The Genius

by Elin Peer

  “Marco, you didn’t have to beat him up like this. He’s bleeding.” Mila’s tone was blameful and then her eyes fell upon Raven. “There will be no more fighting tonight. You and Nero will have to wait until tomorrow.”

  “I don’t know.” Raven tilted her head and gave a mischievous smile to Nero. “I worry he might not be able to sleep tonight from fear.”

  “That’s sweet, Raven. You think I’m intimidated by you.” Nero shook his head. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I’ll be sleeping like a baby looking forward to our fight tomorrow.”

  “Dancing demons, you’ve got moves, my friend,” Hunter came to give me a manly hug. “Fuck, that last kick was cold.”

  The Nmen were all high on the adrenaline of the fight and chatting in loud voices. My eyes searched for Shelly’s but she and most of the other Motlander women were already walking back to the school. Looking over her shoulder, Shelly’s eyes met mine and disappointment filled me. She wasn’t impressed.

  It hurt my pride and without thinking, I called out. “Hey, Shelly, aren’t you glad you have a strong protector?”

  Several of the women gave me strange looks and Rochelle, her sister, asked Shelly out loud. “What does he mean by that? Is Marco your protector?”

  There was a moment of uncertainty in Shelly’s eyes as they darted to the other people around her. I wanted her so badly to tell the truth.

  “Yes, he is.”

  Rochelle stopped and lifted her hands, with a puzzled expression. “Since when?”

  My heart beat fast, waiting for Shelly to finally tell her sister that she and I were together.

  “It’s a recent thing,” Shelly began, her posture tense. “Advanced Technologies is paying Marco to be on stand by when I need to go somewhere.”

  “Oh, I see.” Rochelle nodded before she walked on.

  I stared after the two sisters. What the fuck?

  “Great fight.” Storm pulled at my arm to congratulate me and I turned to face him with fire in my eyes. “Holy shit, the fight is over. You look like you’re ready to go another round.”

  I was furious with Shelly for reducing me to a paid bodyguard instead of acknowledging that I was her mate. Her rejection of me sexually earlier, combined with her dismissal of my role in her life and the adrenaline from the fight, had me on edge.

  “Are you okay?” Storm asked.

  “I’m fine. I just need to get wasted.”

  Storm lit up. “Now you’re talking. Hey, let’s get our fighters some beers. Nikola can use the bottle to ice his bruises and Marco can drink it to celebrate that he’s still a kick-ass fighter.” Laughter broke out as we headed back.

  “Need a hand?” I asked Nikola, who was being supported by Finn.

  “Not from you.”

  “Don’t be a sore loser. At least I let you keep all your teeth and you don’t have any black eyes.”

  Nikolas held a hand to his face. “I think my nose is broken.”

  “That’s an easy fix,” Finn comforted him. “With a bit of bone accelerator and beer, you’ll be ready to fight again in a few days.”

  An hour and a half later, I was on my fifth beer when people started dancing. The Motlanders’ style was very different from ours and their taste in music was enough to give a man a headache.

  “Look at them.” Nero was scratching his head. “They look like fairies with the way they twirl and swing their arms and move their heads.”

  On purpose I’d positioned myself so I could keep an eye on Shelly. I was mad at her, but her safety was still my highest priority. At the moment she was in deep conversation with Pearl.

  “When are Magni and Khan coming?” I asked Finn.

  He took a swig of his beer and dried his mouth with the back of his hand. “They won’t make it back tonight, something urgent came up.”

  “What?”

  Finn exchanged a glance with Boulder before he answered. “Some trouble up north.”

  “Rebels?”

  “No. More like a very serious domestic violence case.”

  At the same time, Storm, Hunter, and I leaned closer. “What does that mean?”

  “We don’t know the details. Just that a woman was killed.”

  “Fuuuck,” I breathed. “Someone killed his wife?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?” Hunter had his hands in his hair. “That makes no sense.”

  “Maybe she cheated on him,” Storm suggested. “That sort of thing can make a man snap.”

