D'zia's Dilemma Read online

  D’zia’s Dilemma

  An Alien Exchange Trilogy Book Two

  Keri Kruspe

  Contents

  Book Description

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Acknowledgments

  About Keri

  Do Ya Like Freebies?

  Also by Keri Kruspe

  A woman betrayed. An alien duke faced with an impossible decision. Can two lovers who long to be together overcome those determined to keep them apart?

  * * *

  Lora Dharma Callahan excitedly agrees to leave Earth to attend “The Exchange” and meet the alien mate of her dreams. Instead of finding true love, she’s forcibly kidnapped and held captive by an alien lunatic who plans to take over the galaxy. He’s going to use her to create a serum that will ultimately enslave every human female on Earth. But no emperor wannabe is going to keep this girl down. Lora will find a way to save not only herself, but her planet as well.

  Duke D’zia Yaq E’etu, cousin to the crown prince of Zerin, suspects a malicious plot to overthrow the galactic government. When the opportunity arises to insinuate himself in the suspected traitor’s stronghold, he doesn’t hesitate to use his infiltration skills. While there, he encounters Lora, whom he soon recognizes as his TrueBond. The only problem…she’s imprisoned and scheduled for experiments that will destroy her.

  Now D’zia has a hard choice to make. Should he stay and get the proof he needs to prevent a narcissistic megalomaniac from taking over the galactic government…or escape with the only female he can claim as his own?

  * * *

  Don’t forget to get An Alien Exchange to experience the first action-packed story of this exciting trilogy!

  Copyright © 2018 by Keri Kruspe

  ISBN: 978-1-7326584-1-7

  * * *

  All rights reserved.

  * * *

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, business, places, events, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  To you, Dear Reader,

  May your life be filled with delicious chances and glorious choices. Through it all, be true to yourself and don’t be afraid to love.

  Chapter One

  LORA

  Deep inside the Chancellor’s Palace on the Federation Consortium space station, orbiting the planet Zerin

  The first thing Lora Callahan became aware of was the sludge coating her brain. The second was the burn that squeezed the back of her neck. The third thing…well, there was no third thing. She jerked awake.

  Where was she?

  Crap! Wait…the last thing Lora remembered was attending the Exchange, the program an alien race called the Zerins created. When she was first introduced to these aliens in a plain, white room, a faceless voice declared the sci-fi romances she’d read were real. Honestly, their claims were hard to believe at first. Then their story continued…the galaxy suffered from a shortage of females that Earth women could help prevent. Earth females were compatible with various species facing extinction. As a result, the Zerins created an “Exchange” program. At the Exchange, Lora and others could safely meet a potential mate from one of those needy worlds.

  Then they dangled a temping offer she couldn’t refuse. Would she like to be one of those lucky women to leave Earth and meet a hunky alien male looking for a human mate? Were they kidding? Lora jumped at the chance. She’d do anything to leave her intolerable life on Earth. The only things she’d be leaving behind were unshakable stalkers and credible death threats. She liked that the choice was left up to her; no one was going to force her. It sure was better than being kidnapped into space, like in most of the stories she’d read on her eReader. She’d rather skip that scary ordeal, thank you very much.

  Happily, she joined a hundred other eager human women and boarded the Zerin spaceship called the StarChance. During their thirty-day trip, they all received extensive training on the alien cultures they’d encounter. She made some great friends and had the time of her life. It was better than any vacation.

  When the day of the Exchange finally took place, the human women were taken to a huge chamber on the Zerin moon of Urim. Boy, the place could rival any Hilton conference room back home. Not that Lora cared what the place looked like. She’d only wanted to sprint to the other side and meet the alien males as they strode through the transportation mirrors. She couldn’t wait until she was in the arms of her alien lover. He’d make her his coveted bride, shower her with devotion forever, and take her away from the pain of her previous life.

  Determined to get first pick, Lora plowed through the clump of women who had the audacity to stop in front of her. Hey, it wasn’t her fault she had to push the sloths aside…they were in the way. Around her, joyful cries echoed when couples found each other. Obsessed with finding her own mate, Lora hadn’t paid attention to anyone or anything. Where was her guy? It was hard to see over the jostling bodies…the curse of a five-foot-two frame. Most of the people she wrestled through were at least a foot taller than her and her poor toes were fast becoming a causality—along with various tender places poked and scraped.

  She stood on tiptoe, her head bobbing back and forth, as she tried to push or see around human women as the alien males charged around her. Her heart thudded as blood rushed in her ears. How would she recognize her male? Sight? Smell? When he touched her?

  As Lora concentrated on finding him, it never occurred to her she was in danger. For God’s sake, she’d been in a room filled with hundreds of people under the Zerin’s watchful eyes. She should have been safe.

  Boy was she wrong. Like a frantic crazed person, she’d been busy searching through a smorgasbord of lusty, beautiful alien males when—ow! A sharp pain pinched her neck.

  Did she fall?

  She didn’t remember falling. One minute she’d been in the middle of hundreds of bodies, and the next…she was…here.

