Kyele lifted his head as he tried to imagine his Unit Leader's reaction to this. "Have you spoken to Torkel yet?"

Jaron muttered a curse. "He's with Rydak. I haven't notified him."

Savi groaned and thumped his head on the back of his seat. Ice slid through Kyele's veins as he shut down his fear and worry. "Communication? Demands?"

Jaron growled. "Nothing. I've tried Sylvie, Faye and Lissi's room."

"Comms?" He couldn't remember if any of the females wore them.

"I cannot reach them, Kyele." Jaron's voice turned ragged. The Team One leader was particularly close to Faye and treated her like a sibling. "I...I have received no demands but it could be too soon."

Kyele pressed his thumb along the sharp edge of his favorite knife, drawing a bead of blood. He pushed his emotions down deep, using the pain to steady him. Emotions had no place in this moment. "We're on our way."

Kyele disconnected the call and sat up in his seat, meeting the gaze of the other four men. "Prepare to defend an attack as soon as we reach the facility. The safety of the females is a priority."

That any of them could be dead wasn't an option. If anything happened to Joni or the others, no force on Enotia or anywhere else would stop their brand of Jutak justice.

Joni leaped forward, forgotten prayers falling from her lips as she knifed the man in the back. "Now, Sylvie! Shoot him!"

Distracted, Joni's head whipped to the side as the punch to her face took her by surprise. She fought to hold on to the thrashing body beneath her. Lissi screamed as she ran back toward them. At last, the man in Joni's arm sagged forward, his weight throwing her off balance. Her momentum sent her crashing to the ground beside him. A thud to Joni's right caught her attention and the other intruder fell, blood spilling from his shorn scalp. Both men were down.

Way to go, Sylvie.

A muffled groan caused Joni to scramble to her feet. Rough fingers grasped her bare ankle, stopping her escape. She bent over with another brutal swipe of the blades in her hand, grimacing as the mask slid askew to reveal sharp features, pale skin and a thin line of blood on his throat.

"You still lose," he gasped, then pricked the flesh of her ankle with a sharp object. He stared into her eyes and something sinister passed through his gaze. "Kill the Jutaks. Kill the Jutaks."

"Screw you!" Joni kicked him for good measure as his gaze blanked and he died.

"Oh my God, oh my God." Sylvie's shaky chant accompanied her drop to her knees, the laser falling from her lax grip and hitting the ground with a clatter.

Faye limped over, curling an arm around Sylvie's trembling shoulders. "What," she gasped, eyes stark, "The. Hell?"

Swiping her forehead, Joni shook her head. "No idea."

Lissi gathered Aya to her and Boid came flying over to his maman, almost knocking her down with his arms around her knees. "Maman."

"We need to get inside. All of us. Now!" Joni gave the order, her fearful gaze scanning the area. They were too exposed. The alarms continued their strident bleating. She wasn't sure if more men would spring out but wasn't taking a chance. Every tree was now an unexpected hiding space for a threat.

In a huddle, they stumbled and half-limped into the safety of the building. Joni slammed and locked the back doors. Another smack of her palm to the wall shut off the alarm. Silence reined, the quiet unnatural in the wake of the loud notes.

Face chalky, Faye slid down the wall, butt hitting the floor hard. Tears tracked down Lissi's cheeks and she curled around her two children, both crying in muffled sobs. Joni inhaled sharply but nothing stopped the waves of fear pulsing around her or the adrenaline surging through her veins. Her chest burned from the pounding of her heart, while she tried to catch her breath.

"Are we okay?" Sylvie asked, arms folded around her waist, fingers clenched white as she leaned on the wall.

Swallowing, Joni nodded and pushed back her disheveled hair. "I think so."

Sylvie let out a broken chuckle. "The men are not going to be pleased.

Lissi's head snapped up and her blue eyes grew wide.

"Shit!" Faye staggered to her feet. "Torkel will freak."

"We need to get a hold of them." Gathering her thoughts, Joni straightened and shoved the lingering terror to the back of her mind.

"We can't." Lissi rose shakily. "The building is in full lock down mode."

They all stared in horror. Lissi shrugged. "My brother is very adamant about security. Jaron leaves me the override code if I don't stay with my parents but I was excited about the picnic today and don't remember the proper sequence. Wrong numbers could set off the alarm again and void the manual shut off."

Senses screaming now that she caught her breath, Joni asked, "The communicators?"

Lissi shook her head again, remorse darkening her gaze. "Locked down. I'm sorry. I should have paid more attention."

Joni wanted to remain calm, wanted to be the voice of reason but suddenly everything hit her at once. "Are you crazy, Lissi? Next time I tell you to run, you run!"

Her chest rose with every pant but nothing could still the remembered terror running through her mind. "Rydak would f-ing kill if something happened to you."

At least her friend had the decency to look petrified. "I am sorry, Joni. I could not leave y--."

"Yes, you could," Joni snapped, cutting off Lissi's words.

Sylvie came over and wrapped an arm around Joni's shaking shoulders. "Calm down."

The words did nothing to soothe Joni's panic but the touch did. Together the two of them had been through the worst. Sylvie had her back and Joni would always trust her.

"Sorry, Lissi. You really scared me." Joni exhaled. "What happens next? How soon before the teams come back?"

Lissi stood, keeping her hands on her children's blonde heads. "As soon as the alarms sounded, Jaron would have been alerted. The closest team will respond and head back."

Joni blanched at how those men would react to their Chosens being in danger.

"Shit!" Faye gripped the ends of her dark hair and yanked. Color had returned to her cheeks. "Not being able to communicate makes this so much worse. We have no way of letting them know the situation."

Joni could only imagine. She knew the intensity the Jutak warriors tackled any mission. Directing that energy toward the protection of their home and the women who were their Chosens meant things could potentially get very dicey.

"Alright. Nothing we can do now except wait."

Sylvie spoke up, no longer looking as distraught. "Who would be so bold as to attack a Jutak unit home base?"

"Lothar," Lissi spat, surprising everyone with her vehemence. "He's determined to stop the Jutaks from destroying his criminal empire. My brother's Unit has been particularly successful in thwarting the Marenians efforts of late."

Making them a target for retribution. Joni clapped her hands together. "Well, never let it be said we don't live a dramatic life."

They all stared and then one by one big smiles spread over everyone's face until they laughed. It didn't matter that the sound was tinged with relief. Even the children grinned.

Chapter 9.

The moment their ship landed, icy calm descended over Kyele and his teammates. None of them gave away a hint of what they felt as they raced by hover-car to their home. Thoughts flew through his head and Kyele imagined every horror possible.

What greeted him was almost anticlimactic. Silence. They crouched across the street studying the front of the facility. The four story building appeared untouched by enemy fire.

Creed pushed up his mask, revealing a dark frown. "Should I check the back?"

After a moment, Kyele nodded. "Take Stefin with you."

Within seconds, Creed commed them all. "We've got bodies."

Bile rose in Kyele's throat as the world spun. He braced a palm on the ground from his kneeling position and blinked back the burn of tears. Fear held Kyele in its merciless grip. It took a moment for him to focus on the rest of the words being spoken in his comm.

"Three dead, blood appears to belong to the victims only." Straight and to the point from Stefin.

"The females?" Kyele barked, fighting the urge to leap to his feet and charge forward.

"No sign. Food and blankets scattered about. Two males down by knife to the throat."

In the midst of his terror, the corner of Kyele's mouth curled up. Joni.

"Two by laser blast to the head," Stefin chimed in on a rough chuckle. "These fuckers are dead."

The need to release the desperation building inside of him became harder to hold back. But not until he knew for sure the women came out of this alive.

"Total count six." Creed spoke with a measure of pride.

Kyele must have made some sound, a low snarl of frustration because Savi and Markus glanced his way. He shook his head to reassure them he was okay.

"Want me to take the front?" Markus asked the question evenly but worry glinted back from his blue eyes. The usually calm Enotian wasn't handling this any better than Kyele.

"No." Kyele shoved his hooded mask back and studied their surroundings. The Jutak facility was in an out of the way part of the city. No one came remotely close to their residence who wasn't attached to the government or military in some manner. Even then Torkel tried to steer most meetings at Jutak headquarters with the Commander and not near the home he made with his Chosen.

In Kyele's gut the sensation of disquiet continued. He narrowed his gaze and focused on what felt off to him. At times like this he wished for Arak's animal senses or Rydak's uncanny intuition. Without their innate abilities, he had to rely on his training.

Kyele shifted his gaze to Markus. "Scan for electronic devices, filter out our comms and anything from within our building."

Markus pinned him with a questioning stare but whipped out his data pad and attached a probe to it. He set the box on the ground as they crouched around and watched the indicator flicker back and forth. A curving wave in silver filled the black screen until Markus punched in several codes. Not as good as Jaron and without Bane's genius, Markus still managed to pinpoint a stationary blue dot that had pulsing circles flowing from its center and several smaller circles.

Tension flared to life at what it represented.

"A tracker chip." Savi chuffed out a breath and tapped the ground with a gloved finger as he issued a foul curse.

Tracker chips were geared to activate and record the moment it heard voices. Kyele didn't respond immediately as he took in the position of the tiny blue dots. Someone had an interest in their Unit. Was that the reason behind the attack? To distract and misdirect as they secreted their listening chips on the property.

"Only three," Markus said.

But it was enough. Every mission planned, ran through the walls of their home whether they were in the Comm Center or in Torkel's meeting room. There was no way to place such devices inside. A leak of any kind could jeopardize their roles especially for Team Three.

More anger seeped into Kyele's skin down to the bone. Urgency rose along with his need to assure himself of Joni's safety. "Handle it, Markus but save them for Jaron when he returns."

He couldn't wait any longer. Rising to his feet, Kyele strode toward the entrance. Determination marked each step and Savi was right behind him.

He paused when he reached the front door and looked up. Through the glass he could make out the white lobby on the first level. Red lights blinked from discrete black boxes mounted on the ceiling. His gaze flickered. The alarms were back online. He entered his code in the panel to the side of the door and pressed his palm to the scanner. The light ticked green and a latch clicked.

Markus rejoined them, clenching his fist and dropped the neutralized chips in one of the deep pockets of the black uniform pants he wore. "Should we wait?"

Wait while Joni and the others could possibly be bleeding to death inside? Kyele snorted and tapped his ear piece. "Creed, I'm entering with Savi and Markus."

Murmured voices reached Kyele's ears as soon as they entered. Female voices. He couldn't make out the muffled whispers but the heavy weight bearing down on him eased. Kyele signaled to the others and they split, Savi and Markus going to the left while he headed right. Both halls led to the back where the sounds emitted from.

"Affirmative. Stefin and I will come in from the back."

Kyele slid his laser into his hand. Back to the wall, he followed the path down the tiled floor and tried to consider a plan of action if the females were not alone. All the while hope beat a pounding rhythm in his chest.

A sharp cry followed by a high pitched scream sent him racing around the narrow corridor until he exploded through the doorway to the back door vestibule. What he saw brought him to a sudden stop. Savi and Markus had rounded the corner ahead of him. Each of them aimed their laser at the small group of females then yanked the barrels toward the ceiling when realization sunk in.

Sylvie swung a weapon in Kyele's direction fear blaring from the depths of her shadowed blue eyes. Her blonde hair hung in strands about her face. Lissi stood with her arms about Boid and Aya, her stance protective. Kyele exhaled. Any harm to the pretty female would have destroyed Torkel and unleashed the tight control Rydak maintained on himself.

Creed and Stefin barreled through the back door from the outside, shock flashing in their eyes when confronted by Joni. She kicked Stefin in the chest, causing him to crash into the doorway and had her knives to Creed's throat before anyone could speak.

Emotion threatened to overwhelm Kyele and he would have killed his teammate if he made any attempt to disarm her. Creed held his hands up and out. "Easy, Joni."

She gasped and stepped away as she recognized them then flushed scarlet as Stefin got up with a muttered curse. She fell back into the wall behind her. "Sorry."

"I'm pleased as punch to see you all," Faye announced.

His Unit Leader's Chosen's smile wobbled. Her words made no sense but Kyele got her meaning.

"Are you alright?"

The low, raspy quality of the question sent shivers down Joni's back. Trembling, she straightened from her slouch against the wall, her gaze jerking in Kyele's direction at the entryway. She blanched from the look on his face. If death had a feel to it, she figured this was it, icy cold and calm. His green stare took in her appearance from the top of her messy hair down to the broken heel of her shoe then did it again for good measure.

"I'm fine."

He stared a moment longer, a crackling energy forming between them before he turned and addressed the two men casting wary expressions her way. "Any survivors, Creed?"

The other member of Team Two shook his blond head.

"Take the others and do a final walk around. I want to know everything you find. We identified three listening trackers in the front."

Kyele gave a few more orders, power and authority radiating from him. Joni's lower region clenched as she fought to resist his magnetic draw.