Claimed by an Alien Warrior

by Tiffany Roberts

  She closed her eyes and exhaled softly.

  One day at a time.

  A few cars drove by on either side as they walked — none of which slowed down even slightly — but the road was otherwise deserted. Thanks to the darkness, Ren wasn’t likely to be recognized as anything other, not that anyone would be encouraged to stop and help when they noticed an obscenely large man walking beside Zoey.

  “So, I guess this means you’ll need to find someone else to help you?” she asked after a while, keeping her eyes on the ground.

  Anxiety soured her stomach. She didn’t want Ren to leave her. Even though they’d just met the night before, she liked being around him. Her laughter had come naturally and been more genuine than it had in years. He made her feel…good.

  There you go being desperate again, Zoey.

  Maybe she was desperate for companionship, but this felt different. Was it wrong to like the way Rendash made her feel?

  “We will simply need to obtain another means of transportation,” he said.

  “You say that like it’s an easy thing.”

  Well, maybe it was for him. He just needed to go poof! and slip into someone’s car.

  “Whether it is easy or not, Zoey, it is necessary. We must find a way.”

  Another car drove by. She watched its taillights vanish around a bend.

  “Maybe if you make yourself invisible, I might be able to grab us a ride,” Zoey said. “With all the scary stuff on the news nowadays, people aren’t likely to stop for hitchhikers, but maybe if they just saw me they’d be more willing to take a chance.”

  He walked a few more steps, boots crunching over dirt and snow, before responding. “Why are people more willing to assist females on this world?”

  “Because we’re basically labeled as the weaker sex.” She raised a hand and jabbed her finger at him. “Don’t you dare say anything. I didn’t say we are weaker — I mean, physically, we usually are, but that’s not the point. Anyway, you’ve made it clear what you think about humans to begin with.”

  “My species has been physically enhanced over many generations,” Rendash said, placing a hand over her jutting finger and gently guiding it back down. “To compare aligarii to humans would be unfair. But I see great strength in you, Zoey.”

  “Well, I haven’t broken yet. I guess that’s something.” She held out her hand. “Give that here.”

  He handed her the suitcase with his brow knitted in confusion.

  “Do your disappearing act,” she said, “and I’ll see if I can get us a ride. If it’s a truck, you can just climb in the back while I distract them. If it’s a car…I don’t know, I can ask to put my suitcase in the back seat, and you can climb in as carefully as you can. We’ll play it by ear.”

  “I…am not sure how long I can maintain the cloaking field. I will wait for a vehicle to approach before I activate it,” he replied.

  “As long as they don’t see you.”

  They continued walking. Zoey’s suitcase bumped over rocks, snow, and uneven ground; it definitely wasn’t an off-road model. The cold nipped at her cheeks and nose. “Was it something your captors did? To make your cloaking not work right?”

  “My control of my nyros was disrupted during the crash due to my injuries. That disruption was exacerbated by my captors. They injected me with chemicals regularly, and repeated experimentation and beatings ensured that my body was in a continual state of healing. It left little energy for anything else.

  “The connection to my nyros only rekindled when they were relocating me. They skipped the injections, and my body had adapted just enough to take advantage, but the chemicals haven’t yet left my system entirely. They no longer block my nyros, but it takes an immense amount of effort to utilize it.”

  Zoey frowned. She couldn’t imagine all they’d put him through. “I’ll do whatever I can, Ren, to stop them from capturing you again.”

  He met her gaze, and his smile was visible even in the darkness. “I do not doubt your fierceness for a moment, little human.”

  She snorted. “That’s just a nice way of saying you believe I’ll try my best, but you doubt my ability.” Zoey glanced at him. “That’s also the second time you’ve called me little. There’s not much little about me.”

  “By your own standards.”

  Before she could respond, a flash of light caught in the corner of her eye and she turned to look behind them. “Car!”

  But Rendash had already vanished. Zoey turned and walked backward, raising her arm with her thumb out. “Come on, come on.” The vehicle drove by without slowing, blasting her with chilled wind. “Damn.”

