Niko: Scifi Alien Invasion Romance (Hell Squad Book 9) (2 page)

Lia’s expulsion of breath came across the line. “Damn. Must be a malfunction. I’ll talk to Noah and his tech team, and see if we can work out what happened to it.”

“Roger that. We’ll bring it back in for you.” Mac looked at Cam. “Ready to go climbing?”

Cam scowled. “Why me?”

“Because I outrank you.”

“You never pull rank.”

“I do when it comes to looking like an idiot climbing a tree.”

Muttering under her breath, Cam climbed the wide trunk of the tree and pulled herself up into the branches. After a few minutes and a few more curses, she’d freed the little drone.

As Cam dropped it down, Mac caught it and watched as Cam dropped down as well, landing in a light crouch. Mac turned the drone over.

“Hell, it’s pretty battered.” One of the rotors was mangled, and the side of it was dented.

“Yep, someone is going to catch hell for crashing this little baby,” Cam said.

A second later, Arden was back on the comm line. “Mac, there’s a war meeting in the Command Center. All squad leaders and their second-in-commands have been requested to attend. Roth said he’ll meet you there. A relief team will come out shortly to take over patrol from you guys.”

War meeting.
Great
. “On my way.”

Cam and Mac headed back toward the entrance they’d used to exit the Enclave. It was cleverly hidden in the ground, and impossible to find if you didn’t know where it was. As they approached, she saw two other soldiers leaving the Enclave to take over patrol.

Mac couldn’t help but grin. These two were from Hell Squad—the toughest, meanest, most efficient squad around. It was headed by the battle-hardened Marcus Steele, but the two coming toward her were Hell Squad’s sole female soldier and its sniper. The two also happened to be crazy in love, and had just recently finally admitted it to each other.

Shaw Baird was tall, slightly lanky, with shaggy hair streaked with gold. When he spotted Mac and Cam, he shot them a flirtatious grin. Mac was pretty sure flirting was in the man’s DNA. In addition to being an excellent shot with his long-range laser rifle, he’d also been a notorious ladies’ man before he’d finally faced his feelings for Claudia Frost.

Beside him, Claudia stood tall and straight, her dark hair pulled back in a long braid. There was no doubting from the badass look on her face that she could quite easily take down a raptor twice her size. Mac had seen her in action, and would have the former SAS soldier on her team any day.

Mac watched as Shaw leaned in to Claudia and whispered something. The woman rolled her eyes and gave the man a smack in the arm. That just made him grin more wildly.

A relationship like this, love…it had to soften a woman. Claudia didn’t look any different—except for the light in her eyes when she looked at her lover—but surely that love would eventually seep in, and make that tough look on her face disappear. Mac knew that had to be a weakness.

“Nothing much to report,” Mac said. “I suspect you guys will just have a lovely stroll in the sun.”

“After the last few months,” Shaw said, “a stroll in the sun sounds damn nice.”

“We just rescued a drone for Lia.” Mac held up the small quadcopter. “Landed in a tree.”

“Malfunction?” Claudia asked.

Mac shrugged. “Looks that way. The geek squad is going to take a look at it. Certainly no aliens around.”

“You two stay alert.” Cam’s grin was a little cheeky. “No hanky-panky.”

Shaw waggled his eyebrows. “But I’m so good at hanky-panky.”

That earned him a whack in the back of the head from Claudia.

They waved goodbye, and Mac and Cam climbed down through the hatch and dropped into the tunnel.

“I’ll drop you at the Command Center and then take the drone to the tech lab,” Cam said. “After that, I’m off to the pool.” She rubbed her hands together with glee.

Mac handed over the drone as they headed out of the tunnel and into a wide, carpeted corridor. Ahead, people were walking in small groups, talking and laughing.

This was where the true differences to Blue Mountain Base were really noticeable. There was thick, plush carpet on the floor, and framed artwork lining the corridor walls. It didn’t quite mask the fact that they were underground, but it had a state-of-the-art lighting system that mimicked natural light. Blue Mountain Base had felt like a concrete rabbit warren of military tunnels, and while they’d all done their best to make it seem like a home, it hadn’t ever come close to the Enclave’s luxurious feel.