  Boulder spoke in a deep low voice. “At this point we can only guess. Maybe he pushed her back and she fell and hit her head. Maybe he panicked when she threatened to leave him. We really don’t know.”

  “Khan will have to find a way to calm the Council in the Motherlands or they will surely close down the Matching Program.”

  “Does Pearl know about this?”

  A few of the men turned their heads to look at Pearl, who had been a member of the Motherland Council before she married Khan.

  “Yes,” Finn said. “Pearl supported Khan’s decision to go and get all the details for himself.”

  “And the Council, have they been informed?”

  “Uh-huh. They have asked for a meeting next week.”

  “Fuck, this is really bad, isn’t it?” Hunter’s eyes darted between Boulder and Finn. “I hope they understand that just because one Nman fucks up, doesn’t mean that we’re all violent psychopaths.”

  “They have to know that,” Storm insisted. “I mean, some of us are pure saints for dealing with the crazy Motlanders they send us.”

  “You married?” Finn asked with surprise.

  “Yes, and we divorced too. The bitch was a nutcase.”

  Boulder’s fist slammed down on the table and his eyes were shooting daggers at Storm. “We did not raise you to be disrespectful of women.”

  For a second Storm looked like a schoolboy who had been scolded. With his raised shoulders he resembled a turtle retracting into its shell for protection.

  Finn was quick to ease the tension. “Let’s not ruin a perfectly good night when we’re supposed to be celebrating.”

  “That’s right.” I raised my glass. “Cheers.”

  “Cheers,” the others chimed in and we all emptied our glasses and smacked them down on the table again.

  Finn stood up and grinned down at us. “Now, let’s put on some real music and go show the fairies how we dance here in the Northlands.”

  CHAPTER 25

  The Law of the Nmen

  Shelly

  I had just come out of the bathroom when Marco pulled me aside. “Meet me by the trees,” he whispered with beer on his breath.

  “That’s a bad idea,” I protested and looked around us to make sure no one saw how close we were.

  He gave me a charming smile. “It’s an excellent idea.”

  “Marco, don’t,” I said but still allowed him to pull me by my hand. “Someone is going to see us.”

  “We’ll be quiet and quick.”

  Once he got me behind the teacher’s cabins he pressed me against the wall and kissed me hungrily. “I want you, Shelly.”

  My hands were in his hair and my head leaning back. “Marco, you’re crazy. I don’t want someone to walk up on us. We should wait. I told you earlier.”

  “I don’t want to wait. I fucking want my woman.”

  “You’re drunk.”

  “Not compared to some of the others. William is hammered.” Marco snickered and I shushed him.

  “Quiet or they’ll hear us.”

  “With the loud music they won’t hear shit.” Marco’s hands were pulling my dress up and nibbling at my earlobe. “Don’t you want me?”

  “That’s the problem. I always wanted you and I still do.”

  He was leaning into me, his forehead against my hair. “I’m yours, Shelly,” he whispered in my ear and pushed my panties to the side, inserting a finger inside of me.

  “Ohh.” A moan escaped me but my hand tried to hold him back
. “Marco, please, not here.”

  “Yes, right here.” He spoke in a raspy voice. “They don’t know you like I do. I see sides of you that no one else does. You need me just as much as I need you.”

  I bit my lip, my eyes closed and my insides on fire from the arousal he brought out in me. “This is a bad idea.”

  “We’re a family.”

  “I know, but…”

  “I’m the only man you’ll ever allow inside of you, isn’t that right?”

  “Uh-huh…” My vocabulary had never been smaller but that was the thing with Marco. He made me unable to think straight.

  My mind was trying to break through the haze of lust but my hands were clinging to Marco for more.

  Lifting me up, he positioned me on his hips, grinding against me. “Shelly, tell me you want me inside of you.”

  “Marco, don’t – no, we shouldn’t…”

  He swallowed my words with a deep kiss, my back against the wall, his fingers tugging at my panties to get them down.

