by Jorja Kish
She wrinkled her nose from the sour, acidic taste that brushed against her tongue. She leaned back and tried to focus on the beefy man driving the truck. Her stoned and drunken haze made it too hard to do anything but flop against her bad-boy lover as they barrelled down the isolated dirt road.
Carmella didn’t care where they were going, just as long as they got there and soon. She was drunk, high and extremely horny. Her husband was going to be home later tonight and she needed some big, fat cock to fuck her stupid before her boring, but rich hubby came back. “I’m so horny, Nortie. Maybe we can just stop for a minute and just fuck here in the truck,” she whined, grinding her body against his side.
She pressed her half-naked body, in a green tube top and a tight jean skirt, against Norton’s side and whispered playfully into the man’s ear. “Please, baby, I can’t wait to get to the Maguire place.”
“I’ll fuck you when I’m good and ready,” he snapped back.
The truck jolted forward when Norton pressed his boot harder on the gas, spewing dirt and grass into their wake. Excitement gleamed in Carmella’s eyes. The pout of her collagen lips curved into a wild whoop as she bounced on the bench seat of Norton’s backwoods jalopy.
Norton was white trash, despite his older brother’s nefarious climb to respectability through threats and blind eyes as sheriff. She didn’t give a hoot, because she was once one of the low in the barrel that fucked into money. The only thing that mattered was keeping her husband ignorant and her stupid lover satisfied. She had the best of both worlds.
Her grin was wide, like a Cheshire cat, as she curled into Norton. “Okay,” she purred, knowing when to stop riling him. He could be a mean motherfucker when he wanted to be. She wanted his cock, not his fist.
Carmella’s heart hammered in her chest when she saw the faint outline of the sagging roof of the farmhouse. She ignored the sudden drench of sweat that smelled funky coming from her lover. All she could think was how eager her pussy was for some backwoods cock. She never turned her nose up to an eight-inch dick that was the width of her wrist.
She leaned away when she spotted the abandoned farmhouse that settled next to a rotting barn close to collapsing. Squirming in her seat, Carmella couldn’t help but rub her thighs together, smearing the wetness of her pussy that dripped from the constant thoughts of Norton’s dick ploughing into her body.
Today she had to get her money’s worth, so to speak, because dear, sweet Reginald was home for the next two weeks. It was too long for her to go without some hard, sweaty fucking. Her noodle-limp husband did his best, but she wanted better.
Norton turned sharply into the overgrown driveway, raising two of his tires off the ground and caused Carmella to shrill with laughter. He grinned through the sweat that dripped into his eyes. He wiped it away with his sleeves and leered at the barely-dressed whore that pretended to be an upstanding member of her fancy-shmancy private club. No matter how much money she had, Carmella would be nothing more than a stupid whore.
His black eyes narrowed and his lips curled before a bubble of rage fisted inside his chest. His eyes blurred and he lost his sight. He had to shake the sudden blindness from his eyes, wondering if he’d snorted too much cocaine earlier.
He blinked rapidly until his vision returned, but everything seemed a bit brighter and sharper.
“Hurry, Norton, I can’t wait any longer,” Carmella whined as she wiggled out of her skin-tight skirt that barely covered her ass.
The flimsy black thong scarcely covered her hairless mons and the strip of string disappeared between her tanned ass cheeks that money and exercise clearly shaped. The denim skirt was flopped in a pile, before the grinning woman was shimmying out of her too-small tube top. The bounce of her special-ordered boobs, and porn-star nipples that would look and feel fantastic in anyone’s mouth, pointed their turgid peaks.
Carmella grabbed her boobs and jostled them in her hands, giving Norton a show. His dark eyes followed the jiggle and his nose flared with the musky, sweet scent of her hungry pussy.
A dirty leer covered his brutish features, but not before his hand snaked out and grabbed a fistful of blond hair. He twisted the long length in his hand and yanked the slut closer.
“You gonna give me what I want, slut? Let me fuck you good and hard?”
