Jana was only too aware of how small the cage was and how vulnerable she was to this monster’s reach. Upon awakening, she had cautioned herself to patience, observation, and wisdom. Yet she felt as if Lucifer himself was scrutinizing her beneath a powerful microscope. She desperately wanted to seize her long, thick hair and cover her upper torso, or clasp her hands over her breasts to protect them from his searing gaze. She could feel the hot flush from her face creep down her throat and splash over her chest. Her fingers and jawline ached from being clenched so tightly, yet Jana remained rigid.
Ryker witnessed the rapid rising and falling of her bosom as her respiration quickened with panic. She was terrified of him, but trying to conceal it. If ever a woman had appeared angelic to him, she was in the cage in this room! He had never met a real goddess before, and here was one to dissect and study. “I must confess that Varian’s timing and gift are perfect. I shall long remember this birthday.” Ryker caught her wrists and pulled her against the cage near him. When Jana tried to yank free, he tightened his grasp painfully.
Jana gasped! The barbarian’s strength was enormous, his voice as sharp and hard as tempered steel. His expression was like winter: cold, harsh, and forbidding. Varian’s present had not softened Ryker’s hostility. It appeared to Jana that Ryker was going to work out his hatred on her!
“Tell me, Jana of Earth, did any of Cass’s crew enjoy you on the way here? The truth, if you value your life.”
Jana was baffled by his question. Canissia spoke angrily before she could answer him. “I told you, Ryker, no one has touched her except Varian Saar.”
Ryker imprisoned her hands within one of his. His other hand stroked Jana’s fiery cheek, then buried itself in luxuriant hair. Ryker pulled Jana’s face against the cold bars. He drilled his penetrating gaze into hers. “Don’t be afraid of Canissia. I want to know the truth.”
“For once, that demoness spoke it,” Jana stated distinctly.
As Ryker and Jana stared challengingly at each other, Canissia yanked on Jana’s hair and laughed maliciously when Jana shrieked and wrenched free of both of them. Ryker glanced at Canissia and scolded, “You can be a real bitch, Cass. How can I enjoy a gift that’s wild with fear?”
“Sorry, love, but I couldn’t resist. She’s been a pain for months! I’d best get on my way. I’ll see you later. Here’s the key to delight.”
Jana’s eyes shifted from Canissia’s hand to Ryker’s as he accepted the key to the cage and closed his fingers around it. Amid chilling laughter, Canissia and Riker departed. The door closed behind them, and Jana was alone. She sank to the floor of the cage, her legs refusing to hold her up any longer.
Ryker watched Canissia board her shuttle, a satanic grin curling the corners of his lips. He glanced at the papers and tapes in his grip. Once they were destroyed, there would be no links to Jana’s location. He could envision Canissia’s flaming destiny when she prepared the drugs as he had instructed. But it was too bad Canissia herself wouldn’t be allowed time to comprehend her fiery fate. Before she could call for help, her ship would explode in a blaze of glorious victory. Soon, Canissia would offer no threat of discovery or defeat for him…just as soon as she tried to murder Zan.
Ryker entered his private laboratory and walked over to the cage. As long as he kept Jana confined in this impregnable complex, no one would know she was here. He almost wished Varian wouldn’t be dead before midnight. What sweet revenge this creature’s pain could have caused in his enemy. Ryker unlocked the door and told Jana to follow him. As if knowing there was no path of escape and recognizing the folly of infuriating him with defiance, she obeyed. When it was too late to battle Ryker, she comprehended his intentions. It wouldn’t have mattered if she had resisted his wishes. There was no one to stop him from doing as he pleased. Here, no one could reach him.
There was no time or enough strength for Jana to prevent Ryker from chaining her hands and feet between two posts. Nor from taking a scalpel and slicing through the material which hardly shielded much of her body. Around and around he strolled, eyeing her from silvery blond head to bare feet. Jana had never been more conscious of every inch of her shivering flesh than at this moment. She could do nothing but endure Ryker’s examination.
