Page 14 of Her Alien Matchmaker
We were trapped like bugs in a jar.No way out without getting picked off by the helicopter guns, and if we stayed, the soldiers would do the same.
‘Ten, nine, eight…’
“Is there any way we can at least take cover behind or under your ship?”
“Yes, but we would be exposing ourselves to the Apache up there as we run.”His eyes tracked the course of the paratroopers as they continued their downward glide.Each held a gun in our direction.
Jetarin pushed his back against us, cradling us between his mass and the rock.
I shifted so Aaron would be closest to the walls of the canyon.
“Will they hurt us, Mommy?”His tiny voice broke my heart.
“Shh.It’s going to be okay.”It wasnotgoing to be okay if we didn’t figure out something soon.
‘Four, three, two, one.’
A quick glance around Jet’s arm showed each soldier landing in a circular pattern, avoiding the middle of the arroyo.They must know his ship is there.
Twenty feet in front of us, the largest soldier touched ground, rapidly unclipping his parachute.Taller than Jet by a couple of inches, he also outweighed him by at least a hundred pounds.His arms bulged through his armor.Though clearly human, the long, sharp horns on his head told me his DNA had been mutated with the Volderens.His rank designated him as a Major and his name patch showedKastor.
His eyes, a cold shade of green, swept over us like we were dog crap on his shoe.He twisted his neck and nodded to a soldier on his right.The man returned the gesture and raised his gun.
They’re using the neural connectionIhelped to create.Damn it.
In a flash, Jetarin sprinted toward the soldier with the gun and tackled him, knocking the weapon to the ground.His fists pummeled the guy’s face.“Stop.I do not want to kill you, but I will if I must.”
The soldier’s fist hit Jet’s jaw, then the man scrambled up and crawled toward his weapon.
Jet moved like lightning, grabbing the soldier by the sides of his head twisting, creating a sickening crunch.
The young service member dropped to the ground, the air whooshing from his mouth in a long exhale.
Jet’s lips tightened, but he jumped to his feet, anger burning in his eyes as he faced Kastor.
I kept Aaron behind me, hoping he hadn’t seen Jet kill the soldier.
My stomach heaved, but I tamped it down.Jet didn’t have a choice.If he’d let the man reach his gun, he could’ve killed or maimed all of us.
Aaron murmured to Crockett, reciting the table of elements and their atomic numbers, starting with Hydrogen; a trick he used when stressed or afraid.
This is my fault.I put him in this situation with my choices.My heart broke.I would make it up to him if we made it out of here alive.Somehow.
Major Kastor stared at Jet and released a deep chuckle.“Do you really think you can take all of us by yourself?”
The remaining three soldiers stalked forward, and the closest—his name and rank listed as Master Sergeant Jones—stopped beside the enormous leader.“Sir, we’re waiting on your orders.”He trained his gun on me.“Another squadron is enroute.”
Pure terror stiffened my spine, and I held my arms up in a placating gesture.“Please.My son—”
“I don’t give two fucks about your son, Dr.Lamb, like you didn’t give two fucks about the side effects of your experiments.Do you know how excruciating it was to go through the procedures to become a living weapon based onyourresearch?Do you understand how it feels to lose pieces of humanity in the name of your country?”Kastor took a step toward me and raised a fist, his lean face like chiseled diamond.“You had your chance to save your brat, and you refused.Now, you can comfort yourself knowing you’ll die together by the very weaponyoucreated.”
“No!”Jet took one step and held out a hand.“You do not need them.It is me you are after.”
The other two soldiers switched nervous glances to their dead unit member then to Jetarin, as if they couldn’t quite believe a member of their group had been killed so quickly.
Major Kastor motioned to me, and Sergeant Jones nodded, pointing his gun at my forehead.“If she moves, shoot her.”
I froze.
