Chapter 1

Chapter

One

Maxxon

T he suit clung to my skin, the fabric damp with sweat as I navigated the brick sidewalk of the small town. I was accustomed to visiting Earth, but this was my first visit to the region called the American South during their summer months.

I swiped the back of my hand across my brow, being careful not to knock off my sunglasses. My amber eyes were a sure giveaway that I wasn't human. That and the bumps that ran the length of my spine, which was why I couldn't take off my black suit jacket, even though the sun beat down mercilessly. At least my long hair was pulled back so it wasn't hanging down my neck.

"It's hotter than Killeron during the skin reaping," I muttered as I passed a pair of women in flowered dresses and fluffy hair who did noticeable double takes at me.

Maybe the black suit that was the standard uniform for a Drexian tribute bride procurement agent didn't work so well in this town. No one else wore black or was quite as formal as me.

I paused in front of a glass storefront with a wooden bench near the double doors. The man sitting on it tipped his head back to take me in from head to toe. "You coming from or going to?"

I was unsure if he was talking to me, so I glanced around before touching a finger to my chest. "Me?"

The man had only wisps of white hair on his head, and he fanned himself with a weathered hat. "Yes, you, son. The funeral. " He waved his hat in my general direction. "In that get up, you must be coming from one or going to one."

I glanced down at myself. "No funeral. I am actually looking for a flower shop called…" I started to pull my device from my pocket but then thought better of it. Earth had plenty of their own devices, but Drexian technology was far superior, and the fewer questions I could draw, the better. I recalled the name of the shop from memory. "Suzanne's Flowers."

"Suzanne's Flowers." The man's face brightened. "Then you must be getting ready for a date. It's nice to see a young man making an effort these days." He frowned and shook his head. "Too many boys think putting on a fresh pair of blue jeans is dressing up. I'll bet your young lady will be impressed when you show up dressed to the nines and with flowers."

He seemed so pleased with this idea that I didn't correct him. I was looking for a young lady, but not for a date. At least, not with me. As one of the tribute bride procurement agents, I was tasked with finding the human women selected for the program and bringing them back to our secret space station where they would meet their future Drexian mate. But none of the women I took from Earth were intended for me.

Despite my job, I was nowhere near the top of the list of Drexians waiting for a bride, and it felt like I would never get there. I had been making trips to Earth to locate tributes for two of Earth's years, but that did not mean I had brought back hundreds of females. Since we were limited in the number of women we could take, movement up the list was slow.

At least I was closer to a posting in Inferno Force. Spots in the coveted, elite fighting force were hard to get, and I'd been paying my dues until I could join them.

Not many more trips to Earth for me.

I sighed, brushing aside my own wishes and reminding myself of my mission. Find the target, sedate her, return her to the space station that was nicknamed the Boat. Once there, she would be assigned a wedding planner and a fantasy suite, and I would probably never see her again. Then I would return to Earth with another name and do it all again.

The man on the bench had straightened now that he thought I was a worthy suitor. "It's just down that a ways a bit, turn left at the Dairy Queen, and then go until you see the house with the wisteria around the columns."

I turned my attention back as the man used his hat to point down the road. "Thank you."

He nodded his acknowledgment and resumed fanning himself. "Have a good time, son."

"I will." That was not the truth or a lie. As much as I enjoyed my job and was continuously intrigued by Earth, I did not like the fact that I had to deceive so many women. I usually told them that I was a talent scout or a modeling agent to pique their interest. Their faces would light up because finally, something in their sad lives was going right.

And if they had been chosen to be a Tribute Bride, it meant that they had no family to miss them and few, if any, close friends. It meant there was no husband or boyfriend, no fulfilling career or big job, no prospects and little future. It meant that they would adapt to the reality that they'd been taken from Earth to be matched with a Drexian warrior—in most cases. Once they saw the luxurious fantasy suites they were given in the space station and the Drexians themselves, they were usually happy. Usually.

Still, I despised the deception. It was not honorable and Drexians were supposed to be honorable. But subterfuge was baked into the deal the Drexian Empire had made with Earth so many years ago. We needed compatible mates to replace our quickly dwindling female population, and Earth needed a military power to protect them from the invading Kronock. Since around half of all Earth women were compatible with Drexian males, a deal had been struck. Drexian military forces would protect Earth in exchange for a limited number of females. The catch was that the general human population could not know, which meant women must be taken under false pretense.

