Zyen: Science Fiction Romance (Enigma Series Book 10)

by Ditter Kellen

  Zyen didn’t want to change the subject. He wanted to know what her grandparents, her flesh and blood had done to her. But, instead, he said, “my parents reside in Arkadia, along with my siblings.”

  Carmen turned from the stove and brought a plate piled higher than the first, with two pieces of delicious smelling bread resting along the side. “I didn’t know you had brothers and sisters.”

  “I have two brothers and one sister.”

  “And your parents?” She returned to her seat and picked up her fork.

  Zyen nodded his thanks. “They dwell in Arkadia with my siblings.”

  “Aren’t they upset that you left the way you did?”

  The thought of his family brought a certain sadness to Zyen’s heart. He quickly brushed it off. “We all have to make certain choices in life. Some of those choices will lead us down a different path, while other decisions will be a hard lesson learned.”

  “I know what you mean,” Carmen quietly replied. “I’ve made some pretty bad choices in my life. And if I had to do it over…”

  Zyen watched her closely. “You would have done things differently?”

  Shaking her head, Carmen responded. “I don’t see how I could have made different choices, but I would have been more careful about them.”

  It didn’t take a genius to know she referred to something she wished to take back. Zyen only hoped she would elaborate. She didn’t…of course.

  Chapter Ten

  Carmen flicked a glance at Zyen’s watchful gaze. She knew he was more than curious about her past, she just didn’t know why. “Why is my past so important to you?”

  He didn’t blink. “Because I can feel your pain when you speak of it. It is obvious that something bad has happened to you, only, I cannot imagine what.”

  “Sometimes, talking about the past can dredge up memories one would like to forget.”

  Zyen shifted in his seat. “Are those memories the reason for your panic attacks?”

  “They are,” Carmen whispered, snatching up her glass of tea. She took a long swallow. “I don’t want to talk about me. Tell me more about you. Why do you hate humans so much?”

  Carmen couldn’t take her gaze from Zyen’s massive form. The balls of his shoulders were twice the size of her head. He looked like something out of a science fiction movie with his glittering, amber-colored eyes, and snow-white hair. And then he smiled…and all thought fled.

  “Are you worried that I will eat you?”

  A smiling Zyen was a beautiful Zyen.

  She jerked her gaze back to his. “I’m sorry, what?”

  “Have you never heard of Jack and the Beanstalk? It was a story that Oz mentioned to me back in Aukrabah.”

  Carmen found herself grinning also, understanding his meaning. “Of course I’ve heard of it. It is rather fitting.”

  “Tell it to me.”

  Surprised by his words, Carmen raised an eyebrow. “Pardon?”

  “I want to know this story of Jack and the Beanstalk.”

  It took all Carmen could do not to laugh. Funny that she felt at ease in the Arkadian’s presence. For some reason, she believed that he wouldn’t harm her. She wasn’t sure how she knew that, she only knew that she did.

  The next twenty minutes sped by with her reciting the old nursery rhyme while Zyen finished his second and then third plate of spaghetti. He listened with rapt attention, only interrupting once to ask why the giant preferred to eat Jack instead of the goose that laid the golden eggs.

  “That’s a good question,” Carmen admitted. “I suppose he needed the goose to be sure he had plenty of gold.”

  Zyen stood and placed his plate in the sink. Carmen couldn’t help but think of how much bigger he was than a normal man.

  “Bracadytes do not eat their own.”

  His statement caught her off guard. “Neither do humans. Well, that’s not entirely true. I have heard about some tribes in the far reaches of the earth that are cannibals, but it’s certainly not the norm.”

  He turned from the sink, his eyes wide in shock. “How is it that your government allows its people to consume one another?”

  “It’s not that simple.” Carmen stood and trailed toward the living room. “There is no government in those places. And I don’t even know if cannibals still exist.”

  Zyen followed her into the front room, ducking his head as he passed through the archway.

  Carmen waited until he sat on the couch before taking a seat in the chair across from him. “Tell me about Arkadia.”

