“Dammit, Tavik. That hurts,” Zane growled.
“I know. Just a little longer. Wait for my signal,” I instructed and the three of them grunted in agreement. They were good, loyal men and I knew they would follow me to the ends of the Earth, if not the edges of space and whatever was beyond that.
We’d experienced far worse together and Zane knew it. The only difference this time was that there was a ripe human female at fault, rather than one of our enemies. My palm twitched at the very thought of it.
The woods around us rustled. More bodies began to circle around us and that’s when I realized the entire settlement had come to support Kaela. Both males and females surrounded us, and I stiffened. Turning my head back and forth, I realized that about ninety percent of them were female, but I didn’t allow it to distract me from Kaela. I stared back at her in challenge.
“What do you know of my sisters?” she asked, trying to stand her ground.
“I know you have three of them and I know where they are. All of them. Right now,” I replied, purposely goading her into action.
I could see the struggle to stay calm playing out on her face.
I took a deep breath and snaked my hand behind my waist, brushing against the dial that controlled the airflow underneath my boots. They worked as a hover device and would counter the effects of the gravity trap that she had us snared in. I turned on the anti-gravity function, just enough that I could take a single heavy step toward her.
“Hold, men,” I commanded again.
She began to look nervous.
“I have a message for you, you’ll just have to listen to me,” I said to her.
She set her mouth in a firm line and shook her head.
I was the enemy and there was no getting past that with her. Not yet.
I’d teach her that she was wrong.
Chapter Three
Kaela
He shouldn’t have been able to move. The gravity traps were already on high. Any more and the traps would crush them from the pressure. I gritted my teeth. Somehow, he was able to maintain control of his body, moving toward me despite the trap.
His green eyes stayed steady on mine, hard, intense, and total alpha male. In person, the color was similar to a rich, dark emerald and for some reason, it was entirely captivating. I’d never seen anything like it in his kind before. I wondered why he had eyes like that. A Vakarran typically had copper-colored irises, but not this one. It gave him an altogether more sinister look. His gaze whipped up and down my body and I shivered from the seductive promise of it. In a fit of betrayal, my body warmed with arousal, reacting almost violently to his perusal and it left me feeling off kilter. I tried to ignore it, but my thighs trembled softly, and I could feel the telltale signs of wetness in between my legs.
I tried to stop myself, but I found my own gaze traveling up and down his muscled arms. I admired the way the black fabric of his shirt hugged his upper body, revealing a sculpted chest beneath. I took a deep breath and tried to shake it off.
He was the enemy. His species had conquered Earth, destroyed my family, and left us scrambling to escape their cruel enslavement. I should want to kill every last one of them, especially this green-eyed gorgeous monster standing in front of me. He knew about my sisters, probably played a part in their capture. I doubted if they were even still alive. I wondered if he had hurt them himself.
It was highly likely that they were being held captive somewhere and forced to bear Vakarran babies until they no longer served a purpose. Then they’d probably be killed or sold off into slavery far in the deep reaches of space.
&nbs
p; Fuck the Vakarrans. Fuck them all.
I had people to protect and whatever information these four had wasn’t worth the risk any longer. I had to end them, and I had to do it now.
A large group of volunteers from my camp had surrounded the group of aliens. All of them were outfitted with whatever weapons we had in our stores, anything from a gun to a knife to even pitchforks.
“What’s your name?” I asked the bold one with green eyes.
“Tavik, but one day, you’ll call me Master,” he murmured, his gaze darkening as he stared me down. My heart hammered in my chest and I shivered, his words igniting gooseflesh all over my skin.
“Fat fucking chance, cocky bastard,” I growled, trying to act as though his words hadn’t affected me.
He grinned with victory and suddenly, my blood ran cold.
Shit. What was happening?