He could pick her voice out of a chorus of millions. What was she doing out here?
The banging lessened, and the ship began pulling away from the surface.
When she didn’t make another noise, he yelled, “Elle!”
“Ice, run,” she screamed. “Run?—”
The sound was abruptly cut short.
Ice did run. He went toward her voice. It didn’t matter what happened to him as long as she was safe. He yelled as he charged into battle, using all the pent-up anger he felt toward the Milano Foundation.
“Don’t shoot, I need the aliens whole,” someone ordered. “Tasers only. You three, stop that ship from taking off. Do whatever you have to. Shoot it down, but don’t let them get away!”
“Ice, get out of here!” Elle grunted and cried out in pain.
“Elle, where are you?” Ice tried to follow the sound of her voice. He threw his arm to the side, clotheslining someone who approached. He knocked the man to the ground. “Elle!”
“Mmm-aaahh.” Her scream was muffled.
“You want your girlfriend? Come and get her,” the man in charge taunted. He recognized the scientist, Dr. Hanklen, who had done the tests on him.
Ice came to a stop as he entered a small clearing in the trees. The scientist stood beside Elle, who lay on the ground clutching her stomach. He held a gun trained on her.
“Let me help reunite the lovebirds.” Luther reached down and grabbed Elle by the hair. He jerked her up. She flailed weakly as he forced her to stand. “There, that’s better. Why don’t you come over here and give her a kiss?”
Luther pressed his lips together in a mocking gesture.
Ice cringed. “You are not to my liking and you smell like cheese.”
Luther scowled. He let go of Elle’s hair. She stumbled but didn’t fall. Dr. Hanklen pulled her arm and forced her next to him, pressing the gun into her side.
“He speaks English,” Dr. Hanklen said to Elle. “You told us he didn’t understand anything.”
“Fuck it. Kick his ass, Ice,” Elle yelled.
Ice wasn’t sure why, but the doctor didn’t stop him from fighting Luther. The man charged, aiming his shoulder for Ice’s stomach.
Ice braced himself for the blow, anchoring his feet as he leaned forward. He used the force of the man’s strike to help him lift Luther’s weight up and over. He flipped the human over his shoulder, jarring Luther’s stomach before dropping him. When he turned, Luther was rolling over onto his hands and knees. Ice did as Elle had commanded and kicked him in the backside with the heel of his foot.
The man slid but did not fall to the ground. He rolled to the side before Ice could kick him again.
“Imagine what we’ll be able to do with a specimen like this, what we’ll learn from him,” Dr. Hanklen said.
“You’re a monster,” Elle seethed.
“You’re probably right,” Dr. Hanklen agreed.
Luther swept his leg as he came out of the roll. He hit Ice in the back of the knees and sent him hard onto his back. The breath left his lungs in a rush and he gasped several times to get it back.
“Ice, get up!” Elle called.
He kicked his legs, pushing his body up from the ground so he landed on his feet. He glanced at Elle. She leaned away from Dr. Hanklen, who didn’t release her arm.
The fight became a fury of closed fist punches and open-handed palm thrusts. He heard the man’s knuckles crack as he hit Ice’s stomach. That is why one shouldn’t fight with fists.
Stupid human.
He grunted in pain as a fist hit his jaw. In return, he shoved his palm hard into the man’s chest, near his heart.