She yelped, but the dark gleam in her eyes told another story. Norton could feel her soft panting when he pulled her closer before grinding her plush mouth against his teeth. The bite of pain and the taste of blood singed his blood and a darker craving ravaged his body.
Norton fell back from the panting woman. Fascination glimmered in his dark eyes as he stared at the crimson of blood that coated her pouty lips. The smear made his cock harden to the point that his dick was ready to burst out of his jeans. The sudden hunger to cover Carmella’s body in her blood had Norton snarling. The truck slowed until it rolled to a stop. Norton shifted into park and turned toward the glazed-eyed woman.
Norton’s limbs quaked from the thought of Carmella covered in blood, and his blood burned from the fierce ache that made his stomach cramp in shards of pain. He was gasping for air as his vision blurred into a red haze before it switched to monochrome. Norton watched, detached, as Carmella’s horny grin slipped. Her painted-on eyes bulged in terror, before her mouth opened and screamed.
Norton snarled, lunging at the petrified woman, ignoring her flaying fists and kicking legs. He opened his mouth and felt his gums burn just as he sank his teeth into Carmella’s golden-skinned neck. Yanking back, blood spurted over his face, basking him in the coppery wetness that made his cock erupt inside his jeans. The jagged hole torn from his sharp rows of needle-like teeth exposed muscle, bone, and the faltering artery that spurted blood out of the woman’s weakening body.
Norton’s eyes rolled to the back of his head and shined a filmy, opaque glaze when he turned toward Carmella, who was trying to grab the handle to his truck door.
“More, want more,” he snapped his teeth.
Hunger burned in his gut. A sinister snarl was the only warning the woman had before he twisted her into a heap of blood, muscle and bone.
Her shrieks of agony continued for only so long before he chewed out her voice box and plunged the truck into the sounds of his grunts and whines.
Norton burrowed his head and hands into the wet heat of Carmella’s lifeless body. Her limbs only jerked when he yanked out innards to chew on, filling his mouth with tissue that tried to ease the constant hunger that burned in his gut. Awareness leaked out of his eyes as he chewed. Only hunger remained. Only the need for blood and muscle burrowed in what was left of his brain. There was nothing left, but the hunger.
Chapter 4
Commander Setti Prime leaned forward in his nano chair, trusting the Nanomites to carry his massive weight. Just over six foot eight and well over three hundred pounds of muscle, the pod Alpha Leader searched the solemn gazes of the men who surrounded the polished table as they sat in silence. So many of his brethren fallen. It skewered his soul and hardened his resolve to fight harder.
His pale white eyes flared with a fierce intelligence, causing the rich cobalt ring surrounding his irises to glow. A few of the pod leaders averted their eyes, shifting quietly in their nano chairs from the intensity of his eyes.
“How much of the population have been infected so far?” the captain of the Solace Dawn asked.
Setti shifted his eyes to look at the Draghmarr who presided over the team assigned to save as many of the population who survived the First Wave infection as possible. Their eyes met briefly, before he gave a slight nod and shifted his stoic gaze toward the Communication Officer, Garrett Soonei.
Setti watched as the whippet-thin officer clear his throat and stared at the data pad in his elegant hands, before the man tapped its surface and brought up a holofield in the middle of the command table. The Class M Planet had a pale blue glow, with tiny red dots swarming across the surface at a steady pace. The twelve men sitting stared at the h
orror unleashed on the planet.
“It seems that the virus is spreading faster than we anticipated. The warmer continents”—the communication officer motioned toward the southern hemispheres—“have the highest infection rates. The incubation period we estimated was wrong. By the time we reach this system, the infection will consume half the population.”
“Are you certain?” Captain Sturgoi asked, his frown deepening the crevasses that lined his face as he turned his jet-black eyes that glistened like water flowing over an ebony stone at the fair-haired officer.
Officer Soonei nodded his head as his thin fingers blurred over his holo-keypad. The image on the table shifted, until another colour filled the holo-field. Bright green dots were scattered among the red. Many were on the edges of the growing red wave, and a few green dots scattered in rare secluded areas where the infection hadn’t ravaged the area.
