Chapter 3

" U gh," I groaned, opening my eyes. Voren and Brax stood over me as I lay on a bed. I moved to sit, but Brax laid a hand on me.

"No, just lie still." He gestured towards Voren. "He's running a sweep, which will cloak and hide you from your people."

“What?” My heart pounded like a jackhammer. Hide me from my people? No. I want them to find me. "Please. Just take me home."

Voren twisted toward me and frowned, then looked at his brother, who shook his head. Were they telepathic, or so attuned to one another they could read each other’s emotions?

Brax's big hand rested upon my clavicle. His fingers stroked my skin. "What is it?"

Voren sighed. "They must've finally figured out the algorithm. We don't have much time."

"Then work faster. It is imperative we get this right."

With a deeper scowl, Voren turned and began tapping on the wall. Strang symbols and images flashed as he worked, their progression faster and faster as they slid across the screen.

In the mix of thrumming background noise, a steady blip beat in time with my heart. My attention wandered to the other folks lying on the tables next to me. Their eyes remained closed, and there were no IVs or monitors hooked to their bodies, but they breathed evenly. These were the people I’d seen when I first arrived.

Are they my fate? To be unconscious and subject to experiments? No. I would not be their victim. I needed to fight, to escape.

Static filled the room then faded to silence.

"This is General Teggart of the United States Space Command. Surrender immediately and prepare to be boarded. Our electromagnetic pulsars and lasers are pointed directly at your life support. Surrender now and live or fight us and die. You have one minute."

Brax and Voren began conversing in their language. Another alien, the female I'd seen earlier, burst into inside, her eyes wide and mouth set in a hard line.

Voren directed a few words to her, then made a chopping motion with his hand. He seemed angrier than usual. His stare focused on me.

Jesus. Is he talking about killing me?

Brax removed his hand from my shoulder and growled something to the woman. With another grunt, he stalked past her and left.

Her tone, higher and less gruff than her male counterparts, rose as she responded to Voren. Neither seemed interested in me.

This might be my only chance for rescue. But how? The United States military was about to board this ship. I would survive long enough for someone to find me, which meant locating a place to hide—and fast.

The door began sliding open once more and I stopped thinking and lunged. A few seconds was all I had before getting caught. I had to make them count. With a desperate sprint, I pumped my legs faster. Come on, come on, come on. Just make it through the threshold.

Only three feet or so separated me from the ever-widening opening, then Voren's scowling face appeared.

His amber eyes widened as I dove downward, pushing myself low to slide between his legs. As I flew under, something brushed against the back of my scalp.

Please don't catch me , I thought, pushing myself upward and tearing off down the corridor, my blood pounding wildly, my thoughts a jumbled mess.

Air flew past and my hair whipped back and forth. The slim jumpsuit reduced air friction. I flew like a bird. Thank you, crazy alien brothers. Had I been wearing my old, ratty pajamas, I'd had to worry about the ragged hems tripping my bare feet.

Doors graced either side of the corridor, but I kept pushing myself forward. The way my luck was going, they probably led to living quarters. That's if they would even open for me. I needed a place to hide, or even better—an escape pod.

The hall began widening outward, the walls curving left and right, opening to new hallways, with the main corridor continuing straight on.

Behind, someone shouted, the voice distinctly male. I had no desire to find out who or how close they were.

Following a gut instinct, I took the next left and pushed myself to run faster. My lungs heaved and my heart thumped. This hall, three times as wide as the earlier, smelled of tar, oil, and burned electrical wire. No doors graced the sides, but clear glass showed a bay or hangar with several vehicles, like Cybertrucks, with wings. They were hideously ugly and possibly my salvation.

The glass wall gave way to a large arch, and I sprinted inside, putting one of the vehicles between me and the glass.

I leaned against the door with my attention on the solid wall at the back of the room. Panting, I focused on regaining my breath.

Please, let me hide and escape. I don't want to be a prisoner... I just want to go home to my cute little cabin in the mountains. Amen.

Shouting and running footsteps filled the hallway, their echoes bouncing into the enormous bay.

Sweat dripped into my eye. I wiped it away and crouched, focusing on the vehicle that hid me. There has to be a way inside. My fingers clawed at the metal as my eyes roved for seams on the surface, looking for doors or handles or anything to get me under cover.

"Nemethe pasen, vlaren!"

I didn't dare glance toward the glass wall to see which alien—Voren or Brax—was gaining on me.

