Blake, Abby - Hot Inspiration [A Bride for Eight Brothers 5] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever)

by Abby Blake

  “Stay with Matt,” Lachlan said as he released his wife. She nodded reassuringly, and he turned toward the front entrance.

  * * * *

  Bryce practically ran the length of the hallway. He was pretty sure this wasn’t what the doctor had in mind when he told him to take it easy for a few days.

  “Talk to me,” Lachlan said as he joined him.

  “This one landed. Whoever they are, they fully intend to get inside.”

  Together they watched the surveillance feed for the front door. Adrenaline buzzed through Bryce, the type of fight-or-flight response that had kept him alive for years, and he welcomed the clarity it gave him.

  Falling into the silent teamwork they’d built over the last year, Bryce and Lachlan each took control of a camera and followed the pod as it landed inside the compound base. The first person to leave the small craft was a man dressed in very ordinary clothes. He looked older than the youths who’d been circling the compound previously, but that probably made him more dangerous, not less. It was the woman who followed him out that took them by surprise.

  The third person stayed inside the pod. Every hair on the back of Bryce’s neck prickled with tension as they watched the man and woman step up to the front door. “State your business,” Bryce said in an aggressive voice through the intercom. The woman jumped back, but the man quickly pulled her into his arms and seemed to speak to her in a quiet voice. Too quiet, unfortunately, for the audio receiver to pick up.

  The man’s behavior certainly didn’t match what they’d seen of other people on this planet—especially the ones who came from the same religious community as Zedahla.

  The man spoke both clearly and confidently. “I am Danki Kylan Halosweeta. This is my wife, Zecarla. She would like to visit with her sister.”

  Bryce felt every instinct he owned flip on to red alert. Something wasn’t right with this picture. A woman visiting her sister shouldn’t look so damn frightened. It was possible that she feared the reaction from Bryce and his brothers. But if she thought her sister was here, and being protected by them, wouldn’t she feel more comfortable?

  Lachlan gave Bryce a look that confirmed he was thinking the same thing.

  “Zedahla is not here right now. Can I take a message?”

  The look of relief on the woman’s face only confirmed that something sinister was in the works.

  “My wife and I shall return when she is available,” the man said in quite an agreeable tone. “Or perhaps we could visit her wherever she is now. Where is she?”

  “Off planet,” Bryce said, signaling for Lachlan to head to Zedahla’s quarters and make sure the young woman was protected. Despite the reasonable tone it was obvious this man was fishing for information.

  Bryce’s suspicions were confirmed a moment later when an older man stepped from the pod and joined the couple on the doorstep.

  “Hand over my daughter immediately,” the man said angrily. “She is not off planet. She is inside cowering behind strangers.”

  “She is no longer your daughter,” Bryce said, letting all of his aggression and anger leak into his voice. “You forfeited that claim when you had her made an outcast.”

  “I did no such thing,” Zedahla’s father said. The smirk on his face said otherwise, but his next words filled Bryce with rage. “You are holding a minor against her parents’ wishes. If you do not hand her over immediately, I will be forced to involve the local police.” The arrogant asshole grinned like he’d somehow won the argument and then stood there with his arms crossed. Waiting.

  “Zedahla is not here at the moment. Can I take a message?” The anger on the pathetic-excuse-for-a-father’s face was well worth the effort it had taken to say the words calmly.

  Zedahla’s father huffed indignantly. “I had hoped to solve this misunderstanding in a civil manner, but be assured, Mr. Davidson, that I will return with the proper authorities.”

  “Good luck with that,” Bryce said in a tone that he hoped conveyed his absolute disgust in this man. The younger couple turned toward the flying pod, and for one insane moment, Bryce wanted to open the door, snatch the woman from them, and protect her from these men as well. But if he’d learned one thing in his time as an undercover cop, it was that you couldn’t save everybody, no matter how hard you tried. At least Zedahla’s sister didn’t seem to be a victim of abuse—today.

