Alien-Under-Cover (23 page)

He kissed and licked her whole body and her skin was set on fire with wanting him. At last, in the early morning hours, they fell asleep. She muttered something about cuddling. No one could say he was a warrior incapable of learning. Or being prepared. He drew her carefully into his arms.

***

When Julia woke he was gone. She hurriedly showered and dressed in jeans, boots, and a dark shirt and rushed outside. They were going to find Sarah and she wanted to see Zurian before he left. When he’d made love to her, he’d tried to hide it from her but she’d seen him turn cold. Except she didn’t think he wanted to. It was as if he believed there would be dire consequences if he didn’t control himself. She suspected it had something to do with his scars. He zoomed in on her immediately, grunted something to Zacar, and stalked over to her.

Everyone was gathered in front of the entrance of the cave.

Zurian lifted her chin with his finger. “We will take the Raider camp and rescue Sarah. Stay with Natalie.”

When all the warriors had left, Natalie motioned to a small sphere hovering outside with the younger alien punching in something. “They always send in the probes first and they use the swords because they enjoy fighting. They have weapons that could take out entire towns.”

“Do you think they will?”

“No, I don’t believe they will harm innocent people. Zyrgins are hard and merciless, but I have never seen them act with senseless cruelty to innocents. Honor is everything to them.”

“I hate waiting.”

“Me too.”

They stared at the probe in silence.

“Do you think they’ll find her?” Natalie asked.

“They have to, I think, I know, she is running out of time. It’s been months since they took her. I’m going to go crazy waiting for them to come back.”

Natalie’s eyes gleamed. “I’m not supposed to but let’s try.”

“Try what.”

“To get on their spaceship. It’s amazing. You have to see it. And it will take our minds of worrying about Sarah.”

They walked toward a tunnel and Julia half expected someone to stop them. But lights came on as they walked into a long, narrow, very precisely cut tunnel.

“Did they do this?”

“Yes. It’s fascinating to watch them work. They’re turning this mountain into some kind of command center.”

“How long did it take them?”

“They built the tunnel leading to this in a little over a week with an amazing gadget and then they hollowed out the mountain until they came to a natural cave which connected to what they already hollowed out.” Moving deeper into the tunnel, Natalie lowered her voice. “They started on another tunnel and I’m dying to know what they’re doing there, but they won’t allow me in.”

“Do you think it’s for another spaceship?”

“Shh, not so loud. I don’t think so. But whatever it is, sure is important to them. And that damn alien won’t even answer when I ask him what they’re planning there,” Natalie said and Julia heard affection beneath the frustration in her friend’s voice.

“You should not be here,” Zurian said behind them.

Julia nearly dropped to her knees with fright. She screamed and jerked around and glared at Zurian. “What did I tell you about making noise when you creep up on me?”

“I’m out of here.” Natalie moved through the passage way and Julia glared at her retreating back.

“Traitor,” Julia shouted after her. She turned to face him. “I thought you left.”

Zurian motioned to the door. “You set off the sensors. We are leaving within ten Earth minutes. You will stay with Natalie and you will not try to come here again.”

“Oh, all right. I suppose I have to pass some test first before I’m allowed on it.” She’d let it go for now but she would see that spaceship.

His whole body stiffened and he motioned her to precede him. “You will never be allowed near the spaceship.”

“Why? That’s unfair, Natalie’s allowed on it.”

“She is breeder to our leader.”

“Not even to see that spaceship would I want to be called that,” she mumbled.

Julia tried to see the sensors he mentioned but nothing stood out. All the walls were made from the silver material they seemed to use to do literally everything.

“It is an honor to be called breeder.”

Not in this lifetime would she consider being called that an honor. “Fine, there’s something else I’ve been wondering about.”

If she could get him to explain just one component of their technology she could figure it out. The possibilities of what she could do with their technology was endless.

“We will discuss your thoughts later. I have to go.”

“You are carrying a torch for Natalie.”

It just slipped out. Earlier when Natalie ran out, Julia had seen her look at Zurian with some kind of knowledge.

