Project Genesis

by Howard, Michelle

  More Rekabians fell. Vin lowered his visor and pulled his mind from Helen. He had to believe she was safe for the moment. His men needed him. This was what they were trained to do. Nathan and Zander’s arms moved in synchronized motion as they tossed bolts of energy left and right at a group of five Rekabians who had two soldiers pinned down.

  The twins portrayed poetry in motion without an ounce of hesitancy despite the numbers surrounding them. Elbows pumped back and forth looking as if they shadow boxed. Bright lights flared from their palms as ball after ball of energy launched at the aliens.

  “Rock, get a force field around our men. Curtis work your magic and remove them from danger.”

  “On it.”

  “I got it, Vin.”

  A wavy ball of energy appeared around the two soldiers and their bodies floated in the air to fly across the yard.

  “Behind you, Vin.”

  Harkum’s warning had Vin spinning on his heels. Pulling the trigger, he blasted the Rekabian charging at him. The stench of the dying aliens increased as the tide shifted and Alpha Squad began to pick them off. The ship in the air pulsed in an erratic beat then without warning, zoomed off in the sky leaving its troops behind.

  Sen cheered but they still had two more creatures standing atop a tank and firing randomly at those around them.

  Slade’s voice interrupted. “Michaels, proceed with Alpha Squad and finalize the damage. I’m calling the other teams back. We need an update as soon as you’ve finished securing the Command Center.”

  Considering Harkum fired on the last two, it seemed like the fight was over. Vin tapped his com and opened the frequency. “How many of our own did we lose?”

  A pause then Slade’s response. “One. Sanders didn’t make it. Plenty of injuries though.”

  Vin exhaled. “What about the pilots?” Those brave men lost their fight today.

  “Four. Boys from the air force base who were close enough to respond to our call for help.”

  Their deaths couldn’t be prevented, he had to lock down his sadness. Vin jogged toward the camo painted pick up with only one thought in mind. When the dark head peered over the side, he increased his pace. Helen scrambled to her feet and jumped into his arms as soon as he reached the side of the truck.

  Fuck, she felt good. Vin held her tightly and tried to still the trembling in his arms. With his face buried in the thickness of her hair, Vin blinked away the sting in his eyes.

  ***

  Helen pressed her face hard into Vin’s chest. The smell of sweat, lemons and smoke filled her lungs. Nerves shot, she could only hold on to his large frame, her nails clenched on the rough armor covering his shirt. Moments ago she’d faced death. Now Vin held her. Tears welled but Helen forced them back with a rough swallow.

  His chest thundered beneath her cheek. “How did they get here, Vin?”

  “I’m not sure. There’s no coordination or plan to the attacks.”

  Not what she wanted to hear. Helen couldn’t stop a sniff from escaping. “I want to go home.”

  “I know,” he murmured the words in her hair and pulled back.

  Helen glanced around and realized that the night had gone quiet. No flashing lights from a space ship. No laser and gun fire. The air reeked of rotten eggs and her stomach heaved. Helen wished she could take time to be nauseous but his team approached and surrounded them. Six men who were fast becoming familiar to her.

  Helen pulled further away from Vin and faced the blond. His hair hung over his forehead and once more his eyes looked tired and drawn. She reached out a hand then let it fall to her side, unsure if the gesture would be accepted. This was not Corporate America. “Thank you, Curtis.”

  Only this man could have gotten her away from the Rekabian poised to kill her. Body flying through the air, her only thought had been relief at not dying. Somehow, he’d used his magic powers to get her out of the way. Helen rolled her eyes. Magic powers sounded so lame.

  “My pleasure, ma’am.” A weary smile graced his face and briefly his eyes brightened.

  “Quit flirting, Curtis.” Vin cuffed the man on the shoulder. “We need to get inside. I want all the intel Slade has on these for shit aliens.”

  Helen peered closely at Vin’s face. Strain and fatigue battled for supremacy. He made some hand motion and the whole group headed toward the building. Soldiers came up along side them and the men greeted each other warmly. A couple of backslaps accompanied relieved conversation.