  She wasn’t sure what prompted her to ask the question. She only knew that she wasn’t ready for him to leave.

  He leaned forward with his elbows resting on his knees. His hands were big enough to crush her head like a grape. “Unlike Aukrabah, Arkadia is nestled in a group of caves.”

  Carmen held up a hand when he would have continued. “A group of caves? You mean, you all don’t live together?”

  The corner of Zyen’s mouth lifted. “Some do, but most families are separated by blood lines.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  Zyen glanced off to the side, as if contemplating his next words before returning his gaze to her. “As with humans, Bracadytes have families also; relations such as a father’s brother or sister and their offspring.”

  “Aunts and Uncles,” Carmen offered, fascinated by the deep timber of his voice.

  Zyen nodded. “Yes. Although they are not referred to as such.”

  He paused for a moment. “Most of the caves are connected on some level, but not all are. Our waters are much cooler than the waters in the south, and our bath houses are divided up to separate the males from the females.”

  Carmen pulled her legs up onto the chair and tucked them beneath her. “Aukrabah should do that as well. Taking a bath there made me nervous.”

  “Aukrabah’s numbers are small compared to Arkadia,” Zyen explained. “I believe there are other hot springs in Aukrabah that are not in use. Perhaps, as their numbers continue to grow, they will implement them into their daily routine. I am also told that Brant has designed individual baths for some of the dwellings.”

  Carmen thought about that for a moment. “I heard about that, too. I think that’s a wonderful idea.”

  “As do I. Especially for the mated couples. Bracadyte males are very protective where their mates are concerned.”

  Clearing her throat, Carmen asked, “Have you ever been mated?” Why the hell did I ask that?

  “I would not be here now if I were mated.”

  His response caused her breath to catch. She hadn’t expected him to be so blunt. Did that mean he was there out of interest in her, or was he merely being courteous? She didn’t know, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to.

  Suddenly nervous again, Carmen blurted, “How old are you?”

  “I am eleven thousand six hundred and ninety moon’s old.”

  Carmen’s eyebrows shot up. “Holy shit, how do you remember your years in days? And what is that in years?”

  “Thirty-two years,” he amended. “And you?”

  “I’m twenty-one.”

  Zyen seemed to digest that piece of information. “How long have you worked for Oz?”

  An explosion suddenly rocked the cabin, sending Carmen’s heart into her throat. She opened her mouth to scream, only to gasp as Zyen’s huge arms came around her in a grip that took her breath. Strange, she hadn’t seen him leave the couch.

  Voices rent the air outside, raised in anger and confusion. Carmen couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe in the cradle of Zyen’s embrace.

  He eased his hold, backing up enough to gaze into her eyes. “Are you injured?”

  Carmen shook her head, terror rising up to replace her shock. Something had happened in the woods behind her cabin. Were they under attack?

  Zyen quickly straightened and bolted for the door, growling over his shoulder as he ran, “Lock this door behind me, and do not come out for any reason until I return to you!�
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  A shudder ran through Carmen’s body, followed by uncontrollable tremors.

  She jumped from the chair and hurried to the door. Her fingers shook so bad, it took her three tries to engage the lock.

  Gunfire erupted from nearby, terrifying and deafening. Carmen ran into the bathroom and practically dove into her tub. She closed the shower curtain, covered her ears with her hands, and squeezed her eyes tightly shut.

  A loud sound came from the living room, and Carmen realized that the front door had been kicked in. She huddled in the tub, hoping against hope that Zyen had come back for her. All the while, the sounds of rapid gunfire grew closer.

  “Get up,” a voice snarled, yanking the shower curtain back.

  Carmen’s eyes flew open in time to see a large man standing above her with his weapon aimed at her head.

  “One sound and I’ll blow your brains all over your pretty pink bathroom.”

  “Please…”

  The butt of his weapon, slammed against her temple, sending white hot pain exploding inside her head. A single word whispered through her mind as her world turned black.

  Zyen…

  Chapter Eleven

  Zyen pressed his back against a tree, grateful for the cover of darkness. He scanned his surroundings, feeling more than seeing Pyre’s presence.

