Page 3 of His Brazen Bride

Then they advance on us.

“Scream, Lacey,” Iris says. “We want everyone to know what’s going on here.”

Lacey yells for help as Iris and I begin kicking and punching, trying to evade their long arms. Iris cracks the candlestick over the head of one, but it only fazes him for a second.

They’re not using any weapons at all, just constantly trying to grab us.

Do they intend to take us alive? Experiment on us?Probeus?

With that in my head, I fight harder. These guys are slow, yet take our punches and kicks like nothing. Their bodies are solid…and powerful.

I go for their faces, but it’s hard to do that and avoid their long arms and claws. There’s no way we can keep this up for much longer.

Iris is cursing and fighting like a feral cat, while Lacey keeps screaming and throwing anything she can find at them.

“Try to get out of here, Lacey,” I yell, my dress getting caught for a moment in one of their claws when I kick back and stun him for a second. “Get help if you can!”

“Okay!” Lacey takes off for the door to the dressing room, but just as she grabs the doorknob one of the sleestak turns pulls her close to his chest.

Suddenly she goes limp in his arms.

“What did you do to her, you fucking alien lizard bastard?” Iris bellows as the alien drops Lacey’s body to the floor and comes after us.

He couldn’t have killed her. He barely gave her a hug.

Iris runs over to Lacey while I attempt to hold them off. I can tell by the aliens’ incessant chatter they’re frustrated with us. I guess we’re putting up more of a fight than they expected. Ha! Go team Earth Girls.

As Iris is checking Lacey’s pulse, one of them grabs her from behind. Iris elbows him. “Get the fuck off me, asshole!” But the hit barely registers, and the alien pulls her to his chest.

Just like Lacey, Iris goes limp in his arms.

“No! Iris!”

One sleestak backs me into a corner, while the others lift Lacey’s and Iris’s bodies over their shoulders.

“Hey—listen to me!” I cry. They all pause and turn to look at me.

“Takeme, notthem,” I say. “Me.” I point to myself, then shake my head as I point to Iris and Lacey. “Not them,” I enunciate.

The alien directly in front of me studies me with those huge black, bulbous eyes. Then he motions to the others and makes some noises.

Did I get through to him?

Doubtful. I watch in horror as Iris and Lacey are carried out the door, and then I’m left alone with the last lizard-guy.

He moves on me faster now and despite my fighting, he’s too big and strong for me to keep him away. I make a mad dash for the door, but he grabs me and rolls me into his body.

A dizzying wave of numbness rushes through my limbs, and I succumb to the darkness.

* * *

My eyes flutter open. I’m on my back on a platform, staring up into a blurry array of lights.

I hear what sounds like voices near me, one deep and guttural, the other higher. They sound strange. Not quite human.

Then it all comes rushing back.

Aliens!

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