Holmes (8 page)

“You still aren’t going to give me details on what you have planned to boost morale?” she asked.

No, he was keeping his plans for the convoy a secret. He wanted everyone surprised and pleased, not thinking about their precarious position. “No, you just arrange the things I’ve asked you to arrange…you’ll see soon enough.”

She arched a brow, a faint smile on her lips. “I might have a few surprises for you, too, General.”

Before he could even process that thought, Elle’s voice came across the comm. “General, I’m picking up a faint, single heat signature heading toward the convoy from the side. It’s right near your vehicle!”

There was a blur of something running in front of their truck. “Watch out!”

Liberty cursed and slammed on the brakes. The truck skidded, the wheels screeching on the road. Liberty spun the wheel and Adam pressed a hand to the dash.

“Hold on,” Liberty yelled.

Chapter Eight

The truck stopped, rocking a little on its wheels.

Adam released the breath he’d been holding. “Good job.”

Liberty nodded, looking winded.

Adam looked through the windscreen.

It was a woman. She was rail-thin, huddled in the center of the road. Her clothes were tattered and dirty, and splattered with blood. Her hair was a tangled cloud of brown, and he couldn’t see her face. She stumbled onto her hands and knees.

Adam shoved open the door and reached over and touched the comm. “Squad Six, I need you. Possible survivor just ran out onto the road.”

“On our way,” Marcus replied.

“Stay in the car,” he told Liberty and got out.

He walked slowly toward the woman. Up close, he could see that the blood on her clothes wasn’t fresh. It didn’t look like she was injured. She was staring at the ground.

“Help me.” Her voice was barely more than a whisper.

“Adam, wait…” Liberty’s voice.

“I said to stay in the vehicle.” He scanned around, searching for any movement.

“Hell Squad is coming,” Liberty said. “Please, wait for backup. This could be a trap.”

All he saw was a terrified, traumatized woman…but the Gizzida had fooled them before. “She needs help.”

The woman lifted her head a little, and even with her eyes staring down at the road, he saw her face. “Adam…help me, please.”

He froze, his muscles locked tight. It was Diane. His ex-wife. “Diane?”

She held out a thin, shaking hand.

She wouldn’t look at him, but it was her. A gaunter, more fragile version of his former wife.

“I was at the Enclave,” she whispered.

Adam’s heart stopped and he took a step forward. “What happened?”

“Everything is…gone.” Her voice broke, and she pressed her face into her hands and started sobbing. “All gone. The aliens came.”

No
. Adam had spoken to Nikolai, one of the Enclave leaders, that morning. They’d been fine. It couldn’t… This couldn’t be happening.

Diane’s sobs grew louder and she pressed a hand to her mouth. “I’m all alone.”

The words arrowed into him. He knew loneliness. “No, you aren’t. We’ll help you.”

“Adam.” Liberty’s tone was bordering on desperation.

He forced himself to ignore her concern and knelt beside Diane. He no longer loved her—hell, he wondered if he’d ever loved her—but she’d been an important part of his life once, and he couldn’t let her sit here, broken and alone. Dimly, he was aware of Hell Squad’s Hunter pulling to a stop nearby.

“Let me help.” He held out his hand.

Diane’s head whipped up. And in a fraction of a second, he took in the red raptor eyes and the fact that her face was not quite right—the nose too sharp, the cheekbones too pronounced.

“This is for you, General Holmes,” the woman—the
thing
—said with a hiss.

She thrust her hand forward, and now he saw claws extending from her fingers. He dodged to the side. She was holding something in her palm.

It was some sort of giant beetle, and it had four slender, dark tentacles waving madly, reaching for him.

Shit
. Adam moved again, shoving backward. She aimed for his neck, trying to slap the thing against his skin. He gripped her arms, thrusting his head to the side to avoid the creature. His fingers sank into her skin like she was made of nothing more than thick foam.

What the hell?
He wrestled with the raptor-Diane creature, forcing it backward.

Suddenly, something swung into view and slammed into his assailant. It growled, but redoubled its efforts to shove the strange beetle on Adam.

Liberty swung again. Adam realized she was holding a metal crowbar. Her powerful swing wouldn’t have looked out of place in the baseball leagues. She smacked the bar against the alien creature’s head.

The alien hissed again and pulled back. It gave up on reaching his neck and dived at him.

