She went to the club where Feliks worked, determined to get rid of her virginity. They told her Feliks had time off, but she managed to reach his room anyway.
"Look who's here," he greeted her with a sad smile. "How come you decided to see me again?"
"I wanted to apologize. I've been rude. And I do need your services. But I'm leaving town for I don't know how long in the morning, so I was wondering if you could do some extra work tonight. I'm willing to pay."
"Do I smell a love interest in your life, Lady Wanda?" he asked, leaning on the window pane. He wore only pants and Wanda compared his bare chest to Moreno's.
"It's complicated," she said, averting her eyes. "If you're unwilling to do it, please point me to one of your colleagues who is working tonight."
"I'd never pass up the opportunity to please you," he replied. He went to sit on the bed and offered his hand.
After a brief hesitation, she took it and sat next to him.
"I know you've never seen a naked man before, therefore I'll let you start," he said, pulling her closer.
"Actually I have." She smiled briefly at the memory of Moreno's bath. "But I still know nothing about sex. You will have to teach me."
"As you wish." He grinned and caressed her hair. Wanda tried to relax in his embrace, but it wasn't easy. He let her explore his body, guiding her to his hot spots. And then he touched her and caressed her with his fingers and his lips, sending shivers down her spine.
She closed her eyes and imagined Moreno was with her.
6.
"What a beautiful place!" Moreno's eyes were the color of the sky as he looked around, ecstatic. A huge flowery meadow bordered on the mountainside by a forest of evergreens capped by snowy mountaintops. Grey rocks that kept in its natural course a little stream running near the chalet – a little more than a log cabin on the mountains. And the meadow opened on the valley beyond, where the metal and concrete of a city could be seen in the distance when it was a clear day.
"Glad you like it," Vorus said a little grumpily. That place was very close to his heart, more than the country house or the town mansion, since it reminded him of his father. The chalet was small and uncomfortable, but it was perfect to be close to nature – something his father had always loved. The two-week vacations at the chalet in the summer were some of Vorus's most cherished memories.
Oretta looked at the surroundings, gaping. She didn't seem shocked that the place she'd live in was so small. She was probably used to cramped bedding anyway.
"It's... fantastic!" Moreno brightened like a child.
"Shall we go in?" Wanda suggested cheerfully.
He immediately followed her.
Oretta closed her mouth and turned to look at Vorus.
"Thank you," she said, serious.
"No problem." He couldn't look at her. "I'll visit with Arco during the weekends. I hope you'll cope – there isn't much technology in there, but we'll bring more food."
"We'll be fine." She smiled. "Anything will be more tasty than a slaves' food dispenser meal."
"Good. See you soon." He left before he decided to stay too.
***
The chalet was basically one big square room with a fireplace, and an attic. There was one camp bed on the ground floor and two more in the attic. The girls went upstairs, leaving Moreno downstairs. It felt like going back a century or two and the only modern thing was the outside bathroom, a shed with a shower, a sink and a toilet. Even the oven was a wood stove and not a microwave. There was no electricity, but there was a collection of candles and oil lamps.
The lovely place seemed to help Moreno. He wanted to see and experience everything, explore the forest, hunt like an ancient hunter, cook like an old trapper, except without Vorus and Arco he wasn't allowed to do any of that. Wanda showed him her tablet and managed to distract him from the nature outside. As he tried to learn how to read and write and other basic stuff he'd missed, he went to bed exhausted but happy. In one week he had only two seizures, while they'd been daily (and sometimes more) features in the country house.
Time flew by in a dream and the three twenty-somethings lost track of it, or at least Moreno and Wanda lost track. The arrival of Vorus, Arco and Lorinda was a happy surprise for the hermits.
"Hello, Vorus!" Wanda hugged her brother while Oretta smiled at him.
Wanda saw that Vorus realized during the day that he'd fallen in love with a runaway slave and therefore he decided he better not come anymore. In the evening he went back to town with Lorinda, since Arco had decided to spend the night there.
