Resident Alien: Department of Homeworld Security, Book 2 (6 page)

Chapter Eleven

Brendan dropped to his back, gripping one of Kira’s thighs so he could pull her on top of him as he did. She was left straddling him, his cock resting against her slit. He wanted to thrust into her so bad he could hardly stand it. But if he did, he’d go off too fast, and she needed time to catch up.

She stared down at him with her eyes wide as if she didn’t know what to do. He gripped her hips and started to move her, sliding his cock against her. She was a quick study and took over fast.

She rocked against him, swirling her hips. Even this was going to be too much if she kept that up. Lucky for him, she was more worked up than he realized. She shifted so that his cock was lined up, then lowered herself over him.

Bliss shot along every nerve-ending as she wrapped her tight quim around him. She took him in so deep—deeper than he thought she could manage. Her dark hair fell forward across her chest, brushing her breasts as she moved. She lifted herself up onto her knees, then slowly sank back down, over and over.

Brendan lifted his hands to her, brushing her hair behind her back, then lightly dusting his fingertips along the sides of her breasts. He flicked his thumbs over her nipples, letting his touch become firmer.

Her pace increased. She reached down to his hands and pulled them away from her so she could lace their fingers together. He followed her lead as she positioned his arms on the bed so that she could brace her weight on them, letting him support her. It opened them up to a new array of possibilities.

She leaned into him, making a swirling motion with her hips as she lifted herself up and then eased back down. The stroke plus the way her sex was clenching him was pushing him too close to the edge again. The pleasure was pulsing through his hips, gathering together steadily, his cock so full and ready he wasn’t sure how he could last.

He thought about baseball, cold water, the stale bean burritos on the counter. Nothing helped.

Her pace increased, the frills left behind as she pumped him with her body, her hands gripping his so tight it almost hurt. He could feel her starting to pulse and let himself go, his hips rising up to meet her every time she crashed back onto him. She let out a loud cry as he felt her fall over the edge into her climax, her back arching and body pulling on him, urging him into his own.

The energy pooled in him flooded out as he came, his body spilling into her. His hips bucked and she rode him, thighs clenching him tight. His skin was on fire, a locus of energy radiating out from where they were joined.

She fell across his chest when the last waves of heat were settling in him. She made a soft contented sound as she let go of his hands. He wrapped his arms around her.

“I thought you said you came in peace,” he said.

He felt her laugh as much as heard it, her body vibrating on his, humming with contentment and happiness. He wished they could stay that way forever. But he knew they couldn’t. She must have felt the same.

“Kira…”

“I know.” Her voice was quiet “I’m parsing the data.”

“What, like now?”

“If we’re lucky, the Tau Ceti are still recovering from the station exploding.”

“And if we’re not lucky?”

She lifted her head and kissed him. He could tell her attention wasn’t entirely with him, though. He broke off the kiss and pushed them both up to a sitting position, shifting so that he could sit next to her.

“We can figure out another way. You don’t have to—”

“I do. There is no other way.”

He didn’t know what to do, so he sat next to her and held her hand. Moments ticked by. They hadn’t been vaporized, which he took as a good sign.

“I think I found something,” she said.

“What?”

“A plane crash over Louisiana.”

Brendan felt his stomach clench. “Yeah, I heard about that.”

“Scans picked up an unusual reading. An energy burst. It wasn’t long enough to run a full analysis. It could have been the Tau Ceti. But why would they take down a small passenger plane?”

“James Conroy was on that plane. He was a senator who just got elected. Is there anything in your data about him?”

“That name has come up several times. He was championing environmental issues.”

“I thought you were just watching us to make sure we didn’t realize aliens are real.”

She shook her head. “No, my job was to make sure you didn’t get proof.”

Senator Conroy was all about stopping climate change. According to Paige, his first priority was convincing people that climate change was real and having a detrimental impact on Earth’s ecosystems. Paige was helping him gather evidence for his reports.

“Why would an environmental activist show up in your reports at all?” It didn’t make sense.

