“Hunter!” Saber called out. “Over here.”
Hunter stretched the tight muscles in his shoulders. He was going to strangle the female when he found her. Then he was going to strangle her sisters. The more he thought of that night two weeks ago, the more he realized he should have seen the signs of their duplicity. In his mind’s eye, he now understood the sly looks they had passed between them and how Taylor had used her stories as a distraction to catch him off-guard. He recognized his pride was hurt… for two reasons. One that he had fallen for their trick. Second, because he had taken Jesse as his Amate. Once a Trivator warrior took a female as his Amate it was for life. He would forsook any other female, including seeking relief in a relief room. His seed was to be given only to the female. It was his gift to her. Jesse had rejected that gift when she ran away.
Hunter strode over to where Saber was standing. He glanced grimly at the scanner Saber held out. The scanner was showing a group of humans a block away. He counted eighteen total. What disturbed him was that fifteen of them were surrounding three. The heat signatures distinguished that the three figures were female.
“Soco ballast!” Shit! He growled under his breath. “Dagger, let’s go! I think we have found them.”
*.*.*
Jesse held the metal pipe out in front of her as she looked at the group of men surrounding her, Jordan and Taylor. They had been running non-stop for the past two weeks. Fatigue and lack of food had made her reckless. She shivered as the chill from the rain soaked through the tunic she was wearing.
“Stay back,” she snarled, swinging the pipe as one of the men who had been chasing them stepped closer.
The men laughed. “She is a feisty one,” another man called out. “I wonder how she’s going to look bent over.”
“Jesse,” Taylor whimpered as she pressed her back against her older sisters. “I’m scared. I don’t want to die like this. I… please, don’t let them…”
Jordan swung the rebar she held in her hand, striking one of the men who got too close. His angry howl of pain seemed to incite the other men who started yelling at each other to move in closer. Jordan cried out when one of the men grabbed the end of the long metal rod she was gripping, jerking it out of her hands.
Jesse attacked the men who were reaching for her sisters. She hit as many as she could before they overwhelmed her. She felt her tunic rip under their hands. In the background, she could hear Taylor’s high-pitched scream.
“No!” Jesse screamed as she felt hands trying to drag down the pants she wore. She kicked out again, catching one man in the groin but another took his place. “No!” She screamed again as she fought with everything in her.
She cried out in pain as she was pressed down onto the hard ground. Sharp rocks bit into her back and shoulders. Her arms burned from where she was being pulled. Her legs were forced open. Hard fingers bit into her flesh.
“Please!” She sobbed. “Please, don’t!”
Additional screams filled the air. It took a moment for Jesse to realize that they were not coming from her sisters. The sound of bones breaking and tortured cries of agony rained around her. It took a moment for the men holding her down to realize that the sounds were coming from their own.
Jesse felt the bodies holding her down release her. Some in panic, some as they were thrown away from her. Jesse’s frantic eyes locked with Hunter’s for a brief second before he turned and sliced through the throat of a man who stumbled too close.
She forced herself to roll over onto her stomach and rise up. Her eyes searching for Jordan and Taylor. She saw another Trivator warrior attacking three men. Her eyes swept the area until she caught sight of Jordan’s dark blue shirt. She pushed up off the ground and staggered over to where Jordan lay curled up in a ball, her bloody hands over her head. Harsh sobs shook her sister’s body.
“Jordan,” Jesse choked out, touching Jordan’s shoulder. “Jordan, we need to find Taylor. Please, help me. Taylor…”
Jordan’s slowly lowered her hands and looked up at Jesse with tear-filled eyes. She had blood near her hairline and the beginnings of a bruise was beginning to form at her temple. She nodded and held out her shaking hands to Jesse.
They both looked frantically around. They stumbled over several bodies as they searched for Taylor. Jesse held Jordan when she turned with a sob at the sight of the brutality. Jesse felt no regret for the way the men died. They had planned a much worse fate for her and her two younger sisters. Her only concern was finding Taylor.
