Pure Desire [Pure 3] (Siren Publishing Allure) (37 page)

“As if that matters,” Dolunas hissed.

Noor sent his knee into the fleshy part just beneath the thick as armor skin at the cretin’s waist and shoved hard. Dolunas grunted and doubled over. The hit was as effective as slamming a fist into a man’s balls. The cretin hadn’t transformed back entirely to his true form, so he was able to grab a handful of hair. He yanked his head back and overextended the wide neck taut. He spoke in a subdued but toxic tone. “It’s important to me, and that is what counts.”

Dolunas snorted. He gave Noor a sloe-eyed look. “No, apparently I’m not worthy to grace the emperor’s presence. He works through a flunky.”

“Sterns?”

The cretin chuckled, a low rough grumble. He smirked and said, “Perhaps you, Magnus, are not as obtuse as I believed. Maybe that is why the emperor fears you most out of all his opponents.”

“I know why Emperor Agaci won’t give up. It’s a matter of ego, but what I don’t understand is why you and your people would side with the vermin. The Txtrcas have remained neutral and stayed out of our galaxy business up until now. What is in it for you?”

“The bigger question is why the emperor would consider you his most worthy adversary.”

“I will get to that. Answer my question.”

“Our minerals are scarce, and eventually my people would have to move to another planet to survive. At our weakest moment, Emperor Agaci preyed on my clan and took us hostage to do his putrid deeds or else suffer under his wrath. With the great disease recently ended—many died—my warrior numbers were few, and the coward slime took advantage.” Dolunas stuck out his chest proudly. “I preferred to fight until death then succumb. My son was taken captive and held personally by the emperor. I refused to give in. Even as my wife cried and pleaded until I heard Ji’farius screams of horror. He is young boy, a delicacy for the emperor.” He gazed at Noor. “I do not do this for the slug, but for my son.”

Noor released him. Slowly, some of the pieces of the puzzle were beginning to make sense while others left him perplexed. “You didn’t come to kill Allura, did you? I’m the target.” He made a statement. From the viewpoint the cretin had, he could have easily shot Allura before he had an inkling the assassin existed. If it weren’t for the reflected glimmer when the sunlight hit the weapon’s metal, he might have never known a gun was pointed in their direction until the first shot. There was a reason he was still breathing.

“What is your name?”

“Dolunas Damascus.”

“Why do you think the emperor is frightened of me? That one I can’t figure out.”

“Perhaps the same reason he will not face me personally. As I said earlier, he sends his orders through Sterns but refuses to allow me anywhere near him.”

Noor scratched his head. “That doesn’t make any sense.”

Dolunas had morphed completely, his red eyes fixated on Noor. “I have had my suspicions about the emperor for a long time but was unable to validate anything. You must look past what you see, into the souls of his eyes. See what exists inside the man and then—”

The bullet sliced through Dolunas’s chest and severed a major organ. He dropped to his knees, holding his hand to the wound as slime oozed out between his fingers. He grunted and toppled over as another shot pierced his stomach. Again he was pumped full of holes.

Noor dove for cover, scooting back against the wall. He reached out, grabbed Dolunas by the arm, and tried to drag him to safety. Whoever was firing kept hitting its mark. By the time he had the cretin out of the direct line of fire, his body was leaking fluid that flowed and stained the wood. The pool spread around his body.

He hovered over him, gun poised, ready to defend against the attacker, but he couldn’t pinpoint the shooter. Heavy wheezes escaped. Noor shook Dolunas hard. “Stay with me. Don’t you dare die on me.”

Dolunas gripped Noor’s arm. “Save…my…son. Promise me.”

“Dolunas! Dolunas! Damn it!” Noor jerked him.

“Promise me,” he rasped.

“I promise.” Noor yanked him against his chest. “Sonofabitch!” he swore, seeing the light behind Dolunas’s eyes dim and fade to dark.

