Nicolas: Love me Harder - Alien Paranormal Romance (21 page)

The snarl that entered the room made both Janis and Theresa jump.

“I am not Created. The Created are a tool used to fight a war. They are nothing more than weapons. Like all weapons, when they are no longer needed, they are locked up or destroyed.”

Janis gasped. “How can you say that? They are…the Created.”

“Exactly. There are some things nature never meant to happen. They should’ve been used, and then destroyed, according to our plans.”

If nature never meant them to be born, then all of your DNA experiments and combinations wouldn’t have worked. They are sentient beings, who are capable of free thought and feelings.”

“They are in my way and will die.”

“What?” He was crazy. Dee had mentioned that fact, but it was hard to swallow that someone who stayed a step ahead of the brothers was actually certifiable. Now she had proof.

There was no answer. Janis watched as Theresa rocked back and forth on the cot and tried to make sense of what she’d learned.

***

“What’s taking so long, Hale?”

“He has taken her to an area with a high concentration of minerals. It’s probably underground. It’s distorting the signal in the bracelet. I’m running a program to clean it up, but it will take time.”

“Time is something we don’t have. This tainted Created is out to hurt us.”

“Nicolas, he is out to kill us.”

“Yes and no. First, he wants to hurt us. This is personal to him and he wants to watch us suffer.”

“Are you suggesting we know him?”

“We know him. I caught a glimpse of his face. Not enough to identify him, but enough to trigger a hazy memory. If I could only latch onto it. His taking one of our mates wasn’t an act of opportunity. He planned it. He has continued to stay one step ahead of us. How?”

“I don’t know. I’ll do everything I can to find Janis quickly.”

Nicolas nodded his head and walked out of the room, pondering what he was missing. He stopped to close his eyes and take a deep breath. Once again he reached for Janis, sending out his mental signal. The wall he slammed into frustrated him. It was the disrupter, the only tool ever created that interrupted their mental chatter. Whoever this Created was, he had gotten his hands on some of the Scientist’s favorite toys.

He walked into the game room where the rest of his brothers and their mates were quietly talking.

“Aran.” The room silenced and every head turned to Nicolas.

“I have a thought. It makes no sense, but the more I think about it…”

“What is it?”

“What if this Created is a Scientist?”

“How could a Scientist be a Created?” Sergey asked Nicolas.

“I’ve been thinking about this for a while. It was the color of the eyes of the tainted Created that caught my attention. They were yellow.”

There were several indrawn breathes from the males, followed by looks of horror. The Scientists were one of only two races they knew about with yellow eyes.

“It would explain a lot,” Niko said to the room at large.

“Nicolas, is this possible?” Aran asked.

“It’s possible. Just about the time we were leaving, the Scientists were testing a new formula that would allow the traits of the Created to be combined with those of other races in full grown subjects. I’m sure they’d have perfected it given time.”

“Why would a scientist want to become one of us?” Hale asked.

“If only I knew the answer to that one.” Nicolas replied.

“Aran?” Rena reached up to stroke the frown on his lips.

“If we’re being chased by a scientist turned Created, then more than our lives are in danger.”

Sergey nodded at Aran’s words. “Earth just became the primary target.”

Chapter Twenty Seven

“How come he hasn’t done anything to us?”

Janis looked over at Theresa. She’d gotten to know her over the last three days. As much as she wanted to judge her and find her lacking, she came to the realization that not everyone was intimately acquainted with hardship.

Theresa lived a life Janis had only dreamed of. Being harassed and threatened by a mad man was inconceivable to Theresa, even though she was presently living in that scenario.

“We aren’t the prize, just the bait. He’s waiting for Nicolas and his brothers to find us. Testing them like rats in a lab and we’re the cheese.”

Theresa grimaced and tried to offer Janis a smile. Janis ignored the smile, as once again, she checked the cell for weaknesses. She’d put a tracker under her skin so she’d never have to go through this again.

“What happens when they find us?” Theresa asked quietly.

