Page 41 of Courting Mayhem

I frowned. There was something wrong with the man’s face.“Are there more like him?”

“Many.”

Just what I didn’t want to hear. I yanked out my laser pistol as the knobs elongated into tentacles and a demented howl broke from the male. To my horror, an enormous mouth edged with hundreds of serrated teeth formed where his face should be. “Houston, we have a problem.”

Derek appeared beside me. “Ya think?”

Moving faster than I thought possible the creature charged us.

We opened fire.

The creature grew larger. “Hungry!”

“He’s absorbing the energy from the laser bolts, switch to swords,” Derek commanded.

I pulled my sword, ducked a tentacle, and whacked off another.

The creature yowled in fury.

“I’m going to keep his attention focused on me. I want you to decapitate him.” Derek teleported in and out, slicing and dicing the creature’s tentacles.

“Why don’t you do the head whacking?”

“I want to see how well you handle a sword.”

“Oh, a training exercise, why didn’t you say so.” And if I was a piss poor swordswoman, Derek’s Coletti armor should protect him from becoming headless. Timing Derek’s sword thrusts, I teleported in behind the hybrid, and swung my sword.Thop. His head rolled down the hallway. The creature’s body crumpled to the floor like an unstrung puppet. I sagged in relief. “Imagine fighting more than one of them.”

“I don’t have to.” Derek pointed down the hallway. Eight more creatures ran toward us.

“Fuck!”

A black streak whizzed down the corridor. Blood, body parts and heads flew in every direction. Baelish let out his hyena laugh. “I cannot be defeated.”

“Did you forget, I kicked your ass?” I asked brightly.

Baelish came to an abrupt halt. “You cheated.”

“Keep telling yourself that. We both know it’s not true.”An alarm sounded on my gauntlet. I tapped the scanner. “But if you want to prove how tough you are, we’ve got more Katanic hybrids heading our way.”

“I will deal with them. You find Ina or I will never tell you where the Shebu can be found.” Baelish zoomed off.

“I knew he couldn’t be trusted,” I groused.

A predatory smile curved Derek’s mouth. “Baelish will uphold his end of the bargain, one way or another. His mental shields aren’t as good as he thinks.”

“You can take him?”

“I can take him.”

Kiri scrambled across the ceiling. “Come. Fast. Found Zosia’s baby.”

“Show us.”I linked with my fathers who were searching for the lab’s computers.“Baelish is busy killing Mallox’s creations. Kiri says she found a baby. Derek and I are checking it out.”

“Copy that,”Poppa Jacob answered.

We followed Kiri’s bobbing branches to a small black ball huddled in a corner. I knelt beside it and ran my scanner over its trembling body. “She’s doesn’t seem to be injured. Any idea on what to do for a newborn Katanic?”

“No. Maybe Zarek does, or he can ask the Supreme Leader.”

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