Authors: Shelley Munro
“If your lady isn’t in her bungalow, you’ll
find her on the beach. You’ll probably be able to walk up to her without difficulty,”
Felix said.
Leo gave a curt nod, his mood terse and
sullen. “Her files say she’s military. I’m going prepared with a medi-cloth.”
“Good idea.” The tranquilizer cloths were
useful. Felix opened his mouth to say more, to suggest a trade, but Leo turned
away, fading into the darkness. He didn’t know what was with his younger
brother at the moment. Their mother was worried about Leo’s unpredictable mood
swings and his recent weight loss, but when Saber had suggested he accede this
first capture to one of the twins or one of their many cousins, Leo had lost it
and struck out with his fists. Crazy times.
Felix shook his head and stealthily made
his way to the bungalow Eva Henry shared with Casey. Time to get this show on
the road.
* * * * *
“What’s wrong, Felix?” Joe taunted. Joe was
one of his younger brothers and came with a twin, Sly.
Identical
twins.
They were identical pains in his ass and took great delight in teasing him. It
was their job, they’d informed him on numerous occasions.
“Yeah, Felix,” Sly said. “Did the little
itty-bitty blonde get the better of you?”
His arm throbbed like a bitch where she’d
bitten him and drawn blood like some storybook vampire. His ribs didn’t feel so
shit-hot either, where she’d used her pointy elbows to good effect. He wouldn’t
damn well underestimate her again.
If he ever had to do this again, he’d
emulate Leo and use the medi-cloth straight away instead of as a last resort,
as he’d done with Eva. Leo’s capture was sleeping, and according to Joe, Leo
had carried her off the beach in that state. Felix wasn’t about to ask
questions since Leo stood by the shuttle, a black scowl on his face. No doubt
he’d be joking in a few minutes. Leo’s black to white and back again mood
swings made Felix dizzy.
Saber stalked up to him. “How is she?”
Saber’s eyes went right to the woman, her pale face and her loose golden hair.
His tender gaze as he stared at Eva gave Felix pause.
“Still sleeping due to the sedative on the
medi-cloth,” Felix said. “I’ll wait around until she gains consciousness.”
Leo appeared, with Joe and Sly trailing
him.
Saber scowled. “How is the other woman?”
Leo lifted his hands in surrender. “Whatever
the problem is—I didn’t do it.”
“Not guilty,” Sly and Joe chorused.
Felix ignored his brothers and carried Eva
past Saber. Sly and Joe took in Eva’s form with undisguised interest, their
gazes lingering on the woman’s legs and breasts.
Saber issued a low warning growl.
Felix glanced back at his older brother
quizzically, looking back and forth between him and the sleeping woman in his
arms, before shrugging off the growl and continuing to one of the huts.
When he emerged, Saber was nowhere to be
seen.
“He went for a run,” Leo said.
Felix nodded. “Probably a good idea to
scout the area. I’ll check the fence as well, to make sure nothing has broken
through.” Anything to take his mind off the way he’d hurt Eva. She’d have
bruises, and she’d hurt her head. Fuck, he hadn’t meant to injure her. He would
tear off his left nut before intentionally wounding a woman.
The camp was a small clearing with two
rough huts to one side. After they’d sighted several zylon in the region, he
and his brothers had constructed a sturdy fence covered with fine mesh to keep
the tiny furry beasties away from their captives. The last thing they needed
was for their prospective mates to die of zylon poisoning. Bad publicity for
the resort, for one; rumors of a horrid death would scare away prospective
customers. These things had a way of getting out.
Felix paced the compound, taking his time, checking
the fence for signs of zylon or any other nasties. The island of Ione reminded
him of Singapore and Indonesia, although the land mass was much bigger than the
two Earth tourist destinations.
When he found nothing out of the ordinary,
he wandered back to where his brothers remained talking by the shuttles before
abruptly changing direction. He’d better check on Eva. When he poked his head
into the hut, she was still asleep and looked small and defenseless. He’d
untied her upon arrival, after he was certain the drugs had taken effect.
“Felix!” Saber must’ve returned.
He strode out of the hut. “Yeah?”
