Gabe: Scifi Alien Invasion Romance (Hell Squad Book 3) (8 page)

Emerson pulled the curtain. “You’re tough, suck it up.”

The other woman snorted.

“You look more scared than when you face down a pack of rabid canids,” Emerson said.

“I wouldn’t have come if a certain stubborn-ass alpha didn’t bully me into it.”

Emerson frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Santha lifted one slim shoulder. “I’m just tired, feeling a bit off. I tried to tell Cruz that setting up a brand new intelligence team to spy on an invading alien horde is, you know, tiring.”

Emerson attached a sensor clip to Santha’s finger and tapped the comp screen, setting it for some standard readings. “Not to mention having a sexy soldier keeping you up at night.”

The brunette’s lips twitched. “You tell me to give up sex and I’ll be ignoring doctor’s orders.”

Emerson laughed. “So, the alpha maleness is balanced out by the great sex.”

“Oh yeah.” Santha’s face softened. “And the fact that he loves me.” She looked bemused. “And takes care of me.”

A burn of emotion lanced Emerson’s heart. Gabe had, in his own way, tried to take care of her. Emerson shook her head. She couldn’t think of him right now. The scanner beeped. “Hopefully we can avoid a prescription that involves no nookie.”

Santha looked around the small exam room. “Actually, it’s kind of nice to be out of the Intel Office for a little while. Gabe is driving me insane.”

“Oh? Gabe is usually so…quiet.”

“Yeah, but he looms and broods and demands. Over my shoulder, every minute of the day. He really wants this Genesis Facility found more than he wants to breathe.”

The flicker of test results popping up on the screen caught Emerson’s eye, but she ignored them to focus on Santha. “He’s still dealing with Zeke’s death. I think he lost the one person he could talk with. I’m worried. If he doesn’t talk, let out all the festering emotions, well… He needs to accept his brother is gone and no amount of dead raptors will change that. I’m worried he’ll…”

“Implode,” Santha finished quietly, her pale-green gaze on Emerson’s face.

“Or get himself killed.”

“Yeah, the squad’s worried about him too.” Santha tilted her head. “You have feelings for him.”

Emerson felt a rush of heat in her cheeks. “What? No, I—”

“I’ve seen the way you two look at each other.” When all Emerson could manage was a strangled sound, Santha waved a hand. “Don’t worry, I don’t think Hell Squad knows. I’ve just gotten good at picking things up.”

Yes, Emerson guessed a year alone waging war on aliens honed those kind of skills. Damn Santha’s observant nature. “I…I…it’s not easy having feelings, confusing ones, about someone who won’t talk to you. He… Well, in bed we have no problem.”

Santha smiled. “Oh, all that broody intensity. I bet still waters run deep.”

“But out of bed, he can’t, or won’t, let me in. I think for him, it was just physical. Anyway, we’re over now.”

Santha eyed her for so long, Emerson wanted to squirm.

“Emerson, I saw him out there on that mission when the Hawk went down. When he came to and realized you were missing, we had to hold him back from charging into a mass of raptors to find you. And later, when he saw they had you…there was no way on Earth he was leaving without you.”

Emerson’s memories of the night were thankfully a little blurry. But she remembered Gabe charging through the fighting to grab her, and how he held her as she cried.

Santha grabbed her hand. “That man cares. He’s just not good at explaining himself, or how he’s feeling. Must be a Y-chromosome problem.”

Emerson gave a short laugh. “Testosterone.”

“There you go.”

“He leaves me little gifts sometimes. Flowers, fruit, small things.”

Santha grinned. “Oh yeah, he cares.”

The scanner made a series of beeps.

“All done.” Emerson studied the screen. “Everything looks okay—” One line jumped out and Emerson blinked. “Well. I’m not sure how to tell you this…”

Santha stiffened. “God, have I got some virus?”

“You’ve got something. You’re pregnant.”

Now the woman went stone-still, her eyes saucers. “Come again?”

“Pregnant. Gestating. With child.”

“No way.” Santha pressed one palm to her flat belly and the other slapped against her forehead.

Emerson stepped closer, worried the woman was going to faint.

“I have a contraceptive implant. So does Cruz.”

“Cruz is due for his to be replaced.” Emerson grimaced. “I’ve been stretching the limits on their use-by dates because we only have a few left. When was yours due to be replaced?”

