Alien Savior (Zerconian Warriors Book 5) (3 page)

“No, but I really wish it wasn’t the room that held all the chocolate pudding.” Zuma scowled.

“Wait, I thought we didn’t have any chocolate pudding.” It wasn’t made with real chocolate, that was too expensive. They didn’t have the ingredients to make it on Joyadan, so they had to bargain for it when they had downtown while on a mission. Zuma claimed he couldn’t find any at his last market run.

Zuma studied the ceiling.

“Zuma! You rat.” He had a notorious sweet tooth. “You hid the chocolate pudding.”

“I was doing you a favor.”

“How do you figure that?” She placed her hands on her hips.

“Well, you don’t want your ass to get as big as Steele’s, do you?” Zuma grinned at her.

Willa punched his stomach. Hard. Zuma bent over, resting his hand on his stomach. “Jesus, Willa.”

“Enough,” Rye said sharply. “If the two of you can’t act professionally then you can wait out here.”

“Sorry,” she said. Zuma shrugged, and he pulled his weapon as Rye pressed a button, releasing the door. Rye walked in first, Willa close behind him. Zuma shut the door behind them, then stood in front of it.

Chaos filled the room. Boxes were turned over, brown smudges of chocolate pudding dripped down the walls and in the middle of it all stood a seething, furious Zerconian warrior. Dressed in tight pants and a vest that bared his thick, muscular arms, he looked ferocious, powerful.

And hot. Scorching hot. Uncomfortably, she felt her body heating as she studied him. Every inch of him was hard, from his trim hips to his firm thighs and wide shoulders. Wow. She had to crane her neck to stare up into his face.

A shiver of desire raced through her body.

Pull yourself together, Willa. He’s not that hot.

Ahh, yes. Yes, he was.

“Who are you?” he asked in Standard, the language most races involved in trade spoke, eyes glowing red.

Yeah, he looked like he’d really calmed down.

Darac scowled at the three beings who moved into the small room. His breath heaved in and out.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” the smaller male said. “He’s destroyed all the chocolate pudding.”

Chocolate pudding? Was that what that brown stuff was? He’d upended every can of the stuff, looking for something to use to free himself. The longer he spent in here, the more furious he’d become. The rage that had temporarily been under control flooded him once more.

“What do you want?” The rage hadn’t completely taken him.

The taller male stared at him coolly. “My name is Rye Sanchez. I’m captain of this ship. This is my brother, Zuma and my sister, Willa.”

“Why have you trapped me here?” he asked, his voice guttural.

“You attacked my men,” Rye stated. He was close enough that Darac could reach out and grab him. It would only take a few seconds to snap his neck. That would draw the other male further into the room.

Once he took him out then all that would be left was the female. Willa. She was no threat to him.

“You pulled my ship in without my permission.”

Come closer, a little closer.

Rye tipped his head to one side, studying him. “You were heading straight towards a pile of space rubbish. We saved you.”

“What’s your name?” Zuma asked.

“Darac.” He slashed his hand through the air. “This is how you treat all those that you save?” His voice grew rougher, the words barely intelligible through his clenched jaw. Anger rolled under his skin, threatening to spill out.

“His eyes are red again, Rye.” Willa’s voice distracted him, and he turned his gaze to the tiny, dark-haired female. Her bright green eyes studied him. The beast stilled. Why did her voice affect him?

She stiffened under his gaze but didn’t back away or avert her gaze.

Brave.

Or very foolish.

“Get the female out of here,” he ordered. She should not be here. Females were to be protected. Cherished. Why had the males allowed her in here with him?

She watched him warily. She should be scared. He was dangerous. If he were fully in control, she would have nothing to worry about. He would never harm a female.

But then he was not himself.

Would the top of her head even reach midway up his chest? She was so delicate. Like a doll. Her skin looked silky smooth, her green eyes were surrounded by the darkest, thickest eyelashes he had ever seen. His cock stirred, shocking him. When was the last time he had been sexually interested in a female? Too long.

And when had he ever noticed a female’s eyelashes? What was going on here?

“Get her out of here.”

She folded her arms over her chest. “I’m not going anywhere, beast man.”

