Chapter Two
Karma is a bitch…
Zarek’s quarters were starkly utilitarian. The walls were covered with a wide assortment of bloody weapons. Hmm. Made you wonder how many times he had been ambushed. His cutting-edge communications console gave him the ability to run the ship without ever being on the bridge.
A holograph of a beautiful silver-haired woman caught my attention. I gestured at it. “Is that Zarek’s mate?”
“Yes, her name is Detja. You have much in common with her. You both attract trouble.”
“Bet she has some interesting stories about Uncle Zarek. Do you know how they met?”
“Her father sold her to Zarek,” Kaelen replied.
“What! That’s horrible. You can’t just go around buying and selling women. I hope she kicked Zarek’s ass.”
Kaelen laughed. “She sedated him, put him in a crate and shipped him to a penal colony.”
“I can’t wait to meet her.”
Kaelen tapped my nose. “Do not get any ideas.”
“Me?” I patted his chest. “I could never defeat a big, strong warrior like you.”
“Your devious mind is capable of many things.”
I grinned. “You know me so well.”
Jaxor stuffed my ponytail in his mouth.
“No! Bad baby. Spit!” I tugged frantically on my hair.
“Spit! Now!” Kaelen commanded.
Jaxor spat my hair out and he began to wail.
“Warriors do not cry,” Kaelen stated firmly.
Jaxor stopped crying.
I frowned at Kaelen. “He’s a baby, not a warrior.”
“Askole children start battle training at three years old.”
My jaw dropped. “Are you kidding me?”
“I am not. A thousand years ago a race called the Sasnomm almost exterminated the Askole race.”
“Are they related to the Tai-Kok?”
“No.”
The image of an ogre straight out of a fairy tale formed in my head. The hairy brutes had long, crooked noses, red eyes and razor-sharp teeth. Huh? “I guess once upon a time, they traveled to Earth too.”
Kaelen grimaced. “Earth seems to be a popular world to visit.”
“Lucky us. So, these Sasnomm made war on the Askole?”
“They did until only a hundred thousand were left alive. Desperate to save their people, the Askole scientists mutated their genome, making their race faster, stronger, and harder to kill. By accelerating a baby’s growth rate, they doubled the number of warriors able to fight.
In his first year, Jaxor will grow to the size of an eight-year-old human. ”
Holy shit! “What happened to the Sasnomm?”
“The war with the Askole had drained their resources. The Tai-Kok took advantage of the situation and attacked their home world. Few survived.”
“Karma’s a bitch,” I replied.
Kaelen nodded. “Askole High Commander Zayn hunted down and killed the surviving Sasnomm.”
“So, no more Sasnomm?”
“None have been found in the last five hundred years.”
I grimaced as nausea roiled my stomach. The skunk stench was horrendous. “Where’s that shower?”
“The second door.” He held out his hand. “Give me your belt and I’ll decontaminate your armor. Put your clothing down the disposal chute.”
I gaped at him in horror. “But this is my favorite T-shirt.”
“I will replicate you another shirt. Askole baby urine is used as a bioweapon against their enemies. The longer you breathe in the fumes, the faster it damages your lungs.”
“Gotcha.” Fighting down the urge to vomit, I hurried into the bathroom and stared in dismay. The closet-sized room had an eight-foot-tall transparent tube, and a round fishbowl toilet doohickey. There was no soap, no towels, no toilet paper, and no running water.
I drew on Kaelen’s knowledge and groaned. Well, fuckadoodledoo. The tube was the shower except no water was involved. Warships had a limited supply of water, and they used ultrasonic waves to clean away all the blood, dirt and sweat.
Putting Jaxor on the floor, I quickly stripped down and reluctantly put my contaminated clothing down the disposal chute. Tears welled in my eyes. The shirt was a birthday gift from my mother. The Tai-Kok had destroyed our home, and I treasured the few things we had managed to save.
A ghostly hand stroked my cheek. “You still have your memories. Treasure them.”
“I do.”