Chapter Thirty-five

This early in the morning only a few servants were milling about when Noor entered the main house. He walked down the expansive hallway toward Mortimer’s office where he knew he’d already be awake at dawn. Sleepy-eyed and yawning, he would have preferred to remain cuddled against Allura’s luscious warmth, but the visit to her father was a requirement he had already delayed beyond what was respectful.

Standing in front of the door, he ran his fingers through his hair, straightened his shirt, and ensured it was neatly tucked inside his waistband before he knocked, entered, and faced Mortimer, who sat composed behind the oak desk. As a precaution, he didn’t bound into the room. He checked the position of the gun he knew the man kept. The Colt lay on the desk, a finger away from Mortimer’s hand. Within reaching distance, should he choose to use it. Noor wasn’t sure he wouldn’t, given his deeply furrowed brows and intolerant disposition.

“If I put a bullet in you, my daughter would be displeased,” Mortimer said brusquely. Leaning back, but still within distance of his weapon, he folded his hands on his lap.

“I would hope so.” Mortimer narrowed his eyes. “Sir,” he added to imply he didn’t intend to be flippant in the least. It was purely dreaming on his part.

“Allura has taken a liking to you, obviously, because she has married you without my consent and is carrying your child,” Mortimer said.

“The circumstances of our hasty marriage couldn’t be avoided.”

“That is obvious too, son. In Texas, you marry first, and then take the prize,” Mortimer said, eyeing Noor with a flinty glare.

It wasn’t in his plans to marry Allura, but admitting to that didn’t appear to be ideal now. Instead, he said, “I thought it was the sensible thing to do, given the, ah, our predicament.”

“Allura said you were sensible, and up until now, I had my doubts. That doesn’t mean I’m not still considering putting you out of your misery.” Mortimer glanced at his gun and then back at Noor. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t.”

“I will give you two. I will keep her safe, and I love Allura.”

Mortimer motioned with a wave of his hand for Noor to sit. “Frankly, I think you need to sober up, but Allura is convinced you haven’t taken to the bottle. I trust my daughter’s instincts, so I will give you the benefit of the doubt.

“Thank you for the vote of confidence.”

“That doesn’t mean I believe this cockamamie nonsense you have put in her head about the future…mad emperors…flying machines and all that stuff I believe is a figment of your imagination. You might not be drunk, but perhaps delusional. No insult intended, son.”

“I can respectfully understand your position. However, if you care for me to explain in more detail where I’m from—”

“You can speak after I’m finished. This conversation has weighed on my mind a long time. I need to get it off my chest.” Noor nodded. Reared to respect his elders, especially one with a gun aimed at him, he pursed his lips tight. “Allura is headstrong, if you haven’t noticed. Even if I insisted she divest herself of you, I doubt she would give up without a fight.” He sighed. “She is her own person and of age to make her own decisions. The child of mine is bright as they come, but, unfortunately, has occasional lapses in judgment. Otherwise, Allura has a sound mind. That means I can’t do anything with her.” Mortimer smiled slightly. “It’s her mother’s stubborn streak. That is unimportant. My concern is for her well-being first and her heart second. She told me what happened in town yesterday, and it doesn’t sit well with me.” He leaned forward and rested folded hands on the desk. “You married her, and she belongs to you, and even though I don’t like it, it’s up to you to handle whatever this craziness is you’ve gotten her involved in to my satisfaction. That doesn’t mean I won’t step in, if need be. What do you intend to do?” He pushed back and relaxed in the chair.

Even in his calm state, Mortimer was a force to be reckoned with. He was dressed in official attire, a white shirt, dark twill pants, a black vest, and soft-skin boots. He was refined and graceful in appearance now that he had settled down. His manner of dress indicated he would go to town and conduct business later. And nothing more, and certainly didn’t hint at the lethal calm beneath the refined attire. There was authority in his tone, which he kept intentionally level, as well as the underlining hint of the danger he might exude if pushed. Allura got a quick temper and violent streak from somewhere.