  Each of the men who’d stayed behind looked worse for wear. Dirt and streaks of blood marred everyone’s face. Only Vin’s team looked as if they could go another round.

  Chapter 10

  Vin escorted Helen to his room. Each step putting him one closer to securing her safety for the moment. Vin felt the drop in his emotions and knew he’d crash from the adrenalin ride sooner than later.

  Slade continued ranting in his ear com. For the last fifteen minutes, he’d screamed and cursed, demanding Vin report to the conference room. Right. All over that, boss man. But not until he took care of Helen.

  Helen who gripped his shirt sleeve fiercely when he attempted to leave. “No, Vin. Don’t leave.”

  He didn’t want to and that was part of the reason he was running late. “Only for a little bit, hellcat. I need to know what’s going on.” Gone was the poised young woman. In her place stood a woman who’d been through hell over the last few hours. If hell housed evil attacking aliens.

  Dirt streaked her jacket and there was a jagged tear in the knee of her pants. Her hair lay in a tangle about her shoulders but it was the desperation in her hold keeping him here.

  Vin ran a hand down her face. Skin soft and dewy met his fingers. Her eyes closed and she leaned in his direction. Needing to reassure her, Vin lowered his head and kissed her temple. “You’re safe. I promise.” As safe as any of them were right now.

  Her lids lifted, the animated spark missing. “I’m scared. I’m really scared.”

  Hearing her admit the truth of how she felt stabbed Vin in the gut. How he’d love to soothe her fear. But he couldn’t. He needed to report to Slade with his men and he needed to do whatever it took to return Helen to her home and away from everything Alpha Squad had going on.

  “We’ll talk when I get back.” Was the most he could come up with.

  Helen stiffened and stepped away. Her lips smiled but her eyes held their hollow look. “Right. Go on and do your top secret stuff.”

  Vin needed to leave before he succumbed to the overwhelming desire to hold her in his arms. With one last look over his shoulder, he left Helen alone in his room once again hoping she’d be fine while he met with the team.

  The conference room was as tight as it had been earlier. Slade however appeared totally different. Top collar of his shirt unbuttoned and tie missing, he kept running his hand over his bald head and muttering under his breath. When Vin eased into his seat, Slade cracked and aimed an accusatory finger in his direction.

  “Did you take long enough, Michaels?”

  Vin kept his cool. “No, sir.” Cause truthfully he would have taken longer if it meant waiting until Helen was comfortable before leaving her.

  Slade cursed and dropped his hip on the edge of the table to lean in Vin’s face. “Maybe now that everyone’s here, we can talk about the f-ing aliens that attacked the f-ing Command Center.”

  Vin noticed with pleasure the tremor in their handlers arms as he pushed off the table to stand. A quick check across the room showed Harkum identified the same thing. Slade tended to act like the big man on campus when they all knew he just conveyed the messages on behalf of the general for the government. Still, in the six months Slade worked with the teams, he’d never demonstrated this level of emotion.

  “Is Bravo Squad heading back?” The men of Bravo Squad and Alpha Squad gelled seamlessly on a lot of missions though he’d worked fine with the men of Delta Squad too.

  Slade exhaled. “They’re all heading back as I informed you. Both teams
reported success in their missions. This is bigger than anything we ever expected. President Harrison’s been on the line with the General back and forth on how to handle the country’s defense while the media puts their own spin on all of this.”

  Zander and Nathan slouched low in their seats but the twins focused with unrelenting intensity on every word. Vin understood why. It wasn’t common knowledge that Lucy Harrison was their aunt. A secret they went to a lot of trouble to maintain for her sake and theirs.

  “Give me a report, Michaels. Any details since your team interacted in multiple instances.” Slade held his PCU in hand prepared to note Vin’s explanations on the handheld computer device.

  “The aliens in Baltimore were tougher to kill in all three instances that Alpha Squad has been a part of. In Atlanta, the aliens’ had increased agility but succumbed to our weapons easier. Here at base, their actions came across as coordinated but more as quantity versus quality in the attack.”

