Coletti Warlords: Reality Bites

by Gail Koger

  “Cuddles?” Voss intoned coldly.

  “But I am,” Zarek stated; mirth lurked deep in his eyes.

  “Sorry, Gramps, I didn’t mean to hurt your Battle Commander’s sensitive feelings.”

  Voss stared at me like I was piece of mold in a petri dish. “Jones females are difficult to control, and get into trouble at a phenomenal rate.”

  “Bree has excellent combat skills,” Jaylan answered quickly.

  I kissed his chin. “Aw, that's so sweet.”

  An unwilling smile twitched Voss’s mouth. “Which she will need to survive.”

  “Hey, it wasn’t my fault Mog kidnapped me, and we ended up on that piece-of-crap shuttle.”

  The Battle Commander shook his head sadly. “My point exactly.”

  Too bad he was mated to Zoey. I’d have liked to introduce him to my cattle prod.

  A warrior who was the spitting image of Zarek teleported in behind Voss. He held an unconscious woman in his arms.

  The woman’s black hair was a rat’s nest of leaves and twigs. Her muddy gold empire-style gown was cut so low I was surprised her huge breasts didn’t pop out.

  Were those hickey marks on her neck and chest? She didn’t look his type.

  “Father, you were right. Mera had Thor killed.” He dumped her at Zarek’s feet like yesterday’s trash.

  I shouted, “That bitch killed my father?”

  Zarek junior surveyed me from head to toe. “Yes, and you must be Bree.”

  Was he giving me the evil eye? So I looked like something the dog dragged home. He could kiss my ass. “And you are?”

  “Talree.”

  “Oh, you’re the one that knocked up Kaylee.”

  Talree bared his fangs. “She carries my child.”

  “Not another word,” Jaylan snarled. Digging in my backpack, he pulled out my bag of cookies and handed me one.

  “I think I love you.” I stuffed a cookie in my mouth and groaned as the chocolaty goodness hit my taste buds.

  Voss grinned. “Chocolate?”

  “It seems to calm her,” Jaylan answered.

  Talree warned. “When it’s her cycle, always have some on hand, or be prepared for the consequences.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “It’s called PMS.”

  Voss asked with a straight face, “Poor males suffer?”

  “You’re a real comedian.” The fireflies did a rumba in my head. Something was wrong, but what? I quickly scanned the area. Whew! We were safe. Wait a minute. The threat wasn’t to us. My murderous stepmother had something in her right hand. Shit. “Gramps, she got a knife.”

  “And a death wish.” The Overlord locked his merciless gaze on the stupid bitch.

  A bloodcurdling scream of pure agony tore from Mera. The knife clattered to the floor. She sobbed pitifully. “Please. Please. I had no choice. Malik would have killed me.”

  Huh? What happened to Thor and Mera’s mating bond?

  Mera’s eyes were glassy with fear as she scrabbled away from Talree and the Overlord.

  I rolled my eyes in disgust when the slut deliberately popped her boobs out. Like that was going to work? Another couple of years, and those suckers would be hanging around her knees.

  Voss blocked Mera’s retreat. “There is no escaping your fate, female.”

  Her face scrunched into a mask of animal terror. “No! No! Don’t! Don’t hurt me. Please.”

  I snapped, “Nice act. You really think the ‘poor, helpless me’ defense will work? With these guys? The scourge of the universe?”

  Fury filled Mera’s face, and she hissed, “No one escapes Karoo the assassin.”

  “You dumb bitch. You just confessed,” I said.

  Mera’s mouth worked like a stranded guppy’s, and her gaze darted crazily around the room.

  A lightbulb went off in my head. “I betcha she’s banging Malik.”

  “She was,” Talree replied as he picked up the dagger.

  “Oh ick.”

  Uncle Talree smiled. The kind of smile that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. “Malik promised to make her his consort.”

  “But first she had to get rid of my father?”

  Talree regarded Mera with open contempt. “Which she eagerly agreed to do.”

  On the monitor, Zarek fiddled absently with the handle of his sword. “You found proof she hired Karoo?”

  “This was taken on the Catori space station.” Talree tapped an icon on his bracelet.

