Her scent held a minty freshness. Irish Spring? Manly, yes, but she likes it too. He stifled the threatening chuckle.
This whole whiskey tradition they shared had started with a tragedy. After the invasion of their old headquarters by Red Guard, where he’d lost his commander, mentor, and good friend, Jason Pike, Paul had fallen into a funk. It was Maggie who found him sitting alone in that dark corner trying to make sense of it all.
She’d offered him a drink from her hip flask. A good stiff drink had never been so needed or appreciated.
“You always carry a hip flask?” he’d asked.
“I call it my emergency kit,” she’d answered. “Never know when I’ll need a shot.”
At first he’d thought her an alcoholic, and kept a special eye on her. As he stepped up to lead the rangers and take over the security of the Xi Force headquarters, the last thing he needed was a drunken pilot on his hands.
But he’d never found her the least bit inebriated. Always sharp and alert, even after two or even three drinks. The woman could hold her whiskey.
She credited that to her grandmother.
“Gran taught me to drink proper. How much and when to stop,” she’d said once.
And in all the time they’d shared like this, and the amount of whiskey they consumed, he’d never seen Maggie get really drunk or out of control.
Months after that first incident, he’d repaid her kindness with a bottle of Knob Creak.
“Not a proper Irish whiskey, but not bad,” she’d remarked. And so had begun their secret liaisons in the hanger. He’d put together his own emergency kit and kept it stocked with proper Irish whiskey. They’d talked, laughed, and gotten to know each other on a level he’d never imagined could happen.
Friends, close friends, and now, maybe they could become even more.
“I’m planning on training your three aspects separately from time to time,” Paul said. “El Brujo has agreed to work with Morgan on the magic stuff, Mary Cullen will be training Morgause in medical procedures and triage, and I’ll be giving Morgana lessons in hand-to-hand and battle tactics.”
Tomorrow her training regime would begin. Maggie’s discharge papers had been delivered to his office earlier. Every T crossed and I dotted. She was a civilian contractor, full-time employee of Xi Force, and no longer under him.
He chuckled. He still wanted her under him, but in a much, much different way. He wasn’t about to rush things. Maggie meant too much to him for that. But now, he wouldn’t have to pull out the stops if things heated up.
Maggie took a sip of whiskey, closed her eyes, and leaned back against the big jet wheel. “What are you laughing at?”
“Your paperwork came through this afternoon, Ms. O’Donnell. You’re a free woman. Congratulations.” He clinked her glass.
Her eyes opened and a big smile spread across her luscious lips. “Then kiss me, Paul Tompkins. ‘Tis sure an’ I want you to.”
It came out of the blue. So fast it made his head whirl. Of course he’d thought about kissing Maggie O’Donnell. He wanted it on a deep level. But things had changed. She wasn’t just Maggie anymore. She was Triptych, a freakin’ superhero. What was he? Only a soldier.
He’d planned to take things slow, test the waters. A kiss was jumping into the deep end.
His stomach knotted. He’d faced tanks, giant robots, and superpowered villains, but this . . . this was frightening. What if they kissed and nothing sparked? Where did that leave him? Where did that leave them?
She placed her glass on the tarmac and pushed up and over, ending up sitting on his lap facing him. She laced her arms around his neck and pulled in close. “Paul Tompkins, I taught you how to drink proper. Do I need to teach you how to kiss proper too? Because, Begorrah, I will.”
Her lips touched his. Soft, yet firm. So warm, so filled with passion.
The knot in his gut turned into a roaring flame as he kissed her back. So sweet, and as heady as Irish whiskey.
He hugged her close, pulling her in as his tongue pried her lips apart to tangle with hers.
She was intoxicating, and he drank her in like a parched desert traveler who suddenly finds an oasis. A long, passionate kiss he never wanted to end.
When she finally did pull back, they were both panting.
She put her fists at her hips and stared at him. A crooked smile spread across her swollen lips. “Well, now, that wasn’t too bad. But we’re gonna need a lot more practice before you get it right.”
~ ~ ~
Maggie’s head reeled. No, she wasn’t about to let Paul know he’d kissed her sober. Guys tend to get all haughty when they think they’d done something right.
But this wasn’t any guy. This was Paul.
“Okay, maybe that kiss was really good,” she admitted. “I still need a lot more of that kind of thing, if you know what I mean.”
He pulled her toward him, a randy twinkle in his eye. “If you insist.”
She’d never felt such passion, such desire. The months they spent keeping it all in, made it all the hotter, and she was sitting on the evidence of his desire. His pulsing erection, so close to her core, to where she wanted him.
His kiss, was fervent, passionate, all encompassing.
She was free. Free to take this as far as she wanted.
And she wanted to take this all the way.
She leaned back. “If it wasn’t for those damned security cameras, I’d let you take me right here.”
His grin widened. “Then this is your lucky day. My lucky day too.” His fingers combed up the back of her neck, cupping her head. “The cameras are disabled for the next hour or so.”
The rascal. “Did you plan this?”
He shook his head. “A happy accident. The system needed a reboot.”
She dove in, planting kisses on his cheek, temple, and forehead. “Ya’ gotta love modern technology.”
