The Krinar Captive

by Anna Zaires

  “Emily…” Her captor’s dark gaze was inscrutable as he stopped next to her. “Don’t go there, angel. I can’t tell you what you want to know without violating the mandate.”

  Her heart lurched. “So you did do something?”

  “It’s not what you’re thinking.” He clasped her shoulders, stopping her from backing away. “What happened was a natural outcome of our coupling and nothing for you to be concerned about. You weren’t harmed in any way.”

  Emily’s pulse was pounding in her temples. Her dress was sleeveless, and his palms were strong and hot on her bare skin—as hot as the vague sensations that were all that was left of her memories. “Not harmed?” she said caustically, her body’s uncontrolled reaction to his touch adding to her anxiety. “Scrambling my brains to the point that I lose a day and a half doesn’t constitute harm in your book?”

  Zaron’s nostrils flared. “You enjoyed yourself during that time too.”

  “Did I? And how do I know that when I can’t remember?”

  “You can trust me,” he said, his eyes narrowing. “Or I can show you—and this time, you’ll remember everything.”

  “No, don’t.” Emily twisted out of his grasp and took a step back. Her breathing was fast and shallow, her claustrophobia intensifying with each moment. She needed to leave the confines of these walls before she lost her remaining shreds of sanity. “Please. You said you’d take me outside.”

  Comprehension filled his gaze. “Yes, of course. Come. We’ll go for a walk.”

  Wrapping his fingers around her wrist, he led her outside through a dissolving wall—a technological wonder that no longer fazed Emily. Actually, at this moment, a spaceship could’ve materialized in front of her, and she wouldn’t have blinked.

  All that mattered was getting outside.

  The moment Emily felt the warm breeze on her skin, the tight band around her throat began to loosen. Sucking in a lungful of fresh air, she closed her eyes and tilted her head back, letting the sun dance across her face. With Zaron holding her arm, she wasn’t free here any more than she was inside his cave, but it felt different.

  She felt different.

  “Better?” Zaron asked when she opened her eyes, and Emily nodded. The suffocating sensation was gone, and with it, some of her anger and fear. She was also thinking more clearly. If Zaron hadn’t lied about her memory loss being a “natural” result of their coupling, then she could see only one solution to the problem.

  They couldn’t have sex again.

  Zaron wouldn’t like that, but he’d have to accept it—at least until she found a way to return home.

  * * *

  By the time they’d been walking for several minutes, Emily’s stark pallor faded, the pinched look leaving her face. If Zaron had needed any further confirmation that she wasn’t faking her claustrophobia, he’d just gotten it.

  His captive/guest genuinely couldn’t tolerate being indoors for long.

  “Have you ever tried seeing a doctor about this?” Zaron asked when they entered a sunlit meadow. At their approach, a pair of Ateles geoffroyi—Costa Rican spider monkeys—darted away from a fallen log, scrambling up the tree trunks. Emily jumped, clearly startled, but then a wide smile broke across her face and she ran up to the trees to watch the monkeys jumping across the branches. Zaron followed, smiling at her unabashed enjoyment.

  “I love Costa Rica,” she said, turning back to face him when the monkeys were gone. “The nature here is absolutely fascinating.”

  “It is, isn’t it?” Zaron felt oddly pleased that she shared some of his interests. “Earth has some truly amazing creatures.”

  “Is that why you’re here?” Emily asked. “Because you’re interested in the Earth fauna?”

  His smile faded. “In part, yes.” He didn’t want to think about his main reason for coming to Earth, but it was too late. Images of Larita as he saw her last slid through his mind, bringing with them the sharp sting of grief. They’d argued the day before her departure over something stupid, like where they should vacation next year, but on the morning Larita was supposed to leave for her expedition, they’d made up. Only she’d been in a rush, and they’d had to settle for a quickie. It was one of Zaron’s greatest regrets: that he hadn’t woken up earlier that morning and held his mate longer, that he hadn’t tried to imprint every detail about her on his mind. It had only been eight years since Larita’s death, yet he sometimes found himself unable to recall the exact hue of her hazel eyes or the precise taste of her lips. With every day that passed, his mate slipped further away from him, and it hurt, even as he tried to run from the memories, to distance himself from everything that reminded him of what he’d lost.

