by Bethany Aan
“So the other women have said,” the doctor remarked with a wink. “The others have been seen to, but they will be fine. Five bodies were found at the crash site, unresponsive. We may find more when we can return to investigate the scene. There are a few who are still unconscious, but scans show that they aren’t hurt very badly, so hopefully they’ll wake soon enough. Amazingly, only three members of your group have been seriously injured, including yourself. You three will remain here, in the med center, until I am satisfied that you are healing properly.
“You are not prisoners,” he made sure to tell her emphatically, “And you should probably convey that to the others who need to stay here. There are all kinds of predators and poisonous plants out there, beyond the walls of the compound. We don’t want any more harm coming to your people. But there are several ladies who are looking as though they would like to try to escape at any moment. Such an attempt could cause them serious harm, since my men will restrain them, for their own good. If they misunderstand the men’s intentions and fight, they could hurt themselves further.”
He stood up, patting her uninjured thigh. “I am Master Jace. I am the lead physician and Hunter’s second-in-command. If you have need of me, simply ask for me.” She nodded and he grinned, his eyes warming a good deal from just a moment ago. “And if you just want to talk, feel free to ask for me, as well. I will never turn down the chance to speak to a beautiful woman.”
Before she could come up with a response to that totally unexpected bit of flattery, one of the girls from another bed called out, wanting to know what was going on. Ri gathered her thoughts then addressed the girls.
“They want me to let you know that you’re not prisoners, any of you,” she told the women. “But they want to keep us here, instead of down in the main hall with the rest of the girls, until they’re sure we’re okay. Our injuries are more severe. The doctor, Jace, also said that if you try to run away or escape, his men have been instructed to restrain you, for your own protection, and will use force if necessary.”
“We can leave if we damn well want to!” Amy said heatedly. Ri frowned at her.
“What’s your deal?” she asked, bewildered. “Why are you so set on being contrary?”
“I’m the president of the sorority,” Amy said with a toss of her head. Ri held back a horrified chuckle when that toss of the head resulted in a spike of pain through Amy’s skull. It took the younger girl a few moments to collect herself, but Ri could feel her agony and could certainly sympathize. Maybe pain and confusion were to blame for the girl’s antagonism? “Those are my girls down there. I should be with them.”
“Well, for right now, you need to stay here. This isn’t up for debate.” Ri sighed at the challenging look the girl was giving her. “Look, I didn’t ask for it, but their leader, Hunter here, gave me this translator, so until your embedded translators come online, I’m supposed to be in charge. We can revisit that part later, if you want, but for now, I’m it. You can try to escape, if you want to, but the men will stop you, will restrain you, and if you fight and get hurt, it’s your own fault.”
She probably should have put it a little nicer than that, but Ri was too weak and too loopy from the pain-killer to be tactful at the moment. Amy’s lower lip poked out with petulance. Ri rubbed her temples, sighing with exasperation at the girl’s immaturity. Now was not the time for silly political machination. Sensing Amy’s attitude, she went on, “And I swear to God, if you tell me I’m not the boss of you, I’ll sic them on you right now.””
She sighed, shooting Amy a pleading glance. “Please… just accept this for now. It’s only temporary. We can work the rest out later. I don’t want to be in charge, I assure you.”
Jace and Hunter stayed for the conversation, the commander listening and Reading the interaction. Though Arianna could have been a bit gentler with her translation, Amy seemed irrationally aggressive and dominating. He sensed something troubling in her, but really didn’t have time to deal with that at the moment. His men could handle one small woman, especially as skinny and fragile as Amy appeared to be.
Before he could think much more about it, one of his warriors called out to him from the doorway. His time with the little leader was done. He sent a mental command to the young woman who seemed to want to challenge Arianna’s authority, suppressing that desire for the moment.
“They will accept you, in time,” Hunter told Ri softly, squeezing her hand.
