Mission: Guardian Angel (Veslor Mates Book 2)
Mission: Guardian Angel
Veslor Mates – Book Two
By Laurann Dohner
Mission: Guardian Angel
by Laurann Dohner
Ever since her friend Vivian mated a Veslor, Abby Thomas has been curious about the mysterious aliens. She also has a vested interest in making sure their newfound relationship with United Earth is a success, prompting her to take a job on a military vessel to ensure the Veslor grouping stationed there are treated fairly. It doesn’t hurt that they’re easy to look at. When one Veslor in particular catches her attention, she hopes he’s nothing like the humans she’s dated, who were only interested in her bank balance and connections.
Drak and his Veslor grouping quietly endured unfair treatment aboard Defcon Red…until a beautiful spitfire spoke up on their behalf, earning herself nemeses among the ship’s fleet. When those foes try to silence Abby, Drak makes it his mission to protect her. The harrowing experience quickly bringing them so close, Drak is determined to make Abby his mate…if her enemies don’t ruin his chance, permanently.
Veslor Mates Series List
The Gorison Traveler Incident
Mission: Guardian Angel
Mission: Guardian Angel by Laurann Dohner
Copyright © February 2020
Editor: Kelli Collins
Cover Art: Dar Albert
eBook ISBN: 978-1-950597-10-9
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal, except for the case of brief quotations in reviews and articles.
Criminal copyright infringement is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is coincidental.
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Epilogue
Mission: Guardian Angel
Veslor Mates – Book Two
By Laurann Dohner
Chapter One
“Did they even get any kind of training for this job?”
“Yeah. I’d like to know that too. They’re aliens. What makes them qualified to work with us?”
“Brad, I’m not comfortable having Veslors around. I agree with the rest of the team. This is bullshit.”
Abby listened to the men on the tactical team talking quietly. She couldn’t have chosen a better time to see how Bradley Rogers would handle the situation. She kept still after stepping inside the room to avoid drawing attention, waiting for his response.
“We have to put up with them for now,” Rogers ground out. “That doesn’t mean we have to like it. I know I sure as hell don’t. It’s an insult that those aliens get to wear our uniforms. They’re fucking animals that walk on two legs.”
Abby clenched her teeth and held the sealed folder tighter. Her gaze darted to the far corner, where four Veslors sat. About a few hundred feet separated Rogers’s human team from the group of fighters.
Abby had learned a lot about the aliens who had once saved her life. Her friend Vivian had shared all kinds of facts about them—like how excellent their hearing could be. The Veslors had to have heard every word spoken against them. Not that it was obvious, since they looked unaware, seemingly busy cleaning their tactical blades.
She tried not to stare too hard at the Veslors. As far as aliens went, they were daunting at an average height of between six and a half to seven feet tall, with dense, muscular bodies and slightly animistic features. She liked their intensely exotic catlike eyes. Their very thin furred skin was a deep charcoal color. Humanoid in appearance from a distance, they had the ability to shift forms into fierce beasts.
The pointed ears were pretty cute.
“They think they’re hot shit,” Rogers went on. “I should send them down to the surface at night without working weapons. Let’s see how they’d do then.”
His seven-human team laughed along.
Abby advanced, furious. She’d made the surprise visit just to see how Bradley Rogers operated with his men. The two brief encounters that she’d already had with the team leader had made her dislike him. Worse, it wasn’t just Team One he was in charge of. He gave orders to the other tactical teams as well. He was probably spewing that same bullshit to them, too.
The first time they’d met was when he’d come to the office to meet with Defcon Red’s commander. He had flirted with her, thinking she was a mere clerk he might entice into his bed—before acting like a complete jackass when he realized exactly who she was.
He’d returned the following morning under the guise of wanting to apologize for his loss of temper. It had been the sorriest attempt ever. Instead, he’d made veiled insults about the events that had occurred on the Gorison Traveler.
She’d hoped he’d only be offensive when dealing with her.
Now she knew he was an asshole all the time. It wasn’t just women he looked down upon or rich people with connections. It was aliens, too. She loudly cleared her throat as she approached the team and stiffened her posture. It was easy to mask her emotions.
Rogers spun to face her and his upper lip curled in dislike, his gaze raking her from head to foot. “What do you want?”
“Commander Bills has sent you the latest reports from the planet,” she informed him, holding out the sealed folder. “I work for him now, remember? So in other words, I’m doing my job.”
He accepted the folder and brazenly stared at her breasts. Not that he could see much with her loose outfit. She knew it was just to show his contempt. He’d made his feelings clear that he didn’t like her…or how she’d helped tank the career of another jerk who Rogers admitted was one of his heroes.
“Delivered. You can get out of here. I’m sure Commander Bills has something for you to do.”
“Like suck his dick,” one of the team muttered.
