“You can guard the way,” I said.He shook his head, ears pinned with rage.
“We’ll never let them that close, I want to be with all of you, killing as many as it takes to keep my sons safe.”
I nodded.No turoch wanted to watch their band do battle without them.
“We’ll post Tine here, then.He’s willing and strong.”Tine was young enough he would be better served away from the fighting, but I had no doubt the male would lay down his life for any of the humans.
The rest of the females filed up the steps and Jessa clung to my hand until she was the last.
“Go,” I urged her.“It won’t last long.A few hours, maybe less.”I was confident it would be a quick and brutal battle.There simply weren’t the numbers on either side for it to drag out.Maybe, if we barricaded ourselves inside the building, the battle would turn into a siege.
But that wasn’t the turoch way.We fought on open ground, face to face with our enemies.And these enemies had never truly dealt with a band of turochs on their element.
Jessa wrapped her arms around me and kissed my chest.
“Be safe,” she whispered.
“I love you, mate.”
“I’ll say it back when it's over,” she said.“Because we’ll both be fine.”
I smiled at her brave face and her eyes watered before she turned away and hurried up the steps.Kes pushed the bottom section off the ground, leaving the females safely tucked out of reach.
He turned to face Dargo and I, his eyes narrow.
“Let’s deal with this so I can hold my mate in our bed.”
I slapped his shoulder, and we strode toward the group of turochs assembling to face the coming sytos.
35 Jessa
My hands were shakingas I gently stuffed Sal into the wrap hanging from my chest and turned to face the humans clustered together on the roof.The turoch camp had felt so safe, just an hour ago.We were in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by countless huge, friendly alien males, there was food and company...
That sense of safety had shattered the moment Tovis had caught sight of the sytos.Yet another bubble popped.But this time, it didn’t feel like my world ended and I was lost in a new reality.I had people here, that safety I craved had to be earned, but it wasn’t a pipe dream.
Taz crouched over a large cardboard box, her eyebrows lowered as she turned one of her lip rings with her teeth and sorted through narrow boxes of ammo.There was a dozen guns laid out around her, and she was stacking ammo beside each gun.Penny’s father and brother squatted down and started helping.