As I ran the pads of my fingers over the metallic vehicle, close to where it rested on the floor, there was a tiny indention. A trickle of excitement overrode the sour taste of fear. If I can get this to open, I might—

"You idiot," roared Voren.

I jumped, my chest pounding and my nerves on high alert.

He stood two feet away with a terrifying scowl on his purple face.

"I-I-I…" Desperate, I looked around for a weapon or anything to defend myself. Nothing. Not a goddamn thing to help me escape. The fork! Shoving my hand at the small of my back, I grabbed the tines of the eating utensil. Should I stay and fight or run away? Somehow, I didn’t think silverware would do any real damage to this hulking alien.

He stalked forward, thunder in his gaze. I yanked the fork and threw it at the alien, not seeing where it landed because I turned to run. Something slammed into me, knocking me onto my stomach.

"If you make one more move, I will cuff your wrists, throw you over my shoulder, and lock you in my living quarters. Do you understand?" His voice boomed, and in its depths I sensed fury and frustration.

My cheek pressed against the floor with the weight of the tall man spread over my body.

"Fuck. You." I kicked my legs and arched my spine, praying I’d dislodge him enough to scramble out from under him.

"You think you can escape and find rescue by your government? You're wrong. Even if you somehow managed, they would see you as an opportunity to exploit and use you until you are dead or close enough."

"Like I'd believe that, you asshole. You're the ones who abducted me and plan on doing screwed up experiments." God, I hope that doesn't mean an anal probe.

He dug around, near my lower back, his fingers pushing against my clothing while I fought with my lower limbs, still bucking and wiggling to free myself.

"It’s the truth. I know how humans treat those they believe are a threat or opportunity. They're savages, and if there weren't other lives to consider, I wouldn't have a problem turning you over to them. Humans deserve each other." Something cold encircled my wrist, paralyzing my entire arm. "You are insolent, crude, and weak. Unfortunately, that puts you under my protection."

With my free hand, I reached backward, my fingers clawed and ready to scratch the first bit of skin they encountered. "And you're a brute who wouldn't know fun if it reached out and slapped him in the face." Why did I need to hurl insults at him while fighting for my life? I had no idea, but something in his tone got under my skin.

Another cold snap on my free wrist, and both arms became numb.

True panic set in and I kicked harder, throwing my feet backwards, hoping to damage or shock him enough to let me go.

Unlike my arms, my back hadn't been numbed and something rumbled against it. A deep chuckle, so low it vibrated my bones, reverberated through the air.

Is he…laughing?

The weight against me disappeared, and suddenly I found myself flying through the air to be tossed over his shoulder like a ragdoll.

"Vor, they're about to launch," said a voice I recognized as Baraxen.

"Release me, you stupid bag of muscle and horns or I’ll bite the fuck out of you," I screamed as I hung upside-down, my nose pressed against his flat, muscled stomach.

Something smacked my ass. "Quieten down, you little terror, or I'll give you something to scream about."

"Brother, are you smiling?" Brax's voice, filled with wonder, jerked my attention for a few seconds. He stood close to Voren, one hand rubbing his chin while the other carried something that looked like a silver wand or elongated pen.

"Odd. The more grief she gives me, the happier I am."

The indignity of being spanked overrode all sense of survival and dignity, and I started kicking, letting my bare toes smash against his hips, his ass, his thighs. Any exposed part of his body was fair game.

From the corner of my eye, even though my upside-down view skewed the world, I could make out Brax's risen eyebrows. He backed away; his lips turned into a wonderous smile.

"Kick me one more time, little human," Voren growled, "and I will march into the med bay and pull one of your people off life support. You can watch them die, knowing you could've prevented it by reining in your temper."

His words were a glass of ice water smothering my fury.

I became a deflated balloon. A hard knot of defeat rose in my throat and tears filled my eyes, dripping onto my brow.

"Easy, Vor. Don’t you think she’s been through enough?" Brax’s words were a gentle rain on my soul. "Besides, we’ve got bigger problems to worry about, like Xeno. Larralian is scanning their base and picking up active mobilization. After recent events, we need to be extra careful." He spoke something in their native tongue.

Voren grunted, still carrying me like a sack of flour and marching to God knew where, every step of his big, booted feet a jolt through my body.

I didn’t give one shit about their problems. Maybe this Xeno base is military, and I can escape with them.

That earlier female voice spoke foreign words throughout the ship, her tone sharp and quick.

Voren and Brax sprinted through the corridor, bursting through automatic doors, their voices deep and hurried as they shouted words that sounded vaguely middle eastern mixed with some other language I’d never heard.