  His men agreed shaking their heads in the affirmative. Slade squinted and stopped typing with his finger. “What are your thoughts, Michaels? Don’t dance around, spit it out?”

  “I’m not sure they’re as prepared as we’re assuming. They’re randomly attacking but not all of them have the skill level to follow through. Have there been any demands?” Vin asked. “Any reason to explain why the Rekabians suddenly went into full combat mode and are shooting up the planet?” None of it made sense. The mother ship, as they referred to it, had arrived in Earth’s atmosphere three months ago, slowly popping up in the sky. The smaller crafts left her underbelly weeks later. Of course, official press junkets claimed the visitors to be friendly at the time. That no longer seemed the case.

  Slade eyed them all with a level of seriousness that had the whole team sitting up straight. “According to Madame President, the Rekabians demanded we surrender Earth two days ago. When that didn’t happen…” He let the words trail off.

  Vin was sure Curtis and Rock’s expression of disbelief mirrored his own but it was Sen who summed it up. “Holy hell.”

  Clearing his throat, Slade continued pulling his official ‘I’m in charge’ armor around his shoulders. “We have to accept that Earth is being invaded and the world will have to unite to defend her.”

  For the first time the bastard actually said something meaningful.

  ***

  Helen briskly ran her hands up and down her arms. The news reports on the television a background chatter she used to control the fear and panic racing through her mind. She had to start thinking like the competent woman she knew herself to be. Okay, scratch that. The competent woman she was before she’d survived not one but two alien attacks.

  Sorting her thoughts helped so she began a mental tally of what she needed to do. More clothes were a priority, she added with a grimace at her stained and torn clothes. Send emails, delay meetings. Helen paused. She wouldn’t be doing anything work related right now. After the earlier attack , LS&G would be indefinitely closed.

  Well there was one way to find out. Helen pulled out her phone and dialed her boss. Not allowing her to speak, Gordon Ellis answered with, “Thank God, Scott. I wasn’t sure if you were alive.”

  Helen walked to the wall next to the television so she wouldn’t see the images on the screen and leaned her head against it. “Mr. Ellis, I’m sorry it’s taken a while to call.”

  Gordon laughed in her ear but broke off to sniff loudly. “Helen, you amaze me. I’m not sure why any more but it needed to be said. Here we are worried about you and you’re apologizing for the tardiness of checking in.” His laughter calmed and Helen sensed the next words out his mouth would be pivotal. “LS&G is destroyed. The headquarters downtown, I mean. Tokyo got hit but we’re lucky so far that our Asian plants in Hong Kong haven’t reported any damages and no sign of these aliens in their area. I’ve personally worked with Harry Little to confirm that all of our associates made it safely.”

  Helen closed her eyes and rocked her head back. Not everyone. She parted her lips but Ellis kept talking.

  “Except for the three managers from the marketing department.” They both went quiet absorbing that bit of news. “Knowing you’re alive means a lot. We came out of it as fortunate as possible when you consider there were at least fifty people there on a Saturday. If it had been during the week.” He grunted and didn’t finish the thought. A typical work day at headquarters had roughly five hundred people in and out of the building. “Are you okay, where are you?”

  Helen loved Gordon and he was an excellent boss for the three years she’d worked under him. His ever roving thoughts and ability to shift gears on a dime proved challenging but Helen’s performance grew under his wings. He was a friend and she didn’t want to lie to a friend. Taking time with her response, she managed to word her answer carefully. “With a friend. He…I managed to get out after the Rekabians attacked and I’m staying with a friend until I can make my way home.” No mention of DC or Vin.

  “Good. Good. Stay safe. If there’s anything we can do to assist you, don’t hesitate. Your pay will continue despite these terrible acts against the world, benefits, you name it. Mr. Little is committed to seeing everyone through this difficult time.”

  Unexpected. Helen’s shoulders slumped and she opened her eyes. Vin’s empty apartment pressed in on her. “Thank you, Mr. Ellis. I’ll stay in touch but I think I’m fine for now.” Money ranked as the least of her concerns right now.

