Krac's Firebrand

  “I think I’d better get you into the bath before your parents see you, little warrior princess,” Bazteen commented as he studied Violet’s dirty face.

  “Can I have bubbles?” Violet asked, raising her hands up to be picked up. “And my toys?”

  “You can have anything you want, my precious little princess,” Bazteen promised.

  Violet laid her head against Bazteen’s shoulder and wrapped her tiny arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. “I love you, Di’ Dadre,” she said fiercely.

  “I love you too, little one. I love you, too,” Bazteen chuckled. “Now, let’s see if I can do this without getting caught.”

  Chapter 6

  Krac stepped lightly down the staircase leading to the lower levels of the home of Kordon Jefe. He had been here many times over the past three years. The last time was a little over a month before. Gracie has been expecting her second child any day which was why he had been chosen as Violet’s new playmate for the game they were playing. Gracie was also the one who had called him ‘Uncle Krac’. Violet had insisted on calling him that ever since. Krac had shrugged when Kordon had frowned in disapproval and decided he liked the new name if it irritated the huge Zion warrior. He was discovering what Gracie called ‘a sense of humor’.

  He slowed when he saw Kordon step out of a doorway at the bottom of the stairs. The dark scowl on Kordon’s face turned to a barely suppressed smirk of amusement as his gaze swept Krac’s lean form. Krac ignored him as he continued down the steps with a nod of acknowledgement.

  “You know we do have a front door,” Kordon said dryly. “You are welcome to use it.”

  Krac shrugged his broad shoulders. “Where is the fun in that?” He replied. “I need to talk with you.”

  Kordon nodded and stepped to one side of the door. “After you,” he responded with a wave of his hand.

  Krac stepped through the door, stopping short when he saw Gracie sitting in a chair near the window. An uneasy look crossed his face when he saw she had a small bundle wrapped in blue in her arms. He nodded to her when she looked up and smiled at him.

  “Hi Krac. I see Violet found you,” Gracie commented with a small laugh. “I guess she snuck away from Bazteen again.”

  Krac frowned before his face cleared in understanding. The ‘pretty pictures’ must have captured Violet in the upper gardens. He had to admit he was glad Kordon had installed the system. Now, more than ever, as the threat to Gracie and the descendants of the Freedom Five was escalating.

  “I am glad you are both here,” Krac stated bluntly. “Gracie is in danger.”

  Krac watched as Kordon’s face darkened and Gracie’s became absolutely still. The warmth that flooded him every time he saw her struck particularly hard when she bowed her head over the small bundle in her arms. He knew he would do everything in his power to help protect her.

  “Tell me,” Kordon said darkly, glancing at his mate when she looked back up at him. “Tell us.”

  “Thank you,” Gracie replied softly, smiling at Kordon.

  Krac nodded as he stepped toward the long bank of windows overlooking the lower front entrance. His eyes swept the perimeter before turning back to look into Kordon’s dark blue eyes. He could see the cold anger burning deep in Kordon’s eyes at the threat to his mate.

  “Anastasia Miller, a member of the Earth Council and a direct descendent of Chance and Violet Miller, was kidnapped a little over a week ago. Rorrak and I rescued her from Tillus four days ago. They are aboard the Conqueror on their way back to Earth. It is imperative that Anastasia is there to cast her vote in the upcoming referendum if the descendants of the Freedom Five and other rebel groups are to remain an essential part of the council.”

  “Who kidnapped her and why?” Kordon asked briskly.

  “The same group that Altren Proctor belonged to,” Krac replied. “They have grown more aggressive and dangerous. They call themselves the New Order. They want to take over the council one way or another.”

  “But, why would they want me?” Gracie asked puzzled. “I’m not part of the council. I don’t have anything to do with Earth, including their policies or their government.”

  Krac looked down into Gracie’s vivid green eyes. He was still working out what some of the images from Weston meant. His own frustration grew from the fact that the leader of the New Order never appeared clear enough for him to make out any of his features.

