by Mina Carter
Adored by the Alien Assassin
Mina Carter
New York Times & USA TODAY Bestselling Author
Copyright © 2018 by Mina Carter
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Epilogue
Also by Mina Carter
About the Author
Chapter One
“The fate of the Lathar could depend on you. We are relying on you. I am relying on you, Xaandrynn. Do you understand?”
The emperor’s words hit Rynn like a ship at light speed. For a moment, he stood there, stunned. When he’d been summoned by the emperor, he’d expected to have to explain himself for the total fuckup his last mission had been. He’d spent months infiltrating a clan with suspected purist leanings, working his way up the hierarchy to get close to the leadership and assassinate them, only to break cover to rescue Karryl K’Vass and his human woman when they’d been captured.
And no matter what his orders were, he’d had to take the initiative. Even deep undercover he’d heard the news. The humans had been the discovery of the century—a genetically compatible species the Lathar desperately needed to ensure their survival as a race. But from the moment they’d been discovered, they’d been a target. The Lathar had no women of their own, so any genetically compatible species was highly prized and even more so when they looked as… appealing as the humans did. Like smaller, more delicate versions of the Lathar themselves. A cousin species apparently.
But some elements of Latharian society hated the very idea of interbreeding with others. Purists believed that reproducing with other species was a sin, and any who did should be purged from existence itself. Hopefully, rescuing the human and a warrior the emperor had publicly claimed as a kinsman would go a long way toward limiting any comeback for breaking his cover.
He hoped anyway.
Now, standing in front of Daaynal himself, with that sharp gaze spearing him in place, Rynn wasn’t so sure. He’d faced down many men—lethal warriors and utter scumbags alike—and he’d always come out on top because he’d been able to read them. Been able to look into their eyes and predict their next move with pinpoint accuracy. It was his talent, a near unique skill that had gained him a reputation as the best spy and assassin in the empire. They called him the emperor’s shadow… A boogeyman in the dark even grown men were afraid of.
But he couldn’t read Daaynal. The warrior-emperor was a complete blank, his expression and body language so controlled Rynn couldn’t get a read on him. It was frustrating and scary as fuck, all at the same time. If he couldn’t read the guy, how was he supposed to formulate a plan in case this meeting went sideways?
“Yes, Your Majesty. I understand.” He nodded, hands still clasped behind his back in the standard warrior’s at ease posture, and laughed mentally at himself. Who was he kidding? If this meeting went sideways, there was no backup plan. He was fucked pure and simple. Daaynal was not an emperor to cross. The numerous warrior’s braids in his long hair and the battle scars across his heavily muscled body bore testament to that.
“A mission like this is a great honor.” Rynn paused for a moment, wondering if he should continue his thought. Recalling that Daaynal was a man who liked initiative and boldness, he carried on. “I would have thought, though, that you would award it to your kin. One of the K’Vass maybe…”
He trailed the thought off, watching Daaynal’s face for any hint. Even the tiniest muscle movement or change of expression might give him an inkling into what the warrior-emperor was thinking. It was no secret that Daaynal favored the K’Vass, the clan his twin sister, his litaan, had married into. Without a mate or children of his own, there had been rumors for years that he would name one of his nephews as his heir.
Daaynal watched him for a long moment, green eyes searching Rynn’s as though looking for something. Then he smiled, the quick grin full of amusement. “A man who speaks his mind. I like that. But, as talented and loyal as the K’Vass are, an emperor must think of the bigger picture. I need someone without clan loyalty who I trust implicitly. Which means you or your father.”
Rynn blinked as surprise rolled through him at Daaynal’s words. His father was a war hero with a reputation nearly as impressive as the emperor’s, and Daaynal’s champion to boot, taking to the challenge arena to defend the honor of the Imperial throne. Everyone knew Xaandril was totally loyal and that the emperor trusted him with his own life. But Rynn had never expected that level of trust to be extended to him. Not in a million years.
“Your Majesty… I…” he stuttered for a moment before kicking himself in the ass mentally and getting his shit together. “Thank you. Your faith means a lot. I do not have the words.” He clapped his hand over his heart in the ancient warrior’s salute. “I will not fail you.”
“Good man,” Daaynal said, clapping Rynn on the arm. “The recovery of Lady Jessica’s sister is probably one of the most important missions in our history, and I couldn’t think of a better warrior I could send.”
Pride snapped Rynn’s back straight. A compliment like that from the most dangerous man in the empire, it’s emperor, was something to be remembered. He allowed a hint of a smile to curve his lips. “Thank you, Your Majesty. As always, I live to serve.”
“Plus…” Daaynal leaned closer, dropping his voice conspiratorially even though there was no one else in this section of the palace gardens with them. “I am told that Lady Jessica’s sister is also her identical litaan. And, without my sister-son Laarn here to take offense or remove a warrior’s body parts, I have to admit… the Lady Jessica is indeed lovely.”
