Page 14 of Hunter’s Valentine (Xarc’n Warriors)

I swung my axe numbly, neatly beheading another scuttler. Normally, I reveled in the fight. I lived for nothing else. But I hadn’t been able to find any joy in it since I’d dropped Sara off in New Franklin.

I knew that if I’d stayed, I’d steal her back into my shuttle, so I’d left right after trading some electronic parts for a small bottle of Earth-made “weeskee.” I felt like a coward, something I’d never felt before. I’d also never wanted someone’s company like this before, nor experienced that stab of rejection.

So I’d run, telling myself that the survivors of New Franklin needed her more than I needed a hunting partner.

A hunting partner. Who the krux was I trying to fool? Sara was so much more than a hunting partner to me. I hadn’t wanted a human female, but the universe had thrown one at me anyway, and I’d let her slip right through my fingers.

Today was the day of giving hearts she had told me about. Surely the humans of New Franklin celebrated this day. Would another male give a symbol of his heart to her? What if she was already mated the next time I saw her?

I gritted my teeth at the unfamiliar, crippling tightness in my chest, even as I rolled to dodge a volley of spitter acid.

I should’ve asked her again and given her more reason to stay with me. Should’ve told her that I wanted her as more than a hunting partner. Should’ve offered to stay at New Franklin to be with her.

Instead, I’d run. The original plan had been to help a hunter group that had put out a call, but they were all the way on the eastern edge of this continent, and the farther I got from Sara and New Franklin, the less I wanted to go. I decided on an impromptu hunt the next morning, even though I wasn’t familiar with the area.

That had been my first mistake.

My second was not paying more attention.

I hacked at the scourge mindlessly, like they were the ones causing me pain. By the time I realized they were about to overrun me, a centicreep had snuck up behind my position, blocking my way to my shuttle. I initially thought I’d dodged the creature’s first strike, but it was quick, and I looked down to see a long gash on my calf.

Krux!

Like a scuttler’s claws, the centicreep’s many blades were tipped with a neurotoxin. Hunters were engineered to be resistant to it, same as we were to the fungus, but not immune. I’d be able to recover from a cut like this, but it would take time—time I wouldn’t have if it slowed me down enough for the centicreep and the other scourge to tear me apart.

Before I could even react, it struck again, catching me on the arm. More pain had me turning to see a scuttler tagging me with its claws as well.

My odds had just decreased substantially.

I did what any wise hunter would do: I ran. I used the buildings to my advantage, running through them until I found myself trapped. Someone had barred the door from the other side, and the only way out was the way I came. There was another door, but it only led to a storage room.

I could try to fight my way out. The hallway I’d come down was narrow. I’d only be fighting one or two scourge at a time. But even as I considered that option, I felt myself weakening. I’d received a larger dose of the toxin than I’d thought, and it was already making its way through my system.

The scourge were almost on me now, and I didn’t have time to deliberate. I ducked into the storage room and slammed the metal door shut behind me. I put out a call for help, but it was too late. The door wouldn’t hold for much longer, and I was struggling against the toxins.

My last thought as everything went dark was that I’d never see Sara again.

***

When I finally opened my eyes, I was looking into familiar, stormy gray ones. Sara. I blinked to make sure it was really her. It was.

“Mur’k?” That was her voice too.

“Sara?”I reached for her, but I didn’t seem to have any arms. “Did I die? This must be the afterlife. I must have been a great hunter if you are my prize for all eternity.”

She made a strangled sound. “That’s ridiculously sweet. But you are still alive, Mur’k.”

“Does that mean I don’t get to keep you?”

There was a sound of a male clearing his throat, and I looked around the unfamiliar room, really seeing it for the first time. There were red and pink paper “hearts” strung up along the wall. What day was it? It was dark outside the window, and the hallway was dark as well. Had I missed the day of heart giving?