  “There will be others,” Ren said.

  A few more cars passed as time went by, but none of them stopped.

  When another vehicle approached, Zoey turned again, only to realize at the last moment how close the car was driving to the shoulder. She jumped back with a shriek. The car sped by less than a foot from where she’d been standing as she stumbled and fell on her backside in the snow.

  “Assholes!” she yelled.

  Ren materialized and darted forward; somehow, she understood what he meant to do and caught the tail of his coat before he was beyond her reach. His momentum dragged her forward, her butt skidding over dirt and snow.

  “Ren, stop!” she shouted, losing her grip on his coat.

  He came to a staggering halt and twisted to look back at her. For several moments, he said nothing, and then he seemed to shake whatever mood had overcome him. He kneeled. She reached toward him to accept the hand she expected him to offer, but instead he slipped his upper arms beneath her armpits and lifted her off the ground, depositing her on her feet.

  He’d picked her up as though she were as light as a feather. A feather!

  “Are you all right, Zoey?”

  Cheeks heating, Zoey brushed the snow from her chilled backside. “My ass is soaked, but yeah…I’m fine.” She eyed him. “No more chasing after cars.”

  “They nearly struck you!”

  “But they didn’t, and you shouldn’t reveal yourself, remember?”

  He scowled, and Zoey had a feeling that there wouldn’t have been anyone left to report the sighting if he’d caught the car. It was an unsettling thought.

  But if the bastards had hit me, maybe they deserved it.

  Ugh, begone dark thoughts!

  She bent down and righted her suitcase, which had fallen over. When they continued walking, Rendash positioned himself between Zoey and the highway.

  It was a small gesture, but she’d be lying to herself if she didn’t admit it warmed her heart.

  Headlights from behind had Zoey turning again. She stuck her thumb out, and the vehicle — a big, red pickup truck — slowed as it passed them.

  “Yes!” she exclaimed as the truck pulled over on the shoulder ahead. “Remember, climb into the back of the truck as carefully as you can.”

  The only signs of Rendash’s presence were the ghostlike boot prints that appeared in the snow beside her as she hurried toward the waiting truck.

  The window rolled down when Zoey approached the passenger-side door.

  “Need a lift?” a man asked from inside.

  Zoey looked into the dark cab. The faint light from the dashboard bathed the man’s face in a soft green glow. Though it was difficult to tell because of his facial hair, he looked to be in his late thirties. He had short-cropped blonde hair and a neatly trimmed beard. Heat pulsed from inside, which explained why he wore a t-shirt, one muscled arm draped over a fold-down armrest beside him. His jacket lay on the passenger seat.

  “If you don’t mind,” she replied. “I have a suitcase.”

  “Toss it in back and hop in.” He smiled, flashing straight teeth.

  Zoey moved to the back of the truck. “He’s going to give us a ride,” she whispered. “Climb in as I toss my bag in.”

  She lifted her bag over the edge of the bed and dropped it in. The rear end of the truck rocked slightly, and she he
ard the gentle scrape of cloth as Rendash settled himself in.

  “Be safe, little human,” he whispered.

  Zoey untied the blanket from her shoulders and dropped it into the back of the truck. “I will be. It shouldn’t take more than an hour to reach the next town. We’ll find a room there, okay?”

  The blanket moved and then faded away, like it had been erased from existence. “An acceptable plan. I will await our arrival in the next town.”

  “You need help back there?” the man called.

  Zoey hurried back to the cab, opened the door, and lifted herself in. He’d removed his jacket from the seat. “Thank you for this.”

  “No problem,” he replied. “Heading the same way, right? Toward Green River?”

  “Yeah,” Zoey said, holding her hands up to the sweet, hot air blowing from the vents. The window beside her rolled up.

  “What’s your name?” the man asked as he eased back onto the highway.

  “Zoey. Yours?”