He stopped behind her and traced his fingertips along her spine. One hand stroked the curve of her buttocks. He came to stand before her. His first action was to place his thumb against her throbbing neck pulse, then grin. After turning her face from side to side as his probing gaze explored each area and feature, his gaze and hand moved on to feel her collarbone and shoulders. His hands poked and tested the bone structure and texture of her arms and ribs. His attention and touch came to her breasts. Here, his eyes and fingers and lips did a mutual investigation. He appeared to enjoy her taste and fear.
“Please.” The word came forth hoarsely and uncontrollably. Jana shuddered.
Ryker could feel the violent pounding of her heart. He grinned sardonically at his powerful position. His hand leisurely slid past her navel and over her flat, taut stomach to pause just above the thatch of whiskey-colored hair.
“Ryker, please.” She tried again to reach him and stop this shame.
“Please what, little Earthling?” he asked, mocking her.
A hot tear rolled down her cheek as she replied, “Please don’t do this.”
“You will learn very quickly that I do as I please on my world and with my property. I am a research scientist, and you are a very rare alien specimen. Is it hard for your simple brain to realize I wish to thoroughly study the newest acquisition to my laboratory collection? You won’t be injured, so relax.”
Jana shouted at him, “I’m not an animal or a mindless creature! I’m a human being. I’m a research scientist too. I can answer any question you have.”
Ryker chuckled. “Sorry, little alien, I prefer to make my own judgments.”
Jana sneered contemptuously and said, “Do you intend to dissect me, piece by piece? Do you want skin and hair samples? Blood and organ tissue samples? Do I get anesthetized before your sadistic experiments?”
“I have never been known for my kindness or mercy, little alien, so I would watch your nasty tongue, before I remove it for testing,” he threatened, tapping her lips as he spoke ominously.
“I know slavery isn’t against the law in your barbaric world, but surely using human specimens for research must be,” she reasoned fearfully.
Ryker laughed as if she had told a funny tale. “No one knows what happens inside this lab, little alien, nor does anyone try to control me or my work. As long as I furnish critical goods for the Alliance, it won’t interfere with me.” Stunned by his shocking words of self-assurance, Jana merely gaped at him as he returned to his investiga- tion of her. He squeezed the flesh and muscles of her thighs and calves. He checked out the bone structure of her feet. His hands began to work upward to the last area to explore…
“Are you so simple, Dr. Triloni, that you fail to realize the anatomies and chemistries of our two races are alike in almost every way? I don’t believe for one minute this is scientific observation! Are you trying to intimidate me? Terrify me? Degrade me? Or is this a repulsive game to sate some perversion? You hardly appear a man to accept another’s leavings, especially a crude beast like Varian Saar. I can assure you it is impossible to remove his stain from my life and body. If so, I would have carried out that deed before today,” she hotly alleged, desperately trying to delude him about Varian.
To Jana’s delight, Ryker did look pleased at her words. She pushed on. “How could you accept me as a peace token? That’s like taking an insulting slap on the face! Since when does a smart man rid his fiercest rival of a disagreeable situation? I don’t understand any of this, and certainly not you.”
Ryker refuted, “That’s where you’re vastly mistaken, little alien. You are the only female Varian has desired for more than a brief affair. He would have been content to keep you for quite some time. You have been the talk, the e
nvy of three galaxies. You were the perfect token to demand, the only Saarian possession which caused him enough discomfort and inconvenience to make him surrender.”
“You’re the one who’s vastly mistaken. If you think Varian feels anything more than lust for me, you’re wrong. Oh, Ryker, he has duped you badly,” she asserted. “Even I underestimated his cunning.”
“Explain yourself, alien,” Ryker demanded, his interest piqued.
