CHAPTER ONE
Edriq Haeken stood at the front door of the mansion and checked his weapons again. His guns, knives and other weapons designed to cause irreparable and irreversible damage to a body were holstered and carefully hidden under his leather jacket. He would never use any of these deadly weapons on innocent civilians of course. These sharp and shiny objects that were designed for death and destruction were reserved for those pieces of shit, a.k.a. Slayors, who hunted and targeted innocent civilians.
Edriq stepped out onto the porch and frowned up at the night sky. It was full dark outside, and a lone star was twinkling like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are…
Edriq tried to shake the catchy tune out of his head but it stuck fast to his brain like gum to the bottom of your shoe. The more you fought it, the harder it stuck. Resistance truly was futile in this case.
Edriq knew all the cutesy nursery rhymes and songs by heart. He used to sing them to Tessa when she was a wee babe. He wasn't a great singer, but the little girl didn't seem to mind his gruff, out-of-tune crooning. In fact, she seemed to find her Uncle Edriq's deep voice soothing and she would fall right asleep in his arms. He still played patty-cake with Tessa sometimes, even though she had informed them all in a very important voice that she was a big girl now. Only big kids go to school, she said, and since she attended kindergarten, she was a big kid.
Tessa was five, going on fifty.
Tessa was their princess. Yep, the little girl ruled the three big men in the house, but it was also her royal title. She was the daughter of their leader and king, Rohan Draek. Mrs Vomae, their housekeeper, often remarked that the little girl had Rohan, Zul and Edriq neatly wrapped around her little finger.
Edriq came back into the house and zipped up his leather jacket to conceal his weapons. Beside him, Zul popped his gum and tapped one combat boot impatiently against the gleaming marble floor.
“Stop knocking your big, dirty boot against the tiles. Mrs Vomae is going to throw a fit if she notices even one scratch on the floor,” Edriq warned.
Zul made a face but he ceased his rapid-fire tapping and straightened up. He definitely didn't want to get in Mrs Vomae's bad books. The housekeeper was a stickler for cleanliness and she kept the mansion in tip-top, spanking new, picture perfect condition. She was also an excellent cook, and she always made sure their stomachs were filled with wholesome, nutritious, protein-rich foods. No mean feat in itself, since Zul's stomach seemed to be a bottomless pit.
Of the three of them, Zul was the youngest warrior. The guy was built like a mountain, with thick shoulders and bulging biceps. He had a smart mouth and a cheeky, risque sense of humor and was sometimes mistaken for an overgrown teenager. But Zul was no awkward, inexperienced teenager. Far from it. He was one of the bravest solders and fiercest warriors of Draca. And when it came to killing Slayors, the guy was a lean, mean, killing machine.
Edriq and Zul had been Rohan's royal guards in Draca. Rohan was their king, their boss, their friend, their brother-in-arms. It was at Rohan's insistence that Edriq and Zul finally moved into the sprawling mansion. Despite Rohan's denial, Edriq shouldn't shake the nagging suspicion that Rohan had purchased the majestic, humongous residence with the intention that the mansion serve as a command center or a shelter for their people if the war with the Slayors escalated.
They thought they had left the war on their home planet, but the war had pursued them to Earth.
For more than half a century, the surviving Dracans lived quietly on Earth and did their best to rebuild their lives. They acquired new skills, found jobs and some even set up shops and businesses.
Like Rohan. With his sharp analytical mind and business acumen, Rohan had set up a very successful company, or rather companies. In the human world, Rohan was the chairman of Draek Holdings, a large investment company. His company owned the Blazing Beans coffee chain and the FabFit fitness chain. Edriq was in charge of the fitness chain while Zul took care of the Blazing Beans outlets. Their staff included Dracan as well as human employees, and for a time, it was a productive, peaceful existence.
But now everything they had worked so hard for was at risk. Their hard-won peace and security, their lives and families.
The Slayors had found them. The Slayors had come to Earth to wipe out all the surviving Dracans.
Not gonna happen.
Not on my watch, Edriq swore.