Rynn chuckled. It was true. The human female Jessica Kallson was a beauty, as were most of the human females currently on Lathar Prime. In fact, Rynn didn’t think he’d met one that he wouldn’t give his left nut to try and claim as his own. But he was a practical man. There were many warriors vying for each of the human women, and even though his father was famous with a lot to offer a potential mate, Rynn was not.
“She is indeed,” he replied. “And I will ensure her sister arrives on Lathar Prime unharmed and in perfect…”
A sound behind them made Rynn pause. Daaynal moved at the same moment, his hand lifted for silence as the two warriors listened, aware and alert for any danger, even here in the palace gardens. Rynn moved silently, his hand closing around the pistol grip of the blaster on his hip.
Likewise, Daaynal’s fingers edged toward the heavy blades sheathed at his hips. But it wasn’t the lethal swords any attacker needed to worry about. Rynn hadn’t missed the glimpse of a silver band half hidden in Daaynal’s hair, loose over his shoulders. A remote uplink band. Which meant the emperor could uplink and have drakeen combat bots here within minutes. Rynn almost felt sorry for anyone stupid enough to try and attack the emperor in his own palace.
Silence reigned… but there was no attack.
The emperor sighed and ran a hand through his hair, loose about his shoulders in the manner of a warrior
. “Bloody purists. Got me like a cat on a hot tin roof, jumping at shadows.”
Rynn smiled at the human expression but didn’t comment. Daaynal had been spending a lot of time with the Terran women and it showed. A quirk of the bigger man’s lips showed he’d noted Rynn’s tactical silence.
“Travel safe, warrior, and return to us quickly,” he said with a firm nod.
Realizing he’d been dismissed, Rynn gave a small bow and turned, taking his leave.
Rynn’s long strides took him through the corridors of the palace at a fast pace. One look at his big, powerfully built frame had most warriors he came across scuttling out of his way quickly. But it wasn’t just that they recognized him as an experienced warrior by the way he moved.
It was his hair.
Like most warriors in the palace, it hung around his shoulders, the rarely worn braids that marked his achievements tucked behind his left ear. But it wasn’t those that made warriors eye him warily. Many warriors had more braids than he had.
But none of them were blond.
His pale hair and blue eyes set him apart. Marked him as what he was, the son of the champion… and the emperor’s best spy. Marked him as the warrior who would be sent after them from the shadows if they gave the emperor cause to doubt their loyalty. Marked him as the death they’d never see coming… because no one ever did. And that had given him a name. There were many shadows in the empire, but only he was called by the name.
He grinned to himself as a couple of younger warriors scuttled aside quickly, their eyes wide as he walked past them.
“It’s him… it’s the shadow.”
“I didn’t realize he’d be so big!”
“They say he can disappear in plain sight.”
The whispers made Rynn chuckle as he turned the corner, heading for his father’s suite in the palace. He had quarters of his own, in another wing of the palace. One with less security than the Imperial wing that housed both the emperor’s suites and the ones allocated to the human females. He never knew when he’d need to leave quietly, slip away without every busybody on the palace guard knowing his movements.
“No… I cannot show you how to pilot a bot. It takes years of practice to handle even a remote avatar.”
Rynn pulled up short at the sound of his father’s voice, gruff with frustration, and frowned. Who was he talking to? Xaandril’s voice had been frustrated but also softer than Rynn had ever heard it, for all its roughness. And he’d explained something. In all the years Rynn had spent training, he’d never once gotten an explanation so easily out of his sire.
“Daaynal said we were to be trained to defend ourselves. Have you seen the firepower on those big combat bots? They’re fucking awesome!” a female voice replied. Despite himself Rynn couldn’t help edging to the doorway the voices issued from and around until he could see the speakers.
The room was one of the lower ballrooms, which appeared to have been converted into a training room. Mats filled the center of the room with weight and cardio machines around the outside. A large weapons rack and training automaton sat under the window. None of that held Rynn’s attention as he looked back at the couple in the center of the room.
His father stood in the middle of the mats, his arms folded over his broad chest and a scowl on his face that would make even Rynn think twice about bothering him. But the woman standing in front of him didn’t appear fazed in the slightest by the murderous expression. Instead, she had her own arms folded and was matching the champion glare for glare.
“They have impressive weaponry, yes,” Xaandril admitted with a small incline of his head. “But that does not mean I will show you how to pilot one. Drakeen are deadly—”
“Exactly!” the human woman snapped back. “And exactly why one of us needs to be able to pilot one. We humans are woefully outmatched physically in a fight with any Latharian warrior, so we need to level the playing field.”
“There are other ways to do that,” the champion replied, enough of a sigh in his voice that Rynn suspected it wasn’t the first time he’d said that. “Combat exoskele—”
“Combat exoskeleton my ass!” the woman spat, advancing on Xaandril and jabbing him in the center of the chest with each word. “Daaynal showed us those the other day and they’re cute but child’s play.”