  “They think you have information that is vital to their winning,” Krac replied.

  “Information? What information? I know nothing of Earth’s politics or even what it looks like! How could I have information that would help them?” She asked in exasperation.

  “It will be alright,” Kordon assured her. “I will post additional guards and let the High Council know that there is a threat to you. They will monitor all incoming and outgoing transmissions.”

  “It’s not that, Kordon,” Gracie said. “You already have a ton of added protection here. I don’t want to live in a glass bowl. I don’t want our children to grow up fearing for their lives either. That is why I chose to stay here, with you, instead of going back to Earth. I just don’t know what information they think I can have that could help them. Everything I know is over eight hundred years old. Surely nothing can be of help to them from that long ago.”

  “I need you to tell me everything you can remember before you left Earth until you were found,” Krac said. “There must be something you are missing. Something that they think you know and that they want.”

  Gracie looked down at the small bundle in her arms as he moved. Her eyes softened with love as a pair of dark blue eyes blinked several times before looking up at her. She lifted her hand to catch the tiny fingers that waved up at her and pressed them against her mouth.

  “I’ll tell you everything I can remember, but first I need to feed Adam,” she said, looking back up at Krac. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  Both men turned as Gracie rose from her chair. Kordon walked over and caressed her cheek with the back of his fingers before brushing a kiss across her lips. Krac turned away, not wanting them to know he heard their whispered words of love. He rubbed his chest with a frown when he thought of what it would be like to have a female look at him the way Gracie looked at Kordon. Just as quickly, he dismissed it. It was fruitless to think of any female wanting a monster like him. He had learned that the hard way back on Earth.

  Krac turned back around to study Kordon as the other male walked over to the bar and poured two glasses with a dark amber liquid. Krac nodded his thanks when Kordon held one out to him as he came back to sit in the chair Gracie has vacated.

  “What else did you learn?” Kordon asked. “I want to know everything.”

  *.*.*

  The five figures aboard the small starship gathered the last of their weapons. They had one focus, get Gracie Jones and get out. A large sum of credits was riding on them being able to capture the human female.

  “Her mate will not take kindly to us taking her,” Jit said. “She is bound to have additional security around her after the mess Hinders and Weston made with Miller.”

  “The Leader does not want excuses. We are to kill anyone who gets in our way. Moss will take out Jefe. The rest of you will take out the guards. I will get the female,” Mace said. “Stick to the plan. Get in and get out. We have the information from the nurse. We know they will be taking their brat in for a checkup. This will leave them more vulnerable as they will try to protect it.”

  “What if we can’t get her?” Crane asked.

  “Then we grab the kid. From what I have read about Gracie Jones, she will do anything to protect her brats,” Harden said, snapping his laser pistol close and sheathing it at his waist. “Kill her mate, grab her kid and she’ll be eating out of our hands.”

  “I don’t want anything to do with a baby,” Moss muttered. “They smell and make too much noise.”

  “Not the baby, you dumbass,” Harden replied. “The little g
irl. Even if we don’t kill her mate, he won’t try anything if he knows we have her. That is what makes them weak, vulnerable.”

  “I don’t like kids,” Moss said. “They cry.”

  Harden rolled his eyes and gritted his teeth. The only reason he didn’t kill the huge human male was because he was good at following orders and he was Mace’s younger brother. Mace on the other hand was smart, fast and his second in command. When he paired the two brothers, they got the job done. He just had to remember he couldn’t kill Moss for being a dumbass.

  “Just remember,” Harden said through gritted teeth. “If you can’t get the female, grab the little girl. That is the Leader’s orders.”

  “Okay,” Moss replied with a shake of his head. “But, I still don’t like little kids.”

  *.*.*

  “I don’t like this,” Krac said as he glanced around the busy street. “Why are you taking the chance of leaving your compound? Surely the healer could have come to your home?”