  “Oh, I see,” Emily said quietly, and he realized she understood. Her turquoise gaze held sympathy and a certain gentle warmth. Maybe it was because she’d known loss too, but he didn’t mind this from her. He knew very few Krinar who’d lived through any kind of real tragedy. There was no disease in their society, no aging. No death outside of the Arena challenges and freak accidents like the one that had befallen Larita. To his friends, family, and colleagues, Zaron’s grief was something foreign, and they didn’t know how to cope with it, how to approach him after Larita’s death.

  But this human girl knew. She knew and sympathized, and with her, Zaron didn’t feel quite as alone.

  “There are some waterfalls nearby,” he said. “Would you like to see them?”

  Emily smiled. “Yes, that would be great.”

  They walked toward the falls without speaking, and there was something comforting in that also. Over the years, he and Larita had become comfortable enough to just be together, to enjoy each other’s company without needing to fill every moment with chatter. It was odd that he felt similarly comfortable with Emily after knowing her for only a few days, but he did. Something inside him seemed to simultaneously relax and come alive in her presence, as if he was waking up from a tense, unpleasant dream.

  “So have you ever sought help for your condition?” he asked again, recalling how tense she had been earlier. “Perhaps talked to any of your mind experts?”

  “Mind experts?” She gave him a quizzical look. “Oh, you mean therapists. No, not really. I have it under control for the most part—or at least I do when I can control when I go out.” She gave him a pointed look.

  It was a blatant attempt to guilt him, and it worked. Zaron didn’t like the idea that he was the cause of Emily’s discomfort, either physical or mental. This morning, when he’d seen the bruises his fingers had left on her pale skin, he’d felt like the worst kind of monster. Though he’d had sex with human women before, he’d never gotten carried away like that, had never lost control so completely. Emily was so delicate compared to him, so breakable, and he had hurt her. And now it appeared that by holding her captive, he was hurting her too, in a different way.

  Fifteen more days, he told himself, pushing away the guilt. He’d make sure she went outside regularly, so her phobia wouldn’t act up, and he’d do his best to be gentle with her. He could now admit to himself that Emily was right: the mandate was just an excuse to keep her a while longer. Neither the Elders nor the Council would care if humans learned of Krinar existence a few days early—not that any legitimate human newspaper would even print Emily’s story without extensive proof.

  Zaron was keeping her captive because he wanted her, and for no other reason. It was wrong of him, and selfish, but he didn’t care. For the first time in years, he felt a real connection to someone, and he couldn’t bear to let it slip away.

  Not yet, at least.

  Reaching over, Zaron took Emily’s hand, ignoring the puzzled glance she gave him. Her fingers were small and slender in his grasp, her skin soft and warm. Her hand was stiff at first, but as they continued walking, Emily relaxed and her fingers curled around his palm. It wasn’t much, but it was enough. It was what he needed at this moment: some kind of acknowledgement that she didn’t hate him, that the strange bond betwee
n them wasn’t one-sided.

  Before long, they were at the falls. It was another mountain stream that had become a river as a result of the recent rains. In this specific spot, the ground dropped away sharply, forming a cliff, and the turbulent water streamed down in two sizable waterfalls. Water spray filled the air, and in a few spots where sunlight penetrated the thick canopy of the trees, Zaron could see the light being refracted in a beautiful phenomenon known as the rainbow.

  “This is amazing,” Emily breathed as soon as the falls came into view. Pulling her hand out of his grasp, she ran up to the edge of the river and spun in a circle, laughing as the water droplets fell on her head and shoulders. The tiny blond hairs around her face curled from the moisture, creating a halo of sorts. With the light-colored dress she was wearing, she looked impossibly angelic—and so sexy Zaron’s body hardened in an instant.