  “What has happened,” he mentally sent to Pyre, hoping that the other Arkadian had some answers.

  “I do not know. Gryke and Fiona ran off to the west in an attempt to come up behind them. Brant and Oz have taken a path east. Syrina was ordered to stay behind and protect Maria. They are locked securely in Oz’s basement. Do you have a weapon?”

  “I do not,” Zyen sent back, hating himself for allowing this to happen. He’d been so caught up in the tiny human, Carmen, he’d let his guard down.

  Pyre’s next words were a relief to Zyen’s enraged mind. “I am heading to you with weapons.”

  Zyen opened his mind, silently drawing Pyre to his current location.

  Moments later, Pyre jogged up, taking cover behind the tree closest to Zyen. He tossed Zyen a handgun, before ducking back behind the safety of his own tree.

  “I sense three land walkers, approximately thirty yards behind us,” Zyen growled to Pyre through their link. “I will break left and you go right. We have the advantage of the darkness.”

  Zyen didn’t wait for Pyre’s response. He knew the other male would know exactly what to do.

  Taking a determined breath, Zyen’s protective lenses slid into place, bringing to light the heat of his surroundings. He could see Pyre’s form crouching low behind the tree to his left.

  Zyen ducked low and ran in a wide arc, knowing that Pyre would mimic his movements.

  The warm glow of human bodies came into view shortly thereafter, spread apart throughout the distant trees.

  Taking aim, Zyen pulled the trigger, watching in satisfaction as the first man fell.

  Another shot rang out from Pyre’s weapon, taking out another land walker. The third body turned and fled, leaving his back wide open for Zyen’s next shot. Only, he didn’t take it.

  “Do not kill him,” Zyen sent to Pyre, a second before he shot forward and ran the fleeing man down.

  Zyen’s much larger body slammed into the man from behind, knocking him off his feet with a force that should have broken the human’s back.

  The man moaned beneath Zyen, indicating that he remained awake.

  Rolling to his feet, Zyen jerked the man up from the ground by the back of his shirt, clocked him on the chin, and tossed his unconscious form over his shoulder.

  Pyre appeared next to him. “Where are you taking him?”

  “Back to the bungalow to get some answers.”

  Flanking his side, Pyre strode along next to him, his weapon at the ready.

  More gunfire erupted to the west, telling Zyen that Gryke and Fiona were engaged with more hostiles. “Go help the others.”

  Pyre simply nodded, spun on his heels and disappeared through the trees.

  Zyen continued on, carrying the unconscious land walker toward the row of bungalows up ahead.

  Once he reached Carmen’s cabin, he glanced toward her porch and his heart stopped. Her door had been breached.

  With a roar of denial, Zyen leapt onto her porch, ducked his head and rushed inside. “Carmen!”

  Silence. He could smell her fear still lingering in the room, along with a scent he didn’t recognize.

  Dropping the unconscious man to the couch, Zyen lowered to his knees next to him and sank his fangs into the human’s neck.

  Images took shape behind Zyen’s eyes. A land walker known as Kerik dressed all in black, sat at the head of a table barking out orders to bring in the wife of Nicho Ozele. The plan was to hold Maria hostage, forcing Oz to give him Klause, king of the Bracadytes.

  More of the unconscious human’s memories slithered through Zyen’s psyche in a myriad of colors and emotions that were difficult to piece together. Still, Zyen took from him.

  One thing Zyen could be sure of, the man known as Kerik was definitely not the Kerik that had been on the beach the day Howell had been destroyed. No, Zyen had watched Kaspyn cave that Kerik’s forehead in.

  His offspring, perhaps? Zyen wondered, sifting through the different faces and voices.

  With a growl of frustration, Zyen retracted his fangs from the man’s throat. He gripped the cowardly human by the head and gave a short, quick jerk, snapping his neck like a twig.

  Jumping to his feet, he burst outside to find Gryke and Fiona jogging toward him. “Pyre said you took one alive.”

