Twelve Days of Xanthus (6 page)

“It’s a Christmas tradition.”

“I understand but is this not something adults do for children?”

“No, this is just as much for us as it is for them, even though we may pretend otherwise. You’ve never experienced a Christmas so I want to give you that now.”

Her kindness warmed his heart.
So this is how it feels to be to be cared for.
A surge of proactive possession swept through him. In thirty-seven years, the only people he’d every truly cared for were his daughters. It scared him that Violet was now number three. This wouldn’t end well. Here on Earth the male was the provider. He had nothing to offer. There was no need for warriors like him here. Their wars were fought on foreign soil. At his age, with no education, no job, and no money, he’d be considered a loser. A far cry from the high title of the Queen’s slave, the irony wasn’t lost on him.

“You don’t have to do th-”

“I want to.”

“Okay.”

She hopped off the couch and headed for a door in the far corner of the room. She disappeared and resurfaced a few minutes later, dragging out a giant rectangular box.

“This has been our tree for years, so it’s well loved and slightly threadbare. We should replace it, but we have such a sentimental attachment to it. I know it’ll be around until the metal pieces no longer stay in the slots.”

She must have seen the confused look that passed his face because she continued.

“This is an artificial tree. Lots of families who are big on Christmas use them because they’re a lot neater and cheaper than real trees in the long run. Come on over and help me put this thing together.”

He stood and followed her directions as she showed him how to separate each piece into a color pile. Fifteen minutes later, they had the tree up and wrapped in tiny white Christmas bulbs.

“Now comes the fun part.”

She disappeared back into the closet the Christmas tree came from and reappeared with a large, pale blue plastic container. She placed it on the floor and knelt down to remove the cover.

“These are Christmas ornaments. Half of them go back to when we were kids.”

She lifted up a piece of wood that had been carved into the shape of a stocking, painted a brick red and boasted what had to be a picture of Violet as a child.

“This is my second grade school picture.”

The adorable girl with the slicked pony tail, bright eyes, and crisp white t-shirt looked enchanting. He felt the corners of his lip twitch upward. How different her childhood must’ve been from his. Xanthus pictured himself at ten: a thin boy with bare feet, a dirty, smudged face, and holey, stained clothing. It was the age he was first eligible to fight and earn his place at the Zenth’s side. A life in the castle was preferable to the menial labor that waited for them outside the gates and on the castle grounds. When he’d knocked his first opponent on the ground he saw hope. It was that tiny sliver of light that kept him on top, fighting like a feral animal.

The sound of Violet’s voice brought him back from the darkness. He focused in on another handmade ornament and daydreamed about a world where light and love were a normalcy.

He stood back and examined the tree. It was all too easy to pretend he belonged here and Violet was a woman who
chose
to be at his side. His fingers itched to caress strands of her silken hair, and he craved the taste of her lips. He gritted his teeth. He’d leave her with his pride intact if it was the last thing he did, since it was all he had.

“We need to talk.”

She frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“My bands have been activated.”

Her face twisted in horror. She covered her mouth with her hands.

“Oh God, is Kala close?”

“No, but it’s only a matter of time now that she’s entered Earth’s atmosphere.”

“Is there anything you know of that can scramble the homing beacon?”

“Yes, the cold. This is why I landed here in Canada during the height of winter.”

“Smart. So the weather is our advantage. What else can we do? The only plan I can think of is to keep moving from place to place. We’re ending day seven, four more just like it, and we’re home free.”

“Home Free?”

“Safe.”

He paused.

“I will only agree to leave with you if you promise me one thing.”

“Go ahead.”

“If Kala catches up to us, you do exactly what I tell you to.”

“That’s not fair.”

“You don’t know the horrors this woman is capable of. I won’t have you at her mercy while I hide behind your skirts like a scared child. I am a warrior and even in this strange land where I’m dependent upon the kindness of others, I refuse to forget that.”

Her mouth opened and he growled. The sound made her jump.

“You have shown me your culture and now-” He tapped his chest with a balled fist. “-I will show you mine. I know war and battle. I was raised in the belly of the beast.” He scowled. “In this, Violet O’Shea, you must trust me.”

She remained silent but the curt nod she issued told him she agreed. He smelled the tinge of fear in the air. She was frightened. That was good, it might save her life. Violet’s lip trembled as she gave him a shaky smile.

“It’s good to see you’ve taken our lessons on independence to heart.”

Xan leaned in to caress her face. “It’s my turn to take care of you, Violet.”

Chapter Five

Ever since they hit the road, things had changed. Xanthus was more somber and closed off. The lust that made it difficult to think about anything more than touching one another had begun to cool. Currently they were on their way to yet another motel in a tiny town. She sighed and watched the road, hating the silence that stretched out in the vehicle. Three days of this and she was ready to pull her hair out and scream.
Had she done something to offend him?
She combed her mind for the zillionth time and came up blank, yet again. Could alien males have PMS? She used her peripheral vision to cast a quick glance in his direction. He looked casual and relaxed. His arm rested on the console between them and his head was placed against the head rest. She had no doubt he was taking in everything around them. The nonchalant air was a façade.