***
Moreno was excited to have a male companion. He was actually ready to give up the bed and sleep on the floor, but Arco just put the mattress on the wooden floor, leaving the camp bed to him.
Now that Moreno was normal, Lorinda had stopped fearing him and Arco thought he had found a true friend.
"You know, I always loved this rustic house," he told Moreno that night. "My father had it built and when I was a child he always brought me here."
They both lay on the bedding, in the dark, sort of staring at the ceiling.
"It's awesome," Moreno said.
"When I'm sick of civilization, I come here," Arco continued. "Don't tell Vorus, it's a secret. This is my hideout and he shouldn't know. I don't think he ever came back here since my father died. But I did. It helped. I ended up coming here every time I needed to unwind."
"I won't tell anyone," Moreno promised. "I hope you're not mad at me for invading your hideout."
"Nah, you're my friend." Arco smiled. "Besides, I'm fine now, you're not. Maybe the chalet will heal you like it healed me."
"I hope so... Listen, since the girls went to sleep, why don't we go out and watch the stars? Wanda taught me their names, you can test me."
Arco had tested Moreno's new knowledge all day with cheerful questions and both had enjoyed the game, especially since Moreno knew most of the answers.
"With my father we often watched sunsets and stars," Arco said, thoughtful. "Vorus was always cold and stayed in, but me and Dad we sat outside until late and he told me stories... It's been some time since I watched the stars."
He rose. "Let's go!"
Moreno followed him outside. The sky was clear and the quiet of the night was broken only by the sounds of owls and crickets.
They sat on a group of rocks by the stream and stared at the valley with the lights of the houses and faraway city. The sky was filled with stars.
From the top of the mountain came a gust of cold wind. Summer was almost over and soon Arco would go back to university. He shivered in his sleeveless shirt and the temperature had gone down considerably.
"Shall we go back inside?" he asked, turning to look at Moreno.
The young man didn't answer. He looked thoughtful.
Arco elbowed him.
"No, I don't want to!" Moreno jumped to his feet.
Arco stiffened and remained still, noticing the fixed stare of the former gladiator.
"I don't want to fight anymore! I'm tired!" Moreno backed away. He stared at Arco, but it wasn't Arco he was seeing. "I don't want to fight," he begged. "Don't punish me!"
Arco kept his mouth shut. His heart thundered in his chest.
Moreno backed away even more, then stopped. He fell on his knees with a scream of pain. Who knew what was going on in his shattered mind.
"No!" Moreno shouted. "No!" Then he seemed to calm down. "I want to die," he moaned. "I can't take it anymore! Let me die! I can't take it anymore!"
Arco rushed to his side, holding back his fear. Moreno was sobbing now. Arco hugged him while Oretta and Wanda emerged from the cabin in nightgowns, probably awakened by Moreno's screams.
"What happened?" Oretta asked, panting. "What are you doing out here?"
"We wanted to watch the stars." Arco wanted to cry too. "Is it always like this?"
"No, it's the first time," Wanda said, serious.
Oretta pushed back Arco and hugged her brot
her.
"I want to die," Moreno repeated between tears. "Please, have mercy!"
"Go back inside," Oretta said. "I'll stay with him. Wanda, bring me a blanket."
Wanda nodded and ran back to the building.
Arco stared at Moreno. Oretta looked at him with sad eyes.
"Go inside or you'll catch a cold," she said gently.
Arco wanted to refuse, then decided to obey. There wasn't much he could do. He met Wanda on the doorstep.
"Will you make him sleep?" he asked, worried.
She nodded. "Don't worry. Get some sleep."
Arco wondered if she was going to sedate him or use her mind to put him to sleep.
7.
"Bless you!"
"Thanks." Oretta blew her nose after the umpteenth sneeze.
"You shouldn't have stayed out all night with Moreno," Arco chided.
"Who else should have done it?" she retorted.
"We could have brought him back inside."
"It would have been worse. Closed spaces make him feel worse. The cool air allowed him to recover faster."
