Read Online Sex, Love, and Aliens 2 by Beth D. Carter, Ashlynn Monroe, Imogene Nix, Jaye Shields - Free Book Online Page A

was accounted for except... Simpson ?
    In his mind, a vision of the young, dark-haired man who’d been delivering meals and running errands rose. “Dammit.”
    Sick... That tugged at his memory and he contacted his cousin Arends, the one who’d been unavailable. “Simon? Can you talk?”
    “Hey, Marcus. Sure. What’s up?”
    “You were sick at the beginning of the mission. Did they ever find out what was wrong with you?”
    “Oh, it was food poisoning. My morning yogurt contained some kind of bacteria. Did you miss the safety recall?” There was amusement in his cousin’s voice, but a yawing pit opened in the bottom of Marcus’s belly.
    “Are you available?” He needed him as part of his crew now, if they were to find Dria. His gut roiled. They needed to work swiftly.
    “Sure.”
    “Good. Transport to my quarters immediately.” He broke off the call and swiftly sent out an urgent summons to the rest of his team.
    One by one they checked in. It was only minutes, but felt like a lifetime. “The Incubi have the Turana . It appears Simpson, who replaced Simon, was a plant.”
    “Simpson? He’s... He was a new transfer in about two months ago!” Simon frowned. “I don’t know where he came from.”
    Marcus turned to the young blond man. “Find out everything you can about him.” Another thought struck. Dria complaining her yogurt tasted sour and was unwell. On the side in the dining room was the breakfast set up on a tray. “And get that yogurt analyzed.”
    Simon nodded and started moving.
    A young female ensign, a specialist in computational assessment, looked up. “I’ve found her signature, Vane.” Her face was pale and tight. “It’s in a remote area, in the hinterland.”
    “Get me the details. We need to move quickly.”
    The woman nodded and set to work.
    “Gear up, everyone. We’re going in to get the Turana .”
    * * * *
    Dria fumed and worked feverishly at the bonds behind her back. Damn them to the seven hells and back!
    How in the world had Simpson got past Marcus’s stringent safety protocols? She knew Marcus had been concerned enough that he’d arranged for her to be placed in the barracks after the situation at the hotel.
    The room where her captors had stashed her had a view of the mountains and foliage outside. She grimaced, knowing that even if she got away, she didn’t have a clue as to where she was or where to go.
    Hell, she didn’t even know which continent she was on. Who knew what human transmitters were capable of? After all, they’d had access to the Ba’Tuan technology for nearly a quarter of a century. Did they have geographic limitations like theirs?
    Each tug at her bonds tore at her skin, but she remained quiet while she worked.
    The door opened, and she stilled. “Where am I, and why did you take me?” The questions were rhetorical. The first one wouldn’t be answered and the second was merely textbook.
    She needed to keep them from inspecting the ties at her back, otherwise they’d know she was almost free.
    “ Turana , glad to finally meet you. Our Simpson did his work quite well and followed my instructions.”
    Dria frowned at the woman who took a seat in the chair in front of her. She was likely in her sixth decade, but well preserved with immaculate hair and carefully applied cosmetics.
    “You’re here because you represent the Ba’Tua . We would have preferred scaring you off, but you’re more than you appear. You were supposed to have been a silly piece of royal fluff with more hair than brains. Sadly, you’ve brought this on yourself as you involved yourself in human politics.” The woman looked down and observed her nails.
    “Who are you?”
    She gazed up at Dria and smiled. “Oh, so they never told you about me. Your mother and that bloody Cedun. My name is Felicity Kensington-Mare. You can call me Floss. That’s how your mother knows me.” She smiled broadly, and it was cold. Full of menace.
    Floss? The name didn’t ring a bell, but