Defender (New World Book 7) Read online

  “Sperm doesn’t do well in heat.”

  “My shield regenerates in the sun. I love the heat, so does my sperm.”

  “Are your critters all hot and bothered?”

  “Fuck yes.”

  Macey reached down and gripped his cock. He was big but not too engorged. She ran her palm over the length of him.

  “Can you control your cock so I can suck on it? I don’t want a sudden Twinkie on steroids to give me a broken jaw or a permanent wide mouth expression.”

  Taz stared at her, wide-eyed. “In your mouth?”

  “Well, unless you can figure out how to get it in yours…”

  Taz lifted her under the arms to move her while he sat on the edge of the pool. Macey stood between his legs and took his erection in her hands. She watched his expression as she licked the head of his cock. Taz swore and shuddered.

  “Remember when you spanked me?” she coyly asked and licked him again.

  “Uh oh.”

  “You do remember. There are other ways of torture.”

  Macey drew half of him into her mouth. He was huge and filled her. Her teeth slightly grazed his skin and he shuddered. His hand gripped her hair but he didn’t stop her. She sucked harder and moved her mouth over him. She lifted her hands to tease his sacks and for a second he squirmed.

  She released him and nipped his inner thigh. He made an odd sound and when she gazed at him he looked dangerous.

  Good, smart ass.

  She nipped his other thigh before using her hands to work his cock. He was warm and wet and she knew his secretions were meant for her. She laved the tip of his head and drew him into her mouth as slow as she could. He was trembling when her hands pushed his thighs wider. She took him deeper.

  His erection began to grow, and he began to slip out the bigger he became. Finally Macey had to release him. Taz jumped into the pool and grabbed her hips. Macey panicked. If he plunged his engorged length into her while he was huge she’d howl the cave down. Taz thrust as he bit into her throat, her scream died on her lips and she rested her head on his shoulder for a moment as his thrusts went wild, spilling water over the edges of the pool.

  Taz’s breath came in short puffs as he slowed. His hands trailed over her back. He grabbed a fistful of her hair and exposed her throat. He bit her again and he continued to rock. He was building faster this time.

  “I’m happy we’ll be here a long time. I can get used to this,” Macey said, her lips were pressed to his ear.

  “You’ll get used to it too. I want my baby. I want to complete our family. I’ll just have to try harder.”

  “You definitely have the harder part down to an art.”

  Taz chuckled. “Do I? How about we concentrate on the try aspect.”

  Taz ravaged her lips. When he broke contact she smiled at him.

  “We have forever you know,” Macey said.

  “We really do.”

  Taz cuddled her to his chest. Her breasts pressed to his skin. Macey closed her eyes and breathed deep. Forever was a long time. She was happy she would spend it with Taz.

  * * * *

  For a long time, Taz was happy and content to watch the girls play in the cave they made a home in. Days turned to weeks, weeks to months. Laughter filled their days while the storms worsened and few shuttles left. Much of Earth was destroyed. Taz went out daily, wistfully wishing the skies would clear and the Tonans would be gone. He was always relieved to return home.

  The happiest day of his life after finding Macey was the first hushed emotions of his babe, quiet emotions swirled into life. The second he heard her heart beat, he grabbed Macey and crushed her to him. She was astounded he knew before she did, but he knew. He scented his child’s life and fell in love all over again. He would be the proudest father in the universe. And thanks to his parents and Macey, he would be the most loving.

  He loved to feel Macey’s belly as she expanded and the kicks of his baby were the sweetest feeling anywhere. They would complete their family. Each day, Taz went out in search of anything that would make their lives easier. Every day he returned feeling remorseful. The storms were getting worse. The Tonans were capturing females now in plain sight. They weren’t waiting for shuttles anymore. The shuttles had all but stopped with the drastic weather, only the Tonan mother ships flew in. Too many shuttles crashed or veered off course to land on different planets and he heard word Krish was on the move and looking for him. Taz knew something extreme had occurred on his planet.

  After wild storms, dead animals were easy to come by. Taz preferred fresh meat but a deer lay on the ground. He was about to retrieve it when he stopped. He had been on Earth for a year now and knew he maintained an earthy scent; it’s what kept him from being detected when he spied on other Tonans. The two Tonans who walked within his sight were easy to avoid.

  “Cobra escaped. We got word. The war is gearing up. He’s coming for human females for his warriors.”

  “So it’s true. He’s out to kill all Tonans.”

  The pair moved off. The idea was scary. It would mean the Castians were coming. His family was in danger. A greater threat was the encroaching water. The cave would flood and they would drown if he didn’t move the others soon. Taz loathed the idea of making yet another home.

  Overhead the sky was darkening; another storm was brewing. It would be brutal. He needed to get home. Haven hated thunder. The city he roamed was totaled. Death was everywhere. Taz felt sad. The city had been spared for so long. There were few people, but enough to keep his interest.

  As he went to retrieve the deer he stopped in his tracks. There was no mistaking the evil stench behind him. Taz knew this moment would come. He turned to stare at Krish, earthy scent or not, he’d known Krish would find him. Taz felt no fear, not even a twinge; it was the first time in his life he knew he defied Krish on purpose and he didn’t care.

  “You’ve grown weak.”

  Taz glared at him.

  “I’m anything but weak.”

  “You scent of female. You’ve mated. How wonderful.” Krish strolled towards him. “I can smell her scent on you. I won’t kill her or you. I have bigger plans for your female. I’ve been searching for you for a long time.”

  “My mate and I are staying on Earth.”

  Krish laughed. “I doubt it. The planet is dying. There was never any thought to stop the storms. Every human we want or need has already been taken. It’s just a matter of rounding up a few stragglers for sport. We have no need to hide; my plan is in motion. Once the females get us what we want from the Castians, we’ll kill them all and the human offspring as well. Females are useless. After our enemy falls, females will fall.”

  Taz was furious, Krish’s tail didn’t grow; he wasn’t lying. “You planned this all along, you bastard. I should have known the females were for sport and treachery. You’ll kill off another race to destroy Castians. It’s always about the damned Castians. Why do you hate them so much?”

  “They are weak. They are an embarrassment.” Krish twitched, it was subtle but Taz knew the truth.

  “They scare the shit out of you. Cobra has escaped and he’ll stop at nothing with his warriors now grown.”

  Krish’s jaw twitched. “Nothing scares me, you pile of puke.”

  “The males, elderly and young children left on this planet won’t survive the storms. You’re the pile of puke.”

  “So what? Why the concern? Ah. Your mate is expecting isn’t she? What a good little warrior you are.”

  “I should have known. Your kind killed two entire races of females. Humans would be no different. It’s all you know. Your evil has no bounds. There are tiny little lone humans with no home and no hope.”

  “We can discuss my lack of empathy further aboard my vessel.”

  “I’ll take my chances here.”

  “The water will drown you and your mate eventually, as well as the little one. I can’t have that. You will never get away from me. Your mate will never get away from me. This
mating is for female offspring. Your babe won’t get away from me either.”

  Taz knew it was true. As long as Krish lived, he and Macey would be hunted. His baby would only have the protection of her baby shield for five years or less. Krish would kill him, and as soon as the shield fell, Macey would die, their daughter would be left unprotected. Taz couldn’t let that happen. He would never allow her to be raised and tortured as he had been.

  Krish chuckled. “You can’t seriously be thinking of taking me on? It never ceases to amaze me how stupid you are. I’ll kill you, scent out your mate and keep her alive. We both know once the baby shield drops, your daughter will be mine. And to tell you the truth,” Krish said and leaned in a little closer. “I’m a horrible father.”

  “You are no father at all. But I will be. You’ve taught me everything not to do with a child. And guess what, you bastard. I know why you wanted me to come here. You have your answer. Your kind will fall, you’ve killed them. Paybacks a bitch, as the humans say. You’ll get yours in spades. Cobra’s escape will be your end, and if my kind is smart they will join with him and take a mate. And they will. I know it. I denounce you. You are a coward. A coward has no mercy. You and your kind will fall. I hope they all get their brains bashed in. Our females didn’t deserve to die. Neither do Earth’s females.”

  “You’re pathetic.”

  “You’re dead.”