A low cry was pulled from Jesse when she saw the still body of Taylor lying near the rubble of a building. Saber stood holding a man by his throat. It was obvious both of the man’s arms had been broken. With a sickening twist, he snapped the crying man’s neck and tossed his body aside before bending down over Taylor’s small broken body.
“Taylor,” Jordan cried out, stumbling forward.
Jesse stood back. The weight of despair and failure filling her at not being able to protect her sisters. It was too much. If Taylor was dead, she didn’t want to go on. She could never survive the guilt at being unable to protect the little sunshine that warmed her world.
“Jesse,” a deep voice said harshly.
Jesse flinched violently when warm hands reached for her. She jerked back a step, uncaring of the sharp stones that cut into her foot from where her boot had been ripped off. Nothing mattered anymore. She knew shock was setting in as her body suddenly felt like it was encased in ice and she couldn’t stop shaking. Her mind felt like it was splintering into a million pieces.
“It’s all my fault,” she panted as her teeth began to chatter. “I should have stayed to the south of the city. I shouldn’t have tried to find a vehicle. It is all my fault.”
Hunter grew concerned when she paled even more. He reached out again, this time slowly. His eyes swept over the wounds on her skin. She was bleeding from her temple, cheek and lip. Her tunic was ripped and hanging off of one delicate pale shoulder. Dark bruises were forming on her exposed arm and more blood ran from her shoulder. Fury burned in him. He glanced around at the bodies of the human males who would have destroyed something so beautiful and fragile. He wished he could kill them all over again.
His eyes moved to where Dagger was holding Jordan. Saber was checking Taylor. He nodded in relief when Saber looked up and briefly nodded. Jesse’s little sister would live.
“Jesse, she will be alright,” Hunter said quietly. “Saber says she is alive. She needs medical attention. You all do.”
Jesse turned to look at him with dazed eyes before they cleared and bitter anger replaced the shock. She pulled the torn remains of her shirt up but it fell back down the moment she released it. She looked around her. Her face twisted with grief and rage.
“Take them,” she ordered hoarsely. “Take them with you.”
Hunter frowned in confusion as he looked around at the dead bodies. He did not understand what she meant. He turned when she stepped further away from him. His eyes narrowed as she bent and picked up a knife that was lying on the ground next to one of the males.
“Jesse,” he said. “What are you doing?”
Jesse ignored him as she pulled her boot out from under the body of another male. She stumbled sideways as she tried to put it on. It took her two tries before she was successful. She glanced around the ground until her eyes narrowed on her father’s hunting knife that had fallen from the boot when it was ripped off. She reached for it and turned as Saber and Dagger approached. Each male held one of her sisters in his arms.
“Take them with you,” Jesse said in a cold, emotionless voice. “You promised to take care of them. You promised to protect them. I am keeping you to your word. Protect them with your life. Do… not… let… anything happen to them,” she said slowly.
“Jesse, what are you doing?” Hunter asked, stepping toward her.
Jesse straightened her shoulders and looked first into Jordan’s eyes before turning her dark brown eyes to Hunter. She felt dead in
side. She knew she could no longer protect and care for her sisters. She had not done a very good job of it. She was making too many mistakes. Mistakes that would get them killed. At least if they were under the protection of the aliens they stood a better chance of surviving with them than with her. It was time to admit defeat before she got them all killed.
“Take them,” she whispered, looking at Taylor’s battered body one last time before she turned away. “I’m done with having a family.”
“Jesse!” Jordan’s distressed cry echoed through the air.
Jesse ignored it. She closed her mind and body off to everything. The last bit of hope in humanity had been killed inside her. She could only hope the alien world would be a better, safer place for her sisters.
Chapter 8
Hunter released a curse under his breath. Jesse was walking away from them all. Her head held high and her back stiff. He could see the spots on the back of the tunic where fresh blood stained it from additional cuts. He glanced at Dagger and Saber before he nodded his head.
