Chapter 8
Heather motioned for Devlon to enter her subcar, and was about to follow him in when Leonard decided to show up. His timing was fucked up.
“What’s going on? Was that the commander going in your subcar?” Leonard demanded.
She blocked him from entering, furious with his attitude. “Yes. We need to have a private conversation.”
“Not without me.”
Stay in control, Heather, keep it together.She took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “You’re not invited at this time. If there’s anything that will affect you specifically, I’ll let you know.”
Leonard wasn’t satisfied with that and put his hands on Heather’s arms, trying to move her out of the way. “Let me inside!”
“Back off, asshole! I’ve about had it with you. You’ve been nothing but a thorn in my side from the beginning.”
“You shouldn’t have even been named leader, that was my position you stole!”
She stared at him in surprise. She knew Leonard was bitter about not being named leader, but he always followed her orders and rarely vented his anger to her. She should remove him as her second immediately, but she didn’t have time for that at the moment. As a reminder that they weren’t alone, Devlon made his presence known.
A growl rumbled from behind her and startled both her and Leonard. They stopped struggling and turned to look at Devlon in surprise.
“What is going on out here?” Devlon demanded, glaring at Leonard until he released his hold on her.
She’d never seen Devlon so furious before. He was ready to rip Leonard’s head off. Heather needed to defuse the situation quickly. She would handle Leonard later. “I was just telling Leonard that if there was something he should be made aware of, I’ll let him know later.”
Devlon nodded, some of his anger dissipating. “You are not needed.”
Leonard’s face turned red as he backed down and stormed away. Heather watched his angry strides until he disappeared around the corner.
“He’s trouble,” Devlon commented.
She turned to look up at Devlon. “That’s my business to deal with. I thought you had something you needed to tell me in private.” She pushed her way past his larger body. She could feel his heat and wanted to rub herself all over him.Down girl, behave.
*****
Devlon glanced once more in the direction the human Leonard had gone off in. He wanted to hunt the male down and teach him to never put rough hands on a female. It was unacceptable, but this was Heather’s tribe. She was in charge.
It was hard for him to not take over a situation, especially when he felt he could handle it in a quick and decisive manner. Of course, the plus side to stepping back and watching Heather was that he got to see her in action. That was a beautiful thing.
“What did you need to tell me?” Heather asked, keeping a distance between them while trying to act like that wasn’t what she was doing.
He glanced around the small subcar. As a commander for the fleet he’d seen many primitive cultures. The tribes in the tunnels weren’t the most primitive he’d seen, but it amazed him to see how people could find ways to survive in the worst conditions.
Heather’s subcar was similar to a few that he’d seen before, but this one belonged to Heather and he couldn’t help but be curious. Most people sectioned off areas on the subcar using rags, blankets, or boards. Heather had done something similar. She had a bench sectioned off for sitting, across from another which he assumed she used as her kitchen, because she had some pots there. There was a curtain keeping the back part of the car closed off which he knew had to be where she slept. Did she sleep there alone?Damn it!He needed to get his head where it should be.
“I’ve heard reports that the rebels are putting pressure on the tribe leaders, trying to get them to comply with their demands. There was even a threat of taking over tribe leadership if they didn’t comply.”
She looked shocked. “Where did you hear that? Is your source reliable?”
“Jerry confirmed it privately.”
“Why didn’t he say anything?”
“He’s worried for his family’s safety. I’ve assigned security for each of the tribe leaders who’ve been open to it.”
“Are the rest of the tribe leaders going to take you up on the offer?”
“I’m hoping they will, if you encourage them.”
