Defiance (Earth Evolution Series Book 5) Read online

  “Call me Devlon.”

  She bit her lip before repeating his name softly. “Devlon.” As she looked up at him, she felt a spark between them. The heat from his body was like a blanket surrounding her. Heather lost herself in his eyes; they were dark and mysterious, making her wonder what secrets he hid. She was so caught up in his eyes and heat, she didn’t even realize they had moved closer together until they were barely a few inches apart.

  “You could come to Drasta,” Devlon said in a deep voice.

  Heather shook her head. “Not while my people still need me. Besides, I don’t have anyone on Drasta.”

  As if remembering that he shouldn’t get involved, he took a step back from her. “Whereas you have a husband here on Earth.”

  She rolled her eyes. They were back at this again. She moved further away from him. “So, you’re going with me to the tunnels now?”

  “Yes. I have a few hours I can spare, and then I need to return to the command ship to make further arrangements.”

  An SUV pulled up, preventing Heather from saying anything else. They left the small building and ventured outside. Heather looked at her world like it was her first time seeing it.

  The sky was still red, and there was a dust cloud moving in quickly. There were some buildings in the city still standing, but the windows were mostly gone, exposing the inside rooms to terrible winds. Other buildings were piles of rubble and ash, and the ground was dry and cracked. It truly did look like an apocalypse had taken place.

  Sadness filled her at seeing what once was a thriving, lively city completely destroyed. Would she ever see a blue sky again? Was there a day coming where she could be above ground for longer than five minutes without having to wear an oxygen mask?

  That’s what made it so hard to travel above-ground from dome to dome. They used trucks to ship supplies, but the drivers had to use oxygen tanks just to make the trips.

  Devlon held the door open for her, and she climbed in the backseat. He walked around and got inside on the front passenger’s side.

  “Where to first, Commander?” the driver asked. He was a young twenty-something, who checked her out in the rearview mirror as she slid in.

  Devlon must have noticed the man looking at her, and made a kind of growling, grunting noise. It made the driver jump in his seat. “Sir?”

  “Take us to the subway entrance closest to the North Tribe.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Heather gripped the handle on the door as the driver sped off really fast, spinning the wheels in the back. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing when Devlon yelled at the young man that he was endangering them all with his reckless driving. He threatened to take over the driving himself, but of course he didn’t know how to operate human machinery.

  Closing her eyes, she imagined taking a nice quiet Sunday drive, with Devlon driving. She would reach out to hold his hand. It was a peaceful scene, until a loud booming voice interrupted.

  “Blast your crazy maneuvering! Slow it down or I’ll throw you out of this vehicle!”

  “Devlon.”

  He turned around in the seat to look at her. “What is it?”

  “Shut the hell up and let the poor man do his job.”

  Devlon was stunned once more, and blessedly shut up like she ordered. She basked in the short reprieve, because the commander was not one used to taking orders.

  *****

  “Tell me, what is being discussed at this meeting?” Frazier, the leader of the human resistance, demanded.

  “The dome leaders and a representative of the tribes were meeting in one of the domes with the alien commander. I don’t know what was discussed, but I have someone on the inside who will get me that information as soon as possible.”

  Frazier needed to know what was going on. He and his followers headed up the secret resistance against the Drastan invasion. He didn’t trust them, and knew no good could come from mixing their species.

  Just the thought of the mixed baby up there on the command ship made him feel disgusted and angry. The Drastans were trying to ruin everything that he’d worked hard for. He’d tried to get inside a dome before the nukes hit, but he was turned away. He sought cover in the tunnels. Afterward, when he ventured above-ground, he scouted the dome. When one of the supply drivers came out, he killed him and took over his identity. Luckily for him the guy wasn’t very social with his coworkers, and was close to only one person, a girlfriend. He disposed of her easily. He stole supplies to bring into the tunnels, trading and building up followers and gaining a little power. Also, he planted doubts with the dome-dwellers about having to follow the military rules, wanting to sow discord. His hope was to take over a dome, but he didn’t have enough followers yet.

  In the tunnels he was known by his followers as Frazier, but in the dome he lived in he was Frank Start. It was convenient to have a double identity. No one knew the truth.

  A beeping noise came from his pocket. He left the group that gathered around for the latest resistance meeting, looking for somewhere more private. He pulled out the Drastan communicator in his pocket.

  It was his anonymous co-conspirator on board the Drastan fleet. Not all Drastans were happy about being here on Earth. He didn’t like the aliens, but if this one could help him get them to finally leave, he would put up with him. Plus, the alien had previously supplied him with Drastan weapons, and he was hoping to get more.

  “What’s taken so long for you to contact me?” Frazier asked.

  “Shut up and listen. There’s another mixed child. This mixing of the species is going to need to be dealt with.”

  “What do you expect me to do? I’m here on Earth, and I don’t think the commander is just going to let me fly up there.”

  “There is talk that the baby shower will be on Earth, in the local dome.”

  “That has possibilities, but I’m not doing anything that jeopardizes my cover. Besides, the mated females have been given extra security, making it nearly impossible to get to them.”

