Kade: Alien Adoption Agency #2 Page 10

  On her way out the door, she shoved her clothing into the trash compactor. Without it, there might be plausible deniability about who she was.

  Aurora jogged down the street as she struggled to formulate a plan, trying to stay close to the shops so that she could hide more easily if she saw anyone.

  As she drew closer to the heart of town, she began to see more open shops and people walking here and there.

  “Hey,” a man shouted. “That’s her.”

  She didn’t hang around long enough to check who it was. She just took off as fast as she could move in the tiny coverall, praying that it was fast enough.

  After what felt like an eternity of looping around the shops and alleyways, she had a stitch in her side and her mouth was as dry as a desert. She couldn’t push herself much more.

  It had been an incredibly difficult day, and she was exhausted, body and soul.

  She turned back and saw she was alone again. No sign of anyone pursuing.

  Suddenly, two figures turned a corner and headed right for her. Without thinking, she ducked into the doorway of an empty storefront.

  She peered out at the passersby, her heart pounding.

  “My God,” she whispered to herself.

  It was Luna.

  The woman walking past with the big blue alien was her friend, Luna.

  Before she had time to think about what she was doing, Aurora reached out and grabbed Luna, pulling her inside.

  Luna didn’t even struggle. She must have recognized her instantly.

  “Aurora,” she exclaimed, clearly surprised and pleased.

  Aurora put a hand over her friend’s mouth.

  “Trade clothes with me,” she whispered.

  To her credit, Luna didn’t even ask why. She simply nodded with Aurora’s hand still over her mouth.

  Aurora let go and they got to work peeling off their clothing.

  “Luna,” the big blue alien called out worriedly from the street.

  “Act normal,” Luna whispered back to him. “My friend just needs my help for a minute.”

  Luna’s pretty dress was snug on Aurora’s curvier figure, but it felt much better than the coverall.

  Better still, the men who had spotted her earlier would be looking for a woman in a tight coverall, not a woman in a pretty dress.

  She straightened up and handed Luna her scarf. “Let’s get your hair under this.”

  “What about yours?” Luna asked, allowing Aurora to put her hair under the scarf.

  “I always carry a spare,” Aurora said with a smile, retrieving the scarf she’d stashed in the pocket of the coverall.

  Luna smiled at her and nodded and Aurora felt an ache.

  She wished she was living a life where she could have friends. “Go, go, go,” she told Luna. “And keep your warrior nearby until you leave town. They’ll be coming for you. Or me, really.”

  “Who?” Luna asked.

  “No time to explain,” Aurora said, unwilling to tell her friend what was about to happen.

  She knew Luna would be safe with the big Invicta warrior by her side. The thought of it called up a twinge of longing for Kade. But there was no way he could protect her now.

  And if she stopped to explain any of it to Luna, they would never get out of here. Plus, it would be a sad conversation.

  Aurora didn’t want to have that sad conversation.

  “Where are you living? We’ll visit soon,” she said instead, wishing it were true.

  “A tree house in the forest,” Luna replied.

  “Hot damn,” Aurora said. “You won the prefecture lotto there. Thank you for helping me.”

  She gave Luna a gentle shove, then watched as her friend disappeared into the sunshine with her child and the big blue warrior.

  The three of them looked happy.

  Aurora heaved a sigh of relief. Even if she was going to continue her life as a fugitive, or maybe wind up in intergalactic prison if she wasn’t quick enough, at least she was glad that her friend got to have happiness.

  Before she’d even finished the thought, a group of men converged on Luna. They must have been even closer than she’d thought.

  Aurora watched from the shadows in horror as they pulled Luna away from the warrior and began shouting at her.

  And though she knew that it would be quickly obvious that they had the wrong woman, she didn’t like seeing her friend treated that way.

  What have I done? How could I let Luna get caught up in this?

  I need to go before this gets out of control.

  But what will happen to Kade and Lyra if I leave?

  That thought was so chilling that she wanted to crawl out of her own body.

  Outside, the men had unhanded Luna and she was walking away with Noxx and the child once more. Their family was going to be just fine.

  But there was no guarantee that Kade wouldn’t be pegged as Aurora’s accomplice when they questioned him.

  And that would leave Lyra with no one to care for her.

  Aurora buried her face in her hands and wished for some kind of answer.

  But she already had the only solution.

  She knew exactly what she had to do.

  24

  Aurora

  Aurora Day had been a folk hero on Terra-4 as the Fox.

  She was fearless, and a rebel to her core, living quietly under the radar by day, and loudly in her true life under the cover of night, fighting the powerful forces that conspired to harm her people.

  Never give up, never surrender.

  Those were the words that had propelled every decision she had made, right up until the night she’d had to flee.

  But ever since arriving on Clotho, she had lived quietly in both halves of her life.

  She had watched the sheriff take advantage of the village and been okay with it, in order to protect her own hide.

  Even Noxx, a soldier and rule-follower, had been willing to shake things up to make things right. And though the attempt had blown up in his face, he had been right to make it.

  Aurora wasn’t feeling like herself lately.

