A muscle ticked along Rykaur’s jaw. “As I said, find someone else.”
It angered Rykaur for Braum to speak of Mary as if she were insignificant. Prostitute or not, she was still a person. A young, beautiful person, his mind whispered against his will.
“You are enamored of her,” Braum pointed out, a curious look on his face.
Zaureth rose to his full height and held up a hand for silence. “I agree with Rykaur. Mary should not be used by us as if her life matters not. There is more to the female than we know, and I think she has suffered enough.”
Rykaur slowly cranked his head in Zaureth’s direction. What had the healer discovered in Mary that would cause him to display such empathy for her? Rykaur didn’t know, but he was determined to find out.
Chapter Eight
Mary paced Rykaur’s apartment, fighting back the nausea that rolled through her gut. The small vial of poison seemed to burn a hole in her skirt pocket. Her palms grew sweaty, and breathing grew more difficult by the minute.
She wandered into Rykaur’s bedroom and ran her hand down the strange-looking blanket that covered his massive bed.
Taking a seat on the edge of the mattress, Mary dropped her head into her hands and fought back the tears that threatened.
She had to poison the Bracadytes.
A vision of Rykaur’s handsome face lit behind her eyes. How could she destroy something so magnificent?
It was either him or the children, she repeated to herself over and over. No matter how attracted she was to the Bracadyte, the children were her top priority.
“Why do you cry?”
Startled, Mary jerked her head up and met the emerald-green gaze of Rykaur.
She jumped to her feet. “I wasn’t crying.”
“I could feel your emotions before I stepped into the foyer. What has you in tears?”
Mary shrugged, feigning indifference. “I’m just tired, I guess.”
“You lie.”
It angered her that he could read her so well. “Fine. If you must know, I was just thinking about my parents.”
Though lying didn’t come easy for Mary, the untruth slipped from her lips with a quickness. The last thing she needed was Rykaur probing too deeply.
“What happened to your parents?”
Mary quickly thought up another tale, this one even bigger than the last. “They died of Incola.”
Pity resonated from Rykaur. “I am sorry.”
Growing more uncomfortable by the second, Mary glanced away. “I’d like to take a shower, but I noticed you don’t have one in your apartment.”
“We have a bath house,” Rykaur murmured. “Would you like for me to take you there?”
Mary nodded. Though a bath would feel wonderful right about now, she was more looking forward to the solitude it would bring.
Rykaur turned back to the kitchen and snatched up her bag. “Follow me.”
Mary trailed behind him to stay out of his line of sight. Not that it would matter much. He could obviously feel her emotions.
Her gaze landed on his muscular ass encased in those tight jeans she’d divested him of earlier that morning, and the memory of his extremely large manhood drifted through her mind.
A blush crept up her neck to burn in her cheeks. How could she think about his manly parts at a time like this?
Rykaur suddenly stopped, nearly causing her to run into his back.
He slowly turned to face her. “You desire me?”
Mary’s mouth dropped open in surprise. She’d known the Bracadytes could feel certain emotions, but desire?
Mortified that he could read her inappropriate feelings, Mary said the first thing that came to mind. “I was just remembering our romp on the floor of your tent this morning.”
It was Rykaur’s turn to join the uncomfortable circus. He spun around and strode down the hall without responding.
Mary would have laughed if she’d had an ounce of humor left inside her. She doubted she’d ever laugh again. At least not until the children were far away from Jefferies.
Rykaur suddenly stopped outside a large opening on the left and waved a hand for Mary to precede him.
Avoiding his gaze, she stepped through the opening and her breath caught. “Oh wow…”
A giant pool filled with crystal-clear water sat in the center of the room. Steam rose from its surface like the morning mist of a spring-fed lake, warm and inviting.
Stone shelves lined the opposite wall, housing fluffy, white towels and several bottles of different-colored liquids. Cakes of pale pink soap sat around the pool’s edges, permeating the air with strawberries.
