Soul-Bonded to the Alien (4 page)

“So you followed me here because you think I did the impossible or that I’m more than I should be?”

“Wrong. Your instinct to run to protection was triggered when you walked through my shield. The beacon you carry was dormant until that point. The moment you activated it, the need for protection became dominant. You couldn’t run to me because you were scared so you did the next best thing. You ran to my first.”

“Your first?”

“My brother, you would call him my twin. He was born first.”

Her mouth open wide on a silent ‘O’. “Are you sure you didn’t do anything to make me run in this direction?”

“Your desire to run is all your own. We have been sitting here talking and not once have I pounced on you, threatened you, or anything else nefarious.”

“So I guess all those bad dreams of monsters eating people are just bad dreams?”

His eyes lit up from the inside as he looked at her. “I never said I didn’t want to eat you.”

His eyes started with her face and slowly moved down her body leaving a heated trail. He focused on her lower region making her squirm under his firm gaze. Fire ignited as moisture pooled between her lips fueling her desire.

She cleared her throat, drawing his eyes back up. She would not fall for the hot monster.

“So, now that I’ve been driven from my home and my job and found this place, can I leave?”

He shook his head. “You’re not safe. Vick thinks someone is coming after you and I agree with his assessment.”

“Vick is what, six? He’s just a little boy!”

“A little boy with the talent to sense danger. We listen when he speaks.”

“So you’re saying I have to stay because a six year old thinks I’m in danger.”

“No, I’m saying if you leave here you’re a fool. I am going to get dinner, I’m sure the others have already retired for the night. I won’t force you to stay here; maybe that inner voice you heed will talk sense into you.”

“How do you know about my inner voice?”

“It’s the one thing all the females seem to have in common, an inner voice warns them, not that they always listen to it.”

“What females?”

“I’ll be in the kitchen eating if you decide to stay and get your questions answered.”

Cal walked out the room never looking back.

Of course she wasn’t staying, she’d seen this movie before where the poor defenseless girl gets suckered and then splat—she’s being served for dinner. Ok, maybe that wasn’t actually a movie. She didn’t do horror movies anyway. Making up her mind, she went to the closet for her coat and stopped. Everything in her was telling her not to run. Just a while ago that same inner voice was telling her to hightail it out the front door.

Flopping on the couch, she thought back over the last few hours. When she saw him take of those glasses her response had been a natural one, but her inner voice hadn’t even flinched. She already knew who he was, and accepted she was perfectly fine.

She did get a flash of warning every time she thought of leaving. She was sure something was tracking her when she left California. If it wasn’t Cal then who or what was it?

Getting up she went to the door, she would only stay long enough to find out what was happening and eat one or two of those delicious smelling pork chops.

The place was quiet as she descended the stairs. “Cal?” she called out in the main foyer.

“In the kitchen, Paige.”

She walked through the dimly lit living area and then through the dining room until she reached the kitchen that was ablaze with light. Cal was standing at the stove stirring a pot of gravy.

“I turned the lights off in the other rooms; with Selma’s Christmas candles in the windows, I thought it was bright enough.”

“Thanks, it was fine. I just don’t really like the dark.”

He nodded his head in understanding. “I heated us some food.”

He fixed them each a plate before coming to the table to sit.

He slid her plate a little closer to her. “Nothing on that plate will hurt you.”

She eyed the food before lifting her fork to take a big bite of the mashed potatoes. She rolled her eyes in ecstasy, added more gravy, and dug in.

“Your brother is an excellent cook.”

“He will appreciate hearing that. According to him, he does everything better than me because he was born three minutes before I was.”

A huge smile lit up her face. “What do you say about that?”

“I tell him he was born first because he’s the one always getting into sticky situations from which I have to rescue him.”

Laughter tumbled from her lips at the expression on his face. He obviously cared for his brother, not only his brother, but his people. The restless need she felt to run evaporated. She was amazing herself, but at this moment she’d rather be with him than lying awake in a lonely apartment wondering about the rest of her life.