  He turned his head and smiled at her. “Matt.” He slouched slightly, leaning on the armrest with his right arm while he kept his left hand draped over the top of the wheel. “Green River your final stop?”

  “Just passing through,” Zoey replied. She glanced in the side mirror, knowing the angle would be all wrong but longing for a glimpse of Ren anyway.

  “Was that your car back there on the side of the road?”

  “Yeah. All the power just suddenly cut out, and it wouldn’t start.”

  “Sounds like it might be a timing belt.”

  Zoey arched a brow. “You a mechanic?”

  “Nah. I know just enough to get me in trouble.”

  Zoey chuckled. “Trouble? Sounds more like you’d be useful in that kind of situation.”

  “Knowing what’s broken isn’t the same as knowing how to fix it.” His smile hadn’t faded, hadn’t changed at all.

  They drove in silence for a time before his hand moved to the radio on the dash. “Music?”

  “Sure.”

  “What do you like?”

  “I’m good with anything.”

  He nodded, pressed a button, and the radio lit up. He flipped through the stations, stopping on the Golden Oldies. The same kind of music Bud played in his diner to set the atmosphere.

  “This good?” he asked.

  Zoey smiled. “Yeah.”

  He could’ve put anything on without objection from her; she was just grateful to be out of the cold and moving forward. They’d be in Green River soon, and from there… Well, they’d figure something out. Rendash had made no indication that he intended to leave her, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t. She couldn’t blame him if he moved on alone.

  Matt tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as he sang along with the music under his breath, casting occasional smiles in Zoey’s direction. She offered one more smile of her own before turning her head to look out the window and watch the dark landscape pass.

  The road was fairly smooth, so at least Rendash wouldn’t get tossed around, but it was likely freezing back there. She wished they’d had some other choice.

  “So where did you say you were going?” Matt asked.

  “Green River,” Zoey replied.

  “I mean after that.”

  Zoey looked at him. “Des Moines.”

  “Long way. What’s in Des Moines?”

  “A friend. She invited me to live with her as her roommate.”

  “Does she know about your car?”

  Zoey frowned. That was a strange question. “Yeah. I let her know my trip would be a little delayed. I already have a rental car set up in Green River.”

  “Really?” His tone implied surprise. “I’ve been through Green River a lot. Never saw any rental places.”

  “They were…offering a pickup service because of the circumstances.”

  “Tow truck driver probably would’ve given you a ride into town. Decided not to wait?”

  “It’s late,” she said, “so I figured I’d get a room for the night and deal with it tomorrow. The car is likely totaled if you’re right about the timing belt. Wouldn’t be worth fixing.”

  “Most likely not.” He cleared his throat. “Anyone else waiting for you in Des Moines? Parents? Siblings?” He glanced at her. “A boyfriend?”

  “My husband. He just got out of the military.”

  “So why are you moving in with your roommate?”

  Ah, fuck, I’m so bad at this.

  Zoey rubbed her palms against her thighs. “He’s moving in with us, too. Just until we get settled and find a place of our own.”

  “He didn’t get you a ring?”

  “What?”

  Matt gestured toward her hand.

  “Oh.” She pulled her left hand back and covered it with the other. “I lost it.”

  “That sucks,” he said with an oddly flat tone.

  His questions stopped there.

  Maybe it was just her imagination causing the strange, tight feeling in her chest. Matt was probably just trying to be friendly; picking up a hitchhiker under any circumstances had to be awkward, right? Still, if not for Ren, Zoey would’ve asked to be let out right here. The red flags were steadily mounting in her mind, and Green River couldn’t be much farther.

  But they needed to keep moving. She could suffer through some probing, uncomfortable conversation for Rendash’s sake.

  The truck slowed, and Matt turned off the highway. The headlights shone on an overgrown dirt path.

  Heat tingled over Zoey’s skin. Her back stiffened, and she twisted to look back at the interstate. “What are you doing?”

  “I need to take a piss. How about you?”