“Because of the geographical areas he was concerned with. The water sample reports the station accessed showed shifts in alkaline balance, temperature, and salinity that…”

He did not like the look on Kira’s face. Her eyes snapped back into focus as her gaze met his.

“What is it?”

“They match the ecosystem on Tau Ceti-6. Their homeworld.”

His heart started to pound. Aliens were real—okay. They were watching Earth. He could handle that, even them walking among Earthlings. But making permanent bases there?

“Are you saying that the Tau Ceti have changed Earth’s environment to match their physiology?” He wanted to be crystal-clear on that point before he freaked out about it.

“I’m saying that they have destroyed indigenous ecosystems to make room for their own. This is worse than anything I’ve heard of them doing before. Raiding settlements is one thing, but this amounts to a full invasion of a preservation site. The sanctions they’re risking…”

“Why would they do it? You said Earth is rich in resources, but what could they possibly be after? Gold? Gemstones?”

“The Coalition can mine asteroids. Minerals are abundant in the galaxy, and precious stones can be replicated in labs.”

“What are we missing?”

“I don’t know. I can’t think of any reason the Tau Ceti would want to set up a permanent presence on Earth.”

“They’d have to be found out eventually, right?”

“Maybe, maybe not. The Coalition is aware of the damage Earthlings are doing to their own environment. If the Tau Ceti keep their operation small enough and try to match the damage they’re doing to what’s already going on, they might be able to get away with it for decades.”

“Shut down your nanites,” he said.

She closed her eyes for a moment, then said, “Done.”

The urgency he felt before at the thought of Earth being in danger coalesced into a chilling fear in his chest. Even if the Coalition figured out the Tau Ceti were involved in destroying the listening station, they had no idea what they were doing on Earth. And if the Tau Ceti managed to find Kira…

He shook his head, trying to avoid that thought. But he had to face it. If they removed her from the equation, who knew how long they could keep destroying Earth’s ecosystems before the Coalition caught on.

He had no doubt his sister would fall in the line of fire eventually as well. Those water samples Kira mentioned didn’t just hop into the lab on their own. Paige was Senator Conroy’s main environmental scientist.

“Kira, we have to tell the Coalition what’s going on.”

She nodded. “I know.”

Chapter Twelve

“Turning on my nanites will be nothing compared to this.”

Kira watched as Brendan completed preparations to send his final broadcast. She had recorded a message that contained everything they had figured out about the Tau Ceti involvement on Earth. They would send the broadcast across a section of space that should ensure the
Arbiter
received it.

The transmission would need at least five minutes to complete and would show up loud and clear on any Tau Ceti scanners that were still functional. She was no longer just worried about the ship that had boarded the listening station. With an operation on Earth as big as they suspected, there were probably plenty of Tau Ceti waiting and watching for just such a signal. The question was whether they would be close enough to reach Brendan and Kira before they could run.

Brendan had resources. If they could reach civilization, their chances of survival would be better.

She wasn’t holding out much hope.

“You ready?” Brendan asked.

She nodded, then rested her hand on his shoulder, leaning over him to watch him work. He put his hand on top of hers. They locked gazes for a moment, then he turned back to the controls and initiated the broadcast.

“There it goes.”

“Are you sure they won’t be able to recover any data?”

“I set up my equipment with a self-destruct. It won’t take out the whole cabin, but there should be some pretty cool fireworks.”

“You’re kidding.”

“What, you think you’re the only ones advanced enough to have self-destruct buttons? Please. I worked for my government. I don’t want this falling into anyone else’s hands. You can’t pull data from a system that’s been both wiped and slagged.”

“Too bad we can’t time this one to take a few of them out.”

The cabin was already precious to her. In only a few hours, she had built the best memories of her life there.

“Remind me never to make you mad.”

She smiled, then leaned forward to wrap her arms around his shoulders and kiss his cheek. She nuzzled the soft hair of his beard. Stars, she hoped there would be time for more of that.

His smile suddenly vanished. “Part of it is an EMP. I was so distracted with everything going on, I forgot about your nanites.”

“They’ll be fine. They’re powered down.” She gave him another quick kiss. Her stomach was tightening as the broadcast neared completion. “You’re not using nuclear fission for that, are you?”