She turned her head, finding the one who’d spoken. She lifted her gaze to give him a cold stare. “That’s not what I’m known for, Milts. I destroy careers by exposing assholes who don’t conform to fleet standards. That would include sexually harassing women. Saying crude things falls into that category.”
His smirk died and he glared back. He also appeared nervous, probably that she knew his name.
She wasn’t done. “Maybe I should suggest a refresher course for your team to the commander on proper conduct with women on fleet vessels?”
“Don’t threaten my men,” Rogers ordered. “We don’t want you anywhere near us.”
She fought back the urge to flip him off. Instead, she stepped closer. “You don’t give me orders, Rogers. I will give you some friendly advice, though.”
Rogers stepped closer, still glaring at her.
“The Veslors are here because United Earth requested a group of them to join your team. All those decision-makers who’re in control of your career path and paychecks would be furious if the Veslors requested to leave because they refuse to deal with your narrow-minded bullshit. I bet you’d get busted down to cleaning floors instead of being in charge of all the surface tactical teams. As a matter of fact, it could screw up the new trade treaty between our two races, enough that United Earth might decide to make an example out of you.
“Veslors have a vast supply of food, that they are now selling to some of the fleet-sanctioned stations. That makes them very important. They’re not just another bunch of stupid jerks wearing uniform. We already have plenty of those.” She took the time to make eye contact with every member of his team before meeting his gaze again. “Screw this up…you’ll find yourself ejected from the fleet and be lucky if you end up repairing sewer lines on some B-class station. Talk about a shit job.”
Rogers’s face turned red and his hands fisted at his sides, knuckles turning white.
“Also, if you’d taken your head out of your ass long enough to do some research, you’d know that Veslors don’t necessarily need weapons to kill…and if one of them dies, they frequently go into rages caused by grief. It’s typical in their culture to rip apart the one they hold responsible. Send them down to that planet without functioning weapons, and any of them who come back alive will hold you personally responsible. My money is on them coming back.”
Abby retreated a few steps, refusing to give him a chance to attack her from behind. “Oh, and by the way—they can hear you talking trash about them.”
Rogers blanched at her words and looked afraid for the first time. It served him right.
She turned her head, staring at the Veslors. All four of them were watching her, no longer focused on their task. She winked at them and then exited the training facility, a smile on her lips.
She made her way through the ship and entered Commander Bills’s offices, stepping inside his private one to let him know she’d returned.
He looked up from his desk. “Where did you go?”
“I delivered something for you.”
He sighed. “You should send a runner. That’s what they’re there for. We have two assigned to this office.”
“I like the exercise.”
Commander Howard Bills was a longtime friend of her parents, and he’d stood by her throughout the investigation of what had happened on the Gorison Traveler. He commanded Defcon Red, the fleet’s largest battle vessel. She appreciated that he hadn’t hesitated to hire her when she’d asked to become his personal assistant.
His last one had gotten a prime job offer she couldn’t resist.
A little guilt surfaced over that, but Abby pushed it back. After all, the woman had applied twice before to the Ribus Colony but had been rejected. It had been easy for Abby to ask a favor of another family friend. The previous civilian assistant was happy now, and Abby had her job.
He stood. “Let’s go have lunch.”
“I have to remind you that it’s only going to feed the rumor mill about us sleeping together. That’s the best reason they could think of for why you’d hire me.”
He chuckled. “A young, beautiful woman like you wanting an old bastard like me? I should be so lucky.” He rounded his desk. “Let them gossip. We know the truth. Besides, I like your company better than that of most of my office staff, and I hate to eat alone.”
She nodded, and they walked side by side out of his office.
He leaned in closer and lowered his voice. “When are you going to fess up and tell me the real reason you’re here?”
She kept her gaze forward. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Howard kept quiet until they sat down in the officers’ dining hall, waiting for a server to come to them. “You’re incredibly intelligent, the pay cut you took is laughable, yet you asked to work for me on this vessel. You don’t even need a job, Abby. I know you already have an important one at D Corp. Don’t get me wrong. I’m lucky to have you working at my side. Now give it to me straight.”
She opened a cloth napkin, folding it over her lap, and stared at him.
“I’ve been patient and played your game. I even pretended to buy the excuse that you wanted off Earth for a while due to the media harassing you. You could have gone anywhere with the money and resources at your disposal, but you asked to be put here, on a battle vessel. Why, Abby?”
“The press were hounding me. All those reporters won’t stop demanding interviews. They started sending drones to my penthouse, hovering outside my windows just to get vids of me. Leaving Earth was a good thing. This is the highest-level security ship in the fleet. They wouldn’t dare come after me here.”
