by Anna Hackett
Alexander fired.
The wolf released her and dived into the trees.
“Liv!” He jogged toward her, searching for the wolf.
“I’m okay.” She sat up, looking shaken.
He went down on one knee. “Thank God.” He pressed a kiss to her lips. “When I couldn’t find you—”
A heavy weight slammed into him from the side.
“Alexander!” she cried.
He landed on his side in the snow, the snarling wolf on his back, clawing at him.
Dammit, his carbine was caught beneath him. He rammed an elbow back, and heard Liv’s pistol fire.
The wolf managed to get Alexander on his back. It shifted, sinking its claws into his gut.
He grunted. Fuck, that hurt.
Suddenly, another shape hit the wolf.
Snarls filled the air and he saw Freyja on top of the wild, mutated animal.
Liv ran closer, fighting the deep snow. The animals nipped and clawed at each other. She took aim and fired on the alien wolf.
The creature let out a pained yelp and went down. Liv leaped onto it, her knees digging into the animal’s body as she fired into its neck.
Alexander tried to keep his gaze on her, but his vision blurred. Each breath hurt.
“Alexander.” Her worried face filled his vision, and her gloved hand pressed to his cheek.
He managed a smile. “Prettiest thing I’ve seen today.”
She leaned back, pulling at his jacket, trying to get to his wounds. “My competition was snow, aliens, and mutant wolves, so that’s not saying much.”
He grabbed her hand. “Against any competition, to me, you’d always win.”
Tears shimmered in her eyes. “Alexander—”
He sighed. “It’s bad.”
“Yes. There’s a lot of blood loss.” She bent over and opened his jacket and shirt. She hissed out a breath, then started shrugging out of her cold-weather jacket.
“No, Liv, it’s too cold—”
She ignored him, wadding her jacket lining, and pressing it against his wounds. “I need my medical kit.”
“Liv…there’s nothing you can do. You can’t carry me.”
“I will not let you die.” She leaned down and pressed a fierce kiss to his lips. “I’m going to my cabin to get my kit, and then I’ll be back.”
She turned and stroked a hand down Freyja’s side. “Stay with him, girl.”
The wolf sank down, curling around Alexander’s body. He felt the warmth pouring off the animal.
Then Liv pressed a hand to his cheek and rubbed her nose against his. “I’ll be back. Hold on.”
He managed a nod, watching her run into the trees.
He’d hold on. For Liv, he’d do anything.
Chapter Eight
Liv spotted her cabin and felt a surge of relief.
She burst inside, heedless of the snow she was tracking everywhere. Alexander was hurt. He needed her.
She grabbed her medical kit, then strode into the kitchen. She yanked the cupboards open.
Where was it? She shoved things aside. Come on.
A sob welled in her throat. The thought of him out there, blood pouring out of him…
Focus, Liv.
There. She spotted the small device and grabbed it. Next, she snatched her spare jacket off a hook on the wall. She shrugged into it. It wasn’t as warm as her other one, but it would have to do.
Then she was running back out the door.
She battled through the snow, all the way back to Alexander. Freyja was still curled around him.
“Alexander.”
There was no movement or response.
No. She dropped down, pressing her hand to his face. “Alexander.”
His eyes opened slowly, his skin deathly pale. He blinked once. “Gorgeous, Liv.”
She tore open her kit and quickly gave him a painkiller, and then a coagulant drug to thicken his blood and slow the bleeding.
She pressed absorbent pads in under his torn clothes.
“You hold on,” she said. “You exploded my solitary life to pieces, made me want more. You can’t leave me.”
He didn’t say anything, but she saw his ice-blue eyes glittering.
She pulled out the device and touched it. The iono-stretcher unfurled, floating in the air.
She touched the controls and lowered it. Then she heaved and shoved Alexander onto it. He groaned quietly. Damn, he was so heavy, and she knew that she was hurting him.
When she finally got him on the stretcher, she was sweating under her clothes. She checked him, strapping him down. He’d passed out, but his pulse was steady.
“I’ll get you to help, Alexander.” She pressed a kiss to his cheek.
Then she called for Freyja, and started pushing the stretcher ahead of her.
The trip through the snow was slow and tough. She passed her cabin and made it onto the road. The snow was still deep, but walking was a little easier.
They had a long way to go to get back to the Setermoen Base. One foot in front of the other.
The miles blurred. Every now and then, she stopped to check on Alexander. She talked to him, telling him about her work, about watching him whenever she was at base.
“You’re a good man, Alexander Erickson.” She swallowed against the lump in her throat. “I could fall in love with you.”
She’d fall totally and completely. There would be no coming back from it. He would be the only one for her.
The stinging from the scratches on her arm grew worse, and the cold was slowly starting to seep through her body. She shivered, but continued on, her feet starting to drag through the snow. She was so tired, and she wasn’t sure how far was left to Setermoen.
Liv stumbled, slamming into the stretcher.
Have to keep going.
Freyja appeared at her side, nudging her leg.