Jana craftily re-created events to support her alleged hatred for Varian Saar. She asserted that Varian had forced her to feign a romantic interest in him to avoid brutal punishments or a sale to some evil master: “If you don’t believe me, ask anyone involved. It galled him to find a woman who could scorn him. He tried everything to conquer me. But he made a terrible mistake, perhaps his only one. I liked Draco and enjoyed living on Karnak; so much so that Varian couldn’t stand it. Don’t you see, Ryker? It was all a carefully designed charade to convince you that he wanted me. He couldn’t go too far, or you wouldn’t fall for his scheme. He pretended he couldn’t help his attraction to me. No doubt he searched my world for the perfect woman to carry out his ploy. But he didn’t expect to find one who would reject him, who wouldn’t aid his plot. When you didn’t bite at me during my displays or attend my auction, you left him with only one sport: my conquest. You had defeated him, and he certainly wasn’t going to allow me to do so. He’s won two victories, Ryker. He has you convinced you’ve taken his matchless gem, and he’s punished my failure to yield to him and to assist his spite on you. Not only does he have a truce with you but he’s made a fool of you. I can assure you, I was no sacrifice to him.”
When Jana repeated the words overheard at Tirol’s, she knew she was getting to Ryker. “If you know your enemy at all, do you really believe Varian Saar would hand over his irresistible jewel to any male, especially an enemy?”
Suddenly, Ryker started to laugh. For a moment, he had forgotten this was only a farce. He had almost gotten caught up in the delusion and been swayed by her apparent honesty. Jana’s verity was enticing. Ryker regretted that he wouldn’t be allowed the opportunity to use Jana against Varian. He couldn’t help but wonder how Jana would react to the discoveries of Varian’s love, her freedom, her criminal abduction, and Varian’s death. Perhaps he would enlighten her before her eventual demise.
Ryker’s thoughts were interrupted by an emergency communications signal. He went into his office and closed the door. It was a coded message from one of his spies on Rigel. Fury surged through him to hear that Varian Saar had escaped death and was hospitalized under heavy guard. Bitterness gnawed at Ryker. Why did the gods continually show favor and mercy to Varian? Still, Ryker wasn’t worried, for there was nothing to connect him to Varian’s misfortune.
Ryker was relieved Canissia was under radio silence and couldn’t pick up a news flash about Varian’s trouble. There was no way the redhead could rush to Varian’s side before the chain reaction started in the fluid in the yellow bottle he had just given her. The wicked vixen and all clues leading to Jana Greyson would be destroyed within the hour. As soon as Varian regained his senses and discovered Jana’s loss, Ryker would be prepared for vengeance. With the help of two rare females, Varian would be defeated for all time. The evil chemist returned to Jana’s side and unfettered her hands and feet. He removed his blue laboratory coat and handed it to her. He smiled deceptively as he put his ruse into play. “That was a report from my investigator. You were right, Dr. Jana Greyson. I was allowing my hatred for Varian and the fact you came straight from his bed to color my opinion of you. This conflict between the two of us is getting old and wearisome. I don’t care to make peace with him; I only want him to stay out of my affairs. I think it’s about time we two stop entertaining the galaxy with our disputes. If accepting you as a token deludes him and accomplishes this desire, then let him think he’s pulled a clever trick.” He watched Jana slip into his knee-length coat.
“Besides, this isn’t any way to treat a fellow researcher, even if she is my property. Maybe I should explain something to you. My vile reputation isn’t totally accurate. I just never take the time to correct false impressions because they often work to my advantage. People fear me and leave me alone. You could say people like Cass and Varian bring out the devil in me. A wealthy, powerful single man is an object for gossip and wild tales, particularly when he has a running battle with the illustrious Varian Saar. Anyone who meets me and still believes such lies doesn’t deserve to be enlightened. Of course I did make a terrible impression on you, and doubtlessly Cass filled your head with awful stories about me. I was trying to terrify and embarrass you.”
Ryker sighed heavily and laughed genially. “I must admit, I do sometimes play out the role which fate seems determined to cast me in. It was wrong to take my enmity for another out on you. In a way, you’re his victim too. My spies tell me you were speaking the truth. Now I see why Varian had to get rid of you, and swiftly. For I have just learned that Tirol and Segall are making wedding plans for Canissia and Varian on his return from your galaxy. I suppose you know all about that sorry situation. I wonder why she didn’t tell us.”