  An image of a nightmare come to life formed in midair. Oh my God, it was an Askole.

  Tentacles squirmed about the creature’s snakelike features, and his compelling yellow-green eyes burned with a cold intelligence. The Askole’s massive, well-muscled form was covered by black armor-plated skin. Black chain mail covered his chest and legs. The video feed showed Karoo tapping a code into a security panel.

  Holy hell, his claws were fucking enormous. “Have you fought one of those?”

  Jaylan rubbed his left shoulder as if it ached. “I have.”

  The door slid open. The Askole entered a palatial sitting room where my stepmother sprawled on a low couch, doing a great imitation of a slutty porn queen. Her sheer gown left little to the imagination. “You’re late,” she snapped haughtily.

  Karoo totally ignored her, picked up a bottle of booze, and drained it.

  So much for her great seduction scene.

  Mera sat up and glared at the Askole. “You have the manners of a Baykal.”

  Karoo stepped over to her, clamped a hand around her throat, and lifted her to eye level. “Do want your mate dead or not?”

  My evil stepmother nodded frantically.

  “Good.” He dropped her on the floor. “Transfer the credits into my account, and it will be done.”

  Sucking in rasping breaths, Mera quickly typed on her communication bracelet.

  The Askole checked the display on his gauntlet and walked out.

  The holograph vanished.

  “Malik ordered me to hire him. He would have beaten me if I disobeyed him,” Mera cried in a small, broken voice.

  I snorted. “You really thought Malik, a psychotic creep who betrayed his own people and kidnapped and tortured his brother, wouldn’t do the same to you?”

  “No. He needed me to gain access to Thor’s accounts,” Mera answered, a glazed look of despair on her face.

  Zarek drew his sword. “Treason is punishable by death.”

  “Wait! Don’t kill her.”

  Everyone stared at me like I had lost my mind.

  Jaylan handed me another cookie. “Eat.”

  Zarek’s mouth flattened. “You want me to spare her?”

  “Oh hell no. She deserves to die. Since she’s a bloodsucking parasite, you should drop her off in the middle of Gansu’s swamp, and let her own kind deal with her.”

  “An excellent idea.” Zarek sheathed his sword.

  “No! No! Nooo!” Mera shrieked.

  “Silence,” Talree bellowed, and she slumped to the floor with a whimper.

  I raised my hand. “Uh, I do have one question. Why didn’t Mera’s mating bond keep her from harming my father?”

  Four predatory gazes locked on me.

  Fear knotted my stomach. Holy shit! No wonder worlds surrendered when the Coletti warlords came calling. “I mean, it shouldn’t have happened. Right?”

  Zarek’s eyes burned with a suppressed rage. “Mera took Waxil, a drug that prevents the mating bond from being formed.”

  “Malik’s plan to destroy our family almost worked,” Talree spat.

  Damn, and I thought my mom was messed up.

  Chapter Eight

  A child’s frightened wails jerked me out of a dead sleep. I reached out instinctively. “What’s wrong, honey?”

  “Momma’s stuck in the bog,” the little guy cried mentally.

  In the kid’s mind, I could see his momma was a huge saber-toothed tiger, and she was rapidly sinking in quicksand.

  His helpless fear reso
nated deeply inside me. I shivered when the memories of my mother’s awful death flashed through my mind. There had been so much blood. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop the bleeding. My healing powers hadn’t been strong enough to save her, and no one answered my desperate cries for help. I couldn’t, wouldn’t let that happen again. I would do everything in my power to rescue his mom.

  Dammit. She was a good ten miles away from the base. I’d never make it in time. Jaylan would have a cow if I asked him to rescue her. But I was going to save the kid’s momma, come hell, high water, or pissed-off warlord. “Where’s your dad?”

  “He died. Please help my momma.”

  “I’ll be right there.” Maybe I could teleport myself. I did have Zarek’s knowledge, and I had been in Jaylan’s mind when he teleported. How hard could it be?

  I shot a cautious look at my snoring warlord. What he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him. I’d just teleport there, free Momma, and be back before he missed me. I eased out of bed.

  Jaylan grabbed my arm, and he mumbled sleepily, “Where are you going?”