Adam felt a sharp sting on his arm, heard Liberty swear, then Liberty tackled the creature, pushing it off him.

There was the thunder of boots on the pavement, and Adam heard the Hell Squad soldiers swearing. He saw Liberty wrestling with the creature, tossing damn good punches into the alien’s face.

Then he felt pain run up his arm. He looked down.

The beetle thing was clamped around his forearm.

Ignoring the burning pain, he surged up. He had to help Liberty.

Cruz and Marcus appeared beside him. They had their carbines raised.

“Can’t risk a shot without hitting Liberty,” Marcus bit out.

Adam yanked out his laser pistol.

Marcus eyed him for a half a second before nodding. Adam had always been a decent shot, and had used Blue Mountain Base’s firing range when he could.

He strode forward, aiming the pistol. He had to get close enough so he could guarantee he didn’t hurt Liberty as well.

The woman and alien rolled, and he had a perfect view of the creature wearing his ex-wife’s stolen face. He fired.

Liberty jerked back. The raptor creature jerked too. He pulled the trigger again, unloading laser fire into its chest. It stopped moving. Then, the skin shrunk away from it, like ice cream melting in the sun. It left behind a bony, skeletal figure made of a scale-like substance.

Liberty fell backward, staring in horror at the alien.

“Some type of new raptor tech,” Cruz said. Hell Squad surrounded the alien, everyone staring. “It can mimic human forms.”

Adam ignored them and sat beside Liberty. He tugged her into his arms. “You okay?”

She nodded jerkily, but her face was pale and her usually pristine hair was in disarray.

“You’re sure?”

She nodded again.

Adam just held her, not telling her he needed the contact to settle his rattled nerves. He looked up at Hell Squad. “It had the face of my ex-wife.”

The soldiers cursed.

“This isn’t good.” Marcus scowled at the thing on the ground. “It’s some sort of doppelganger.”

“Yes. But it still had raptor eyes, and the copy wasn’t perfect.” Adam tried to calm his racing pulse. “It said it had come from the Enclave. That it had been destroyed.”

Silence fell.

Adam shook his head. “It’s a lie. Have Elle make contact with the Enclave. Check that everything is okay.”

With a nod, Cruz turned, touching his earpiece and murmuring to their comms officer.

“And the thing on your arm?” Hell Squad’s leader asked.

God, in the frenzy, Adam had forgotten. Now the full force of the pain hit, and he grimaced.

“Oh, my God.” Liberty half turned, her hands gripping his forearm. “It wanted to get this on Adam. Marcus, we need Emerson.”

Marcus touched his ear. “Elle, we need the doc.”

Adam shifted slightly. The pain was traveling out of his arm now and into his chest. He felt like his heart rate was speeding up, and his breathing was becoming constricted. But then he realized something worse.

He looked into Liberty’s eyes. “I can’t feel my legs.”

She pressed into his side. “It’s going to be okay. Doc Emerson will sort you out.”

Soon Emerson appeared. Her head nurse, Norah, was with her, carting a large medical box. The doctor knelt, her white lab coat spreading out around her on the pavement.

“Hmm, got something new for me, I see.”

Adam gritted his teeth. Perspiration broke out on his forehead. “Well, I didn’t think you were busy enough.”

Emerson snorted. “Thanks for thinking of me.” She prodded the alien thing with a scalpel, and then held up her small hand-held scanner.

“It had little tentacles, Doc,” Liberty said. “Four of them. And now he can’t move his legs.”

Grimly, Emerson nodded. “I can see the tentacles.” She raised her head. “They’re embedded in your skin, traveling up your veins.”

Adam grimaced.

“I can get it off, but it’ll hurt.” The doctor’s tone was matter-of-fact. “The longer it stays, the more embedded it’ll get. Not to mention, it’ll try to do whatever the hell it is designed to do.”

“What’s that?” Adam managed to get out. The pain was reaching unbearable levels, and his gut was heaving.

“I have no idea,” Emerson replied. “But I’m sure it isn’t nice.”

He squeezed his eyes closed. “Do it.” When he opened his eyes, he saw Emerson share a look with Liberty.

Liberty’s hands tightened on him. He turned to look at her.

And that’s when Emerson cut into the alien bug.

It was like acid pouring into his veins. He gritted his teeth and felt Emerson cutting and tugging at the creature.

