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  A routine peacekeeping effort throws Lee into the path of werewolves and their Alpha who happens to be looking for a mate.

  Leeahan has spent her time as a badge, acting as peacekeeper, police, counsellor and confidant. Being alone on a shift is nothing new, but having twenty-six werewolves charging toward her town is something she wasn’t planning on.

  Facing the werewolves is one thing, her talent for ordering folks around sends more than half of them packing, but dealing with the others puts her life and her body in the hands of the Alpha.

  Ozwin was sure that his wolves would tear the badge apart, but he found a woman alone, clawed and bleeding, facing down the next generation of deadly farmers. Her wounds make her his problem, and her transformation into an Alpha makes her his destiny.

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  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Badge

  Copyright © 2012 Viola Grace

  ISBN: 978-1-77111-273-4

  Cover art by Martine Jardin

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

  Published by eXtasy Books

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  Badge

  A Terran Times Tale

  By

  Viola Grace

  Chapter One

  Badge Leeahan Ryan watched the festivities at her assigned colony with a cautious gaze. She was in charge of maintaining order during the weeklong party, and it was not an easy task.

  Last year, three of her deputies had ended up naked and shaved, hanging from the main tent pole. They were fine, but their shame never ended, and they had transferred off world for their own sanity.

  Decallock was a haven for those who had nowhere else to go. It was a pleasant-enough world but the harvest festivals were a riot of repressed emotions running wild before the lockdown of the winter. The seasons had turned early this year, and the harvest and festival were ahead of normal schedule.

  The behaviour of the colonists was also away from the norm. With the weather going crazy, societal behaviours were close behind.

  Lee took a look at her dwindling roster and sighed. The badges on this world were the only law enforcement that the colonists would allow, and she was the woman in charge.

  “Who is on nights?”

  Anadora smiled helplessly. “Um, Tonino has an arm break, it is Marthuic’s day off and Dennirio was dosed at the wine tank last night. I am afraid you are on your own.”

  There were not enough curse words in Alliance Common to cover how she felt right then. “So, Dispatcher, what should I do?”

  Anadora put her hands on her hips and looked at the boards. “Load up, keep alert and, for pity’s sake, keep the com on. Something is in the air tonight.”

  The sun’s rays were turning pink, and as the first shift staggered in, bruised, covered with substances thrown by revellers and the occasional bit of ribbon, Lee prepared to take on the worst shift of the week. Alone.

  She sat through the briefing of what trouble spots were getting ready to kick off and which ones had been successfully calmed. Lee put on her stun gloves, the clubs, stun sticks and knockout grenades. She was as armed as she could be, and the suit she was wearing would fight attempts to get into it, so no shaving and dangling above for all to see.

  Her hair was braided tightly and folded back against her head, her earpiece was firmly fixed and her backup tucked into her cleavage under the stiff leather.

  “Dispatch, this is a systems check.”

  “Check confirmed. Vitals online and strong. Go get ‘em, Badge Ryan.”

  Waving farewell to the exhausted badges in the offices, Lee strode into the fading light and got on her cycle. Her route was displayed on the small screen attached to her headset, and she began to do her rounds.

  Unlike her associates, the locals never picked on her. Even the drunks managed to struggle into polite cheer when she parted them.

  Five hours into her shift, she was helping one of the local girls back to her companions and out of the clutches of two enthusiastic young men when a call came in to her system. “Dispatch, what is it?”

  “Badge Ryan, all hell is about to break loose. There are twenty-six Keymin males coming right for the city. Their Alpha is on his way, but he is too far behind to rein them all in. You are about to get busy.”

  “Did the Keymin authorize measures?”

  “Full stun, full strength. Knock them out as fast as you can. They want them out and helpless. Their people are on their way.”

  Lee shuddered and returned the young woman to her people. “Which direction?”

  “Coming from the east. ETA nine minutes. Do you want me to call the guys for backup?”

  Lee grimaced. “Try and see who answers, but I don’t need anyone sleepy or injured. If they don’t pick up by the second alert, disconnect. I will handle what I can and hope that the Alpha isn’t dragging his ass.”

  With the woman returned to the revellers and the young men nursing the impacts to the wall behind them, Badge Ryan returned to her cycle and went to block the Keymin invading from the east.

  Keymin were the Earth equivalent of werewolves. Genetically altered to shift their forms and act as a four-footed army, they were a customized species who had won their freedom and been invited to have their own settlement on Decallock. Their biggest problem was that the harvest season was the same time that their females were fertile. The younger males were driven slightly insane by the scent of their females, and though the Keymin kept their young women from being swarmed by suitors, their males were tense and irritable during this time.