  In a last attempt from my brain to warn about the dangers, I pushed at his chest and turned my face away.

  “Marco, stop it. Please stop.”

  “I need you so fucking bad.” His hands were demanding, and with a jerk he moved me so he could use both hands and rip my panties apart.

  “Marco, don’t,” I protested but he just threw the fabric to the ground and ground against me.

  Had we been alone his intense desire would have been the biggest turn-on, but unlike him, I was sober and too aware that someone might find us here.

  “Marco, please stop.” I pushed at his shoulders.

  He groaned with need. “Don’t fight it, you want it too.”

  He was right, but not here. “Marco, no… please stop.”

  “Get away from her.” The command was icy and spoken in a deep threatening voice.

  Marco and I both stiffened for a split second before he was brutally jerked back, leaving me to fall to the ground.

  I watched in horror as Boulder beat on Marco in pure rage. We were too far from the others to be seen and with the music they wouldn’t hear us, but I needed to do something or Boulder would kill Marco.

  Picking up a large stone from the ground, Boulder used it as a weapon; he raised it above Marco’s head.

  “No,” I screamed when Boulder’s right arm smashed the stone down and only missed Marco’s skull by the width of a hair. “Stop it!”

  The two large men were rolling around on the ground, growling like bears, and fighting with an intensity I’d never seen in practice. Boulder wasn’t trying to get hits in or use impressive kicks. His eyes were crazed and he was trying to get his arm around Marco’s neck.

  “Boulder, stop it,” I cried out again and screamed when Boulder hammered his elbow into Marco’s stomach.

  They were both intoxicated; there was no way I would get Boulder’s attention by shouting. Running back and getting the others to help would take too long, and I wasn’t sure how long Marco could hold up against Boulder without one of them getting killed.

  “Boulder, no.” I made a last attempt to shout at him when I saw Marco’s face growing purple as Boulder was strangling him.

  We Motlanders are peaceful people, but in desperation I bent down and picked up a large stick to swing with.

  “Stop strangling him,” I cried out and brought the stick down hard on Boulder’s shin to get his attention.

  With one hand, Marco got a hold of Boulder’s hair and tore hard.

  “Arrgghh…” Boulder was growling but pulled back enough for Marco to breathe in a violent fit of coughing, his hands to his throat.

  “Boulder, it’s not what it looks like,” I screamed and clung to the stick as a weapon.

  Boulder got up from the ground, his chest rising and falling as he panted, and with a last hard kick at Marco’s leg he roared at him, “What part of not touching didn’t you understand?”

  Marco was still struggling to breathe and couldn’t answer. His eyes were bulging and he kept coughing.

  “I’ll fucking kill you for what you did.” Boulder’s face was flaming red and twisted in anger as he stood with his legs spread and his hands folded into fists.

  My heart was racing with fear and adrenaline. Being stunned about the violence and rage had me momentarily speechless. Faced with violence, my body was setting priorities, and right now all the blood was pumping into my legs, which needed to run for safety, leaving nothing behind for my brain to think with.

  “Christina saw you drag Shelly away and I came just in time to hear her say ‘no.’” Boulder’s scowl was fixed on Marco. “You know what we do to men who can’t keep their hands to themselves.”

  “Marco and I are together.” I pushed the words out in a high-pitched hoarse voice.

  Boulder stiffened and his eyes shifted to me. “Come again?”

  “We’re together.” My head bobbed up and down to emphasize that it was true. I rambled on: “I live with Marco and I’m expecting his child.”

  Boulder took a step back, his eyebrows drawn in as his gaze darted between Marco and me. “Why didn’t you tell us you married?”

  “Technically, we didn’t.” I walked in between Boulder and Marco, holding up both my palms in a placating manner. “Marco has been asking me to, but I didn’t see the need.”

  “Are you out of your fucking mind?” Boulder’s hands fell to his hips and he angled his head. “I almost killed Marco for touching you.”

  Boulder’s rage was lifting and he walked over to offer Marco a hand. “You should have told me what was going on.”