  And the issue wasn’t that she had added a child and a mate to her family. Her heart had grown since becoming a parent, and she wouldn’t change it for the world. Mothering Lyra was challenging and strengthening her in ways she would never have imagined.

  The problem was that without the Fox, Aurora Day felt like half a person.

  And half a person couldn’t do what was right.

  She pulled the scarf from her hair as she strode back to the beach, enjoying the feel of the sunshine on her head and the ruffle of the breeze in her fiery curls.

  She might be going to intergalactic prison, but she wasn’t bringing her family down with her. She was going to do it on her own terms.

  Maybe with good behavior, she could be out in time to see Lyra while she was still wearing a school uniform.

  But even if she never came out, Aurora would prefer for her daughter to know the truth.

  And she would never allow harm to come to the child’s father if there was something she could do to prevent it.

  Kade and Lyra had been just fine before Aurora came along. They would do just fine without her too.

  She had such faith in the beautiful golden dragon man. There was nothing he couldn’t do.

  Her heart throbbed helplessly, and she pressed her lips together, determined not to turn to self-pity. She was grateful for all that had happened. The memories would sustain her in the years to come.

  Everyone on the beach had turned to watch something that was happening up near the patrol crafts, so she was able to walk through the crowd unnoticed until she reached the first row of the Intergalactic Brigade Guard.

  “My name is Aurora Day,” she called out in her loudest, clearest voice. “I am also known as the Fox. And I am here to surrender.”

  A murmur went through the crowd, but she held her head high.

  And when she saw Kade standing with Ethel and Ly
ra, she locked eyes with him.

  His green-eyed gaze told her everything she needed to know about his feelings for her.

  He loved her. He always would.

  And he both hated and respected what she was doing right now.

  When two soldiers came to lead her away, she went without fighting, grateful that instead of dragging her, they allowed her to walk away in front of her mate and daughter with dignity.

  25

  Aurora

  Aurora looked around the small room.

  She had expected to be questioned immediately, or at the very least thrown into a holding cell.

  This looked more like an office or a living room.

  She was seated on a small gray loveseat opposite a leather chair. There was a desk in the corner with a small terminal and a large arrangement of lush blossoms. Books filled the shelves that lined the far wall.

  The titles ranged from histories to political biographies to romance novels. There was even a famous book on parenting in the mix.

  The door opened and a familiar figure strode in.

  “Ambassador Scott,” Aurora breathed, jumping to her feet.

  “Sit, sit,” the ambassador said with a smile. “You’ve had quite a day, haven’t you?”

  Aurora lowered herself back to her seat, speechless, as the Serena Scott sat on the leather chair opposite her. After what she’d been accused of, Aurora was surprised to be on the same moon as the ambassador without being shot on sight, let alone the same room.

  “Now I know you’re the rebel hero who supposedly went rogue and tried to blow me up on Terra-4, is that right?” the smartly-dressed woman asked, looking up at Aurora.

  “Y-yes, madam,” Aurora replied.

  “Well, nothing about that story ever made sense to me,” the other woman said. “Why would Terrans try to blow me up for pulling the Cerulean forces from their territory?”

  Aurora opened her mouth and closed it again.

  “I have a feeling there’s more to this,” Ambassador Scott explained. “I’d like you to help me understand it.”

  There was a tap on the door.

  “Yes, yes, please bring it in,” she called to whoever was on the other side.

  Two droids hurried in. One carried in a gigantic platter of food, the other a tray of steaming beverages.

  “I know you ran the Sheriff’s Cup today, so I figured you could eat,” the ambassador said.

  And though Aurora was very sure she should have been too scared to be hungry, her stomach growled loudly before she could protest.

  “Th-thank you, Ambassador Scott,” she said.

  “Call me Serena.”

  Aurora watched as Serena reached for a big mug of frothy, steamy beverage.

  “It’s called cappuccino, it’s an Old Earth thing, I think it was named after a monkey, but I’m fond of it,” she said, holding it out.

  Aurora took it and inhaled the steam as Serena took the second cup for herself.

  “So tell me what really happened, please,” Serena said. “When you’re ready.”

  “The Ceruleans set us up,” Aurora said quietly. “They knew what our homemade bombs looked like, and so they made one, and set it in the airfield.”

  She bit her lip and her chest ached a little. It was hard to look at someone and tell them that people wanted her dead.

  But Ambassador Scott didn’t appear to have hurt feelings.

  “That sounds about right,” she said. “You don’t shake up the powers that be without a lot of people wanting to kill you. I don’t have to tell you that.”

  Aurora nodded, surprised to have something in common with an ambassador.

  “I figure when there’s an assassination attempt, I must be doing something right,” Serena went on. “You can’t make an omelet without breaking eggs and all that. One of these days they might get me, but I’m determined to do as much good as I can between now and then. Maybe even inspire another generation to keep going wherever I leave off.”

  “You’re a rebel,” Aurora realized out loud.

  Serena smiled.

  “I won’t give myself that much credit. After all, look how I live.”