  “Yes, they have done so onboard the command ship as well. Continue to cause disruptions where you can. If you get a clean shot at the commander, take him out. We only need to bide our time. Drasta is sending someone to report on Devlon’s progress.”

  “I’ll see what I can do. When can we get another shipment of weapons?”

  “Weapons are under tight security. We’ll do what we can. Don’t try to try to contact us.”

  The communicator cut off, and Frazier stuffed it back in his pocket. Another mixed breed, an abomination…but that wasn’t his concern. If they could get the fleet to pull out, they would take the little bastards with them.

  Chapter 4

  Forty-five minutes later

  Heather shook hands with the North Tribe leader, Jerry Lee. “It’s good to see you again.”

  “Heather, a pleasure as always. How did the meeting with the dome leaders go?”

  “Good. They’re looking into the infrastructure ideas we have. That’s why we’re here, to look at the apartments that have been built so far.”

  Jerry turned to Devlon, surprised to see him. “Commander, I wasn’t told you’d be visiting. Lily and your son Jared are here, giving more treatments.”

  Lily was a wonderful woman who had lived in the tunnels with Maggie in Jerry’s tribe. His eldest son Jared had mated her. Devlon was thrilled about the match, and even more thrilled that he got an instant grandson, Lily’s small son Thomas.

  Devlon looked around. “Yes, I knew that Jared would be here this week.”

  He didn’t sound happy about it to Heather. Devlon was quite protective of his family. It was one of the qualities she admired most about him.

  Heather had grown up in a small farming town, where girls were expected to live with their parents before they got married. Then they would leave to be with their husbands, who would help farm the land and produce more babies. She was the third of five children, who all helped their parents on their vegetable
farm.

  She’d met her husband, Mark, when he came through town. He was changing colleges so that he could move several states away. Mark was so full of energy and excited about his future in the big city. She was only seventeen, very naive about men, and pretty much everything really. He convinced her to run off with him, and they stopped in a state that allowed her to get married without her parent’s consent. Of course, her parents didn’t come after her to try to stop her. They just...let her go.

  Heather thought that she would be able to go to school too, but Mark had other plans. He expected her to work to help put him through college first, always promising that once he graduated and got a job he would work to pay for her to go to college. It was all lies. He never planned for her to get an education at all. She at least got her GED, by taking computer courses at night.

  Slowly over the years she discovered more and more lies about Mark. The more she discovered, the more she realized what a mistake she’d made. He was unfaithful to her through their entire marriage. Whenever she tried to confront him, he would deny it and then accuse her of cheating. The cheating wasn’t the worst of his sins, either — Mark was abusive both verbally and physically. She tried to call her mother, wanting someone to talk to. A part of her hoped that her daddy would get in the pickup truck and drive out to the city to get her and bring her home. Her mother just told her that she’d made her bed and now she had to lie in it.

  At first she believed that she deserved what she got. She’d disobeyed her parents and run off with a stranger, so she didn’t deserve a happily ever after. It took a long time for her to realize that wasn’t true.

  She had a miscarriage early on in the marriage, and he blamed her for it. She made sure to use protection from then on, to prevent getting pregnant. Heather was grateful that they’d never had children. No child should ever have to suffer in a loveless and abusive environment like that.

  After years of hell, Heather couldn’t take it anymore. She saved up some money and moved out. But before she could file separation papers, he came around promising her that he’d changed and that he would do anything to get another chance.

  She left him multiple times, and each time he would make some grand gesture, telling her that he’d changed. And stupid her, she took him back each time. After his last outburst put her in the hospital her, he was arrested, and she had time to really think about what she was willing to put up with. She’d almost died that last time. Going through something like that really opened a person’s eyes—her eyes were opened and she would never close them again.

  The day her divorce was to be finalized she was on her way to court. Mark ambushed her at the subway station, begging for her to take him back. She knew it was just about the money; he didn’t want to pay her alimony. Nothing he could say would sway her. She was finally ready to move on with her life.

  When the nukes hit, it was chaos. She was already in the subway when it happened but there had been others who’d warning from the news stations telling everyone to seek shelter at their nearest government domes, subways, or wherever they could. The military attempted to deflect the nukes to give people more time, but there was only so much that they could do.

  The need to survive became more important than their differences. Mark’s controlling nature helped him acquire tribe leader status, but unfortunately, some things never changed. He was less physically abusive but started back with his cheating ways. It didn’t really matter, because she hadn’t had a sexual relationship with him in years. Technically they were still married; since the nuclear disaster happened they had no way to officially end their marriage. The best she could do was leave—and that’s what she did.

  For the tribes, being thrown out of a tribe was almost a death sentence. A tribe offered shelter and protection, and everyone in the tribe helped gather food. To be kicked out was the worst punishment, and there was no guarantee that a person would find a way to survive without the aid of a tribe.

  Heather felt like she was left with no other choice but to leave. She packed the few things she had and left Mark’s tribe. She kept expecting Mark to come after her, but he didn’t. He just...let her go. Everyone in her life had either walked away or allowed her to leave. No one cared enough to fight for her.

