Page 35 of Alien Prince's Claim

Zzzaaaarrppp!

And were immediately slapped from the sky by thick ion bursts.

The first ship was sliced in half and fell to the ground far below.

The second ship spewed smoke as another laser struck it, causing it to implode.

I just stared.

We all just stared.

Whoever these attackers were, they were well-prepared.

“What’s going on?” Emily said. “Are we getting out of here?”

No, I thought. No, we’re not. Not that way, at least.

“We’ll… find another way out of here,” I said, taking her by the hand, knowing things had just taken a very serious turn for the worse.

The attackers had cut us off, making it impossible for us to escape via ship.

It was a smart strategy — the same one I would have used if I was orchestrating this attack.

It meant they wanted us all to remain here.

It meant they had plans for us.

And that couldn’t mean anything good.

13

EMILY

The hallways were even more packed than they had been on our way to the dock.

Huge alien males shouldered people aside, their powerful muscular arms clutching their terrified female mates within the crook of their arms, growling at everyone else as if we were the danger.

Yaltah held me just as close, just as tightly, guarding me just as jealously.

The scene that took place in the dock had a big effect on him.

He appeared more than a little put out about what to do next.

There was a heavy weight weighing on him, I sensed, creasing the otherwise smooth skin around his eyes into frowns of concern.

There was something else, something he wasn’t letting on, something he hadn’t shared with me yet.

Everyone else was frantic and hurried but Yaltah seemed in control of himself.

For that reason, if anything else, I took a great deal of comfort in him and the knowledge he would find a way out for us.

Somehow.

I had always been under the impression the Seeding Facilities were as well-protected as any embassy in the cosmos.

They were facilities paid for by the various alien civilizations whose subjects used them — including all the governments of Earth — and to risk angering all those powerful species just to kidnap a bunch of fertile females…

It was hard to wrap my head around.

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