Rynn held his breath. His father was famous for his hair-trigger temper and lethal reactions. There were certain buttons even he didn’t press and this woman… he searched his memory of the briefing he’d been given on the human women for her name… Kenna Reynolds, was pushing all of them.
“Lady’s tits, woman! Just leave it, would you? The drakeen are too much for most fully trained warriors to handle, never mind a tiny little thing like you!” Xaandril growled in frustration, shoving a hand through his close-cropped hair.
Ice fell in the silence of the room as Kenna folded her arms again and glared at Xaandril. “Oh no, you did not just say what I think you did… That us poor little females can’t handle this shit?”
Oh. Crap.
Rynn hadn’t had much to do with the human women as a group, but he’d spent enough time with Karryl’s mate to know they were dangerous in a way his people didn’t really understand. Latharian women had been delicate, protected creatures who had been pampered and looked after their entire lives. They hadn’t been allowed to do anything that might put them at risk of anything more serious than breaking a nail.
Human women, on the other hand, were an entirely different matter… Tarrick’s mate had shot a purist who had tried to shoot her mate in the back right between the eyes while still in her wedding gown. Karryl’s mate, Jane Allen, had shot the male trying to rape her at point blank range, then taken on an entire ship of warriors to get her man out of there. Laarn’s mate, Jessica, had blown up the entire medbay to take out a purist group trying to kill her.
His father was so screwed. And not in a good way.
“Listen to me, blondie,” Kenna growled. “While Jane is on her honeymoon, I am responsible for my team’s safety and no pretty boy blond hottie is going to stop me doing my job. You reading me? Now, either teach me what I want to know, as per your emperor’s instructions… or I’ll find someone who will.”
Chapter Two
“I’m just heading out now, Mrs. Kallson,” Jac Wright called out, her hand on the back door as she paused for a moment to listen for a reply. “You make sure to lock the door up after me.”
“Thank you, Jac. I’ll be there in a minute.”
The weak reply, punctuated by coughs, made Jac frown. Mrs. Kallson had been suffering with the flu virus from hell the last couple of weeks, and the damn thing just wouldn’t let go to allow her to recover. Each time it seemed she was getting better, it hit again, and harder than the last time. Seeing the normally exuberant woman so drained and listless wrung Jac’s heartstrings.
“Okay, love. Well, you’ve got my number. Call me if you need me, okay? I’ll be right over.”
“I will do. Thank you so much, honey. You get off now before it gets too dark.”
“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye!”
Closing the door carefully behind her, Jac slung her bag over her shoulder and shoved her hands in her pockets as she headed down the path and onto the sidewalk. Her steps rang out in the growing darkness as she walked quickly. She’d spent as much time as she could with Amanda, far more than she was paid for. All too soon, though, she’d had to leave for her shift at the bar on the other side of town. As much as Larry felt sorry for Amanda, being late was a sacking offense.
Jac sighed as she walked, feeling guilty anyway for leaving. Amanda had looked sicker than ever, the cough racking her already thin frame. Jac didn’t know how she did it… got up every day and carried on. The universe just seemed to crap on her no matter what she did. One child dead from an overdose of off-world drugs, one kidnapped by those alien barbarians, one in a walking coma and now the flu… she couldn’t seem to catch a break.
At least she’d b
een able to talk to Jessica, the daughter kidnapped by aliens. News of the Lathar, the race of aliens who had attacked Sentinel Five, had been all over the media since it had happened. Even Jac, who had never followed the news or ever been star-struck over any celebrity, had been glued to the screen for any new snippet of information.
The few images she’d seen of the aliens, played on repeat by every news channel there was, proved they were hot. At first she’d thought it was some kind of prank. That someone had made up a news story to panic people. She’d read about that happening once. People had mistaken some radio show back in the day for real reports of an alien attack and gone batshit over it.
The aliens… the Lathar, they called themselves apparently… were so like humans that she’d thought they’d just gotten hot actors to play them and there would be a camera crew leap out and yell, “Surprise!” Sure, some of the aliens seemed to have weird eyes, but… hello, contacts?
But no camera crew had leaped out, and then they’d showed a clip of the aliens next to one of the captured Sentinel crew. A soldier, he’d looked like a kid next to the alien. They were biiig. Like, hella big. That hadn’t escaped the notice of a lot of the female population. Speculation was rife in women’s mags and online as to whether they were built as big all over… Signs had sprouted up in most gardens—invites for the aliens to come kidnap willing women.
She shook her head as she reached the bar and headed for the staff entrance. Men were men, and in her experience were mostly assholes. Why would hot aliens be any different? If they were into claiming women like they had the female population of the Sentinel base, they were probably bigger assholes than any human guy.