"But you caught a bad cold. I think you have a fever, you better come back to civilization with me."
"And who will look after Moreno?"
"Wanda. She's good." He decided not to say his sister was a telepath. Since the secret was so well guarded inside the family that nobody ever spoke about it, he wouldn't tell a stranger like Oretta.
"How will she deal with him on her own?"
"You don't know her. She's strong. When she sets her mind on something, nobody can stop her. Come on, come with me, heal and then you can come back."
Oretta stared at him, unsure. She obviously wasn't feeling good and a warmer climate would help.
"If you don't mind," she whispered. "I don't think Vorus wants me down there, though."
"Vorus does what I say," he replied.
"And Wanda?"
Wanda had no objections. She had never feared Moreno and he promised to be good. As if he could control himself, Arco thought, hoping he hadn't boasted too much about Wanda's abilities.
"I'll be all right," she said as if she'd read his mind. "You take care of Oretta and don't torture Vorus. Don't let them meet."
"What do you mean?" he asked, puzzled.
"Vorus doesn't want to see her again," she explained patiently. "I think he's in love with her, but can't afford it."
"Oh dear, I didn't know that..." Arco moaned, frustrated.
"You're not very good at reading our brother, are you?" she smiled.
"We're not all telepaths, babe," he retorted. "I shouldn't have suggested Oretta came home with me."
"You did the right thing," Wanda assured him. "She must get better or Moreno will relapse. You can't withdraw the invitation, so just go and keep her away from Vorus." She gently slapped him. "As for telepathy, it's a female trait in our family, and we don't like to discuss it openly."
"I got that. Vorus had to tell me. I'm not telling anyone of your skill and I'm sure it will help you to keep Moreno under control." He hugged her. "Thanks, Wanda."
"Don't worry, we'll be all right," she replied squeezing him. "And if Vorus really doesn't want to see Oretta, he'll find a way."
***
"Vorus!" Arco joined his brother in the garden of the country house after sunset.
"Don't stay out here or you'll catch a cold like Oretta," Arco said.
"You shouldn't have done it," Vorus whispered without looking at him.
"Wanda told me when it was too late," Arco apologized.
"You never think, do you?"
"I didn't know, Vorus! You never said anything! She was sick and I thought a better climate would help! Listen, I know I've always been too rash and..."
"You're shouting," Vorus said. "You'll awaken the whole house."
"Listen," Arco continued, calmer now. "Why don't you just do it? I mean, you're in love, marry her and live happily ever after! If you're doing it for me or for Wanda, it's time you start thinking about your own happiness, because I'm not a kid anymore and Wanda can live without you!"
Vorus stared at him in the darkness.
"It's not you," he said after a brief hesitation. "It's her. She's an uneducated slave, even if it's not really her fault, and I'm afraid she won't fit in our world or that she'd marry me out of gratitude or to get out of the gutter."
"Oretta ran away to save her brother," Arco replied. "And if she marries you it won't be gratitude. I saw how she looks at you, Vorus, now my eyes are wide open."
"How does she look at me?" Vorus asked, jarred. He hadn't looked at her once since she'd come back.
"Like Lorinda looks at me." Arco grinned. "Come on, Vorus, I'd be delighted to attend your wedding and become an uncle."
"So you really want me to tie the knot, huh?" Vorus's smile was weak.
"I want you to be happy, that's all."
"Arco..." Vorus hugged him. "Don't grow up too much."
"You like considering me a baby, don't you?" Arco teased. They playfully wrestled for a few minutes in memory of old games, and for the first time Arco won.
"I'm getting old." Vorus sighed, but smiled. "I guess it's time I start my own family."
Arco grinned. He stood and offered his hand to help his brother onto his feet. They went back inside arm in arm.
***
Wanda sat in her bed with her heart thumping. Moreno was screaming downstairs.
Oh no! She jumped out of bed and rushed down the wooden ladder. Moreno shivered and twitched on his cot, trying to defend himself from something only he could see.