  Bryce monitored the flying pod’s retreat. As soon as he was sure they were gone, he headed to the communications room to confer with his brothers. Fortunately, they’d already come to the same conclusions.

  “We heard what you heard,” Matt said as he pulled Mikayla closer. “Brock, Lachlan, and Rick are heading back to Earth with Mikayla, Tracey, and Zedahla. Rick has already spoken to a couple of his contacts. We should be able to convince a judge to sign emancipation papers with Zedahla’s testimony. With a bit of luck, we’ll be able to keep her on Earth while the legal wheels turn.”

  “Good,” Bryce said, feeling the first stirrings of relief in his gut. He hated that it was necessary to split up, but they had at least three months of work left on the contract before they were finished. Fortunately, most of Brock and Lachlan’s survey work had been completed, and Peter knew enough to get the rest done.

  It left Bryce alone to handle the security issues, but thanks to the mouse tears on the last planet, Ryan, Ty, Peter, John, and Matt were far more capable of defending themselves than they used to be.

  Bryce glanced around the members of his family and realized how much he had to lose these days. As if she understood his concern, Mikayla chose that moment to move into his arms. He held her close, glad she’d talked him in to getting his leg fixed and more than relieved she would be safe on Earth with Lachlan and Brock.

  “Damn,” Ty said with a smile on his face. “Everyone who can cook worth a damn is leaving the planet. Now we really have an incentive to get this contract finished early.”

  Bryce found himself laughing with the rest of them.

  Thank god he had a second chance to be part of his family.

  Chapter Seven

  Mikayla cuddled up to Lachlan as Brock piloted the cruiser. Tracey and Rick had retreated to the sleeping quarters, ostensibly to sleep, but it was more likely that Rick would use the time to reassure himself that Tracey was all right. Considering how much danger they kept finding themselves in, Rick and his brothers may very well decide that knowing and working with the Davidson family was simply too much of a risk to Tracey. Fortunately, like Mikayla, Tracey was more than capable of dealing with her overprotective partners.

  Zedahla looked tense, but she hadn’t voiced any objection to being removed from the planet of her birth.

  “Zedahla,” Mikayla said quietly to the girl who seemed to jump in fright at the sound of her name. “Do you know what happens to outcasts?”

  She nodded carefully around her bruises, but it was the look in her eyes that made Mikayla realize just how frightened the young woman actually was. “My cousin was made an outcast when I was twelve,” she said in a high-pitched, too-fast voice. “My father made me and my sister watch what the men did to her as a warning of what would happen if we disobeyed our husbands.”

  “Jesus,” Lachlan said in a tone of absolute disgust. “We need to go back and get your sister.”

  Zedahla shook her head sadly. “She will not leave. She believes that what they did to our cousin was justified. Zacarla trusts in the teachings of our father’s religion and would never disgrace her husband as I have done.”

  “Your father’s religion?” Mikayla asked quietly. They’d talked quite a bit in the last few hours, but this was one subject they’d both studiously avoided. “So you don’t share his beliefs.”

  “It’s a little hard to have faith in a religion that condones the killing of a young girl simply on her husband’s say so.”

  “Killing?” Mikayla asked through a suddenly tight throat. Knowing that outcasts were systematically raped by the men of their community was h
orrifying enough, but murder was something she hadn’t considered. “How do they get away with it?”

  Zedahla shrugged. Lachlan held Mikayla closer as he provided a possible answer. “Either they don’t report the woman missing or they claim that she ran away with an off-worlder.” Zedahla shrugged again, clearly not sure how her father and his friends managed to hide their activities from legal intervention.

  “Holy fuck,” Mikayla whispered as the real reason for her father wanting Zedahla back began to sink in. “You’re a witness to murder.”

  Zedahla nodded slowly and then tilted her head in question.

  “You have the power to report the men who killed your cousin,” Lachlan said. “The laws on your planet are the same as they are on Earth. If police could find enough evidence, your father would spend a very long time in prison.”