Roger leaned against the wall by the door. “Glad you’re up, Mur’k. They retrieved your shuttle, so you can rest there as soon as this healing device is done.” He nodded to the unit strapped to my leg. “But no rush. We don’t need the classroom back until morning.” He turned to Sara. “You realize it’s not either or, right? You can help us out and hunt with Mur’k. The hunter shuttles are fast. If we need you, he can get you here quickly.” Then Roger gave us a single nod before stepping out into the darkened hallway.

“How are you feeling?” Sara’s brows were furrowed, and her eyes were rimmed with red, like she’d been crying.

“Better, now that you’re here.”

“They told me it looks much worse than it is, and that you’ll recover.”

“I am a Xarc’n Warrior; we heal quickly.”

“You… You were already gone when Jack took me to the hunters’ compound. I wanted to ask you if you wanted to come visit me here. I realize that you only asked me to stay with you because you wanted a hunting partner, and I know I said no, but I…” She blew out her breath. “I really like you, and I’d like to keep seeing you.”

My chest swelled and erupted into a joyful symphony.

“I would like that too,” I said. “And I do not simply want a hunting partner. I want you. Stay with me. We will stay near New Franklin.”

She nodded in a human-style affirmative, a smile lighting up her beautiful face. The healing device beeped, signaling that it was done.

“Let’s get back to your shuttle,” Sara whispered, her eyes glancing over to the open door just as a pair of curious youngsters poked in their heads. “We’ll have more privacy there.”

That was for the best. “Roger had called this a classroom, which I understand to be a place where young humans learn.”

“It is.”

“Why am I in here instead of the infirmary?” They had pushed several small desks together and I was lying on them.

“Because you kept fighting the hunter that was trying to carry you, so he left you in here. Don’t worry, he knows you didn’t mean it. You were processing the toxins.”

“I see. One more question.”

“Shoot.”

“I do not have a blaster.”

She chuckled. “I mean, ask your question.”

“Is it still Heart Giving Day?”

“You mean Valentine’s Day? Yes, for like, five more minutes.”

“Good,” I said, pushing myself up to sit, only realizing now that one of my arms hung uselessly at my side. “Because I want you to have my heart. I do not have a paper one to offer you yet, but you will not spend Heart Giving Day alone.”

Sara threw herself at me, wrapping her arms around my neck and planting little kisses all over my face. I embraced her back, or tried to, given that I only had one working arm. I still managed to haul her up onto the desks and on top of me. She buried her face into my neck, and I closed my eyes, wanting to memorize her scent.

After a short eternity, she said, “You have to let me go eventually. You know that, right?”

I tried to release her, but the arm I had around her simply refused to move. It held onto her like it was the end of the universe, and she was my only hope.

“The mate bond,” I whispered, awestruck.

She inhaled sharply. “You mean the mate bond? Natalie said that when a hunter bonds with a woman, she becomes the only one for him, and there will be no one else, ever. Is that true?”

“Affirmative.”

“And you feel this for me?”

“Affirmative.”

I didn’t know if that would be a good or a bad thing for her. Was this happening too fast? Humans did not have mate bonds, and many “dated” for months, sometimes years, before they committed.

There was the universe’s longest silence, followed by a squeal.

“Does that noise mean you are happy?” I asked.

“Yes!” She made a sound that was suspiciously like a sob. “I know it’s only been a few days, but I want to make this work. Every day hiding in that bunker felt like another day waiting to die. You showed me something better. You showed me I could fight back. You showed me hope for a better world. And for the first time in a long time, I feel alive again. The mate bond couldn’t have chosen better.” But now there was doubt on her face. “What about you? I thought you didn’t want a mate.”

“I did not, but that was because I had not yet met you, my little hunter.”

Then she was crying, and I knew these were the famous, if confusing, “happy tears” I’d heard about.

“Then you can have my heart too,” she said, her words muffled by my neck.

A sense of rightness settled over my soul. I hadn’t come to Earth to find a mate, but now that she was here in my arms, I knew it was what I had needed all along.

“I am honored, little hunter. I will cherish it forever.”