  “To the bathroom.”

  “Want me to go with you?”

  What? Did he think I was three? “That won’t be necessary.”

  “Sure?”

  Had he forgotten I was a trained warrior? “Yes, I’m sure.”

  His hand fell away, and within a few seconds, he was snoring again.

  Grabbing my boots, weapons belt, and backpack, I tippy-toed out of the room.

  A deep baritone voice suddenly asked, “Going somewhere?”

  I jumped about a foot and spun around.

  Voss smirked at me from a monitor.

  “What makes you think that?”

  He stared pointedly at the stuff in my hands.

  Busted. “Bye-bye.” I reached over and turned off the monitor.

  The monitor popped backed on. “Shall I summon your mate?”

  “No! He’s exhausted, and I don’t want to bother him.” I pulled on my boots.

  Voss growled. “What harebrained scheme are you planning?”

  I looked him square in the eye and snarled, “You’re not my mate, and I have it under control, so butt out, Cuddles.”

  “Do you?”

  The baby cried, “Please hurry.”

  “I don’t have time to debate this with you. She’s going to die.” Fastening my gun belt, I picked up my backpack and turned to leave.

  “Take one more step, and I will inform the Overlord.”

  God, what a snitch. “I’ve never teleported before, so I could use Gramps’s help.”

  The horrified look on Voss’s face was priceless.

  Without warning, Zarek was mucking about in my head. “The telepathic channel the Pantos use is quite unusual.”

  “You didn’t know they had psychic abilities?”

  “No. They’ve never made an effort to communicate with us.”

  “I’m not trying to be disrespectful, but his mother’s stuck in a quicksand bog, and she’s going down fast. Please don’t stop me. I need to do this.”

  He gently stroked my mind. “You weren’t responsible for your mother’s death.”

  “Maybe not, but I can save the little guy’s mom.”

  “How do you plan on rescuing her?”

  “I’ll use my telekinesis to get her out of the quicksand, but I kind of need help teleporting.”

  Poof. I was standing in a glittering yellow hell. Ghostly mirages danced over the sand. Blue thorn trees swayed eerily under the unforgiving sun. The branches seemed to be reaching for the struggling tiger trapped in the thick, black goo.

  Momma was in deep doo-doo. Only her head remained above the sluggish mush.

  I gagged. The bog smelled like rotting bodies. Go figure.

  A Pantos cub hissed at me from a nearby boulder.

  “Easy there, Junior, you did ask for my help.”

  The kid stared at me for a long moment. “You smell funny.”

  I did. The antidote soap was a bust, and I wanted my money back.

  Momma roared and lunged frantically for the bank. “Get away from Madal.”

  “My name is Bree. I’m not going to hurt your baby. I’m here to help.”

  “Help? All your kind do is kill.” Panting, she fought wildly to get free, and soon only her snout was visible.

  Out of sheer desperation, I wrapped my mind around hers and projected a soothing calm. “The more you struggle, the faster you will drown.”

  The tiger stopped thrashing.

  “Good girl.”

  She snarled. “I’m not a primitive animal that can be trained to do tricks.”

  Huh? Gotta be that time of the month. Wonder if chocolate worked for her? “Just hold still, and I’ll have you out in jiffy.” Summoning my telekinesis, I lifted her with my mind. The quicksand sucked her right back down.

  “You cannot free me from the death bog.”

  “I can and will.” I heaved again and again. Damn, she was stuck in there good. Beads of sweat rolled down my face. The sand radiated an intense heat. Even with my brand-new battle suit, I was literally being baked alive.

  “Let me help.” Zarek added his power, and together we lifted her out.

  The instant her paws touched solid ground, Momma shook herself violently, sending gritty gunk flying in every direction.

  Oh fuck. Now the smelly crap covered me from head to toe. Like I didn’t already stink to high heavens. I wiped the shit out of my eyes. “Now that’s just rude.”

  The tiger bared her teeth in a grin. “Eating you would be rude.”

  My hand instinctively dropped to the butt of my gun. She was eyeing me like I was a Happy Meal. “Very rude, and you wouldn’t like the way I taste.”

