Somehow the muffled conversation took a turn, and Vin began to argue, “Don’t feed me that nonsense, Gary. I’ll tell my brother whatever I want to tell him…I don’t care if you’re scared of him and what he said he’d do to you if you didn’t find me…You sent a Clynder to my woman’s home and wrecked the place…You all should have thought about a Killian’s temper before you contacted Kal with your shiny images and half-naked female promises…Safe? Are you joking? There are countless stories featuring Earth floating around the back channel communication forums. Aliens being abducted and sold for secret Earth government studies, the cloning black market where aliens are experimented on, and savants. You didn’t bother to warn us about those half alien, half human hybrids, did you, Gary? You’re lucky Kal…”
Something brushed over the receiver, scratching out the words. After a long while, the message continued, “Where was I? Oh, Clynder military team. Sev, you missed it. Green parts were flying everywhere from the clones and, blast it, what do they want now—”
The message ended. Sev took a deep, worried breath. What was a Clynder military team doing on Earth? And why was Vin fighting them? And what the hell was this about the back channel communication forums? No one had told him anything about the back channel rumors of kidnapped aliens being trafficked to Earth on the black market.
“Where are you? I need your help,” an agitated third message said before hanging up.
Sev walked faster, not sure where he was going. The fourth and fifth messages were a bunch of scraping and rattling noises.
“Damn it, Sevglarkenbauer, answer your device,” a slightly panicked Vin uttered before a loud thump sounded. Clearly, his brother thought he hung up his phone, but Sev could hear the recording as Vin muttered to himself, “Deep spacehole blistersack! The one time I need your help, you decide to ignore me. Stop fucking around and trying to punish me for escaping. I had to. Angela is worth dying for. Now answer your device!”
The message ended, presumably, so Vin could call back. Sev hit the next message on the list.
“Mr. Blaze Glarken, this is customer care calling to let you know we have expedited your request. Please call us back at your earliest convenience to arrange transportation to the aforementioned site.”
He frowned at the overly cheery voice. If Vin wouldn’t answer his phone, then he’d call customer services back. As soon as they answered, Sev demanded, “What did you do to my brother?”
“I, ah, well,” a cheery voice stammered.
“Get Gary or Bob on the communication wave immediately, or I will devour your entire family whole,” Sev ordered with a scary grumble to his tone.
The phone clicked, and soon Gary was on the line. “Good evening, Mr. Blaze. This is Gary. And don’t bother threatening my family. One, I wouldn’t mind if they were devoured, and two, you’re Killian. Your people prefer a bland diet and don’t eat other aliens. Now, how may I help you today?”
Sev let a low growl sound in the back of his throat.
“Yes, of course, I hear you. Please don’t be upset with me. I’m just doing a job and…” Gary babbled on as Sev held the phone away from his ear. The small alien’s bravado didn’t last all that long.
“My brother?” Sev stated clearly.
“We have him. He is not too happy with us right now because of Angela, but Vinglarkenbauer is not going anywhere,” Gary assured him. “We offered to take his woman, but he refused. He’s locked in his room reading a copy of his Galaxy Alien Mail Order Brides contract.”
“My cousin?”
“Kalglarkenbauer has been with his bride in a hotel room for close to thirty-six hours. The room is being watched to make sure he doesn’t leave,” Gary said.
“The shuttle?”
“Uh…?”
“Shuttle?” Sev repeated louder.
“It’s coming.” Gary’s tone left a lot to be desired.
“It better be just as you say, because I’m not leaving this planet without my family.” Sev took a deep breath. At least Vin was safe. “Go tell my brother to answer his damned phone.”
He hung up and waited for a few minutes before calling his brother.
“I don’t know what you said to Gary, but that poor being looks like he just dropped his entire insides,” Vin said by way of answering the call.
“Don’t be disgusting,” Sev scolded.
“Don’t be a popped blister,” Vin returned. “Hey, where the solar fire have you been? I’ve been trying to get in contact with you. Tell these idiots you’re not going to kill them, or blow up their home worlds, or sacrifice their garden slugs, or whatever it is you threatened them with. They have me locked in here with the freaking Elvis group. Apparently, these idiots were under the mistaken impression that they were actual royalty. They tried to take over a hotel and make females serve them like kings. One has declared himself king of the Elvis kings, and they are now fighting over their catch phrase. Can you hear that?”
As Vin paused, a background voice said, “Thank you, I like punch.”
“No,” another voice drawled. “It’s like this. Thank you berries much.”
“I’m going to hit them,” Vin said. “They have been arguing about that over and over again for nearly two hours. Get me out of here.”
“You should have thought about that before you escaped your chains last time.” Sev couldn’t help but laugh. It served his brother right to be trapped in a room with a bunch of their annoying travel companions.
Now that he knew his brother and cousin were safe, he wondered if he could go back and find Cynthia. He turned around. Hopefully, it wasn’t too late to join her for her party tonight. The worry he had felt moments before was replaced with excitement. He wanted to see her. He wanted to be with her.
“Are you listening to me?”