“The denser populations have it worse. The chances of us getting to those survivors could hamper our mission.” Soonei paused and averted his eyes from his Resistance brethren. “I’m sorry, but we’ll be lucky to save the ones that we can. Maybe it’ll be enough to ensure that the Terrans won’t face a mass extinction.”
Setti didn’t stop the deep rumble of his growl that filled the silence of the room. He slowly placed his gloved hands on the surface of the black glass table and spread his fingers wide. His massive hands covered the table surface in front of him, before he clenched his sledgehammer fists.
“It’s unacceptable,” he murmured, casting his deep voice into every corner of the room. He sought each pod leader’s eyes with a fierceness that belied his deadly and swift intent. “We cannot fail in this mission. The Horde has destroyed more each annual cycle than we can save. Soon there will be less and less of us to fight back, until we are on the verge of our extinction.”
“Agreed, Commander Prime. That is why I was given the orders to send several advance teams to this system quadrant and infiltrate the Horde Mother ship with our agents. As we speak, twelve teams are waiting for our arrival to evacuate them. We’re still a few days behind, since the Solace Dawn doesn’t have a Dark Tech drive,” the Draghmarr captain stated warily eyeing the Tromere warrior.
Setti narrowed his eyes, fighting the rising anger eager to display on his features. He clenched his jaw until it ached. His heart pounded faster until it felt like his ribs were about to explode and shook his head slightly, as if to shake the unease from his chest.
His lover, Braydok, was one of the agents sent. He knew it as he knew his next breath. Why didn’t he mention it? Another wave of unease settled in his chest. He knew the answer. It was Keene. It had to be one of Keene’s visions to send Braydok on such a dangerous mission.
Voices floated around the room as each pod leader was given their new orders. The room was silent, forcing Setti to raise his troubled eyes to find the room nearly empty. He turned to his captain and stared hard. The brief flicker of unease was gone. Only a deadly glint glowed in his eyes.
The stocky Draghmarr sighed and rubbed his gloved hands over his weary face. He leaned back and narrowed his eyes.
“He volunteered, Setti. He said it was something he had to do and that he knew you would stop him if you found out. He said Keene would explain everything to you.”
Setti leaned forward in his nano-chair, rested his arm on the sturdy surface before he spoke in a chilled manner.
“Braydok and Keene had no right to keep this from me. They are my bond mates, regardless of prophetic visions.” He swiftly turned away, suddenly afraid of the stirring emotions that were churning in his heart.
“Setti, trust your bond mates, trust Keene’s vision. He knows more than he’s saying. Give him a chance to explain why Braydok had to go on this mission without your knowledge. And trust Braydok to fulfil his objective.”
Setti shook his head and growled before he slammed his fists on the surface of the ebony table.
A loud crack and a wave of fractures littered the once-smooth surface. The herculean warrior stood to his intimidating height and jabbed a finger at the Solace Dawn captain.
“I have fought too long, suffered too greatly to have a possibility of one of my bond mates taken from me. I can’t lose him, Chamtarr. I can’t lose either of them.”
Setti turned away and faced one of the portholes, before he rested his forehead on the reinforced nano-glass. His rapid breathing was the only thing heard in the room. He jerked when he felt the light touch of his captain and friend.
“You will not have the burden of losing any of your bond mates, Setti. Keene had to share his vision with me in order for me to send Braydok on this mission. Yes, it’s dangerous, but what will be given to you and your bond mates will be a precious gift.”
Setti breathed deeply and turned to Chamtarr, his eyes questioning. “I don’t understand.”
The shorter man clamped a hand on Setti’s shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze, before he released its hold. An enigmatic twist to his captain’s pale lips had Setti quirking an ebony brow.
“Talk with Keene, let your little bond mate explain and soothe your worries. Trust in his words and his heart, Setti. Now, get the hell out of here. You’re dismissed, commander.”