Jaxor bit my big toe.
“Dang it! Stop that!” I picked Jaws up . “No chewing on Momma Lexi.”
His tentacles drooped and he stared at me with big, sad eyes.
Well, hell. Did Askole moms let their kids chew on them? Maybe, but I didn’t have armor-plated skin. I kissed Jaxor’s nose. “We need to get you a teething ring. Time for a shower little guy.”
He gurgled happily.
Here goes nothing. I opened the shower door, stepped inside, and studied the controls. Huh?
“Blue button starts the shower, the yellow button stops it,” Kaelen volunteered.
I pushed the blue button. Clang. Hell’s tornado spun around me, making it hard to breathe. I was about to run for my life when it stopped. “Oh, thank God.”
Jaxor squealed loudly.
“Pretty damn scary, huh?”
His tentacles waved wildly and he bounced up and down.
Shit. The little guy liked it. I pushed the release switch. Nothing happened. I pushed it again. Dammit!
Jaxor hit the blue button, and the hurricane engulfed us again.
“No! No! No!” I punched the yellow button frantically. “Help! It won’t stop. Get me out of this tube of death.”
The devil’s whirlwind stopped abruptly.
My monster child let out an ear-shattering wail.
“Hush! Right now.”
His tentacles drooping melodramatically, Jaxor slumped over my shoulder and made growling noises.
I whacked the release switch. “This is a torture device, not a shower.”
Grinning like a loon, Kaelen walked in, his gaze locked on me, and his humor was quickly replaced with desire.
“What? Is there something wrong with my hair?” I hated the fact that I was blushing like a schoolgirl.
“No. You are perfect.”
I made a face . “No, I’m not.”
“Your battle scars are proof of your warrior’s heart. Your willingness to keep fighting, to never accept defeat shows your true strength. You are intelligent, loyal and would die to keep your family safe.”
I gaped at him in astonishment. His assessment was very flattering. “And my psychic abilities?”
“Are a welcome bonus.”
A strangled gasp tore from me when ghostly hands suddenly roamed over my body, firing my blood. “Whoa! How…?” Kaelen was standing three feet away. “How are you touching me?”
“Psychic sex.” A phantom mouth closed over mine in a soul-singeing lip lock. At the same time, his magical tongue swirled around my right nipple.
“I think I like psychic sex.” I squirmed as sensations cascaded over me . “A lot.”
Jaxor whimpered.
I rubbed his back. “Go to sleep.”
I need to touch you.” Desire etched starkly in Kaelen’s face; a ghostly hand slid between my legs and began tormenting my clit.
Oh, God. That felt way too good. I sucked in a shuddering breath.
I could feel the intensity of Kaelen's hunger; his driving need to possess me.
My body caught fire. He was a fever in my blood. I burned for him.
“Enough!” Uncle Zarek roared.
Grunting in pain, Kaelen dropped to his knees.
Shit! The ass was attacking Kaelen. I instinctively mirrored Uncle Zarek’s psychic power back at him.
Poof! Uncle Zarek was standing in the already crowded bathroom. He yanked me out of the tube. “ You dare to attack me?”
I tasted the cold bitter flavor of fear. I was looking into the face of death.
Uncle Zarek shook me. “Answer me.”
“You were hurting Kaelen and all I did was deflect your power back at you. I think you have forgotten how strong you really are or maybe not.”
“Deflect?” Shock flared briefly in Uncle Zarek’s eyes. “Show me.”
Kaelen struggled to his feet. “I challenge you to combat.”
God, what was it with males and testosterone?
His teeth bared in a snarl, Uncle Zarek stuffed me back in the tube and turned to face Kaelen. “To the death?”
“To protect Lexi, yes.”
“Oh, hell, no!” I pounded on the tube. “Stop this nonsense right now or I’ll summon Qa’a.”
Uncle Zarek asked casually, “You dare to threaten me?”
“I’ve always known I’m gonna die young. So, yeah, you can consider it a threat. I won’t let you hurt Kaelen.”
