Stumbling back, Chrissy desperately tried to keep the alien creature away from her face.

Two slimy, black tentacles waved in front of her eyes, then wrapped around her wrist. Hard. She dropped the scanner and it clattered on the floor.

She spun around. “You little fucker, you’re what damaged my Hunter.” She steeled herself, and with her other hand, she gripped the slick creature, trying to pull the alien off her.

The tentacles around her wrist tightened. Ow. They continued to tighten and pain flared up her arm.

Chrissy stumbled again and cried out. The next instant, she heard a bone snap and electric pain burned up her arm.

“What the fuck?” Suddenly, strong, tattooed arms wrapped around her from behind. Levi gripped the alien, adding his strength to hers.

But the alien wouldn’t budge. It jostled her broken wrist and nausea washed through her from the pain.

Levi grunted. “Hit it.”

Trusting him to hold it from moving, she let go with her other hand. She yanked a hammer off her belt and aimed for the creature. She hit it and she felt the tentacles tighten more. The strike reverberated through her wrist and she screamed.

“Hold on, Spitfire.”

Levi shuffled them across the hangar, and with each step, the pain worsened. Her vision wavering, she saw he was moving them toward her toolbox.

“Chrissy, stay with me, honey. Grab something out of there and slice that fucker up.”

Fighting to stay conscious, she reached out and grabbed a laser cutter out of the toolbox. She flicked it on and orange light flared. She thrust the cutter at the alien, careful to avoid Levi’s hands.

The creature’s tentacles went wild, and she watched the alien change color from black to mottled red, and back again. She stabbed it once more.

It released its hold on her and dropped to the ground, curling in on itself. Sweet relief filled her, and she slumped against Levi’s body.

“You’re all right, Spitfire.” He held her close to his chest.

She glanced back at the alien. The damned thing was slowly trying to drag its injured body under a Hunter. “It’s not dead! We have to stop it.”

She shuddered at the thought of that thing getting into the Enclave. There were kids out there, like Max. A boy who’d already suffered too much. This thing was added fuel to the nightmares.

Levi scowled and snatched a wrench off her belt. As he moved toward the alien, it changed directions, heading for some storage crates. It slithered under them.

Swallowing down her pain, Chrissy grabbed the laser cutter and followed. She clutched her injured hand to her chest.

“You shift the crates,” she said.

He eyed her and nodded. “Ready?”

She met his gaze and lifted the laser cutter. “Ready.”

He slammed a boot into the crate, tipping it over.

The alien was ready, flying up at them.

Chrissy dodged to the side. The animal landed, splayed on the floor, and pushed up on its tentacles to turn back.

Levi lifted a boot and brought it down on one tentacle, pinning it. “Now!”

She raced forward with the laser cutter. The creature whipped around in a frenzy. She hesitated for a second, worried that she’d hit Levi.

“Do it!” he ordered.

She thrust the cutter into the creature.

Tentacles waved wildly and it flickered black and red.

Levi lifted his boot and slammed it down on the creature. The flailing tentacles stopped and flopped to the concrete.

He stepped back and sucked in a deep breath. “What the fuck was that?”

Chrissy clutched her broken wrist to her chest, and on a hunch, went over to get her scanner. She wasn’t sure this would work, but she flicked the device on and scanned the creature.

Data appeared on the screen and she hissed. “Well, it isn’t just an ugly Gizzida pet, after all. It’s part animal and part machine. This is what disabled the Hunter.” She frowned. “It looks like there’s data stored on this thing.” She looked up at Levi. “It was designed to collect data.”

He frowned. “Shit. Come on. We need to let the geek squad know, and get your arm checked out.”

Chrissy nodded. She knew that Noah Kim and his team of geniuses who kept everything in the Enclave running were the best people to pull this little nasty apart.

Besides, she really wanted a painkiller.

“The little bastard broke my wrist,” she muttered.

“Broke it?” Levi reached out, gently touching her arm. He muttered a savage curse, then grabbed the back of his T-shirt and yanked it over his head.

She watched, mesmerized.

“Here.” He set to work fashioning a makeshift sling for her.

Chrissy was too busy staring at his chest, and the vast expanse of bronzed skin over hard, lean muscle. She swallowed. Silver winked at her from one of his flat nipples. God, he had a nipple ring. And all that black ink. Her gaze followed some tribal markings that ran down his side.

Then he turned and she got a view of his back.

Oh. God. Chrissy had always liked tattoos on a man. Levi’s muscled back was completely covered in the most amazing ink. She shifted, her gaze sliding over the outstretched black wings of a fallen warrior angel.

He turned back. “Come on, we need to get you to the infirmary.”

Infirmary. Right. Broken wrist.

He slid an arm around her and scooped her into his arms.

She gasped. “My arm’s broken, King, not my legs.”

“Don’t care.” He strode out of the hangar.

“What about the alien?”

“I’ll call Noah from the infirmary.” Levi paused. “You did good work back there, Spitfire. Didn’t lose your cool once.”

Praise from this man shouldn’t feel so good. “Thanks. You too.”

He’d charged in with no concern for his own safety. She’d heard the berserkers were good at that.

Suddenly, he grinned at her. “Wow, you thanked me without spontaneously combusting.”

She screwed her nose up. “Don’t ruin it.”

He leaned closer, his breath brushing her cheek. “I can’t wait for you to thank me for giving you the best orgasm of your life.”