That part I disliked, although I had never had an issue with my travels to Earth or my encounters with its women. Human females were undeniably beautiful, with their soft curves and delicate features. And they were all so different. There seemed to be unlimited combinations of skin color, hair color, size, shape, and personality. It was impossible not to admire them and wonder what kind of female would be assigned to me. I had yet to encounter one who was not beautiful in her own way, although I did hope I would get a tribute who was happy with me. Would my future bride care that I came from a low-ranking clan? Would it matter to her like it mattered to Drexians?

As I approached the street where I should find my current target, my fingers tingled, and I fought the urge to retrieve my device. The algorithm had selected the female working in the flower shop as a prime candidate, and I was eager to assess her suitability in person. There were few occasions where the algorithm had been wrong, but it had happened, which is why I always met the females and confirmed their identities.

Just as I was about to turn the corner, a piercing siren wail split the air, causing my spine to stiffen. I had never encountered an alert like this on Earth. Was it warning of a storm? I peered into the sky, which was cloudless. No storm.

Around me, humans frantically pulled out their phones, looking to the screens to give them guidance. My heart thudded erratically as I reached for my own device, my fingers trembling slightly as I activated the display. I fought the urge to also retrieve my blaster. That would give me away for sure.

Words in my native language flashed at me. Words I hoped I would never see. I stared at them, unwilling to believe that the impossible was happening.

The Kronock, a bloodthirsty reptilian species that was the Drexians' sworn enemy, had launched an attack on Earth. The very planet my species had sworn to protect was now under siege, which meant my mission had to be abandoned. Our enemy was known for its brutality and utter disregard for life. If they had broken through our defenses after all this time, then the situation was truly dire.

I took a deep breath as people around me began to run. Protocol stated that I should return to my waiting ship and leave Earth, returning to the space station before it was too late. But as chaos erupted on the streets and red beams began to streak through the sky, I realized that following protocol would be almost impossible.

The Kronock were here.

Explosions sounded in the distance, a chilling reminder of the battle was already raging, probably overhead. I touched the bulge of a blaster hidden under my jacket, the hard metal comforting. If I could not leave Earth, I needed to find shelter and help the Earthlings if the fight reached the surface.

I scanned the streets in search of a good place to hide, but my gaze snagged on a striking woman standing in the middle of a crosswalk. She was young—the age of most tributes—with brown hair pulled up high. Black covered her legs snugly—leggings, I think humans called them—and a white sleeveless shirt hung loose over them. There was nothing special about her attire, but there was something special about her, something that riveted my attention to her.

She held full fabric grocery bags in her hands as she glanced around as if trying to make sense of the wailing alarm. Maybe it was her confusion or the look of innocence as she swiveled in place, but before I could stop myself, I was moving quickly toward her.

I circled a hand around her waist and prodded her forward, away from the cars swerving around her and the pedestrians running. "We need to get you off the road."

She nodded wordlessly.

"Do you have someplace safe to go?" I asked, once I'd steered her to the sidewalk.

"What's happening?" She asked in reply.

There was no time to tell her that aliens were invading or that I was also an alien, but the good kind. So, I did what I'd always done when on Earth. I lied.

"I do not know, but you should take shelter."

"It can't be a hurricane," she muttered, still in some state of shock. "It's the wrong time of year."

I hesitated for a moment, knowing that I should be focusing on my protocols. But something about this woman made me want to help her. Then my breath caught in my throat.

"You don't work in a flower shop, do you?"

She seemed confused by my question but shook her head. "No. Why?"

Relief washed over me, although I couldn't say why it was important that she wasn't my target tribute. Then the ground trembled, and she let out a small yelp.

"Take shelter," I said firmly as I glanced overhead, fully expecting to see one of the enemy's gray-scaled ships descending.

She cocked her head at me. "What about you? You're not from around here, are you? Where are you going to go?"

This stopped me. Where was I going to go?

"Come on," she said, her voice just as insistent as mine had been. "I live right around the corner. You can shelter with me."

When I hesitated, she sighed. "You saved me from being run over. I owe you one."

I let her gaze bore into me, her pale blue eyes making it feel like time had slowed. Finally, I gave a single nod.

She jerked her head to the left and started to move. "This way." Then she flicked her gaze up as shadows fell over us.

I did not look up as I grabbed her bags from her hands. I did not need to see to know what was coming for us. "Run!"