“You wouldn’t laugh if you knew about the horrific situations where I had to rescue him. Then again maybe you would. I remember this one time…”

Cal told her stories that made her laugh as they ate dinner. Paige never noticed the dark shadow that crossed the window, but Cal did. He also paid attention as Victor slipped out of the house seeking the source.

Chapter Five

The sound of her laughter eased the tightness in his chest. He took a risk when he walked away saying he didn’t care what choice she made. His Matra shredded his chest when he walked out the door. It took all the discipline he learned over the years to make himself keep walking.

He stood in the kitchen as he listened for her footsteps coming down the stairs hoping he would not have to stop her from making a run for the door. When she turned to walk into the living area the pride he felt in her grew. She was still weary and he knew it. Her inner voice would only have so much sway over her. Any female in her position would be right to be distrustful.

Now she sat at the table laughing at stories from his past unaware of the danger that was stalking her.

“Where did you grow up?”

Her grey eyes sparked with an internal fire she couldn’t see yet but it beckoned him. He wanted to run his hand over her cheeks to feel the heat at the contact of his skin on her.

“We grew up here in Newburg.”

“How’s that possible? Do the people of Newburg know about you?”

“Let’s just say Newburg is different. You’ll find out for yourself soon enough.”

“Are you done? I’ll do the dishes since you heated up the food. I don’t want Selma to come down to dishes in the sink in the morning.”

“I’m finished.”

She gathered up the dishes and went to the sink. He took his time to look at her without her watching him. She was short compared to him no more than five seven. She had a wealth of auburn hair she kept in a ponytail and beautiful gray eyes. He loved them already. Then there were those curves. Beautiful soft female curves he wanted to get lost in.

He wanted to bury his nose in her neck to memorize her scent as he held her close. A smile lit his eyes as he pictured her waiting for him, grey eyes glowing as she opened them and welcomed him into their bed.

His Matra let a small sound of need slip as they thought of the female who was their mate. He wanted her, but how did he tell an unsuspecting female she was meant to be his mate as well as the mate of his Matra and that she was being hunted because she was one of the rare females who could mate with his kind.

“What time is it?”

He pulled his phone out. “It’s ten pm, do you wish to retire for the night?”

“Yes and no. I’m tired, but I’m not ready to sleep yet. Probably from the excitement of the day combined with all the running. You promised to tell me about the other women.”

“So I did. Why don’t we sit in the living room where it’s more comfortable?”

He turned the lights off in the kitchen and followed her into the other room. She sat on the couch instead of the chair that stood alone, he took a chance and sat next to her without crowding her.

This room had a different style than the kitchen; it was ultra-modern with the newest furnishing, yet it still managed to feel warm. There were Christmas lights along the mantle along with stockings even though they didn’t have a tree yet.

“Every room seems to have a different feel but it all manages to flow somehow.”

“Selma loves to decorate. Over the years she has collected so many things that seem at odds with each other, but her talent allows her to find a way for them to live in harmony.”

“How many years are we talking about? She can’t be more than thirty and I only say that because she has Vick. Without knowing about him, I would have put her around twenty four.”

“That will make her feel good.”

“Alright enough stalling, tell me about these women.”

“You already know I’m not human, although I grew up here I wasn’t born here. That’s a story for a later day. Every male desires to have a female, the one who we believe was meant to be our mate from the beginning of time.”

“You know that’s just a myth, made up to make little girls think there’s a special guy waiting for them when in reality some get lucky and some don’t.”

“That’s not a myth, at least not for my people. I don’t believe it’s a myth for your people either. Maybe some never meet the other part of their soul or maybe they compromise, but not finding the right person is different from them never existing in the first place.”

“So you think I should hold out hope that my knight in shining armor will come for me. Then we will what, ride off into the sunset and never have any problems.”