“Get them to the transport,” he ordered. “I will meet you there.”
“She won’t come willingly,” Saber commented in a dark voice filled with anger as he held Taylor’s body gently against his own.
Hunter’s mouth tightened in determination. He expected nothing less from the human female. She had been stubborn and completely unpredictable since the moment she risked her own life to save his.
“I would expect nothing less from her,” he muttered before he started after her.
“Hunter,” a soft feminine voice called out from behind him.
He turned to glance at Jordan who gazed back at him with sad eyes filled with tears. Her hand shook violently as she pushed her hair back from her face. His face softened when he saw her lips tremble as she tried to speak.
“Yes,” he said.
“She is hurting,” Jordan whispered. “She has tried to protect and care for us since our mom died and our dad was killed. Please, try to understand. She has never really let anyone take care of her.”
Hunter frowned before he gave a sharp nod. His eyes swept the area narrowing on the dark alley between two buildings. Already, Jesse was trying to disappear again. This time would be the last. He would tie her down if he had to. It was time she understood that he was going to take care of her and protect her from now on. She belonged to him.
*.*.*
Jesse stumbled over the fallen concrete that blocked part of the alley. She ignored the sting of new cuts to the palms of her hands. It didn’t matter anymore. She was looking for trouble. She wanted it to find her. She wanted the pain to end. She wanted to scream as the image of Taylor’s limp body burned in her mind.
Guilt threatened to choke her as she fell, skinning her knees. She pushed herself up, forcing herself to continue moving. She stopped when she reached the next street. She looked up and down it trying to decide which way to go. It didn’t really matter. She was no longer searching for a way to get to the cabin her parents had owned. She didn’t plan on living through the night.
Turning in a circle, she finally sank down to the ground. She sat staring down at the hunting knife in her bruised and bleeding hands. Soft rain fell around her, soaking her hair and clothes. Her breath fogged as she panted as pain swept through her body. It wasn’t the pain from her physical wounds that pulled the choking sobs from her. It was the pain in her heart.
She began rocking back and forth as the sobs racked her body. Ragged breaths tore from her as she tried to breathe past the agony of losing Jordan and Taylor. She closed her eyes and raised her face to the sky, letting the rain mix with her tears.
“Why?!” She sobbed. “Oh God, why? I love them so much. Why couldn’t I protect them? Daddy, why? Why?” She cried out quietly as she fell over and curled up in a ball as the pain overwhelmed her. “Why?”
*.*.*
Hunter stood in the shadows of the alley. He had quickly caught up with Jesse. He had waited silently when she had stopped in the center of the road. He started forward when she sank down to the ground, concerned.
Now, her pain radiated out from her in waves that scorched his soul. He had never heard such agony coming from the soul of a living creature before. He could smell and taste her pain in the air.
Unable to bear the terrible cries any longer, he gently knelt next to her before scooping her body up in his arms. His fear that she would resist melted when she turned into his warmth and continued to cry. The violent shivers racking her body worried him. He feared she would make herself sick.
“Hush, little one,” he murmured softly. “It will be alright.”
“It’s all my fault,” she sobbed quietly. “It’s all my fault. I should have protected them. It’s all my fault.”
“Your sisters will be fine,” Hunter assured her as he cradled her tightly in his arms. “Soon, you will see they will be as good as new.”
“It’s all my fault,” Jesse continued to repeat over and over.
Hunter looked up as the transport they were using began to lower. A moment later, Dagger lowered the loading platform. Hunter nodded to Dagger as he strode up the ramp. He held Jesse tightly against him as he settled into one of the seats. Jordan sat leaning her head against the storage cabinet with Taylor’s head on her lap. Her fingers caressed her little sister who was very pale but breathing steadily from the rise and fall of her chest.
“Saber gave her a sedative,” Dagger said as he moved to kneel next to Jesse. “I think it would be a good idea to give Jesse one as well. I can smell the distress on her. She is close to breaking.”
