by Regine Abel
His somber gaze rested on me as I walked in, losing all warmth. I swallowed hard, fearing he would send me away. How would I respond to such a request? Thankfully, he seemed to shrug off my presence and returned his focus to Amalia. He settled in the chair in front of his computer desk and pulled Amalia onto his lap. She wriggled a bit until she found a comfortable position then leaned back against him. He brushed her wild mane to the side before pulling up his holographic keyboard.
The large monitor in front of him lit up. I couldn’t read the text on screen since it was written in Guldanese. Gruuk tapped a few instructions onto his computer under the watchful eyes of my daughter, then the datapad on his desk chimed. He picked it up, tapped a couple of times on it before holding it in front of Amalia.
“Can you unlock this?” he asked.
Within seconds, Amalia did.
“I’ve hidden the image of a neption in this datapad. Can you find it?”
“What’s a neption?” she asked.
“It’s a furry animal, almost like your pet doll Timun, but smaller, that people often keep at home as companions.”
“Oh! Okay.”
Amalia took a little while longer. At first, she seemed unsure how to go about it. Her tiny eyebrows knitted as she pressed her palm against the datapad. Chewing on her bottom lip, she shifted again, a deep look of concentration on her face. Then her expression brightened as confusion morphed into understanding. Countless screens flickered on the device’s display, too fast to read or properly identify. They stopped on a white-furred animal with a smattering of black spots, a long, fluffy tail, and thin whiskers next to its snout.
“Very, very good, Amalia,” Gruuk said. “I will tell the chef to give you an extra portion of dessert tomorrow.”
Amalia squealed and clapped her hands. My baby had a sweet tooth. Not surprising when you thought of it. She needed the extra energy to fuel her restlessness.
Gruuk performed a number of additional tests, making me restless. The sparkle in his eyes made my stomach knot. He was already thinking of ways he could exploit my child’s ability. Amalia was a hacker. From what I could see, as long as the device had some kind of software she could interface with, she could control it. She even managed to remotely take over his computer, as long as it remained connected to the same network of a device she could touch.
The things she could do for him were staggering.
I shifted on my feet, realizing they were hurting. The Goddess only knew how long we had been here. Master Gruuk never offered for me to take a seat, despite the two guest chairs by his desk. Besides those, the medium-sized room only contained a fresher, a massive bed—which I pretended to ignore existed—a night stand and a set of shelves displaying various devices I couldn’t identify.
“Master Gruuk, would you like to be my father?”
My knees wobbled, and I felt the blood drain from my face.
“You already have a father!” I blurted out, more harshly than intended.
Amalia started at my rough tone, her surprise turning to shame. My guilt was short-lived, replaced by unease as Gruuk leveled a hard stare at me, as if offended that I had reminded him of my presence.
“I know, Mama,” Amalia said, sounding contrite. “But I’m never going to meet him.”
My throat tightened at the truth of her words. To be more accurate, she wouldn’t meet him for at least another twenty-one years, assuming Eryon could find us, and if we both still lived. Amalia twisted a strand of hair again with both hands, casting a glance at Gruuk, filled with longing.
“On The Milikis, my show I like to watch,” Amalia patiently explained to Gruuk, “Mama Miliki says Papa Miliki is a good father because he gives them a place to live, makes sure they always have food, and protects them from mean people. You do that for us too. So, that means you could be a good father… if you wanted?” she concluded with a small voice full of hope, torturing her strand of hair with such intensity I expected some to fall right off.
Most planets had banned that stupid Guldan show for its backward notions on gender roles and the place of females in society. However, it was one of the very few suitable for a child her age we could access.
Gruuk stared at Amalia with an undefinable look on his face and grabbed her hands, stopping the abuse of her hair.
The door chime resonating nearly made me jump out of my skin and spared my Master from responding to Amalia’s request.
“Open,” Gruuk commanded.