He stiffened. “She has a warrior that can carry her torch.”

He turned and walked out without pressing his forehead against hers, acting exactly like a man with a guilty secret.

Chapter 18

Tempted to turn around and stomp with as much noise as she could make back to the spaceship, Julia returned to the main cave. Zurian didn’t follow her so there had to be other exits. She found a very guilty looking Natalie in the main cave.

“Traitor,” Julia told her.
Please let my suspicions be unfounded
. She could not see them both day after day, if they’d ever had an affair.

“That alien scares me and he does not have the same tolerance for me that he has for you,” Natalie said.

Julia laughed at her. “Tolerant? He just told me he will never allow me to see their spaceship.”

Would Natalie be this scared of him if there had ever been anything between them?

Natalie motioned to the couch, almost seeming uncomfortable. “Do you want to wait here with me? We can watch a space ranger episode.”

“It feels wrong for us to enjoy ourselves while Sarah might be enduring hell.”

They watched an episode they both liked without their usual banter and, all the while, Julia thought of Zurian’s reaction to her accusation.

She stood when the raunchy end song played. “I have to go.”

Natalie got up as well and went with her to the entrance. “At least he didn’t try to keep you confined in the house.”

Julia smiled with real enjoyment. “I think he realized he couldn’t keep me in.”

“Don’t be too confident about that.”

“I’m sure he could try,” Julia said. “I’ll talk to you when they bring Sarah back.”

Natalie nodded but they both knew they might not find her.

Julia went back to their dwelling. Normally, she always took time to look at the majestic mountains with the dramatic blue sky as a backdrop. Even though she preferred cities, there was something captivating about Natalie’s mountain. Today she could only focus on that moment when Zurian had stiffened at her accusation. It replayed endlessly in her mind. If only he’d denied it. If it had been her imagination, he would’ve been incredulous. But he’d acted as guilty as an expressionless Zyrgin could look. She stumbled over the uneven terrain, too upset to be careful. Julia absently rubbed her head. If only she could have some relief from this headache.

Zurian returned hours later, looking more disheveled than she’d ever seen him. His eyes briefly glowed red.

Julia looked up form where she sat on the couch, trying to open his silver disk. She still didn’t know what it did and whenever she asked him he would tell her it was not for a breeder to know.

“Tough fight?”

“They led us into a trap underground.”

“Oh, no.”

“The humans were only a slight challenge.”

“She wasn’t there?” Julia couldn’t help but notice that that he didn’t press his forehead against hers or kiss her.

“No.”

“That agent lied to us.”

“He will die for his attempt to deceive a Zyrgin.”

She didn’t want to think about that. She would much rather confront him with her suspicions. It was easier to focus on than the thought that Sarah was in one of those horrible camps. That they might never find her.

In her saner moments, Julia knew Zurian and Natalie probably just disliked each other. Then she would wonder what happened during the long winter her friend was trapped in the cave with four virile aliens. She would feel ashamed of her thoughts and the cycle would start all over again.

“What’s going on between you and Natalie?” she asked, a part of her not wanting to know.

He looked away from her, stared at his feet. Julia’s heart stopped for the longest minute. For him to be this obviously uncomfortable, something had to have happened.

“I did not want you to ever know about that,” he said gravely.

His chin was now up, his shoulders back--almost as if standing at attention, a soldier determined to face a firing squad with courage.

Julia got up from the couch and took a step back from him. She didn’t want to hear this. If she heard it, she’d have to deal with it.

“She was the leader’s breeder. I couldn’t kill her afterward.”

Julia’s knees gave way beneath her. She’d seen her father kill a man in cold blood. She’d seen her own mother do unspeakable things. Even those moments, when she’d realized what her family was all about, had not hurt and shocked her as much as this.

“You slept with her and then wanted to kill her?”

He drew himself up even more and glared at her. “I would never sleep with the breeder of our leader. I have omgraz’ra.”

Julia rubbed her head again and prayed for patience.