  “Good.” He kept saying it as if he needed to believe it. “The wife and I will get back to Maryland when possible. For obvious reasons, all air travel has been suspended. Log onto your email for updates if you need it. Systems are up and running since the IT team has managed to use remote servers.”

  “Right, okay.” They ended the call with an air of despondency. Neither of them could predict how work or the world as they knew it would recover and change. Helen tossed her phone on the sofa and sat down, elbows braced on her knees. She stared at the phone debating her next move.

  There was one person she should call out of obligation. A call she dreaded and yet the churning wave in her stomach demanded she at least attempt to find out. Without conscious thought, her fingers curled around her cell and she hit the speed dial.

  After, two rings a tremulous voice spoke. “Helen, is that you?”

  “Hi, Mom.”

  Her mother cried. “Thank goodness. I watched the news, recognized your building but I couldn’t get through on your cell.”

  Because service was sketchy in her office to begin with and also because Helen had the phone set to forward all her mother’s calls to voicemail. Guilt assailed her. “I’m fine. I was able to get out.”

  “Good.”

  Well that seemed to be the word of the day. “Yeah. Good.” Helen tried to think of something neutral to speak of. She didn’t like the resentment unfurling just hearing from her mom and if she didn’t end the call quickly, she’d say something she regretted. “Look, I just wanted you to know I’m fine. And, and to see if you were okay as well.” Her mother lived in the city only fifteen minutes by metro from Helen’s office.

  The apartment was situated in a quiet peaceful part of the city. A far cry from the subsidized housing they’d spent her earlier years.

  “Helen?”

  “Yes, Mom.” Helen held her breath. Here it comes. She fisted her free hand at her side.

  “Maybe we could do lunch after things settle down. Maybe?”

  The hesitancy, the worry and doubt collected to hang in the air with the automatic refusal Helen wanted to give. But instead, she did what she always did when Carmen Scott broached the subject. “Yeah,” she muttered. “Maybe.” Or never. She clenched her fist tighter, nails biting into her palm.

  Why did it always go this way? It wasn’t her mother’s fault that she’d been knocked up by her teen boyfriend and dumped. Couldn’t blame her for being kicked out into the streets by unhelpful parents either. And yet, Helen did blame her. Blamed her for all th
e shameful years she’d grown up poor and received assistance.

  Carmen cleared her throat and accepted Helen’s non-answer. “Good. By the way, I got a raise at work and a promotion.”

  For a moment, Helen couldn’t absorb her mother’s words and the shift in the conversation direction. Her mom worked for a popular food chain that specialized in organic meals. “That’s great.” Helen searched her memory and couldn’t remember how long her mom had been there or what her position was. “What’s your new title?”

  Pride rang forth. “I’m the new day time Team Lead. It came with a dollar an hour increase and I’ve already raised my 401k deductions to account for the change.”

  Helen worked up a small amount of enthusiasm. “Impressive.” Ten years. That was how long her mom worked at this place and she seemed to love her job. At least, each time they spoke her mom went on and on about her coworkers and her manager. A far cry from when Carmen known as Bits worked as a stripper in one of the popular clubs on the red light district.

  Helen blocked the memories of laughing classmates who teased her about their father paying for Helen’s clothes with the tips they gave ‘Bits’. She blocked the late nights her mom came home smelling of smoke and heavy cologne. Too many memories started to crash in on her. Like one of those giant waves at the beach you couldn’t avoid, Helen felt like she was about to be pulled under.

  Rocking back and forth on the cushion, Helen rushed out. “I have to go now, Mom. I’m glad you’re okay and congratulations on the promotion.”

  Carmen got out an anxious, “Talk to you later.” Before Helen disconnected the call.

  She chucked the phone on the table and headed for the kitchen wondering all the while if Vin kept wine around.

  Chapter 11

  Vin closed the door behind him on a relieved sigh. The quiet had a soothing effect. Too quiet. Instantly stiffening, he jerked away from the door searching for Helen. The living area attested to its lack of occupants. Heart hammering in his chest, he made his way to his bedroom and relaxed against the wall. Helen bent at the waist, sliding her pants down her tanned golden legs.