Santha looked up, clearly running some metal calculations. “Oh, God.” Her face turned stricken. “A few months back. With everything…I completely forgot. And up until a few weeks ago, sex didn’t feature in my life.” Her face changed, the hard edges smoothing. “A baby. Cruz’s baby.” Then every drop of color leached from her cheeks. “I can’t raise a child. Our planet’s been devastated, it’s dangerous, nothing’s safe or certain.” She looked up. “And I am not mother material.”

“Don’t panic.” Emerson touched her shoulder, squeezed. “This baby will have you and Cruz to protect it. That’s a pretty good start in my books. And you’re doing a great job with Bryony.”

“God—” Santha grinned “—Bry will love this.” The grin melted away. “What if he doesn’t want a baby? God, how am I going to tell Cruz?”

“Tell me what?”

Both women jumped. Cruz stood in the doorway, his tight white T-shirt stretched over his muscled chest and tattooed arms.

“Doc, is she okay?”

There was so much emotion in his voice—concern, anxiety, love. “Well—”

“Oh, God.” Santha pressed her face into her hands.

Cruz got a panicked look on his face and strode to her side. “
Mi reina
, whatever it is, we’ll deal with it. Together.”

“Okay.” Santha lifted her head, took a few deep breaths. “I’m pregnant.”

He went tense. “Pregnant? With a baby?”

“Well, I hope it isn’t a kitten.”

“A baby.” He breathed the words with reverence. “We’re going to have a baby. Jesus, Santha.” He yanked her into his chest and buried his face in her hair. “A baby.”

Love.
This was what it looked like. Emerson pressed a hand to her chest. It was so damned nice to see it amongst the horror and terror she dealt with most days.

And she wanted it.

Boy, did she want it.

After they’d worked out a schedule for some wellness appointments, the couple left and Emerson headed back to her office. She had some files to go over and she needed to beef up the schedule for regular blood donations all the base residents had to give. Supplies were running a little low. But instead of work, she found herself just sitting there, staring into space. She wanted Gabe to look at her the way Cruz looked at Santha.

She just had no idea what she was going to do about it.

Work
. She had work to do. Emerson plunged into her files like a woman possessed. When she lifted her head, her neck was stiff. She rubbed at it and eyed her watch. Hours had passed. She stared down at the medical file open in front of her. It was from one of the lab survivors. Some of his test results were strange. She’d need to run some new tests and investigate further.

But for now, she needed to check on Jason and get to her bed.

The lights in the infirmary had been dimmed, but the lamp was on beside Jason’s bed. He was sitting upright, rocking back and forth, his face in his hands.

She frowned. “Hey, Jason.”

“Dr. Green.” He made a strangled noise and moved fitfully. It was then she noticed he was covered in a sheen of sweat and his sheets were soaked.

“Jason? What’s wrong?” She stepped closer.

He raised his head, one hand still covering half his face. “I can’t fight it anymore.”

Fight it? “Stay calm. Let me help you. I’ll get you a sedative—” She started to turn.

“No!” He grabbed her wrist.

Sharp nails bit into her skin and she cried out.

When she looked down, she saw blood welling, dripping down her arm. His nails were long, pointed…like claws.

She looked back at him and he dropped his hand from his face.

Emerson’s heart stopped. One side of his face was normal.

The other side was covered in gray scales.

And his eye glowed a demonic red.

“I’m sorry,” he hissed. His mouth was filled with sharp teeth.

She tried to yank away from him.

He lunged, springing off the bed like an animal.

As he hit her, Emerson’s scream echoed in the empty infirmary.

Chapter Eight

Gabe flicked through more drone footage. He’d been at it for—he glanced at his watch—hours. And nothing. Not a single clue as to where the aliens had moved the Genesis Facility. He’d seen plenty of raptor patrols, and raptors terrifying and killing human survivors. His hands clenched. Humans too far away from the squads for them to rescue and help.

He tapped the screen and brought up more feed. The drone team had dozens of the little machines out there, searching. He looked at the notes on the tablet beside him. Intelligence from Santha’s team. They had a few hunches they were checking out. One guy, Devlin, was good. Damn good. He’d gotten right into raptor territory, close to their main ship, without being seen. Guy was either crazy, or very well-trained. He’d been pretty cagy about what he’d done before the raptor invasion…but Gabe had his suspicions.

