Page 16 of Grumpy Alien Lumberjack
Methic was awake instantly, moving with the quick efficiency of a warrior. He untangled himself from her, the loss of his heat an immediate shock. He paused only to wrap a fur blanket around his waist before striding out of the bedroom, his naked back rigid with suspicion.
Jeneva’s heart flipped. She scrambled from the bed, her legs trembling as she fumbled for her clothes. Her fingers trembledso violently she could barely pull her pants up. Grabbing her walking stick, she hobbled toward the doorway, needing to see what was happening.
She reached the main room just as the door opened.
“Methic.” A woman’s voice, crisp and authoritative.
“Commander Toth.” Methic’s tone was wary, suspicious. The fur blanket barely covered him, and his posture reflected high alert. “Usually your mate comes to see me; not you. Are things well?”
“He’s around here somewhere. Listen, I’m following a tracking signal that’s coming from inside your house. The devices are programmed to activate after forty-eight hours if deactivated, which it appears this tracker was. Could be a glitch but I need to check it out.”
Before Commander Toth could finish, another voice, horribly familiar, cut through the morning air.
“We know she’s hiding out in here. Jeneva! Come out and there won’t be any trouble!”
Rusik.
The confrontation was immediate. Jeneva heard the sickening sound of flesh meeting stone, followed by Rusik’s choked grunt. She pushed forward, leaning heavily on her stick.
The scene in the doorway stopped her breath. Methic had Rusik pinned against the doorframe by his throat, his hand a vise around the man’s neck, lifting him partially off the ground. Rusik’s face was bloodied, a dark trickle running from his nose. Commander Toth stood beside them, a fierce frown carving lines on her face, her red hair blazing against the muted forest colors.
Rusik’s eyes, bulging with panic, found Jeneva over Methic’s shoulder. A cruel sneer twisted his bruised lips. “It didn’t take long for you to find someone to shack up with, did it, stowaway? It won’t save you.”
A low, murderous growl emanated from Methic’s chest. The scales on his arms seemed to shimmer under the strain.
“Methic, no! Stop!” Jeneva threw herself forward, using her stick for balance, and placed her hand flat against his massive, sweating back. The rage radiating from him was a tangible heat.
His silver eyes, burning with a frightening intensity, flickered to her, then to his hand on Rusik’s throat. He was breathing heavily, torn between his instincts and her plea. He didn't loosen his grip. Instead, he looked at Commander Toth.
“You are a commander now,” he snarled. “You can order her to stay.”
Commander Toth’s gaze was sharp, assessing the situation instantly. She stepped closer, her voice dropping but losing none of its authority. “Methic, there’s a process. You know this. Petitions must be filed for refugee status or residency. Give me time to work it out.”
Methic growled, giving Rusik a shake that rattled the doorframe. “If he imprisons her again, I will kill him.”
Commander Toth looked from Methic’s primal fury to Rusik’s pathetic state. “Imprisons? This is what happens when I’m off-planet for a while. Everything goes to shit.”
Jeneva stepped fully into the line of fire, looking straight into Methic’s eyes. “I’ll go with them.” Her voice cracked, but her determination was firm. This was a problem that she created and had to fix. “This is part of evolving, right? Always changing into different versions of ourselves. I want to be the version of me who isn’t broken. The one who gets to continue evolving. With you.”
Holding her gaze, he let out a final, explosive breath and released Rusik, who tumbled to the ground, gagging and clutching his neck.
“I give you my word,” Commander Toth said to Methic, her eyes serious. “I’ll be in touch soon.”
As Rusik struggled to stand, he shot Jeneva a vicious, sidelong glance, his body angled her way like he might pounce. She shuddered and stepped back.
Methic erupted. He moved toward the human but stopped as a loud voice rippled in the air.
“Brother, don’t!”
Another massive Majaki appeared and grabbed Methic’s arms.
Rusik, pale and terrified, scrambled for the open door of a waiting land rover.
Jeneva felt the tears finally come, a silent, hot stream down her cheeks.
Commander Toth put a gentle hand on Jeneva's shoulder. “Let’s go.”
She climbed into the land rover, watching him out the window as the vehicle drove off. And he disappeared from sight.