  “Oh,” Zedahla said, seeming overwhelmed by the information. “I’ll…um…I’ll try, but I don’t know the name of any of the men other than my father.”

  “What about their faces?”

  Zedahla shuddered as she nodded. “What if it doesn’t work? What if I tell the police everything, and they still get away with it?”

  “It’s okay, Zedahla,” Lachlan reassured her in a steady voice. “We will be able to protect you on Earth. You’ll like my parents.” She looked relieved to hear that again, even though Mikayla’s husbands had been saying it since they’d contacted their parents and explained the situation. Mikayla’s in-laws were quite happy to take in a young refugee from another planet. But it was obvious that Zedahla’s upbringing had left her with a lot of trust issues. “At the very least this information will make it easier to get an emancipation order. We’ll worry about the rest when we need to.”

  “We’ve got a long trip ahead of us.” Mikayla checked the chronometer. “At least another seventeen hours. Why don’t you try and get some sleep?”

  Zedahla glanced at the door leading to the sleeping quarters but chose to adjust her chair and sleep in the main cabin area. Considering what Tracey and Rick were probably up to it seemed a wise choice.

  * * * *

  Getting the emancipation order ended up a far simpler task than Brock had suspected. It appeared that the female judge knew of the behavior of some of the more extreme religious members like Zedahla’s father because she granted a temporary order to remain in force until a court date could be set for the hearing. Considering that Zedahla would probably be eighteen by the time the matter made it to a formal hearing, it was a fairly safe assumption that none of it would be necessary. It was the judge’s next question that took them by surprise.

  “Zedahla, have you been a witness to any murders?”

  Zedahla swallowed nervously. “Y–Yes,” Zedahla answered with her head lowered as if she were the one in trouble.

  “Who?”

  “My c–cousin.”

  “Would you be willing to testify against the people involved?” Zedahla glanced at Mikayla for reassurance before nodding her head in answer.

  “I need you to answer out loud, Zedahla,” the judge said in a kind voice. “Would you be willing to testify against the people involved?”

  “Yes,” Zedahla answered in a loud but nervous voice.

  “Thank you, Zedahla,” the judge said with a smile on her face. “You are a brave young lady. Please contact Officer Darkeen Leroy Haloden to make a formal statement.” A court employee handed Zedahla a business card and then she was free to go—now legally out of her family’s reach.

  * * * *

  Mikayla held her breath practically the whole time Zedahla spoke to Officer Haloden. It was obvious that he practiced the same religion as Zedahla’s father, and it had put Brock and Lachlan on edge. Thank goodness Rick and Tracey had stayed at the hotel because Mikayla was fairly certain that Rick would be standing with his arms crossed glaring at the man as well, fellow officer or not. Darkeen Leroy Halodan was simply too similar to the men on Zedahla’s home planet to make any of them comfortable.

  Fortunately, despite her husbands’ intimidating presence, the man had been nothing but kind, and Zedahla had loosened the death grip on her chair. The details of her cousin’s murder were very difficult to listen to, and by the time she was done, Mikayla was ready to hide the girl away and never let anyone close again.

  “Do you know why she was made an outcast?”

  Zedahla shook her head but whispered, “Only that she didn’t do what her husband told her to do. I don’t know what that was.”

  Once the formal complaint was taped and filed and the recorders finally turned off, Officer Haloden rolled his chair a little closer and said in a deep, quiet voice, “You are a very brave girl, Zedahla. Please know that your father does not represent our religion. He is part of a fanatical group who have twisted the teachings of the First Potentate to suit themselves. We will do everything we can to stop this sort of thing from happening again.”

  He seemed to want to say more, but he glanced at Brock and Lachlan, nodded slightly, and left the interview room. Lachlan followed him out of the room, but Mikayla had no time to wonder why because Zedahla started to shake as reaction set in and tears flowed down her face.