“That’s when the fun begins.” The voice emerged from the male walking towards them.

Janis judged him to be about five eight. He shared none of the rugged good looks of the Created. His hair was short and spiky. She was sure if she touched it, it would cut her hands. His face was squarish with yellow eyes. If he was a representation of the rest of his race, she would skip meeting any more.

“I believe your mate should be coming for you soon.” He walked over and unlocked the cell, stepping back to give them room to walk out.

He smiled at both of them, holding his hands up in the air as if to show them he was unarmed.

“Run, please.” He smiled at Theresa.

Janis shot her hand out and grabbed Theresa by the arm. “Don’t run. He’s deadlier than he looks and he has no reason to keep you alive.”

The blood drained from Theresa’s face, leaving her as white as a ghost. She edged a little closer to Janis, keeping a watchful eye on the male.

“Where are you taking us?”

“I have a special place for you. Your male will find you with ease there.”

They walked out of the room into an underground cave.

“We are underground?”

The male nodded his head. “The natural materials in the earth will interfere with the signal your bracelet sends out.”

Janis put her hand on it. She’d known Nicolas would use it to track her.

“I knew it would take several days to pinpoint the signal.”

She said nothing. The path was at a slight incline. They had been deep in the earth, but were slowly making their way to the surface. Where could they be? She doubted there was a place like this in the city. Maybe they had been taken to some remote part of Pennsylvania. There had to be forgotten parts somewhere in the state.

Janis tripped over a rock and would have fallen if Theresa hadn’t reached down to help her. She could hear a frustrated sound emerge from the Created’s lips, but refused to acknowledge it.

They walked in silence until they emerged from the cave. The sky was lit with a full moon. Judging by the position of it in the sky, it must be close to midnight.

“You could forget whatever insane plan you have and let us go.”

The Created gave her a laugh that once again, made her feel like something was crawling on her.

She shrugged. It was worth a try.

“We are close to our destination now.”

“What exactly are the Created?” Theresa asked hesitantly.

Janis circled the question earlier, never giving her a straight answer. She’d hoped it would not only protect the Dares which she was a part of, but also protect Theresa.

“They are animals bred to kill and then be put down,” their captor answered.

“They are aliens who came here from a different planet. They have lived on our planet in peace for over a hundred years. The government is aware of them. There is peace between our people and their people, but some beings can’t leave well enough alone and wish to start a war.”

They walked through a large rocky section filled with trees. Janis tried to match the landscape up with areas she might recognize and came up with nothing. Finally, they walked through the trees to enter a large clearing.

“This looks strange.”

He laughed. “I made it as my stage. Besides, it will give your people something to talk about for years to come.”

“You.” He pointed to Theresa. “Over here.”

Theresa turned to look at Janis before walking over to the male. He grabbed her arms and placed them in restraints she was unable to see, but she had no trouble feeling them binding her wrists.

“It’s too bad your earth eyes can’t see the restraints you’re being held in.”

He turned to look at Janis and motioned her to move to a spot further away from where Theresa stood with her arms at a wide V over her head and her legs in a matching V. She looked like she was being displayed on an auction block.

Taking a deep breath, Janis prepared for the same thing to be done to her. Nicolas will be here soon. Then there will be hell to pay. She smiled at that thought. Then she felt her wrist being placed in a manacle and pulled up high.

She felt, more than saw, a barrier go around her. The sizzle of light as an insect hit it confirmed her suspicion. She wasn’t getting out of there unless she was released.

“Now for the second part of the attraction.” That evil laugh once again walked down Janis’s spine.

She looked up when a flash of caught her eye. There were two cages that were slowly being lowered to the ground. Her tongue came out and swiped at her suddenly parched lips as a hand of terror gripped her. She didn’t know what was in those cages, but whatever it was didn’t bode well for her or Theresa.

