by Liza Probz
Nothing.
She pulled with everything she had and at last it burst loose. The red lights that had come on with the last wire started blinking. Nothing seemed affected.
The guards had succeeded in binding the unconscious regent and were now headed toward her. Panic rose in her stomach and threatened to shut down her ability to move fast. She lifted up a small prayer to anyone who might be listening and grabbed another random wire.
She tugged, and without a struggle it came loose, sending up a shower of sparks. A hand clutched her shoulder, and without thinking, she turned and stabbed the live wire into the guard who'd grabbed her.
The circuit closed and electricity rushed into the guard. There was a loud pop, then a long whine. Incredibly enough, the guard began to melt.
He flailed outward, grasping the corner of his companion's sarong. The second guard let out a low moan, and then he too was disintegrating before her eyes.
Sylvie held on tight to the wire as it pumped electricity into the pair. Suddenly they couldn't hold their shapes anymore, and within moments of one another, each transformed from Zantharian military guard to a block of cherry jelly.
Then the jelly turned brown, began to sizzle, and melted into a puddle on the floor. She couldn’t let go of the wire, fear forcing her to ensure that neither of the bastards were going to get up again. The ooze turned to ash and blew across the floor before her.
"Hareema," she whispered and dropped the wire, the lights blinking once before plunging her into darkness.
Chapter 18
Xivthar woke up with a sour taste in his mouth. Was it blood? His own?
It was pitch black and silent, except for a consistent scratching sound. He realized the sound was coming from his wrists.
As he regained control of his faculties, the regent concentrated on activating his bioluminescence. Before long a soft glow suffused his skin, giving him enough light to see.
Delicate white hands were busy scratching at the seaweed bindings around his wrist. He gently pulled his wrists away and brought them up to his mouth. Biting on the seaweed, he sent a small pulse of energy through the bindings. It was enough to loosen them.
"You're awake."
The Earthling female was in front of him, her face anxious.
He unwrapped the cords from his wrists, then pulled off the binding around his neck. His throat was sore, and he bet there would be a hell of a ring of bruises there soon. "What happened?"
"We're adrift with no power. Your guards tried to kidnap us. I think I figured out who the Hareema operatives are, er, were."
"What are you talking about?" He got up and headed to the console, his legs weaker than he had ever remembered them being. He glanced down as a cloud of black dust lifted in the air around him.
Sylvie spoke up, her voice soft and timid. "The Hareema operatives. You're stepping in them, or what's left of them."
He glanced at the console, noticed the open panel and the wires strewn around the cabin. "What did you do?"
She blinked up at him, perhaps confused by his brusque manner. "The guards were tying you up. I started looking for weapons. I pulled open this panel, figured I might be able to turn off the power or something--"
He remembered the struggle now. One guard had kicked her hard enough to knock her to the floor. "I told you to call for help!"
"And how was I supposed to know which of the hundred buttons was for communications?" Her expression was angry, her lips tightening as she crossed her arms over her chest, the movement accentuating her breasts.
Xivthar ignored the desire that raced through him and instead grabbed her roughly by the shoulders. "You could have been electrocuted!"
"Would it have been any worse than what your people would have done to me anyway? Or the Hareema?"
She had a point.
"So one of these wires knocked out the power?"
"Yes, but only after I used it to fry the Hareema."
He bent before the console and spent a few minutes reattaching the conduits she'd pulled apart. The lights flashed back on, and he let out a heavy breath.
Sylvie was dusted with black powder. So was the floor. And his legs.
"My guards?" He indicated the largest concentration of black dust left on the transport floor.
"Yes. When I found a live wire, by reflex I stabbed it into the guards. I didn't figure it would have an effect, since you guys generate electricity anyway, but they started to melt. Then they turned into jelly and just... burned to a crisp."
She was shaking. He was far too used to understanding the emotions of others due to the shifting of their skin color. He would have to use other means with her.
Xivthar took her into his arms, pulling her close and angling her head up to watch her expression. “It’s okay. We’re okay.”
"I guess the oracle was right. There were people close to you that you shouldn’t trust." She glanced down, her lip trembling subtly.
"I hope those two were the ones it meant." He couldn't get his mother's words out of his mind. If there's one, there's bound to be more.
He didn't want to think about it now, not when the female was so warm and soft in his arms. If only he could give in to distraction.
His lips inched closer to hers, seemingly of their own accord. He paused just before pressing a soft kiss to her lips and let his eyes move around her face. He needed to memorize every inch of her – wanted to explore her. She had saved his life. Something about the very fact left him needy for her.
She turned her head away, burying it in the crook of his arm and letting out a soft sound of exhaustion.
He loosened his hold on her and placed her in her chair before taking his own seat. Grabbing the gear stick, he pointed them toward home and glanced over at her, not quite sure how to thank her for her willingness to put her life at risk for him. Perhaps it was best to say nothing at all.
They were quiet on the ride back, each seemingly lost to their own thoughts. Xivthar couldn't believe that the little Earthling female had managed to destroy two Hareema agents, kept him from getting kidnapped, and saved his life.