“Not much farther. Alexander, they’ll help you. Heal you right up with nanomeds.” She ran her hand through her wolf’s fur. “We have to make it, beautiful girl.”
She continued on, her steps getting slower and slower. Her teeth started chattering. Tears welled in her eyes. She couldn’t fail. She had to keep going.
Then she blinked. A shadow appeared in front of her. Then another. She blinked again and realized that people were running toward her.
She gripped the stretcher, ready to protect Alexander.
But then the shadows materialized into guards. Guards from the Setermoen Base.
“Alexander’s hurt,” she croaked out.
She recognized Elias. The man frowned at the stretcher. “Get Alexander to Medical.”
Two guards grabbed the iono-stretcher and pushed him away. Liv’s throat tightened. She didn’t want him out of her sight.
She moved to follow, but fell to her knees.
Elias crouched in front of her. “You brought him all the way here?”
She nodded.
The guard slipped his arms beneath her and lifted her off the snow. “God, you’re freezing. Call your wolf. Let’s get you inside and warmed up.”
Alexander woke with energy flooding through his veins. He stretched on the bed and smiled.
“Alexander?”
His mother’s voice made his eyes snap open. It took him a second to realize that he was in Medical.
He sat up, feeling a twinge in his abdomen. He touched his stomach and saw the new, pink skin.
“Alexander, thank God you’re okay.” His mother stroked his arm. She looked tired and worried.
His father stood at the end of his bed, relief on his face. “You had us worried, son. You came back all torn up.”
Everything crashed together in his head. “Liv. Where’s Liv?”
His mother frowned. “The woman who brought you in?”
“Yes. Where is she?” Was she okay? He needed to see her, touch her.
“She was treated and released—”
“Treated?” He stared at his mother. “Is she okay?”
“Mild hypothermia and some minor injuries.”
His stubborn, strong woman. She’d been hurt and cold, but she’d still gotten him back to the base.
Alexander swung his legs over the edge of the bunk.
His mother gasped. “You need to stay in bed—”
He reached up and tore the monitoring pads off his skin. Machines started beeping like crazy.
Naked, he stood beside the bed for a second, then ripped the sheet off the bed. He wrapped it around his waist. He needed his woman.
His father was eyeing him with a faint smile. “She’s in the waiting room. Your brother’s there too, and a few others who are waiting to hear how you are.”
Alexander strode through Medical, passing a spluttering nurse. He pushed the door open.
The first thing he saw was his brother, Leif, sitting on one of the uncomfortable chairs. Alexander’s niece and nephew were asleep, with their heads resting on their father’s lap.
Leif raised his head, and when he saw Alexander, he let out a long breath.
Liv was off to the side in a chair. She looked pale and tired.
And beautiful.
“Liv.”
Her head snapped up and she scanned him, then let out a shuddering breath. He watched her bite her lip and he started toward her.
The others in the room all cheered, but he didn’t even look at them.
All he could see was Liv.
“Alexander!”
He frowned and watched Ingrid run across the waiting room. She threw herself into his arms.
Godammit.
“Ingrid.” Leif’s voice was dry. “Alexander was injured, so he shouldn’t be jostled.”
“Of course.” Pretty tears welled in Ingrid’s eyes. “I was so worried. I’ve been feeling so terrible.”
Alexander grabbed her shoulders and set her aside. She gasped.
Then he continued on until he reached Liv. She’d risen from her chair.
“You’re healed?” she asked.
He nodded. “Are you all right?”
She nodded.
“Freyja?”
Another nod.
Then Alexander swept her into his arms and kissed her.
She wound her arms around his neck and melted into him. And just like that, everything righted itself.
He took his time kissing her, until he heard a clearing throat. He looked up to see his father and Leif grinning at them. His mother was beside them, a soft smile on her face.
“What is going on?” Ingrid huffed.
“Ingrid, if you can’t work that out,” Leif said, “then you’re even less bright than I thought.”
“Mom, Dad, Leif, this is Liv. The smartest, toughest, most independent, and prettiest woman I’ve ever met. She saved me, and I’m hoping that I can convince her to come to Setermoen to be with me.” He lowered his mouth and brushed her lips. “And move into my quarters.”
Liv kissed him back. “The answer is yes.”
Alexander knew she’d be his lover and partner. His pleasure and support. Together, they would face whatever happened with the aliens and their bombs.
Tane Rahia strode into the Enclave’s Command Center.
Several men stood at the front of the room. It was the middle of the night, so most of the comp stations were empty.
General Adam Holmes and Niko Ivanov, the Enclave’s civilian leader, were both looking up at the large screen on the wall. One side of the screen showed a middle-aged, African-American woman in black fatigues. Her face radiated intelligence and authority. He knew she was Major General Michaela Marshall, leader of Groom Lake Base. The other side of the screen was currently blank.
Beside Adam and Niko, Marcus Steele and Roth Masters stood off to the side. The two squad leaders spotted Tane and nodded. He lifted his chin. That’s when he saw Finn Erickson sprawled in a chair.
“Finn,” Tane said.