  “Normally she would have but there was an explosion west of the city at one of the factories. She is on call. Adam has been congested and running a slight fever. We would feel better if he was checked out,” Kordon replied.

  “We have extra guards and you with us, Krac. Surely, no one in their right mind would try anything with so many guards around?” Grace reflected as she looked at the six members of the elite guard surrounding them as they walked into the downtown office complex where their healer was located. “It would be suicide.”

  “I would feel better if you would have waited until the healer could come to you,” Krac responded, looking around the large, open-air lobby.

  “It’s okay, Uncle Krac. You can beat up anyone!” Violet stated proudly as she slipped her small hand into his. “Just like my daddy!”

  Krac looked down at the shiny blonde curls and wide green eyes and fought back a low curse. That damn heat was spreading through him again. He would need to control it. Emotions were dangerous. They left a person weak and vulnerable.

  Still, he couldn’t help the small tug at the corner of his mouth as he looked down at the little girl. It wasn’t until he had gone to the cleansing room before he left Kordon and Gracie’s home that he finally understood why they kept looking at him in amusement.

  The little imp holding his hand had painted his face with dirt and he had perfect size three footprints running up his chest. She had placed two dark smudges under his eyes and drawn small round circles that looked like flowers on his cheeks.

  He had shot Kordon a nasty glare when he came back into their den. The huge Zion warrior had burst into laughter at the disgruntled look on his face. It hadn’t helped that Violet had seen him and gotten upset that he had ‘washed’ her pretty face paint off.

  Now, he could feel himself standing just a touch straighter at the look of worship on the small face gazing up at him. For once, he did not feel like the monster he knew he was. He frowned as he thought of the effect just a few simple words spoken from a child could do and ultimately how dangerous it could be for him to believe in them.

  “I will do everything I can to protect your family, Violet,” he replied gruffly.

  “I know,” Violet said with a grin before she let go of his hand and skipped over to her mom.

  Krac watched her for a moment before he started when he heard a voice next to him. A silent curse escaped him. This was exactly what he meant by being vulnerable. He had been so focused on Violet, he hadn’t heard Kordon come up on his left side.

  “She is a lot like her mother,” Kordon said, watching as Gracie knelt down so Violet could touch Adam’s cheek. “It is impossible to tell her no.”

  “It was unwise to bring them here,” Krac insisted in a dark voice. “I want to check the surrounding area while you are with the healer. Make sure that your guards stay on alert.”

  Kordon flashed a fierce look at Krac. “I know how to protect my family.”

  “I’m not saying you don’t,” Krac replied calmly. “Something is not right. I can feel it. We are missing something.”

  Krac watched as Kordon’s eyes narrowed briefly before he gave a short, sharp nod. He moved to the side as several of the elite guards moved forward to follow the small family into the lift. Only when the doors closed did he turn away. His gaze swept the lobby once more, pausing on each face for a fraction of a second so he could store the information in case he needed it later. Turning on his heel, he stepped out of the towering building in the center of the Zion capitol.

  Streets filled with activity greeted him. Pulling the hood of his cloak up, he moved down along the wide walk before turning the corner that led between the towering building where he had left Kordon and his family and another. Something was wrong, he could feel it and he was never wrong.

  *.*.*

  An hour later, he stepped back into the medical tower. He frowned as he glanced at his comlink. He had linked it to Kordon’s and told him to contact him when they were ready to leave. He had searched the entire area out to three blocks, slowly increasing his circle.

  His scans did not show anything out of the ordinary. Now, as he stood in the lower lobby, he casually palmed the slim tablet that Kordon had given him to connect into the main communications control tower that monitored incoming and outgoing transports from the planet. He focused, sending microfiber connections from his wrist into the device. Once he had established a link, he quickly bypassed the security settings that were set to limit the end user from accessing other areas of the computer system.