Her sensors hadn’t picked up anything like that near his cabin.

“There are other ways to create an EMP.”

“Nothing that standard Earth-tech can make.”

“Look around you. Any of this look like standard Earth-tech?”

He had a point. It was too bad Earth wasn’t considered advanced enough to begin First Contact preparations. Brendan would be a perfect candidate for the preliminary committee.

His computer beeped.

“That’s that.” He shut down the broadcast, then keyed in the commands for the self-destruct. “We have ten minutes to make ourselves scarce. My jeep is about a five minute hike if we hustle. The EMP won’t reach that far. I know you say you’ll be fine, but I’d just as soon get you far from here before it goes off.”

“Let’s go, then.”

Brendan headed for the door while Kira ran to the counter to grab the med-kit. Sunlight spread across the floor briefly, then was blocked. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end.

“Um, Kira?”

She turned around, knowing what she would see. Brendan had his hands in the air and was backing toward her. Two Tau Ceti entered the cabin.

The Tau Ceti had done their best to look like Sadirians, but there were imperfections in their process. Their mouths were too wide, faces too tall and long. And their eyes, while within Earth norms, were much smaller than Sadirians’.

One was a foot soldier, fully decked with cybernetic enhancements. As if that wasn’t enough, he was carrying a laser rifle in his muscular arms. The other was tall and lanky, wearing an Earth-style business suit. His skin was pale and he had dark black hair. Somehow, the awkwardness of his features lent him an eerie sort of handsomeness. He hadn’t bothered with a weapon and didn’t look augmented like the other.

“Well, this is quaint.” The leader’s voice was low and smooth.

His soldier closed the door behind them, then took up a guarding stance.

“It isn’t much, but it’s home,” Brendan said. “Welcome, Mister…?”

“St. John. But you can call me Horatio.”

“Horatio? Okay, then. I’m Brendan. This is—”

“K-58-b7. Born during cycle 12 on Sadr-4 station 9 to batch 31. It wasn’t a very good batch, I’m afraid. Full of glitches. Kira. I’m well aware.”

“I’ll thank you to show some manners while you’re in my house,” Brendan said. “Kira’s not a glitch.”

Brendan glanced at Kira. She shook her head tersely, but it wasn’t enough to stop him from reaching for her hand. She didn’t take it. It didn’t make a difference. Horatio noticed.

“Uck, this compulsion you Sadirians feel to pair-bond is bizarre. It makes you vulnerable. Lucky me.” His smile was nothing less than sinister. “You did a very good job concealing yourself, my dear. Didn’t spare yourself so much as a laser cutter. I bet you’re wishing you had a little something now, aren’t you? Coalition tech can be addictive for your kind. It’s a shame, really.”

He walked over to Brendan’s equipment, looking everything over.

Stars, don’t let him notice the destruct sequence.

“Pretty sweet setup, eh?” Brendan said. Maybe he was thinking the same thing, trying to distract the Tau Ceti. “Best Earth has to offer.”

“I don’t know. I’m rather fond of those little robotic vacuums Earthlings have developed. But I suppose this was able to get the job done, so to speak.”

“I can show you how it works,” Brendan said.

No way. That would get him way too close to the equipment. Then again, maybe that was the idea. Try to take the Tau Ceti out with the self-destruct somehow? Maybe Brendan was thinking about that EMP too. Disabling the foot soldier’s cybernetics would help even out their fighting abilities.

“I’m not concerned with how it works, but rather what it was used for. The transmission was encrypted with a Coalition code we’re not familiar with.” Horatio turned back to them. “Let’s get to business. You’re both going to die. The question is how unpleasant the experience will be and who will go first. The best thing you can do is cooperate.”

Even if the EMP took down the soldier’s cybernetics, she wasn’t sure she could take both of them. If only she had a weapon. Kira’s skin was tingling with the urge to do something.

Wait, skin…

The med-kit had several doses of
Balance
. If she could splash them with it, they would be incapacitated.

She reached for Brendan’s hand and squeezed it to let him know she had a plan. She only hoped it would work.