  “You do look a little gristly.” She prowled toward me.

  She was one big-ass kitty with foot-long fangs, and oh my God, was she licking her lips?

  Zarek warned, “If she gets any closer, I will kill her.”

  Shit. He would too. “That won’t be necessary, sir. I can handle her.”

  “Then. Do. It.” Gramps enunciated every word with the steely authority of the Overlord.

  “Yes, sir.” I focused my attention on the Pantos. “What’s your name?”

  “I am Tiko.”

  “Tiko, sit.” To my amazement, she did. Hot dang, my critter control was definitely improving.

  She roared furiously. “How are you doing this?”

  “I’m a Siren, and I have many psychic abilities.”

  “You do not have the right to force your will on me.”

  “If I hadn’t, you’d be dead, and how long do you think Madal would survive without you?”

  Tiko remained stubbornly quiet.

  I watched her cub chase his tail in dizzying circles. “Gee, let me think. Not very long. So how about a simple thank you instead?”

  “Thank you.” Tiko’s voice was deliberately insulting.

  “Her cultural norms are not like yours,” Gramps advised.

  “No kidding.”

  Madal suddenly pounced. Digging his claws into my pants leg, he growled ferociously. “Let Momma go.”

  My simple rescue mission was in the crapper. “Go sit by your mom. Now.”

  “’Kay.” He obediently trotted over to Tiko and plopped his little butt on the ground.

  “Release me!” Tiko snarled.

  “Do you think I’m stupid?”

  “No, you are female.”

  “See, we already have something in common. I think we’ll get along just fine.”

  Tiko curled her lip in disdain. “I have no desire to be friends with an alien killer.”

  I clutched my chest dramatically. “Now you’ve done gone and hurt my feelings.”

  Gramps chuckled.

  Her tail flicked angrily. “I do not find you amusing.”

  “I may be an alien, but I’m not a stone-cold killer.”

  “The male who shares your mind is.”

  “Damn.
She can sense you,” I whispered to Gramps on our private link.

  He whispered back, “An interesting development. Introduce us.”

  “Tiko, this is Zarek, the Overlord of the Coletti clans.”

  Tiko lowered her head in a gesture of respect. “Elder.”

  “Hey, you do have manners. Who would have thunk it?”

  The tiger hissed at me. “The Overlord is a pack leader. I pay homage as is proper.”

  What a suck-up.

  “You could learn from her,” Zarek scolded. He turned his attention to Tiko. “Where is your pack?”

  “Dead. They were slaughtered by the alien snake.” The image of an Askole formed in her mind.

  Damn. It was Karoo. The butcher needed to be put down like the rabid animal he was.

  “Your grief is mine,” Zarek said solemnly.

  “You honor me.” Tiko’s rage was a living thing. “I will find the monster and kill it.”

  My rage equaled hers. “I’ll help you. Your monster also murdered my father.”

  “Askoles are very difficult to kill,” Gramps warned. “Let me deal with him.”

  “But—”

  “Disobey me in this, and you will not like the consequences,” Zarek growled.

  “Yes, sir.”

  Tiko rolled over on her back, exposing her stomach. “As you command.”

  The Overlord snapped into battle mode. “My ship is under attack. I will send Jaylan to you.”

  “Wait! That’s not necessary.” Shit! Zarek had severed our link.

  “The elder is your mate?” Tiko sat up and casually cleaned her right paw, exposing needle-sharp claws.

  I eased back a step. “Oh God, no. He’s my grandfather.”

  Jaylan appeared next to the bog. He was loaded down with enough weapons to take out an army. His furious gaze settled on me. “Bree!”

  “That’s my mate.” I waved all friendly like.

  Honey bunny’s hands curled into fists, and he bared his fangs in a snarl.

  Tiko cocked her head. “He looks very angry.”

  “He does, doesn’t he?”

  “Perhaps you should run.”

  I shook my head. “Running from a predator is never a good idea. Always be the first to attack.”

  “Sometimes running is the only option.”

  “Not with warlords. They always catch you, and then there’s hell to pay.” I stomped over to Jaylan and smacked him in the chest. “Where the hell have you been? Didn’t you hear me calling you?”