Chapter 5
The soft voices of women coming from the front of the clinic confirmed that there was only one more patient left for the morning appointments. Mackenzie rubbed the back of her neck and gently rotated the kinks out of her neck and shoulders. She stepped out of her office quickly and walked down the hall and into the welcoming reception area.
“Almost done for the day,” she murmured to herself with a grateful smile. She loved her work, but some days, especially slow days, she just wanted to go home.
Milly glanced at her and shared a wink, before returning her attention at the very pregnant Sarah Miller. The younger woman leaned against the oak desk and rubbed her belly in slow, circular motions.
Her light, sweet voice dipped huskier when she talked about Harvey promising to take her to one of those fancy restaurants in the big city of Newtonville before the baby was born. The flush to her cheeks held the excitement in her pretty face. Her brown, doe-like eyes twinkled whenever she mentioned Harvey’s name.
Pulling her eyes away from the obvious love Sarah had for her husband, Mackenzie softly cleared her throat to ease the sudden tightness she felt forming. She mentally shook away the regret and pulled a friendly smile to settle on her features.
“Sarah, if I wasn’t your doctor, I’d say you were having twins instead of one big baby boy,” Mackenzie teased, leaning in to give a quick hug to the smaller woman.
“I know. Harvey keeps telling me I’m eating his paycheque away. And I said I gotta keep my strength up, so when I had our baby I’d get the job done proper.”
Milly burst into laughter and chuckled. “Sarah, you tell that man that he has to love you no matter how big you get and how broke he is every payday.”
Sarah vigorously nodded and winked. “Oh, I tell him how lucky he is for having me as his wife, and the mother of his boy. He knows.”
“Good girl.” Mackenzie grinned. “Men need to know that they have special gifts in us women. And they need to take care of us properly.”
Sarah’s cheeks flushed a scorching red hue. Her eyes filled with embarrassment and mirth. “Oh, he treated me right proper, if my swollen belly is any indication.”
Milly howled and slapped the top of her desk in between her series of giggles and snorts. She shook her head as tears streamed down her face. “Fergus is definitely going to have to pick up on his proper caring.”
The three women stood laughing.
The front door of the clinic slammed against the wall, forcing the dainty bell to fling off the door and into the opposite wall.
All three women spun around and gasped at the sight. Mackenzie was the first to react as she rushed toward Alice McCormick, who was dragging her teenage son by his underarms.
“Sweet baby Jesus, Mackenzie, I nee
d your help. I don’t know what happened,” Alice sobbed, trembling with every step she took.
Mackenzie called over her shoulder as she rushed toward Alice and her son, “Milly, grab the med kit in exam room two.”
She carefully grasped Alec McCormick and helped carry Alice’s son to the closest flat surface. There was so much blood covering the young teenager that Mackenzie didn’t know where to start. She checked his vitals and found his pulse sluggish one moment, then beating so rapidly, she feared his heart would explode.
Milly skidded to a halt when she reached her desk where the two women placed the moaning teen. “What do you need, Mac?” Milly asked, opening the med kit.
“We need to clean and stop the bleeding. Grab some gauze and the medical wash for cleaning the wounds. It looks…” she leaned closer at some of the cuts and pulled away quickly. “It looks like he’s been bitten, almost chewed on.” She glanced at Alice while she slid on gloves and worked on the moaning boy.
“What can you tell me, Alice?” Mackenzie squinted, washing the wounds quickly and placing gauze over the lesser wounds. With practised ease, Mackenzie and Milly worked well under the pressure as Mackenzie sutured the deeper wounds.
“Alice?” She paused in her work and glanced at the unblinking woman.
Streams of tears covered her ruddy features, her chest heaving as if she struggled for breath. Alice’s mouth opened and snapped shut as she curled her hands into fist and shook her head vigorously.
“I-I don’t know. He was out earlier this morning saying he and Lenny Pascal was going to go fishing down near the old McGuire place. I remember telling them to stay clear of the place, because it was on its last leg and I didn’t want them to get hurt. He-he kissed me good-bye and promised to be careful.”
