Razor's Traitorous Heart: The Alliance Book 2 (13 page)

“You’ll ask him?” She responded in a
hesitant voice, reaching for their sleeping son. “You said he could
help.”

“I will ask him, Jesse,” Hunter promised,
brushing his fingers along her cheek. “I promise.”

Jesse turned worried eyes to Razor before
she gave a brief nod and a strained smile. Both Razor and Hunter
watched her walk out of the room; one with a look of love and worry
on his face and the other with a speculative look.

Hunter turned back to look at Razor. He gave
a tired groan as he sank down into the chair. He cursed that he was
still having problems with weakness when he was overtired.

“What is wrong?” Razor asked bluntly.

“It’s Jordan. She’s gone,” Hunter responded
in a tired voice.

“When and where?” Razor asked, getting to
the point.

“A month ago,” Hunter admitted. “We believe
she is safe. She is with Trig.”

Razor’s face darkened at the mention of
Dagger’s older brother. Neither one of the brothers were someone he
would want around a female, especially one as fragile and delicate
as a human one. Jordan’s serious face flashed through his mind. He
had only met her once, but she had a quiet vulnerability to her
that had brought out the protectiveness in all the males in his
family. Hell, she brought it out in any male who came near her.

The thought of her being with Trig sent a
chill through him. He knew what Trig was capable of because he had
used his services many times over the past fifteen years. Dagger
wasn’t any better. Both males had a dark, dangerous edge that
qualified them as among the elite warriors often used for
impossible missions. Trig had been in his class while Dagger had
been with Hunter.

“What happened?” Razor asked harshly.

Hunter rubbed his hand over his face and
leaned back. “I told you about Jordan finding a vidcom of Dagger in
a fight ring. Trig went to get him, but he arrived too late. Dagger
had already been moved. The previous ‘owner’ of the fight ring did
not know where he was taken. He just wanted to get rid of Dagger
because of how dangerous he was and the fact that Dagger had
already broken one of his legs. A month ago, Trig returned after
losing Dagger’s trail. That same night, Jordan disappeared. I’ve
been sending word to Trig, but haven’t had a response yet.”

“Surely Jordan left some type of clue
behind,” Razor replied in disbelief. “She can’t have just
vanished.”

“She left a brief vidcom saying she had a
lead as to where Dagger might be,” Hunter admitted. “She said she
had to go, that she knew she could find him if they moved him
again. She…” Grief darkened Hunter’s eyes as he thought of the
pleading tone of the vidcom. “She refuses to give up. I have a
lead, Razor. One of my sources says Trig was sighted heading for
the Tressalon galaxy. I need you to go after Jordan.”

Razor’s mind calculated the time it would
take the
Journey
to reach the galaxy. There were only a
handful of habitable planets in the star system, but it was
littered with Spaceports. The area was known for its hostility
toward the Alliance and was a haven for those living on the outer
edges of the civilized planets.

“I am bound here for at least a fortnight,”
Razor replied. “I will leave as soon as possible. I have one last
city here to secure before I leave.”

“I understand,” Hunter said with a nod. “It
will take Trig at least that long to get there considering his last
location. That is one of the reasons I was hoping you could help
us. Your Flagship is the fastest, most advanced warship in the
Alliance. If anyone can get her out safely, it would be you. Now,
what did you need my assistance with?”

Razor released a sigh and rubbed his jaw
before leaning forward to stare intently into Hunter’s eyes. He
knew little about Hunter’s
Amate
, other than she had saved
his brother’s life on more than one occasion. How such a delicate
creature as Jesse could do something like that amazed him.

“I have an
Amate
,” Razor stated
bluntly.

Hunter’s eyes widened in surprise before a
huge grin lit up his face. “Who is she? Is she here? Father and
Mother have not mentioned her.”

“Her name is Kali Parks. She is human,”
Razor replied quietly. “She…”

Hunter’s eyebrow rose as his brother’s voice
faded. He released a deep sigh and shook his head. He could tell
from his brother’s worried eyes that things were not going
well.

“She isn’t happy about your claim,” Hunter
guessed.