A high-pitched whine filled the car and she swore. Violet frowned. Her SUV had never made that noise before.

“She’s here.”

The two words filled her with dread. Her hands tightened on the steering wheel and her heart sounded in her ears as the world around her drifted into the background. The alien bitch from hell had arrived, and Xanthus could sense it. The phenomenon probably worked both ways.

“Does she know where we are?”

“Not yet. My bands aren’t even lukewarm. The closer she gets, the hotter they’ll burn. It’s not in her nature to resist inflicting pain, so we must be out of range.”

“Wait, back up- pain?”

“Yes, she can emit electrical impulses at will once she’s close enough.”

Visions of an incapacitated giant filled her head.
Think, think, come on, Violet, you’re a smart girl. There must be something you can do to shield yourselves. Cold!

“You said the temperature scrambles the signal, right?”

“Yes, it’s why she hasn’t found us yet.”

“Okay.”

She turned off the heat and rolled down the window.

“Better?”

He closed his eyes and paused to test something she couldn’t see or hear. A moment later, his eyes popped open.

“This is a marked improvement.”

“If the bands are affected by the cold, do you think they could be rendered obsolete by it as well?”

“I would freeze to death in the snow before that happened.”

“I have something else in mind.” The tires ate up the distance between them and her brother Sean, the chef. He had just the thing to break those cuffs on Xan’s arms if her idea worked.
Mother Mary please let it be correct; it’s a matter of life or death.

§ § §

Kala pulled the white fur-lined robe closer around her shoulders and scowled. It’d taken them longer than she anticipated to track Xanthus to this God forsaken country. He was always too smart, her slave. It was why she’d kept him so long. The thought of his magnificent cock made her want to rethink her decision to execute him. He was thick, long, and knew how to hold off his orgasm until she was well satisfied. Her nipples stiffened as images of their love making danced around in her mind. That had never been a problem between him. The emotions that had begun to develop were. She peered out the ship’s domed window into the night sky. The cloaking device was far superior to anything the Earthlings possessed and hid them from view as well as sonar.

The sky here was so different from theirs, bright blue and full of white clouds. On Zenton, the sky was a deep burnt orange. Two suns and two moons blazed red in the day and purple at night. How she missed the soothing heat her land had to offer. They had only been in Canada for the better part of a day and the chill had seeped through her layers of clothing and into her bones. It was rumored that her race had been born of the goddess of fire long ago. She was inclined to believe it now. She felt sluggish and awkward. Inept was not a word she used in context to herself. Frustration tore a snarl from her. Oh, he would suffer for this. She spun away from the window, having had her fill of the fairy tale setting outside. Her shiny black boots clicked on the floor as she made her way to the pilot’s chair.

“Have you gotten a lock on them, Shara?”

“No, my Queen. The cold makes his bands and our equipment malfunction. His signal is very week and our calculations constantly change.”

She nodded. Her crew was the best Zenton had to offer, they were doing everything in their power to find him, but it wasn’t enough.

“Continue to monitor him! He’ll come out of the cold at some point and I want to be there to greet him when he leaves.

“Of course, my Queen.”

She clasped her hands behind her back and stood over their shoulders as they returned to scanning for his signature signal.

§ § §

Their vehicle pulled off the highway and they drove into a city. He understood the reasoning, more people meant better cover, but it seemed like a coward’s way out. A true warrior faced his threat head on.

“What are you doing?”

“Executing my plan.”

He wrinkled his brow. “This is not a game, Violet.”

“Trust me, I know that. You said cold scrambles the signal. Well there’s nothing colder than liquid nitrogen. My brother Sean is a chef, and currently he’s experimenting with Asian fusion, which means he’s got canisters of nitrogen on hand. Normally it’s too dangerous to handle without gloves, but with your alien magic you should be able to transfer it directly onto your arm bands.”

He struggled to keep up as the chip inside is head fed him information. What she said seemed sound. It was a risk but a calculated one. Violet pulled into a parking spot in front of a building that had the words
O’ Shea’s
scrawled in elegant black lettering on the white sign.

“I’ll just be a second. I don’t want to put my family in harm’s way if I can avoid it.”

She opened her door and hurried inside leaving him alone. He tapped his fingers on the console and leaned forward. He didn’t like being apart from Violet right now or sitting out in the open like this. She returned promptly with a silver canister he prayed would be the key to his freedom. She placed the canister in the back seat, returned to the driver seat, and pulled off.

“What do we do now?” he asked.

“We go to an abandoned building I know of and see if this thing works. The temperature inside is cold and there’s no one around.”

“Good, because a manipulation of this magnitude will give off an energy signature that’ll be visible.”