Stone benches sat along the other wall, surrounded by the same swirling steam that drifted from the pool.
Mary inched forward, engrossed in her surroundings while Rykaur moved to the shelves to snag a few towels.
“I will wait out in the hall until you are finished.” He handed her the towels on his way to the doorway.
Mary waited until he disappeared from sight and then quickly stripped out of her clothes. She laid the towels on the side of the pool and stepped into the welcoming heat of the water.
Her eyes nearly rolled back in her head from pleasure.
She waded out a little deeper before dunking her head beneath the water’s surface and swimming to the built-in bench protruding from the sides.
Grabbing up a cake of the delicious-smelling soap, Mary lathered up, her mind continuously wandering to the overly large Bracadyte standing in the hall.
He had to be the most intimidating yet utterly gorgeous man she’d ever met. Only, he wasn’t a man at all. He was an alien. An alien that could read her emotions.
She blanked her mind and laid her head back on the edge of the pool.
The hot water lapping across her chest felt amazing to Mary’s exhausted body. And she was exhausted. She had been since the day she lost her parents and was tossed into foster care at the tender age of seven.
A vision of her beautiful mother seized Mary’s mind. It had been thirteen years since the fatal accident that claimed the lives of Mary’s parents. Thirteen years since she’d been placed with the Clarks. Thirteen years of mind-numbing abuse.
Mary’s eyes drifted shut. She just needed a minute to rest her mind, to quiet her torturous thoughts, and slow her racing heart.
Just one minute…
Chapter Nine
Rykaur paced the hall, listening for the slightest sound that Mary had finished her bath.
She’d been in there for half an hour, and Rykaur had grown beyond impatient. How long did it take the human females to bathe?
“I am coming in,” he called, hesitantly stepping through the opening.
Rykaur froze.
Mary sat on the bench along the side of the pool with her head laid back and her chest exposed to his view.
Rykaur’s gaze zeroed in on her rounded breasts, and his shaft grew erect with a quickness that floored him.
He could only stand there, mesmerized by the water lapping at her rosy nipples. The pink, hardened tips created a hunger he was powerless to resist.
She sighed then, mumbling something in her sleep.
Rykaur suddenly found himself hovering over her, unsure of how he’d gotten there. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered but tasting her, touching her.
He lowered to his knees behind her, his hands resting on the pool’s edge on either side of her face.
His head dipped without conscious thought, and he nuzzled her before softly closing his mouth over hers.
She softly moaned, her breath tickling his nose.
With the barest of pressure, Rykaur coasted his mouth lower and gently sucked on her bottom lip.
A feeling like nothing he’d ever experienced scattered through his insides with the first taste of her on his tongue.
It took him a second to realize she’d awakened, and another to grasp that she was kissing him back.
He lowered to his elbows and used his hands
to cup the sides of her face. Never in his deepest dreams would Rykaur have imagined anything as delicious as Mary. She tasted of sunlight and honey. Two of his favorite things.
“Wait,” Mary whispered, breaking off the kiss. “I can’t.”
Rykaur pulled back enough to see into her eyes. But no deception resided there, only regret. “You copulate with me this morning in my tent, drug me, and take what does not belong to you. Now you no longer want me? If it is payment that you want—”
“Rykaur?” Gryke called from the hall. “Come. We have company.”
Rykaur was on his feet in an instant. “Give me a moment. I will be right out.”
Rushing across the room, Rykaur snatched up Mary’s clothes, tossing her the pair of soft white cotton panties lying on top. “Get dressed at once. I will…”
His voice trailed off as a small vial of clear liquid spilled from the pocket of her skirt to bounce off his booted foot.
“Wait,” Mary breathed, clambering from the pool. She quickly pulled on her underwear and reached for a towel.
Rykaur picked up the vial and brought it to his nose, but the contents were odorless. “What is in this vial, Mary?”
Tears swam in her beautiful gray eyes. “Please, Rykaur. You must listen to me.”
