Chapter Six
Cam fastened the last of her armor around her torso. She touched the button that sent her combat helmet sliding into place, then retracted it again. She’d managed to pry most of the rhinestones off, with some help from a bad-smelling chemical she’d gotten from the tech team. She lifted her carbine and checked her weapon.
She was ready for the mission. She would have liked a little more sleep, but dreams of a certain tattoo-covered annoyance had disturbed her slumber.
She heaved up the bag at her feet—filled with the stunner prods and nets. The damn thing was heavy, but the exoskeleton built into her armor made it easy enough for her to lift.
After taking a deep breath, she headed out of her squad locker room.
Her squad was waiting in the corridor.
“Ready?” Roth asked.
She fought back a smile. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
“You’ll be out of drone coverage near the alien encampment, but once you catch the creeper, you head north until you can contact us again.”
“Yes, Dad.”
“Be careful out there,” Sienna said.
“And kick some alien butt,” Taylor added.
Mac and Theron gave her silent nods.
Her friends hugged her and slapped her on the back.
“Okay, I have a Hawk to catch.” She hitched the bag up. “I’ll be back with an ugly creeper in tow.”
Cam headed toward the Hawk hangar. In her head, she ran over all the mission parameters.
“I’ll take that.” A big hand grabbed the handle of the bag.
She looked over her shoulder and saw the man responsible for her disrupted sleep. Her pulse spiked. “I’ve got it.”
“I’ll carry it.”
She yanked the bag closer. He tried to pull it away. They got into a tug-of-war.
“I’m wearing my armor,” she said. “I can carry it.”
Hemi yanked again and managed to pull it away from her. He gave her a satisfied grin.
She shook her head. “Fine. Carry it, then.”
She stomped the rest of the way to the hangar. Inside, maintenance crew members were circling the quadcopters, performing pre-flight checks. Cam spotted Claudia, also armored up, standing near one Hawk in the center of the space.
The female soldier was holding the case of sedatives. When she saw Cam and Hemi, she tossed them a salute.
Suddenly, a blond head popped out of the open side door of the Hawk. “Ready to capture a creepy alien incubator?” Finn called out.
“Great pep talk, Erickson,” Hemi said.
The Hawk pilot looked unrepentant. “Only the best of service with Erickson Air.”
“We going or what?” Shaw’s voice from inside the Hawk. The sniper appeared, cradling a rifle. It wasn’t his usual long-range laser weapon. This one was made for firing the sedatives.
Soon they were all aboard and strapped in. The Hawk took off, flying vertically, rock walls visible through the side windows before they cleared the retracted hangar doors. The Hawk rotated, and they flew south.
They had all been in this position so many times before. That hushed moment before a mission, adrenaline building, thoughts churning. Right now, Cam ran through every step of the mission, conscious of that tiny seed in the back of her mind that whispered that maybe this time she wouldn’t make it home. And the other thought…that reminded her that she was doing it for a good reason.
Cam glanced over and saw Hemi, sprawled in his chair, eyes closed and looking relaxed.
Instantly, her mind showered her in memories. The things they’d done in her bed, him sliding inside her, moving thickly.
No. No. No. She wasn’t thinking about that.
And she certainly wasn’t thinking about the “prize” she owed him.
Claudia handed out the stunner prods, and Cam clipped hers onto her belt. Hemi and Claudia stashed the nets in smaller backpacks.
“Approaching mission area,” Finn called back.
The energy in the Hawk changed, sharpened. Cam rose and looked out the small side window. A long, narrow valley lay nestled in the Snowy Mountains. She saw a lake, and in the distance, the large white pipes of the hydro-electric power station, running over the hills like giant snakes. She knew that near the large, squat building at the base of the pipes, the aliens had amassed and were planning…something.
The creepers appeared to be a key part of the aliens’ strategy. They needed to complete this mission, get one of the ugly animals back to the Enclave, and let all the super-smart people back there find a way to neutralize the monsters.
The Hawk swept in lower, remaining a safe distance away from the power station and Gizzida encampment. Finally, Finn pulled the quadcopter into a hover.
They were going to rappel down. The four of them rose, pulled their packs on, and clipped onto the rappelling lines.
“Good luck,” Finn called back from the cockpit. “Call me for a pickup.”
Shaw slammed the door back, his long-range laser rifle over one shoulder and the tranquilizer rifle over the other.
Claudia went first, diving out of the Hawk in a practiced move. Cam followed, simply stepping out of the quadcopter. The wind rushed into her face as she dropped downward.
As soon as her boots hit the ground, she disconnected from the line at a run, and headed toward the nearby trees.
The men followed, and the four of them moved in tight formation. They ran up the hill, dodging around the trees and making straight for the summit.
Finally, Claudia gave a hand signal, and they stopped.
“Over there,” the woman murmured, motioning to a clear space that gave them a perfect view of the hive of activity down in the valley below.