  He leaned back against the wall near the lift as information poured into his brain at a dizzying speed. His eyes lowered as the data poured into his mind. He bit back a groan as the pressure built until his head throbbed painfully. He was about to disconnect the link with an unusual signal caught his attention.

  “Krac! Get your ass up here. Level 26,” Kordon’s voice furiously shouted out in his comlink, breaking his concentration. “We’ve got trouble.”

  Krac turned and slapped his hand over the control panel to the lift even as he disconnected from the tablet. His eyes flew upward as it rapidly descended. The passengers inside gripped the railing on the inside in a panic as it descended faster than normal.

  He slowed the compartment at the last moment and sent an override for the doors to open before it stopped. The five passengers inside tumbled out as he swept past them. The moment he was inside, he sent another command for the doors to close and the lift to rise.

  “What is the situation?” he asked calmly into the comlink, ignoring the sounds of laser fire over it.

  “The guards are down,” Kordon responded. “The nurse is working with the rebels. I’m not sure how many there are. My senior guard was able to alert me before he went down. We are barricaded in the healer’s office. Take a right out of the lift. Go down the corridor and last room on the left. I’m not sure how much longer I can hold them.”

  “I will be there in forty-three seconds,” Krac replied. “Do whatever you have to do to keep your family safe.”

  “What the fuck do you think I’m doing?” Kordon retorted.

  Krac cursed silently when he heard Violet’s scared voice in the background telling her mommy that daddy had ‘cursed.’ The muted cries of Adam could be heard as well as Gracie frantically trying to comfort both of her children.

  His hands were already between the door of the lift and the side as it began to open. He pushed against the smooth metal, ignoring the sound of crunching as the gears inside were stripped as he shoved it out of the way. He rolled as laser fire filled the interior. His own laser pistol was in his hand as he came up and fired. A dark hole appeared through the center of the male’s forehead. The male jerked back in surprise before falling forward over the counter of the reception area.

  Krac turned as another male fired from down the long corridor. He suppressed the dark rage building in him when he heard the sound of a small explosion followed by a loud scream and the terrified cries of Violet and Adam.
He focused on the male who had pulled back around the corner again.

  He stepped forward cautiously, waiting patiently for the male to reappear. He cursed when he saw a different male reappear holding a tall, slender female wearing a medical uniform in front of him.

  Two other men appeared behind him. One held the stiff body of Gracie. Her arms were empty and silent tears of grief dampened her cheeks. The splattering of dark blood stained her hands and the front of her shirt. Krac paused when one of the men jerked Violet’s head back by her curls and held his pistol against her temple.

  “I wouldn’t come any closer,” the tall man holding Gracie said. “My friend here doesn’t like kids. You come any closer and he’ll kill her.”

  “Gracie?” Krac asked without taking his eyes off of the male holding Violet.

  “They shot Kordon,” she whispered. “He needs immediate medical attention. Please, let the healer help him. Please!” She begged the man holding her.

  “I’m afraid that letting him live is not part of the plan, princess,” Harden replied. “Let’s go. The window’s closing. Take the kid and kill the bitch.”

  “No!” Gracie cried out.

  “Mommy!” Violet screamed.

  Krac watched as Violet threw her head back, connecting with the nose of the large male holding her while her tiny feet kicked wildly to get free. Gracie and the healer reacted at the same time, turning on their captors. The healer brought her hand around, hitting her captor in the mouth while Gracie slammed her heel into the male holding her and jerked forward. She reached for Violet at the same time as Krac let out a shot from his pistol at the male who had been holding the healer.

  A loud roar sounded from the larger male as he grabbed the wounded man around the waist and threw him over his shoulder while pulling Violet’s struggling body up in his other arm. Krac ignored the stinging as multiple shots struck him in the chest, arm and leg as he continued firing at the three males. Gracie cried out as the healer wrapped her arms around her and pulled her away from the men.

  “NO!” Gracie screamed, fighting to break free as the men pushed through another door. “Violet! NO!”