Defiance Read online

  Evernight Publishing ®

  www.evernightpublishing.com

  Copyright© 2014 Beth D. Carter

  ISBN: 978-1-77233-016-8

  Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs

  Editor: Karyn White

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  DEDICATION

  Many thanks to Karyn, the wonderful editor on this series. And to Evernight for having this series! Big thanks to C.R. Moss who let me borrow her ear to talk though the edits.

  DEFIANCE

  Planet Alpha TM

  Beth D. Carter

  Copyright © 2014

  Prologue

  The camp was filthy, with mud everywhere, high barbed wire fences, and dirty people staring at them like they were hungry. Jordan shrank against her mother, trying to hide in her long skirt. She didn’t like it already and wanted to go. But her mother had told her that this was the safest place for them, and if this place was safe then the outside world must be really bad.

  “How much you want for the girl?” someone called out. A man. Jordan tried to see who asked the question, but her mother buried her even farther in her skirt.

  “Leave us alone!” her mother cried.

  Jordan shuffled along in the protective shadow of her mother. They didn’t stop for a long time, and when her mother finally did, Jordan emerged from her makeshift cocoon to find they stood in a rough building. Bunk beds were anchored into the ground, in neat little roles, piled so compactly there was hardly any room to walk. There were some people lying in the far beds, and her mother maneuvered her until they were by themselves in a dark corner.

  “Get under the covers, Jordan,” her mother whispered. “Stay here for a moment, all right?”

  “Where are you going?”

  “I have to get some things. Stay hidden.”

  Jordan stayed still as a statue, barely breathing. Her heart pounded in her chest. How long she stayed there, she didn’t know, but she jumped when the bed dipped and a high pitched squeak escaped her lips.

  “It’s me,” her mother said. “Sit up now.”

  Jordan sat up, and the blanket pooled around her waist. Her mother held up a pair of scissors.

  “You’ve got to become a boy now,” was all she said as she began to cut off Jordan’s red curls. “You can’t be a girl anymore.”

  “Why not, Momma?”

  “Because bad things will happen to you if you’re a girl.”

  “By those men?”

  “Yes. And worse. As of right now you are no longer a girl. You’re a boy. If you stay a boy, if you learn boy things, then you’ll be okay. Understand?”

  Jordan nodded, even though no, she didn’t understand. She didn’t understand why they were in this place, or why their home was no longer safe. And she really didn’t understand why she was supposed to be a boy now.

  “But boys pee standing up, and they don’t have boobies,” she said, thinking she was being reasonable.

  “You’ll learn. Adapt. Do what you have to do, because if they learn you’re a girl, men will hurt you.”

  Jordan began to cry. Once her mother was done cutting her hair off, she began pulling her dress over her head.

  “Don’t cry,” her mother said. “You must never cry again. And you must be brave because boys aren’t afraid of anything.” She held up a pair of pants and a shirt. “I stole some clothing. You’ll wear this and nothing else, and when you’re older, we’ll bind your chest.”

  “I don’t wanna be a boy, Momma,” Jordan cried.

  Her mother pulled her tightly into her arms. “Listen to me, I couldn’t bear anything happening to you, do you understand? If you get hurt then I get hurt.”

  “I’m scared.”

  “I know, baby. But don’t surrender to the fear, do you understand? This camp is our life now. So please, for me, do as I say and tell no one who you really are. You cannot trust anyone.”

  “What about if Daddy comes for us?”

  A sad look twisted her mother’s beautiful face into something heartbreaking. “Daddy is in heaven. It’s just you and me. So please, baby, act like a boy.”

  Jordan sniffed and nodded. “Can I keep my name?”

  “Yes,” her mother said. “Jordan can be a boy’s name.”

  “All right, Momma. I won’t be scared. I’ll be a boy. For you.”

  Chapter One

  Fourteen Years Later

  “Hey, Jordan,” Derek said, nudging her arm. “I think Heidi is into you. Just say the word and she’ll be yours for the taking.”

  Jordan peered up at her friend from under the brim of her cap. She was always conscious to keep her face more in shadow because there simply was no hiding the fact that she didn’t grow whiskers. “Who’s Heidi?”

  “The blonde with the braids, one section over.”

  “I thought she was with Tom.”

  Derek shrugged. “I think she’s with a lot guys. Tom was last week.”

  Jordan grinned and shook her head. “Ah, then no thanks.”

  “Then do you mind if I take a shot at her?”

  “Help yourself,” Jordan said with a shrug.

  “Great! Baseball this Saturday?”

  “You’re on,” she said before waving good-bye and continuing on her way. She made sure her cap was pulled low. Luckily, people only saw what they expected to see, and Jordan had been a boy for fourteen years. She flattened her breasts, made herself scarce when her monthlies came, and through it all, she hid her true gender from the world.

