"What kind of noise was it?"
"A big thump. Like someone hit the wall." Dev's grey eyes widened with excitement as his overlong black hair fell into his eyes.
Absently, Thorn reached over and brushed the unruly lock of hair away. Dev always looked excited and disheveled while Dane always appeared calm and well-groomed. Thorn looked into Dev's grey eyes then looked into an identical pair of grey eyes. Until that moment it never occurred to him his sons were smaller versions of himself. In the past they'd only been a painful reminder of Naline's treachery. He watched them for a moment then asked, "What did you hear, Dane?"
Dane looked him square in the eyes. "The same sound Dev heard. It was a thump, as if someone fell against the wall. When I looked the corridor was empty."
"I'll check into it. Alright?" They both nodded. "Now, before I return to the bridge, I want to see the lessons you did this morning."
While they retrieved their tablets he cleared the table then checked the lessons in math and history he'd assigned earlier. Only a few of the answers were incorrect. He helped them correct them then assigned them enough to keep them busy for the rest of the cycle. Before he left, he reminded them they were confined to their quarters. As soon as he arrived on the bridge Dag informed him all of the Earth females had been transferred aboard and escorted to their quarters.
"Good. I'll take command, now." He lowered himself into his chair and studied the chart his navigator, Ronin Hughson, handed him. He made a minor adjustment, then returned them to him. "Have the trade goods been transferred to the ship?"
"Yes, Commander."
Thorn nodded at his new security officer, Jarek Aulunson. The younger warrior was eager to please and ambitious. "Dag, inform the docking station we're ready to disengage."
Dag activated his communicator. "We're cleared to depart, Commander."
"Disengage." Thorn turned to Dag while the navigator and the pilot began the process. "I want to see how the new engines perform if we push them a little. Tell engineering to monitor them closely."
"Alright, Commander." Dag carried out the order, then took the vacant seat next to him.
Thorn slouched in his seat and allowed himself to brood. Lunch with his sons brought back a lot of bad memories. The Zarronians had known a group of Wrothians were trying to regain control of the planet Zhang and release the Wrothian warriors imprisoned there. Those warriors were incarcerated for their war crimes against not only the Zarronians, but against the other inhabitants of the Xenti Galaxy. Over the annuals, many of them had been rehabilitated and freed. Only those warriors who refused to change had been left on the dark side of Zhang. Naline's father had been one of them and he'd managed to contact her and she'd willingly helped him. When she'd been caught, she smugly confessed to treason. He'd tried to resign his commission, but the Council refused to accept it. Instead, they'd given him command of his father's starship, the Invincible.
The clearing of a throat interrupted his thoughts. Dag informed him they were ready to enter hyperspace. He nodded, then gave the order to begin the long journey home. In two moon phases, his life would return to normal. He'd take the first assignment the Council offered him, as long as it didn't involve returning to earth.
He'd spent a moon phase on the strange blue planet. Everywhere he and his warriors went the female inhabitants approached them and quite a few of his warriors ended up bonded. He'd adamantly refused their attempts at seduction, although being around them kept him in a constant state of arousal.
"Thank, Tor, that's over," Ronin Hughson said as he joined them. "Another month on Earth and I would have ended up bonded to one of those long-legged beauties."
Thorn shifted in his seat. The journey was just beginning and he had over ten-thousand Earth females on board. It was a starship commander's nightmare. "You'd better stay away from the second level. Unlike Dag here you haven't met your mate yet."
Dag smiled. "Lisa is all I've ever wanted in a mate."
"Have you set a date for the bonding ceremony?"
"We've decided to do it two moon phases after I return to Zarronia. I'd like you to be there, Thorn."
"I can attend before I leave again."
"You could stay. The Council has offered to give you a post closer to home," Dag said. "Why don't you accept it for a while to see how it works out?"
"I can't, Dag."
"You have to stop blaming yourself for what she did," Dag said. "Sooner or later you're going to have to come home."
Thorn frowned. "Not yet."
Dag nodded and changed the subject. "If those Earth females ever find out about our mating fever and how susceptible we are we'll be in big trouble. Can you imagine what they'd do?" He laughed, then continued, "I've had nightmares about being abducted and held hostage until I'm forced to bond with one of them."
Ronin chuckled. "Sounds interesting to me."
"Yes. But, in the nightmare the female always starts out as a tall, leggy blond then turns into a four foot tall Witvian troll."
Thorn grinned and Ronin laughed.
"Now, that would be a real nightmare." Ronin settled onto a nearby seat. "I've spent most of my credits on the fourth level. Sometimes, I think it would be easier to choose a bondmate."
When Ronin and several of the other warriors began comparing the various talents of the pleasure-givers Thorn tuned them out. The mating fever they carried was a well-guarded secret. It began when a Zarronian warrior turned twenty, and grew stronger as he aged. By the time he was thirty-two he was forced to choose a female and share his fever with her or die as the fever grew in intensity. During his father's time, after the Wrothians attacked Zarronia and killed all of the Zarronian females, many warriors had been unable to find compatible females and had died from the fever. His father and many other starship commanders had searched the Universe for mates and found the Wrothians and later the Earthlings. His mother Lia was a Wrothian.