"Stay here," Voren barked, sliding me off his shoulder and to my feet.

For a second, I glared at him, fighting an urge to curse.

With his huge body blocking most of my view, he pushed me backward until my spine bumped against the wall. He placed both of his hands on my head and whispered in my ear. "Do what I say if you want to live."

Now he’s threatening to kill me? "You’re a bastard."

He pulled back, his golden eyes on mine, a line between his brows. "A bastard? I’m trying to save your—"

Boom-boom-boom!

A great thunderous sound rang through the ship, the vibrations traveling up my legs. The floor lurched, and I fell forward until Voren caught me.

We were back in the med bay. The unconscious people from earlier still lay on their beds.

Voren released me and rushed to a console jutting from the opposite wall. His fingers flew over the flat screen filled with symbols.

Brax ran to the humans and began swiping small devices near their heads. "They’ve knocked out life support. Hurry up, get it back online."

"I’m trying." Voren’s fingers moved faster. "Xeno must have figured a way past our defenses. Larralian sent a secure message and said we’re being boarded."

"What?" Brax swiveled around, his attention riveted toward Vor. "That shouldn’t be possible, unless…"

"Unless they finally broke him." Voren made a hand motion to his brother, similar to the peace sign but turned on its side.

Now would be a great time to skedaddle, find my people, and get the fuck out of here. I inched closer to the doorway, knowing it would take me out of here.

Both men’s attention turned to me.

I froze.

A blinding light pierced the area between us, and I squeezed my eyelids shut.

"Do not move!" screamed another voice, one that didn’t have an accent. Human. That’s one of my people.

I risked a glance and nearly collapsed with relief.

Men and women—around ten or so—in military fatigues and heavy weaponry, pointed their guns at the aliens.

Brax and Voren stilled, casting unreadable glances at one another.

"Oh thank god," I said, stepping toward the group.

"Step back," yelled a young man, swinging his gun in my direction. "I won’t ask again."

I stopped and held up my hands. "Please. I’m human. They abducted me."

The older gentleman in the middle sported a flat top haircut. His hair seemed mostly blonde, but there were quite a few grays mixed in. "I want her cuffed." He glanced at the others who slept. "And I want these abominations extinguished."

Extinguished? Like killed? "No," I said, lifting my hand in a stopping motion. "We have to save them. Why would you—"

"Secure her."

"Yes, Major." A young woman strode towards me, her gun sights set on my chest.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" True panic began setting in. I looked toward Voren and Baraxen, who remained still but their eyes tracked the woman moving toward me. Both men’s jaws were clenched.

The woman tossed plastic handcuffs at my feet and nodded where they fell. "Put ‘em on."

"I don’t understand. Why am I being arrested?"

"If she doesn’t comply, shoot her." The major’s irises were cold and calculating. He meant what he said.

The entire squadron nodded in unison. "Yes, sir."

Quickly, I bent and grabbed the white cuffs, then straightened and shook my head. "I am not one of them." I pointed my chin in Vor and Brax’s direction.

The aliens, even with guns pointed directly at them, still looked imposing with their height and sharp horns. If I hadn’t been terrified, I might’ve laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation.

But I could no longer tell myself everything had just been a dream. Sweat lingered in the air, the tension palpable. An unshakeable doom weighed on my shoulders. This will not end well.

"Lieutenant Grice. Take care of them." The commander pointed to the sleeping people.

At least they’ll be saved. I could understand why he didn’t trust me. After all, he didn’t know what side I was on. But those people? They’d been the victims of abduction, just like me, and I felt a small bit of relief knowing they’d be saved.

Lieutenant Grice, a guy probably no older than twenty-eight or so, stepped out of the huddle of soldiers. "Which setting, Major Sewell?"

"Highest."

"Yessir." The younger officer straightened his shoulders, then tipped his head and flicked a lever or button on the side of his gun.

Odd. I’ve never seen anything like that before. But then again, I’d never seen military weapons this close, either.

He leveled the barrel of his rifle at the nearest woman.

"No." My heart stopped. "What are you—"

A thick, red line shot out of the gun and into the woman’s head.

I raised my bound hands to my mouth. My thoughts swam. No. Nononononono. I couldn’t look away. The red laser filled her body from within. Pink light glowed through her bare arms, every bone and vein visible under the skin. I took a step toward her, not knowing how I could help needing to do something.

A soldier or airman or whatever the fuck they were used the end of his gun and slapped it against my shoulder; a warning to stop.