  Something about the way he’d asked that made her stomach twist into a knot. “Um, no. I’m good.”

  Matt kept driving, bouncing along the dirt road through scrubby vegetation until it finally dipped behind a small rise. When Zoey looked back again, the interstate was out of sight.

  “Why are we so far off the road?” she asked, dropping her gaze to search for Ren in the pickup’s bed. Knowing he was there, even if she couldn’t see him, calmed her a bit, but her heart pounded with unease.

  “Relax.” Matt unbuckled his seatbelt and turned his body toward her. “Just want some privacy.”

  Zoey released her seatbelt and placed her hand on the door handle. “Okay. I’ll stretch my legs while you…do your business.” When she tugged on it, the door didn’t open. With her other hand, she pulled the lock up, but the door still didn’t budge. “It’s stuck.”

  “I know.”

  She faced him again.

  He grinned and slowly lifted the center armrest, sliding over the seat toward her. “It’s nothing personal, okay? I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity.”

  “W-What opportunity?” Her breath was suddenly ragged, struggling through a constricted throat.

  “A young woman, all by herself, out here?” He chuckled and settled his hand on her knee, slowly moving it up her thigh.

  Zoey smacked it away. “Don’t touch me.”

  “You know you want me, too. Why else would a woman be out here by herself? You hoping to fulfill some fantasy? I can help with that.” He sat back and dropped both hands to his pants, opening the fly and pulling out his junk. His dick was an angry red, already fully erect. He gave it a stroke before reaching for her again.

  Zoey swung to bat his hand aside, but he was fast, grabbing hold of her wrist and tugging her closer. She slapped at him and lifted her leg to kick him, pressing her foot into his gut and pushing. He was nothing if not strong.

  “I said don’t touch me!” she yelled.

  Balling her fist, she punched him in the temple.

  Matt winced and snapped back, shaking his head. Within seconds, he shook off the blow, glaring at her. “I was going to take it easy on you, but I guess you want it rough. Fine. I can play rough.”

  He backhanded her.

  The impact knocked her backward, disorienting her just
long enough for him to shove her down onto the seat. He settled his weight atop her. She struggled as he attempted to grab her wrists.

  “Hold still, damnit!” Matt snapped.

  “Ren!” Zoey screamed.

  Before the sound had fully left her mouth, the sliding panels on the back window exploded inward, knocked off their tracks by an immense force. Matt shouted in shock, but his voice was cut off when a huge arm snaked around his throat.

  Zoey threw up her arms to shield herself from Matt’s flailing limbs as Ren pulled him backward. The man’s grunts and heavy, stilted breathing only grew in desperation as his shoulders caught on the window. Zoey scrambled aside, bracing her back against the door, and slammed her foot into Matt’s abdomen, chest, and groin.

  Once Ren forced Matt’s shoulders through the opening in the back window, the struggle was over. The man’s legs swung as he was dragged into the bed of the pickup, forcing Zoey to duck for cover. The truck rocked wildly with a series of bangs and bumps. Matt’s cries were renewed, but they faded — as though with increasing distance — once the rocking ceased. Soon, the only sound in the cab was the crooning voice of Dean Martin.

  She sat up and twisted to see Rendash on the ground outside the passenger door, hauling a still-struggling Matt toward the brush. Their forms vanished as they left the glow of the headlights. A shiver crept up Zoey’s spine; she told herself it was just the cold air coming in through the gap in the back window.

  A short series of agonized, terrified screams rose over the music, and then fell silent.

  Zoey pressed her trembling hands onto her thighs as minutes crept by.

  Unable to wait any longer, she crawled over the seat and opened the driver-side door. She climbed out of the cab and steadied herself with a hand on the hood as she walked around to the front, the headlights making her shadow impossibly long. She barely registered the cold as she scanned the darkness.

  “Ren?” she called.

  Only the wailing of distant wind answered her. She folded her arms across her chest, tucking her hands beneath them, and strained to see anything outside the beams of the headlights.