The door swished open on my mother, looking tense and slightly winded. She spared me a brief look, making sure I was fine before staring in turn at Amalia and Gruuk.
“Maheva…” Gruuk said, leaning back in his chair. “Lost something?”
Her throat worked, but she held his stare, unflinching. Her strength always impressed me.
“Indeed. Both my girls,” she said, casting a significant look at both Amalia and me.
Gruuk tilted his head to the side. “As you can see, they’re both found.”
Amalia proudly waved both her hands at my mother.
“Nana, I can do things with my hands, too!”
Mama paled and wrapped her arms around her midsection. The sliver of fear that crossed her face echoed the one that still churned within me.
“That’s great, sweetie,” Mama said with forced enthusiasm.
“It’s more than great, Amalia,” Gruuk said, though his eyes remained locked with my mother’s. “It is amazing. I am very pleased with you.”
“Thank you, Master Gruuk,” Amalia said with a wide grin.
The look of adoration she bestowed upon him twisted my insides. I needed to put an end to this before he had her totally mesmerized. But how did I warn her about him without making her behave in a way that would turn him against her?
Amalia chose that moment to yawn wide enough to swallow Gruuk whole. He chuckled in response. Mama gasped and clutched at her heart, eyeing Gruuk with disbelief. He put Amalia down, placing his hand on the small of her back, and gently pushed her our way.
“Go tuck in your girls then, Maheva.”
The odd way he said Mama’s name felt like a taunt. She must also have perceived it as such because she clenched her jaw and narrowed her eyes at him.
“Come on sweetheart,” Mama said, extending a hand to Amalia, who came obediently. “I need to speak with Master Gruuk for a little bit so I won’t be there when your Mama reads stories, but I will be there tomorrow, okay?”
“Yes, Nana.”
“I love you, sweetheart.”
“I love you too, Nana.”
Amalia stretched her arms, tiptoeing. Mama smiled. Eyes shining with affection, she leaned down and presented her cheek for a kiss, before placing one on my baby’s forehead.
Turning back to Gruuk, Amalia waved her little hand at him.
“Goodnight, Master Gruuk!”
“Goodnight, Amalia,” he responded.
She walked over to me, slipping her warm hand into mine. As we headed for the door, Gruuk called out Amalia’s name. We turned to look at him.
“Do not use your ability again on any door or device on this ship without my consent. Do you understand?” Gruuk’s voice was gentle but firm.
Amalia’s shoulders sagged, and her bottom lip protruded in a cute pout.
“Yes, Master Gruuk,” she said in a sad voice.
“Tomorrow, I will bring you a couple of tablets you can practice on to your little heart’s content. But nothing else, understood?”
Amalia beamed. “Yes, Master Gruuk! Thank you!”
His eyes rested on me, the warning in his eyes loud and clear. If Amalia disobeyed, it would be my behind on the line. I nodded and exited into the hallway once the door swished open. The Goddess only knew how I would keep my little hellion in check. I didn’t doubt for a moment that he would glove her if I failed to do so.
Looking over my shoulder, I saw Gruuk’s dark gaze settle on my mother. She raised her chin in defiance as the door slid shut.
/> Oh Goddess, please protect her.
CHAPTER 6
Maheva
A swarm of drunken butterflies swirled around my stomach as I struggled not to drown in the dark sea of Gruuk’s eyes. Even after forty-four years as his slave, and all the ways he wronged me, my brain still stopped functioning in his presence. Although fifteen years my senior, at sixty-six, Gruuk was a prime example of strength and virility. His raven hair swayed as he tilted his head to the side, eyeing me with a mocking smirk. It wouldn’t start greying for at least another decade, considering the Guldan average lifespan of one hundred and fifty years.
It will look good on him.
Goddess! Why in the world was I thinking of the softness of my captor’s hair and how gracefully he would age? His eyes roaming over me made my nipples harden, reminding me how long it had been since I had last shared myself with a male.
Far too long yet not long enough.
