Page 14 of Sublime Target

She reached the glass doors that led to the guest room. Through the windows, she spied three figures seated at the far end.

Two were unmistakably Kordolian. She could tell that even in spite of the semi-frosted glass.

The other was a dark-haired human.

Not missing a beat, she walked straight into the room, projecting a confidence she didn’t feel at all.

“Gentlemen.” She smiled, concealing the fact that she was actually nervous as hell. “My name is Clarissa. I’m the Executive Assistant to Cooper Garner. Gentlemen. How may I help you today?”

She put on her very best professional smile, but in reality, she was trying not to stare.

There were three of them, just like Bea had said.

One was definitely human. He was tall, with jet-black hair that was slicked back, accentuating his severely handsome features. Immaculately dressed, he wore a grey suit that was obviously hand-tailored—Clarissa could tell just by looking at it.

A hint of a tattoo was visible just above the edge of his perfectly pressed collar.

He was polished and urbane in a sharp-edged kind of way. He definitely looked like he could be dangerous if he wanted.

The second guy was an alien. A Kordolian. Clarissa could hardly believe that one of those unearthly beings was sitting right here before her in a big leather swivel chair. He was slender and delicate-looking—almost effeminate—with gleaming silver skin and golden eyes and long-ish white hair.

He studied her with a cool, calculating gaze. And she, who was so good at reading people, couldn’t decipher his expression at all.

But he wasn’t the one that worried her.

Her attention shifted toward the second alien, who occupied the chair at the very head of the table.

Oh, my god.

The other two were striking enough, but this guy…

Just looking at him made the fine hairs on her arms stand on end. She was glad for her long sleeves because she swore she had goosebumps right now.

And not necessarily in a good way.

Was this feeling fear? Fascination? A bit of both?

He radiated an aura. Surely, she wasn’t imagining things. She could feel it; a pressure of sorts, both intimidating and oppressive.

It didn’t help that his appearance was much more alien than the other guy’s. His counterpart had dressed in a rather human style—long-sleeved shirt, leather jacket, and black denim jeans over sleek alien-looking boots.

This guy, on the other hand…

He looked unapologetically Kordolian. He hadn’t made any effort to try and blend in at all.

For a brief moment, Clarissa was at a loss for words. She took in his appearance, which was, if she could use one word to describe it, hard.

He was bald, with the same luminous silver skin as the other Kordolian. His ears were elf-like and more prominent due to the absence of hair. He was powerful and muscular, with a broad chest and bulging arms, his body encased in a suit of obsidian material that looked like a cross between metal and silk. Was his outfit really a suit, or was it actually some sort of armor?

At least she couldn’t see any weapons on him, which was a relief, but she could understand why Bea had been hesitant to call Enforcement.

This alien seemed like he could be capable of anything.

A black mask covered the lower half of his face. Seamless and form-fitting, it was made from the same material as his armor. It gave him a mysterious and slightly menacing air as if he were some sort of high-tech, futuristic ninja.

Was he afraid of Earth’s pathogens? It wasn’t unusual to think that an alien might don a mask. Lots of people wore masks for various reasons: illnesses, allergies, a desire to be anonymous in the age of constant surveillance. If Clarissa got a virus, she popped on a mask for a few days, no biggie.

Or… was he hiding something?

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