Diana Palmer - The Morcai Battalion - The Recruit

Diana Palmer’s second installment in her thrilling space epic is a vast panorama of far-flung civilizations, interplanetary conflict and galaxy-spanning passion…

THE MORCAI BATTALION: THE RECRUIT

A prophecy foretold:

Three years after the unprovoked attack on a peaceful colony, the war between the Rojok dynasty and the Tri-Galaxy Fleet rages on. Born of that war is the Morcai Battalion, a fleet comprised of Centaurians and humans—the first collaboration of its kind and a step toward an intergalactic alliance. But the fragile union is tested as their courageous commander in chief, Dtimun, is faced with the temptation of the forbidden—and human—Dr. Madeline Ruszel.

A combat surgeon, Ruszel is aware of the danger of inciting a Centaurian’s interest, even if he is the most intriguing of men. Besides putting their mission at risk, personal relations between their kinds are still outlawed. But a prophecy that touches on both their lives and the future of all alien nations hints that a greater unity may be theirs for the taking…if they, and their crew, survive in the battle for peace.

Praise for the novels of New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author DIANA PALMER Praise Title Page Dear Reader Dedication 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 CHAPTER SIXTEEN GLOSSARY AND CHARACTERS Copyright

“Fans of stark outer space military science fiction

will appreciate this sobering at-war thriller.”

—The Best Reviews on The Morcai Battalion

“A high-octane and gritty space adventure.”

—RT Book Reviews on The Morcai Battalion

“Palmer…is the queen of desperado quests

for justice and true love.”

—Publishers Weekly on Dangerous

Brought to you for the first time in paperback…

New York Times bestselling author Diana Palmer presents readers with her Mills & Boon HQN series, The Morcai Battalion. A thrilling, romantic space opera and adventure, The Morcai Battalion features passionate romance and intense action as unforgettable warriors fight for peace in the galaxy.

The Morcai Battalion:

The Recruit

Diana Palmer

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Dear Reader Dear Reader Dedication 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 CHAPTER SIXTEEN GLOSSARY AND CHARACTERS Copyright ,

It is my great pleasure to have this novel, the second in my Morcai Battalion series, in mass market paperback. It was released previously, in 2009, under the Mills & Boon LUNA imprint, only as an ebook, so I am very grateful to have it in print. I have also added new content to this edition of the novel, as I did to the rerelease of the original The Morcai Battalion in June 2013.

It is fun to create a science fiction series, especially around characters with whom you have lived for over forty years. This is the second book of several in my Morcai Battalion series. It follows the adventures of Dr. (and Lieutenant Commander) Madeline Ruszel, the only female ever to serve as a member of the Cehn-Tahr/Human commando unit known as the Holconcom. She is a combat vet, and her alien C.O. doesn’t think women belong in combat. Watch for sparks to keep flying. Also watch for the next sequel, which continues Ruszel’s stormy relationship with her commander, in Invictus in 2015.

A lot of people helped give me ideas for this book. I am grateful to James Daniel Clayton, to whom it is dedicated. He served on a number of U.S. Navy nuclear submarines, and he was kind enough to let me pick his brain about the routine on a vehicle submerged for long periods of time away from port (sort of like being in space, you can’t just walk out of a nuclear sub and take a stroll when you feel like it). He is also Donovan and Selena Marie Kyle’s other grandfather, and part of a very nice family, which includes his wife, Jane; his son, Daniel; and his daughter, Christina (Blayne’s wife and Selena and Donovan’s mama!).

I owe Dr. Rob Wainberg, who is a biology professor at Piedmont College in Demorest, Georgia, a debt, too, because I forced him to revisit both graduate school and his days as a researcher to help me flesh out the Cehn-Tahr. He will find a surprise when he reads the book. Thanks, Rob! (And thanks to Dr. Carlos Camp, who was so understanding when his name was misspelled in the dedication to the first book in 2007!)

I hasten to add that any mistakes in this novel are strictly mine. As I age, the little gray cells become more rigid and less efficient with information. I do write primarily to entertain, not to educate. But I do spend a great deal of time reading studies in theoretical physics and hanging out on medical and science and NASA websites. Hope you like the book.

Visit me at www.themorcaibattalion.comand www.dianapalmer.com.

Susan Kyle

Habersham County, Georgia

2013

To James Daniel “Danny” Clayton, submariner

and retired veteran of the United States Navy, with many thanks

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text Diana Palmer’s second installment in her thrilling space epic is a vast panorama of far-flung civilizations, interplanetary conflict and galaxy-spanning passion… THE MORCAI BATTALION: THE RECRUIT A prophecy foretold: Three years after the unprovoked attack on a peaceful colony, the war between the Rojok dynasty and the Tri-Galaxy Fleet rages on. Born of that war is the Morcai Battalion, a fleet comprised of Centaurians and humans—the first collaboration of its kind and a step toward an intergalactic alliance. But the fragile union is tested as their courageous commander in chief, Dtimun, is faced with the temptation of the forbidden—and human—Dr. Madeline Ruszel. A combat surgeon, Ruszel is aware of the danger of inciting a Centaurian’s interest, even if he is the most intriguing of men. Besides putting their mission at risk, personal relations between their kinds are still outlawed. But a prophecy that touches on both their lives and the future of all alien nations hints that a greater unity may be theirs for the taking…if they, and their crew, survive in the battle for peace.

Praise Praise for the novels of New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author DIANA PALMER Praise Title Page Dear Reader Dedication 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 CHAPTER SIXTEEN GLOSSARY AND CHARACTERS Copyright “Fans of stark outer space military science fiction will appreciate this sobering at-war thriller.” —The Best Reviews on The Morcai Battalion “A high-octane and gritty space adventure.” —RT Book Reviews on The Morcai Battalion “Palmer…is the queen of desperado quests for justice and true love.” —Publishers Weekly on Dangerous Brought to you for the first time in paperback… New York Times bestselling author Diana Palmer presents readers with her Mills & Boon HQN series, The Morcai Battalion. A thrilling, romantic space opera and adventure, The Morcai Battalion features passionate romance and intense action as unforgettable warriors fight for peace in the galaxy.

Title Page The Morcai Battalion: The Recruit Diana Palmer www.millsandboon.co.uk

Dear Reader

Dedication

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE