Pets in Space® 4 Read online

  Pets in Space® 4

  S.E. Smith

  Anna Hackett

  Tiffany Roberts

  Veronica Scott

  Pauline Baird Jones

  Laurie A. Green

  Donna McDonald

  Regine Abel

  Alexis Glynn Latner

  JC Hay

  E.D. Walker

  Kyndra Hatch

  Cassandra Chandler

  About the Anthology

  For a limited time only! Pets in Space® 4 is proud to present 13 amazing, original new stories! Join the adventures as today’s leading Science Fiction Romance authors take you on a journey to another world. Pets in Space® proudly supports Hero-Dogs.org, a non-profit charity that provides service animals to veterans and first responders in need. Join New York Times, USA TODAY and Award-winning Bestselling authors S.E. Smith, Anna Hackett, Tiffany Roberts, Veronica Scott, Pauline Baird Jones, Laurie A. Green, Donna McDonald, Regine Abel, Alexis Glynn Latner, JC Hay, E.D. Walker, Kyndra Hatch, and Cassandra Chandler for another exciting Pets in Space® anthology. Get the stories before they are gone!

  Proud supporters of Hero-Dogs.org, Pets in Space® authors have donated over $7,100 in the past two years to help place specially trained dogs with veterans and first responders. Open your hearts and grab your limited release copy of Pets in Space® 4 today!

  Copyright © 2019 by Cats, Dogs and Other Worldly Creatures; Veronica Scott and Pauline Baird Jones, owners.

  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 authors, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  ISBN: 978-1-942583-70-7

  MADAS' FALLING STAR: Lords of Kassis Series; Copyright by S.E. Smith. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  DARK GUARD: House of Rone Series; Copyright by Anna Hackett. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  ENTWINED FATES; Copyright by Tiffany Roberts. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  STAR CRUISE: IDOL’S CURSE: Star Cruise Series; Copyright by Jean D Walker. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  CYBORG'S REVENGE: Project Enterprise Series; Copyright by Pauline Baird Jones. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  SPYDOG; Copyright by Laurie A. Green. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  NOTHING REMOTELY FAMILIAR: A Topper Witch Story; Copyright by Donna McDonald. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  DOOM: Xian Warriors Series; Copyright by Regine Abel. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  WINTER'S PRINCE: Starways Series; Copyright by Alexis Glynn Latner. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  HEART OF THE SPIDER'S WEB; Copyright by JC Hay. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  THE PRINCESS AND HER BODYGUARD; Copyright by E D Walker. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  INTERRUPTING STARLIGHT; Copyright by Kyndra Hatch. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  IMPORT QUARANTINE; Copyright by Cassandra Chandler. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

  Cover art by Fiona Jayde

  Pet Illustrations by Adrian

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  S.E. Smith - Madas’s Falling Star

  Acknowledgments

  Cast of Characters

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Epilogue

  About S.E. Smith

  Also By S.E. Smith

  Anna Hackett - Dark Guard

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Afterword

  About Anna Hackett

  Also by Anna Hackett

  Tiffany Roberts - Entwined Fates

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Epilogue

  About Tiffany Roberts

  Also by Tiffany Roberts

  Veronica Scott -STAR CRUISE: Idol’s Curse

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Epilogue

  About Veronica Scott

  Also by Veronica Scott

  Pauline Baird Jones - Cyborg’s Revenge

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  About Pauline Baird Jones

  Also by Pauline Baird Jones

  Laurie A. Green - SpyDog

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Epilogue

  About Laurie A. Green

  Also by Laurie A. Green

  Donna McDonald - Nothing Remotely Familiar

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  A Note from Donna McDonald

  About Donna McDonald

  Also By Donna McDonald

  Regine Abel - Doom

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Epilogue

  About Regine Abel

  Also by Regine Abel

  Alexis Glynn Latner - Winter’s Prince

  1. The Door to Winter

  2. Time Out

  3. Fairmarket

  4. Team Grail

  5. One Grail Too Many

  6. Door and Window

  7. The Standing Stones

  About Alexis Glynn Latner

  Also by Alexis Glynn Latner

  JC Hay- Heart of the Spider’s Web


  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  About JC Hay

  Also by JC Hay

  E.D. Walker - The Princess and Her Bodyguard

  The Princess and Her Bodyguard

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About E. D. Walker

  Also by E. D. Walker

  Kyndra Hatch - Interrupting Starlight

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Afterword

  About Kyndra Hatch

  Also by Kyndra Hatch

  Cassandra Chandler - Import Quarantine

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Epilogue

  About Cassandra Chandler

  Also by Cassandra Chandler

  Thank you!

  About Cats, Dogs & Other Worldly Creatures

  S.E. Smith - Madas’s Falling Star

  Prince Gril Tal Mod is destined to be the next Supreme Leader of the Tearnats—if he survives long enough to ascend to the throne.