“Annnnd he’s ruined it. You just can’t help but be an asshole, can you?”

He turned a corner into another corridor and ahead lay the door into the infirmary. “Nope. Come on, Spitfire. Let’s get that arm fixed.”

“And then I can punch you with it,” she grumbled.

* * *

Levi leaned against the wall in the Command Center, staring at the small crowd gathered for the early-morning briefing. Ash and Tane were flanking him.

His gaze moved unerringly to auburn hair sitting close to the front. Chrissy had tossed him some glares when he’d forced her to sit. Her wrist was all healed now, but it would take him a while to forget the sight of her wrestling with that alien thing when he’d entered the hangar.

“All right, let’s get started.” General Holmes stepped out in front. The man carried an air of authority that usually grated on Levi, but Holmes did get the job done. He made tough choices, took action, and kept everyone in this little sanctuary of humanity alive.

Off to the side stood another dark-haired man. Niko Ivanov was the civilian leader of the Enclave. The man was an artist, but Levi recognized a badass when he saw one. He might be an artist now, but he’d been something else before. From the day the survivors from Blue Mountain Base had arrived, Niko had welcomed them and worked seamlessly with Holmes to make the Enclave their home too.

“Noah’s had some time to study the creature that came off the Hunter.”

Noah stood, his dark hair loose and brushing his shoulders, and a frown on his face. He held a device and when he clicked a button, images blinked onto the screens covering the wall. They all showed the ugly, black tentacle creature.

“We’re calling this unattractive little guy a parasite. It is an organic machine, and seems to have been specifically designed to get into the Hunter, lay low, and collect data.”

Levi glanced at Chrissy and caught her wince. Hell, the woman even looked sexy when she was uncomfortable. He took in her black tank top, and the way it showcased slender arms and her fantastic breasts. His cock hardened and he let himself imagine her naked.

She didn’t look his way, and he got the distinct impression she was ignoring him.

Levi had learned to never give up. If you wanted something, you went after it, because life was a bitch. She never handed you anything for free. You fought for it, and you bled for it, or you got nothing.

God, Chrissy had been fierce fighting that creature. No screaming or hysterics. Tough as fuck, even with a broken wrist.

“What data is this thing collecting?” Marcus Steel, the leader of Hell Squad, asked.

“Everything,” Noah answered. “How the Hunter works, info about the fuel systems, engine stats, and weapons data.”

“The maintenance team is already checking all our vehicles and Hawks for any sign of more of these things,” Holmes said. “I’ve also got extra squads out on patrol.” He glanced at the woman standing tall beside him.

Captain Kate Scott, head of Enclave security, nodded. “My security team is on high alert. If anyone gets close to the Enclave, we’ll know about it.”

“I did get some encrypted alien data off the parasite.” A satisfied smile crossed Noah’s face. “Elle?”

A small brunette seated at a comp tapped on the screen. Elle Steele, comms officer for Hell Squad and Marcus’ wife, smiled as she worked.

Images flashed up on the screen. As they flicked through in a slideshow, Levi frowned. Most were dark and blurry, and he wasn’t sure what he was looking at.

“Most of them seem to be of this particular location,” Noah said.

Levi saw metal and water. A factory?

“Where is it?” Chrissy asked.

Noah shook his head. “We’re not sure yet.”

“Those look like cranes,” Chrissy said. “Not small ones, either.” The next image made her straighten. “Yes, look. That’s a part of a dockside gantry crane.”

Noah put his hands on his hips. “You’re right.”

“Hang on a second.” Elle’s fingers flew across the screen. “I’m doing a search of all of Sydney’s ports. Cross-referencing our drone image database.” The comp beeped, and a wide smile lit up Elle’s pretty face. “Got it. It’s the deep-water port at Botany Bay.” Her smile dissolved. “It’s right beside Sydney Airport.”

Levi stroked his chin. Sydney Airport. That was the Gizzida’s base of operations in the area, and where their giant, alien mothership sat.

“So, what’s so special about this port?” Tane asked. “Anything that you can see?”

Holmes frowned. “We’ve documented the port before. As far as we know, it’s just empty, rotting docks.” The general turned, sliding his hands behind his back. “Elle, alert Lia that I want the drone team to focus on the port and gather more data. Noah, keep your team studying this parasite. We need to determine why the raptors are focusing on that particular area.”

“I can send someone in to scout it out,” Santha Cruz said. The head of the intel team was back at work since the birth of her baby.

Holmes shook his head at the brunette. “It’s too close to the airport. That will be a last resort.”

Levi crossed his arms over his chest. “I have a bad feeling about this.” He kept his voice low.

Ash nodded. “I get a bad feeling anytime the aliens are involved.”

Ash had been feeling particularly touchy about the raptors, since one of them had shoved a sword through his woman’s chest a few weeks back. Thankfully, sweet Marin had survived.

“Stay alert.” Holmes’ gaze slid around the room, and then stopped on the berserkers. “Squad Three is up for the next mission, so if we find anything we need to act on…”

Tane inclined his head. “We’ll be ready.”

As others raised their voices to ask questions, Levi looked over at Chrissy.

Only to find her gorgeous red hair missing and her chair empty. Sometime during the briefing, she’d slipped out.

Levi grinned. You keep running, Spitfire. I’ll catch you.