Mission: Planet Biter (Veslor Mates Book 4)

by Laurann Dohner

  She took her hand off his chest plate and jerked her thumb toward the dead female with pale hair. “She really did it… I was hoping Nancy had lied or was confused.” Then the female whimpered and pressed her face against him. “I don’t want to see more dead. Too many dead!”

  “Find a scanning bed,” Roth ordered.

  “I’m clearing one now,” Maith called out. “Bring her in here. I just moved the body off it.”

  Roth carried the female to his waiting medic, glancing at the body of a male on the floor. He went to the other side and tried to gently place Vera on the bed.

  She moved fast though, lunging and wrapping her arms around the neck of his suit. “No!”

  Roth stilled as the female clung to him. “Vera, we’re trying to help you. You need to release me. My medic needs to scan you and find a way to make you better.”

  “There’s no cure!” She clung to him tighter. “It’s an experimental drug. Got to stop being exposed and it’ll eventually leave. Disappear. Dissipate. Something like that. Dr. Hazel said so. But we couldn’t go outside. Jeremy disabled the vehicles. He thought his girlfriend would leave him. He couldn’t be reasoned with to fix them, so we could drive outside. The animals would have eaten us if we’d tried to go out there without the protection of the vehicles. We don’t have heavy-duty environmental suits that could withstand an attack. The air is breathable here but we were trapped inside. Poor Crystal got eaten! She went out there. Poor Crystal…” She sobbed. “The animals were eating her!”

  Roth adjusted the female until she mostly sat on the medical bed and gently rubbed her back. “You need to lie flat.”

  “No. You feel real. I’m not letting go. You’re hope. I need hope!”

  Maith moved to the other side of the bed. He gently gripped the female and tried to get her to release Roth.

  The female screamed, hurting Roth’s ear closest to her open mouth, but they managed to pin her flat by careful force. She bucked, still screaming, and her gaze locked on Roth.

  “I need you! Don’t leave me. Please! I can’t take any more. I hung on as long as I could!”

  She was panting, terrified and thrashing. “Sedate her,” he ordered Maith.

  “I can’t risk it. Whatever is in her system is already a high dosage.”

  “I need you! Please?” The female began to sob again.

  “Let her go,” Roth ordered.

  The moment Maith released her, the female rolled toward Roth, grabbing ahold of his arms and trying to climb up his suit to reach his faceplate. Not that she was physically capable. She seemed extremely weak.

  He leaned in, putting his face as close to hers as the helmet would allow. “Look at me.”

  She locked her gaze with his. Now he was really concerned. One of her eyes was mostly black, the center overtaking the blue, but the other one…the black was just a small dot, showing mostly blue.

  “I will hold your hand and not leave you, but you need to lie flat and allow the scanner to go over you. Do you understand?”

  “You won’t leave me? I can hold on to you?” Desperation sounded in her voice.

  “Yes.” He took her small hand in his glove. “Hold on to me here. I won’t let you go. Now lie flat, Vera. Please. We are trying to help you.”

  She still looked unsure. “You won’t let me go? You won’t disappear or turn into a bigfoot?”

  Roth felt pity for her. She made no sense. “Veslors—that’s what I am—always keep our promises. I won’t let you go. I’m right here and I’m real. Lie flat.”

  She clutched onto his glove and slowly relaxed, adjusting her body until she lay on her back.

  Roth nodded to Maith. “Help her.”

  Maith got to work, operating their medical bed. The scan ran slowly, lighting up under the female. “It won’t take long.”

  Vera held completely still, gazing at Roth while clinging to his hand. He figured whatever was wrong with her, it must be bad. Most human females avoided Veslors, frightened by the sight of them. This one seemed to depend on him to keep her calm.

  Maith turned away, lifting a data pad from a nearby table and tapping at it. Long moments passed.

  The female jerked, gasping, drawing Roth’s attention.

  “What’s wrong? I’m holding your hand. I’m here.”

  “Something jabbed me.”

  “Apologies. I needed blood to test,” Maith said softly.

