved to the weapons control console and started entering information into the database.
Once he was done, I was sure they would be able to override the ship’s controls from anywhere in the universe. Can’t have frightened females running around the galaxy blowing stuff up. Can we?
“I need to eat,” Ziyad said and sped off.
Bui scampered after her. “More deet worms?”
Lothel followed with a determined expression on his face.
Hmmm. Did we have a budding romance?
Quinn strolled over. “Gotta say, you are one sneaky bitch. The worm and energy flux were excellent tactical moves.”
“Thanks. You didn’t come to gloat?”
“No. I rather enjoyed watching Voss’s reactions to your unique strategy.”
“Caught him off guard, did I?”
“You did. Not much surprises Voss or the Overlord.”
Time to change the topic. There was so much I wanted to know about my cousin and my Earth family. Like, what made him treat me so badly? “Why don’t you like me?”
“I don’t know you well enough to like or dislike you,” my cousin responded.
Nice sidestep. On to the next question. “Why did you allow the Coletti to convert you? You seem to hate them.”
Quinn remarked with dry understatement, “Who said I was given a choice?”
“They forced you?” I was totally horrified at the thought. Was I next?
“Not exactly. Let’s just say the Overlord made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.”
“I think there is a little more to the story.”
“I wanted fangs, teleporting is pretty amazing, and I have a great boss,” Quinn said with a mocking smile.
Arrgh. Why was he being so evasive? Maybe a little sarcasm would help loosen Quinn’s tongue? “So, this great boss says fetch, and you dutifully jump on a Gorum. Even if it means a blood relative gets screwed?”
“You don’t say no to the Overlord.”
“Oh, that’s right. You lost your balls. Are you dickless too?”
Quinn eyes glittered dangerously. “That mouth is going to get you killed.”
“I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself.”
“You’re not as strong as you think.”
I rolled my eyes. “Look. You’re a member of my family. I simply wanted to learn more about you. Is that so hard to understand?”
He ran a hand over his face and sighed. “I converted to keep my planet safe from the Tai-Kok and Rodan. Satisfied?”
“See? We have something in common. I kill the monsters whenever I get the chance.” To keep him off balance and talking, I asked, “Your sister is mated to Zarek’s son, Talree?”
Quinn scowled. “Biggest mistake she ever made was linking with that alien. Once he was in her head, she was his. You remind me a lot of Kaylee.”
Was that a compliment or insult? “How?”
“You’re smart like her. You’re loyal to a fault. You have Kaylee’s knack for finding trouble. You make friends wherever you go, and you always seem to land on your feet.”
“You still think I need training?”
My cousin rubbed at a spot of goo on his cheek. “I do. You’re wasting your talents. Malik could easily take you and turn you into a breeder.”
“I’d rather die than submit to him.”
“If Malik controls your mind, he controls you.” Quinn was chillingly matter-of-fact. “He’s broken some of our strongest warriors. Has Wulf explained what a feral is?”
“No, he hasn’t.”
Quinn continued his lecture. “If you shut down a Coletti warrior’s psychic abilities, keep him isolated, beaten, and starved, the warrior becomes feral and reverts to his primitive self.”
“I take it a primitive Coletti is even more dangerous than the Overlord?”
“Very. Once a warrior turns feral, his mind changes and becomes animalistic. The need for blood is overwhelming, and he converts into an almost unstoppable killing machine.”
My cousin pushed the image of a monstrous beast with tusklike fangs into my mind. “That is what a feral looks like. If you see one, run.”
You betcha I would. “Can they still teleport?”
“No. They lose that ability.”
Thank the Goddess for small favors. “What’s Malik’s purpose for all this?”
A muscle jerked in Quinn’s cheek. “He wants to punish Zarek by building an army of ferals and turning them loose on the civilian populations. Earth is his primary target.”
“We won’t let that happen,” I promised.
My cousin’s eyes grew bleak. “Malik tried before to destroy Earth. Thousands died.”
“But he failed,” was my blunt reply. Even I knew that.
A satisfied smile curved Quinn’s mouth. “He did, and the Jones clan was directly responsible for that failure. Unfortunately, we didn’t catch all the traitors.”
“You’ve got me on your team now. We’ll catch them, and there’s not a chance in the nine hells Malik will be successful this time either. I mean, really. The bastard has daddy issues and is a coward to boot. How many times has he dodged that fight to the death with Talree?”
“Several times.”
“I’ll do everything I can to track the fiend down and put him in the ground.”
My cousin shook his head. “Such confidence. Your bionics won’t save you this time. Malik knows everything about you. He will come for you, and when he does, you won’t know what hit you.”
“Gosh. Your faith in me is underwhelming. I eagerly await our training session, but first, tell me about the Jones clan.”
Quinn grinned. “We’re a family of warriors.”
“Just what the Coletti like. They must have done a happy dance when they found Earth.”
“The warlords were more interested in our psychic females than conquering another planet.”
Hmmm. Something was rotten in Orion. “Why the interest? Was there something wrong with their females?”
“I’m so glad you asked,” Quinn quipped. “A long time ago, in a land far, far, away there was a war.”
“Are you making this up?”
“No. I’m giving you a history lesson.” Quinn pushed me into the copilot’s chair. “Listen and learn.”
“Ok, you’ve got my attention.”
My cousin cast a quick look at Wulf. “I did a bit of snooping in Zarek’s archives and discovered that six hundred years ago, the Coletti race was almost wiped out in what they call the Great War.”
“I guess people got tired of sticky-fingered warlords running around the galaxy, taking things that didn’t belong to them.”
“According to rumors, the war broke out over a female.” Quinn waggled his eyebrows.
He was starting to grow on me. “Why am I not surprised?”
“The spurned husband, an Alliance general named Samor Tigres, was determined to eradicate the entire Coletti race for the actions of one horny warlord. General Tigres dropped several dozen Gall bombs on Tanith, the Coletti’s home world. The lethal radiation poisoned the surface and vaporized the seas.”
“Wait a minute. Isn’t the Alliance a Coletti ally?”
“Six centuries ago they were deadly enemies. Can I continue?”
“Sure.” I waved him on. Who knew history could be this entertaining?
“The planet dying and their cities in ruin, Zarek, a young warlord, gathered the survivors and moved them into a system of underground caverns. Almost singlehandedly, he rebuilt the Coletti Empire into what it is today,” Quinn ended with a flourish.
Gotta say, the Overlord had overcome some nasty odds to save his people. His accomplishments were impressive, and it did explain his hard-ass demeanor. “Is there more to the story?”
“I thought you’d never ask. The chemicals used in the war created a genetic anomaly, and only one female baby was born for every one thousand Coletti males.”
“In other words, they were facing extinction?”
“Exactly. To fix the problem, Zarek did what any good warlord would do. He started raiding other planets and species for their prized psychic females. Once the Overlord discovered the Jones family’s unique psychic powers and our blood’s ability to heal cellular damage, he promptly seized control of Earth. Any female who displayed psychic capability was immediately taken to the Colettis’ home world of Tanis to be converted.”
“Central Command did nothing to stop them?”
“Once the Overlord promised to protect Earth from Tai-Kok and Rodan raids, they turned us over without hesitation.”
“Let me guess. The greater good?”