Razor gave a sharp, dry laugh. “Unhappy is
putting it rather… mildly,” he said. “She rejects my claim on
her.”

Hunter heard the low, almost desperate tone
in Razor’s voice. He remembered all too well his own panic when he
thought that Jesse would deny his claim. There were times
a
t
night when he still woke from a
nightmare, his fear of losing her choking him. When that happened,
he would reach wildly for her, needing to hold her close against
his pounding heart.

“Jesse did as well,” Hunter admitted. “They
do not understand the commitment that we make to them when we claim
them as our
Amate
. Many of their males give out empty
promises. They also do not believe that we can feel such deep
feelings so quickly. Jesse...” Hunter paused for a moment and his
eyes darkened with the memory of almost losing Jesse. “Jesse feared
for her sisters. She is very protective of them and did not trust
me at first. I was an alien, far different than any human male she
had known.”

“Kali is protective of her brother,” Razor
said heavily. “He is the leader of one of the factions I have to
contain. If he refuses to lay down his weapons and work with the
Alliance I will have no choice but to kill him and any other humans
who resist. Too many Trivator lives have been compromised because
of the extended fighting on this planet. This is the last major
city that needs to be contained. There continue to be small groups
in remote areas, but the largest areas of the populace have joined
to rebuild their world. Once others see the progress being made,
the smaller groups will cease fighting.”

“Be patient, care for her, show her that you
only wish to help her people, not harm them,” Hunter
recommended.

Razor looked into Hunter’s eyes. “She will
not forgive me if I order the destruction of her city, or…” His
voice dropped as the weight of his duties surrounded him. “or kill
her brother.”

“If she is anything like Jesse, Jordan and
Taylor, she will fight to protect him. I do not envy you your
position, brother. If you kill him, she will not forgive you. If he
does not cease his fighting, you have no choice but to order the
destruction of the city. She must understand that what you are
doing is not personal,” Hunter replied with a shake of his head.
“Unfortunately, the humans do not understand that.”

Razor nodded in agreement. “What is it like?
To have a human as your
Amate
? I did not expect the
intensity of my reaction to her. I planned on choosing Rainiera
when I returned to Rathon,” he said wearily.

“Rainiera will not be pleased to discover
you have chosen another,” Hunter replied with a sympathetic smirk.
“I have run into her a few times and she has asked about you. I
believe she has already made plans for your union. She asked when
you were returning so she could schedule the designers to come in
and remodel your home.”

Razor grunted instead of responding to
Hunter’s teasing. It was true, he and Rainiera had been lovers and
he had thought to take her as his
Amate
. She was
intelligent, attractive, and trained to deal with the demands of
his position since her father worked in the Ministry of
Defense.

“I will deal with her when I return,” he
said dismissively. “It is pointless now that I am committed to
Kali.”

“Well, all I can say is good luck, brother.
Rainiera has nails and sharp teeth. Neither of which I would want
buried in me,” Hunter replied with a dry humor before he sobered.
“Let me know what happens, both with your
Amate
and
especially with Jordan. I do not like it when Jesse cries. She is
very worried about Jordan.”

Razor could hear the underlying strain in
his brother’s voice. Hunter was just as worried about Jordan as
Jesse was. He bowed his head in acknowledgement as a soft knock on
his office door sounded. Patch had arrived.

“I will keep you informed. Until we meet
again, brother,” Razor said in farewell.

“Farewell, Razor, and thank you,” Hunter
replied before signing off

“Enter,” Razor called out when the knock
sounded again, this time a little harder. “Patch, I have a request
for you.”

Patch’s eyebrows rose at the hidden command
in Razor’s voice. A grimace darkened his face. Such an introduction
could only mean two things; he was going to be doing something very
dangerous and more than likely not part of the approved Alliance
protocol.

Kali remained frozen against the wall,
staring at the closed door for several long minutes before she sank
down to sit on the floor. She closed her eyes and rested her
forehead on her bent knees. A torrent of emotions turned like a
whirlpool inside her, swirling around and around until she felt
dizzy from it.