Thinking about his parents, Valan Eirickson and Madami Lia, reminded him that his fever had grown worse in the last six moon phases, ever since his father had commandeered his starship and traveled to Earth. Since their return he'd transported them on several ambassadorial visits and whenever he entered their quarters he sensed a lingering scent that made his fever flare.
Between the unidentifiable scent and exposure to the Earth females on this mission he'd had to visit the pleasure givers frequently to keep his fever at a manageable level. He'd even been tempted to use ZL3 which he usually avoided as the drug left him feeling hyper-alert and raging the next day.
"Thorn?"
He returned his attention to the warriors around him. "Yes?"
"Which do you prefer? Blondes or redheads?"
"Neither."
Ronin cursed and Dag laughed. "You owe me five credits, Ronin."
Thorn's brow lifted in inquiry.
Dag slapped Ronin on the back. "I told him you preferred females with black hair but he didn't believe me. He's the one who insisted on the wager."
"But, every time I've seen you with a female, she's been a blond or a redhead," Ronin insisted. "The only black-haired female I ever saw you with was Naline."
Dag elbowed Ronin, drawing a grunt from him as Thorn stood up. "Dag, you have the bridge." The words were said harshly before he stalked away.
"Hell, Dag, I'm sorry. I didn't think."
"It's alright. Sooner or later, Thorn's going to have to come to terms with the past."
"Are Dane and Dev making any progress with him?" Ronin asked.
"No. They're not any closer now than they were before the journey began."
"When's he going to wake up and realize his sons need him? If he doesn't do something soon, he's going to lose them forever." Ronin ran his hands over his face. "We're not doing enough as their mentors to make him see how he's harming them."
"I don't know what else to do. We hoped this time together would improve matters but it's only made things worse. Even the boys are beginning to dislike him."
> "Yes, and after all the time we spent telling them what a great warrior he is and trying to convince them he regretted not being with them."
"I still believe he regrets it. He just doesn't know what to do about it."
***
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Mardi Maxwell
Berserker’s Rage
SmokeJumpers
Book two
By Elle Boon
Chapter One
Felicity pinched the bridge of her nose and closed down the computer. “Thank God today is over.” The final rush before prom had moms, and their teenage daughters, coming into the overpriced boutique to buy one of a kind dresses. The boutique, located in a strip mall, was in one of the wealthiest parts of Beverly Hills.
She’d let the other employees, most of whom were teenagers or college students, leave shortly after closing, while she did the end of the month total. Looking at the clock on the wall she grimaced. “Fuck a duck.” Knowing it was going to be dark out, but figuring she was in a well-lit parking lot, not to mention the crime rate was almost non-existent, she grabbed the bank envelope and stuffed it into her purse.
From her office she saw the lights in the front of the store were set to low. After making sure the alarm was turned on she walked out the back, closing and locking the heavy steel door. She took two steps and then stopped at the sight of four figures wearing hoodies.
Felicity hugged her bag closer to her chest, calculating in her head the chances of getting back into the store, or making it to her car. She wished she’d listened to her parents and learned to use a gun, or taken those self-defense classes they’d went on and on about.
“Look at her. She’s thinking about trying to escape, Danny.” One of the thugs sneered.
“Shut up, asshole.” The one she assumed was Danny began moving toward her.
Felicity decided a few thousand dollars wasn’t worth her life, and pulled the bank envelope out. The credit slips and checks could be cancelled, she reconciled in her mind. “Here, just take it and go.” She held it out as the one she assumed was the leader came toward her. They had masks with white skulls painted over their faces, making them appear even more frightening to Felicity. She locked her legs in place as he took, and then opened the envelope pulling the cash out.
He leaned down and sniffed her neck. “You really should’ve locked up and went home earlier. Don’t you know it’s not safe to be out after the sun goes down? Things go bump in the dark, little girl.”
Looking up, she saw the coldest eyes staring down at her, and she knew her life was over. No matter how much she wished it otherwise, these men had no plans to take the money and run.
“Why?” Felicity hated the plea in her voice, but couldn’t help but ask the one word question.
The other three men had moved closer, somehow maneuvering her into the darkened corner near the dumpsters. A perfect place to do God only knew what to her. Felicity looked around for an escape, or a weapon, but saw nothing but garbage and darkness.
“You want to know why we chose you?” One of the thugs asked, his voice grating. “You are always the last to leave. You may not be much to look at, but your body is kickin, and there is the added bonus of the money. We call that a win-win.” Two of the masked men fist bumped each other.
“Wow, he sure is talkative tonight. I guess that means we get to kill this one, huh?” Felicity nearly fell on her ass hearing the feminine voice behind the mask.
“Awe, what’s the matter, sugar lips? Did you think only men could do these sorts of things? Nah, I enjoy fighting and fucking just as much as these guys. Actually, I think I may get off on it more.”
Thinking back to the string of crimes she’d read about, and how they’d found all the victims, made Felicity’s stomach roll. She placed her hand over her mouth. “I think I’m going to be sick,” she said. Her parents would be horrified that her body would be found naked, the way the other victims had been discovered.