  Getting up from the ground, Marco brushed himself off. “I wanted to but Shelly wants to tell her sister before we make it official.”

  Boulder dragged his hands through his hair. “This is no joke. You need to tell everyone before you get Marco killed.”

  The danger of the two men killing each other was over and my brain was beginning to work again. “Attacking Marco like that was wrong. You could have asked us what we were doing.”

  “Why? I have eyes in my head. I could see what he was doing and you were clearly saying no.”

  Boulder squatted down to pick up some moss and handed it to Marco. “Here, for your bloody nose.”

  Marco didn’t say much but took the moss in Boulder’s outstretched hand. “Thanks.”

  “I misread the situation.” Boulder looked from me to Marco and back again. “Did I hear you right? Did you say you were pregnant?”

  “Yes. Promise that you won’t tell anyone until I’ve had a chance to tell Rochelle myself.”

  “My lips are sealed.” Boulder used his finger to indicate an imaginary zipping of his lips.

  “Thank you.”

  “Are we okay?” Boulder patted Marco’s shoulder.

  “I wish you would have given me a chance to explain myself.”

  Boulder brushed some moss from Marco’s shoulder. “I took a vow to protect the girls. Shelly is one of them and I take that responsibility very seriously.”

  “Me too, but you can’t always trust what you see. You’ve got to ask questions before you kill a man.”

  A corner of Boulder’s lips lifted. “No need to get dramatic. You’re still here, aren’t you?”

  With a hand to his throat, Marco spoke in a hoarse voice. “Barely.

  “Yeah, you sound a little rusty. You might wanna put some lotion on those vocal cords.”

  I stepped forward. “You can’t put lotion on vocal cords,” I informed them. From the look they gave me it was clear that they knew that already.

  “Are you two coming back to the party?” Boulder asked Marco.

  “Yes, in a minute.”

  “I’ll tell people that you had a private discussion if they ask.”

  “Thank you.”

  When Alexander Boulder walked away, Marco turned his head to me. “Now, do you see why being married makes a big fucking difference?”

  CHAPTER 26

  Drunken Memor
ies

  Marco

  Shelly went to bed around one a.m., at the same time as most of the Motlander women.

  The eight women who had once been students were excited about sleeping in their old beds. Pearl and Shelly joined them inside but took the teachers’ rooms.

  Only eleven out of the twelve men who had once shared two rooms inside the school were here, and most of them preferred to sleep in tents they had brought from home.

  Hunter had a tent large enough for both of us and had offered to share it with me.

  I was sore from Boulder’s attack but didn’t let it stop me from staying up with the rest of the men. It was three in the morning before we were done drinking and telling exaggerated tales from our time at the school.

  “I have to take a piss,” Hunter said in a slurred voice and got up from the log he’d been sitting on around the bonfire.

  “Take one for me too, I’m too tired to do any heavy lifting,” I teased and laughed at my own joke.

  Hunter grinned and walked toward the line of trees.

  “At least try to walk in a straight line, you drunken bastard,” Tristan called after him.

  Without a word, Hunter looked over his shoulder before pulling down his pants and mooning Tristan and the rest of us.

  Nero, Storm, and Tristan got up to moon him back and we all howled with laughter.

  Even in my drunken state, I was aware that our level of jokes had sunk to a very low level and that it was time to go to bed. “I’m calling it a night,” I said and slowly rose up.

  “Yeah, we should probably close down this party,” Tristan agreed and pulled his pants back up. “Archer threatened to have us all go running in the morning like in the old days.” He looked toward the large log cabin where Archer and Kya lived with their children now. “I’ll bet that’s why he went to bed at midnight. You know, so he can look sharp tomorrow.”

  Pointing my finger at them in a slow drunken movement, I gave a hiccup. “I can still outrun any of you,” Two more hiccups followed. “I just need to sleep for an hour first.”

  “Deal.” Tristan raised his wristband close to his eyes. “It’s seven minutes past three. We can sleep for almost four hours.” His words were slow and slurred.