  Both males leapt at the same time. Arms a whirlwind of action as they sliced their talons across each other’s armor. Sparks flew as they spun high in the air, dropped to deliver punishing blows on bowed backs. Taz jumped and sent both clawed feet into Krish’s chest. Krish went sailing into a broken piece of roof which spun backwards from the force to reveal a young female hiding, half dead. Taz could scent she was a child, but wouldn’t be for long.

  “More bounty.” Krish stood and eyed the young female, she was maybe nineteen. “After I’m done killing you, I’ll fix this one. She’ll be perfect for a Castian warrior still in must. Cobra doesn’t have them all; some of his warriors are still mine.”

  “She’s a child, you pile of puke.”

  “She’s female. She’s worthless.”

  Something in Taz snapped. Taz’s mother wasn’t worthless. The death of the boy, Jimmy, was senseless. The slaughter of the human race was senseless. A young female lay dying, and all Krish could think of was to heal her to hurt her. His child was female; she wasn’t worthless. She already meant everything to Taz. She could never fall into the hands of Tonans. Never.

  Every inch of Taz was seething. He could feel his shield as it changed, morphing his emotions into weapons. Hate the likes he had never known enveloped him. He was going to protect his babe. Macey called him their defender. He was and would be until his dying breath. But right now death wasn’t an option.

  “You will never harm another female again,” Taz said with a soft growl.

  “Grow a back bone. Do what needs to be done. You’re a Tonan, act like one.”

  “I will. I will act like the Tonan I am and was meant to be. I made a promise to my mother hundreds of years ago. I’m going to honor that promise. Females are life. They were slaughtered because they were too important. My kind will mate and your kind will die. Tonan against Tonan. Beginning with you.”

  Krish began to speak, but Taz attacked. He wouldn’t listen to another word that spewed from evil’s mouth. Taz lunged and the two warriors met in the air. Their armor smashed together. The booming sounds of their battle was horrific. The storm moving in was inconsequential as titans fought.

  “Die, you bastard,” Taz howled. “I know what a dog is, you fucking piece of garbage, and I’m rabid.”

  He scented worry on Krish as Taz relentlessly pummeled the warrior. Taz’s talons were ten times sharper than polished razor blades. He was fueled with passion, not for his life, but for the ones he protected. Taz smashed his forehead into Krish’s tattoos, sending him flying back. A roundhouse kick was sent into his guts. A steel pipe found its way into his palms and Taz beat at Krish’s back. The steel bent with his first blow. A block of a concrete wall was toppled onto Krish who roared and jumped up trying to fight back.

  A small ounce of sunlight broke through the clouds for an instant. Taz’s shield utilized the beam, having become good at gaining what precious seconds it might have, while keeping the rays from Krish. Taz stomped on Krish’s legs. The crunch reminded Taz of when he saved Macey by breaking her bones. It was Krish’s fault. Everything was Krish’s fault. Taz grabbed Krish’s armor and using two talons ripped the body armor down the middle. A single area of skin was exposed for a mere second. It was all Taz needed. He bit Krish. The venom in his fangs wasn’t the same he used on Macey and the other females. This was toxic. Virulent bacteria of hate, rage and death mixed with Krish’s blood. Krish gasped. His armor dropped piece by piece to the ground where it hovered.

  “That’s not possible,” Krish whispered.

  “It is. You can’t look back in your history because your kind would never die to protect your children. My kind have and will. We get the edge, you bastard. We get the toxins meant to kill. It’s our secret. Guess what? Your plan will backfire. My kind will mate and we will turn on your kind. We will form our own race or we will join with the Castians.”

  “It will never happen,” Krish’s shout of outrage was pathetic.

  “You have doomed your own kind. Human females will be your demise. We will win in the end. My kind, Krish. Not yours. And no one will know but my kind, they will feel what I feel when their shield demands a mate. None of your kind will find out before it’s too late because you’re dead.”

  Taz attacked with the fury and hate of hundreds of years. He ripped Krish to shreds in seconds. With satisfaction he stood back and watched as Krish’s shield turned to rust and floated away with the wind. A tiny groan caught his attention. Taz lowered his shield and went to the female on the ground; she had her arms wrapped around her head shielding her face. She hadn’t seen what he was. Tenderly he hefted her into his arms. She whimpered and clung to him. She was dying, he sensed it.