  “It is fine,” Roth assured her. “Keep holding onto my hand, Vera.”

  Time crawled by until finally, Maith turned. “The computer has identified what drug she is on.”

  “Fix her.”

  “I can’t. There’s an Earth company name assigned to it but it’s listed as an experimental drug that failed testing trials on Earth and was banned from use by their people. No other information is available about it.”

  Roth didn’t like anything he’d heard. “What else?”

  Maith set down the pad and went to a screen across the room, going to work at that station. “A Dr. Josie Hazel made notes. I’m reading them but the translation program I’m using to read their language is slow.” Maith paused for long minutes, then snarled.

  The female on the bed whimpered, turning toward Roth and pressing against his suit. He reached out with his free hand, stroking her back with his glove. She seemed to calm at his touch.

  Roth had no patience left. The female was highly distressed. Maith needed to find a way to help her. It bothered him, seeing her so terrified. “What have you learned?”

  Maith turned to hold his gaze. “It seems that they were purposely exposed to this illegal drug by an unknown source. Dr. Hazel believed it was an act of terrorism but had no idea who would want them dead. The humans began to hunt for how they were being exposed, but their minds were affected too severely by the time they realized what had happened.

  “The drug made it impossible for them to accomplish tasks. Patients were exhibiting various symptoms, mainly seeing things that weren’t there, drastic mood swings, irrational thinking, and failing vision with muscle spasms.” He paused. “It’s why this female is shaking. The humans couldn’t locate the source of the exposure to stop it, had no way to leave the planet or to survive outside of this structure. All they could do was wait for help to arrive. The doctor finally implemented a full lockdown to separate the humans to slow the deaths.”

  Clark Yenna entered the room—and stopped abruptly. “What’s going on? Is she diseased? Contagious?” He paused. “Why is there a body on the floor?”

  Maith gave him a quick rundown of what they’d learned. “We need to transport this female to Defcon Red’s Med Bay, which is more advanced than this facility, and the company on Earth that created this drug needs to be contacted to learn more about it. We also must find out what the source of exposure was down here. The humans could not. And no one from Defcon Red can remove their suits while here or link to this facility to replace their water or air supply to their suits. Those could be compromised. We will need to execute full decontamination on everyone who has entered this place before they remove their suits or step foot back on Defcon Red.”

  Clark grunted. “Why full decontamination? Won’t the suits protect us?”

  Maith lifted one of his gloved hands. “It’s possible the drug attaches to solid surfaces. The drug could have been spread on surfaces, like paint, and transferred through touch. It could be stuck to the exterior of our suits. I’ve seen a poison spread that way once on an alien outpost. They didn’t like outsiders. It was placed on all walls, doors, and furniture.”

  “Got it,” Clark sighed. “We’d be exposed taking off our suits if they aren’t cleaned first. I’m on it.” He frowned at Vera. “I’ll have Birch and his team’s medic take her up and hand her over to the doctors while we figure out this mess and how it all happened. All the bodies need to be bagged and tagged, too, for autopsies and retrieval, to send them home to their families.”

  Roth lowered his head, staring at the female c
urled against him, clutching his hand. Then he looked back at Clark. “I need to be the one to take her.”

  The male team leader tapped on his helmet control before speaking. “I’d rather your grouping stay down here. I know you boys are protective of women and I respect the hell out of you for it but the truth is, some of the teams aren’t handling this well. Jones puked inside his helmet and Ryan is spooked with all the bodies we’ve found. That woman is the only one we can rescue. Drak let me know they had tracking for life signs on the people living here. We’re up to twenty-eight bodies so far with more to find.” He pointed to the one on the floor. “Twenty-nine—and it makes thirty with the blonde out there sitting in the chair.”

  Roth glanced down at the female. She wasn’t aware of what Clark had said, since the male had transmitted his voice inside their helmets only, via their coms. He had no idea how she’d react if she realized all the other humans were dead.

  “This female is highly unstable and seems to have bonded to Roth,” Maith informed Clark. “She can’t be sedated. It’s not safe in her current condition. I’ve read the notes from the doctor in charge of this place. Any attempt at sedating the patients caused their vitals to crash.”