The insect-thing squirmed frantically, trying to burrow harder into his arm.

“Goddammit!” he growled.

Liberty’s hands cupped his face. “You’re doing fine. Look at me.”

He couldn’t focus on anything but the pain.

“Look at me.”

There was a snap to her voice and he jerked his gaze to hers. And got trapped by blue eyes.

“That’s it.” She stroked his cheeks. “Just focus on me.”

Actually, that was pretty easy to do. “No…hardship looking at you.”

She smiled. “Charmer. Didn’t know you had it in you, General.”

“Adam.”

“Adam.”

He felt the doctor really pulling, and things sliding inside his arm. Sweat rolled down the side of his temple.

“Think of something else,” Liberty whispered quietly, just for him. “Something that feels good.”

“That’s pretty easy to do.” He kept his eyes locked on hers. He was afraid if he didn’t he’d fold under the pain. “I’ll imagine what I did last night.”

Liberty bit down on her lip. “I’ll imagine it too.” Heat flared in her eyes.

He didn’t care that others were nearby, or that he shouldn’t indulge in this attraction with her. In this moment, it was just him and Liberty, no one else.

The tip of her tongue came out and touched her upper lip, and Adam almost groaned.

“Almost there,” the doctor said, her voice breaking into his thoughts. “You’re doing great.”

The pain cascaded back in on Adam, stiffening his muscles.

“No.” Liberty palmed his cheek and forced him to look her way again. “Just me. Right here.” She pressed her cheek to his, her mouth at his ear. “Remember what we did, me going down on you, sucking that big cock of yours into my mouth.” A hot, dirty whisper.

Damn
. Adam jerked.

“Sorry,” the doc said again, completely unaware that she wasn’t to blame.

Liberty kept a tight hold on him, staying in control. Her tongue licked the shell of his ear. “You liked it when you spilled all over my belly, didn’t you?”

Jesus, he was going to get a fucking hard-on while having a damn alien weapon surgically removed from his arm. His life was officially crazy.

All because of one decadent temptress.

“Yes,” he growled.

Her other hand stroked in a soothing movement on his chest. “I liked it too. Just as much as when you had those clever fingers of yours between my legs. I’d like to know what your mouth feels like there, sucking on my clit.”

“Liberty, whatever you’re distracting him with, keep it up,” Emerson said. “I don’t know how he’s enduring this, it has to hurt like hell.”

Adam gave a choked laugh.

He felt Liberty’s lush lips form a smile against his ear. “I want your cock inside me, Adam. Soon. And I don’t want gentle. I want it hard and fast. I want everything you’ve got to give me.”

The alien bug pulled free with a burst of pain, and Adam groaned. But it had nothing to do with the wound on his arm.

“Hello there, you ugly little thing.” Emerson popped the frantically wiggling creature into a hard plastic container and sealed the lid. “I think I know some tech geeks who’ll want to take a close look at you.”

Norah leaned past Emerson and started cleaning Adam’s wound. There were four round, ragged wounds from the tentacles, and in the center was what looked like a burn mark. “We’ll get you patched up good as new, General. Can you feel your legs again?”

He nodded, wiggling his toes. Then he turned to his dirty-talking angel.

When he looked at Liberty’s face, he frowned. She’d gone pale. “Liberty? You okay?”

She frowned. “I feel a bit woozy.”

Norah nodded. “Lots of people get sick at the sight of blood. And that little alien thing is enough to make anyone nauseated.”

Liberty shook her head, the move sluggish. “I really don’t feel well.”

Then she toppled to the side. Adam caught her, lowering her to the ground beside him. When he lifted his hand, he saw it was coated in bright-red blood. “Doc!”

“Goddammit.” Emerson leaned over, tearing at Liberty’s dark cargo trousers.

Adam sucked in a breath. Liberty’s trousers were soaked in blood. The dark color of the fabric had masked it.

“Claws. It’s nicked the femoral artery.” Emerson shook her head, her hands working feverishly. “She’s bleeding out.”

No
. Adam leaned over her. “Liberty, you fight, dammit.” He touched her face, hated seeing her so pale, so still. All that spark in her had drained away.

“We need to get her to the med bus. She needs nanomeds.”

Adam scooped her up and stood. “Marcus, get my truck. Lead us to the mine. I’ll be in the med bus.”

“Yes, sir,” Marcus responded.