They made their way through the corridors—Mac was finally learning her way around. They reached the Command Center, and passed the large glass windows that looked into the high-tech hive of activity. There were walls covered in flat screens, and multiple comp stations set up with various people working at them. In the main meeting area in the center, she saw most of the squad leaders and their seconds were already there.

Then she spotted
him
.

Nikolai Ivanov was one of the leaders of the Enclave. He stood in front of the group in jeans and a dark T-shirt. In the two weeks she’d been here, she’d done her best to avoid him. Something about the man made her itch. He was an artist, but she’d seen him in the field once when they’d first reached the Enclave. He might paint, but he was no simple artist.

After their convoy had arrived, Roth had been assigned to Niko to trade information and bring him up to speed on all the squads’ capabilities. Roth had delegated the job to Mac.

So she’d been forced to spend a few tense hours meeting with Niko in his office. The man had this way of watching her… She brushed the thought away. She was probably just being silly. The man was an artist and clearly liked to watch people.

She looked at him now through the glass. A long, lean body, dark hair that was close to brushing his shoulders. Although she couldn’t see them from this distance, she knew his eyes were a piercing green.

Then he looked up, and his gaze hit hers unerringly.

Mac held it, not letting herself fall for the panicked need to look away. She felt the punch of heat to her belly, absorbed it with annoyance.

Then she broke contact and looked away. If she ignored this
thing
, it would go away.

“What was that?”

Cam’s voice made Mac jolt.  “What?”

“Oh, don’t play coy with me, Carides. What the hell was that look I just saw? That panty-melting, I-want-to-lick-you-all-over look that the man—that handsome, sexy-as-sin, artist man—just gave you.”

Mac resisted the urge to stiffen. It would just give Cam more fuel. “I didn’t see anything.”

“Mac, you see everything. Girl, the man is
hot
. And if you missed it, I said hot with underlined, italicized letters.”

Mac sniffed. “Aren’t you going swimming?”

Cam’s dark gaze narrowed. “You toss every man over your shoulder and slam him into the training mats. Why not have a little fun for a change? Drag this one down and ride him like a pony.”

“Cam!” Mac hated that she could picture that image of her and Niko far too clearly.

“What are two lovely ladies like you doing in a place like this?”

Cam stiffened like she’d been hit with an electric prod, and Mac barely suppressed a smile.
Saved by the berserkers.

The two men striding down the corridor were the leader and second of Squad Three, better known as the berserkers. These men were wild. The berserkers had been cobbled together from men with…dubious backgrounds. Mercenaries, bikers, and…well, it was best not to ask too many questions.

Tane and Hemi were brothers, although Tane was a little taller and leaner than his brother, with a harsh, handsome face that was framed by heavy dreadlocks. He stalked closer with a stride that reminded Mac of a big jungle cat. Hemi was rougher, stockier, and had a dark beard that didn’t hide his wide smile. He sauntered like a rock star and his gaze was firmly on Cam.

“Rahia, just keep your mouth shut,” Cam bit out. “Every time you open it, you make me want to punch you.” Her smile took on an edge. “And I’m still in my armor, so that means I can really hurt you.”

“Aw, Camryn, you still angry with me about that whole pink helmet incident? Isn’t it time to forgive me?”

Mac winced. “Hemi, it’s best you don’t bring up the ‘painting the helmet pink’ thing.”

“Why not?” Something wicked danced in his eyes. “Cam looks so pretty in pink.”

Cam made a growling sound. She took a step forward, and then slammed her fist into Hemi’s stomach. To the man’s credit, he barely doubled over, but the air did rush out of him. Cam had a hell of a right hook.

“Tane.” Cam nodded at Squad Three’s leader.

Tane gave her a nod and a faint smile, then Cam sauntered down the corridor like a model on a catwalk.

Mac looked at Hemi. “Dude, I don’t know what your game is, but I really don’t think pissing Cam off all the time is a good way to sweet-talk her into your bed.”

Hemi grinned. “She’ll come around. I have a certain charm.”

Mac shook her head and pushed open the doors to the Command Center, the men moving to follow her.

She headed to where Roth was standing with Marcus Steele and Hell Squad’s second in command, Cruz Ramos and his partner, Santha Kade. Mac nodded at some of the other squad leaders, but avoided looking toward the front of the room.