They moved into position, and Cam lay down on her belly, pulling her binocs off her belt. Around her, the others were doing the same.
She slowly turned knobs on her binocs, and the view came into focus. What had looked like ants scurrying around on the ground were aliens, and there were a lot of them. Damn. There were a large number of raptor soldiers, as well as canids and hellion hunting dogs, and lots and lots of creepers.
“We need to lure a creeper away from the crowd,” Claudia said. “If we can get it out of view of the main pack, then we can take it down without drawing too much attention.”
Cam assessed the situation, studying the locations of the creepers, and then looking down the base of the hill where they were situated. “The hill curves around down there.” She pointed. “If we lured one of the creepers around the base, it would put them out of view. Then we should have no trouble taking it down with the sedatives.”
“What’s this ‘we’ business?” Shaw grumbled.
Cam rolled her eyes. “Don’t worry, no one will claim your shot, super sniper.”
“Look.” Claudia pointed. “There’s a small group of creepers moving closer to us. Six creatures.”
The others followed her gesture. Cam saw the group, along with a lone raptor soldier. They had broken away from the main camp. From a distance, the raptor looked almost human, but through the binocs, his scale-covered features and teeth-filled mouth reminded her that he wasn’t.
“It almost looks like he’s—”
“Their shepherd,” Hemi finished. “Their keeper.”
She nodded. “Whatever he’s doing, we don’t want his attention.” She studied the group of creepers. They seemed placid enough, as though they were relaxed and not expecting any trouble.
“What are we going to lure it with?” Claudia asked.
Hemi grinned. “Me.”
His words were like a kick to Cam’s gut. God, she hadn’t even thought that far ahead. She knew Hemi was scary-courageous to the point of being fearless.
She cleared her throat. “Let’s talk through all the options—”
All of a sudden, the bushes nearby rustled. The four of them leaped to their feet, swinging their carbines up.
The thick bushes were shaking. Something was in there.
God, did the aliens know they were there? Tense, they all watched and waited. Cam’s nerves stretched tighter and tighter.
Hemi made a small, frustrated sound, then stomped over to the bush.
“Hemi!” Cam snapped.
He ignored her and reached the bushes, peering over the top of them. “Shit.” He swung his carbine over his shoulder, and then dived into the greenery.
“Fucking hell,” Shaw breathed. “Goddamn crazy berserkers.”
Cam rushed forward, the two Hell Squad soldiers flanking her. The bushes were shaking like crazy now, and she heard Hemi grunt. He was wrestling with something.
“Hemi,” Cam said again. She kept her eye to her scope, ready to take a shot.
Suddenly, he reared up. Cam’s throat went tight. Her gaze zeroed in on the giant alien spider in his arms, struggling to clamp onto his face. It was about the size of a basketball.
Damn. They’d been attacked by a swarm of these once, on their mad rush out of Blue Mountain Base. She scanned their surroundings, searching for more. They were not nice creatures.
She moved closer. “Dammit, Hemi. Throw it down and give us a clear shot.”
Hemi spun, muscles straining, as he kept the creature from sucking onto his face. “Can’t shoot it…might alert that raptor.”
Shit, he was right. The last thing they needed was to let the Gizzida know they were here.
Hemi spun again, still wrestling with the creature, and he let out a huge laugh.
Crazy man. He was enjoying himself. Then his hands shifted, and she heard the crack of breaking bone.
He tossed the broken creature down, his chest heaving like bellows. He stood there, blood on his gloved hands, grinning.
Cam felt her pulse racing like an out-of-control Hawk. The moron. The fearless, macho moron.
***
Hemi grabbed one of their water bottles, and washed off the alien blood. He heard Shaw and Claudia hammering out the details for luring a creeper closer. Cam was unusually quiet. He glanced her way and saw her face was set like stone.
“Right,” Shaw said. “I’ll get into position.” The sniper was loading the sedatives into the tranquilizer rifle. “Hemi, you need to bring the creeper in close enough for me to take a shot.”
“Got it,” Hemi replied.
Shaw looked at the women. “Claudia and Cam, you’ll be his backup. If he gets into any trouble…”
“You mean, like getting up close and personal with an alien and getting himself eaten?” Cam asked.
Her sharp tone made Shaw shoot Hemi a sympathetic look.
Oh yeah, Cam was pissed.
“If he gets into any trouble, you two have the nets and stun prods. Carbines are for worst-case scenario. If you need to lay down cover fire, that’ll let the aliens know we’re here.”
Hemi knew if they had to fire their carbines, then they’d be pointing a huge neon sign at themselves, and screw the mission. Aliens would descend on them in minutes.
“I’ll get the damn thing here,” Hemi said.
Suddenly, Cam stormed up to him and slammed her gloved fist into his gut. He grunted. With his armor on, it didn’t hurt him, but she still packed a wallop.
“Are you trying to get yourself killed?” she snapped.
Yep, really mad. “No.”
