Green, Sharon - Mind Guest.htm

by Mind Guest

  stop struggling even as feebly as I'd been doing. he raised the wooden

  spoon sticking out of the bowl and put it to my lips, and with a vast

  amount of reluctance but absolutely no hesitation, I swallowed every

  drop. I'd get him for what he'd done to me that day-but some other

  time.

  Chapter 9

  That first meal didn't last as long as Fallan thought it would. I

  continued swallowing until half of the soupy, watery gruel was gone,

  and then, between one spoonful and the next, I was gone. I either fell

  asleep or passed out, but I didn't know I had until I woke up again. By

  that time it was well into the night, but Fallan was still awake and

  waiting for me with a present. The fever was still faintly with me, so

  it was battery acid time again. I really wanted to tell him what to do

  with that swill, but all I did was take it and drink it down. For some

  reason I felt-intimidated by Fallan, but that had to be because of the

  weakness that continued to hold me. Once I was back to my old self, I'd

  find some way to get even with him.

  The next day I felt considerably better, but even with the fever gone,

  Fallan refused to let me out of bed. In the afternoon he changed the

  bandage on my ribs after reapplying the jelly like glop to the

  rawlooking wound, but what pain I felt during the process had nothing to do with Clero's handiwork. Bellna was back to actively panting after

  Fallan, and what her yen did to me with the mercenary Captain so close

  to my naked body is best left undescribed. If he had finished the

  bandaging and then had dropped his pants and raped me, Bellna would

  have been in soft-headed heaven. Fortunately or unfortunately, he did

  nothing of the kind. He finished the bandaging, put the nightshirt back

  on me, and then left without a word. I spent the next couple of hours

  twisting around in the bed, wishing to hell that planet had cold

  showers.

  Just at darkness Fallan brought me the meal he'd cooked, and after I

  ate it he took the plates away and blew out the lamp. I was annoyed as

  all hell that he didn't even give me a chance to discuss the matter,

  but after only a few minutes of bad-tempered tossing I fell asleep. Not

  much time could have gone by before I was awakened by the sound of soft

  voices from the next room, and at first I was more sleepy than curious.

  After a couple of minutes of hearing the voices, curious got the better

  of sleepy, so I eased out of bed and moved silently to the door.

  Opening it lust as silently was not as easy, but after another minute I

  had it done. I had a nice, wide three-inch opening to look through, and

  what I saw made me feel like a peeping Tom. Fallan was entertaining,

  and he and his lady friend were lying on a comfortable looking pile of

  blankets in front of the fire. Neither of them were wearing anything,

  and whereas I couldn't help but be impressed by how well-endowed Fallan

  was, his companion seemed more nervous than eager. She lay there

  trembling, just short of flinching, and when Fallan began to reach out

  a hand to her, she screwed her eyes shut and clenched her teeth and

  fists.

  "Believe me, girl, I shall bring you no hurt," Fallan whispered, but he

  sounded as if he'd said the same thing a dozen times before and the

  girl still wasn't believing. he shook his head with very faint

  annoyance, then began working on her as if he were also trying to work

  himself up. Someone would have had to have been blind to miss how ready

  he was, but he took his time with the girl as if she were the only one

  who mattered. It didn't take all that along before he reached her, but

  he kept at it until she was not only aroused but as eager as he was.

  She lifted herself to him when he moved over her, her moans low but

  intense, and when he took her in his arms and entered her she welcomed

  him with her entire self. After that she made nothing but sounds of

  pleasure, and I closed the door on their enjoyment feeling more

  confused than I had in a long while. I'd had a good deal of personal if

  not intimate contact with tbe men of that world, but none of them had

  acted the way Fallan did-either in bed or out. And mercenaries were

  supposed to be worse than the general, run-of-the-mill population. If

  that was so, then why-Suddenly all thoughts were driven out of my head

  by the screaming that filled it, the screaming produced by Bellna. I'd

  forgotten all about my unwelcome guest again, but she hadn't missed

  paying close attention to what was going on in the other room. She

  hadn't been quiet while watching she'd been speechless, and now her

  rage was filling me the way spring storms fill an arroyo. When Fallan

  had chosen the black-haired slave over me in the slave market Bellna

  had excused away his rejection, but she was totally beyond looking for

  excuses now. She hated him for not taking her when. she wanted him so

  badly, and she hated him even more for bringing another woman to his

  blankets when she was just in the next room. I climbed back into bed

  fairly resonating with her fury, but there was nothing I could do to

  stop it. The little girl in my head was feeling betrayed and vengeful,

  and I'd just have to wait until she got over it. I did wait, but I had the makings of a really good headache before the frozen, still-offended

  silence finally descended. If not for that hovering headache I would

  have gone back to my own thinking, but the threat was there and I was

  also tired. When the' peace and quiet came I closed my eyes, and before

  the noise could start again I was asleep.