“That’s not going to save you, sugar lips.” Felicity hated the woman.
“Alice, quit being a cunt and scaring our date.” The one she assumed was Danny moved in closer. “Now, we can do this several ways. You can let us have our fun, or you can fight, and we will enjoy that even more. The difference is you won’t enjoy option B nearly as much as us.”
“What the hell, Dan, you got a soft spot for the ugly duckling or what?” Alice asked.
Felicity winced at the words tossed out by the woman. She had always been a plain Jane, and had been fine with it. Hearing that even her attackers thought she was ugly, but still planned…she couldn’t finish the thought of what was coming. What she could do was fight and not let them have it the easy way. She’d rather die fighting than be alive while they did whatever they intended. Since they weren’t expecting her to attack, she would go on the offense. She lifted the cross-body bag from across her chest, knowing it appeared light, when it fact it was heavier than if she had a couple bricks stored inside.
She watched Danny’s eyes widen, like he was expecting her to strip for them. The other two men folded their arms across their chest, preparing to watch the show.
Well, Felicity would do her best to give them a show, even if it killed her.
“This is gonna be great. Look at her tits. More than a handful.” One of the guys said, making Felicity shudder with his raspy voice, sounding like he’d already started anticipating what he was going to do to her.
Near the dumpster, she noticed a broken clothing rack with pieces of the metal pole lying off to the side. If she could ease closer to it she might have a fighting chance. With a yell she swung her heavy purse and knocked Alice in the head, and then hit Danny. Both were stunned, giving her a chance to lunge for the metal pole.
“Looks like our toy has claws.” The last man spoke. His voice hissing, a snake-like sound that slithered along her nerves.
She held the weapon in front of her. “I don’t want to hurt you. Just take my purse, my car, and the money from the store and go. I can’t identify you, so just go.”
Danny sighed. “She went with the hard way, kids. Let’s do this then.”
If she wasn’t the one in their sights, she’d have appreciated their well thought out choreography. The way they fanned out, giving her no chance to escape. Again, she wished she’d learned self-defense or something useful that would’ve saved her. Instead, she held the metal pole like a baseball bat, because she was good at that, and hit the first person to come at her. The sound of metal hitting flesh and bone, followed by the grunt of pain, almost made her drop her it. Only too soon another body came at her, and she swung with all her might, hitting a hard male body, who grabbed her weapon and jerked.
The metal pole was ripped from her, forcing Felicity to cry out in pain as the skin on her palms was ripped open.
“You stupid little bitch. You should’ve went with option A.” One of the men grabbed her, jerking her close to his body, shivers wracked her frame.
She raised her knee and tried to hit the one holding her between his legs, but he threw her away from him. She scrambled on her hands and knees, looking for more pieces of the rack, when her foot was grabbed.
Pieces of dirt and gravel scraped against her hands and arms as she was pulled back. Felicity clawed at the ground, feeling her nails breaking off, screaming, and knowing nobody could hear her.
“Give me something to gag her.” The leader’s voice grated.
Being flipped onto her back, her skirt hiked up to her wai
st, Felicity felt tears running down her temples and into her dark brown hair. The smell of the trash, and the overwhelming scent of the man’s cologne was forever imprinted on her brain as he straddled her, and shoved a piece of cloth in her mouth. She kicked and punched, trying to get the large man off her.
The feel of several hands grabbing her legs, and then her arms, brought a fresh wave of adrenalin through her. She worked the cloth out of her mouth with her tongue, and with the last bit of her breath, Felicity screamed, and screamed, until a fist came down, and still she screamed. She continued to scream, even when the man kept hitting her, telling her to shut up or else. Felicity heard bones cracking, tasted her own blood filling her mouth, and swallowed in order to continue screaming.
A stranger’s yell broke through the blackness trying to swallow her. Pain wracked every nerve of her body, and then the weight holding her down was gone. She wanted to move, needed to get away, but couldn’t. She let herself go where there was no pain, and prayed her parents knew she loved them. Darkness filled her vision. Broken, Felicity stopped fighting wishing she could see who the new man was.
* * * *
Hal rounded the corner and came to an abrupt stop. He swore he heard a woman scream. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end, and then he heard the sound again. He took off at a run, seeing the empty parking lot, save for one lone car parked under a security light.
The sound of the screaming was cut off, but he realized where it came from. In a darkened corner, he saw four figures surrounding what looked to be a woman’s prone form. Rage filled his vision. The closer he came and saw the damage they’d done, Hal’s grip on his control began to slip, making him see a red haze surrounding the four beings. He gave a yell that he knew was louder than the average man, making the attackers turn to face him, except the one still straddling the body.
He couldn’t control his temper and didn’t attempt to. His inner beast had free reign to do whatever it wanted to the animals responsible for killing the young woman, and Hal would rejoice in their pain. He felt his seams stretching and knew he probably looked like a monster to them. Again, he didn’t care. Let them scream and beg for mercy. They wouldn’t get any.
Healed (The Found Book 3) Page 25
