“On it, boss.”
They chimed at the same time. The two dark haired men walked to the front,
their synchronized pace chilling Helen though she couldn’t place why. With
their matching dark helmets, black armored covered bodies, they were indistinguishable.
The one on his
left raised his left arm. The one on the right raised his right. She wondered
what they’d do against the large aliens since they’d slung their weapons to
hang over their back. Surely they didn’t think they could stop them with their
arms out.
Helen pushed up to
her feet, ignoring the burning sensation in her hands. Shoulders down in a
duck-walk, she hurried to kneel next to a silver sports car and peered over the
side. She stared in amazement at Vin’s two soldiers. An eerie glow started from
each of their extended palms. When white light emitted from their hands and
shot at the aliens, she almost fell back over. Not natural. No way no how. It
reminded her of the impossible leaps they’d made in the stairway without
stumbling.
Each blast hit a
Rekabian in the chest, knocking them from the car hoods to the street. More
rotten egg funk hit her nose and their screams caused the hair on her arms to
stand on end. The aliens didn’t stop their charge up the street though. The
twins swung their weapons around and fired.
Car windshields
shattered. The aliens made more of the clicking sounds and lifted their silver
weapons. Helen screamed again when the short burst hit the car next to her.
“Get back to
Helen,” Vin yelled, pointing at Harkum and racing to meet the threat.
Harkum broke from
the team and charged up the sidewalk going to one knee in front of her. He
curled his armored arms around her protecting Helen with his massive frame.
Every inch of her was completely covered. “Don’t move, ma’am,” he rumbled.
She didn’t plan on
it.
Chapter 5
His first face to
face with the Rekabians and Vin summarized it in a few words. Ugly and fast as
fuck. The huge suckers just kept coming. Vin fired shot after shot at the torso
hoping to hit something vital. Aiming at the head did nothing but jar the
Rekabian. Vin separated from his team, shortening the distance. His men took
cover behind a red SUV laying fire over the hood.
The Rekabian on
his right raised its weapon. Seconds later, laser fire dug chunks from the
blacktop, spewing a geyser of gravel and dust. Rock’s modified G32 blasted away
behind him.
Vin knew they
connected due to the repeated jerks in the alien’s stride but they continued to
advance. The first alien reached him swinging its lanky arm. The blow slammed
into his armored shoulder, knocking him off balance. Vin crashed into the car
behind him with such force, he left a body-sized dent. The car alarm’s high
pitch sounded in the streets. Struggling to his feet, Vin turned and used his
arm to block another vicious swing, his armor absorbing the impact. His foot
snapped out kicking the creature’s mid-section. The Rekabian weapon clattered
to the ground, the silver circle spinning.
Undeterred, it
approached slowly on legs with backward knee joints. Its blue glasslike eyes
had no pupil. Just an oval shaped slit tracking Vin’s every move. The large
beak like mouth moved up and down making a harsh squealing noise followed by
several rapid clicks.
“No clue what
you’re saying, bastard.” Vin raised his G32 high and aimed at the alien’s green
plated chest.
The creature
charged and Vin pulled the trigger. His weapon whirled then clicked. Nothing
happened. Holy fuck! Backing up slowly, Vin pulled the trigger again and again
in vain as the distance narrowed between him and enemy number one. Fuck, fuck,
fuck.
“Vin, get down,”
Rock yelled in his com.
Vin shifted his
weapon and hit the concrete as the Rekabian leaped forward. A shimmering shield
appeared in front of the alien but the creature didn’t stop its momentum. It
hit Rock’s force field full tilt and stumbled back from the impact. The ugly
bastard squealed, banging again and again on the shield keeping it from its
intended target.
“Vincent!” Helen
screamed his name.
Sweat trickled
down the back of Vin’s collar. He trusted Harkum to take care of his heart.
Vin’s breath puffed on the interior of his helmet. More sweat beaded his upper
lip. Sprawled on the concrete, he sighted down his weapon aiming for where the
brain should be. Deep breath in then out.
Vin reached for
the ability he’d finally mastered and sent a short electrical pulse from his
hands to the gun. The red light on the barrel blinked on. Vin keyed his com.
“On my count, Rock.” His finger curled around the trigger. “One,” Vin narrowed his
vision. “Two.” The alien pounded its frustration out in a drum beat. Boom,
boom. “Three.”
This time, the
weapon functioned properly and fired at the same moment Rock dropped his
shield. Vin hit the alien in the middle of his sloped forehead. It froze in a
macabre display, body jerking and arms akimbo. At last, it fell landing only
inches from Vin’s hands. Green junk oozed from the alien to puddle on the
street.