  “A beast killed my dad. Another took my older sister,” she whispered.

  “A grey beast?”

  “A grey beast killed my dad. An ebony beast took my sister.”

  “A Castian. So they’re here. What’s your name?”

  “Jinx.”

  “Everything will be fine, Jinx. Everything will be fine.”

  Taz sunk his fangs into her throat and she went limp. He enveloped her in his shield and ran while the storm raged. The female would recover. Taz would keep her. She was alone and desolate. Jinx was of childbearing years even though she was young. Krish’s kind had no scruples. Taz knew the Tonans were taking anything female. He needed to get his family away from this area. Far away.

  Chapter 12

  “What happened? Who is she?” Macey asked when Taz came home and placed a young unconscious woman on their bed. He raced to her and grabbed her hands.

  “I saved her from death. I’ve knocked her out; she’s exhausted and scared half to death. She’s been through hell. She watched a Tonan kill her father and a Castian steal her sister. It’s time to leave, Macey. We need to find a safer place. The Tonans have come; they aren’t hiding their forms, as well as the Castians. Their leader Cobra is free and there will be war like no other because it involves living females. Cobra will do anything for his warriors. He will find them mates and he will rebuild his army and make it stronger. Like Tonans, Castian females were born but not many. There were never enough for all the warriors, with human females there will be, if Cobra gets a hold of them. He will become a warrior with a mission.

  “This area is flooding. Krish said the storms will never end, but I don’t know what to believe. I killed him, Macey; he can never get to us. And now that he’s dead, another Tonan might stop the storms. It would be easier to search for stragglers if the weather weren’t as volatile.”

  “What if there is nowhere safer?”<
br />
  Macey ran a hand over her tummy. She felt the little flutters of movement within and wasn’t certain if she was happy or sad. What kind of life would their baby have? The only way for Taz to get close enough to the shuttles with the Tonans guarding them would be to mass murder. Neither of them wanted that. And now he was saying the Tonans no longer cared if humans saw them in their shielded forms. He said there were very few shuttles leaving, if at all. The skies were too volatile. He said even if he managed to steal a shuttle, it would be too dangerous to try and fly them out. Macey was certain Earth would heal. Taz would only say he wasn’t certain anymore. Krish was a liar. The storms had to end. He would have told Taz anything to scare him into leaving with him. She needed to believe that.

  “I have been searching at night these last two months. Going farther across your planet. There is one area relatively safe. There are storms, but there’s a cave deep in the heart of a jungle. The bitter cold and water hasn’t done any damage.”

  Macey could hear the word yet whispered in the air. “Is it far? How can we get there?”

  Taz took her hands. “It’s going to be dangerous and tricky. I’ll need to move you and Haven there first. Next Jinx and Skylar and go back for Greta. I will tell you it will deplete my shield. I’ll need a few days to regenerate and if there is no sun we’ll all be in shit.”

  “I know you’ll do your best. Why can’t we walk there?”

  “I’m moving us a continent away. It’s our only hope. Where we’re going is so sparsely populated the Tonans haven’t bothered with it. With the storms so frequent, the Tonans are picking up and leaving. The sky is volatile.”

  “We’re trapped aren’t we?”

  “On Earth, yes. But trust me; you don’t want to go where the humans have gone. War is raging. Something bad is happening on my planet, I could sense it in the voices of the warriors I heard speaking.”

  “When do we leave?”

  “Tonight. We need to get away before Krish’s body is discovered. There’s a cave deep in the ground within this one. No one but an alien with my capabilities could get in or out. I’ll drug the others so other Tonans can’t scent any emotion, not even a flicker and leave them in the cave in a deep stasis. Macey, I know I sound cruel, but I can’t take the chance of anyone finding the others. If I don’t go back, they will die. If I leave them in a place accessible they will be captured. Tonans will kill your aunt. They’ll take the girls, as young as they are. I won’t let them take the girls. Skylar and Haven are like my own. They are my own.”