Page 77 of Game on Askole

“Hey, I was a bit flabbergasted too. I mean, not one word in almost a year, and suddenly he’s there, saying he wouldn’t let me die.”

“It seems the Askole has some honor,” Detja commented.

Bree asked, “Did he say why he left?”

“Yeah. He’s doing what’s necessary to stop Snoor. What that includes, I’m not quite sure,” I answered with a frown.

Zoey stated, “Snoor has killed a lot of people.”

“He has, and the monster deserves to be put down like a rabid animal,” I agreed. “However, that doesn’t let Tihar off the hook. He severed our mental ties. I don’t know if I can forgive him for that.” My voice trembled with suppressed tears.

Aunt Tess patted my hand. “We’re going to make Tihar pay for hurting you. Never doubt it.”

“I always thought Tihar was a stand-up guy, but now?” Kaylee shrugged. “The Askole Empire might be at war, but that’s no reason for the jerk to cut your bond. Talree’s mind is always touching mine. I don’t know what I’d do if he broke our link.”

I rubbed at the ache in my chest. “I still can’t figure out what went wrong.”

“It’s not your fault. Tihar’s a prick,” Zoey stated, handing me a margarita.

He was, but I nursed a tiny kernel of hope that it was all a big misunderstanding. That Tihar was on a top-secret undercover gig and he still loved me.

Detja took the margarita away from me. “You have fighter escort duty tomorrow. You are allowed one beer.”

“Yes, ma’am.” I snagged a bottle.

Bree interjected, “I have the recording of Sarah fighting the nauger. Wanna see it?”

“I do.” Zoey looked around the table. “Anyone else want to see it?”

We all raised our hands.

Bree touched her bracelet. A holographic image of the battle scene formed over the table.

There I was, surrounded by a huge mound of dead naugers. Moving faster than I thought was possible, I danced out of the way of their snapping jaws. Sunlight flashed off my sword as I beheaded the monsters.

A bunch of Coletti warriors teleported in and started shooting.

“Can’t tell ya how happy I was to see them.” I poured salsa on my taco.

“Damn.” Kaylee drained her margarita, grabbed the pitcher, and refilled her glass. “Now I know why Talree won’t let me out of his sight.”

I scanned the area. Yep, the warlords were close by in Zarek’s version of a man cave. I pitied the fool who tried to hurt any of us.

With a shudder, Aunt Tess topped off her cocktail. “Reminds me of the battle at Arrowhead Mall.”

A chill ran down my back. Our shopping trip had turned into a nightmare when the Tai-Kok attacked. “We ran out of bullets in the first ten minutes. Thank God, there was a sporting goods store.”

Zoey grinned. “I remember the news vids. You handed out shotguns to the shoppers, and the Tai-Kok got their asses handed to them.” She lifted her drink. “Here’s to the Jones clan and the battles we have won.”

We all took a swallow.

I held up my bottle. “And to the battles to come.”

“Oorah!” Aunt Tess shouted.

Chapter Sixteen

Trouble lights danced across the command console of my Talon spaceship. A mechanical voice stated,“Warning. Warning. Port engine damaged. Shields have failed. Hull breach imminent. Warning. Warning. Port engine damaged. Shields have failed. Hull breach imminent.”

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