“You jumped into those bushes with no thought, no plan, no—”
He grabbed her shoulders. “I knew if we shot the damn thing, the aliens would’ve heard. I wanted to protect the mission.” And you.
He kept his mouth shut on the second part. He was well aware that Cam could take care of herself. If she knew he was trying to protect her, mad would be the least of his worries. But it wouldn’t stop him from doing what he could to keep her safe. He figured it was best not to tell her, though.
“And now you’re going to make yourself bait for a damn creeper.” Anger vibrated in her voice.
He reached out and cupped her cheek. “Cam, I’ll be fine.”
“You think I care if you get eaten by an alien?” She lifted her chin at a haughty angle.
Yeah, he did. He could see the worry in her brown eyes, even if she couldn’t admit it. “The plan will work.”
“And if it doesn’t?” she countered.
“I have a Plan B.”
She frowned. “And what’s Plan B?”
He winced. “Let’s just hope Plan A works out.”
Cam squeezed her eyes shut for a few seconds, then released a long breath. The next thing he knew, she grabbed the front of his armor and yanked him close.
“Don’t get yourself killed, Rahia.”
“Dying isn’t part of the plan.”
She lowered her voice so only he could hear. “If you do, you won’t get to claim your prize.”
Shit. An image of her lips stretched around— He mentally cursed, his cock twitching. He grinned at her. “Roger that.”
They all headed down the hill, and Hemi forced himself to focus on his part of the mission. At the base of the hill, they stayed in cover under the trees. Shaw gave Claudia a quick kiss and nodded at Hemi and Cam. Then he disappeared into the trees.
He would circle around the hill to the location they’d selected. He’d get ready and wait for Hemi to lure the creeper around to him, well out of view of any other aliens.
Hemi pulled his carbine off and handed it to Cam. He checked his combat knife and his backup knife. He nodded at the women, then looked out into the valley.
He saw a group of creepers ahead. They were skittering around, two scuffling with each other. Their glowing orange bellies were empty. One raised its head and screeched.
Damn, they were ugly motherfuckers.
He glanced at his watch, pushing the protective cover off the face. Shaw should have had enough time to get into position.
A creeper wandered closer to them, and he felt Cam and Claudia tense. Come on, creeper. Just a little closer.
Just a few more meters, and it would be a good distance from the group and out of the direct line of sight of the raptor soldier babysitting them.
Closer. Closer. It was close enough now for Hemi to see the hard, black outer shell. It looked more like an insect than the raptors. He saw its sucker mouth moving.
It was now or never.
Hemi stepped out of the trees. At first, the alien didn’t notice him. He watched it lower its head to the grass.
What was it doing? Its movements increased, and that’s when he realized. It was sniffing the ground.
The creature lifted its head and looked his way. He saw glowing, red eyes lock onto him. Hemi started walking backward. He needed to get around the hill, well away from the other creepers, and close to Shaw. He had about a hundred meters to reach the sniper.
Walk in the park. Hemi kept moving steadily, not taking his gaze off the animal. The creeper was following him.
Suddenly, it stopped.
“Come on, you ugly motherfucker,” he muttered. He kept his tone calm and coaxing.
Suddenly, the creeper bolted toward him with a blast of speed.
Shit. Hemi turned and ran.
He leaped over a fallen tree, and skirted around the hill. He heard the alien running close behind him. He smelled the stench of it.
Ahead, he spotted the trees Shaw had selected as his position. Just another twenty meters.
Something slammed into Hemi’s legs and he went down, rolling across the grass.
He rolled onto his back and saw the creeper looming over him. It’d knocked his legs out from under him.
He yanked out his combat knife. The creature jabbed at him with one of its sharp legs.
“Hemi! Move!” Cam’s frantic voice in his earpiece.
“You’re still out of range,” Shaw said. “Get it closer!”
Hemi rolled right beneath the creeper, dodging all six legs. The confused creeper turned in a circle, searching for him. Hemi pushed to his feet, dodged between the legs, and started sprinting.
“Come on, Hemi,” Cam said. “Just a bit farther.”
He felt something slam into his back, a sharp tip piercing his armor between the center of his shoulder blades. It sent him stumbling.
He recovered and kept charging. Just pretend you’re on the rugby field, Rahia.
Ahead, he saw Cam and Claudia break out of the trees. Both of them were holding containment nets.
Cam tossed hers, and it flew through the air. The creeper screeched and dodged. The net skimmed over the creature but missed.
The creeper spun, and its gaze locked on Cam. She was out in the open now, a clear target.
It charged toward her.
“No, you don’t,” Hemi growled.
He leaped at it, stabbing his knife at its orange belly. It turned, rearing and lifting its two front legs off the ground. They waved madly.
Good. Now its attention was back on him.
“Still out of range,” Shaw yelled.
Hemi saw the creeper tense. Then before he could move, the big, ugly sucker mouth pointed right at him.
Fuck. He turned, pumping his arms as he tried to run.
The mouth slammed down on him and closed around him. The world went black.