  Closing the distance between them with a few long strides, he pulled her against his aroused body and bent his head, muffling her startled gasp with his lips. She tasted warm and sweet, her lips parting under the pressure of his kiss, and he swept his tongue into her mouth, needing more of her unique flavor. His hands slid down her back and gripped her buttocks, pulling her closer, and he felt her nipples harden against his chest as her body softened and melted in his hold.

  Then, abruptly, she was fighting him. Her body went stiff, her hands pushing at his shoulders as she tried to twist away. “Stop, please,” she gasped, and Zaron instantly released her, afraid he’d hurt her again. The need to possess her was overwhelming, but he was determined to keep the promise he’d made to himself.

  “What happened?” he asked, forcing himself to take a step back. Even to his own ears, his voice was rough, thick with desire. “Are you okay?”

  Emily nodded, her chest falling and rising with rapid breathing. “Yes, I’m just…” She took a couple of steps back, putting more distance between them. “Zaron, we can’t do this.”

  “What?” His eyebrows snapped together. “Why not?”

  “Because I don’t want to lose my mind,” she said, raising her chin. “I don’t know what happened yesterday, but if memory loss is a natural outcome of sex with you—”

  “It’s not.” Zaron drew in a deep breath. “It doesn’t have to be, at least. What happened yesterday doesn’t have to happen every time—or at all, if you don’t want it.” As much as he hated the idea of not being able to taste Emily’s blood again, he could abstain from it. It might even be a good idea, given the uncertain parameters of the addiction Ellet had warned him about. “We could just have regular sex, like at the lake yesterday,” he said. “You remember everything about that, right?”

  Emily blinked at him. “Yes, but—”

  “Then there’s no problem.” Zaron stepped toward her, and before she could come up with another objection, he lifted her against him and slanted his mouth across her lips.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  At dinner, Emily had to fight a blush every time she thought of their outing to the falls. As her captor had promised, she’d been fully aware of everything they’d done—and they’d done plenty. Even now, her sex felt swollen and her clit pulsed with the aftershocks of all the orgasms Zaron had given her. He’d taken her on the grass, up against a tree, and in the river beneath the waterfalls, with the chilly mountain current cooling off their overheated bodies. They’d been there for hours, and by the end, Emily had been so exhausted that Zaron had to carry her home.

  Now, after a nap, she was feeling much more refreshed, but she knew Zaron would want more sex soon. It was there in the way he was watching her, his dark eyes following every bite of food that traveled to her mouth, in the sexual tension that simmered in the air even as they discussed innocuous topics like recent movies—some of which Zaron had seen—and Emily’s cat George.

  “I adopted him from a shelter when he was a kitten,” she told Zaron as they were wrapping up the meal. “My friend Amber dragged me there when I first moved to the city. She wanted a puppy, and she convinced me to go with her. I was sure I didn’t want a pet—I work insane hours and can barely take care of myself—but there was George, and I fell in love.”

  “With the cat?” Zaron looked confused.

  Emily nodded. “He was a kitten at the time, but yes. He was just so sweet and little, and he cuddled up against me, purring… I’m guessing you guys don’t have cats?”

  “No. We don’t keep pets in general.”

  “Really? Why not?”

  Zaron shrugged. “It never occurred to us to domesticate animals. We like to observe them in their natural environments, not confined to our dwellings.”

  “I see. But you have no problem confining humans to your dwellings?” The moment the words came out of her mouth, Emily wanted to take them back, but it was too late. Zaron’s jaw tightened, adversarial tension replacing the companionable atmosphere that had prevailed throughout the meal.

  Rising to his feet in one sleek motion, he stepped around the floating table and reached down to pull Emily up off her seat. His hands were impossibly strong as he held her upper arms, his eyes pitch black. He was angry; she could sense it. Her breathing quickened, her pulse leaping with anxiety, but he just released her arms and stepped back.

  “Would you like to email your friend?” His voice was even. “The one who’s taking care of your cat?”