Jace nodded, holding her eyes. He was impressed with her handling of the situation. He stared down at her for a moment longer, his eyes warming from clinical physician to curious male, surprising her. Then he smiled at her, turned and strode off to other duties.
Hunter got to his feet by her bed, looking down at her, as well. She sensed his reluctance to leave her, not because he thought she was the women’s leader, but because he was personally interested in spending more time with her. It warmed her heart.
“I must see to the others and hear the report from the team I left to investigate the crash site,” he murmured to her, sending apologies along their mental connection. “I do not wish to leave you, for we need to talk, at length. But the medicine Jace gave you will make you a bit… dizzy-headed. You should sleep so that the nanos can begin their work. I will return in a few hours to check on you. If you are up to it, we will have a meeting after supper to discuss what needs to be done next for your people.”
She nodded at him, her head spinning. He squeezed her hand one last time, his grip strong and sure, and held it for just a bit longer than was probably necessary. She sensed that he wanted to say more, but a call from another of his men proved that he had to leave. He offered her a crooked little smile then released her hand and, turning on his booted heel, strode out of the medical center.
She wanted to call him back, to have him sit there and keep talking to her in his deep, mesmerizing voice. She wanted to touch his agile, brilliant mind, have him show her this new world. She wanted to look into his bright green eyes with their dark ring around the irises, maybe even stroke his soft, silky back again. She just wanted to look at him. He was so pretty. She about giggled at that silly thought.
But he was right. He was the leader of his people, so he probably had a million things to do, especially with a group of young, naked women suddenly landing in their midst. She wondered at the absence of women in their group, but as her brain started shutting down, lost hold of the thought.
Several beds over, Amy closed her eyes, anger roiling through her. That chubby older bitch was getting all of the attention, all just because she’d been the one to organize Amy’s sorority sisters and get them to safety. The big, handsome men were practically drooling over her, and she wasn’t even pretty! If Amy hadn’t had such a horrible headache when everything had happened, she’d be the one in charge now. She was the head of her sorority, after all. It stood to reason that her girls would have followed her, instead. And she would have done a much better job of getting them out of their situation, leading them into the forest to find shelter on their own, without having to be rescued by the alien men. It had to be the head wound that had made her try to attack the men, instead of the animals. Or had she been the one to attack the animals, and Arianna the one that wanted to attack the men at first?
Amy blinked, trying to remember, then smiled when she decided that it had to be that way. Arianna had tried to get them to attack the men, but Amy had known that they needed to take care of the animals first. That was it. Wasn’t it?
Clenching her fists in frustration, Amy bit down against the pain in her skull and her body. Of course, the bitch had fallen asleep before Amy could get her to ask for more pain meds. Frustration ate at her, and she laid the pain at Arianna’s feet. Amy wasn’t currently in any condition to prove she was the more worthy leader, but as soon as she was, she’d take control of her girls and show the men what a real woman was like when she was in control. The handsome leader, Hunter, and the sexy doctor wouldn’t stand a chance, once she was hale and
hearty again. And she was sure that the demure little fatty, Arianna, would back down as soon as Amy asserted her authority. Satisfied now that she had a plan in place, Amy peremptorily summoned a medic over and made it clear that she needed more medicine. He complied quickly, though he frowned at her rudeness. She didn’t notice. She fell asleep with vengeance in mind.
“What in the name of the gods are we going to do with thirty-two women?” Hunter growled, sagging into his chair in the command center several hours later. “They aren’t Thorsani, they don’t know our rules, and most of them have obviously not been trained in how to react in a crisis situation. Gods, but their screeches were ear-shattering! You would think they had never seen an intelligent alien species before.”
Beside him, Trey nodded wearily, eyes narrowed on the computer screen before him.
“Perhaps they have not?” the younger officer suggested with a shrug. “And aye… my skull nearly split in two when you touched foreheads with their leader. Those girls squealed like suckling rider beasts.”