At first she thought the buzzing in her ears was the result of his passionate response, but he suddenly stiffened and pulled away.
Lights flashed in the hanger, and the attention claxon sounded. The buzzing had been from the earpieces on her costume’s cowl that she’d pulled off and was now laying against her back.
Xi Force was being called to action.
She stood, reluctantly, then offered Paul a hand up. “Well, that’s crappy timing.”
Paul held her gaze. “As soon as we get back—”
His eyes widened, his face went slack. He was staring over her shoulder. “What the hell is that?”
She spun to stare out the open hanger doorway. Stars twinkled in the night sky. A large object high in the sky reflected the sun’s rays from over the horizon, but it wasn’t the moon.
A saucer-shaped craft hung in the air. It had to be miles away, but still big enough to see clearly from this distance. Were those tiny dots on the side windows? If so, there were lots of windows. That ship had to be huge. Lights flashed on it, pulsing blue and green. The same hues as on the ship downstairs.
Maggie’s stomach dropped. “I’ve got a really bad feeling about this.”
Chapter 12
Xi Force assembled in the ready room, some of its members pulling on costume parts as they entered. Z-Bot, Phaze, Shade, and El Brujo joined Maggie, Paul, and Aaron in short order. Wylde and Quantum entered soon after with Piotr, Wilde’s wolf brother, trotting at his side.
Maggie settled her mask and cowl in place. Being new to the team, she wasn’t sure if she’d be included in whatever was going on, but she wanted to be ready. This was the life of a Xi Force member. She’d better get used to it.
Quantum, Dove Locklear, was eight months pregnant and sidelined for now. Yet, dressed in her maternity costume, she’d come prepared for action if needed. Possibly the most powerful superhe
ro on the team, she could manipulate matter on the atomic level, fly, and fire blasts of energy from her fists. Dr. Logan had curtailed her use of powers because of concerns about how they’d affect the baby.
“Wanda, her new pups, and the kids are on the basement level. Mary and Jimmy are looking after them,” Wylde said as he entered. “Looks like it’s going to be an action-packed chapter.”
Wylde operated under the delusion he was a character in a book, and the author controlled everything happening—except him. Either that or he simply liked messing with everyone. It was hard to tell.
He was more wolf than person at times. His kids were also wolves, the survivors of his decimated pack. And there were questions about exactly how human the child he and Quantum had created would be.
It was an interesting family. How Quantum put up with it was anyone’s guess, but there was no doubting the love sparkling in her eyes whenever she looked at Wylde.
“What’s going on?” Piotr asked.
Yeah, this wolf could talk. Piotr had been used to extract wolf DNA in the process that created Wylde. In return, the wolf had received some of Wylde’s DNA. A man partially made into a wolf, teaming up with a wolf partially made into a man.
Kind of.
Kirk, still in his pajamas, rushed in, scurrying toward the big Cray control station. “Sorry.”
He slid into his chair, and started bringing up windows on the big nine-panel display.
“Okay, it looks like everyone’s here,” Shade said. “What do we know?”
Shade was Xi Force’s leader in the field. Aaron handled the base operations and handed out assignments.
“The craft came out of nowhere about a half hour ago,” Aaron said. “It’s hovering directly over Megopolis. A smaller craft launched from it that landed in a farm field west of Megopolis. Police arriving at the scene witnessed five figures going into that ship, before the door closed, the ramp pulled up, and the ship took off to rejoin the big one.”
Z-Bot huffed. “Three guesses who those five figures were.”
“That woman and the four aliens?” Peotr asked.
Wylde rolled his eyes. “Probably.”
Piotr was smart for a wolf, but rhetorical statements were lost on him most of the time. He was, however, learning.
Aaron cleared his throat. “The big ship is hovering over Megopolis at a height of . . . Kirk?”
Kirk sputtered. “Um . . . two point three five kilometers.”
Amazing. Kirk looked freshly woke from a deep slumber, yet he was already in full Xi Force support mode. The others around the room were costumed up and ready to fly out within ten minutes of the alarm sounding in the dead of night.
In the old days, Maggie would have been suited up in her flight suit and making her way to the Xi-1 at this point. She’d never witnessed this side of the action before.
The old days being last week, but it had been quite a week.
Tonight it would be Birdy’s job to prep the plane.
Aaron continued his briefing. “Army and National Guard troops are on their way, but it will be hours before they can mobilize. The mayor called, worried about panic in the city. We need a show of force and at least the illusion of control. We’ve had adequate evidence the aliens are not here peacefully. Hopefully they’re only here to pick up their people and go home.”
“Even if that’s their original intent, Guinevere is with them now,” Maggie interjected. “She’ll no doubt try to convince them to stay and be part of her plans. It’s how she works.”
Gran’s notes had indicated Guinevere’s magic was such she always knew the near future enough to pick out the next movers and shakers. She’d found Napoleon, Hitler, and Genghis Khan before they grew to power, and controlled each of them in their conquests.
Was an alien invasion this decade’s new world war? The fact the Fae Queen already spoke the alien’s language certainly gave evidence this was part of her plans.
