Destin's Hold (The Alliance #5)(67)

“We’ve got company,” Destin said, wincing when Mason turned the corner between two buildings.

“I see them,” Mason replied, accelerating.

“Yes!” Destin shouted.

“Ouch! What the hell happened?” Mason asked, taking another corner. “Bogies at eleven and two.”

“The Trivators are figuring out what we are doing and two of their fighters took out the ones heading for us,” Destin replied, swiveling to eleven o’clock and firing before turning to the two o’clock one. “We’re making progress!”

“Don’t count your eggs yet, boss man. It looks like the alien chicken just hatched a new batch,” Mason said, watching in dismay as the sky filled with the falling pods. “I hate fucking alien chickens.”



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Prymorus threw the monitor he was looking at across the room. Retris still had not returned with the Raftian and the Jawtaw, and the Drethulan commander refused to listen to him. He had told the male that he didn’t have troop placement yet, but the Drethulan was overconfident.

“Sir, what are your instructions?” one of the warriors asked, standing at attention.

“Bring me the human child you found,” Prymorus ordered.

“Yes, sir,” the warrior said, turning on his heel.

Prymorus walked over to the opening and stared out. Drethulan pods fell through the atmosphere. He watched several explode before they reached the ground. His fingers tightened on the doorframe and he stepped back when two Trivator fighters flashed low overhead. The building shook from the explosions outside. Dust and loose debris rained down from the ceiling.

He watched the warrior walk back from the freighter. A struggling human boy fought to escape. Loud curses escaped the boy and he flashed a look of resentment at Prymorus.

The moment the boy was within striking distance, Prymorus backhanded him across the face. The force of the blow knocked the boy off his feet and he fell several feet away, stunned. Pulling his laser pistol free, he pointed it at the boy’s leg.

“Struggle again and I will blow your leg off,” Prymorus stated in an icy tone. “Do you know a human named Destin Parks?”

The boy raised a trembling hand to his busted bottom lip and nodded. Prymorus reached down, gripped the front of the child’s shirt, and yanked him back to his feet. Dirty tears streaked the boy’s face and his eyes shone with fear.

“You will lead me to him,” Prymorus ordered. “If you try to escape, I will kill you slowly, do you understand?”

“Ye… Yes,” the boy whispered. “He’s… Destin isn’t at the tower. I heard… I heard talk that he went to the base.”

“The Trivator base?” Prymorus asked.

The boy nodded. “The one near the lake,” he replied, pointing a shaky hand in the direction where most of the explosions were coming from.

Prymorus glanced up at it. He started to turn toward the warrior when the male jerked in surprise and fell forward, dead. Prymorus’ gaze locked on a human male holding a weapon against his shoulder. Next to him was a Trivator.

He started to reach for the boy to use as a shield, but the Trivator and the human male both opened fire at the same time as the boy fell to the ground and started crawling for cover. Prymorus lifted his laser pistol, returning fire at the two males who dove behind a partially collapsed wall. He briefly caught a glimpse of two of his men lying near the building across from him.

The other members of his team returned fire only to be cut down in the crossfire as more humans rose up out of the rubble. Prymorus quickly realized that his forces were outnumbered when additional explosions peppered the building and the freighter. He turned and dove through the entrance of the building behind him.



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Beth gripped the wheel and turned it sharply, sliding around the corner. She fought the grin when she heard her grandmother release a line of swear words that would have almost made the men blush. She took the next left, then crossed between two buildings under construction and across the deserted roadway.

“Well, there’s one way to clear the roads. All you need to do is have the aliens attack again and even they clear out,” Mary said in a dry tone as she held onto the armrest. “Killing us before we get to the tower won’t help the cause, Beth.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Beth replied, easing off the gas pedal. “Do you see any more of those pod things?”

Mary leaned forward and tried to see through the windshield. “The Trivators are picking them off pretty good now. I don’t think there are quite as many falling as there were before.”

“I hope they get them all,” Beth replied, taking the next right and an immediate left. “We made it.”

Beth turned right into the underground parking lot. The tires screeched on the smooth concrete when she followed the line around to the bank of elevators. She pulled to a stop and slid the gearshift into park before turning off the engine.

“Well, at least your driving is getting better,” Mary remarked, opening the door and stepping out. “You didn’t hit anything this time.”

“Richard and Troy have been helping me,” Beth replied with a grin, opening the driver’s door and getting out.