“You just said that you slept with her, then couldn’t kill her afterward because she belonged to Zacar.”

“I did not say that.”

“Then what did you mean?” So help her, if he didn’t tell her straight out what was going on soon, she’d kill him in his sleep. There had to be a way to saw through that tough hide of his.

“I said after the incident I could not kill her. I would never sleep with such a disrespectful woman.”

Julia closed her eyes and counted to ten. Slowly. “Tell me exactly, in great detail, what happened during the
incident
.”

He pulled at the collar of his shirt. It would have been fascinating to see this self-contained alien fidget, if they discussed anything else.

“I thought I was alone on the ship.” He sounded sullen, like a little boy.

She didn’t think it endearing when he was confessing to who knew what with her friend. With his literal interpretation of things sleeping might mean just that.

“So you were alone on the spaceship. Then what?” If he didn’t get on with it, she’d kick him senseless. Even if it meant breaking her toes on his tough shins.

“I took my daily cleanse and, afterward, I went to check on the progress of a program I was running.” He curled his lip at her, flashing his teeth in a way that made her want to take a step back. “I thought I was alone on the ship.” He stressed the word alone. “Then she walked in with Zacar.”

“Okay, what’s so terrible about that?”

He stood at attention again, stiff and clearly uncomfortable, staring somewhere above her head. “I only had on a towel.”

“What? She saw you in only a towel and you couldn’t kill her for that because she belonged to Zacar?” Could this be the great confession?

She simply didn’t know how to react.

“It is not respectful, a breeder looking at another warrior when he is not clothed.” Outrage rang in every word.

Julia bit her lip. She couldn’t blame her friend for looking him over. Without his clothes, he was quite something to see. She suspected if she came across Zacar in only a towel, she’d look him over, too. Except after this discussion, she’d make very sure Zurian didn’t catch her doing it. The ridiculousness of all this hit her, and she hastily looked down. Her shoulders shook and she covered her face with her hands.

He patted her shoulder with awkward little touches and she bit the inside of her cheek. “Do not cry.”

“I have to process this. Excuse me,” she gasped out between muffled giggles and ran. She ran straight to the door and slapped her hand over the panel.

It didn’t open.

“Breeder, you do not run from me,” he said right behind her.

Julia stilled and all desire to laugh left her. She knew why Natalie disliked that word so much. When he said it like that, she disliked it even more.

“Why shouldn’t I run from a man that would flaunt himself before his leader’s woman? Where’s the respect? Where’s the caring for me, where’s--uuuh--” She stumbled back when he lunged for her.

He held her against him and stared intently down into her eyes. “Are you laughing?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

She hesitated. She knew better than to make fun of him. For Zyrgins life was very serious.

“Humans are different from Zyrgins. I wouldn’t like it if you went around looking at half naked women.” Actually, she’d hate it. She’d have to find that club and beat him up in his sleep if he tried it. “I understand that it was an accident that Natalie saw you without your clothes. For us, it is not such a serious thing.” He growled and she hurried on. “I really don’t like it and would expect you not to walk around the spaceship half naked when you know Natalie might be coming aboard.”

He relaxed slightly and she bit her lip. Hard. She couldn’t laugh, she simply couldn’t burst out with the laughter bubbling in her chest.

“I would never allow that woman to see me like that again,” he said stiffly.

“I am glad to hear it. Your beautiful body is meant for my eyes only.”

His eyes flashed red and, if she hadn’t been struggling about his job requiring him to kill people, she would’ve felt triumphant at eliciting strong emotion from him.

Feeling guilty for not confronting him about it, she cupped his cheek, pulled down his head, and went upon her tiptoes. Maybe she could convince him killing was wrong. He leaned down. His breath smelled like coffee. Their lips touched, his hard against hers. His tongue stroked her lips with a gentleness that always surprised her. His hands roamed and she moaned with the pleasure they left in their wake.

“Carry me to bed,” she whispered against his lips.

A huge fist slammed into her brain. She vaguely heard Zurian shout her name.