The Gorison Traveler Incident (Veslor Mates #1) Read online

  Brassi hauled her behind him, putting himself between her and the next corridor. Then he strode forward. She hesitated but followed.

  The sight when she rounded the corner and peeked around him left her stunned.

  Ke’ters were down, the Veslors were standing, but the damage to the corridor was telling. Burn marks scarred the walls and floors, along with lots of green blood. Some of the Ke’ters were in pieces. Parts of the ceiling hung down, due to blast damage. She noticed the gloves of some of the other Veslors were torn at the fingertips, as well, as if something had ripped through them. He and his men must have used their claws during the fight, to kill the Ke’ters.

  “It’s not moving,” Abby said. “I zoomed in as close as I could. It’s breathing, though.”

  “Shit.”

  Brassi turned to her and opened his face plate. “What’s wrong?”

  “One of the Ke’ters got back inside. Vassi shot it twice, it’s down, but it’s not dead. Do they have good healing abilities?”

  “I don’t know.” Brassi’s gaze locked with hers. “We kill them when we fight.”

  “I’ll keep a close eye on the bastard,” Abby promised.

  “Close the vents while it’s down and bring engines online. Any time they’re running has to be a good thing to repower the batteries, right?” Vivian hoped so, anyway.

  “I don’t know. Engineering isn’t my thing. I’ll call your friend Donny to ask him. I’ll be back. I’m muting my side but I can hear whatever you say.”

  “Thanks, Abby.”

  Brassi touched her shoulder. “How many more Ke’ters to go?”

  The missing three and the single ones trapped in corridors throughout the ship had almost escaped her mind during that fight. “Not many. Are any of your men hurt?”

  “We’re all fine.”

  She felt grateful for that. “Do they need to rest?”

  He snorted. “We were bored until we picked up your distress signal.” He lowered his voice, and something hot flashed in his golden gaze. “Veslors have excellent stamina.”

  Was he hitting on her? She felt heat rush to her cheeks when she decided he was. She gave him a small smile. “Good to know.”

  His expression grew somber. “Are you certain you’re not hurt?”

  “I’m good. Promise. A little out of breath but getting back to normal. I don’t run much.”

  “You were fast, female. Impressive with such a small body.”

  It was tempting to point out that any human woman would be small compared to him. Veslors were bigger than the average human…by a lot.

  He left her to talk to his men, reverting once more to growls. She wished she could understand what was being said. As far as she knew, their language hadn’t been added to the database yet for standard translators. Then again, she wasn’t wearing an earpiece that had that ability.

  “Engines are back online. Donny agreed with you. Anytime they’re running is better than nothing. The Ke’ter appears to be unconscious and seriously hurt, judging by the spreading pool of grossness that passes for their blood. It kind of reminds me of sludge from solar engines when they’re old. It’s this goopy green color.” Abby sounded calmer.

  “I don’t know what that looks like. I’ve lived on ships most of my life. I haven’t ever seen a solar land vehicle up close,” Vivian admitted. “I lived in a dorm at college and stayed on the grounds. But I’ll take your word for it. I’m going to need another shower. Okay, you watch the bridge but we need to go after the next Ke’ter. Plot us a course through the blast doors.”

  “On it.”

  Chapter Six

  Brassi allowed Yoniv to take the lead as they traversed the vessel, swiftly dispatching the few remaining Ke’ters. He wanted to keep a close eye on the little Earthling he covered from behind as Vivian followed his crew. She appeared tired but she refused to rest.

  His gaze kept darting to her rounded ass, and he had to fight the urge to reach out to touch it.

  The females from Earth were smaller and much less aggressive than what he was used to. A Veslor female would let him know without hesitation if she was interested in him. They tended to boldly approach males they wanted to copulate with. Not so with Vivian. It left him confused and feeling off balance. She’d allowed him to hold her, though, when he’d offered her comfort during her grief. That might be the Earthling way of showing interest in a male, if they allowed one to hold them. He really wished he knew more about her race.

  “Your eyes will begin to hurt if you stare at the female any harder,” Vassi called out from the front, using their language.

  “Shut up,” he ordered.

  Kavs chuckled. “I see the attraction, too. But you’d have to be careful pinning one down. They look easy to hurt by accident.”

  “I refuse to discuss this with any of you.” Now wasn’t the time. His males could tease him later, once they were back on the Brar.

  “I don’t think these females wrestle with males to copulate.”

  He pondered Ruggler’s words. He was their negotiator, and usually the one he took advice from when they made new trades with unknown races. He had a gift for quickly evaluating them and figuring out how they thought. “I agree. They seem too timid.”

  “The males of their race aren’t,” Nessel grumbled. “I’ve fought a few.”

  “You fight everyone,” Vassi reminded him. “You like to be insulting until they attack to shut you up.”

  Vivian glanced back at him. “What are you guys saying?”

  Her language was soft and musical to his ears. He switched to it. “We’re discussing the upcoming Ke’ter we’ll take on.” Brassi experienced a little guilt for telling the lie but he wasn’t about to share that his crew was teasing him about his attraction to her. It might make her fearful of him. That was the last thing he wanted.

  “I really appreciate this.” She smiled at him before facing forward again. “I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you for what you’ve done.”

  His gaze dropped to her ass.

  Vassi chuckled, once more speaking Veslor. “There you go. Ask her for a few hours in your bed in exchange for our help.”

  “Shut up,” Brassi snapped again. “Our king would like better trade access with United Earth. The leaders of her planet may allow us on more of their space stations for saving so many lives on this vessel. I refuse to bargain for access to her body. That’s wrong.”

  “I bet it would feel right with her under you.” Kavs paused. “If you fit. She’s so small. It would be frustrating if you got her bare, only to discover that wouldn’t work.”

  A few of his males laughed. Brassi clenched his teeth, silently promising to take them into the training room and make them regret their teasing later. He’d kick their asses once they returned to the Brar.

  “Speak her language,” he ordered. “We make her nervous when she can’t understand us.”

  “She should be more worried about you pinning her to your bed to see if she can take you inside her. How do they even become aroused if wrestling is not foreplay?”

  He snarled a warning at Kavs. “Enough!”

  “Gentle touches and maybe some low growls,” Vassi suggested.

  His males shut up finally, probably thinking about Vassi’s words and wondering how different it would be to copulate with a human female. Brassi knew he was imagining stripping Vivian out of her clothing and discovering how to make her feel the same attraction he suffered from.

  They reached a section where the corridor remained blocked with sealed doors, and he stared down at Vivian. She stopped walking and turned to face him. Her eyes were a light green, so pretty. He found everything about her attractive, including the messy dark blonde hair that framed her delicate face and fell to her thin shoulders.

  “There’s a Ke’ter trapped just on the other side. Abby says he’s pacing, as if he knows we’re coming or something. I don’t know how unless he’s in contact with the survivors and they warned him. Then again, t