Kaelen groaned.
“Do you think you can defeat me, Lexi?” Uncle Zarek’s voice was full of menace.
“No, but you’d be limping for a week or two.”
Jaxor growled ferociously.
A sigh broke from Uncle Zarek. “I grant you clemency. Show me how you deflected my attack.”
“Kaelen too?”
“Yes. Show me.”
So, I did.
Uncle Zarek and Kaelen stared at me in stunned disbelief.
“What?”
A muscle twitched in Uncle Zarek’s jaw. “Only a Katanic has the ability to ricochet power back at their attacker.”
“Oh. Maybe it’s a side benefit of my tattoo.”
A growl rumbled deep in Uncle Zarek’s chest. “No. Qa’a deliberately boosted your psychic capabilities.”
The door slid open and Qa’a pushed his way in. “Did you think I would not? My enforcers must be able to stand against all lawbreakers, including you .”
A suggestion of amusement on his lip, Uncle Zarek gave a slight bow. “A clever move, Qa’a.”
Xylar squeezed into the room. “Sariel has been informed, my Lord.”
Just kill me now. “Why don’t we invite the entire crew to see me naked,” I groused.
Dad appeared in the doorway. “Why are you naked, Lexi?”
“I was taking a shower, and everyone decided to drop by and say howdy.” I used Jaxor to hide my private parts.
His gaze roved over Xylar, the baby and fixed on my new tattoos. “Who gave you those tattoos?”
I hurriedly explained everything and watched Dad’s eyebrows climb higher and higher.
“He’s now your son?”
“Yes, and your grandson.”
Dad studied Xylar. “And that’s his poppa?”
“Yes. The Tai-Kok fatally injured Jaxor’s mom and he linked with me.”
Dad rubbed his jaw. “So, if you hadn’t already bonded with Kaelen, you would have been forced to mate with the Askole?”
“That’s right.”
His relief evident, Dad held out his hand to Kaelen. “Welcome to the family son.”
“The honor is mine.” Ignoring Xylar’s snarl, Kaelen shook his hand.
A wolfish smile formed on Dad’s mouth. “You do know that keeping Lexi out of trouble is a full-time job.”
“I am aware.”
I rolled my eyes. “Can someone please get me a towel or something to wear?”
Everyone’s attention fixed on me.
Talk about awkward. I could feel my face getting hot.
Kaelen plucked a red T-shirt off the floor, opened the shower door and handed it to me. “I duplicated your favorite shirt for you.”
“Thank you.” I snatched it out of his hand and struggled to pull it on with Jaxor trying to stuff the shirt in his mouth.
Kaelen leaned in, grabbed Jaxor and blocked everyone’s view of me with his body.
Jaxor peed on him.
The room cleared like magic.
“Please tell me you found some diapers.”
Without an ounce of modesty, Kaelen stripped down. “They are on the bed along with more milk.”
I gawked at him. God, his butt was utter perfection.
“Like what you see?” Kaelen turned to face me.
The sight of all those bulging muscles had me drooling. “Uh-huh.” My gaze roamed down his flat abdomen and stopped dead. No pubic hair, no penis, no balls. There was just a funky ridge across his belly. “What happened to your ah… man parts?”
The door slid open. Dad grabbed my arm and yanked me out of the bathroom. “None of your business, Lexi.”
“But I’m his mate. If he lost his man parts in battle, it’s okay. Psychic sex rocks.”
Anger suffused Dad’s face. “He had sex with you?”
“Ah, sorta.”
“You son of a bitch.” Dad stormed into the bathroom. “She’s not old enough.”
“Actually, I am, Dad.”
The door slid shut and locked.
Oh, hell. I banged on the door. “Hey! Open up.”
“Leave us!” Zarek commanded.
Shit! Uncle Zarek was still pissed. I headed for the door along with Qa’a, and Xylar.
“Not you, Lexi, we need to talk.”
I froze. Talk? That didn’t sound good.