  “Oh.” Emily felt completely off-kilter. “Yes, of course.” She’d planned to ask Zaron about that later this evening—another reason why she’d regretted antagonizing him—but he was a step ahead of her. “Yes, please.”

  “Okay, then.” He murmured something in Krinar, and the wall opened to let another thin tablet float out. Zaron snatched it from mid-air and handed it to Emily. “Here you go. You can just say your message, and it will be sent to your friend via your Gmail.”

  Emily frowned, glancing down at the tablet before looking up at Zaron again. “But how do I know that it’ll go through? Are you saying that you have access to my email account?”

  “Of course.” Zaron’s gaze was unblinking. “You don’t think your passwords and firewalls can protect you from our technology, do you?”

  Emily’s stomach flipped. “No, I guess not.” Given what she’d seen so far, their computers had to be unimaginably advanced; hacking her email probably took Zaron less than a nanosecond. Hell, hacking the Pentagon would probably be child’s play for the Krinar. Then an even more disturbing thought occurred to her.

  Would any of Earth’s military defenses hold if the Krinar were coming with anything but the friendliest of intentions?

  “Zaron…” Emily’s voice shook a little. “You said your people are just coming to say hello, right? They don’t want anything else, do they?”

  His beautiful face turned expressionless. “Such as?”

  “I don’t know.” Now that the dark seeds of suspicion were in her mind, they were multiplying uncontrollably. “Resources? Land? Cheap labor? Whatever it is that people always want when they explore new places.”

  Zaron’s hesitation was so brief she would’ve missed it if she hadn’t been so attuned to him. “We don’t intend your people any harm,” he said, and Emily’s insides turned cold as she realized he hadn’t explicitly denied any of the possibilities she’d listed. Her imagination went wild, every alien invasion movie she’d ever seen flashing through her mind. Zaron had never really said why his people were coming, or rather, she hadn’t truly pried. Between learning about the Krinar and nonstop sex with her captor, she’d been too overwhelmed to think about the bigger picture. When Zaron had first told her his people were arriving soon, it hadn’t seemed illogical to her that the Krinar might want to introduce themselves to an intelligent species that looked exactly like them and that they’d supposedly created. Now that she was thinking about it, however, her unquestioning acceptance of his initial explanation seemed naïve.

  If all the Krinar wanted was to reveal their existence to the human race, they could’ve sent a mes
sage. They didn’t have to fly to Earth in person. In fact, something like an introductory video as a heads-up, followed by a visit from a small delegation—some of whom were maybe already on Earth, like Zaron—would’ve made more sense as a friendly overture. But Zaron had said “his people” were due to arrive. That sounded like it was more than a small delegation.

  It sounded like an invasion.

  No. She couldn’t jump to conclusions like that. Zaron had saved her life, and, temporary captivity aside, he hadn’t mistreated her. The least she could do was find out some more facts before assuming the worst.

  “How far is your home planet?” she asked, trying to sound casual. “You never really told me where Krina is.”

  Zaron’s expression didn’t change, but she could sense him relaxing subtly. “It’s far,” he said. “In a different galaxy, in fact. I could give you the exact coordinates, but they wouldn’t mean anything to you or any of your people.”

  Emily’s breath caught in wonder. “A different galaxy? How is that even possible? You must travel faster than the speed of light.”

  “We do. It’s not my area of expertise, but from what I understand, our ships’ warp drive creates an enormous energy bubble that essentially bends space-time. Distance is more or less irrelevant; going to a neighboring solar system takes us about as much time as coming to Earth.”

  “I see.” Their technology was even more advanced than she’d thought. Emily wondered if Zaron could hear the heavy thudding of her heart. He was stronger and faster than a normal man. Could his senses be more acute than a human’s, too? There was so much she didn’t know about Zaron and his people, and what she was discovering was far from reassuring. Striving to maintain her casual tone, she asked, “So how many of your people are coming to Earth this time?”

  “Why don’t you email your friend?” he said instead of answering. “I have some work to do tonight, and I want to make sure the email goes through without any issues.”