Page 41 of Rogue Enforcer

With Cormac blocking my view of the entrance, I couldn’t see much, but Icouldsee five of the Atlans, including Stryck—Thumper. His knuckles were a bloody mess, but he inclined his head to me and began tochange.

I knew the Atlans on Earth, the ones sent to do the Bachelor Beast television show. Tane, the last one to be mated, had chosen one of my only friends in the world to be his. He was amazing. Elena was totally in love. And I’d seen him in beast mode before. But for fun, mostly. Not like this.

Never like this.

The Atlans transformed into their massive beast forms; that was fine. It was the death I saw in their eyes that made my heart jerk like someone was kicking it with pointed boots every time it dared to beat.

Stryck moved out of my line of sight, and the others followed. I heard one booming order that I assumed came from him. “MOVE!”

Ruk took a step toward the back with his clawed hands raised, palms out. “Go ahead. I already got mine.”

“Got your what?” I asked.

“Vengeance.”

Cormac lifted my feet off the floor and walked toward the elevator.

“No. I am not going back down there. No way.”

“You will be safe there, Abby.”

“Not if they win. And I’d rather not be trapped underground if they kill all of you.”

“No one will touch you.” His vow made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I believed him.

“Then I’m perfectly safe up here.”

Cormac stopped moving and looked down at me. “Stubborn female. You are just like Harper.”

“Good. Then we’ll be best friends.”

Cormac chuckled as he lifted me onto the top of one of the large control stations. “Do you have your weapons?”

“All set.” I showed him my knife with one hand and my baby blaster with the other.

“Their armor protects them from blaster fire. If you must use it, aim for their head.”

“Okay.” I scooted back as far as I could get. I didn’t have a direct line of sight out the entrance, but I could see a little bit of ground. I could hear the Atlans roaring like a pack of wild monsters. I pressed myself flat—less of a target—and told Cormac to go.

The control room was empty. Ruk must have followed the Atlans outside.

“Cormac?”

“Yes, mate?” He turned his head to look at me.

“I love you, okay? So don’t die.”

He froze as if stunned. I waited for him to say it back, for him to sayanything, but he simply turned and ran out to join the battle.

Lying to myself—and knowing it—I tried to convince myself that I didn’t care if he said the words or not. He took care of me. He pledged to protect me and never leave me. I could make him fall in love with me eventually, right? In fact, thinking I actually loved him already was probably stupid hormones. And orgasms. And the wholeyou have shared traumathing. Like almost dying tied us together with some kind of cosmic bond.

I tried not to move. I tried not to listen to the sounds coming from outside. I did pretty well on the first goal. Horribly on the second. I was trying, in vain, not to picture bodies being ripped to shreds—especially Cormac’s—when I heard clattering on the floorinsidethe control room.

As slowly as possible, I scooted toward the edge of my perch and looked down.

Oh, shit.

What were those things?

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