“Do it,” Hunter said, stroking Jesse’s hair as she continued to cry silent tears and shake.
Dagger nodded and reached into the medical kit they carried. He pressed a new cartridge into the injector and held it against Jesse’s neck. She flinched slightly as he depressed it. Within seconds, Hunter felt her body relax as the medicine coursed through her system. He looked over at Jordan who was staring at him with dazed eyes.
“Thank you,” she whispered before looking down at Taylor’s bruised but peaceful face. “Thank you,” she whispered before her eyes widened in surprise when she felt the cold metal of the injector against her neck.
“Now it is time for you to rest, little fighter,” Dagger said as he pressed the injector. He glanced at Hunter with a grim expression. “You have your work cut out for you, my friend. I suggest keeping them sedated until you have them safely aboard the Star Raider and are on your way back home.”
Hunter gave Dagger a sharp-tooth grin that held no humor. “That is exactly what I plan to do,” he said, resting his head back against the wall. “I do not plan on giving her a chance to ever escape me again,” he added quietly as he shifted her in his arms so he could hold her even closer to his body.
*.*.*
Jesse froze as she slowly came awake. She blinked several times to clear the fuzziness in her brain. Something was holding her down. The weight across her stomach felt heavy but… good.
She turned her head toward the source and her breathing accelerated in alarm. Hunter’s relaxed face was facing her. She blinked several times wondering if she was dreaming. She started to move away but the arm tightened around her and a low growl rumbled from the man holding her.
She froze again when she realized that heated golden yellow eyes were staring at her with an intensity that caused her to flush. She licked her lips, unable to look away. She gasped as the arm around her pulled her closer and his eyes followed the movement of her tongue.
“You,” she started to say.
“Yes, me,” he said in a husky voice.
She shook her head in confusion. “You… aren’t supposed to touch me,” she whispered.
A soft chuckle escaped him as his eyes lit with amusement. He rolled until she was trapped under him. He kept his weight up off of her but let her know that he was not about to agree with her.
“I never said I would not touch you,” he pointed out,
bending his head to rub his nose along her cheek. “Your skin is very smooth and soft.”
“I… what are you doing?” Jesse asked confused.
She pushed her hands up between them and spread her fingers across his chest intending to pushing him away. She felt like she was caged under him. His hair fell forward like a curtain on each side of her face. The soft strands brushed against her cheeks, cocooning them.
“You knocked me out,” he said with a curve to his lips. “I have never had a female do that to me before.”
Jesse stared up into his eyes for several long seconds before she flicked her tongue out over her lips again. She wasn’t sure what was going on. She frowned up at him trying to remember how she had ended up in this position.
“Where am I?” She asked.
Hunter sighed and shifted until he was sitting beside her. He swung his long legs over the side of the bed and stretched, unconcerned that he wasn’t wearing any clothes and he was giving her an amazing view of his tight ass. Her eyes widened even larger when he turned and gave her an even more impressive view of his front.
His lips curved when he saw her mouth drop open and her eyes grew huge. His cock appreciated her attention. He grew even larger and thicker the longer she stared. A shudder coursed through his body when he saw her tongue caress her bottom lip.
“If you continue staring at me like that,” he warned in a husky voice filled with barely restrained desire. “I cannot promise I will not take advantage of your attention.”
Jesse’s mouth snapped shut. She ran her eyes slowly up his body until she finally blinked when she encountered amused yellow eyes staring back at her. He was… magnificent. There were no other words to describe him. She had seen a few nude guys in the art appreciation class she took in college and the one summer when some of the boys decided to go skinny dipping during high school and she and some of her girlfriends stole their clothes. But, none of the guys looked anything like this.
“You… never said where I was,” she finally choked out in a strangled voice determined not to look above his nose and below his mouth. That seemed like a safe place to keep her eyes. “My sisters?” She asked in a husky voice.