  When Fallan woke me in the morning, the first thing I remembered was

  how much I hated him. He was in a great mood, undoubtedly due to the

  fun and games of the previous night, and that made me hate him even

  more. He'd dared to punish me and humiliate me, and then he'd given me

  the ultimate insult. I'd never forget, not any of it, and the first

  chance I got I'd fix him good.

  Fallan took a nap later that day, and' I spent the time exercising

  hard. My strength was quickly coming back and the stiffness was leaving

  me, and as soon as I could I'd be out of there and on my way to where I

  had to go. I hated it there with Fallan as much as I hated him, and I

  had to get out of there before I went crazy. He continued to insist

  that I stay in bed, and even went so far as to start toward me when I

  told him that I didn't want to. I jumped down under the blanket and

  pulled it over my head, and after a few minutes when I took the blanket

  away he was gone. I was furious then at the way he'd bluffed me, making

  me think he was going to spank 'me again and after that I worked even

  harder to get back into shape.

  It was late in the afternoon of the third day after that when Fallan

  left the house. I didn't know where he was going, but I waited a minute

  after I heard the door close, then hurried to the window of my room.

  Fallan was walking away from our house farther into the village, and it

  didn't much matter where he was going. He would surely be gone long

  enough for me to get dressed and get out of there and that was all that

 
did matter.

  I went to the wardrobe and opened it wide, hearing the loud screech of

  protesting parts that had kept me away from it sooner, and was pleased

  to see my clothes draped over wooden pegs. They were really a mess,

  filthy, mud-covered and stiff with dried blood, but they had the

  benefit of being much less conspicuous than a nightshirt. I pulled them

  off their pegs and bent to the bottom of the wardrobe to look for my

  boots-and stopped still just to stare for a minute. On the floor of the

  wardrobe, just behind my boots and almost invisible, lay the sword I'd

  found so much use for, sheath and all. I'd never expected to see it

  again, and I suddenly remembered that I hadn't cleaned it properly. I

  stared for another moment, then abruptly pulled out the boots and sword

  and carried all I'd found to the bed so I could dress.

  With my boots tied and the sword belted around my middle, I left the

  bedroom to do a little exploring. The other room of the house turned

  out to be surprisingly neat over the layers of ancient dirt and use.

  Aside from the hearth and fire, there was a plain wooden table and four

  straight-backed chairs, a couple of familiar blankets spread on the

  floor not far from the fire, and a paired set of leather pouches near

  the blankets. A piece of bright red stuck out from the top of one of

  the pouches, showing what had happened to Fallan's uniform shirt. It

  wasn't far from being full dark out, and I intended using the' door to

  the outside, but not as quickly as I'd first thought. Finding my sword

  had changed things, and I would have some words with Fallan before I

  left. The thought added pleasure to the sudden golden haze around me,

  and I smiled as I went back into the bedroom, closed the door, and sat

  down on the bed to wait.

  Fallan took his time getting back, but eventually I heard the sound of

  the front door opening. I sat upon the bed then got to my feet, and the small wall lamp let me reach the door before my shadow. I grasped the

  doorknob firmly, intending to yank it open but it refused to move! The

  door that had opened so easily just a short time earlier now felt

  nailed shut, but it wasn't stuck. I used two hands on the knob, trying

  to rattle it, trying to shake the door in its frame, but nothing moved.

  It was like trying to rattle or shake a tree, and in fury I raised my

  fist to bang on the door-then stopped short of hitting it as a cold

  thought came to me. That was a Paldovar Village, a place where no one

  could harm anyone else. What would the Paldovar do if I continued to

  try reaching Fallan? The golden haze had thinned to flickering around

  me, and I wanted to get to Fallan so badly I could feel it as a hunger,

  but I was in no position to play deep games with the natives of that

  village. It was hard leaving Fallan to the arrogance of his ways, but

  it was better than getting more deeply involved in a place well left

  far behind me. As I moved to the window and threw it open, I almost had

  myself believing that.

  The night was cool but without wind, and I took my time saddling my

  vair, hoping I might be discovered. It was a small surprise that my

  vair stood right next to Fallan's in the lean-to, but he must have

  found it near the inn after finding me -inside the inn. My vair snorted

  softly as I mounted, and I looked at the small house one last time

  before riding away toward the south. I knew there was a reason why I

  had to ride south, but it took a minute before I remembered it. Pickup,

  I was riding to pick-up, and after. I made pick-up I could relax.

  I rode through the woods all night, changing the vair's pace now and

  then to give us both a rest, and made sure to stay away from any bodies

  of water. The night was relaxed and quiet, and I rode on in the middle

  of chirping and occasional roars, bathed by the light of the larger

  moon. Dameron's hidey-hole was floating above me again, and sight of it

  forced me to ask the question I'd been avoiding so long. I was alone

  and heading south and had been doing it for hours; why the hell hadn't

  a scout ship come for me?