It didn’t matter, dammit. She was still very conscious that Niko’s gaze was on her the entire time. She could feel it like a physical touch.

She heaved out a breath.
Just ignore it. It’ll go away.

Chapter Two

Nikolai Ivanov shoved his hands into his pockets and listened to the squad leaders talking around him. At the last second, he realized he still had paint on his hands, and he’d just smeared it on his jeans. He mentally shrugged. Wasn’t the first time, and he was sure it wouldn’t be the last.

He was listening as Noah Kim, the brilliant tech genius who’d come from Blue Mountain Base, was talking about upgrading some of the systems at the Enclave. Niko had thought his tech team was good, but Kim had a magic touch with electronics. In the two weeks since he’d arrived, he’d already made the energy and lighting systems thirty percent more efficient. He was looking into the security systems next, and also talking about upgrading some wiring.

It would benefit everyone here.

Not everyone had agreed when Niko had invited the Blue Mountain Base survivors to join the Enclave. Before, everyone in the Enclave had been very comfortable, had found a sense of solace and safety in the horror of the alien invasion. Now, their haven was bursting at the seams. But it had been the right thing to do, and Niko didn’t regret it for a second.

In this new world, humans had to stick together. Under Howell, it hadn’t happened. Niko still burned with anger when he thought about how he’d fallen for the former president’s lies. Howell had spun a compelling story—never once letting on that they’d all been handpicked for his secret little haven at the expense of the rest of the damn world.

Niko let out a breath. That was the past. The future was integrating the new survivors with the Enclave members. Making everyone into one cohesive group, making it a home for everybody.

He tuned back into the discussions as they turned to the security and military aspects. Niko stepped forward. “I’ve had extensive discussions with General Holmes this week. We’ve carefully weighed all the options and decided that it is best that General Holmes takes over security and military operations for the Enclave.”

He saw the Blue Mountain Base squad leaders all nod. They respected the tall, dedicated man who had saved their lives and gotten them this far. Niko glanced over at Adam Holmes. He looked like a general—tall, with a straight bearing, and a distinguished dash of gray at his temples. He’d arrived here looking exhausted, tense, and stressed, but slowly, over the last two weeks, Niko had seen the man start to relax a little. It certainly helped that he had a sexy, blonde bombshell of a girlfriend.

Then Niko’s gaze fell on the Enclave’s head of security, Captain Kate Scott. She’d been in charge of security all this time, running the place jointly with him. In her early forties and career military, she’d only ever had the best interests of the residents at heart. She’d been the first to suggest the Blue Mountain survivors come here.

He’d already briefed her on this decision, and she’d agreed it made sense. Still, he knew this must feel like a demotion, and she now had Adam Holmes as a boss. But Kate and her team had been security only…they needed the military expertise of the squads. They’d been out there actively fighting the aliens, taking the offensive. If they were going to do more than just be trapped here in the Enclave for the rest of their lives, they needed to work together, be one unified group.

Then his gaze fell on Mackenna Carides.

Now, there was one person he’d like to be more unified with.

She was dwarfed by the broad-shouldered forms of Roth and Marcus standing beside her, making her look almost delicate by contrast.

But Niko knew she was as tough as the carbon fiber of her armor.

Her black hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail, accenting a face full of interesting angles. Large, dark eyes were framed by long lashes and she had skin the color of bronze. He couldn’t remember being so intrigued by a woman in a very long time. Tough but beautiful. Smart and straightforward. There were no lies, no pretense, no shades of gray to Mackenna. In their meetings over the last couple of weeks, she’d answered all his questions in simple, clear terms. He liked watching her, trying to work out what made her tick, while in return, she watched him with a vaguely suspicious look.

He also wanted to see what was beneath that carbon fiber exterior of hers.

Holmes started talking. “My survivors need some more time to recover.” His blue gaze met Niko’s. “As you know, some are still recovering from their injuries at the hands of the aliens, plus plenty are still stressed from our escape.”

Niko felt his jaw tighten. He’d seen some of the ugly scars. He knew some might never fully recover. But he’d do whatever the hell they needed to give them a chance.