“I know why there aren’t many zylon at this
end of the island. I watched a bird catch one. A shit-ass big bird.”
Felix chuckled, Saber’s words reminding him
of the vintage television shows they’d all watched as kids. “Was it yellow?”
“No, it was— Very amusing,” Saber said. “How
is the woman?”
Felix sobered. “I hurt her. I didn’t mean
to, but I hurt her. Saber, this is a stupid idea. Why don’t we take the women
back to the resort and forget the whole plan?”
“Fuck.” Saber rubbed his hands over his
face then stared at him. “We need mates to stop the fighting between our males.
Damn it, Felix. We’re sitting on a testosterone powder keg, and it’s going to
blow if I don’t find a way to keep women here permanently. We need the
stability that women provide. You know that.”
“Things have already been calmer since the
first guests have arrived,” Felix said.
“But they’re not going to stay. We need
mates, children. Strong family bonds. We’ve found a place to settle but we have
to make it into a home. And we have to do so while ensuring the resort’s a
success because we’re running low on money.”
Shock kicked Felix in the gut. He’d never
seen his older brother looking this worried before. Almost desperate. “Why the
hell didn’t you say something?”
“I didn’t want to worry you all. We can’t
stop now or we’ll lose everything. I had to borrow money on Dalcon, the money
we needed to get the resort running. I can’t default on those loans. The
trad-bankers weren’t interested in financing me. I had to go to the market
bankers. If the resort fails, if the males start fighting, our community will
splinter. I
have
to keep us safe.”
“Fuck,” Felix said. “Those market guys don’t
muck around.”
“Which is why we have to stick with the
plan now that we’ve committed our resources.”
“You
still
should have told us how
bad our situation was.”
“Everyone has been working so hard. I
wanted to encourage them.” Saber caught a flash of movement from the corner of
his eye. An odd rueful grin curved his lips. “Did you tie up your woman like I
suggested?”
“No need. She was still unconscious,” Felix
said.
“She isn’t now.”
Felix turned in the direction Saber
indicated. “Bloody hell. Where does she think she’s going? We’re in the middle
of nowhere.”
“She’s a feisty one.”
A shadow blotted out the sun-star. Felix
scanned the sky. Saber cursed and started sprinting toward the woman. Without
warning, a big-ass bird swooped, talons extended, and plucked the woman off the
ground. Felix shouted, started running, his gaze darting from the bird and the
woman to Saber.
Felix stumbled, cursed. Fuck.
Fuck.
He
picked himself up, started running again. Saber put on a burst of speed and
dived for the woman’s legs.
The world seemed to slow as Saber grabbed
her ankles, clinging tightly to the screaming woman and pulling. For an instant,
the bird wavered.
“He’s gonna do it,” Felix muttered, partly
in awe, urging Saber to maintain his grip. “
Come on.
”
For a moment it looked as if Saber’s will
would prevail—then the bird flapped its mighty wings and rose into the air,
taking the woman
and
Saber with it.
Felix stood paralyzed as the bird raced
through the sky, only moving when the beast flew out of sight. He raced for the
shuttles. The twins were already in one and Leo was waiting in the other. Felix
hesitated in the doorway of the shuttle.
“Wait. Leo, we can’t leave the other woman
here on her own. She’s your captive. Why don’t you stay with her to make sure
she’s okay? Joe, Sly and I will find Saber and Eva.”
“No.”
Felix blinked. “What? Why?”
“I don’t want to do this,” Leo snapped.
“But you agreed with Saber, said you’d take
a captive for yourself.”
“I lied,” Leo snapped again, making Felix frown.
Something was very wrong with his brother. “Look.” Leo visibly calmed himself. “We’re
wasting time. You think someone should stay with the woman,
you
do it.”
When Felix hesitated, Leo leaned over and
shoved him in the middle of the chest. Felix toppled back and hit the ground.
By the time he scrambled to his feet, Leo had the shuttle in the air and was
heading in the same direction as the big bird.
“Fuck,” he muttered then cringed at what
seemed his new favorite word. His mother had been a dab hand with soap during
his younger years and she wasn’t above rapping his knuckles now if she heard
him or his brothers cursing.