“No,” Sev answered honestly. He brushed his hands over the front of his tuxedo, straightening it. The feel of her lips on his cheek still tingled. He wanted her to kiss him like that again. The memory of her silk gown against his hand caused him to shiver. He wondered if her skin would be so soft. Did he dare touch her if the opportunity presented itself?
Sev looked down at his coarse hands. They were the hands of a miner, a worker. It almost didn’t seem right touching her with something so rough. Cynthia appeared delicate, fragile, a lady, elegant, and beautiful, and exquisite, and… There were so many words he could think of to describe her. She was so many wonderful things.
And there was only one word he could think of to describe himself. Rough.
Ok, and maybe tough, depending on how he was feeling. Both words weren’t as half as appealing as Sev would have liked, and they definitely weren’t words he’d use to describe someone worthy of a woman like Cynthia.
Despite this, he began to walk back toward the lobby where he had last seen her.
“Sev, I’m serious,” Vin’s voice broke into Sev’s daydream. “I love her. I love Angela. I know that I’ve screwed up in the past. I know I have made your life harder. I know I could’ve been a better brother. But I’m serious right now. I need you to hear me. I love her. She is my heart. I need her. Do you remember when we were young, and I asked you why people married? It was after mom and dad had that fight. You told me that love between a man and a woman was one of the most sacred things a man could strive for. Even when things are not perfect, a marriage between two committed people was always perfection. Even during a fight. Even when sick. Even on your worst day. And then I asked you if you would ever get married like our parents were. You said that a man should only marry when he found the woman who made him want to be better. Well, Sev, Angela makes me want to be better.”
Sev stopped walking and turn back around. He thought of Cynthia. He wanted to go to her, to be with her, to see where the night would lead them. But his brother’s words struck him. Vin needed him. “What can I do?”
“Thank you, brother,” Vin said in obvious relief. “I need to make a grand gesture. I need to show her how I feel. I kno
w what to do, but I need Earth money. I need your help.”
Sev thought about it for a moment, before finally answering, “Finish reading that contract. It states that they have no right to force you back onto the ship if you do not wish to leave. They will have to let you go if you tell them to.”
“Really? Where? How do you know that?”
“I told you to read it the second we found out Kal had signed our names on our behalf.” Sev sighed into the phone. “Galaxy Alien Mail Order Brides won’t be happy about it, and the Federation is not going to be too pleased with that little loophole in their contract. But it doesn’t matter. Use it. Get out of there and meet me at our first hotel. I’ll be in the casino. We will earn that money for your grand gesture. Angela will know how you feel.”
“Thank you!” Vin hung up.
Experiencing an acute sense of disappointment, Sev was slower to pull the phone from his ear. It appeared as if he would not be seeing Cynthia tonight after all.
Earth women were so fragile. He really hoped this Angela could survive in the underground Bravon settlement of Frxsolis. The Solarus Quadrant reached hellish temperatures, and it did not make for an easy life.
Sev squared his shoulders as he tried to come up with a plan to collect the money Vin needed to win Angela’s heart. A sense of brotherly love and fellowship washed over him. He’d heard of the phenomenon where a male suddenly wanted to become a more reasonable person after meeting a woman. Maybe this Angela would have a calming effect on Vin. One could only hope.
“Scarface!” Sev said out loud as Raymond passed by. He hadn’t understood what was going on in the movie, but the man looked like the actor from it. “That is who you remind me of. Not the main guy, but that other one.”
“I’ve been told worse.” The amicable concierge smiled.
The famous line from the movie was on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it.
“Can I help you, sir?” Raymond inquired.
“Actually, Raymond, there is something you can do for me.” Sev reached into his pocket to pull out a piece of paper with the name of their last hotel. He handed it over. “What’s the quickest way to this place?”
Chapter Five
“I’m not sure if I should be impressed or insulted,” Cynthia said as she leaned up against the blackjack table and gestured at Sev’s large pile of chips.
“Ma’am, you can’t lean against—” the dealer began to scold.
Cynthia waved her hand in dismissal and pushed away.
“I can explain,” Sev answered. He smiled when he looked at her, and she had to turn her attention away. She didn’t like the little flutter that hit her chest at his nearness.
Seeing one of her handlers watching them from a distance she took a deep breath. “Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. I didn’t ask for an explanation. And you don’t owe me one.”
“I am helping win money for my brother so that he can make a grand gesture for the woman that he loves. He is going to tell Angela that he wants to marry her.”
That explanation caught her off guard. “Oh? And this Angela wants him to have,” she paused to glance over the winnings before roughly guessing, “nearly two hundred and fifty thousand dollars before she’ll marry him. That’s about two hundred and fifty thousand gestures. What is she? A—”
“No. The money is to afford the nursing care facility that her mother will be moving to. She loves her mother. And helping her take care of the woman is the grand gesture Vin will use to show her that he loves her. It is what you do for family,” he said. “You help them.”
Cynthia didn’t meet his eyes as she pretended to fuss with the waist of her gown. Would her father have thought like that? She never really had a chance to know him. “Vin?”
“I mean Flame. My brother is named Flame. My cousin is named Spark.”