  “Here” was a damp, cobbled floor. The uneven rocks painfully dug into her head, back, and bottom. With a wobbly, shaky breath, she coughed at the moldy smell of rotten eggs. Her tongue was thick and dry as she shivered in the damp air.

  Oh, ick! Even her tunic and leggings stuck to her skin.

  Okay, time to sit up. After a few pathetic tries, she finally levered her body into an upright position and panted, completely exhausted. Now for the next problem…she couldn’t see anything. It was so black it was hard to tell if her eyes were open. At least nothing hurt, except for her head. Yay for small favors.

  She tilted her head at a distant, stomping sound. What was that? Her stomach dropped. Was someone coming?

  The blackness eased into a murky gray. Wait, was it getting lighter? She blinked, waiting for her eyes to adjust. The dimness morphed into simple gray as a dull light filtered through the small door window. As the image of her surroundings became clear, she shivered and shut her eyes. Like that was going to help. There was no way to unsee she was in a tiny prison, complete with rock walls slathered in dirt and green slime.

  It looked like “Dungeons-R-Us” had a sale and she was the lucky recipient.

  Counting to
ten, she opened her eyes. Nope, still there with her butt squished against the slick floor. The smell got to her so she covered her nose with her fingers, which didn’t help since the filth from the floor covered them. There had to be a way out, but nothing jumped at her to say, “Exit.” Well, unless she immediately lost a hundred pounds to squeeze through the small, open window in an old-fashioned wooden door.

  Yeah, like that would happen on a good day.

  The clumping noises returned, coming closer. Stamping, heavy footsteps stopped in tandem outside the heavy door as it flung open. Lora jumped when it bounced against the wall with a solid thud. Her heart hammered as two humanoid guards came tromping in. Their bodies were covered in dull metallic gray suits, complete with triangular, matte helmets. They stopped inside the door and raised long firearms with three-hole gun barrels and pointed them at her.

  And…right on cue…in strolled the villain of this absurd melodrama.

  Holy shamoka, he was a big sucker. He had to be over seven feet tall.

  Lora swallowed a nervous burst of laughter. He resembled the bad guy from an old movie her mom used to watch. Complete with a shiny bald head and a thin, long, black Fu Manchu mustache and goatee. He wore a robe of deep burgundy with long bell sleeves embroidered with black piping where his hands were hidden.

  His irises were empty pits of darkness, black and soulless, indistinguishable from his pupils. With those pointy ears, he was a Zerin or an evil Vulcan. It could go either way.

  She was getting a crick in her neck as she regarded the giant in front of her. Sitting on her ass wasn’t the best place to be, so she stood.

  “Ah, there you are, my dear.” A wide, fake smile showed his pointy teeth.

  Oh, okay Zerin it was.

  “I am so pleased you are finally awake. You’ve been in stasis for several months and I feared my operatives may have given you too much of the narcotic necessary to bring you awake.” He moved around her into a weak light that reflected the pearlescent sheen of his skin.

  Well, whaddya know…aliens had abducted her anyway. She glanced around her dingy quarters. Lucky her. “Yeah, gee, thanks for waking me up, I guess.” She put on a brave front as she crossed her arms to calm her shivering. “So, who are you and what do you want?”

  “Ah, getting right to the point, I see.” He stepped into her personal space and leaned down to meet her eye-to-eye.

  His smarmy smile made the pit of her stomach drop while it quaked and churned, and the whiff of sour onion cooked in curdled milk had her fighting the need to gag.

  “Plans have been changed according to unfortunate circumstances.” His chuckle came across as practiced and phony. He pulled his three-fingered hand out of the bell of his sleeve and stretched out a long, thick finger to caress the skin on her cheek.

  She jerked back.

  “The Council’s ruling came down and Prince Qay’s TrueBond with a human was approved and met with no opposition.” He narrowed his cold, obsidian gaze at her. “A distasteful decision on their part—however, a unique opportunity for me.”

  He stepped back and Lora could once again breathe through her nose. She had no idea who in the hell he was talking about or how it concerned her.

  “You see, my dear, you are going to help me take over the galaxy.”

  * * *

  D’ZIA

  With lengthened strides, D’zia E’etu bypassed the luxurious décor of the main dining hall in the Royal Palace of Zerin and headed to his cousin Qay’s office. As the newly reinstated crown prince, Qay habitually locked himself away to catch up on current events of the governing body. Not that D’zia blamed him, a lot had happened in the Zerin political landscape during the fifty years they’d been gone. D’zia had tried to be patient and wait for his cousin to interact with the family again, but so far, there wasn’t any sign that would happen soon. The previous night, he’d concluded it was past time to confront Qay.

  D’zia loved his cousin, really, he did. Hadn’t he spent the last fifty years proving his loyalty by protecting Qay, never leaving his side? Wasn’t he the one who’d kept a vigilant, protective eye on the male, forfeiting any personal life of his own? Now that Qay was back in the good graces of the royal family, it was the Imperial Forces’ job to keep an eye on him. D’zia was more than ready to set out on his own.