Howard sighed, watching her with a frown. “Abby, I’ve known you all your life. You’re like a niece to me. If you believe your parents don’t share stories about how troublesome you can be, think again. You’re up to something—and I want to know what it is. I’m old, but not a fool. My last assistant suddenly got a job offer from her dream colony. I couldn’t even obtain that for her with my connections, and I tried. She was sick of living on this space boat and I was tired of hearing her complain. Suddenly, out of the blue, they contacted her—and less than an hour later, you called to ask me to hire you. I immediately knew you were behind it. I trust you, Abby, but I wish you’d do the same with me. Whatever you’re up to, I’ve allowed it. Hell, I’m risking my career.”
She tapped her fingernail against the table. “Fine. It’s the Veslors.”
His expression tensed. “What about them? Do you know something that I don’t? I asked for them to be assigned here. Have you uncovered something, like maybe they aren’t trustworthy?”
“No. It’s not that.” She leaned forward. “The exact opposite, in fact. You know some of them saved my life.”
“I do.” He seemed to relax. “They boarded the Gorison Traveler to deal with the Ke’ters and helped you and your friend save lives.”
“I pushed hard for United Earth to give the Veslors a shot and talked my parents into pressing some business friends into supporting a trade alliance. I have both a professional and personal investment to see it all go smoothly. What I didn’t expect was some of them to be asked to fight for us or to live amongst humans.”
Howard relaxed more. “I see. You feel responsible for them being here.”
“I do.”
“You want to make sure everything goes well and, unlike the Ke’ters, our trust in them isn’t misplaced. You’re a sweet girl.”
“That’s not exactly it. I trust the Veslors. My friend Vivian is mated to one. I’ve learned a lot about them as a race. It’s us I don’t trust.”
Howard waved the approaching waiter off, motioning they needed a few more minutes. “What do you mean?”
“I saw how some of the crew reacted on the Gorison Traveler when they found out the Veslors saved our asses. If we hadn’t let them leave before releasing most of the crew from lockdown, there probably would have been an ugly attack on them. Solely due to fear and alien prejudice, pure and simple. I just want to make sure no one gives the Veslors any shit while they’re here. They needed someone looking out for them. Who better than me? And it turns out I was right to come, too.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Bradley Rogers doesn’t want them working with our people, and he’s going to do everything in his power to make them fail. I heard him threatening to send the Veslors down to the surface without working weapons. You shouldn’t have assigned the Veslors to him. He’s got a chip on his shoulder, and he’s an asshole about other races. Hell, he’s just an asshole, period.”
“Goddamn it,” he sighed. “He’s the best tactical team leader we have. You must have misheard him.”
“I didn’t. Members of Team One were complaining about the Veslors. It was the perfect time for Rogers to lecture them about acceptance. He didn’t. Instead, he began spouting off, calling them animals, and that’s when he made the threat about the weapons. He’s a jerk who can’t see the value of the extra team you’ve assigned to him simply because they’re aliens. I made sure he knows he’ll get into deep shit if anything happens to them…and I screwed with his head a little.”
He cocked one eyebrow.
“I may have misled him about how the Veslors react to the death of one of their own, and he may just believe they’d tear him into tiny pieces if he cause
s one of them to die by sabotaging their team. I also pointed out how important the Veslors are with their food supplies, that if he fucks with them, he’ll be lucky to work with sewage on some tiny station when he’s tossed out of the fleet. I’m hoping what I said keeps him in line.”
Howard chuckled. “You’re a hellion. I like that you don’t take any shit from anyone.”
“I deeply appreciate your trust by giving me this job.” She could never thank him enough. It was important to her that she look out for the Veslors. Howard was allowing her to do just that.
He seemed to know where her thoughts lie. “You and your friend saved a hell of a lot of lives by working with the Veslors. Anyone who followed the investigation should feel profuse gratitude that you took that risk. It paid off. You and Vivian Goss are heroes. Hiring you was easy, and hell, you’re so overqualified it’s not funny. Besides…your parents asked me to keep an eye on you by saying yes to your request.” He pointed a finger at her. “They knew you were up to something.”
“They’ve been worried about the stress I’ve been under ever since I destroyed Commander Alderson’s career, and the careers of those morons who followed him down that dark path he was on. He wanted to kill me, probably still does. I blocked him from destroying evidence when he would have lied about who was responsible for allowing the Ke’ters onboard, trying to shove the blame on the crew members who’d died and poor Vivian. I’m just sorry the fleet decided not to press criminal charges against him. He didn’t deserve leniency for his years of service. His forced retirement should be done in an eight-by-eight cell instead of the comfort of his home.”
“I agree. He should have done some prison time. He wasn’t only stupid for letting the Ke’ters on his ship, but he refused to take responsibility for his actions. I’m also aware some of the fleet aren’t kind to you after what happened. Alderson was well respected, but that respect was misplaced.