“You wanted to speak, Maheva?”
The gravelly sound of his voice snapped me out of my haze and reminded me why I’d come here to begin with. When Doruk brought the female to the med bay, he couldn’t resist the urge to taunt me about what had transpired with Amalia. Unfortunately, I still had to assist Chief Medical Officer Bradok with a second surgery on one of Gruuk’s top customers and then care for the female. The seemingly endless delays drove me to the brink of madness, wondering what was happening to my girls.
Gruuk pulled out a celesium medallion from his pocket, which he had recently acquired after visiting one of his Oracle slaves. He never parted with the trinket anymore but evaded any questions about it whenever I broached the subject. As had quickly become a habit of his, he rolled the shiny black medallion over his knuckles, his dark eyes leveled on me.
“Wh… What can she do?” I asked, hating the slight trembling of my voice.
Gruuk respected strength. If I faltered now, he would eat me alive.
“She’s a hacker.”
The obvious satisfaction in his voice made me shudder, but the glimmer of pride in his eyes threw me. His reaction to Amalia was strange, especially since he had always somewhat shunned my offspring.
He gave me a quick rundown of her ability based on the tests he had performed. My stomach clenched. She was far more powerful than I had anticipated. She would sell for a fortune. Gruuk placed profit above everything else. He concluded his retelling by asking that I keep a close eye on her so that she didn’t abuse her power. Although he didn’t voice it, the underlying threat resonated loud and clear. I barely even heard his words. All I could think about was that one of those freak masters would get another of my girls.
“Please don’t sell her,” I blurted out in a whisper.
I immediately kicked myself for yet another show of weakness. Gruuk’s expression closed off. He stared at me, his finger tapping on the armrest of his chair, the only sound in the room.
“Please.”
His jaw tightened and he rose to his feet. I sucked in a sharp breath as he closed the distance between us. Instinctively, I stepped back, but he kept approaching until the door against my back stopped any further retreat. Gruuk stood inches from me, invading my personal space.
I placed my palms on his muscular chest, my eyes flicking between his.
“I beg you, Gruuk. Please, don’t sell her. Not her. Not yet.”
He looked down at my hands touching him, then back up at my face. Placing both hands on the door on each side of me, Gruuk leaned forward trapping me… caging me. His earthy, masculine scent surrounded me.
“I love when you beg me,” he whispered.
My throat worked. I could barely breathe, crushed by the intensity of his presence.
“Please,” I repeated, my fingers tightening on his chest.
He tilted his head to the side. “Do I look like I want to sell her?”
“The way you looked when you spoke of her ability… that sparkle in your eyes…”
“Because her ability is fucking amazing, and we’ve only scratched the surface.”
“Gruuk—”
“Use your head, Maheva,” he interrupted. “Why would I give some random bastard such power? No amount of credits could compensate for what she could do… will do in the future.”
I refused to think of what that could be.
“So… you… you’re going to keep her?”
He stared me in the eyes before looking at my lips. On a reflex, my tongue peeked out to wet them. His gaze smoldered, and the low rumble of his chest vibrated against my palms.
Gruuk lifted one hand from the door and brushed my hair off my face before cupping my cheek. My pulse picked up.
“She’s the exact copy of you at her age; willful, adventurous, fearless, and with far too much energy,” he said softly. “You’ve done well with her.”
“Amalia isn’t mine. She’s Sevina’s. I get no credit for that.”
He snorted with disdain.
“Amalia gets nothing from her mother. She’s all you. She’s exactly what our—”
He interrupted himself and cast his eyes down to hide his thoughts. The nervous tick on his temple, beneath his tattoo, told me where his mind had wandered. The painful subject we avoided.
“She’s not our daughter, Gruuk,” I whispered, the old pain creeping back in my voice. “Our baby is gone.”
“I know that all too well,” he snapped, clenching his jaw. “But our daughter would be nothing like Sevina. She would be exactly like Amalia.”