He cast another glance at the jungle and
prayed Saber and the woman got out of this alive.
A raucous
caw-caw
came from overhead
and Felix instinctively dove for cover.
Another huge bird circled lazily then dived
without warning. When the giant bird lifted back into the air, its talons
clutched a hapless zylon. The zylon looked minute in comparison and not much of
a meal for such a large bird. A snack, maybe.
After another wary glance at the sky, and
with no intention of providing the main course, Felix climbed to his feet and
trotted over to the hut where they’d left Casey Seonaid.
She lay on the bed, eyes closed, curled in
a ball, her features soft and innocent. It made him realize how guarded she’d
looked whenever he’d seen her around the resort. She’d appeared stressed,
worried, as if a heavy burden weighted her down—apart from when he’d kissed her
on the beach. Then she’d acted sassy and sexy and sweetly compliant—the perfect
lover. It made him curious about her. Her life. He wanted to know more than the
hard facts his sister Scarlett had uncovered during her research.
He kept thinking of that big-ass bird. How
fast it had been. God, he hoped Saber managed to save himself and the woman. He
shook his head. Nah, that was one thing he didn’t need to worry about. Saber
was resourceful. He’d save them. Felix was sure of it, and Leo and the twins
weren’t far behind in the shuttles. He took another look at the woman and left
the hut.
Neither of the shuttles was in sight, and
the sky was clear of birds.
Felix propped his butt on the edge of a
rock and settled in to wait. Time passed slowly and Felix checked on the woman
again. She was still out. He hoped Leo hadn’t given her too much tranq. He
rubbed his hands over his face and paced back and forth in front of the hut.
Bloody hell
,
this first mate capture had turned into a hot mess that could fall apart at any
moment. Saber would be okay. He had to be. But if he were hurt, injured, then he’d
step into Saber’s shoes. He owed his brother to do his best and make sure
everything worked in the way they’d planned.
* * * * *
Casey came awake; every one of her senses
telling her something was wrong, out of place. She didn’t open her eyes, didn’t
twitch so much as a muscle while she tried to recollect. She already knew she
wasn’t in the room at the resort. This one smelled different—kind of musty—and
the bedcovers didn’t hold the same floral scent. She cast her mind back,
remembering, remembering.
She hadn’t been able to sleep.
Again.
Despite being so tired she was acting like the walking dead species on planet Erastes.
She’d gone for a walk on the beach while, for the hundredth time, attempting to
decide what to do—carry out the general’s wishes or disobey orders and lose
everything.
“You don’t know anything else. Besides,
by the time I’ve finished, no one would dare touch you.”
As the general spoke, Casey recalled the
expression on his face, one of triumph. Remembered the way her stomach had
curdled because she’d seen that look before—right before he thrust his verbal
sword and cut his opponent off at the knees.
“The vitamins your squad has been taking
for improved physical performance actually help prepare your body for the
technology. It’s too late. The process has begun.”
A low moan escaped her parched throat and she
finally opened her eyes. She struggled to sit up. Gods, where was she? While
the bed was comfortable and the linen she was lying on clean and crisp, the
walls were tree branches glued together with a reddish-colored mud. The ceiling
of the hut consisted of a type of bright-pink plant. Someone had woven the leaves
into a thick covering to keep out the solar light.
“Ah, you’re awake,” a cheerful male voice
said.
It was him. The man she’d kissed on the
beach. She struggled through the fog in her brain and came up with a name. “Felix.”
“That’s right, sweetheart.”
“Where am I?”
“Captured,” he said. “Enjoy the fantasy
while you can.”
Captured?
Of course!
One
of the resort’s fantasy offerings. At least that would take her mind off her
problems.
Felix’s communicator buzzed. “Excuse me,”
he said and stepped out of the hut.
He must have stopped right outside the door
because she could hear his side of the terse conversation.
“Get them? Fuck. They look okay? Yeah. Must
be okay if they ran into the trees. Anywhere to land? Hell. That makes things
difficult.” An extra-long silence. “True. Come back here then. The twins can go
back to the resort.”
Casey frowned and viewed all four corners
of the hut. This
wasn’t
a virtual reality room? She’d thought… No.