He took a step back, keeping his gaze away from her tempting breasts. “It is poison, is it not?”
“I’m sorry, Rykaur. I had no choice. Please just hear me out.”
Disbelief took Rykaur’s breath, only to be replaced with fury. “Gryke!”
Gryke instantly came around the corner, his eyes growing round as he noticed a nearly naked Mary standing next to the pool, her arms crossed over her breasts. “What is she doing here?”
“I brought her here,” Rykaur growled, “not knowing that she meant us harm.”
Mary took a hesitant step forward, all the while attempting to cover her breasts. “I can expl—”
“Silence!” Rykaur roared. Turning toward Gryke, he held up the vial he’d found in Mary’s skirt pocket. “She intended to poison us.”
“Jefferies,” Gryke snarled, swinging his gaze back to Mary. “She was sent by Jefferies.”
Snatching up a towel, Gryke threw it at Mary before seizing her upper arm.
Mary barely had time to cover herself before Gryke practically dragged her from the room.
Rykaur followed them into the hallway. “I will take this to the lab for Abbie to examine and then meet you at the great hall. Who has come here uninvited, and how many?”
“The Arkadians.” Gryke gave Mary a slight shove toward the belly of Aukrabah. “And their number is six.”
Nodding to Gryke, Rykaur shifted his furious gaze to Mary and then jogged off toward the great hall to retrieve an ATV. How could I have been so blind? All the signs were there, had I bothered to look. I brought a prostitute, a thief, and a land walker to Aukrabah.
The ATV’s came into view a few minutes later, and Rykaur climbed onto the one closest to him. He started it up and turned in the direction of the lab.
It took less than five minutes to reach the lab on the human’s machine, and for that, Rykaur was grateful. If he’d had to walk, it would have taken him closer to fifteen.
“What’s going on?” Abbie stood in the doorway, appearing pale and confused. “Hauke connected with me about thirty minutes ago to tell me that visitors had arrived and were in the great hall. When I questioned him about it, he said he’d fill me in as soon as he could.”
Rykaur dismounted and strode past Abbie into the lab.
She quickly followed. “Well?”
“The visitors are from Arkadia. But they are the least of our worries at the moment.”
Growing paler by the second, Abbie crossed her arms over her chest in a protective stance. “Tell me.”
He held up the vial he’d found in Mary’s skirt pocket. “I need you to test this. But handle it with care. I am fairly certain its contents are deadly.”
“Deadly?” Abbie breathed, snagging a pair of gloves from her pocket and pulling them on.
She reached for it. “Where did you get this?”
Rykaur explained everything. From how he’d first met Mary, to how he’d come to have the vial in his possession. “Gryke has taken Mary to the dungeon. I will deal with her after I discover the reason for the Arkadians’ visit.”
“I don’t understand why you would bring a thief into Aukrabah, Rykaur. Especially after she’d drugged you and robbed you as well.”
A fresh round of shame filled Rykaur. After Kaura’s betrayal all those years ago, he’d sworn never to trust another female. Yet, something about the human prostitute had made him want to trust her. “I do not know what came over me. I only knew that I could not leave her there in pain after what I had done to her. I have never struck a female before.”
“Are you sure that you’re the cause of her injuries? You were drugged, Rykaur. Her pimp could have beaten her. She may have blamed you out of fear.”
Rykaur shook his head. “She does not have a pimp.”
“How do you know that?”
“She told me when she returned the jewels to me.”
“And you believed her?” Abbie asked incredulously.
Too embarrassed to admit his naiveté, Rykaur moved to leave. He stopped at the doorway and peered at Abbie over his shoulder. “I will send a few extra warriors down here to watch over you until Hauke returns.”
“I have three in here now,” Abbie argued. “Do you really think it’s necessary to pull more away from their duties? We have the entrances covered at both ends.”
Rykaur stared back at Hauke’s mate without blinking. “I do not believe that Mary brought that vial down of her own volition. Someone else is behind it. And until I know for sure who that is, I will not trust your safety to only three warriors.”