  Zyen met Gryke’s distrusting gaze. “He no longer lives.”

  Gryke bared his teeth and took a step toward Zyen, but Fiona’s hand on his arm stopped him.

  She stared up into Zyen’s face. “What did you find out?”

  Zyen liked the human female. She seemed to have more diplomatic skills than her mate. “They have Carmen.”

  “What?” Fiona ground out, anger flashing in her eyes. “Who are they, and what do they want?”

  Descending the steps of Carmen’s cabin, Zyen came to a stop before Gryke and Fiona. “I saw into the human male’s memories. His orders came from a man known as Kerik. I would recognize his face if I saw it.”

  Fiona appeared confused. “But Kerik is dead.”

  “This man was much too young to be the Kerik you speak of. I believe it to be his offspring.”

  Oz suddenly rounded the corner with Brant and Pyre on either side of him. “Is everyone okay?”

  Zyen shook his head. “They have taken Carmen.”

  “Son of a bitch!” Oz swore, running a hand through his hair.

  Zyen held Oz’s gaze. “Carmen was not their intended target. It was your mate they came for.”

  The color drained from Oz’s face. “Maria?”

  Fiona stepped up and filled Oz in on everything Zyen had divulged. Ending with, “it has to be Gerald Kerik’s son or some other relation to him.”

  “But why Maria and not me, or one of you?” Oz bit out. “She has nothing to do with what happened to Kerik.”

  Zyen interjected. “From what I have gathered, Kerik wants Klause. He knew that you would die before giving up the king of Aukrabah. Which is why he took your mate. She is his only guarantee that you will do as he wants.”

  Moving away, Zyen stepped around Gryke and Fiona and strode off toward his bungalow.

  “Where are you going?” Fiona called out.

  Zyen slowed but didn’t stop. “To get Carmen back.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Carmen’s head felt as if it had been runover by a truck. A very large truck.

  She moaned from the pain throbbing in her skull and slowly cracked her eyes open.

  Bright lights assailed her, forcing her to squint against the invasion.

  She attempted to move, only to realize her hands were bound behind her and her shoulders ached worse than her head if that were possible.
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br />   “You’re awake,” a masculine voice murmured from somewhere nearby.

  Carmen twisted her head in the direction of the voice to find a man sitting in a chair, his booted foot crossed over his knee and smoking a cigarette.

  “Where am I?” she wheezed around a throat gone dry.

  The man exhaled, squinting against the smoke from the cigarette he held near his lips. “Tell me your name.”

  “Carmen,” she rasped, her heart beginning to pound painfully in her chest. She could feel the panic creeping up on her. “Please untie me.”

  Her voice grew louder with every plea that left her lips.

  “Shhhhh,” he responded, taking a hit from his cigarette. “I don’t want to have to gag you…not when I need information. But I will if it becomes necessary.”

  Carmen’s teeth began to chatter. “I won’t s-scream. I swear. You just have to untie me. I can’t be tied up. I j-just can’t.”

  The tightening in her chest began to overwhelm her, making breathing nearly impossible. She was going to die, she could feel it in her bones.

  The room grew smaller with every passing second that Carmen remained bound, until she began to hyperventilate.

  “What the hell’s wrong with you?” the man in the chair demanded, surging to his feet. His face moved in and out of her vision, until Carmen gave up the fight, releasing the terrified scream that had been trapped in her throat.

  His fist slammed against her chin, sending her back in blessed darkness once again.

  * * * *

  Voices murmuring in the distance pulled Carmen back from the abyss. She fought against it, attempted to shut it out, to no avail.

  She didn’t want to wake up. Something lingered in the back of her mind, a mental warning of sorts that forced her eyes to remain shut.

  And then she felt the gag in her mouth. It was tied behind her head to pull painfully at her hair. Her tongue was dry, and she found it impossible to swallow. Memory came rushing back.

  “How could you grab the wrong one, you idiot? She’s not Maria!”

  “I tried the Cuban’s house, there was no one there. She was the only one I found that resembled your description.”