  Gril was supposed to be on a routine training exercise, but his flight goes horribly wrong when engine trouble forces him to land his fighter in a remote mountainous region. Once stranded on the ground, Gril discovers the malfunction was no accident—and he isn’t alone. He can sense someone watching him from the shadows.

  Princess Madas Tralang’s curiosity always seems to get her into trouble. When Madas spies an unusual object streaking across the sky before crashing near her location, she believes it is a good omen. After all, she found her pet, L’eon, the last time an object fell from the sky.

  Her hopes of finding something valuable are dashed when instead she sees a big, and rather ugly, Tearnat warrior. Though there is something about him…something magnetic, it’s his spaceship that she really wants. It is just what she has been searching for—a means to escape the dreary life expected of her!

  The giant warrior pilot of the spaceship isn’t going to give it up easily, however, and Madas soon finds herself locked in a battle of wits and skill with the strange warrior, but they are not the only players on the field. Danger surrounds Madas and Gril—both from Madas’s clan and from the saboteur who is determined to see Gril dead. Can the Prince of the Tearnats and a small, but deadly alien pet, defeat their foes and save Madas before time runs out, or will Gril’s growing love for a curious Princess doom them both?

  Acknowledgments

  I would like to thank my husband Steve for believing in me and being proud enough of me to give me the courage to follow my dream. I would also like to give a special thank you to my sister and best friend, Linda, who not only encouraged me to write, but who also read the manuscript. Also to my other friends who believe in me: Julie, Jackie, Christel, Sally, Jolanda, Lisa, Laurelle, Debbie, and Narelle. The girls that keep me going!

  And a special thanks to Paul Heitsch, David Brenin, Samantha Cook, Suzanne Elise Freeman, and PJ Ochlan—the awesome voices behind my audiobooks!

  —S.E. Smith

  Cast of Characters

  Prince Gril Tal Mod: Future ruler of Tearraid, home world of the Tearnat and member of the Desert/Sand Tearnats

  Princess Madas Tralang: Member of the Tearnat Forest Clan, daughter of Queen Tima Tralang

  Devac Gru: Gril’s former mate

  Goroff Tralang: Madas’s oldest brother

  Joren Tralang: Madas’s older brother by a couple of years

  Orden Tralang: Madas’s brother

  Queen Tima Tralang: Queen and ruler of the Forest Clan

  L’eon: Chameleon Lightning Lizard from another world and Madas’s constant companion

  Chapter One

  “Tactical Command, this is Red Feather. Initiate emergency protocol.”

  Gril Tal Mod gritted his teeth as he fought for control of his star fighter. Fire ignited outside of the starboard window. He shut off the fuel to the starboard engine and the flames quickly extinguished without oxygen to fuel them.

  “Tactical Command, this is Red Feather. Initiate emergency protocol,” he repeated for the tenth time.

  “Critical failures in starboard engine,” the computer responded. “System failure reports from communication, life support, and weapons.”

  “Is anything not failing?” Gril sarcastically muttered.

  “Structural integrity is intact. Your spacesuit controls have been disabled. Suggested course of action: land,” the computer responded.

  “Suggested— List causes of system failure,” Gril demanded.

  “Unable to process request,” the computer responded.

  “What caused the damage?” Gril demanded, trying again.

  “Unable to process request,” the computer repeated.

  Gril’s fingers clenched the control lever as it violently shook. Land—that was the only option the computer could suggest. He knew two things for certain, this routine training mission had turned into a disaster and he was going down. He would be thrilled if he could land the fighter without crashing it.

  His gaze moved to the holographic instrument panel in front of him. The port engine was beginning to overheat. If he lost that engine, he’d be re-entering the atmosphere on his thrusters alone. If he stayed in space, he would be dead before anyone realized he was missing. Choosing the best of two bad options, he aimed the nose of the fighter toward the planet.

  Furiously calculating his trajectory, Gril cut through the planet’s upper atmosphere. He reached over and shut off the emergency fuel, breathing deeply when flames engulfed his fighter. Coming in this fast did not give him the luxury of a controlled descent.

  Multiple alarms rang through the cockpit and hurt his ears. He cut the fuel supply to the port engine just as the craft’s temperature reached the critical level. He was in a partially controlled free-fall now.

  His grip tightened on the control lever, his biceps bulging as he fought to keep the fighter from rolling. Seconds turned to minutes before he broke through the upper layer of clouds and saw the thick forest and mountain ranges below. A string of curses poured from his lips.

  “Hel meiya ta! Forests! The planet is covered in eighty percent desert and I have to find a place to land in the one percent of forests!” he cursed.

  “Prepare for crash landing,” the computer calmly instructed.

  He couldn’t stand the loud screeching of those damn alarms another second. His fist shot out and connected with the speaker panel, smashing it. He figured if he was going to die, at least he could do it without the ear-splitting noise.