“Maybe they are simply very young, and Arianna is their mother figure? She does not appear to be old enough to have given birth to any of them, but maybe a caretaker?” Hunter mused as he brought up his computer screen and tapped out commands for the data he needed. “Then again, we do not know how they age. The younger-looking ones could easily be older, for all we know. Though I do not believe so. I sensed that their leader had much more experience and maturity than the majority of the others.” Hunter sighed.
“She is a Reader, but beyond that, she was aware from the start that she was not on her home world. She seemed highly adaptable to the changed environment, was able to adjust her fighting to accommodate her injuries, and managed to get those squealing youngsters under control in very short order. Highly intelligent, from what I could Read of her. Accepting of our differences, which bodes well, but I sense that most of the others are not so open-minded.”
“Most of the others are still in various stages of shock,” Jace put in, entering the command center and taking a chair near his brother. “They will adjust, as well, but it might take more time. Still, I hold out hope that if the leader is adaptable, the rest will be, too.”
“And they do seem to be very young,” Trey added thoughtfully. “If so, they are less likely to deal well with either the unknown or a crisis. They have to be the young of their species. Most of them have not yet acquired the mature curves that their leader and the little blond possess.”
“Do not be looking at Arianna’s curves,” Hunter growled, glaring at his friend. Trey’s mouth kicked up into a delighted grin.
“Are you staking claim, Commander?” he asked, his eyebrows arching in surprise. Hunter grunted in annoyance.
“She is their leader, and deserves respect,” Hunter reminded the younger man, then ran an exasperated hand through his hair. “And no, I am not staking claim. I cannot claim her yet. None of us can claim any of them, until they understand what our mating rituals entail and we understand theirs. But pay Arianna the respect due a Reader, as well as a leader, and do not comment on her ‘curves’.”
“Aye, sir. I was actually more impressed with the little blond, myself,” Trey admitted, remembering with a smile. “She is bright, accepting, and she attempted to communicate with me from the first. I saw her trying to help Arianna when we came upon them. Perhaps the Reader’s second-in-command? Or a good candidate for that position?”
“Perhaps,” Hunter allowed. “Ri did mention to the other girls that they should go to Bev if she’s not available. That’s a good point, Trey. Remind me to make certain that she is in the meeting this evening, to support their leader. Perhaps you would like to fetch her for that duty?”
Trey chuckled to himself and nodded as he, Jace, and the commander began compiling data for the officers’ meeting that must take place shortly. They had to come up with a plan for the women, for their own good… and the women’s.
Hunter was sitting at her bedside when Arianna awoke several hours later. His face was the first thing she saw when she opened her eyes, and the sleepy smile she greeted him with was sweet and welcoming. Hunter’s breath caught at the trust that had already developed between them. She was already forming an attachment, which should probably have scared him… but didn’t. Instead, it seemed like the most natural thing in the world. Something on a soul-deep level told him that she was his, and he was hers. Never mind that they’d known each other a handful of hours, most of which she’d been asleep. It didn’t make sense. It simply was.
She was open and vulnerable at the moment, still in the grip of the lingering pain meds. Hunter knew that he shouldn’t be Reading her when she couldn’t hide her thoughts, but sensing her unhidden interest in him, he sat forward a bit, reaching to stroke her curling hair from her eyes and tuck it behind her ear. Arianna’s breath hitched as his fingers stroked the shell of her ear before retreating, sending a delightful little shiver down her spine. Hunter felt it, saw the goose bumps that rose on her skin, and sensed the instant reaction of her body to his touch. He hardened in a rush that threatened to steal his sanity. Never had he felt such impact from a woman before, much less a tiny, alien woman.
It was a little disconcerting, but he was willing to carry the interest as far as she would allow. His was a naturally curious mind, eager for any bit of new information or knowledge, and here was a woman from a world and culture that his people knew nothing about. Aside from the possibilities of exchanged information, she was a lovely little thing, with bright eyes that had seemed green in the forest but were now almost blue. Perhaps it was the lighting in the med center? Or maybe her people had eyes that changed colors? He would have to explore that with her later.