Jana kept staring at the handsome male of six three with sandy blond hair and eyes the color of a lush jungle after a spring rain, eyes which displayed a hint of mystery. His face boasted strong, distinct features which she attributed to his royal heritage. He was too intelliigent to be so savage and misguided, for his apology hadn’t soothed her fears. The white scar which ran along his right jawline did not detract from his good looks; in fact, it gave him the look of a masterful and virile pirate. Jana tried to find Shara in his face and his personality. But those sparkling green eyes and enchanting smile prevented it. There was something about Ryker Triloni which tugged at her heart, something intangible which disarmed her. Considering her love for Varian and her present straits, such irrational magnetism distressed her.
Ryker observed the way she was looking at him and her failure to weep at his lies. “What do you say about starting our relationship anew? I’m Ryker Triloni, and I hope I’ll be delighted to meet you and have you living here.”
Jana couldn’t decide what Ryker was attempting; she dared not query him about his enemy or dispute his words. Didn’t Varian realize the danger he was placing her in by sending her here? She eyed his outstretched hand. “Is this a trick or joke?”
“No, little alien. You simply exude powerful magic and appeal. And I own you. That’s what I call a splendid birthday surprise, an unforgettable gift.”
Chapter Twenty
Under Kadim Trygue’s orders, Varian was kept heavily sedated for two days while doctors treated his injuries. Lacerations were sealed; cracked or broken bones were fused together. Scrapes and bruises were tended. Blood and antibiotics were infused, as were potent nutrients. For another two days, Varian was kept under lighter sedation as he was allowed time to recover his strength and to respond gradually to the successful treatments. With Maffei’s advanced medical knowledge, Varian could be healed in a week, except for a little weakness. Whenever he aroused enough to ask about Jana, the doctors would tell him everything was under control, that he was to rest and heal. Despite the narcotics, Varian sensed something was wrong, and he fought against sleep; despised the nightmares; he wanted to see Jana.
When Nigel and Tristan protested his sedation, Tirol forced them to reluctantly see his side. “My grandson was nearly killed out there. Another hour and he wouldn’t—You’re his best friends. You know what he’ll do the moment he’s awake! Go after Jana, regardless of his condition. We’re doing all we can to locate her. I can’t risk Varian’s life. Besides,” he added sadly, “if she were still alive, we would have heard or found a clue by now. There’s no sense telling Varian she’s lost to him, not in his present condition. Let him heal first. This will be as rough, or rougher, on him as Amaya’s and Galen’s deaths. Jana was such a ray of sunshine in his life. And mine. If only Brec could find her!”
Tirol
sank wearily into a chair. “The doctors agree it’s best to keep him sedated a while longer. That’s the only way they can hold him for treatments. During that first day here, he kept trying to fight them. From what he was shouting in his delirium, his two men were brutally slain before his eyes. While they were torturing Varian, they kept telling him they were keeping him alive until Jana arrived. They told him they were planning to torture and murder her in front of him. Wild animals—”
Nigel broke in. “What is Brec doing to locate her? We sent in the coordinates of Varian’s attack. If they’re supposed to take her there, let me go after her. I don’t give a damn if the planet Karlim is in Pyropean territory!”
“I wish it were that simple, Nigel. They were only taunting Varian about capturing Jana. No ships have headed that way since her abduction, although I personally contacted Jurad and accused him of kidnapping Jana and trying to murder my grandson. Jurad is a lot of things, Nigel, but I don’t believe he was personally involved in either episode. His troops immediately surrounded the area to search for clues. We assumed the villains would have fled after Varian’s escape, but when we found them they were all dead; some slow poison killed every one of them. None of them could be identified. There were no clues to Jana in the camp. Brec and Jurad don’t think they ever intended to take Jana there. Her kidnapping was coincidental. The gods have a cruel sense of humor these days.”
Tristan declared, “You know who’s responsible for Varian’s attack and those savage deaths. Ryker Triloni! I say we go see the bastard right now!” he shouted angrily.
“There are a few hitches, my friend. Ryker has an unquestionable alibi before, during, and after both incidents. He would be a fool to use poisonous chemicals which would point guilt directly at him and he’s no fool, Tris. Jurad and I think it’s a satanic plot to get rid of both Varian and Ryker.”
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