“I have to take Allura back home to ensure her safety and settle some unfortunate matters.”

“She is in agreement?”

“I haven’t informed her yet, but I’m sure when I do, she will resist,” he said, weary, aware Allura would throw a fit.

Mortimer’s lips curved. “She will fight you tooth and nail.”

“Yes, I know, but she has no choice.”

“Son, you are new to marriage, so let me enlighten you on a few things to make it easier for you. Women always have choices, and it’s called giving them their way to keep the peace in the household and your bed warm at night. Man to man, I know you understand my point.” He chuckled softly, and then turned serious. “If you love your wife, you allow her to have her way more than seventy percent of the time, and the other thirty I reserve for when I need to put my foot down. You pick and choose your battles based on severity, son.”

“This is life and death,” he said flatly. There was no sense in pretending otherwise with Mortimer. He deserved honesty.

Mortimer nodded. “Then you do what you have to do. And I will do what I must,” he uttered.

“Sir?”

“My wife cried herself to sleep every day when Allura and Channing came up missing until you got word to us. Now, she is as happy as a lark her children have returned and Allura is carrying our grandchild. You know what I’m up against when I tell her you are leaving and she may never see her grandbaby or children again?”

“I can make arrangements for you two to visit Magnus.”

“Son, I don’t like traveling to the closest border.” He eyed Noor. “But to see my wife happy, I would take a trip to the moon. When do you plan to leave?”

Noor grimaced. “In a day or two, after I inform Allura we are departing.”

“I’m not happy about this, but things being as they are, there are greater concerns for me to focus on besides your marriage to Allura. More importantly, I want her happy, and you seem to do that for her. Understand, though, if I learn she is not content, come hell or high water, you and I won’t have just a conversation next time.” His position was clear. Noor nodded. “I might as well warn you, she got hold of a gun again.”

Noor sighed and wiped his hand down his face, agitated. “Just how many guns does your daughter have? The more I take away from her, the more she seems to acquire.”

“I taught Allura to shoot a pistol and rifle from the time she could hold a gun. Her uncle instructed her on how to use a bow and arrow and fight like a warrior. Channing showed her how to fight dirty.” Mortimer grinned. “She is a collector of weapons, if that helps you any.”

Noor noticed the thought seemed to amuse Mortimer while it astounded him.

Chapter Thirty-six

“I assume you told Allura you are going home because she is pacing her room and calling you everything but the son of god,” Channing said. He walked out on the porch and handed out the beers he had balanced in two hands.

Noor took a swig and grimaced at the bitter taste. “I promised her she could stay until the baby was born. I can’t afford to risk it, though. Not after what happened the other day in town.”

“I tried to explain that to her. My sis isn’t in the listening mood.”

“She will get over it.”

Channing rested his butt on the wood railing and sipped his drink. “Is there any way you can allow her to stay, Noor?” His compassion for Allura’s plight showed in his expression.

“Not without bringing an army here to protect her. Something your father would have to explain to the townspeople. Besides, Magnus has better technology and medical facilities than Legend, and I will feel better if she has the child at home, in case there are complications.”

Vale interjected, “If Emperor Agaci won’t leave his compound, Noor has no choice but to go and get him. We have more resources to ferret the bastard out on Magnus. If it comes down to it, we just blow his dwelling to smithereens.”

“No, there are innocent people involved,” Noor said.

“When did you become so benevolent?” Angel said.

“I made a promise and intend to keep it. I will bring the emperor down with as few innocent casualties as possible.” He took another swallow, still not convinced he liked the liquid. “I received notification today that Sterns is dead. Supposedly his wife Denny shot him, self defense, of course,” he said sarcastically, not believing it one bit. “The agency is letting the story fly, even though it stinks to me.”

Vale said, “So much for thinking Sterns was involved somehow.”

“Just because he is dead doesn’t mean he wasn’t the emperor’s snitch. He was.”

“His wife killing him was just lucky on your part? Saved you the trouble?” Aris asked.