“You don’t know that!” I said, hurt by his constant rejection of my oldest living child.
“Oh yes, I do! Our daughter would show the same spine, the same fire we both possess.”
The strength of his conviction confused me, but I focused on his contempt for my daughter, which we needed to discuss at long last.
“Stop hating Sevina. It’s not her fault she’s not ours.”
His face closed off again. Letting go of my cheek, he straightened. I removed my hands from his chest and hugged myself.
“What does that have to do with anything?” he asked.
“You’ve resented her since before she was born. She’s not responsible for who sired her. You gave me away to that Korlethean.”
“You came of age,” he stated coldly.
“I was your female!” I shouted.
He remained impassive. “Are we really doing this again?”
I fisted my hands in repressed anger. I hadn’t forgiven him. Probably never would, even though I understood why he had to do it. We had indeed talked it into the ground, and it had permanently ended our relationship.
Well… the first one.
“Sevina is a good girl. She—”
“She’s weak,” Gruuk growled.
That hurt. My motherly instincts demanded I defend my child.
“She’s a gentle soul.”
“She’s weak, and you know it. She has no backbone, withers under a simple glare and whimpers at the first sign of confrontation. If I told her to airlock herself, she’d probably do it rather than risk facing my wrath for saying no.”
A discreet beep echoed in the room. Gruuk turned away from me and strolled to his desk. He cast a swift glance at it then dismissed it.
“I don’t hate your daughter. I simply have no use for squeamish people. Do I resent that other males sired your offspring? Yes. Is that what you wanted to hear?”
My knees nearly buckled, and I thanked the Goddess for the support of the door behind me. In all our years of on-and-off relationships, Gruuk had never openly admitted to jealousy.
He faced me, one fist resting on top of his desk. “I hate the thought that another male touched you. I’ve hated every single time some Korlethean’s seed grew inside your womb, when it should have been mine. Only mine.” He prowled towards me, anger simmering beneath his stern face. “I hate even more knowing that it was all done at my own command.”
“So why did you?” I asked. My voice broke, betraying the bitterness that still at
e at me.
“Because I’m Guldan and you’re my slave. It is our way. We’ve already discussed this to death,” he snapped, his face inches from mine. “I warned you what would happen. You’ve known all along. I’ve never lied to you. You chose to believe you could change me.”
True. All of it painfully true.
“You pursued me,” he grounded out. “I told you who I was, what I did, and what kind of future there would be for us. You didn’t care. You wanted me and made me want you—flaunting, teasing, taunting.”
All true.
His eyes smoldered as they lowered to my lips.
“Even now…” he whispered.
I don’t know which one of us kissed the other, not that it mattered. His tongue invaded my mouth, and a surge of lust had my underwear soaking in seconds. I hadn’t been with a male—with him—for far too long. Six years… The day he sent Sevina to the breeding fortress for the first time, I cast him out of my bed, for the fourth time.
As much as my giving him the cold shoulder angered him, Gruuk never tried to force himself on me, pressured me or made demands. He established early on that whatever happened between us would be initiated by me. Though he never voiced it, it was his way of saying that in the bedroom, we weren’t master and slave. That also meant I needed to take responsibility for what took place between us. I couldn’t play victim or pretend that he’d conned me into anything. It was my choice. As a result, my pride kept us apart.
I had forgiven him the day after Sevina’s return from the compound. The joy on her face, the wistfulness in her eyes as she spoke of her Eryon brought tears to my eyes. Shame flooded through me when I found out later that Gruuk had specifically sent Sevina to that compound because some psychic test had indicated she and Eryon would likely experience a Tuning. Whatever his dislike of my daughter, he had tried to make her breeding experience a happy one, and succeeded… for me. My pride prevented me from apologizing. The longer time passed, the harder it became. Days turned to weeks, to months and then years.
Until now…
His initiative freed me of my self-imposed shackles and I gladly shed them.