“Ahh, now I understand. You think meeting your soulmate will take away all the cares of the world. That part is a myth. He will simply be the one who will always stay by your side, love you for all eternity. When you have a problem, you will face it together as a team.”

“Then I guess you are wrong; I’ve been alone forever. There is no soulmate for me. Back to the women you think I am like.”

“Each of those women have been a soul mate to one of my males.”

“Why do you call them your people or your males?”

“Victor, being the oldest, is the ruler. But if anything were ever to happen to him, I would lead in his stead. For now I simply give him counsel but the ultimate decision is his. I train our males and help to keep an eye on them. I also go where ever I am needed.”

“That’s why you were in the alley in California.”

He nodded his head yes and waited.

“I want to go outside.”

“That’s not a good idea at this time, there may be a dangerous presence out there.”

“So now I’m a prisoner here? What happened to do whatever you want, Paige?”

“Paige.” Cal looked at her with sadness. “I need to walk. I feel confined. It’s like my insides are trying to jump out of my skin. I also know you’re not telling me something, but I’m not sure I want to know. All I’m sure of is that I need to walk.”

“Remember this feeling, Paige, memorize it, it may save your life one day. Get your coat.”

She ran upstairs and was down within a few minutes wrapped in her big coat with hat, scarf and gloves on.

“Stay close to me, Paige, and whatever you do don’t panic. I will protect you.”

They walked outside to find Victor staring out into the darkness.

“Calix…” Victor gave his brother a hard look.

“I know, but she has to know. She is strong and headfast but without proof she will walk into danger unknowingly.”

“I will retire for the night. I have reinforced the boundary; do not go too far beyond it.”

“I will heed your warning, goodnight brother.”

“Goodnight, Paige.” Victor turned and disappeared into the house without giving her time to wish him a pleasant evening.

“He’s rather intense.”

“He’s a king. It goes with the territory.”

“Royalty, who would have known. I’m ready for that walk now.”

He held out his hand hoping she would be willing to take it. When she placed hers in his, a rightness settled within. Whatever it took, he would show her she was meant to be with him. His Matra mumbled his agreement. They began to stroll slowly through the yard.

“Can you tell me what your people are called?”

“We call ourselves the Arbrin.”

“How do you turn into the monster I saw?”

“He is not a monster, he’s simply another side of me. I become Matra. The saying goes that a long time ago the world I come from was populated by both the Arbrin and the Matra. We fought each other for dominance of the planet. Neither race was winning and from the way things were going both races would soon be extinct from the severity of our fighting. Then we were attacked by another race, the Sudir, who were determined to take our planet and mine it for our natural resources. It was only through our coming together that we would be able to fight them off.

We fought to no avail until it was discovered that we could physically merge together. That is when the tide began to turn. We would share forms, it made us stronger and faster. We could also swap forms to utilize whichever one of us was best for that situation. The enemy thought they found a weapon that would stop this from happening. They used it planet-wide, bombarding us with it for days. When they turned it off, thinking they had won, the unthinkable happened. The Arbrin and the Matra were truly one. We had one brain that thought like two species giving us the power not only to multitask but to examine problems from angles we never dared look at before. The enemy was defeated quickly and we took to being one race.”

“That’s amazing.” She picked a snowball up and threw it at him. Laughing, she ran towards the road.

“Paige,” he called out, grabbing for her as she went through the barrier.

“What was that?” A feeling of pure warmth hit her body, rapidly followed by intense cold.

“You just left the barrier Vick put up, and Victor and I reinforced tonight. Remember that feeling in the future. It may save you from what’s chasing you.”

“What is that?” her voice trembled as she asked the question. A shadow convulsed to life becoming a living creature in front of them.

“That is the natural predator of the Arbrin and Matra. He too was born that night. The enemy thought they would be unharmed and many stayed on the planet during the bombardment.” Cal pulled her backwards away from the threat.