Cosmic Sex (24 page)

But when he brought two of the carriers out, he did so carefully, telling himself it wasn’t the pups’ fault.

He could feel Sam studying him, assessing. Sam did that a lot, he always had. It was as if he weighed all the information.

“You love her and you know it,” Sam finally told him.

Nick looked at his friend. Boy, was he ever wrong this time. “She’s an alien. You were the one who kept warning me not to get too close. Okay, I’m ending it.”

“No, you’re running away.”

“My father ran away. I’m just facing the inevitable. How the hell could I ever compete with the perfect man? Or the perfect world? I wouldn’t stand a chance.”

Sam grabbed the carriers Nick had placed on the ground and started toward the house. “I never thought you were one to give up.”

Nick reached for the other two carriers but his hand stilled and he looked at Sam’s back. “I’m not giving up. I’d already let her go. This makes it final, that’s all.”

“If that’s what you want to keep telling yourself.”

His eyes narrowed. He knew exactly what kind of game Sam was playing. Reverse psychology. Hell, he’d used it more than once when he wanted to get information out of a criminal.

It wouldn’t work. Kia was leaving for Nerak whether Mala went with her or not. Her mind was already made up, and he damn sure wasn’t going to beg her to stay.

Like that would even work.

His thoughts flew back in time. To the day he’d come home to find his father had moved out. His mother was in tears. He’d called his grandmother and she’d given him a number where his dad could be reached.

He’d gone to Sam’s and called so his mother wouldn’t overhear. A woman had answered the phone and said he wasn’t there. Nick had been angry and refused to talk to him for six months.

Maybe if he had figured it out sooner, he wouldn’t have begged his father to come home when he did finally speak to him. He might not have made a fool out of himself. He hadn’t understood about the other woman until later—after his father had married Cherrie. Damn, she hadn’t been much older than Nick. Barely legal. Something inside him clenched tight and squeezed.

“Kia’s made up her mind,” he told Sam. “She’s leaving and there’s nothing I can do to stop her.”

“No, but I bet we can.” A woman spoke as she stepped from around the side of the house.

Nick spun around and saw a gun was pointed right at him.

Chapter 27

Nick clenched his teeth. How could he let someone get the drop on him? He scanned the area: cedar, pecan, and oak trees, rolling hills.

How?

The middle of nowhere, great cover, and they’d come out of the woodwork.

That’s how.

“Who the hell are you?”

The woman was tall and thin and looked only marginally more intelligent than the guy with her.

“She’s Darla,” the ape said.

“No names, you idiot!” For just a second, she pointed the gun at ape-man, then quickly turned it back on Nick and Sam.

The ape downed his head and kicked at a clod of dirt. “I didn’t tell them my name.”

She stomped her foot. “Slava! There, now they know both our names.”

“Slobber?” Nick asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Why, you—” Slava started forward but the woman grabbed his arm.

“He wants you to make a mistake,” she hissed. “If you rush him, you’ll put yourself in front of the gun. The other one will make a grab for it and that’ll be the end of us.”

“You’re smarter than you look,” Sam said.

“Thank you, but flattery will get you nowhere.”

They were being held at gunpoint by idiots! Nick was already mad because Kia had failed to mention companion units looked like frigging movie stars. His gaze narrowed on the barrel of the twenty-two. Now he was really pissed. It wasn’t even a manly gun that had him rooted to the spot. No, it was a little girly pistol.

Darla’s gray eyes turned steely. “Inside, both of you, and take the carriers with you. We don’t want to leave such precious cargo outside, now do we?”

Dognappers? The pups did have their papers. Wouldn’t it have been easier to go to a pet store and buy a dog?

Nick eyed her one more time before he started up the steps. He didn’t care if she did have a gun, he wasn’t letting her get her greedy hands on the pups.

He could take them if the right chance came along. She didn’t look too smart, and he didn’t think her sidekick even had a brain. Slobber might intimidate some people, but big and ugly didn’t mean a thing to Nick.

Sam went inside first, Nick right behind him. He thought about slamming the door in Darla’s face but he didn’t want to take a chance Slobber would push his way inside and Darla would start shooting.

He glanced around the room, assessing how many people were in danger. Mala was sitting beside Kia on the sofa. Kia stiffened, Mala’s eye narrowed, but that was the only indication they knew something was wrong. Barton and Carol were probably in the kitchen. Good, maybe they would stay put and out of harm’s way.

“Nick, it’s not what you think. I... ” Kia’s words trailed off when Darla and Slobber walked in behind him.

“It would seem we have company.” He watched as Kia’s eyes took on a calculating gleam. He could almost hear what she was thinking—could she take them?

He gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head, warning her to hold tight and not do anything. When she nodded her understanding, he breathed a sigh of relief. “This is Slava and Darla. Apparently we have something they want.”

“We want what’s in those carriers. Open them up.” She waved the gun. “Do it now or I shoot your little girlfriend.”

Kia’s eyes widened as she came to her feet. “No, you can’t have them!”

Slobber took a menacing step toward Kia. “You better be quiet. We can do whatever we want.”

“Leave her alone!” Mala said.

“You want some of me?” Slava raised his arm, shaking a meaty fist toward Mala.

“Touch one of them and you’re dead, buddy,” Nick advised with deadly calm.

Slobber hesitated, looking at Darla, then Nick. “I wouldn’t really hit a woman. But they need to be good.” He frowned. “I only hit men.”

“Let’s just do as they say,” Sam said, trying to bring calm back to the situation. He bent over. “Look, we’re opening the carriers.”

“Smart man.” Darla stepped closer, practically rubbing her hands together.

The first pup bounced out, then the second carrier was opened and the next pup came out and tackled the first one.

“What the hell is this?” Darla waved the gun. “Stop jacking around and open the other two!”

Nick did as she ordered and two more pups came out. One immediately squatted and made a puddle on the floor, and the other ran over to sniff it.

“Those are puppies.” Slava looked at Darla. “Can I play with them?”

She stomped her foot. “We’re here to find out about your illegal operation.” Her eyes narrowed as she looked at each person in the room. “I know all about it.”

“Our operation?” Nick had no idea what the crazy broad was talking about.

“Yeah, your operation.” She pointed her gun at Kia. “I saw the jewels you flashed when you were shopping that day. Damn near bought out the whole store, so don’t try to tell me they weren’t real. I wasn’t born yesterday.”

Kia opened her mouth, but Nick gave her a warning look. She snapped it shut. He breathed a sigh of relief and turned his attention back to Darla. The last thing he wanted Kia to do was agree with Darla that she wasn’t young.

He remembered all too well what had happened at the Bountiful Earth offices when she’d told the assistant to the operations manager that she didn’t look as if she were born yesterday. The woman had been furious enough to say she was calling security. Kia ended up zapping...

His gaze snapped back to Kia. He raised his eyebrows and pretended to push a button. She frowned. He made a pushing motion again and tugged at his shirt. She immediately glanced around the room until her gaze landed on her satchel. Disappointment flitted across her face when she spotted it across the room.

Okay, scratch that idea. Her phazer was too far away.

“And I saw you go in the Bountiful Earth offices and come out with all those papers. When I sneaked inside after you left, I overheard Ms. Big talking on the phone.”

Huh? Where the hell was this lady from, outer space? Maybe not outer space, but he’d almost bet she called the state hospital home.

“I followed her and saw the handoff to another lady. When I tailed that one, she unwrapped the Ming vase.”

“Ming vase?” Do what?

“Yeah, Ming vase,” Slobber said, puffing out his chest. “Uncle Yuri put a tail on her. He’s the top man. No one messes with him.”

“And the carriers? What were they supposed to be?” Nick asked.

Darla shifted from one foot to the other. Her face turned a deep shade of red. “I was wrong about the carriers. Who in their right mind has four mutts in an apartment?” She waved the gun. “But I’m not wrong about the jewels or Ms. Big.”

“Yeah, you are wrong about her. There is no Ms. Big,” Nick told her.

Slava turned to Darla. “Uncle Yuri isn’t going to like that. He’s going to be real mad.” He brightened. “But he’ll be mad at you, not me.”

“Shut up! Once he sees the jewels he won’t be mad at anyone. It doesn’t matter if I was wrong about a few things.”

“Why don’t you turn around and walk back out the door,” Sam told her. “We’ll forget all about this.”

Darla didn’t make a move. Not that Nick thought she would.

“I want those jewels. They’ve got to be worth a fortune. Hand ’em over.”

“They’re in my satchel,” Kia quickly spoke up.

Nick looked across the room. For a moment, he couldn’t breathe. What if they suspected she was going after more than the jewels?

What if... he stopped worrying so much?

Kia was a warrior. This was what she’d been trained for. She could do this.

“Get the gems,” Darla said. “And don’t try anything funny or someone will get hurt.”

“Of course.” Kia stood and started across the room.

“Where are you going?” Darla demanded.

Kia stopped, cocking an eyebrow. “I thought you wanted the jewels. They’re in my bag.”

Aw, man, don’t cop an attitude, babe. Just get the phazer out of your satchel and zap these jerks. Except she wasn’t looking at him so she couldn’t see his expression that warned her not to push her luck.