The lady’s eyes opened slowly. Her gaze met mine. Such confusion and pain shone from her brown irises.

I couldn’t breathe. "Please. Please stop," I begged, but no one seemed to hear. Or they didn’t care.

The light stopped and in two seconds, her entire body turned into gray ash, even her clothes.

She looks like one of those bodies in Pompeii. I turned my attention to the guy in charge. Major something. I couldn’t remember if they’d said his name or not, and it didn't matter to me.

"You asshole . Why would you do that to her?" My heart twisted with sorrow and pain.

He smiled, the gesture not quite reaching his eyes. "Don’t worry. You’ll get your turn. This is the only way to cleanse the filth they’ve done to your DNA."

"Liar," said Baraxen. "We’ve been trying to save them from what your people have done."

The major pivoted to look at both brothers, his little army keeping their guns drawn and aimed at everyone. He pulled a cigar from one of his front pockets. "Now that’s where you got it wrong, but we do appreciate your generous…donation." He chuckled as if he’d made a joke.

"You filthy, disgusting human." Voren’s muscles strained, and he clenched his jaw. "You took advantage of our kindness. Instead of helping, you tortured us, stealing our technology and our genetics."

"Well, that’s not entirely untrue." The major bit off the end of his cigar and spit it on Brax, where it hit his chest and fell to the ground. "Thanks to you and your… brothers , we managed to extract some code for human DNA enhancements. Our subject has been a bit unwilling, but nothing important comes without a fight. We’ll continue extractions on our prisoner, and one day soon, we’ll crush you like the shit faces you are." He lit the cigar, gave it a two puffs, then blew the smoke into their faces.

My government is experimenting with its own citizens, and possibly a Volderen? I thought the aliens were the bad guys. They’d mentioned taking me so the others could live, or something like that, and I’d assumed they meant my cooperation meant they’d spare lives.

The Volderens are the good guys?

My entire world shifted. The aroma of burnt hair and ash filled the room. Nausea roiled in my belly. Brax and Vor held my gaze. I imagined them saying ‘Hold it together a little longer. We’ll make it through this.’

The handcuffs, firmly wrapped around my wrists, grounded me in the moment. Neither of the brothers had hurt me, even when I’d fought.

"Light up the rest of them," said the Major, his deep voice snapping me back to reality.

"What about her?" asked the guy pointing his rifle at me.

I swallowed, tasting bitter fear in my mouth. Surely they wouldn’t…couldn’t…

"Let her watch, then pop her last." He gave me a cold, calculating smile. "This is what we do to traitors."

"No, you can’t do this. How can you be so cruel?" I ached for these people—for myself. "I’m an American citizen and so are they." Technically, I didn’t know for sure they were Americans, but it really didn’t matter. They were human…innocent. No one deserved to die.

"Not anymore." He puffed on his cigar. "The day those abominations touched you, touched them"—he nodded in the direction of the beds—"they tainted your blood." Pushing through his men and women, he stood before me. “When the subjects are no longer in a controlled environment, then we must eliminate the source.”

From my side vision, Voren and Brax seemed to stiffen.

"They though we couldn’t reverse their engineering, but you see, we figured it out after their first ship crashed in 1947. We’ve been back engineering since. Soon, the perfect soldier will be ready using the materials they’ve so graciously donated—"

"You mean our people and equipment you stole ." Voren’s words dripped with hate.

"Potato, potahtoe. Alien, alienate. We do what’s best for our country. If that means sacrifice, then so be it." The major flicked cigar ashes onto the floor. "You’re looking for the perfect donor to save your doomed race, but they don’t exist. After thousands of years of searching, you should’ve just given up. They would understand the sacrifice required for science. Their death is a step toward our goal. You boys should’ve headed for home the minute you escaped because we both know no one’s coming to save your kind. You were given a choice many years ago to work with us, and you chose wrong."

"We chose—and continue to choose—not to be your slaves. Our missions is peaceful. We came to learn, to better both races, and to share but Earth became greedy. You will pay. Maybe not today, but you will know our wrath soon."

"Mmhmm. You’re still here without backup, still licking your wounds. Your people are stranded. And now? We’ve caught you with your pants down. We won. You lost. Prepare for the consequences."

He gestured towards the other sleeping humans. “Finish this.”

Several soldiers swung their rifles at the unconscious figures and began shooting.

Reflexively, I ducked, making my body a smaller target.

Voren also ducked, gave me a slight nod, then turned his focus to a wall monitor. "Naranthelani pasen, Larralian. Vonsint tunal!"