Epilogue: Sara

I stepped out onto the roof and inhaled the cold, crisp winter air. This one had been a long labor, but the newest addition to New Franklin was nursing in her mother’s arms, and I could finally take a break.

The sun was already setting, which surprised me because I could have sworn it was morning the last time I checked. That meant Mur’k would be back any time from his hunt.

We’d gotten into a good routine over the past year, dividing our time between New Franklin and the surrounding states where we hunted the minor nests. We stayed in the settlement over the weekend so I could check in with my clients, and whenever one of them was near term, I’d stay longer.

The best thing of all was that New Franklin had access to Xarc’n medical devices, which our scientist types had tweaked so I could test for everything I needed to make sure my patients were healthy. I didn’t even have to wait for lab results.

Last summer, Mur’k had joined the hunter group here to tackle the swarm, and the hunter who delivered supplies to the various groups started bringing his monthly rations here.

In the fall, we’d bumped into a man from my bunker while hunting around my old stomping grounds. He’d reacted to Mur’k much better than I’d expected. He hadn’t known about them wanting to kick me out until Mrs. Willis said that my disappearing saved her the hassle of forcing me to leave. He’d been part of the group that had gone out looking for me that day, not because of any missing supplies but because they wanted to make sure I was okay. They’d seen the swarm of scourge and assumed the worst.

Bunker politics had never been the same again. It was good to know not everyone hated me.

I’d let him know that I was practicing in New Franklin now, and that if he wanted to jump ship, we were always looking for good people who were willing to help out—though I made it clear that the Willises and anyone who’d talked about kicking me out weren’t welcome unless I got a very public, groveling apology. He’d showed up with his wife just after the new year with the bunker’s stolen SUV and a bunch of flyers chasing them.

There was a single sharp beep followed by a set of blinking lights at the edge of the roof top patio. I quickly moved over to give whoever was landing his shuttle more space. It landed and uncloaked, and I recognized our shuttle. I hurried toward it, eager to see Mur’k after almost twenty-four hours.

All I wanted to do was snuggle and watch cat videos.

I found him still inside the decontamination unit. I’d learned after I got to New Franklin that the unit worked over thin layers of clothing, and technically one didn’t need to be completely naked, but many hunters and humans preferred to use them in the nude. Mur’k did as well, as evidenced by the gorgeous expanse of purple muscles on display.

I’d stripped down too and was trying to sneak into the decontaminator when he turned around, catching me mid-sneak.

With a wide grin that showed off his sexy fangs, he pulled me into the tiny space. “You’ve got to be quieter than that to surprise me, my heart.”

“What? Not your little hunter today?” He’d started calling me “my heart” after our first Valentine’s Day, switching between the two nicknames.

“You can be both, since today is a special day.”

I knew he meant that it was Valentine’s Day again, and so technically, our anniversary. The decontamination cycle ended, and he ushered me into the sleeping nook.

“I didn’t go hunting today,” he confessed quietly. “I flew up to the mothership.”

That could only mean one thing. “You got the block on your fertility removed?”

“I did.”

When they said that we were compatible, they meant biologically compatible in all the ways. There were several mixed Xarc’n-human babies born already, and every time I saw them, my ovaries would start reminding me that I wouldn’t stay young forever. We’d started talking about having kids during the Christmas celebrations, and he’d said he’d fly up to the mothership and get the procedure done.

But then there was the raider attack, and then the big snowstorms, and it had kind of fallen by the wayside.

“So you’re fertile now?”

“Affirmative. No more blank shooting.”

I laughed at the wrong order of the words. He’d been spending more time with the human men and had picked up some slang, though he never got it quite right. I thought it was cute though, so I never corrected him.

“Best present ever!”

“I was told it could take many tries.” He pushed me down onto the bed and crawled over me, the intent clear in his eyes. “I am very excited for that part.”

Cuddling and cat videos could wait. I reached up to grab my big, powerful, protective hunter by the horns, and his purring filled the shuttle.

“Then we’d better get started.”

THE END

New to the Xarc’n Warriors and looking for more? Here’s an excerpt from Claimed by the Hunter, the book that started it all!

