Chapter One
Motherhood…
The spinning vortex spat Kaelen, Qa’a, the Askole baby and me out onto the bridge of a high-tech warbird.
I wiped the slime off my face and noticed a menacing-looking dude sitting in the captain’s chair.
He looked like someone you sure as hell didn’t piss off and live to talk about it.
His black battle suit emphasized his massive frame, and, on each arm; he wore large gold warrior’s bracelets with elaborate designs.
An etched gold headband held back his gray warriors’ braids.
For some odd reason I felt an instant connection with him and suddenly realized who he was. “ That’s Zarek?” I asked Kaelen on our private link.
“Yes.” Kaelen clamped his right arm to his chest. “My lord, this is Lexi.”
His gaze almost clinical, Zarek inspected me like I was an interesting but odd specimen.
I gave him my Debbie Sunshine smile and clamped my right arm to my chest. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Uncle Zarek,” I said in perfect High Coletti.
One dark brow rose in amusement. “Not an ounce of fear. You are your mother’s daughter.”
Huh? Was that a compliment or an insult?
Jaxor let out a hungry wail.
Crap. I pulled his bottle out of my side pocket and held out my arms.
Qa’a plucked the baby out of the bassinet and handed him to me. Jaxor’s tentacles wrapped around my wrist as I popped the bottle of milk in his mouth. “Such a hungry little guy.” I looked up at Kaelen. “We’re gonna need more milk.”
“Xylar will provide for him,” Uncle Zarek said.
I frowned. “Who?”
Uncle Zarek gestured at the glittering blue light blossoming in front of us. “His father.”
The light faded and there stood an enormous Askole warrior in battle armor. His tentacles squirmed wildly about his snakelike features as his gaze locked on Jaxor.
“Your son is unharmed, but very hungry,” I said.
The Askole warrior carefully picked Jaxor up and a short tug of war ensued. The little guy wasn’t going to let go of the bottle or my wrist. I winced when he stung me. “Do not sting Aunty Lexi,” I admonished.
“His mother died with honor.” Kaelen inserted and helped peel off Jaxor’s sticky little tentacles.
Xylar held Jaxor against his chest like he was the most precious thing in the galaxy. “I welcome you to our clan, Lexi. I will accept you as my mate.”
“Uh. What?”
Kaelen pushed me behind him. “Lexi is my mate.”
“She is not wearing your ownership band.”
“Ownership band?” I squawked.
Uncle Zarek suddenly stood toe-to-toe with Xylar. “Lexi is blood of my blood and not yet twenty-one. She has bonded with Kaelen.”
“Jaxor marked this female as his mother. That mark allows me to claim her,” Xylar stated with absolute finality.
Huh? I stared down at my still stinging wrist. Shit! A tattoo was forming on it. Crap. Dad said I couldn’t get a tattoo until I turned twenty-one. I now had two. “The little guy has been through hell. He’s just confused and I could never replace his mother.”
“You wear his birth sign. That makes you his mother,” Xylar countered.
I gaped at him. “Seriously?”
“Lexi is mine.” His teeth bared in a snarl, Kaelen pulled his sword.
Xylar drew his sword.
“Enough!” Qa’a commanded. The air around us pulsed with power. With a loud CRACK , a blinding green light engulfed Kaelen and me. When it faded the skin under my left eye burned like crazy. “What did you do?”
“He gave you the infinity mark. Now all will know you are mated to Kaelen,” Uncle Zarek replied grimly.
I grinned. “Great! So, we can have sex now.”
“We will discuss that subject later,” Uncle Zarek snapped and turned his attention to Xylar and Kaelen. “Put your swords away or face me in combat.”
Kaelen and Xylar quickly sheathed their swords.
Yeow! The scary expression on Uncle Zarek’s face had me taking a step back.
Eeyore. Eeyore. Eeyore.
Everyone stared at Qa’a. He found us amusing.