Dr. Sylvia Cohen of Earth might have just saved his entire planet.
Chapter 19
If their presence had been unwelcome when they departed the hub, their reception now was downright hostile. X held her hand tightly as they pushed through the crowds.
Zantharians were shouting, "Lock the Earthling up!"
"Feed her to the gnarsharks!"
"Zanthar for Zantharians!"
Sylvie kept her head down and tried to ignore the insults, but they hurt nevertheless.
The regent grabbed the arm of a passing military officer. "I want an escort to my chambers. Now!”
The officer scowled, but motioned to his partner and the pair began clearing a path. By the time they made it to X's quarters, Sylvie was exhausted.
The regent held up his hand, pointing his finger at the officer. "You two stay here. No one gets in without an energy exchange with both of you. Understood?"
The guards took up their stations on either side of the door as X led her into his chambers. Without sparing a glance for her, he headed to the console and pulled up the display. "I want to see you in twenty minutes. My chambers."
Whoever was on the other end of the call must have raised a fuss because X's face tightened. "Get over here. I was almost replaced by a Hareema mimic less than an hour ago."
The regent waved away the display and finally turned his attention to her.
"You must be tired." His gaze ran up and down her body. “Let me draw you a bath.”
Being filthy and emotionally spent, she was in no mood to argue. He led her into an extravagant bathroom with a tub that looked like it could fit five grown Zantharian men, or women, seeing that they were just as large.
She leaned against the doorframe and closed her eyes, X’s voice bringing her from her restful state.
“Come get in and relax, Sylvie.”
"I ne
ed to disrobe." She moved toward him, half expecting him to leave the room.
"Okay," he replied. "Do so."
Sylvie frowned. "Not in front of you."
X snorted. "You're not leaving my sight for a second, and I'm not leaving yours. You see now how easy it would be to replace one of us with an enemy agent."
"Not that easy," she said, indicating the black soot covering her body.
He laughed. It was a pleasant sound. "Your prowess notwithstanding, I'm not leaving."
"Then turn your back at least. I don't think an agent can replace me before you can turn around."
A corner of his mouth lifted. The regent turned around and Sylvie wasted no time. She ripped off her clothing and got into the tub, letting out a long sigh as the hot water lapped at her legs.
X turned back around a bit too quickly.
Sylvie let out a soft yelp and pulled her knees up to her chest to keep her dignity intact. "How am I supposed to wash myself if you're watching my every move?"
The regent shrugged. "Your washing doesn't bother me."
Sylvie exhaled, lifting a curl of hair that had fallen over her face. "Your watching bothers me."
X once again turned his back, and Sylvie scouted around the tub for something resembling soap. She came upon what resembled a plush sea anemone. When she pressed into it, it excreted a sweet-smelling substance. Satisfied that it would do the job, she began rubbing it into her skin.
It was time to have a frank discussion with the regent. Time to explain that she couldn't stay here, especially in such close proximity to him.
"You know, my being here is dangerous. Not just to me, but to your approval ratings." She'd seen the crowds, had seen how his own military officers had lost respect for him. "Maybe it would be better for everyone if you sent me home."
She saw the regent stiffen, but she pressed her case anyway. "You must have crafts capable of taking me home. Now that your mom has signed off on me being innocent, surely you can't justify keeping me captive anymore. So send me home."
He didn't respond.
"Please."
X turned around suddenly and Sylvie yanked her knees back to her chest.
"You're not wrong, you know," he said, approaching the tub and taking a seat on its wide lip.
"So you'll send me home?" Her tone was hopeful, but inside she felt a strange stab of... disappointment?
"You're a distraction I can't afford," he said, lifting the errant hair off her face and tucking it behind her ear. "So I will send you home."
"You will?" She hadn't expected him to give in so easily.
"Yes, on one condition."
So he wasn't giving in easily. She should have never expected him to. She didn’t want him to.
"Name it." She reached up and took his hand, pressing it to the side of her face.
"I will send you home to Earth if you spend one night with me. In my bed. As my mate."
Sylvie stared up at him, her mouth open and heart suddenly picking up speed.
Leaving now would ensure she felt only a twinge of regret, but sharing her body meant giving him access to her heart. Could she afford that? Would she want to leave?
“Sylvie. What do you say to my request? Let me make love to you tonight.”
She looked down at her legs tucked against her and realized how badly she wanted the passion he offered. She glanced up and pursed her lips.
Chapter 20
Sylvia, the first woman to prove that life existed on other planets, currently regretted that discovery. X’s demands had her speechless, but she didn’t get the ability to respond because his brother called, pulling the handsome thing from the bathroom.
What kind of a man tells you that he'll give you a ticket home if you sleep with him? Then he rushes you out of the bath because his brother is on his way over? His brother, the Minister of Defense, who thinks you took down the planetary defense grid because you're secretly working for seven-foot-tall blocks of Jell-O.
"Dr. Cohen, you either drag yourself out here now, or I'm coming in to get you, clothed or not."
That kind of man. A demanding, egotistical, and annoyingly sexy man who was also the Supreme Regent of the planet. A planet full of people who also thought she was working for the enemy.