A sound at the door alerted me of the presence of an intruder. I peeked over the counter and froze. At the door stood a Xarc’n hunter. The alien warrior was huge, with giant shoulders and a broad, muscular chest. He had to duck to get through the door. Even when he stood up fully in the convenience store, he looked almost hunched over from the masses of muscles on his neck and back. And he was staring straight at me as if he’d come in looking for me.

Yellow-green eyes met mine. They glowed slightly in the darkened store, standing out against the purplish mauve of his leathery skin. I noticed his horns next. The black horns curved from his temples, reminding me of a ram. They looked heavy, and I was sure they were used often as a weapon from the wear marks on them. No wonder he had such a thick neck; only a tree trunk could hold up those horns.

He took a step toward me, and I gawked at the inhuman-looking legs. Each muscular limb ended in giant feet with three toes in the front and one opposable digit at the back, and each toe was capped in sharp claws. Those were the feet of a monster. He took another step toward me, and the claws gleamed as they passed through a beam of sunlight shining in from the broken window.

Panicked, I backed away and grabbed the metal bar strapped to my thigh. Though how the metal crowbar would help me, I did not know. It looked like a toothpick next to his monstrous form. His dark skin looked tough and leathery. I’d bet he was very well armored naturally. Even if I put all my weight behind the swing, it would bounce off him like nothing.

He didn’t wear anything except what looked like a loincloth, a belt, and a harness. Pieces of armor were strapped strategically to the harness to protect him. He wore a long axe on his back and a blaster on his belt as if his claws, fangs, and horns weren’t weapons enough. He also had a few pouches and devices strapped to his harness.

He growled unintelligibly before a device strapped to one of his belts translated it to English. “Calm, female. No fear. Not harm you.”

Sure, and I was a monkey’s uncle. I wasn’t stupid. Not trusting the alien, I gripped my crowbar tighter and brandished it in front of me. The alien frowned, and the effect was downright terrifying, drawing attention to his elongated canines.

More growling ensued, and I waited for the translator to do its job. “No fear me. I care for female.” He reached into a pouch strapped to his belt and brought out a handful of what looked like alien nutrition bars. He held one out for me, the strange yellow-green eyes still holding my gaze.

I shook my head, and then, realizing that Mr. Big, Tall, and Scary might not understand the gesture, I said, “No, I don’t need any.” There was no way I was going to take gifts from a Xarc’n warrior. It was rumored that they would offer gifts of food to starving women, and if the women took the food, they took the women. No one has ever seen a female Xarc’n alien, and it doesn’t take a brain surgeon to know what they wanted with us.

The translator didn’t growl anything back at him, but he looked as if he understood my words all the same. He smiled, and the look was so terrifying, I nearly shat myself. Sharp teeth lined his mouth, and there was no doubt I faced a predator. I preferred him frowning.

“Take. Hungry.”

“No, I’m not hungry. I don’t want your food.” My stomach chose that moment to growl loudly, calling me out as a big, fat liar.

A low rumble sounded from him, his chest shook, and mirth sparkled recognizably in his strange eyes.

The oversized asshole was laughing at me! I narrowed my eyes at him, suddenly pissed. The nerve! Fuck him and his food. I wasn’t going to take the food anyway, but now I was doubly sure he could keep it and shove it where the light didn’t shine.

Shoring up my courage, I stood a little straighter and announced, “I’m leaving this store now. Please let me leave.”

The alien didn’t move but continued to block the door. He thumped himself on the chest and said a single word. The device did not translate.

“Move so I can leave,” I repeated. Then a little louder, since he hadn’t hurt me yet, “Get out of my way!”

“Female no go.” Instead of moving, he repeated his motion and word.

Was he trying to tell me his name? He repeated the word one more time, and I took my best shot at the strange alien name. “Kajeck.”

“Kaj’k,” he swallowed the last syllable.

“Kaj’k.”

He grinned, showing a row of shiny, super sharp teeth. I shuddered and backed away.

Find Out What happens!