  Jordan made her deliveries, the sewing her mother did to earn rations. The camp had to be self-sustaining, and people did what they could for tradeoffs. The one thing her mother had been able to salvage when they’d been forced from their home in Berlin was her sewing kit, and it had set her up in business. Jordan made deliveries once a week, picking up stuff that people left out as well as delivering the finished items. People paid in thread, food, fabric … anything that had value inside a camp. The so-called guards brought provisions from the outside world once a month, but most of the time it was a free for all that Jordan avoided at all costs.

  “Guten Morgen, Jordan,” Mr. Meier said as she walked up. He sat in a chair whittling on a piece of wood. He was the resident fix-it man, repairing anything mechanical. When she’d been younger she used to follow him around, helping him out.

  “Hallo.” Jordan held up the shirt her mother had fixed. It was so worn it was more patches now than actual shirt. “Why don’t you let Momma sew you a new one?”

  “Because you both need to eat more than I need a new shirt. Use the material on someone else.”

  Jordan smiled and sat down on the ground next to him. “But you’ve helped us so much over the years. Momma wants to take care of you.”

  Mr. Meier glanced at her. “Your Momma fixes me dinner enough times. For an old bachelor like me that’s perfect. Anyway, have you been practicing?”

  Jordan lifted her shirt just enough to show the top of the baton. “Every day.”

  Mr. Meier sat down the piece of wood he was carving on and put the knife back in the sheath at his belt. He stood up leisurely. “Very well. Stand and show me what you remember from our last session.”

  Heinrick Meier was the only person who knew her secret. He remembered her coming into the camp that long ago day, her long strawberry red curls shining in the sunlight.
So when Jordan became a “boy” he’d approached her mother with the offer of teaching self defense. When Jordan turned fourteen, she took Mr. Meier up on his offer, and he taught her to use a baton, to be quick and agile, and made sure she could think fast on her feet.

  Mr. Meier was a firm teacher, and he gave as good as he taught. He didn’t go easy on her just because she was a girl. She listened to his words on how to block, to thrust, and incapacitate her enemy. They were lessons he taught over and over because repetition became instinct.

  They practiced through the evening until Jordan’s muscles protested and her stomach growled. She was dripping sweat and her knuckles hurt from him cracking them all the time, but it was a pain that made her feel strong.

  “That’s it, Mr. Meier,” she said, panting a little.

  “Make sure you work on keeping those arms up.”

  “I will. Why don’t you come with me to dinner? I’m sure Momma will have enough.”

  Mr. Meier gave her a small smile. “I’m fine. Save your food for your own bellies. Gute Nacht, Jordan.”

  “Gute Nacht, Mr. Meier. I’ll see you next week.”

  She waved at him and headed back to the small cabin she shared with her mother and about thirty other people. Jordan hurried home, keeping to the shadows between buildings, mindful to avoid people. Night was dangerous, no matter if she was male or female. The so-called military guards stationed to protect the innocent men and women inside the fenced walls recruited the more desperate men of the camp that needed provisions. These gangs of men roamed through the night in the name of safety, but they blatantly stole what they wanted. Most of the time it was girls, which the military guards then had a little fun with, and then threatened with even more violence if they told.

  It was something her mother had recognized from the start, which had prompted her to turn Jordan into a boy. Knowing her mother must be worried sick made Jordan hightail her ass as fast as possible back to her unit.

  As she slipped between two of the shanty buildings, she saw two men dressed all in black holding an unconscious woman. Rage blanketed her as she realized this must be two of the gang-men come to take and rape a girl. Well, Jordan wasn’t going to allow that to happen. Pulling out her club, she cleared her mind and quickly thought out how to bring down the two assholes.

  Could she do this?

  Of course she could. Her mother had always taught her to act, despite her fear.

  She hurried forward, brought her baton up, and struck the first assailant in the back of the knee. When he went down with a small gasp of pain, Jordan twirled and struck out to hit the second man in the front of his knee. Both men let go of their victim, causing the woman’s body to crumple onto the ground.

  “You assholes,” she muttered, mindful to keep her voice down. The last thing she wanted to do was bring attention to more of their friends. “You’re nothing but snakes in the grass, and I can’t believe you’re the guards of this fine establishment.”

  As she bent to check the woman, the first man got to his feet. Jordan jumped back and crouched as she brought up her baton. The man brought down his hood, and the first thing that alerted her that she was in serious trouble was the alien features staring back at her.

  “Y-you’re not the guard,” she whispered, eyeing his clawed hands.

  Quicker than she could blink, the alien rushed at her and flipped her onto her back. Air left her lungs in a whoosh as she struggled to catch her breath, and the alien didn’t help when he grabbed her collar and yanked her face up, constricting her throat.

  A forked tongue came out to flick over her skin, and instinct had her knee coming up to strike him between the legs. The alien let go of her with a groan and half fell to the side. Jordan used the opportunity to suck in a much needed lung full of air. She coughed and tried to scramble backward, but the other one, the one who still had his hood up, grabbed her around her arms and hauled her up unceremoniously. He said something in his own language to the first alien, who was still recovering from being hit in his nuts.

  Thank God he had nuts.

  She struggled, trying to get away, but the alien just tightened his grip, making escape impossible.