Blinding, intense white light burst through the room like a wave.

The group of military members froze and then poof —they disappeared as if they’d been ghosts.

I remained on the balls of my feet, huddled with my cuffed hands raised in defense. "What was that? Where’d they go?" So many more questions rambled around in my brain, but I couldn’t voice anything else. I slowly stood and glanced at the bed filled with ash, a vague body outline visible of what was once a woman. My gaze traveled to the other beds even though I didn’t want to look, knowing the military had probably incinerated them, too.

They didn’t kill all everyone. Two more women and a man had somehow missed the destruction unleashed from the laser rifles.

Still. Where there had been eight breathing people, only three now lived. Such tragic loss of life.

"Here. Let me help you.” Brax touched me, jarring me from such devastating thoughts. "We had Larralian release a weapon we’ve been working on that destroys non-Volderen genetics."

"So…those military guys? They’re…dead?"

Baraxen squeezed my shoulder. "Yes."

I stood there between both men and looked at those who hadn’t been killed. "Good. They deserved it."

"They deserved worse."

Nodding, I inhaled a deep breath. Something still bothered me, though. "You said that wave of light, or whatever it was, only killed non-Volderens?"

Vor slipped a finger under the plastic cuffs and braced my wrist with his hand. "Yes."

"Then what does that mean for me—for them?" I used my chin to point at the other occupants.

"What do you think it means?" Brax asked, working on my other wrist, his touch gentle.

"That part of what the Major said is true about the experiments?” My mind kept circling around something I didn’t care to hear.

"We have been trying to reverse the damage your military caused to these people. So yes, our DNA flows through their veins and tissues. But even more important, for eons we’ve been searching for a human with the correct DNA strands to help our own race. We’re advanced, yest, but we cannot create DNA. That cure lives in you."

The cuffs snapped and my hands were free. I rubbed the skin, forcing the blood to circulate.

"But they didn’t experiment on me. Why did he say I was tainted like the others? Why am I not dead?"

"There is a trace of Volderen DNA running through your veins. How it got there, we have no clue. What job did your husband perform?" Voren inspected the skin around my wrists, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Phlebotomy." The question made me uneasy. "But I don’t see how that’s any of your business."

"A phlebotomist at a military treatment facility, correct? Did you ever let him take your blood?"

I jerked away from him. "If you’re trying to imply—"

Brax gripped Vor’s upper arm. "Enough, brother. We must leave orbit, at least for now. She’s been through hell already."

Jeremy had kept a lock of my hair in his drawer at work. Could it be possible the military had taken it? Or did Jeremy do something to me when he’d drawn my blood the few times I’d used the medical group? These thoughts raised other questions, questions I tried to shove out of my mind. Maybe they were just lumping me in with the others because it was convenient?

Jeremy died two years ago. If they had tested my DNA or injected me, why hadn’t they taken me earlier? I still lived at the same address.

"Come on, Lilly." Brax held out an arm.

Great relief flowed through me. I didn’t want to think about anything except a long sleep.

"I’m tired—actually, I’m exhausted," I whispered.

"Come. We’ll show you to your room, and when you’re rested, we’ll answer any questions you have."

Nodding, I breathed out a long, cleansing breath. "Does this mean I’m still your prisoner?"

Brax laughed, revealing his sharp teeth and forked tongue. "You’ve never been a prisoner, even if Vor believed otherwise."

Voren grunted.

"Then why did you treat me like one?"

"He’s a bit of a bully." Brax put an arm around my shoulders and led me to the door. "You’re our heroine, whether he admits it or not. And I must confess, as much as I wanted you to be my mate, it’s clear you are better suited to Vor. Brother, you are one lucky son of a bitch.”

Voren raised an eyebrow but remained silent.

Shaking my head, I let them lead me into a different section of the ship. My brain and body needed rest, and I’d sort everything out later.

I want to wake in my own bed.

But if I did wake up from this nightmare, something deep inside of me had changed. The hole in my heart didn’t seem as large or as dark.

For the first time in two years, I found myself speculating about the future, about what and who was out there in the universe and what it all meant.

The hallways were a blur, and it was all I could do not to stumble.

Voren led me into a darkened room smelling of sandalwood and snow. "Here." He stopped in front of a bed covered by a thick, charcoal-colored blanket. "Sleep. We’ll talk about things when you awaken.”

I was tempted to argue, but instead, I crawled under the smooth blanket and pulled it to my chin, mumbled something that sounded like goodnight, and fell into sleep.