“I’m pissed off, Coto. Mr. Avery didn’t deserve to die like that.”

“You are perfect for me.”

She faced forward and concentrated on locating more footprints to follow. The two men weren’t hiding their tracks. They left a path of destruction by breaking twigs, snapping brush, and upsetting rocks. Coto was correct about their spitting habits too. They did it frequently, the yellow stains on the ground easy to spot. It didn’t take her long to come across where they’d camped. They hadn’t built a fire but the flattened moss showed they had gotten some sleep. She crouched, examining the area. She placed a palm on where one of them had lain.

“They’re close,” she whispered.

Coto lowered next to her, his gaze constantly scanning the area. “How can you tell?”

“The ground is still warm, even though it’s in the shade. They weren’t using sleeping mats like you have. He lay directly here.”

Coto removed his glove and placed his hand next to hers, then on another spot. “I feel the difference in temperature. That’s amazing.”

She captured a few strands of hair from the moss. “This one is a dirty blond.” She brushed them off her fingers. “They’re heading toward the river.”

“Are you certain it is the enemy?”

She jerked her head in the direction of a mass of rocks. “One of them spit near the top. See the yellow stain? They climbed up there and the river is about a mile that way. Can these bastards swim?”

“I’m not certain. Why?”

“The river bottlenecks into a series of shallow streams this way, then opens up where we crossed. They are skirting the deeper parts. That’s my guess. I’d have to backtrack their trail to know for sure but there was a faster path if crossing the river was their intention.”

“I hope dogs attack them.”

“You killed Jimmy’s dogs. There aren’t any more of them and that way will bypass Jimmy’s land, directly to the abandoned property I mentioned. It’s high up and easy to spot in that area. Your friend might have gone there.”

“Let’s go.” Coto stood, replacing his glove. “We must stop them before they find Vhon.”

She rose too and gripped his wrist. He looked down at her. She cleared her throat. “Just to be clear, are you planning on capturing or killing them?”

“They are our enemy. They have no honor.”

She eased her grip and nodded. “I just don’t want you to get angry with me if I shoot them. I’m going to show them the same mercy they gave Mr. Avery. None. I don’t hate aliens. I just hate those ones.”

He smiled. “Use your weapon. They would kill you if given the chance.” His features suddenly darkened, pure rage sparking in his eyes. “They’d hurt you first. Don’t hesitate to kill, Lynn. Do you understand?”

“I do. These guys are rabid animals in my mind. They need to be put down. Let’s go.”

She took the lead up the hill and had to climb with one hand since the shotgun didn’t have a strap. She paused near the top, lifting her head to peer down the valley. Coto did the same, sticking close to her side. She scanned and spotted movement in the distance near the streams.

“There.” She pointed.

“I see them. Stay here. I’ll take them on.” He sounded grim.

“There are two of them.”

He scowled. “I am an excellent fighter.”

“Okay. Go for it. Be careful.” They’d waste time arguing. She wanted those two men to pay for what they’d done.

Coto climbed higher by a few inches and topped the rocks. He remained close to the ground as he moved forward, in a walking crouch. Lynn kept her focus on the two men in the distance. They didn’t glance back or seem to hear Coto. He reached the area just behind the men and sprinted forward. Lynn hesitated, lifted the shotgun, and took aim.

“Damn.” A shotgun was useless at that range. She bit her lip and followed Coto, keeping low in case those Collis did look back and spot her. She reached the flatter ground and ran after Coto, using trees to shield her as much as possible.

A loud roar tore through the woods. She had heard it before. Coto had come across his enemy.

She stopped dodging behind trees and just sprinted toward the streams. It didn’t take her long to spot the three men. They’d reached the first stream and were thigh high in water.

Coto had both his blades out. The two men parted, trying to keep him between them. One attacked him from the front as the other whipped out a blade. She yelled a warning but Coto dodged being stabbed in the back by twisting his body. He shot one foot out, catching the man behind him in the knee. The guy fell over into the water.

Lynn was panting hard by the time she reached them. She lifted the shotgun, shaking a little as Coto fought with one of the Collis. The second one came up out of the water coughing and sputtering. He recovered fast though and lunged forward, planning to bury his blade in Coto again.

Lynn quickly calculated the safety margin for range and pellet spread. The Collis was far enough from Coto to allow her a clean shot. Hope I’m right.

She squeezed the trigger but missed hitting the attacking alien square in the chest. He had taken some buckshot to the shoulder though. The impact spun him around and he fell back into the water again.

She adjusted her hold on the shotgun, better prepared for the kick if she had to fire it again. The alien found his footing and bellowed, stumbling toward her with his sharp blade fisted in his hand.

Lynn took aim and blasted him again. She hit her mark that time, nailing him square in the chest.

He was thrown back and sank into the water. A moment later he floated up, unmoving and facedown. Red stained the water around him and rocks caught one of his limbs, keeping the current from taking him away. She kept the barrel trained on him in case he wasn’t dead. She didn’t know how tough aliens were and wasn’t willing to risk him playing possum.

Coto trudged out of the water and she saw that the second man was down, not moving on the other side of the flowing stream. Blood stained the front of his body. Coto went to the one she’d shot. He crouched, grabbed the guy by his boot, and dragged him to the bank of the river. He seemed to check for a pulse and then rose, facing her.

“You killed him. Good job.”

The situation hit her. She’d really just killed a man. He was an alien, a murderer, but she’d really shot him. Not once but twice. She almost dropped the shotgun and stumbled in the borrowed boots. Coto lunged forward and gripped the weapon, tearing it out of her hands. He was wet from the waist down when he hauled her against him.