Naima: A SciFi Alien Mail Order Bride Romance (TerraMates Book 7) by Lisa Lace Read Free Book Online

satisfied we had lost our pursuers.
    "Damn it! I said, let me down!"
    Gabriella banged her fists against my shoulders. Granting her wish, I gently placed her on the ground. I massaged my shoulders and stretched out my arms repeatedly, trying to crack the soreness out of my back. The human woman was heavier than I had anticipated. She alternated crossing and uncrossing her arms, shifting her weight from one leg to the other. With the oversized gas mask over her petite frame, she looked like a giant magfly sizing me up for a bite to eat.
    "Is everyone on this planet out of their minds? First, my shuttle gets shot down. Then I get taken hostage by those psycho aliens. When you come along, you start throwing me around like a beanbag. What are you even doing here?"
    I raised a hand, indicating that she should hold that thought. When I reached into my pocket, I realized why my men hadn't contacted me. My hand emerged from my pocket holding fragmented pieces of my communicator. The damn thing must have broken when the shuttle explosion tossed me through the air.
    I narrowed my eyes and carefully examined the parts of the device up close. Although it was in fragments, I thought I could repair it, given tools and time. The problem was the damaged Morse board. I would have to get a new one if I wanted to fix it.
    "Son of a bitch."
    My angry words echoed through the stale air around us. I growled, pocketing the useless parts of my communicator. What were we going to do now? I looked around me, trying to analyze my surroundings.
    "Laz? What's wrong?" Gabriella demanded. She removed her mask and held it against her hip. "It's like I'm talking to a wall here. I swear, I'd have a more productive chat with my reflection!"
    "Put your mask back on," I snapped at Gabriella impatiently, still facing away from her. "Stand down. Let me think."
    My nostrils flared as I started to pace. I unconsciously adjusted the knot on the rag, tightening its hold on my face. Even with the makeshift mask, I made sure to breathe out of my mouth. Centuries of chemical warfare had turned the air of Xylox poisonous and chemical-ridden. In the worst parts of the planet, breathing the toxic air could cause severe respiratory problems. Native Xylo developed an immunity to the fumes but were becoming disfigured over every generation.
    The uneven terrain barely concealed caves of varying sizes. Although I knew there were animals here, moss and disturbing patches of fungi were the only visible sources of life. All the trees in our spot of the woods looked like they had died a long time ago. Their trunks were thin and sickly, and the few that had managed to stay alive had black, moldy fruit hanging off their gray leaves.
    I needed to figure out a way to communicate with my crew so we could all get out of here alive. We only had the supplies and ammunition we carried and it was starting to get dark. I didn't know much about this planet; Xylox was the furthest thing from a tourist attraction.
    Mapping out the land would have been my first objective, but all the tracking tools I relied on had been stored on the shuttle. I would have to go back to the roots of my training.
    "Laz! Will you please say something before I lose my mind over here?"
    I usually worked with military men, and wasn't used to being in a combat situation with a civilian. " I said, stand down !"
    Gabriella tripped over her own feet, toppling backward. The look of terror in her beautiful blue eyes made me calm down at once. She had to bite her lip to keep it from trembling. I sucked in my breath roughly and relaxed my stiff shoulders. I took a few steps back to give us both some room.
    I felt like scum. Up until now, I had been subconsciously treating her like a soldier under my command. The situation was complex. I suspected that if I tried to put myself in her shoes, I would also be woefully unprepared and want to talk about everything. This was likely her first brush with death or violence, and probably