  “Fuck,” Clark hissed. “What else?”

  “Every time Roth releases the female, she believes she’s being attacked or loses her grip on reality. It’s important that we keep her calm until she’s stabilized. She’s suffering from malnutrition, dehydration, and dangerous levels of stress that could worsen her condition when she panics.”

  Clark’s eyes widened as Maith explained. “I see.” He stared at Roth. “Who’s in charge of your grouping if you leave the surface?”

  “Drak.”

  “Take her up to Defcon Red and stay with her until the doctors say she’s stable. Find out what you can once she is.” Clark sighed. “I need you down here, Maith. Keep digging into their medical logs. Send everything you find to Defcon Red. The doctors up there will want as much info as they can get to find out what the hell is going on with her. I’ll send Birch’s medic with you, Roth. He’ll meet you at shuttle two. I keep forgetting the kid’s name. He’s new.”

  Roth met Maith’s gaze. “Be careful. Inform the rest of our grouping that I’m leaving.”

  “Right away.”

  Roth leaned down. “Vera?”

  She turned her head, peeking at him.

  “I’m going to let go of your hand.”

  “No!” She used her free hand to claw at his leg, her nails scratching on his suit.

  “Listen to me,” he growled.

  She froze, panting.

  “I’m going to let go of your hand to pick you up. You can hold on to me. Do you understand? I won’t leave you.”

  She nodded. “You’re real. Right? You don’t want to kill me or think I’m food?”

  “I’m real. I won’t hurt you in any way. You’re not food.”

  “Man, she’s really messed up,” Clark whispered.

  “Yes,” Maith agreed.

  Roth let go of Vera’s hand and quickly scooped her into his arms. She wrapped her fingers around the back of his helmet and buried her face against his chest plate. He turned, facing Clark, and shrugged. He had no idea why the female trusted him.

  Clark stepped out of the way. “Good luck with that one.”

  “Full decontamination,” Maith reminded Roth.

  “I’ll inform Defcon Red.” Clark touched the side of his helmet to broadcast to the rest of the teams. “Peterson, I need you to relay a message up top. I have one survivor and two team members coming your way. Suit up, pilot, or seal your ass inside the cockpit. Full decontamination routine. Have our Med Bay ready for intake.”

  “Fuck,” the pilot sighed. “Got it.”

  Roth didn’t wait to hear more, walking out of the exam room and leaving the facility’s Med Bay. He had to find his way back to where they’d blown an opening to enter one of the pods and reach shuttle two as quickly as possible. The female in his care needed more help than he or his grouping could give her.

  He didn’t like taking the female outside but scans indicated the atmosphere wouldn’t harm her. The planet’s oxygen was breathable and the weather wasn’t cold or hot enough to harm her. He moved fast though, striding into the shuttle. The young human medic was already waiting.

  “I reclined a seat to strap her to.”

  “That isn’t feasible.” Roth took another seat, adjusting the female on his lap. Vera clung to him, keeping her face hidden against the hard shell of his suit.

  “But—”

  “Close the doors and tell the pilot to lift off,” Roth ordered.

  “You’re not strapped in.”

  “I can’t put her down. She doesn’t react well. Tell the pilot to fly carefully to avoid hurting the female more. I’ll just hold on to her and my seat.”

  “But regulations state that―”

  “Do as you are told. I’m a team leader. Not yours, but I still give the orders. I can keep us in the seat when gravity is off. Remind the pilot to slowly stabilize gravity when we reach Defcon Red.”

  The male sighed, closed the side door, and used a communications pad on the wall to let the pilot know he had two passengers that weren’t strapped down.

  Chapter Three

  Vera screamed and clung to the hard-shelled suit of the alien man when he tried to put her down. She wasn’t about to let that happen. He felt real. Solid. Scary as hell too, but then, she’d been seeing bigfoot for days. A bloody one that taunted her constantly. An alien wearing a white spacesuit who promised not to kill her and agreed that she wasn’t food seemed like a huge improvement to her situation.