  The Alpha of the Keymin was supposed to keep the young males under control, but apparently, they slipped his grasp.

  She sighed and flexed her shoulders as she drove toward the eastern gate. Any other time of year, the Keymin were completely normal, welcomed citizens of Decallock. This was the one festival that they were not invited to.

  Unstable was the best term for the Keymin males at this time of year. Aggressive was another good one. She was driving toward the most dangerous collection of males on the planet, and she had no backup. It was the perfect end to a hellish week.

  The cycle ran silently through the streets. The moment she passed the outer gates, she gave the order. “Anadora, close the gates and don’t let anyone in until the morning.”

  “Badge, I don’t know if that is such a good idea. You are going to be alone out there, and no one can help you. I got two officers awake, but they won’t be near the east gate for ten minutes.”

  “Good, have them charge the gate and wait for dawn. Six more hours, and they can go back to bed.”

  “What about you, Lee?” Anadora’s voice was worried.

  “I think I will be fine, but in case I am not, set every bit of tech on me to record. This will either be amazing or horrific.” Lee gunned the bike and headed toward the writhing pile of bodies sprinting toward the city.

  The moment she could see their eyes, she did
her job. The flare beacon on her cycle elicited a sharp chirp that was barely audible to her, and yet, yelps and howls came from the Keymin. The light caused them to jerk to a halt and shake their heads.

  With the men shifting from canine to bipedal, she dismounted from her bike and stood tall. “Keymin, return to your settlement or face disciplinary action.”

  A young male swaggered forward and paused fifteen feet from her. “A pretty thing like you, discipline all of us? I can think of a number of things that you would be good at and none of them match that badge uniform.”

  Lee pulled in the one and only talent she had, concentrating her personal power in her words. “Calm down and go home.”

  Her voice echoed across the plain and over half of the young men jerked back, turned around and shifted back into their huge canine forms, running back the way they came.

  She was left with nine males, all too strong-minded to turn and follow orders from a female.

  The cocky male that she faced looked surprised. “What did you do to them?”

  She clenched her hands, activating the stunners on the back of her gloves. “I sent them home. It was for the best.”

  Lee stayed tall until he was almost on her, ducking and punching upward. The arrogant male went up with a grunt and continued upward with the power shorting out his nervous system.

  The next slashed at her with hands turned to claws, and he connected, slicing into her while her fist struck his jaw, shorting him out as well.

  Her gloves were spent, so she pulled out her batons. Three men fell as they ran toward her, their bodies dropping in twitching heaps.

  She was in for trouble when the last four men rushed her, her mind blurred into a montage of strikes, punches with hands pulling at her arms.

  The male behind her had his nose broken by the back of her skull, and he howled in pain.

  A furious roar froze the men around her just as the male in front of her curled his hand in the closure of her uniform.

  He jerked back reflexively as the roar repeated, and a Keymin male of impressive proportions bounded into their grouping.

  As the men let her go, she slumped to the ground. It was hours until dawn, but the threat to the colony was over. Their Alpha had arrived, and he was taking charge of the young males with a few huffs and growls.

  Lee sat and gripped her slashed ribs. With effort, she calmed her breathing, and by the time she had her body tremors under control, she was staring up into the whitest eyes she had ever seen.

  Chapter Two

  “You are injured.” He went from enormous canine to a man in a heartbeat.

  “Yes, one got a lucky swing in.” She winced as he moved her hands away. The smell of blood was heavy in the air.

  “You need medical attention immediately.”

  She laughed, “Not for another five hours. The colony walls are energized and on lockdown. I have a medic kit on my cycle.”

  She grunted as she tried to get to her feet. He gripped her elbows and lifted her. “You should not be moving.”

  Fire was spreading through her body, and it was coming from the open wound. She stumbled to her cycle, removed the kit, cracked a light and stripped her uniform to the waist.

  His hands pushed hers away, and she sat, using the cycle for support as he worked at her wound. “I am afraid that this is a temporary measure. You have been infected.”

  “What?” Fire and dizziness was spreading rapidly.

  “I will explain later. Get on and hang on.” The man was curt. There was no balking. He spoke with complete confidence a moment before she was facing a huge dark beast with wide shoulders and icy white eyes.

  Despite her trepidation, she gripped his fur with one hand and hauled herself upward, straddling his wide barrel of a torso. The second that she was settled, he began to run.

  They passed the younger males returning to the Keymin settlement. As their Alpha sprinted past them, they increased their speed to match him. They didn’t even come close.

  Fifty-percent larger than the younger males, his stride pulled him past them in seconds.

  Lee held tight with both hands, though her left was losing its grip along with all feeling. The wrap on her ribs was holding her together, but the fire inside her was spreading.