  Dawn was already streaking the sky with gorgeous colors when I finally

  decided to stop for a rest. I was no more tired than I expected to be,

  but I'd been ignoring a headache for hours, and I didn't want it to

  start pounding on my eyeballs for attention. I dismounted stiffly and

  tied the vair where he could reach some grass, then sat down a shortdistance

  away with my' back to a tree. I'd stopped at the edge of a

  small clearing, and although it was damp with dew it was also pretty

  and quiet., I closed my eyes and relaxed all over, emptying my mind of

  all thought. The headache throbbed with my pulse, but the more I

  relaxed and regulated my breathing, the more it eased and faded,

  becoming lighter and fainter with every indrawn breath. It was just

  about all gone when a snapping twig and high-pitched whicker brought me

  abruptly back to myself, and I was on my feet with sword in hand before

  I really knew which direction the sound had come from. Talk about your

  bad pennies! There, not five feet away from me, Fallan sat on his vair,

  still wearing that green shirt, still giving me that dark-eyed stare

  I'd had so much of in the past few days. There was a great surge of

  elation in me, accompanied by the sudden presence of the golden haze,

  and I grinned as I tightened my grip on the sword. We weren't in a

  Paldovar Village any longer!

  Fallan looked me over carefully, then rested his a?ni on the pommel of

  his saddle.

  "You seem pleased with some matter," he observed, keeping his tone

  neutral. "Might I know the reason for your pleasure?"

  "Certainly," I answered, not even trying to keep the delight out of my voice. "I have just been given a gift I had thought beyond my reach

  forever."

  "In all modesty, I presume you mean me, he murmured with a nod,

  dismounting and letting go of his vair's reins. "However, before you

  begin something we will both undoubtedly regret, I suggest you listen

  to what I have to say."

  There was something strange about the way he was speaking, but the

  golden haze convinced me that it wasn't worth noticing. I shook my

  head, still wrapped up in the pleasure of a grin.

  "I will listen to no more of the Fallan Beliefs on proper obedience," I

  told him, then felt the grin slipping away from me as the sword flicked

  around -in my hand. "Defend yourself or be cut down where you stand!"

  The mercenary continued to stare for a moment, but I was already moving

  toward him, giving him no choice but to face me. He left his vair and

  moved farther into the clearing, then slowly drew his sword. He didn't

  seem to want to face me, but be showed no fear and no doubt,

  undoubtedly thinking that a man of his size and training would have no

  trouble at all with a young female like me. I couldn't wait to show him

  how wrong be was.

  Fallan held his sword at the ready, but it was hardly a decent en garde

  position. He was prepared to counter the swipes and round-house swings

  Tildorani seemed so partial to, but he was wide open to
a slip and

  glide. I feinted toward him in a back swing, curious to see if he would

  notice the opening, but he never even twitched in my direction. He

  brought his weapon up to meet the move, obviously intending to stop it

  with sheer muscle, and blinked off balance when our blades didn't meet.

  I'd switched fast to slide under his blade, and my point was right near

  his ribs, well past his guard. I'd wanted to show him how open and

  vulnerable he was when he faced me with weapons, that and nothing more,

  but the golden haze glittered around me, whispering a reminder of what

  he'd done to me, how terribly he'd humiliated me. The hatred I felt for

  him pounded in my head and made it whirl, and then I had pushed my

  point a full inch into his side, pulling it free covered with the blood

  that was meant to be spilled. The mercenary's face twisted as the pain

  came to him, but I was well pleased with what I had done, and was

  already out of reach of the fool's blade.

  The sight that greeted the sun's full light was one that really pleased

  me. Fallan stumbled around the clearing, touched dozens of places with

  streaks and smears of his own blood, his arm tired from the wasted

  effort toward defense, his face a mask of silent agony. Over and over

  again he'd tried for a better defense and had even tried attack, but

  his attacks had found me already moved elsewhere and his defense had

  shown itself to be a mass of gaping holes. I hadn't taken his life yet,

  and wouldn't until he threw down his blade and begged for his life.

  Then I'd show him the exact same mercy he'd shown to me!

  I was so intent on the target I was playing with that I heard nothing

  of the forest noises around us. Fallan's sweating face swam before me,

  his eyes locked to my arm and blade, and then his gaze went up and past

  me, widening at whatever he saw behind my back. Or was trying to make

  me think he saw. That trick was so old I would have been an idiot to

  fall for it, but as I raised my point again I saw that he had dropped

  his guard entirely and was still staring behind me. he had also stopped

  backing away, and then he did something that shocked me. He twisted the

  blade in his hand, holding it as though it were a spear, then hurled it

  past me with a shout of' "Look out, Diana!"

  The golden haze flickered and died as I whirled around, having no time