Sylvie sighed. Look at the bright side. At least he stopped his scientists from dissecting you.
She shivered at the thought and got up, tugging the towel from a nearby rack and stepping onto the cold floor.
"Dr. Cohen!" His voice was right outside the doorway.
"I'm coming!" she grumbled, wiggling this way and that, trying to squeeze into the strangulation device that Zantharian women considered clothing. She'd just managed to work the pants over her hips, considering all the while if it would be better to lose her panties to gain a spare centimeter. Sylvie turned around, then slapped her arms across her naked breasts.
The Supreme Regent was leaning against the alien doorframe, a strained look on his face.
"Get out!" she yelled, looking around for something to throw at the regent.
"You're taking forever. My brother will be here any minute and I meant what I said about not letting you out of my sight."
"But you just let me out of your sight so that I could get dressed. You stood out in the hall."
His expression didn't change. She almost had expected his skin to shift to yellow, but instead a faint orange hue had appeared. What did orange mean?
"You didn't wait in the hall, did you?"
"I did," he said. The orange coloring remained.
"But I wasn't out of your sight?"
X's eyes wandered down her body and she shivered, turned away from him for a momentary pause on the rising desire to give in to his demands. Her nipples hardened painfully and she glanced down before steeling herself. She was a grown woman. Pretending that she wasn’t was not going to help her current situation. She spun on her heel and took a step toward him.
"Stop ogling me and answer the question!"
The regent's eyes returned to hers, then skittered away. "I observed you from my console. It's the only way I could be certain that you haven't been infiltrated."
"So you watched me get dressed. After I asked you not to?"
"You didn't ask me not to watch you. You asked me to leave the room, which I did. You still owe me an answer to my request."
Sylvie rolled her eyes. If she wouldn't have had to bare a breast by removing her hand, she would have slapped him in the chest.
Go ahead. Put your hand down. He's already seen it all anyway.
"Unbelievable," she hurled at him, then turned her back to him and fastened her top as quickly as possible. Modesty had been too much a part of her past to squelch it in the moment. "Watching me while I change. Making lascivious propositions instead of politely sending me home."
Sylvie embraced her anger. He'd earned it and it felt so much better than the desire to slut herself for a ride home. She hadn’t slept with a man in far too long and not really knowing what was beneath his sarong left her feeling almost dirty in wanting to find out. She was raised a prude and there was no way she was getting past being one because a sexy alien requested that she did.
She pushed past him into the hallway and headed toward the sitting room.
"If this were Earth, you'd be kicked out of the office for sexual harassment. Maybe they'd even throw you in jail." She stomped into the sitting room, giving full rein to her frustration. "In fact--"
Sylvie froze. Another alien was already in the room. A maroon alien with familiar features.
X was standing in front of her with his back to her before she could blink. He was protecting her. His actions caused her angst to die down… fast.
"How did you get in here, brother? My chambers are sealed."
The minister shrugged his wide shoulders. "I'm in charge of planetary defense. You think I don't know the code to open your door?"
"You could have signaled like everyone else."
There was
annoyance in the regent's voice as his skin began to shift, lightening from orange, moving toward yellow. He was getting pissed and rightly so. She could have still been half dressed. He was the Supreme Ruler, right? The Minister couldn’t pull a trump card, could he?"
“You summoned me, brother," the Minister of Defense stated.
The regent took a deep breath, held it for a moment, and then released it. "I did, but you took so damn long that I forgot. Forgive me, but don’t walk into my chambers without knocking again.”
The other male simply nodded, as if saying nothing was better than offering a retort of sorts.
X continued, “Dr. Cohen and I were attacked this afternoon by Hareema infiltrators masquerading as your guards."
The Minister of Defense's reaction was minimal. "Where were you attacked?"
"In a transport vessel, returning from the resting place of the regents."
A dark eyebrow lifted on the maroon alien. "You took her to meet Mother?"
X scowled at his brother. "Drake, that's irrelevant. Maybe you didn't hear me. Two guards, the same two guards who were in your chambers, tried to take me prisoner. If it wasn't for the Earthling female, they would have succeeded in replacing me."
"The female stopped them?"
Sylvie bristled at the surprise she heard in the Minister's voice. "Yes, I stopped them. I fried them to a crisp. What you should be worrying about is how they could have gotten so close to your brother. So close to you."
The Minister eyed her, almost as if seeing her for the first time. His voice was far too monotone. Either he was numbed to the situation or he was hiding something. The latter of the two seemed more possible.
"I underestimated you.” Drake’s eyes moved across Sylvie as if assessing her worth. "I won't make that mistake a second time."
"I'm not sure I believe you, brother." X stared him down. "You've been making mistakes left and right."
"If you think I'm responsible for those two guards--"
"Of course not, Drake." X crossed his arms over his muscular chest. "Even I didn't realize anything was off about them, but you haven't been able to bring up the defense grid. The Earthling ship is still inactive as well, and worst of all, throughout this whole crisis, you've been running around, showing your maroon to everyone you meet. It's bad for morale."