The muscles in Uncle Zarek’s jaw bunched and his right hand dropped to his sword.
Shit! Shit! Shit! I stepped between Uncle Zarek and Qa’a. In a bright, chirpy voice I asked, “So, when can I fly your awesome spaceship, Uncle Zarek? I bet I can get it to do warp twelve.”
His disbelieving gaze locked on me. “When you are three hundred years old.”
“Oh, that doesn’t seem fair. Everything Kaelen knows, I know, like how to do a flat roll in a warbird. Me? I’d like to try a snap roll.” To my relief, the tension on the bridge dropped considerably as everyone stared at me in open horror.
Uncle Zarek shook his head and smiled. “You are truly fearless and there is no doubt in my mind that you would try.”
“Unfortunately,” Kaelen groused.
Qa’a’s tentacle tapped the control button for my armor. Schlik. Schlik. Schlik. Schlik. My armor retracted, revealing my T-shirt and jeans. A sharp stinging pain erupted in my upper right arm. “Ouch!”
“ You are now a member of the Katanic Kupgaj sect. Any who attack you will face my wrath,” Qa’a stated.
I blinked in surprise. A gold and black tribal tattoo appeared around my right arm. Shit! Another tattoo. Dad was going to have a meltdown. I smiled brightly. “ I will wear it with pride.”
“My son stays with me,” Xylar bellowed.
I hollered back, “Which is where he belongs. I am not his mother.”
“Jaxor has bonded with you. For him to survive, he needs to be close to you for the next year,” Xylar countered.
On our private link, I asked Kaelen, “Is that true?”
“Yes.”
Oh yippee! How was I to fight crime with a baby? Even if he did have armor-plated skin and sharp teeth, chasing down bad guys was no place for a baby.
“You have two choices, Xylar,” Qa’a stated. “You can sever your ties with the child and return to your duties as commander of the Lafaree battle fleet or become one of my enforcers.”
Xylar tentacles stood out from his head. “Become an enforcer? My battle fleet has destroyed nine Tai-Kok ships in the last year.”
“Woo-hoo,” I taunted. “In the last six months, I blew up a shitload of Tai-Kok ships without firing a single laser cannon.”
“That is impossible,” Xylar snarled.
Uncle Zarek shot me an irritated glare, “She speaks the truth.”
Jaxor began to wail and his little arms reached for me.
“Give me my baby. You’re scaring him, and he’s still hungry.
Have your medic bring us more milk,” I barked.
Well, hell, my maternal instinct had just kicked in big time and the need to hold Jaxor was overwhelming.
Damn, the kid was mine and if anyone tried to take him from me, there would be hell to pay.
I couldn’t wait to tell Dad he now had a grandson.
The expression on Kaelen’s face was a mixture of resignation and amusement. “You heard her Xylar. Your son is hungry.”
Xylar reluctantly gave me Jaxor. I cuddled him against my chest and rubbed the bottle’s nipple against his lower lip. “Open up, yummy milk.”
Jaxor latched on and sucked down the milk like he hadn’t eaten in a month.
“That’s it. Drink it all. You need to grow up to be big and strong like your daddy. We have lots of monsters to kill.”
The image of an Askole warrior with a nasty scar across his left cheek formed in my mind.
“Kill.” The word seemed to echo through my mind.
Whoa! I looked into Jaxor’s intelligent yellow eyes and suddenly knew the warrior’s name was Mokok.
The traitorous bastard had given Jaxor’s mom to the Tai-Kok. “We will find and kill him.”
Kaelen stepped in front of me. “The birth mark is complete, and their link is unbreakable. Jaxor is now Lexi’s son . Sever your bond with him. You have my word that I will raise Jaxor as my own.”
“Never! I refuse to give up my son. ” Xylar bellowed. “I will resign as commander of the Lafaree battle fleet.”
A sigh escaped me. Well, hell. Things just got interesting.
