Lords of Kassis 3 Jos_Journey S.E. Smith

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loved.
No, daddy. I m not in danger. In fact, I ve never been safer in my life. I have someone I want you
and momma to meet. Someone very, very special, she said with a soft smile. I ll be at the condo in
an hour.
We love you, baby, Alan said gruffly. We ll be there.
Alone, Jo insisted. You have to come alone. No one must know about me being back.
We ll come alone, Alan promised. One hour, Jo.
I love you, daddy. Tell momma I love her too, Jo responded before saying goodbye.
The moment the connection was terminated Manota opened his arms wide. Jo s face crumbled as
she stepped into his embrace. Her shaking sobs pulled at all three hardened warriors. Kev and K tar
quietly left them alone knowing that Jo needed time with her mate.
After several minutes, Jo pulled back and laughed self-consciously. Sorry about that, she said,
embarrassed. I wasn t expecting it to be so hard.
Manota tilted her chin up so she was looking into his eyes. He gently wiped his thumbs across her
damp cheeks. He watched as her eyes darkened at his touch.
You are the most beautiful, bravest female I have ever met, he said quietly. You have no need
to apologize for caring. I never really appreciated what you were saying about what it would feel
like to lose a member of your family until& until a few weeks ago. Now, I know what it feels like.
You are an incredibly brave woman.
Jo frowned as she saw the sorrow in Manota s eyes. She had seen it numerous times over the last
few weeks. Something had happened. Her mind raced through the brief conversations they d had. She
remembered him saying there had been a problem back home. Her eyes widened as she connected
what he just told her with the anguish he had tried to hide from her.
Your father? She asked in a scared voice.
Manota shook his head. Father is well, he responded sadly.
Who? Star& Her voice shook at the thought of something happening to her little sister or River
while she was gone.
Your sister is& as well as can be expected, he said heavily. Jazin& he paused as a muscle
ticked in his clenched jaw. Jazin was killed in an accident while at the Uri Spaceport several weeks
ago. It is even more urgent that your parents return with us. Your sister is& she needs her family with
her during this time.
Oh Manota, Jo whispered in shock before burying her face in his chest, harsh sobs shaking her
narrow shoulders. I m so sorry. Star& oh god, she must be devastated at losing Jazin.
Chapter 7
Jo looked down at the sparkling lights of the city below. She had moved as if in a trance after
Manota told her about Jazin s death. Her heart broke for her little sister. She knew despite everything
they had been through, Star was madly in love with Jazin. She had never seen her sister glow the way
she did when she talked about him. Even as mad as her sister had been about Jazin sneaking off on
some secret mission without telling her, Star still glowed as she described all the things she was
going to do to him when he returned. Personally, Jo had thought quite a few of the ideas had some
merit to them, especially the ones involving ropes.
Your world is much different from ours, Manota said as they passed over the cars on the
interstate.
They had left the warship almost thirty minutes before. Manota had explained they had cloaked the
warship using a technology that he and Jazin had been working on. They were able to enter the
Earth s atmosphere and land in one of the many lakes dotting the Orange County, Florida area. They
had to factor in finding one that was both large and deep enough to hide the warship and one isolated
enough not to be discovered.
Once they had decided on a spot, it was merely making sure that they didn t raise any alarms with
air traffic control, the military, or incur any civilian sightings. The warship had submersed itself,
settling on the silt-covered bottom of a large lake just west of Kissimmee. After they had determined
there were no alarms raised, Manota had taken Jo down to one of the huge cargo areas. It lead to a
smaller compartment that Manota explained was used for launching orbital service vehicles. Inside it
was a long, sleek wheelless bike surrounded by a clear casing. He explained the clear casing was a
submersible shell they would leave hidden once they were top side. They would then use the air bike
to get to Jo and Star s condo.
It is small and fast. We are less likely to be seen than if we used a full size skimmer. It would not
be easy to set it atop your condo building or hide from sight. This is more practical. It is very fast and
easy to maneuver in tight spaces, Manota had explained as he helped her onto it.
He stepped in and sat in front of her, pressing a button he closed the clear hatch. Almost
immediately the compartment flooded with water as the outer door opened. Jo had wrapped her arms
tightly around Manota s waist as he pressed his foot down on the pedal and the air bike shot forward.
It was strange traveling under the water. They were almost twenty meters below the surface and it
was pitch black except for the wide beam of light in front of them from the air bike. Jo shivered as
they swept by the remains of a large cow. As they neared the surface she thought she saw the
shadowed shape of an alligator moving quickly away. A few moments later the air bike popped up,
moving silently across the dark water. Manota pressed a button, turning off the lights. He drove
through the tall cattails growing along the edge of the lake and up onto more solid ground before
opening the clear outer shell and letting it drop off behind them.
He had ordered her to stay on the air bike while he took care of clear casing. Pulling the air bike
several feet further up the side of the lake, he made sure the ground was solid enough to set it down
without there being the danger of it sinking into the muck. Once he was satisfied, he had stepped off
the air bike and walked back down to where the clear shell lay opened. He quickly pulled it further
into a small clump of undergrowth. Returning, he had brushed a gentle kiss across her lips before
sliding back in front of her.
Jo had wrapped her arms back around his waist, tightened her thighs against his and held on as the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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