“Right, Flame,” she repeated, knowing he was lying to her. “Spark, Flame and Blaze.” Their Earth names sounded like firemen strippers. “Your family must like setting things on fire.”
“It was hot where we grew up,” he allowed.
Ladies, put your hands together and get your pocketbooks out because these three guys are here to light some fires, and then put them out with their giant water hoses. Welcome to the stage, Spark, Flame, and Blaze!
She laughed softly to herself.
“Why are you smiling like that?” He barely glanced at the table as he played.
“I was just wondering what your real name was, Blaze,” she answered. “Though, maybe I don’t want to know. I don’t mind secrets.”
“Sev,” he said.
“Sev.” Cynthia gave him a small smile. “I like that. Sev, Vin, and...?”
“Kal.”
She motioned to the gaming table. “Your turn.”
“Stay.” He glanced down, barely giving it a moment’s thought.
“We have a winner,” the dealer announced.
“It looks like I am your good luck charm, as well,” Cynthia observed.
Sev scanned his winnings. “I need to find my brother and give him this money. You are welcome to come with me.”
Cynthia glanced at her handler and slowly shook her head in denial. She didn’t want them following Sev and Vin to some poor woman’s nursing home. They were trying to do a good deed, and she didn’t want in the way of that.
“No, this sounds like a family thing.” Cynthia couldn’t help running her hand down his arm. “You go. I’ll find you again.”
Sev reached to take her hand in his. He held her fingers lightly. “Do find me. I enjoy seeing you.”
She nodded. His honesty did something to her insides. She started to lean into him, wanting to be closer. Catching herself, she pulled away. There were too many eyes on her. “You better go cash out.”
Sev gathered up his chips and glanced back at her several times as he walked away.
“It has never taken you this long to get information,” Bruce stated.
Cynthia frowned but didn’t look at the man who’d come up behind her. “I’ve never been sent to gather Intel on a Killian before. Do you think you can do better?”
“Maybe you’re not his type,” Bruce said.
“And you are?” She teased.
“I meant your character. Maybe you need to girl it up a notch,” he suggested.
At that, she turned and gave him a pretend pout. “Oh, silly Bruce. There are things you will never understand. I’m whatever type I have to be. Now, patience. It’s a slow con. If I act too eager, he’ll know. If the bosses wanted to capture one rogue alien on the planet, then they wouldn’t have called me. They want to take down Galaxy Alien Mail Order Brides. They want to stop the source, not one groom.”
“Did you find out anything new?” he asked.
“Sure. I learned his real name.” She turned to look where Sev had disappeared into the crowd.
“Well?”
“John Doe. Can you believe it?” She gave a playful wink and tried to walk away with a lightness she didn’t feel.
Bruce pulled his phone off of the clip on his waist to read a message. “Wait. You should change your clothes. They want your ready to go if there is another opening.”
Cynthia stopped and made her way back to him. She lost her smile. “Fine. But tell them to hang back. I think he’s starting to suspect he’s being followed,” she lied. Hopefully, they’d listen, and she’d buy him time with his brother for their grand gesture. “And this time I’m picking out the costume.”
“No. They laid out a dress in your suite. He likes the classic movies, so they want you to stay in that role.”
“Just trust me and let me do what I do best,” she insisted. “I have a feeling about this one.”
Chapter Six
The aromas of Earth were becoming more agreeable by the second, at least they were in the restaurant once Sev got past the bright colors some of the food came in. He found he had begun to look forward to his tri-daily coffee fixes, and the cheesy b
reakfast omelet with its soft yellows and whites wasn’t bad either.
Even the people and their panicky ways were beginning to grow on him. The waiter jittered about as he carried trays back and forth to tables. Customers tapped their hands impatiently as they waited for coffee. Others talked loudly on their phones so everyone could hear their side of a conversation.
The quaint restaurant in the foyer of the hotel was the last place anyone would think to look for a lovesick alien. He could hear Cynthia’s voice from the last time they were together. Funny thing was he couldn’t even recall what she was saying. All he knew was it soft, sweet and then sultry and sexy all at once.
Someone walked by in brisk fashion, and it awoke Sev from his lovelorn state.
Instantly he was transported once more into reality. The mental ride back was swift. It threw him into the quagmire of his brother and cousin’s irresponsible actions that had led to Sev’s current situation.
The depth of Vin’s emotions for his Angela troubled Sev. It was not that he didn’t want to see his brother happy, he did. It was learning how profoundly Angela cared for her mother, which was a positive thing. However, Connie Borden suffered from brain deterioration and would never be able to leave Earth with her daughter.
Since Vin was his younger brother, and someone had to take responsibility for the kid, Sev had stepped up to fill that parental role when their parents died. He took that role seriously. Sev thought of their parents. The air lock should have been checked. It was an accident that could have been avoided with vigilance and maintenance schedules. Because of it, Sev had made it his duty to know everything he could about the turbines and mine safety. He understood the need for family. If he could reverse time and go back, if he could have even one more day with his parents, he’d take it. Sev couldn’t insist that Angela leave her mother behind. And, if Angela didn’t leave, then Vin…
Blaze: Galaxy Alien Mail Order Brides (Intergalactic Dating Agency) Page 3