  “Quit moving, girl,” the alien muttered in her ear, but the creature sounded human. It was so surprising not only to hear that he spoke German to her, but that he also called her girl, that she immediately stopped fighting and looked over her shoulder at him. Well, as best as she could. Much to her surprise, the second alien was actually a human. Then he sprayed something in her face, and darkness instantly descended.

  ****

  “Are you sure that creature is a female?” Laith asked through clenched teeth as he ripped off his claw arm gauntlets. He’d always hated the things.

  David shifted the unconscious woman until she draped over his shoulder. “Yes. We’ll take her with us.”

  “What about the other one? The other one I know definitely is a female.”

  “Trust me, Laith.”

  “I did trust you,” Laith grumbled. “I got kicked in my flutas for my trust.”

  “That’s why she’s the right choice,” David replied, trying to stifle his grin. “Someone feisty will bring you notoriety in the market. She’ll be the one to set our plans in motion.”

  Laith grunted and brought his hood back up. “Come. I want to get back to our ship.”

  David followed him to the front gate where the human guard who had let them in stood waiting for their exit. Anxiously, if the stench of his sweat was anything to go by. David may not have a sensitive nose like Laith, but there was no mistaking body odor.

  “Who’d you get?” the human asked.

  “Does it matter?”

  “Not really. Where’s the jewels you promised me?”

  Laith held out a bag, and the human guard snatched it up. He looked inside and was obviously happy with what he saw because he smiled and stuffed the bag in his pocket. Then he glanced at the woman.

  “I thought you wanted a girl. That dude you have is a pain in the ass.”

  “Like you said,” David replied as he brushed past the officious male. “Does it matter?”

  Laith followed him, and seconds later, the camp gate closed behind them.

  Chapter Two

  Jordan stretched and sniffed, trying to figure out what was being served for breakfast, but instead of the underlining body odor fermenting the air, all she smelled was cleanliness and disinfectant.

  What the hell?

  She opened her eyes and immediately realized she was not in her cot back in the overcrowded shack of a cabin. Her clothes were gone, and she wore a see-through gown that left nothing to the imagination. Her cap was gone, letting her short mop of red-gold curls flop in her face.

  The memory of the alien slammed into her brain, and she hurried off the bed. The sheets flowed off her like water, and goose-bumps rose on her arms. There had been rumors circulating in the camp for years about aliens abducting women, but she hadn’t believed it.

  She did now.

  How long had she been unconscious? And where was she? Her mother had to be frantic over her disappearance. Anger surged through Jordan once more. How dare these asshole aliens come and take her from her home? Sure, she hated the camp with every fiber of her being, but her mother was back there. No way would she just abandon her. Jordan looked around the room, really began to study it, and realized it was more of a holding cell. She went exploring and figured out the two items beside the bed must be a toilet and a sink. Okay, she had to give props to the aliens for having more than a hole in the ground. And clean water. Amazing.

  It never occurred to her to be scared. She’d been scared at seven, when soldiers had forced her from her home. She’d been scared when she first laid eyes on the internment camp. She’d been scared when her mother cut all her hair off. But she had no time for fear.

  Further search revealed the door was locked and beside it was some sort of panel, the same type of panel she’d seen on the guard to
wers. She began pressing buttons until the face of the alien popped up on the screen.

  “Take me back,” she demanded. “After you give me back my clothes. Then take me back.”

  “Your clothes have been burned,” the alien told her. “They stank.”

  Outrage poured through her. “What? You had no right, you bastard.”

  He frowned. “I am not a bastard. My parents were bonded.”

  “Then I’ll go back to calling you an asshole.”

  “I think you are using that word as derogatory name calling.”

  She gave him a thumbs-up. “You’re damn right I am. How dare you steal me? Are you those Alphan people I’ve heard rumors about?”

  Outrage turned his face dark. Like, it actually changed colors. It shocked her to see him flush deep violet. “Do not insult me! Alphans are ugly creatures with black horns and odd golden eyes. I am Xyran, and my race has survived many campaigns against the—”

  “Yeah, yeah,” she interrupted, waving her hand dismissively. “Listen, I demand clothes, and if you don’t get your alien ass down here with some decent non-transparent ones in five minutes I’m going to start dismantling this so called cell.”

  The alien just blinked at her, so she said it again, slower so he could follow along.

  “My clothes. Now, asshole.”

  The screen blinked out so she spared a quick, satisfied grin before grabbing the smooth sheet off the bed to wrap around her body like a big toga. Then she crossed her arms and tapped her foot as she waited for them to show up.

  It didn’t take long.

  As soon as the door opened she rushed out of the cell and didn’t give them a chance to say a word. “First, decent clothes. Second, you will turn this ship around and take me back. Third, you will apologize to me because it’s beyond rude undressing an unconscious woman, and if we have enough time, you’ll apologize to my mother for making her worry over me. And finally, you will never, ever again take human women for your own twisted perverted pleasure because I will find a way to hurt you.”