He snarled, infuriated. Her defiance fuelled his fury. Turning, he slammed his hand into the wall. The pain sent a shockwave through him, and he clawed his control back.

“Kill me.” He rested his hands against the wall, his breath heaving in and out. He couldn’t face them. If he did, he knew he would attack, and he couldn’t guarantee her safety if that happened.

“What?” Willa asked.

“Kill me. Do it now, before I harm someone.”

He risked a glance over his shoulder at Rye. “Kill me. I do not want to harm you, but I will.”

“You won’t have the chance to harm anyone,” Zuma vowed.

A roar of rage erupted from his chest. Willa took a step back, her fear clear to see. He turned towards her. There was something about her.

Want. I want.

No
. Darac turned once more, slamming his head against the wall.
No.
Over and over.

Nothing penetrated the wall of rage surrounding him. It clawed at him, dragging him down into the darkness. One thought remained.

I will not harm her. I will not harm her.

Willa stared at the unconscious Zerconian. Blood welled on his forehead where he’d tried to brain himself.

“Jesus. Jesus,” Zuma said.

She’d never seen her crazy, easy-going brother so shaken before. Even Rye was speechless. It had taken ten shots of the stunner to take the warrior down, and that might not have been enough if he hadn’t been half-unconscious from his head wound.

“Willa, get Nolan down here to check him over. Zuma, contact Steele. I want him secured. Properly.”

Why did he do that to himself? “Does he have a death wish?”

“I don’t know,” Rye said grimly. “But if he carries on like this, he might yet get his wish.”

“What’s the next step? Are we still ransoming him?” Willa asked.

“Sooner we offload him, the better,” Rye replied.

“And what if they won’t take him back?” she asked. It could be the reason he was floating out in space alone and far away from his fellow warriors.

Because no one wanted the crazy bastard.

Willa stared down at the unconscious Zerconian. What was his story?

And why the hell did she care?

He was nothing to her. Just a bonus to her share of the pot. Which was going to be quite low unless they hurried their asses up and got their cargo load of weapons to Lilan.

Nolan had checked him over, bandaging his head. Steele had placed hover cuffs around the Zerconian’s wrists and ankles, securing him to the bunk. There was no mattress, so it had to be uncomfortable, lying on the hard bunk. But he was their prisoner, not their guest.

So why the hell was she sitting here, staring at him like a nurse watching over her patient? She didn’t know him. She shouldn’t give him another thought. If it wasn’t such a ridiculous thought, she might consider that she was worried about him.

It was laughable. That so wasn’t her. She didn’t know how to be caring or soothing or any shit like that. All she understood was mechanics. Engines were easy. If they weren’t running right, you fixed them. People were much more difficult. They had feelings and emotions. They wanted things from you. And if you broke something it wasn’t always fixable.

She shouldn’t be here. She should be getting prepared in case everything went to shit on their mission.

And let’s face it, most of the time things went to shit.

They weren’t going to do anything about this guy until after they’d safely delivered the weapons to Lilan. No point in ransoming him, if they weren’t going to make it through this mission to collect the credits. Not exactly a cheerful thought.

She studied him. Somehow, even unconscious, he managed to look intimidating. Her hands itched with the urge to touch the silken, dark hair lying around his face. His eyelashes were impossibly long. Too beautiful for such a masculine face. With such a strong jawline and structured cheeks, he looked hard. Dangerous.

There had to be something wrong with him. Some flaw. Maybe he had a pimple. Yeah, a big pus-filled pimple. Nope. Hairy nostrils? Surprisingly not. Maybe he had a hairy back or a small penis.

Yeah, she wasn’t going to check.

Was she?

She glanced down at his crotch. The tight pants he wore didn’t leave much to the imagination. He certainly didn’t seem small. But there was only one way to find out.

No, that was wrong. It was creepy. He was asleep.

“You should be ashamed of yourself, Willa,” she whispered.

The Zerconian groaned, his eyes fluttering open. She stilled, watching him warily. He was tied up. He couldn’t do anything to her.

Dark eyes studied her. He turned his head, searching the room. Was he about to fly off the handle?

“You are alone?” His husky voice sent a shiver up her spine. What was wrong with her?

“Yes.”

His gaze narrowed. “Leave.”