  “Vera Wade,” her alien growled. “Stop. We must go through decontamination together since you don’t feel safe without me. We’re about to be sprayed, and then we need to strip everything off and do it again. I can’t remove my suit if I’m holding you. I’ll stay with you if you insist. I just can’t keep you in my arms. Do you understand?”

  She was so tired. Clinging to his suited neck was hard, especially when he kept trying to get her to release him. “No! Don’t leave me.”

  He sighed. “I’m not leaving you. I gave my word. We need to be decontaminated. Do you understand? The drug that has done this to you might be on my suit and your skin. It needs to be washed off. Have you been through the procedure before? Try to concentrate on answering me and think about it.”

  She fought to do as he asked. Decontamination sucked. She’d been through hundreds of those miserable showers. It was one of the downsides to working on a survey team tasked with documenting information about newly discovered planets.

  Her previous survey job had been difficult. Toxic air on that planet had screwed with the drones. It was not only her job to fly them but to perform maintenance. She’d been so glad when that assignment ended. No more suiting up for every shift. It was hard enough to make repairs on drones but wearing a spacesuit while doing it had made it even trickier. Then she’d faced being decontaminated going back inside to the living areas of the ship they’d used for that gig every single time.

  “Vera Wade? You need to let me go.”

  The alien’s deep voice held a growling tone. It was scary—everything was—but at least it didn’t change. He was consistent. So was the solid feel of him. “You won’t leave me?”

  “I won’t.” He cleared his throat. “We will have to strip everything off. Do you understand? I don’t want you even more terrified. We’ll be bare-skinned. That’s why this procedure is usually performed on a single person.”

  She knew that. Decontamination was a solo process. No two employees ever shared a chamber, since they had to strip naked. The idea of letting the alien out of her sight, of not touching him, was way worse than the loss of her dignity. He might disappear and she’d be right back inside that security room.

  Alone. No hope left. Trying to hang on.

  “Don’t leave me,” she pleaded.

  He gently p
atted her back. “I won’t. I need to put you down. You must stand straight if you’re able. We’ll be sprayed, then we must remove everything down to our skin. A secondary spray will happen and we’ll be scanned. I will stay with you. Just open your eyes to look at me. I am right here.”

  She nodded against his hard-shelled body. “I know. My eyesight keeps messing up.”

  “I believe that. Your eyes are doing strange things in the black centers. I will be right here with you. This is a small shower room. It’s been sealed since I carried you in. If it helps, human medical staff are observing. You are not alone with me.”

  “Not alone,” she whispered, mentally chanting it, too. She wasn’t alone anymore, locked inside the security office. It had to be real. Her alien was really there, holding her. He felt solid to her touch. But the thought of letting him go made her want to sob. What if her alien was a figment of her imagination? What if―

  “Release me,” he growled. “Open your eyes.”

  He gently tugged on her, trying to lower her down his body. She stopped fighting and forced her eyes open, lifting her head to stare at his face through the glass faceplate of his suit. Those strange but beautiful eyes of his were locked with hers.

  “I’m right here.”

  Her feet touched the floor as he slowly lowered her. She clutched at his suited arm though. He glanced at it as she stood on shaking legs, her knees about to collapse under her.

  He took a step back but didn’t rip his arm away. “Start the process,” he called out, his gaze still locked with hers. “The spray will be warm. You should close your eyes for that. Just for a few seconds. I’m right here. Close your eyes.”

  It was tough to do but she followed his orders. Keeping her hand on his suit helped. He still felt real. She silently chanted that over and over in her head as warm spray doused her. That felt real, too.

  It stopped, and Vera opened her eyes, staring at the big alien. He was still there. He hadn’t disappeared.

  “Now we need to strip everything off. Please release my arm.”

  Part two of decontamination needed to be completed. She knew the drill. If the scanners picked up anything on them after they were hosed down naked, part three would be a bitch. That involved more spray, some scrubbing, and being zapped with blue lights that would kill anything on the surface of their bodies.