“You think you’re so smart,” Darla sneered. “Well, I know you’re not some foreign princess. We’re the same, you and me—criminals. You might have everyone else fooled but you can’t con me for a minute.”

“She sure is pretty, though,” Slava said.

Nick bristled. Gorilla-man better not get any ideas about Kia. Slobber might be big and ugly, but Nick would turn his lights off in a heartbeat if he laid a hand on Kia.

“Shut up, Slava. Try to remember why we’re here.”

With Darla’s attention on the brute, Nick inched closer to her. If he could get a little nearer he could...

“Don’t move!” Darla warned, swinging the gun in his direction, then backed closer to the door.

The door suddenly swung open, banging against the wall.

“Freeze!” Candy yelled as she stormed into the room, gun drawn.

Darla screamed.

Barton stepped from the kitchen.

Nick dove toward Kia to shield her.

He barely heard the sound of the gun as it fired twice.

But he felt the searing pain in his side. He hit the floor with a hard thud, landing on his wound. He gritted his teeth and hoped like hell he didn’t pass out.

Concentrate! He had to concentrate.

As if in slow motion, he watched as Kia scrambled inside her satchel, then jerked the phazer out of her bag. She aimed it at Darla and pushed the button. There was a popping noise and Darla was gone.

“What’d you do to Darla?” Slava swung to the right, then the left looking for her. “Darla!”

“Law enforcement, hands up!” Candy spoke from the doorway.

What the hell was Candy doing here? And Weldon stood behind her.

Maybe Nick was hallucinating. He looked at Kia, smiled when he saw she was okay even if she was a little out of focus. Apparently realizing the situation was under control, she quickly slipped her phazer back into her purse. His gaze swept over her again just to be sure she hadn’t been hurt. Yeah, she looked better than good.

Damn, he felt like crap, though.

“Okay, where’d the woman go?” Candy swung her gaze around the room.

Nick didn’t think he wanted to try to explain how Kia had zapped her. Then he’d have to tell Candy not to worry because Darla would show up in about nineteen minutes or so—minus her clothes.

“Sir, are you okay?” Candy was looking toward the kitchen.

He swiveled his gaze in that direction, feeling as if he’d drunk one too many beers. Barton stood in the doorway, a small hole in the center of his chest with green fluid seeping out. Antifreeze? Don’t let their parts freeze up? Keep the companion units nice and hot.

Maybe the bullet had been more than a graze. He was losing it.

“I’mperfectlyfinethankyou,” Barton said.

Nick blinked several times as he tried to decipher what Barton had just rattled off. He hadn’t thought anyone could talk that fast.

“What... I... meant... to... say wasssssss... ”

“Barton, you’re not okay. Sit down.” Carol led him to the sofa.

“The babies,” Mala said and started toward the kitchen.

“Sleeping,” Carol told her. “I was in there when the shooting started. They didn’t even blink.”

Candy tossed her handcuffs to Sam. “Cuff him. I’m going to look for the woman.” As soon as Slava was cuffed, she hurried through the house.

“Candy doesn’t know she’s a... a you-know-what,” Weldon assured Nick, then quickly looked around, but he didn’t have to worry about Slava hearing. He was sitting in a chair against the far wall talking to the puppies that crowded around his feet.

Nick pushed up on one elbow, but couldn’t quite make it off the floor.

“He’s hurt,” Kia said, rushing over. “Nick, are you all right?”

He vaguely heard her words. The room was getting darker and it was getting harder to hear. He made an effort to stay focused. “’Course I’m okay. It’s just a scratch, but I might need help getting up.” His words slurred.

Slurring words wasn’t a good sign. Crap, he was going to be really ticked off if Darla had killed him with her blasted girly gun. He’d like to taste Kia’s lips one more time, feel the heat of her body close to his.

“Why didn’t you say something?” She knelt beside him, gently pushing him to his back so she could see the extent of his injury.

“Just a flesh wound. It’s not the first time I’ve been shot.”

Sam knelt down beside him and did a quick examination. “You’re right, a flesh wound. I need a towel or something.” He met Nick’s gaze. “You’re getting blood on Mala’s floor.”

This was the sympathy he got? He was lying here on the floor dying and his longtime friend and partner was afraid he’d stain the floor?

“It hurts.” He glared at Sam. Okay, maybe he was feeling a little better. He’d still been shot!

Mala hurried out of the room and came back a few minutes later with a white towel, handing it to Sam.

He applied pressure to the wound. “We need to get you to a hospital, buddy. A Band-aid won’t quite do it. Maybe a couple of stitches.”