Aaron nodded. “Yes, we need to keep our eye out for this Guinevere and take her out of the picture at the first opportunity.
Maggie patted the pouch in her utility belt where she’d stowed the magical cord. It wasn’t leaving her side again until the Fae Queen was secured.
Shade held up his hand, palm out toward her. “Let us subdue her. Even though you’re suited up, I want you on this mission as the Xi-1 pilot. Birdy’s not quite battle ready yet. I need your cool head in the cockpit. And I don’t want you in the field until Paul has time to train you properly.”
Maggie nodded, inwardly relieved. She knew she wasn’t ready to step into the role of full-fledged Xi Force member. And she wasn’t quite ready to hand flight duties over to Birdy yet. But she was going to be all over Paul to get her trained up as soon as possible.
Then again, she was planning on being all over Paul anyway.
Begorrah, could this mission come at a more inconvenient time?
No. Not Begorrah. That was Irish. It meant by God. And by God she was going to speak English and lose her Irish accent if it killed her.
People here didn’t like accents. She’d learned that early on. Even though she was American born and an American citizen, she’d occasionally get a Why don’t you go back where you came from? from the ugly side of the American crowd.
She hadn’t even had the accent until she went to live with Gran. She’d cultivated it to fit in with her school chums over there. Now she needed to lose it, and lose it quick. It wouldn’t be hard for people to put together Maggie O’Donnell, with her red hair and Irish accent, well known as the pilot for Xi Force, and Triptych, that new superhero. If she wanted to keep her identity secret, and she thought that would be a good idea, she needed to start now.
“I’m Batman,” she grumbled under her breath.
No, she wasn’t batman. She didn’t need to change her voice that much, but the accent had to go.
Maybe she needed to color her hair like Phaze had done. Or maybe cut it short and tuck it into her cowl. Thoughts for later. Right now, she had the mission to concentrate on.
~ ~ ~
As he stepped off the exit walkway of the Xi-1, Paul ordered his men to deploy around the plane and secure the landing site; a standard procedure, though one he didn’t feel necessary in their current situation. The threat hung in the skies, miles above them.
The mood on the ground was tense but not panicked. Megopolis had seen its share of disasters lately. Residents were dealing with it, or moving out. The population had dropped since the Red Guard takeover, but for the most part, the people of Megopolis were a tough lot.
Xi Force being so close to the country’s largest, most population-dense city played a huge role in the security the residents felt, and Paul was proud of the part he played in supporting the team.
Still, in the craziness that usually accompanied any Xi Force Mission, standard procedures helped anchor his men. Paul was in charge of deploying Pike’s Rangers and securing the Xi-1 before Xi Force exited the jet.
The plane was their mobile command center, their lifeline, and their means of escape if things went bad.
Maggie had landed the Xi-1 on the vacant top-floor of a downtown parking garage. A tricky maneuver, something Birdy wasn’t quite ready to attempt with the big vertical-take-off-and-landing jet. Maggie flew the VTOL like it was a part of her.
But Birdy was in the co-pilot’s seat today and he was learning fast. Xi Force needed him in the pilot’s seat, like they needed Maggie in the Xi Force ranks. Just not today . . . hopefully.
Paul knew it might be rankling to Maggie to have to stay with the jet while the rest of Xi Force made its presence known to the sleeping city below. Though how many were actually sleeping tonight was a question.
Word had spread of the UFO landing and the alien presence in the skies overhead. Any se
crets about the aliens the suits in Washington wanted to keep undercover had just blown up in their faces.
Shade approached. “I’d like you by my side as we patrol. Put Tex in charge here.”
“Yes, sir.” He was becoming almost as big a celebrity as the supers themselves. As the leader of Pike’s Rangers, he represented the same kind of security Xi Force did. Always with them, supporting them. He’d seen reports where they’d labeled him a hero.
He wasn’t a hero, just a soldier doing his job. But the reports always warmed his heart.
Of course, there had also been the hate pieces that questioned why a black man was put in charge of such an important mission. Oh, they hadn’t come right out and said that, but they’d certainly brought up every aspect of his background and implied he wasn’t worthy of the job.
El Brujo was getting some of the same because of his Hispanic origins.
This country, while still the greatest in the world, had a long way to go to reach the actual equality it wanted to cloak itself in.
Paul called in Tex, who’d replaced his omnipresent Stetson with a combat helmet. “You’re in charge here. Anything happens call us in. The plane’s security is your primary mission right now.”
Then he lowered his voice. “The plane and Triptych, that is.”
Tex huffed. “Don’t worry, boss. I know what she means to you.”
Yeah, his second-in-command was smart enough to deduce what had been going on the past few months, even though Paul had been fighting hard to conceal his affection.
Even from himself.
He wondered how many other people suspected how he felt about Maggie.
Shade had wanted to wait before revealing the presence of Triptych on the team. They were here to pad the way for the armed forces now gearing up and heading to set up defenses around and within the city. The population was tense enough, panic could set in at any time. The revelation of a new hero could provide a convenient distraction if played at the proper moment. This mission was more about PR than actual defense of the city, unless the aliens made some kind of move.
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