The urge to obey the command in his deep voice shocked her. So, of course, she did the complete opposite. Leaning back in her chair, she folded her arms over her chest.

“No.”

“It is not safe here.” He scowled, his face thunderous.

“In case you didn’t notice, buddy, you’re bound with hover cuffs. If anyone is in danger here, it’s you.”

He gave her a look usually reserved for idiots. “And how do you think to harm me? You are small and weak.”

Small? Weak? “I have a blaster. I wouldn’t have to waste my time hitting you with my puny fists.”

“You think these cuffs will hold me when I lose control? I will kill you before you even pull your blaster. Leave.”

“Lose control? Are you saying you had no control over yourself earlier?”

“Yes. Now go. I no longer wish to speak to you.” The arrogance in his voice made her grind her teeth. Obviously, he was used to being in charge.

“How unfortunate that you don’t get a say.”

He closed his eyes.

“Oh, so you’re going to ignore me? Mature.” Why was she even interested in him? He obviously had a few screws loose.

“Why did you smash your head into the wall? You could have killed yourself.”

Silence.

“Were you trying to kill yourself? Is that why you were headed for that space rubbish? Surely there was an easier way to go. With your winning personality, I’m sure someone would have taken you out sooner or later.”

He opened one eye. He had a very menacing one-eyed glare. “You should have killed me while I was unconscious.”

“You’re going to have a nice scar on your forehead.”

“That matters not. I am dangerous.” He frowned. “Your brothers should not have allowed you in here alone.”

“They don’t
allow
me to do anything. I can do as I like.” Although she knew Rye would tear her a new one if he found her in here. “And if I wanted to kill you then I’d do it myself.”

“You are female. Females do not kill.”

What bubble had he been living in? “Hate to dispute your misguided beliefs, but women can kill just as easily as a man, and right now, I’m about this far from taking you out.” She held her finger and thumb a few inches apart.

“Taking me out where? You cannot move me. I am much larger than you.”

“I’m not moving you. I’m going to kill you.” Jesus, he could test a saint’s patience.

“Good.” He nodded, closing his eyes. “Get one of the males, do it now.”

“Urgh, anyone ever tell you that you are extremely annoying?”

He opened his eyes. “Why are you not moving, female?”

“Because you’re not the boss of me. Male.”

“I am too far gone. Death is the only option. Get one of the males,” he demanded once more.

Willa fantasized about putting her hands around his neck and squeezing. Only her hands wouldn’t reach around that wide neck.

“Thing is, right now I’m your best bet at ending up with your head separated from your shoulders. The rest of them want you alive for the ransom.”

“Ransom?” he queried.

“We’re ransoming you back to your people.” If they’d take him. She had her doubts. He was kind of a downer.

He let out a dry, humorless chuckle. “So that is why I am still breathing?”

“Why is that funny? Won’t they pay the ransom? Got sick of your joyful disposition did they?”

He gave her an incredulous look. “I am too far gone. The madness has taken me.”

“What madness?” She was growing increasingly frustrated with his riddles.

His gaze turned reflective. “When a male Zerconian lives too long without finding his mate, he slowly declines into madness. It engulfs us, leaving none of the man behind. Just violence. Ending my life before I bring harm to others is honorable.”

“Seems a bit extreme. Why don’t you just find a mate?” Couldn’t he go on a few dates and pick someone?

“If it were that easy, I would have mated years ago. But there are few Zerconian females.”

“And you can only mate with Zerconians? You know that eventually that’s going to lead to incest, right? You’ll have children being born with six toes and three nostrils.”

He grumbled. A low, warning noise. If she’d had any sense, she would be out the door.

But she’d never claimed to be sensible.

“We can also mate with human females.” He gave her a wolfish grin, showing a lot of teeth. “Maybe I will mate with you, little human.”

She sat back before she could stop herself.

“I’m not your mate.”

“You might be. Kiss me.”

She snorted and stood. “Over my dead body.”

“That is my point. You are in danger around me. Why are you here?” He drew his eyebrows together.

“Because I’m part of the crew and I’m keeping watch over you.” Not that Rye actually knew she was here. Why was she even explaining herself to him? Why was she still here talking to him at all?

“Part of the crew?” he asked.

“Yep, I’m the mechanic.”