Qa’a transformed into the aged, pale-faced male. Once again three creepy snakelike tentacles hovered above his wispy black, hooded cloak. “Extend your right arm and I will mark you as mine.”
“Is that necessary?” Xylar demanded.
Qa’a’s smile was downright terrifying. “My people find your kind very tasty. My mark will keep you from being eaten.”
With his fingers wrapped around the hilt of his sword, Xylar stared at him for a long moment.
“Do it for your son,” I snapped.
Giving me the evil eye, Xylar reluctantly held out his arm and never flinched when Qa’a’s tentacles crawled over his arm. A bright gold tattoo formed on his black armored-plated skin.
“The marks proclaim you belong to the Kupgaj sect ,” Qa’a stated and turned his attention to Kaelen. “I need to mark you also, Battle Commander.”
His mouth a grim line, Kaelen retracted his armor and held out his arm. Qa’a’s tentacle stung him twice. Poof! Like magic the gold and black tribal tattoo formed on his arm.
“If you have finished Qa’a, Sariel, the Askole High Commander, and Captain Zan, the Alliance representative are waiting for us in the conference room. We have much to discuss,” Uncle Zarek stated.
A row of sharp teeth suddenly protruded from Qa’a’s mouth.
“Yes, we would not want Captain Zan to become annoyed and do something rash like summoning the battle fleet that is hidden behind Cirrus Prime’s second moon.
” He ran his long, sticky tongue over his fangs.
“I find myself as the humans would say, a bit peckish and would be happy to handle that problem for you.”
Shit! I could feel Qa’a’s hunger. I tightened my hold on Jaxor.
Kaelen pushed me behind him.
“I am aware of the battle fleet. There are eight hundred Nagpuri in my cargo hold, Qa’a. Please ease your hunger with them,” Uncle Zarek said calmly.
“You are a gracious host. Nagpuri is my favorite prey.” A portal formed and Qa’a walked into it.
I resumed breathing. Armageddon had been averted. For now.
Jaxor burped loudly and peed on me. I sighed. “ Can someone get me some diapers and find me something clean to wear? Ugh. Baby Askole pee smelled like a mixture of skunk spray and sulfur.
Little cleaning bots appeared like magic. They sorta reminded me of hungry lady bugs as they scurried about.
Jaxor gurgled happily and reached for them.
“No sweetie, those aren’t toys and no peeing on Aunty Lexi.”
“Momma.” The little guy’s tentacles stroked my face, and he gave me a toothy grin . “Momma.”
I gasped in surprise . “Oh, my, God, he’s talking already!”
His tentacles waving wildly, Xylar stared at Jaxor. “The trauma of his birth has accelerated his development.”
“Momma,” Jaxor patted my face.
I tickled his stomach. “No, Aunty Lexi.”
“Momma Lexi,” Jaxor giggled.
I shook my head. “Whatever. You are so adorable.”
With a sigh, Uncle Zarek interjected, “Take them to my quarters and get them cleaned up, Kaelen.”
Kaelen held out his hand. “Come Lexi, your suit needs to be decontaminated too.
“Boy does it. I hope you can get the stench out.” I placed my hand in his. “What do you know about Askole babies?”
“Very little.”
Jaxor bit his arm.
Kaelen gave him a mental smack on the bottom. “No biting.”
The baby bared his teeth.
“Okay, that is enough. We do not bite family,” I said sternly.
Jaxor just stared at me.
“Kaelen is your uncle.”
“Onkel?”
“Yes, Uncle Kaelen,” I replied.
A low, threatening growl broke from Xylar. “The Coletti has no ties to my child.”
“They both have ties to me and we are family now. Deal with it.”
Uncle Zarek interjected, “You need to inform Sariel of your decision, Xylar. Now.”
“Yes, my lord.” Xylar clamped an arm to his chest, turned and strode over to an elevator.
Kaelen teleported us to Uncle Zarek’s quarters.