Wanda sat on the edge of the bed and grabbed his face with both hands, closing her eyes. He shook even worse, screaming again. Her mind slowly joined his, humming a lullaby. Her soothing thoughts pushed back the black shadow and Moreno slowly calmed down.
Her smell intoxicated him and he became conscious of her body against his. She wasn't the black shadow. He opened his eyes, still terrified. She opened hers and smiled, letting go of his face.
"Wanda," he whispered, exhausted. His eyelids were so heavy... but he managed to stay awake. "I'm sorry," he said with a shaky voice. "Did I wake you up?"
"I wasn't sleeping," she lied.
He touched her cheek with one finger, thoughtful. Desire was stirring inside him. Wanda held her breath, hoping she was ready.
"Aren't you sick of me?" he asked, his voice steadier, while he took her hand.
"No!" she assured him. "Not at all," she added trying to sound calm.
Moreno smiled. "You are not afraid of me."
"Of course not. You're the most harmless Humanoid that ever lived."
"I'm a gladiator," he said gloomily. "Trained to kill without thinking."
"Would you like to talk about it?" she asked gently.
"Talk about it!" Moreno stared at the ceiling. "You, frail creature, want to hear about the tortures, the pain that I endured under my merciless master?"
"I already know more about it than you think," she replied, settling more comfortably on the floor. The bed was too narrow for both.
He glanced at her, puzzled, then lost himself in his memories.
"He was heartless. He whipped me and punished me when I refused to fight. Sometimes, exhausted, I surrendered to his violence. But I was too weak to win, so he punished me again because I had been defeated. He took me to the hunting ground once and used my body more than once. He used to wake me up at all times and he blindfolded me when he raped me because he didn't want me to see his face. He wanted to be the black shadow, the implacable master. I don't know how I found the strength to run away with Oretta. I think Keno helped us and sacrificed himself so we could escape."
As he spoke – eyes wide in the darkness – Moreno shivered, feeling all those abuses on his skin again. But he remained still, his stare fixed on those atrocities that had wounded him so deeply.
Wanda listened with a heavy heart as he told more. Pour it all out, beloved, maybe it's the only way.
She couldn't believe such cruel men existed, but she'd heard that Wegans were sadists.
Finally he shut up. He closed his eyes, exhausted. But he'd taken a big weight off his chest by saying it out loud.
"Go back to bed, Wanda, I'm fine now," he said, a little drowsy already.
Wanda hesitated, then brushed his forehead with a kiss and rose. He grabbed her wrist, looking at her in the darkness, and pulling her down again.
"Why?" he asked. "Why are you doing this?"
"Because I love you," she whispered breathless.
He was caressing her face and neck, and she could feel his desire again. He pulled her closer and brushed her lips with his. He couldn't remember how long it had been since he'd had a woman.
Wanda covered him with butterfly kisses and slowly undressed him. They rolled off the bed and on the carpet they'd spread on the floor after Arco's departure. Wanda mentally thanked Feliks for his teachings since Moreno was rougher than he intended to be.
He'd learn. Like he learned to read and write and be happy, he'd relearn to have sex and hopefully would fall in love...
8.
"How do you feel today, Oretta?"
"Better, thank you." Oretta smiled adoringly while Vorus sat next to her without daring look at her.
"Do you want to go back to the chalet tomorrow?" he asked, staring at his feet.
"As you wish," she said.
"Don't you miss Moreno?"
"I should." She frowned. "But maybe Wanda can deal with him on her own?" she asked, hopeful. She must be tired of her brother's seizures.
"I think so," he said, determined. "And if she needs help, I'll send her somebody else. You're not going anywhere."
She looked at him with such awe that he had to avert his eyes.
"I want to marry you," he blurted out, his heart pounding.
"Yes, my lord," she answered immediately.
"I'm not your master," he said.
"I know, Vorus, thank you," she replied with a dazzling smile.
Star Minds Interregnum Page 20