  She gestured at the pretty office and the table laden with food.

  Aurora laughed.

  “So they made a bomb to set up the Terrans, then what?” Serena asked.

  “I got wind of it,” Aurora said. “I went there the night before your arrival to defuse it.”

  “But you didn’t,” Serena said.

  “Those idiots didn’t have a failsafe for me to engage,” Aurora said. “The only option was to set it off early.”

  “You could have been killed yourself,” Serena said, looking horrified.

  “A small price to pay,” Aurora said, looking at the mug in her hands. “You’re going to make this galaxy a place worth living in for my daughter.”

  “You have a child?” Serena asked. “When did you have time for that?”

  “I adopted her,” Aurora said. “She’s amazing, and I was just getting to know her. But I understand what has to happen now. She has a wonderful father. She’s going to be fine.”

  “What has to happen now?” Serena asked.

  “You have to arrest me,” Aurora told her. “Even if you believe me, I destroyed a building and put a lot of people in danger by setting off that bomb. No one will accept you pardoning me.”

  “Why the hell not?” Serena asked.

  “I, uh, I don’t know,” Aurora admitted.

  “I asked them to escort you in here so I could talk with you,” Serena said. “The intelligence we’d already collected pointed to something just like this. I just needed to hear your story. I am fully prepared to pardon you immediately. The papers are already drawn up.”

  She pointed to the desk. Sure enough, a stack of official-looking pages was sitting on top.

  “I was also going to ask you a favor,” she said.

  “What favor?” Aurora asked, intrigued.

  “Clearly, we had to decommission the local law enforcement,” Serena said with a sigh. “It’s a step in the right direction for the citizens of Clotho. But now we need a new sheriff. We could probably send in someone from a nearby system to take over.”

  “Oh,” Aurora said, trying to keep up.

  From her experience, one crooked cop was just as bad as the next.

  “But my men have been gathering reports from a great many of the locals,” Serena said slowly. “Apparently, there is already someone on hand with all the bravery and leadership qualities Clotho is surely looking for.”

  “Who?” Aurora asked, mentally running through the short list of people she’d met so far.

  “Well, you did win the Sheriff’s Cup,” Serena said.

  “I was kind of busy trying not to drown at the end,” Aurora said.

  “You still won, Aurora,” Serena said softly. “And by all accounts you handled yourself with kindness, bravery and creativity while you were at it. I’d like you to be the interim Sheriff of Clotho, until we can hold a proper election to find a new one.”

  Aurora was too gobsmacked to form words.

  Whatever she had been expecting when she’d decided to turn herself in, becoming sheriff was about as far away from it as she could imagine.

  Sheriff Aurora Day.

  She had to admit, it had a nice ring to it.

  26

  Kade

  Kade paced the floors of the small cottage, trying to figure out what to do with the emotions that threatened to tear him apart.

  Aurora had sacrificed herself today, to save the people of Clotho from suffering the fallout of the hunt for her.

  And though it was a right action, and one he admired, he was gutted by it.

  How could she do this to him, to Lyra?

  How were they supposed to live without her?

  Horrifying scenarios ran through his mind.

  What if the Alien Adoption Agency forced him to deliver Lyra to another adoptive mother? Would
he be able to do it?

  And then there were the questions he didn’t even want to ask. What would happen to someone like Aurora in prison? Would the guards break her indomitable spirit?

  He would be waiting when she got out, no matter what.

  If he could manage to make it that long without trying to break her out.

  He ran a hand through his hair and tried to restrain the dragon that roared in his chest even now, insisting that there could be no easier time to rescue their mate than now, when she was being held in a temporary patrol craft cell.

  The front door creaked open, snapping him out of his thoughts.

  He spun on his heel, expecting to see Ethel with a crying Lyra.

  The kindly neighbors had insisted on keeping the baby for the night, just in case he got the unlikely call to go pick up Aurora. And as tough as it was to be away from her, Kade thought it was probably for the best to keep the youngling out of such a stressful situation.

  But it wasn’t Ethel, or even Franc, in the doorway.

  It was Aurora.

  She stood in the threshold, a wondrous expression on her sweet face, as if she found her own presence as hard to believe as he did.

  “Aurora,” he breathed, not daring to move for fear of breaking whatever spell was causing such a wonderful vision.

  She flew into his arms.

  He drank in the scent of her, her solid warmth melting into his chest. She was really there.

  But how?

  “Kade,” she sighed.

  “What happened?” he asked.

  “She believed me,” she told him simply.

  Impossible.

  He pulled back to look at her face.

  Aurora was smiling up at him, her blue eyes twinkly as ever. She was clearly telling the truth.

  “She did?” he asked in disbelief.

  “Yes, and she asked me for a favor,” she told him.

  “What favor?”

  “She wants me to become the new sheriff,” Aurora told him. “She decommissioned the old one for the bribery scheme, and she wants me to take his place. At least until they can have a proper election.”

  Her voice was light, but he could see the pride shining in her eyes. He’d never thought about her in such a role, but as soon as he did, he saw that it was a perfect fit.