  The walled settlement of the Keymin appeared far more rapidly than she had anticipated. A crowd was gathered and hands helped her off the Alpha’s back.

  He shifted and took her from the helpful hands. “We need Dr. Nalura. She was infected by Sakkiel.”

  Spots and grey areas danced in front of her eyes. She couldn’t focus on anything and simply leaned against the chest of the Alpha.

  He carried her through the settlement, and she saw flashes of the buildings when she opened her eyes slightly. The light and sound was too much for her. “What is happening?”

  His voice was soft. “You have been infected, and your body is an unfortunately excellent host. We will try and stop the spread, but we don’t know if it can be done.”

  He settled her on what felt like a standard medical bed. The scent of a clinic was around her. She kept her eyes closed as hands stripped off her uniform and removed the bandage.

  “What is she wearing?” The low voice of the Alpha was curious

  “Underclothing. Probably species specific. Is that the uniform of a badge?” The voice was that of an older female.

  “It is. She is. I have heard that the main colony has a female in charge. I am guessing that this woman is her.” The older female was brusque.

  “That would explain it.”

  “Explain what?”

  “How she was able to turn over half the bachelors back without even raising her fist. I was shocked when they ran past me, but seeing the males that remained with her, it makes perfect sense.”

  The older woman had a grudging respect in her tone when she said, “She turned them back? That does explain a few things.”

  Small stickers were being applied to her skin. The gel on them had a peculiar smell.

  “Hold still, miss. This is going to hurt.”

  Lee nodded and held still as power surged through her body. Screaming seemed like a good idea, but the pain was over before she could do more than draw breath.

  A scanner was shifted into position, and the female doctor checked the readings.

  Lee opened her eyes a slit and looked around. The burning was fading, and the scanner was chirping.

  “What is wrong, doctor?” She breathed deeply, and her body gave her the signal that everything was okay.

  “You have been infected with the Keymin nanites. They are fixing your body, but they are upgrading you at the same time.”

  The word was out of science fiction and the Avari files, but Lee knew better than to sneer. “I got those inside me? How?”

  “Young Keymin who are still maturing are carriers. Their bodies produce enough nanites to carry them through growth spurts. When they shift suddenly, they tear the skin and the nanites move in to effect repairs. Those are the ones that jumped into the open wound. They came in under his fingernails where the claws tore the skin and ran riot through your body.”

  She struggled to sit up, but strong hands held her down. “Keep still until the doctor gives you the all clear.”

  “Bossy.” Lee sighed but kept her shoulders on the table.

  The physician puttered around and did a few more scans. “Well, you are firmly in the throes of transformation, Badge. You will have to remain here for a few days while we make sure that the change is stable.”

  Lee reached into her bra and fished out the spare earpiece. “Did you get that, Dispatch?”

  “Loud and clear. Check in during your shift, Badge Ryan. I will be standing by.” Anadora’s voice trembled with relief.

  “Over and out. I think I need some rest.” Lee turned off her com and hooked it back in her bra.

  The Alpha looked at her. “The com was open the whole time?”

  Lee nodded. “Standard protocol. I
was going up against twenty-six beings that could rend me limb from limb. Recording is the best way of proving that I did not use excessive force. They were doing it on my home world before I came out here, and it has helped us drive home a few incidents that were not recalled by the perpetrators.”

  “So, there is a protocol involved. Well, that is understandable.” The doctor tried to fill in the silence. “Where do you want her housed?”

  The Alpha scowled. “What?”

  “She will need housing for the few days while her body adapts and living in the maiden quarters is not really suitable.” The doctor was hinting at something, and it was obvious by the way the Alpha’s jaw tightened that he was not impressed.

  Flat on her back, she had a chance to watch the man that had rescued her from his own people.

  His eyes were the same ice white in both forms, but as a human, his lashes were black and thick as were his hair and eyebrows.

  A claw mark started at his jawline and snaked beneath his shirt. His lips were currently pursed together in a frown, so she was unsure of what was going on in his mind, or what his mouth looked like. His nose was sharp with nostrils that were flaring as he scented her.

  The slow, sleepy look that took over his face sent a flip through her naked belly and created an extreme urge for her uniform. When he followed it with a slow smile, “She will stay with me,” Lee wanted to run.

  Chapter Three

  “You can get dressed, though you will need to find something else to wear. The nanites do not extend to repairing clothing that does not have them embedded during manufacture.” The doctor smiled.

  “Good to know.” She slipped into her suit and sealed the booted legs one at a time. The side of the suit was shredded, showing pink scars and white skin. The rest of the uniform still covered her decently though, so she sealed the front and turned to the Alpha with a smile. “So, a good night’s sleep then?”