“Fair enough.” Abbie sent him a soft smile. “Thank you, Rykaur. I’ll let you know as soon as I figure out what this is.”
He simply nodded, mounted the ATV, and turned in the direction of the great hall.
Chapter Ten
Mary’s heart pounded in fear as the one named Gryke dragged her deeper and deeper into the belly of Aukrabah.
The walls seemed to close in on her, and the air grew thicker by the minute. “Where are you taking me?”
He didn’t answer, merely tugged her forward, forcing her to jog to keep up with him.
The giant Bracadyte stopped in front of a narrow doorway and took a step downward, pulling her along with him.
Mary dug in her heels. “I-I can’t go down there. Please, if you’re going to kill me, just do it now.”
The corridor ahead appeared damp and dim as if only a low-watt bulb had been used to light the entire area. It smelled of mildew, which told Mary one thing: water trickled in from somewhere.
Her fear turned to terror as Gryke spun around, bent, and threw her over his shoulder.
Mary didn’t care if her towel slipped off, or if the entire Bracadyte race witnessed her barely covered ass in the air. No, she was focused on one thing and one thing alone…the darkened prison cells she’d seen in the distance.
“I can’t be locked in there!” she cried, her fists pummeling the giant’s back. “You don’t understand!”
A deep voice rang out up ahead. “Gryke. I was not made aware of a prisoner being brought down this evening.”
“We were not expecting to bring you one, Maulkryth. But here she is.” Gryke dumped Mary unceremoniously at the other Bracadyte’s feet.
Mary’s towel slipped, and her hands flew up to cover her breasts.
“A human?” Maulkryth’s eyebrows shot up, and interest entered his emerald-green eyes.
Maulkryth reached down and jerked her to her feet. “What is she down here for, and what am I to do with her?”
“Attempted murder. And do with her as you would anyone else accused of such a crime.” Gryke turned to go.
“Wait!” Mary cried, reaching for Gryke’s han
d. “I’m begging you. Please don’t leave me down here!”
The smallest spark of sympathy flickered in Gryke’s eyes before he quickly stepped out of reach and strode from the room without looking back.
Gripping her around the waist, Maulkryth lifted Mary off her feet and carried her kicking and screaming into the smallest, darkest cell on the end.
Tears spilled from Mary’s eyes. And not from fear of what Maulkryth would do to her as much as what Jefferies would do to the children.
Panic choked her, coursing through her veins like the poisonous cyanide in the vial she’d brought into Aukrabah.
Maulkryth yanked the cell door open and slammed Mary’s body against a thick wooden cross standing in its center. The breath whooshed from her lungs on impact.
Mary tried to steady herself, but her feet didn’t touch the floor.
Pain traveled up her arm as the guard cuffed her left wrist to the horizontal beam before securing the right one as well.
“Please don’t do this,” Mary begged, not caring how she sounded. “He’ll hurt the children!”
Maulkryth ignored her pleas. “I see that you have been beaten before. Mayhap you have been found guilty of a similar crime from the land walkers.”
“You have to listen to me,” Mary gasped through the pain of hanging by her wrists. “If I don’t return to the surface soon, that monster will begin killing the children.”
The sting of a lash across her back wrung a cry from Mary’s throat. It arced across her shoulder to tear the skin at her collarbone.
Another lash landed closely behind, packing just as much force as the first one.
Mary clenched her teeth together to keep from crying out, the way she’d learned to do as a child when her foster father would beat her.
On and on, the lashing went until Mary’s vision blurred and her head dropped forward into blessed darkness.
* * * *
Voices. The murmuring of voices brought Mary out of her pain-induced sleep.
Agony ripped through her anew. Like the sting of a thousand bees, a throbbing, burning sensation seared her tender back. Her wrists had gone numb, leaving her shoulders to carry the brunt of their torment.
Rykaur: A SciFi Alien Romance (Enigma Series Book 8) Page 4