“Man, too close,
Vin,” murmured Bransen through his com.
Vin rose to his
feet and glanced around. His men, with the exception of Harkum, surrounded the
last of the alien trio. Without its partners, the creature’s head swung left
and right, squeals and clicks coming from its mouth in louder frequency.
Suddenly, it
lunged toward Curtis off to the right. Rock raised his weapon without
hesitation. Fire danced across the Rekabian’s torso. One long roar escaped and
it collapsed on itself, filling the air with its putrid smell.
Vin let out a
breath and slapped his palm against his helmet release. When the visor rose, he
eyed Rock. “You added a flame thrower capability?”
His man shrugged
his shoulders. “It seemed a good idea at the time.”
“Shit,” Bransen
cursed and then snickered.
Vin allowed them
the moment of laughter in release of the tension but his thoughts were
elsewhere. “Helen!” His heart pounded fast and hard in his chest. Vin spun on
his boot heels, frantically searching.
Harkum
straightened from his kneeling position and relief jarred Vin. His hellcat was
unharmed though the stark wide gaze she sent around the street spoke volumes.
The shitty pony tail swayed losing its hold on the majority of her hair.
Somehow her clothing had come through unscathed.
He’d never seen
her so disheveled yet look so incredibly beautiful. It was in the way she held
herself. Chin tilted at a determined angle, shoulders thrown back and spine
straightened like a steel rod. His hands clenched to touch her and his mouth
watered for a deeper taste than what he’d gotten in the lobby. Not bothering to
wait, his legs ate the distance between them.
Harkum stepped
aside as Vin rushed to reach her. Uncaring that his men watched, Vin slid his
weapon to the side and grabbed Helen in his arms. He could only imagine what
would have happened if they weren’t here and she’d come out of the building
alone caught by those aliens. His arms locked around her small waist at the
thought. She stiffened in his hold but when he refused to let go, she gradually
let her body relax.
“Vin?” Her lips
moved over his shirt as she spoke.
He leaned back to
brush at the stray strands of hair falling around her face. Brown eyes peered
back. “Yeah?”
“I want a latte
and two aspirin. No, I
need
them.”
Bransen started
laughing first. His low chuckle spread among the group. Vin’s lips curled up.
Hell on wheels
and
high maintenance. “I think I can make that happen
after the day you’ve had.”
Unwilling to
release her hand, he led her to their black armored vehicle which remarkably
showed no signs of damages. Harkum hopped in the driver’s seat with Rock
climbing in next to him. The rest of the team scrambled in the back, leaving
the open seat next to Vin for Helen. Curtis landed in the seat directly across
with a deep weary sigh, leaned his head back against the chair rest and closed
his eyes.
He’d pushed his
boy hard earlier but he’d come through. “Curtis, you good?”
Curtis blinked
slowly as the truck began to move. “Ready and rocking, sir.”
His friend’s eyes
were blood shot and his stoic expression faded to reveal a painful grimace on
his lips. As soon as they returned to base command, the doctors would fix
Curtis up with the vitamin supplements they all took.
Vin turned to
Rock, a question burning his mind. “Flame thrower?”
More laughter and
Rock’s face split with a grin, gray eyes gleaming as he hefted the
extremely
modified G32. “I saw the potential and went with it.”
“You’re seriously
upgrading the rest of us as soon as we get back.”
Flamethrower.
His
boy’s skills continually amazed.
“Hell yeah,” the
twins agreed in unison, causing much eye rolling. Their bodies were modified
weapons capable of releasing lightning bolts from their hands. Show offs.
“What about you?
What the hell happened with your weapon?” Harkum peered threw the rearview
mirror to toss the question at Vin.
“Firing mechanism
locked up.”
A round of curses
met his answer. No one questioned how he’d unlocked it, mindful of a civilian
in their presence.
“Seriously letting
Rock work on all our weapons.”
Each of them
nodded solemnly and settled down.
Helen yanked on
Vin’s shirt drawing his attention. “We need to talk.”
Talk about their
relationship? Or talk about the things she’d witnessed them do? Vin bit back a
sigh because all of it linked together and half of it classified, meaning he
couldn’t talk to her about it.
“Later, hellcat.
Promise.” He waited for her to protest. Tensed in preparation for an argument.
Thankfully, she subsided.
***
Helen bolstered
her nerves and reflected on the last hour. The things she’d seen created all
sorts of questions in her mind. Not the least of which centered on the how and
why they could do such. She eyed Vin as he high five and back slapped his men.