  “Heather?”

  She heard her name and startled. She hadn’t realized her mind had wandered off. She turned to face Devlon. “What?”

  “Are you ready to view the apartments?”

  “Yes.” She moved to follow him and Jerry.

  They headed to a sidewalk on the other side of the tracks. It looked like the normal wall had been pushed back further, creating a type of courtyard. Buildings surrounded the courtyard on three sides. The right side had small structures under construction.

  “Those are going to be our shops and markets for trade,” Jerry explained.

  Heather was impressed. Talking about it and looking over plans on paper was one thing, but to see it start to take shape was something totally different. It felt real. They could do this.

  The other two sides contained stacked apartments, with stairs leading up to the second level. “How many apartments do you have?”

  “Fifty, and there will be room to add more if needed. Right now we only have thirty in our tribe. The Drastans have been great at training our people how to build in a fast and efficient way. Each unit has one, two, or three bedrooms, and they have power and running water.”

  “Where are you getting the power for all of that?”

  It was the commander who answered her as he opened a door to one of the units. “Solar and wind power. My people have been helping rewire and increase the input and output of the current power source. It was previously solar, but adding wind has increased production tenfold.”

  Someone hit the light switch as she entered the apartment, lighting up the space. It was small, with an open floor plan. When she walked through the door she was immediately in the living room, which connected to a kitchen with a breakfast bar. There were two open doors: one leading to a bedroom, and the other to a spacious bathroom. No more communal showers. This was a true luxury.

  “It’s amazing,” she said in awe.

  Jerry nodded. “The Drastans helped us create new appliances, too. The dishwasher is also a washing machine and clothes dryer.”

  “Clean clothes, too?” She looked over at Devlon like he was a god.

  Devlon shrugged his shoulders. “It’s a basic sanitizer; all ships have them. We just helped replicate them here.”

  This could happen. Her people could actually make a home here, and help rebuild Earth.

  “They added full-spectrum UV lighting, that’s why everything seems brighter. It will help prevent people from getting vitamin D deficiency.”

  She was simply amazed, and beholden to the Drastan people. “Thank you, Commander. What your people have done here is incredible.”

  He nodded but looked away, like he felt uncomfortable being thanked.

  “Would you like to see the site of the future shops?” Jerry asked them.

  “Yes, please.”

  They followed Jerry back out into the courtyard. As they walked across to the other side, Jared approached them.

  “You go ahead, Heather and Jerry. I’ll catch up.”

  “Sure.” Heather smiled at Jared as she passed him. Jared was one of Devlon’s three sons, the oldest and the one closest to his father in height. They both had dark hair and dark eyes. The Estro men were definitely blessed in the looks department. She wondered what they were talking about.

  *****

  “Jared, are you okay? Is Lily?”

  “We’re fine. Lily is finishing up the treatments. I left her with Lt. Saber and the Earth male, Corey Nash. I heard you’d arrived, but you don’t have your security detail with you.”

  Devlon glared at his son. “Liam is being overprotective. I don’t need a security detail.”

  “Dad…”

  Devlon needed to redirect this conve
rsation. “I thought you weren’t going to let Lily come back down here, now that she’s breeding.”

  “She begged me to let her come, since this would be the last time before she has the baby.”

  “If we leave Earth sooner than expected, it might be her last chance.”

  “Don’t say that to Lily or the other girls. They’re very sensitive about leaving Earth.”

  “Lily doesn't want to go to Drasta?” Devlon couldn’t understand their hesitation.

  “I think it’s more that she doesn’t want to abandon her people here. Maggie, Rachel, and Hali also feel the same way. We’re trying to ease them into the idea, but Maggie and Rachel are insisting that they need to stay because their parents are here.”

  Devlon ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. “Their father is also being unreasonable about this. The best place for them is Drasta. There they will be able to move around on the surface of the planet and get fresh air and sunshine. How do they not see that would be better for their children?”

  “They’ll come around, we just have to be patient with them. Where is your security?”

  “I left them back at the dome. I came here with Heather...Tribe Leader Bates. She proposed that they make more of this type of structure all throughout the subway system. We came to check on the progress. Her idea is to expand the subway systems citywide, and then through her country.”

  “She plans on keeping the tribes in the subways?”

  “Yes. At first I didn’t think it was a good idea. Now, after seeing what’s been achieved, I think it’s a valid plan.”

  “The tribes could just move to the domes. It would be better for them,” Jared commented.

  “As it would be better for the humans to be relocated to a healthy planet.”

  Both men sighed with frustration. “We’re getting ready to leave for the command ship. I’m sending Nix and Corey to guard you.”

  “Damn it Jared, I don’t need guarding!” Devlon called out as his stubborn son walked away. He couldn’t stay angry with his sons for wanting to keep him safe. He’d been targeted multiple times. He’d ordered security details on his daughters-in-law to keep them safe, and would do the same for his sons if he felt they were in any kind of danger.