  After all, he was a Zerin with varied and eclectic talents. He had to “do his own thing,” as the humans liked to say. He loved the humans’ way with slang. Every day, he tried to use Earth slang to irritate his stoic friends and family. Their pitiful expressions were worth his weight in credits.

  Yeah, life was good.

  His only regret was his friend Ki wasn’t available to join him in his latest plan. The big guy was not only handy to have in a dangerous situation, but he was a great source of amusement for D’zia’s teasing.

  Ah well, no matter, time to go solo.

  D’zia walked through the open door of his cousin’s office. It was a sizable room, decorated in warm, inviting colors. The massive desk Qay sat at was the same dark wood as the paneling on the wall behind him. The other walls had neutral, soothing colors to encourage a safe place for contemplation. The chair Qay sat on was an antique, made of dark leather and constructed centuries before. The soft, buttery material had held up well over the years. D’zia took a moment to enjoy the nostalgic memory of playing around the desk as a small child with Qay and D’zia’s twin sister, Yesult. Their rambunctious antics never bothered D’zia’s uncle, the king, nor his own father.

  Enough about the past, time to focus on the present. D’zia observed his cousin.

  Relaxed yet focused, Qay looked better than he had in a long time. His long, black hair was in its customary tie, his lone warrior braid hung to coil on his lap. The shocking difference now was the white stripe that replaced a section of his black hair on the braid, acquired from claiming his human TrueBond. The other thing new was the permanent MalDerVon scroll on the right side of his face. The dark-purple ink swirled over his temple to the middle of his forehead and halfway under his eye and cheek. The diamond-shaped heir crystal nestled in the middle of his temple was a dark green, indicating his TrueBond was pregnant with a male child.

  The pained expression on Qay’s face made D’zia bite his inner cheek to stop from making a teasing comment. Qay appeared to be lost in whatever he was reading and evidently hadn’t noticed D’zia enter the room. Maybe it wasn’t a good time to talk, but then again, there might never be a perfect time. D’zia had waited long enough to run his idea by his cousin.

  There were two matching heavily padded leather chairs with in front of the desk facing Qay. D’zia plopped into the nearest one and crossed his right leg over his thigh.

  Qay’s newly mated human TrueBond, Aimee, blinked up at him from the long, cushioned sofa to his right. She gave him a warm smile before she continued to read on her handheld. More than likely, she was reading one of those ridiculous romance novels the Earth females loved so much. Either way, she appeared to be comfortable, surrounded by a cocoon of bright pillows. She sat with one palm resting on the small round bump on her abdomen where the next ruler of Zerin rested. In her other hand, she held the device in a firm grip as her eyes moved and her teeth chewed on the plump skin of her bottom lip.

  Thankfully, Aimee appeared healthier every day. When she first arrived, she had just endured several horrific ordeals. After leaving her home planet, she was kidnapped, her life threatened on more than one occasion, and she believed Qay had abandoned her. When she first came to the palace, her washed-out pallor and gaunt appearance made her look older than she was. Now, she was a radiant female. D’zia suspected Qay’s continued attention helped her regain her health and well-being. Her light luminous skin tone was quite attractive. The walnut color of her hair contrasted with a fascinating white stripe about an inch thick on the right side, apparently some sort of birthmark. Her thick tresses were woven into an intricate braid that was now flowing over her shoulder to pool on her
upper left thigh.

  D’zia was happy with his cousin’s choice of TrueBond…cannibalistic tendencies toward his ear notwithstanding. He smiled at the painful reminder of when she’d bitten off the tip of his left ear in the misguided belief she was protecting Qay. It would take a long time before his urge to cover the offended appendage whenever she was close went away.

  Aimee wore the royal E’etu emerald-green tunic and pants, and had her legs curled up to the side as she lounged. Yes, it was good to see her adapting well to the Zerin culture, especially after everything she’d gone through.

  Enough with the musings, time to get to work. D’zia shifted his attention back to his older cousin. Qay was in what D’zia liked to call his “prince mode,” all stern and serious. He hated that he had to disturb the busy royal, but he didn’t have a choice. Time was of the essence, the opportunity to make a difference was fast disappearing, and inaction could lead to disaster.

  He let a few moments go by in comfortable silence, then leaned back and linked his hands behind his head. “Hello…D’zia to Qay. Please come in, Qay. Your cousin is requesting your undivided attention.”

  Qay gave a slight jump, confirming he hadn’t noticed D’zia come in. His double-green eyes narrowed at D’zia who was lounging comfortably; an eyebrow raised before a smile bloomed. “Who let you in here?” Qay’s sharp tone belied the welcoming expression.

  D’zia smiled. Yep, good to see his cousin was still the same—stiff-necked but trying to have a sense of humor. D’zia’s father told him often enough he had to be whatever Qay needed him to be while they were in exile. Yeah, one of his rewards for such a selfless act was to answer Qay with a smartass comment whenever he could. “Oh, you know you love me.” D’zia brushed off Qay’s attempt at being severe. He had to discuss something more important than lighthearted banter. “I want to talk to you about getting the proof against the Chancellor we need to take before the council.”