A shiver ran through her, more from the look
on Razor’s face when she told him ‘no’ than from the chill in the
room. Drawing in a deep breath, she raised her head to glance out
the window beside her. Several inches of moist snow had begun to
accumulate on the windowsill. It was as if the weather was mocking
her desire to escape.

She wiped at the dampness on her cheeks.
Leaning her head back against the wall, she drew in a deep,
steadying breath. She needed to think. She also needed to push the
anger down and away. It would do no good; just distract her from
her mission.

“Oh girl, you have really gotten in over
your head this time,” she whispered on a hiccup.

She was angry alright. Not so much with
Razor as she was with herself. Emotions only broke your heart or
got you killed. Over the past six years she had seen it happen over
and over. That was another reason she made sure she avoided any
attachments. She didn’t want to love someone only to lose them or
to leave the one she loved heartbroken.

She held her wrists up and studied the thin
bands surrounding each one. The symbols on them were beautiful.
They wove in and out, connected yet individual. She turned to see
if she could make sense of it. Using the tip of her right index
finger, she traced the lines. A confused frown creased her forehead
as she followed the curving lines. They circled perfectly.

“It is like it goes on for infinity,” she
murmured in awe.

“That is what it is meant to symbolize,” a
feminine voice replied cheerfully from the door. “I knocked. When
you didn’t reply I became worried. I’m Chelsea. I’m the resident
human nurse.”

Kali stared up into the smiling face of a
woman in her mid-forties. She was wearing a light blue scrub top
and matching pants. Her black hair was pulled back into a ponytail,
framing her rounded cheeks. She had a ready smile and dark brown
eyes filled with warmth and humor.

“How do you know?” Kali asked as she stood
up, holding the sheet in place so she wouldn’t lose it.

“I overheard Dr. Humorless and the Scaryman
talking. I put two and two together and it came up to four so it
was a no-brainer,” Chelsea said, shutting the door behind her.
“Patch asked me to check on you. He was worried about how much
blood you lost and didn’t want you to be alone in case you
crashed.”

Kali shook her head in confusion. “Dr.
Humorless and Scaryman? Who is Patch? Why would I crash?”

Chelsea chuckled as she guided Kali back to
the edge of the bed. “Have a seat and let me take your blood
pressure. Patch is the doctor or healer as the Trivator call them.
He has almost no sense of humor. He reminds me a lot of that actor
who played in those Sci-fi movies. That’s why I call him Dr.
Humorless. My significant other is always warning me to be careful
around these guys. Thomas, my hubby and love of my life, is the
civilian aide to Colonel Baker, who is in charge of the facility.
At least he was until Scaryman came. I think that guy’s name is
Razor. Anyway, Thomas said the guy is like this alien killing
machine that was brought in to settle any conflicts. I haven’t had
to deal with him, thank goodness. If you ask me, all those aliens
are scary in a hunky, dangerous kind of way, if you know what I
mean!” Chelsea said wiggling her eyebrows up and down suggestively
as she wound the blood pressure cuff around Kali’s arm. “Stay
still, this won’t take but a minute.”

Kali’s mind swirled with questions as she
tried to understand everything that Chelsea was telling her. There
was a human Colonel in charge. Maybe he could help her. If not, she
would just have to help herself. She turned to stare outside the
window. She was used to the cold weather that Chicago got. She
could use it to her advantage. She just needed to know exactly
where she was first.

“Where am I?” Kali asked in a husky
voice.

“The US Army National Guard building on S.
Calumet,” Chelsea replied. “One of the reasons it is so damn cold
is because we are right on the water. This is the time of year when
I curse Thomas not being transferred to Florida or even better
Hawaii. I could handle Hawaii.”

Kali’s heart skipped. She was on the edge of
the divide between the Northern and Southern sections of the city.
Interstate 290 was the divide. The line ran from the edge of the
water all the way to South Branch Chicago River. It would be
dangerous, but she could make it. The old Harrison Electric Garage
was in Allen’s territory, barely. Once she got there, she could use
the old Metro lines to cross back over.