you might want to see her. We brought her stuff too. In the bag by the door.”
“The only mystery here is how the hell you assholes managed to conquer Earth at all. It’s fucking embarrassing. Now, is something going to help me up or do I have to do everything myself?”
T’kinn sighed. “All of you, out. I’ll deal with this female. You can get treated by the barrack healers… if they’ll do so once they learn you were injured by an unarmed human female. She’s right. You are an embarrassment.”
Several of the warriors snarled. T’kinn snarled back and all of them backed down. “Remember where you are, and who I am. Behave or bleed to death the next time you lose a fight.”
The warriors filtered out, the door sliding shut behind them. Kinn remained where he was, arms folded.
“Are you going to come out?”
“The fuck I am. It’s nice down here. Cozy.”
He raised an eyebrow. “You consider the floor of my medical bay ‘cozy’? You are definitely mentally defective.”
“And you’re an asshole, but I ain’t judging am I? And it’s cozy. Dry. No wind. Not filled with mud. There’s even a blanket. Ergo… cozy. Now fuck off.”
“Are you injured? Are you bleeding on my carpet right now? If so, I can treat you.” He frowned at nothing, trying to figure out what to do. This was not something he trained for. Females should be obedient. Submissive. Gentle.
This one was none of those things.
“Who carpets a medical hall?” The question was barely audible, and he assumed it wasn’t directed at him.
He decided to repeat the question since the female was clearly having trouble understanding him. “Are you injured?”
“It’s nothing.”
That he understood. It was a warrior’s answer when they were hurt, but did not wish to admit it. “If you have any injuries, I can treat them. I have food if you are hungry?” He knew the humans outside the citadel didn’t have much. If that’s where this one was from, she had to be starving.
There was a silence. If a silence could be interested, this one was.
“What kind of food?”
The question made him smile, and he softened his tone when he answered. “What would you like? Fruit? Meat? Perhaps something to drink, too?”
“Fruit? Fresh, actual fruit?” There was no mistaking the longing in his visitor’s voice.
“I believe you call them apples.”
“Apples. You have apples. And water?”
He considered that. She would be dehydrated, no doubt, but if she were starving, she’d need more calories, and quickly. “Water, and some warm broth, too.”
“Yes. Wait. No. You could drug the broth.”
“That would not be advisable. I have no idea of your metabolism or physical attributes. I may give you too much.”
There was a faint sound and a crop of blonde hair appeared over the top of the bed, followed by a very wary pair of eyes. “I’ll watch you make it.”
Annoyance flashed through him. This was his medical hall. He was the lord healer, not a servant for some half-starved and feral human female.
“Tell me your name, first.”
“Hungry.”
He frowned again. “I do not think my translator is malfunctioning, so I am assuming this is a human… joke? Yes?”
She snorted. “And I would have thought being a healer required an above average level of intelligence, but once again you aliens are proving me wrong.”
He folded his arms again, suppressing the anger that rolled through him. Only her wince as she stood upright negated it, and his expression hardened.
“You let me treat you and you can eat.”
She barked a laugh. “When did this become a negotiation?”
“Since you ended up locked in my medical bay.” He smiled. It wasn’t a kind expression, it was a warning.
She shivered. “Don’t smile. Your face looks odd.”
“My face is perfectly symmetrical. There is nothing odd about it. You are injured and hungry. I am willing to treat your wounds and feed you. What is there to negotiate?”
“Plenty.”
“Name,” he repeated.
“My friends call me Pita.”
Ready for more? Find Kinn and the rest of the Omega Collective series at alienalphas.com and be sure to Join the Omega Collective newsletter for exclusive news and series updates.
About the Authors
Mina Carter
Author, photographer and cover artist, Mina Carter can usually be found hunched over a keyboard or behind a camera, frantically trying to get the images and words in her head out and onto the screen before they drive her mad. She was addicted to coffee and chocolate, but unfortunately both now dislike her. Want to know more about Mina’s books?
Check out her website: Minacarter.com
Susan Hayes
Susan lives on Vancouver Island off the Canadian west coast where the waters are patrolled by orcas and the sighting of snowflakes leads to citywide panic. She’s jumped out of perfectly good airplanes on purpose and accidentally swum with sharks on the Great Barrier Reef.
If the world ends, she plans to survive as the spunky, comedic sidekick to the heroes of the new world, because she’s too short and out of shape to make it on her own for long. Want to know more about Susan’s books?
Check out her website: Susanhayes.ca