Gabe went into his own directory on the network and made a new notation. An image file caught his eye, and he hesitated for a second before he clicked it.

A photo of himself and Zeke filled the screen.

Zeke
. His twin had the same face Gabe saw in the mirror every day. But he hadn’t shaved his head like Gabe, just kept his dark hair short. And his face had seemed more…open. Zeke had liked to joke and laugh. Damn. He’d been the best of them.

And he’d be fucking pissed at the risks Gabe had been taking. Even more pissed Gabe had gotten himself sidelined from active missions. Gabe ran a hand over his head. God, he wished Zeke were here.

Maybe Emerson was right. Maybe he was going to have to find a way to purge this…ugly blackness inside him. He stared blindly at his brother’s image. Maybe Gabe had being doing this all wrong.

Emotions churned inside him. Damn, he needed to do something. Anything. Maybe he’d hit the gym, see if someone was up for sparring.

He checked his watch. Hell. It was really late. Everyone would be in bed.

He knew where he wanted to go. His port in the storm.

His jaw tightened. He should leave her alone. She’d make him rip the scabs off and he wasn’t sure he could handle that. He also owed her an apology for being a dick at the landing pads.

Gabe headed out of the Ops Area. When he got to her quarters, he made short work of hacking her electronic lock. But the instant he stepped inside, he knew her rooms were empty.

There was only one other place she’d likely be.

He wandered the empty tunnels. Everyone would be sleeping, tucked up with their loved ones or with whomever they’d found to help stave off the loneliness.

He rounded a corner and spied a dark-haired woman running off down the tunnel. Reed standing there, watching her go.

When he sensed Gabe, Reed looked back over his shoulder. “Hey, Gabe.”

Gabe raised a brow. “Bit late to be out.” He eyed Reed’s bare chest and the damp towel around his neck.

“Could say the same thing to you,” Reed said.

“Been in Ops, looking for any sign of the Genesis Facility.”

Reed shook his head. “You need to take a break sometimes, bud.”

“Who was your friend?”

“Someone who needed a break.” Reed stared down the hall, a troubled look on his face. “Sometimes I need to sneak out of here and get some fresh air. She did too.”

Gabe knew Reed was an outdoorsman. A former UC Navy SEAL before the attack, he loved the water and always told them stories about hiking, surfing and mountain biking. Being stuck in an underground base had to drive the guy crazy.

“So…you headed to the infirmary?” Reed asked with the faintest hint of a smile.

Gabe stayed silent.

Reed shrugged. “Okay, keep your secrets, bud.”

As Reed turned to go, something urged Gabe to talk. He grabbed the other man’s shoulder. “Wait.” He dropped his hand. Uncertain. “I…I like the doc.”

“We all do. Smart, funny, hard-working, sexy. She’s pretty likeable.”

Gabe scowled.

Reed laughed. “I’ve got eyes, Gabe. Besides, I think your kind of ‘like’ is a little different than for the rest of us.”

“She’s—”
perfect
“—social, outgoing, friendly.”

“Ah, clashes with the man-of-few-words thing? They say opposites attract.”

Yeah, but Gabe wasn’t so sure. Maybe opposites attracted, but could they stay together?

“I’m dangerous.”

“We all are, Gabe.” Reed held up a hand. “And I know you’re…more…but I sure as hell know you’d never hurt a civilian.” Reed eyed him thoughtfully. “You want my advice?”

Gabe nodded.

“Be honest and be yourself. If you’re thinking something, just tell her. She doesn’t expect sonnets and songs from you. I think she just wants you. Badass Gabe Jackson.”

“What made you an expert on this…relationship stuff?”

Reed grinned. “I like women. All of them. Young, old. Pretty, plain. Straight and round. There’s just so much to discover. And if you treat them right—” he winked “—they’ll treat you right, too.”

They said goodnight and Gabe strolled toward the infirmary. Okay, just be honest, tell her what he was thinking. He could do that.

The infirmary door appeared ahead. She’d be hunched over her desk, working. The woman worked too damn much. She had a team of doctors, nurses, technicians. She could take a break occasionally.

A crash sounded from inside.

Every muscle in Gabe’s body went on high alert. He charged through the door and rushed inside.

His heart stopped. She was flat on the ground, a man on top of her.

Something washed over Gabe in a flash. Something dark and deadly. He stormed forward, not making a sound.