The armor no longer covered their bodies and their faces were no longer hidden
behind the darkness of helmets.
Although Vin had
foolishly launched himself at the aliens and used his gun, she’d missed if he
used any…powers. She wasn’t even sure if that was the right word to use to
explain what these men could do but it was all she had. Watching that creature
bear down on Vin, froze her in place. Throat locked, she’d prayed hard and
nearly tore away from the protective shelter of Harkum’s body.
Fortunately, the
large man hadn’t given an inch and she’d stared, forced to witness everything
in slow motion. More was going on with them but she couldn’t put her finger on
it.
The smiling twins
who could fire some sort of energy bolts from their hands, the gray eyed guy
who she was pretty sure caused the shield around Vin when the alien had almost
crushed him. His man, Curtis knew exactly how many aliens awaited them outside
the building before they’d exited.
Slumped back
against his seat, with eyes closed and mouth drawn tight, Curtis appeared
completely done. Helen worried for him. She wondered if Vin sensed how worn his
blond friend was. None of them looked in good shape but Curtis appeared the
worst. Vin nudged her leg drawing her attention. Helen turned only to have him
slide his arm around her shoulder as he pulled her closer to his side.
She braced a palm
on his muscled thigh and nervously checked around the truck but no one paid
them any attention. Vin tugged again until she had no choice but to allow their
bodies to nestle together. She’d accept the comfort he offered but she’d
protect her heart this time. From shin to shoulder, Helen connected to every
inch of him. The heat of his body blasted through her clothing warming her
chilled skin.
The shock of it
all began to seep in. She survived an alien attack. The Rekabians would have
killed her if not for Vin’s presence in her building today. Her coworkers,
customers, plenty of people she saw on a daily basis were probably injured,
dead, or missing. She should call someone. Do something besides cuddle up to
her ex-lover in the back of his truck. Helen jerked and pat her pockets pulling
out her cell phone. Its silver bar blinked at full strength.
“What’s wrong?”
Vincent glanced down watching her every move.
Flushing, Helen
admitted, “I left my purse in my desk. It has my license, money.” She scrolled
searching for her bank contact. Her mind compiled a list of things she needed
to do. She’d have to call her boss as well and apprise him of the situation.
The poor man was at a beach in Florida taking advantage of the first vacation
in years, thanks to his wife’s brow beating.
Vincent’s hand
reached out and snagged her phone before she could complete the call. He
powered it down and shoved it into the busy looking utility belt at his waist.
Shock gave way to anger, snapping her out of her daze. “I need my phone,
Vincent.” She emphasized his name, knowing he hated it. “I don’t have anything except
the clothes on my back.”
A scary thought
among many. Its only temporary, she soothed. As soon as he dropped her home
she’d deactivate all her credit cards online and stop first thing in the
morning to replace her ID.
“I’ll give it back
later.”
His authoritative
tone brooked no argument. Which in turn made her want to argue. She was a grown
woman capable of making sound decisions as evident by the volume of
responsibility her company entrusted in her. Still, she tried to temper her
tone. “Vincent.”
“Not now,
hellcat.” Something about the shadows lurking in his blue gray gaze as he
repeated his earlier words stilled her protest. Studying him closely, she
realized he was as burned out as his team, he just covered it better. But there
were telltale giveaways now that she searched for them. A tightness to his
mouth. The small crease between his brow and the taut muscles beneath her
hands.
Helen clamped
down on the words she wanted to spew. Now probably wasn’t the best time. His
full lips smiled in appreciation and the slant of his shoulders relaxed further
at her continued silence. As if by mutual agreement, they both eased back in
their seats. Helen lowered her head to rest in the crook of his neck.
Soon, she found
herself nodding, occasionally jerking her head upright when visions of aliens
assaulted her dreams. Fatigue beat at her senses. Long nights at the office
finally caught up.
“You okay?”
Vin’s question
probed at the ragged edges of her nerves.
Since there was no
easy answer she settled for the generic. “I’m fine.” Licking her dry lips, she
glanced around the interior of the darkened vehicle. She needed to tell him
before she drifted off fully. “Vin?”
He grunted above
her and his chin pressed down on the top of her head.
“Thank you.” He
might not want her any longer but he’d saved her life.
“Anytime, hellcat.
Anytime.”
She moved her
right hand slightly and pinched the tight flesh of his abdomen in retaliation.
It was all she could muster up the energy for. He chuckled above her and Helen
let sleep take her under.