Arianna watched him for a bit, enjoying his frank interest. Because his mind was open, she allowed hers to remain so, enjoying the feeling of his energy probing hers, his mind within hers. For a long while, they studied one another wordlessly. Hunter was strange-looking, but not in a bad way. Compelling, really. His skin was darker than hers, olive, with almost a burnished patina to it. She wondered if that was from the sun. There were darker markings, almost like a cat’s, but not furry, along the edges of his face, neck, and shoulders, where smooth flesh turned into downy fuzz, then changed again into sleek fur. There wasn’t any hair on his chest, but the hair on his head was pulled back into a very long queue and secured at intervals with leather thongs to hang down his back. He had a narrow, beautiful tattoo in shades of black, teal, and purple that circled his left biceps.
When he turned for a moment to listen to one of the medics give a quick report on the other girls, she saw that he was beautifully marked, just like his men. She knew from touching him earlier that he was sleek and supple, but now she also knew that he had the markings of a gray tabby cat. That made sense to her. She had long adored gray tabbies because they seemed to be the most empathic of the cats. She’d always had an affinity for the lovely stripes and the soft gray and black fur. Hunter’’s markings were amazing. She wanted to explore them, memorize the pattern, to stroke him and feel that soft, warm fur between her fingers. He was beautiful, front and back.
He replied to the warrior then turned back to face her, the muscles of his chest, ribs, and back rippling in a way that made her mouth go dry. He saw the warmth in her eyes, felt her attraction, though she tried to tamp it down and hide it from him. It was hard to keep her thoughts from another empath, though, especially when she and Hunter had already established a remarkably strong connection. And the lingering drugs were impacting her ability to control those wayward thoughts.
His eyes heated as he caught the images in her head. He watched her intently, as though taking in her strangeness, studying her as carefully as she had him. His lips curled up at the edges, a wicked little smile that promised further investigation when she was feeling better. Her cheeks colored prettily at his obvious interest and the memory of him holding her breasts earlier. He was the first man that had been able to hold them with
out them spilling all over the place, his hands were so large. The mental image of those hands doing just that set her heart racing a little more than she was comfortable with, considering she’d only met him a few hours ago. A handful of hours, but an entire lifetime, a whole other world away. It was surreal, but she had been in his mind. She couldn’t speak his language, but she knew his heart and perhaps part of his soul already. She truly felt that she knew him better than she’d known her fiancee back home. Ex-fiancee.
“You are… very lovely,” he told her, breaking the silence.
“No,” she demurred softly. “I’m really not. Not among my people, at least.”
“You are no longer among your people,” he reminded her. She wasn’t comfortable with complements, so she tried changing the subject, struggling to sit up a bit more in the bed.
“So where am I?” she asked. He grinned, letting her get away with changing the subject. He was amused and delighted with her eager curiosity and helped her to arrange herself more comfortably so they could talk.
“Will you believe me if I told you?” he asked. She laughed ruefully and shrugged.
“Why wouldn’t I?” she asked. “It’s obvious we’re not on Earth anymore.”
“Your women seem to be having trouble believing that, so I must wonder.”
“My women aren’t my women, and they’re not me. I know I’m not on Earth, though I don’t know how we came to be on that ship. I can’t for the life of me remember being abducted.”
She tried to sit up a little bit more, but stopped as soon as painful throbbing started on several different fronts. She sucked in a deep breath and fought to overcome the pain. Apparently, the painkiller Jace had given her was wearing off.
Hunter sensed what she wanted and quickly moved to help her situate the pillows more comfortably behind her, then rearranged the blanket so that it covered what it should. He even tucked the blankets around her feet in a tight, warm cocoon, just as she would have, if she’d been able. She decided she could really get used to having a man around who could read her mind.