“Hey, Tane,” the Hawk pilot replied.
“Tane, good, you’re here.” Holmes nodded at a comms officer behind a comp. “We’re ready.”
The screen flashed and the face of another man appeared beside Michaela’s.
The man had to be related to Erickson.
“Alexander,” Finn said.
“Hi, brother.” The handsome man smiled. “How’s your redhead?”
“Spicy and sweet as always,” the Hawk pilot answered. “You need to find yourself a woman.”
Alexander’s smile was wide. He looked like a man who’d won a prize. “Actually, I have. Although she’s a blonde. Tough as steel, but sweet on the inside.”
“Really?” Finn grinned. “Happy for you. I look forward to meeting her.”
“Alexander,” Holmes said, with a quirk of his eyebrow toward Finn. “You have information on the third bomb?”
Alexander’s face turned serious. “We found it. We found the third bomb.”
Tane felt a leap of excitement in his gut. “Where?”
The man’s pale-blue eyes shifted to Tane. “My woman, Liv, was living not far from our base—”
“Alone?” Tane hated the idea of a woman out there alone, easy prey for the aliens.
“Mostly. She does have an enormous wolf as a pet.”
A wolf? Tane caught Marcus’ gaze and they both raised their brows.
“She saw increased alien activity not far from her home and alerted us,” Alexander said. “I went in myself to investigate.”
Images appeared on the screen.
“Fuckers,” Roth muttered.
“That’s it.” Holmes thumped a fist on the table. “We have the location of all three bombs.”
“Now what?” Michaela asked.
“We monitor and surveil,” Holmes said. “And during that time, we find a way to neutralize these bombs.”
“We wait too long, they’ll detonate them,” Marcus growled, in his gritty voice.
“From what we can tell, they’re still perfecting the genetic fluid.” Holmes clasped his hands behind his back. “And I’ll be frank, we don’t yet know how to defuse the bombs without setting them off.”
The men in the room all muttered.
“We will find a way,” Holmes continued, his tone like iron.
“Hell, yeah,” Marcus said.
Tane nodded. He wanted this done, the sooner the better. Enough people had died at the hands of the Gizzida, including his parents and extended family back in New Zealand.
Both of his brothers, who fought beside him every day, had recently fallen in love with good women. They deserved some fucking happiness.
Not that there would be happiness for Tane. His soul had been stained long before the aliens had come.
“Adam, I hope your resident alien allies are still helping?” Michaela asked.
Tane stiffened.
The general nodded. “Both Gaz’da and Selena are assisting our tech and medical teams.”
Gaz’da was a renegade raptor who had defected, and was helping the human survivors. Selena was also an alien, but of another species, abducted and tortured by the Gizzida.
She also held a damn lot of power in her tiny, slim body.
And was as beautiful as hell.
A muscle ticked in Tane’s jaw. He had no business thinking about Selena.
“Our teams are working around the clock,” Holmes said. “Everybody, stay alert and ready. As soon as we can, we will go in and destroy the bombs. And we will be one step closer to driving the Gizzida away for good.”
On the screen, Alexander and Michaela nodded.
Marcus turned. “Are you guys ready to go to hell?”
Roth nodded.
Tane had already been to hell and back. He’d do another trip. “Bring it. The Gizzida are going down.”
I hope you enjoyed Liv and Alexander’s story!
* * *
Hell Squad concludes with Tane, the final, explosive story in the Hell Squad series. Read on for a preview of the first chapter.
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Preview: Hell Squad - Tane
“Hold,” Tane Rahia said into his earpiece. “Hold.”
He stood, watching the top of the small hill in front of him. Wind rustled the leaves in the nearby trees, and the long grass washed around his knees.
Standing here in this pretty, sun-drenched field, it was easy to believe that aliens hadn’t invaded the Earth.
Decimated it.
Destroyed it.
Annihilated it.
A muscle in his jaw twitched. For almost two years, the Gizzida had ravaged the planet, trying to turn the remaining human survivors into aliens.
But not all of the world was gone.
Behind him, hidden in the long grass, was his squad. Tough men who risked their lives daily to fight back. That included his brother.
And just to the west, Hell Squad waited among the trees. More ex-military badasses ready to spill Gizzida blood.
Tane gripped his carbine. They all fought to protect what was left of humanity. That included the Enclave—a secret, underground base less than one klick to the south of where he stood. He was fighting to protect it, and its residents.
And yeah, he would fight. It was what he was best at. Before the invasion, he’d spent years as a mercenary, had honed his special set of skills and abilities. He would wade into the muck and kill, so that others never had to suffer that nightmare.
“Indy?” he murmured.
“Drone team picked them up,” his squad’s sassy comms officer replied. “I hope you’re ready to kick some scaly alien ass.”
“Always, babe,” Griff Callan murmured across the comm line.
Indy laughed—rich and deep. “Get some for me, baby. But don’t get hurt. That sexy bod belongs to me, Griff Callan.”
“Tane.” Marcus Steele’s gritty voice. “We have a visual.”