  * * * *

  Lachlan took a minute to size up the man. It was obvious to him and Brock that Officer Haloden was a trained Dominant. Whether that was part of his religion or simply a kink they had in common, Lachlan didn’t know.

  “Thank you, Mr. Davidson, for bringing Zedahla in to report this,” he said as he held his hand out for Lachlan to shake.

  “What happens now?” Lachlan asked as he shook the man’s hand.

  “Now we pass the information to the police force on planet M652wd and hope they can make arrests without causing a civil war.”

  “Seriously?” He hadn’t even considered civil war. Lachlan knew that most of the people inhabiting the small colony shared the same religion, but he hadn’t thought for a moment that Zedahla’s testimony could very literally put many innocent people in danger.

  His brothers included.

  Hell, his brothers especially since Lachlan had started this course of action.

  Suddenly, getting justice for Zedahla’s cousin seemed a whole lot less important than keeping his family safe, Zedahla included.

  “Zedahla’s grandfather is the Potentate for her community. After he made Zedahla an outcast, he begged me to protect her. I don’t know if he’ll be able to help settle this peacefully, but it’s worth a try.”

  “I will definitely try to contact him first,” Officer Haloden said with a tense smile. “Thank you for rescuing Zedahla. Now that her testimony is on record, it would be a good idea for her to never return to our religion. Even on Earth we have a few fanatics in our ranks.”

  Enough said. Zedahla needed to disappear before the wheels of justice were set in motion.

  “How long do we have?” Brock asked as his thoughts turned to his brothers still on the proposed mining colony.

  “Less than a month,” Officer Haloden said with an uncertain shake of his head. “It will take time for the investigation to be completed, and we will want to try to locate more evidence to confirm Zedahla’s account of events. Unfortunately, from what she said, her sister is likely to refute Zedahla’s testimony, so we won’t get a conviction without some sort of physical evidence as well. We’ll try to find it without alerting any of the suspects to our actions, but they will likely learn of our investigation before we can lay formal charges.”

  “So you’ll be traveling to planet M652wd personally.”

  Officer Haloden nodded. “I’m hoping to go in undercover for a while before I alert the local authorities, but that could be hard to do with all the expense reports I’ll need to fill in.”

  Lachlan usually trusted his instincts when it came to people. Officer Haloden seemed genuinely willing to risk his own safety to get justice for a woman he’d never known. Lachlan had already decided to return to M652wd to help finalize the contract quickly and get the station
packed up, so he made the offer and hoped he was reading the man correctly.

  “I’m traveling back to M652wd in two days. I’ve got room for a passenger.”

  Officer Haloden nodded slowly, obviously working the logistics through his head. He could conduct a lot of his investigation from the anonymity of seeming to work for the Davidson brothers. Add Bryce’s undercover experience to the mix, and they might just have a chance of stopping Zedahla’s father from hurting anyone else.

  “Excellent,” Officer Haloden said with a serious smile. “Just let me sort out a few things with my boss, and I’ll meet you the day after tomorrow.”

  Lachlan watched the man walk away, hoping like hell that he was reading the man correctly. The last thing he needed was to invite a traitor into their midst.

  * * * *

  Later that night, Brock watched Mikayla and Tracey as they sat at the table playing some type of three dimensional game that required lots of giggles. It sounded so good to hear the women laughing that Brock could almost believe Lachlan’s news that he was heading back to the planet wouldn’t piss Mikayla off.

  According to his parents, Zedahla had settled into the senior Davidson household with little fuss. Brock’s mothers had both been appalled by the young woman’s injuries, and already they seemed to have taken her under their motherly protection. Maybe Zedahla’s presence would distract them for a little while from their campaign for grandchildren.

  Eventually, the game came to an end, and Rick and Tracey excused themselves and headed to their bedroom. They’d decided to rent a suite of rooms so they could all have a little privacy while still being close enough to deal with any trouble that may have come their way. Fortunately, that seemed unlikely now that Zedahla was hidden away, so Tracey and Rick planned to head home to California in the morning.