The beast in the cage went crazy, throwing itself against the side when it caught sight of her. Turning her head, she saw Theresa in her cage screaming as the other beast tried to claw its way to her. Janis tried desperately to move as far away as possible, doing her best not to let fear take over. The thought of that alien touching her was enough to make her want to collapse into a ball and scream her head off.

“You won’t be so calm once he gets his hands on you. Introductions are in order. These are the Crux. They are from a species that worships two things, fighting and procreating. As you can see from his protruding organ, I have kept him away from procreating, but I did promise him a female. You. The Crux aren’t a gentle race. I’m sure you will find that out soon enough. Although, there is one thing they love to do more than anything. Kill the Created. I wonder if they will kill them or maim them, so they can watch as you are plundered or rather torn apart in the Crux frenzy. They will probably kill them first. No one ever accused the Crux of having big brains.”

His laughter stayed behind as he walked into the trees, leaving the Crux to throw themselves against the barrier keeping them in place.

“Janis.”

“Yeah.”

“Your man and his big brothers are coming, right? Do you think they can defeat these things?”

“I know they can.”

“Then why are you looking like that?”

“What happens if they bring Rena, Dee and Lorali?” Janis whispered to herself.

Chapter Twenty Eight

“Do you really think this is the best idea?”

“Do you have an alternative?” Aran turned to face Sergey, waiting for his reply.

“No. I just don’t want to put the females in danger.”

Aran sighed and dropped into the captain’s chair of the small craft. They could be facing danger either way. They were flying under the radar of the military, as well as other monitoring companies. But that left them open to be spotted by anyone who happened to look in their direction.

“Sergey, you know we didn’t have another choice. We either took the glider out or we went by jeep. The jeeps wouldn’t make it there tonight.”

“He knows we’re bringing the glider. Why else would he have taken them so far away?” Nicolas had been sitting quietly in the command center before making his comment.

“He took them to Montana. He knew what he was doing. You’re right, Nicolas. He knew we would need more than jeeps to reach them in time.”

“Janis’s signal is loud and clear now. It’s like he knew how much time it would take me to write a program to erase the interference.”

“He’s a Scientist. He knew exactly how much time it would take. I keep asking myself why. Why would a Scientist inject himself with Created DNA? Why would a Scientist follow us to earth? They are such snobs when it comes to their superiority in the galaxy. It’s hard to believe one would come here.” Nicolas spoke to the room in general.

“Does the why matter? I believe our focus is retrieving your mate as well as your employee,” Dante’s voice was soft. He volunteered to go with them when they figured out where the females had been taken.

Nicolas shook his head. “Janis is the priority, as well as Theresa. I just can’t help feeling we’re missing something.”

The door to the command center opened and Mick, Dante’s brother and second in command, walked in.

“Is everything good?” Aran asked.

Mick nodded his head. “I went over the harness with the females again, just to make sure they had a thorough understanding of how to use them. They have made themselves comfortable in the replicator room. I believe they’ll be ok. I’m honored to be chosen to watch over them while you fight.”

Dante gave a sincere laugh filled with joy. “I believe that’s Mick’s way of saying at least he got asked to come along this time. My brothers haven’t been happy to miss out on all of the action.”

Dante threw Mick a smile. Mick nodded his head and took a seat.

Aran flipped on the intercom. “Rena, use the harness and make sure everyone else uses it also.”

He turned back to the view screen. They were getting close. No one knew what they would be heading into.

“Nicolas, you’re lead on this one.”

“Mick, at the first sign of trouble, you get the females out of there.”

“Understood.”

“Everyone else remember the females are our first priority. We will get the Created, but not at the risk of the lives of the ones who are important to us.”

Everyone nodded their head in understanding.

“Ash?”

“I’m monitoring five life signs. Aran, two of them are Crux.”

“That’s impossible.” Nicolas went to his station and began tapping on the computer screen.

“Nicolas?”

“Confirmed. They are Crux.”

“Are they close to the human life signs?”

“Yes. All four signs are within close proximity. None of them are moving. They are probably behind an energy field.”