“How is that possible?”

He didn’t have to look so shocked. “It’s possible because I’m good at what I do. I keep this old rust bucket moving, even though it should have been retired years ago.”

“You are so small and delicate. Do you not eat?”

She gritted her teeth. “Do you take everything at face value? I might be small, but that doesn’t mean I’m helpless. I’m beginning to see why you don’t have a mate. No one would want you.”

“It does not work that way. The fates choose our mates. There is no choice.”

“What? You force a female to mate you? Wow, you sound like a really great guy.”

“I am not. I am not great.”

“Yeah, I was kind of being sarcastic.”

“Zerconian women are proud to find their mate. Human females do not seem to understand. They fight it.”

“Good for them. How many human women have you met?” she asked.

“Only two. But Mila gave us lessons in speaking to human females. It is why I can talk to you without creating confusion.”

“Sure, ‘cause this conversation is making total sense.”

He nodded.

Maybe he didn’t understand sarcasm. Didn’t bode well for future conversations, since sarcasm was her first language.

“So we’ve had a conversation for about twenty minutes now, and you haven’t gone all crazy. You sure you were being truthful about this madness?”

“I do not understand it. It is there, waiting to break free, but I can control it. Perhaps I am not as far gone as I thought.”

A thoughtful look crossed his face as he studied her closely.

“What?” she asked, reaching a hand up to touch her cheek. “Do I have something on my face?” She often walked around with smudges of dirt on her face.

“Did you touch me?”

“What?” She gaped at him, aghast. “Uh, no, disgusting. What do you think I am? A perv?”

“I know not what a perv is, but from the look on your face, I gather it is something disgusting.”

“Yeah, well, touching you while you’re asleep is pretty disgusting. I wouldn’t abuse you.”

He frowned. “Abuse? I was not talking about abuse. I was talking about touch, skin-to-skin.”

Still sounded pervy, but she remembered that they had touched. “You grabbed my arms. It’s how I got these bruises.”

His gaze moved to the bruises on her arms. A muscle twitched, and his eyes grew red. “I did that.”

Wary now, she forced herself to stand still even as every inch of her screamed:
Run! Run now!

“You really don’t remember?”

“If I had been in my right mind, I would never have harmed you or any female. The madness took hold of me. I should not have come back from that. No one comes back from that.”

“When you touched me, I fainted.” It still grated at her that she’d done something so weak.

“Because I hurt you?” he asked in a low rumble.

She watched him warily, was his crazy side about to come out?

“No,” she said. “I don’t know what happened. I just fainted. Probably because I skipped lunch.”

“Touch me again.”

“What? No way.”

“Move closer. Your scent, it is intriguing.”

Intriguing? “It’s just soap.”

“No, it is you.”

Okay, what the hell was happening? The red in his eyes bled away to amber. That was some freaky shit right there.

“What is up with your eyes?” she asked him.

“They change color with strong emotions,” he replied huskily. “Red for anger. Blue is sorrow. Purple for happiness.”

“So what’s amber?” she asked warily.

“That is not something you want to know.”

Yeah, somehow she’d figured that. “Tell me.”

“It is arousal.”

“Uh-uh. No way. There is no way that you and I are getting our freak on. So get any creepy ideas about me out of your head.” She moved closer to the door. Threats to hurt her couldn’t make her run, but acting like he wanted her? That had her dying to sprint out of here.

“Creepy?”

“Uh-huh. Creepy. Scary. Disturbing. I am not doing any sort of monkey mambo-jumbo with you.”

“Monkey mambo-jumbo?”

“Look, I don’t know what you call it back on Zerconia. But none of that is going on here, between us, got it?”

Okay, even she realized she was protesting too much.

She did
not
like the way he looked at her. She pointed at him. “Listen, buddy; I don’t know what is going through that head of yours, but you and I are not going to happen. No way. Nuh-uh, not happening. I feel sorry for you. But I’m not the answer to your problem. Go register on a universal dating service or something.”

“I do not want to date you. I want to join with you.”

Men, they were the same wherever they came from.

“I don’t want to sleep with you. Funnily enough, I’m not attracted to crazy, psycho dudes with a death wish. No offense.”

“Leave. Do not return without a male to protect you.”