“Time to be naked again,” Camron said, feathering kisses down her neck, which gave her delicious shivers of pleasure.
“Definitely.” She helped him push his pants off then he undid her makeshift belt with much amusement and slid her oversize utilities to the cave floor.
He rolled onto his back, taking her with him, so she ended up astride his body. At her raised eyebrows, he said, “I can handle the hard floor as a mattress better than you can.”
Gemma had to admit he was probably correct. She fondled his sac and teased the sensitive area directly behind with the tip of one fingernail before grasping the hot, hard length of his manhood and lowering her head to taste.
Camron slid a tentative finger inside her soft folds. “You’re so amazingly wet and ready.” He added a second finger and stroked the soft velvet of her sensitive inner walls even as his hips bucked against the suction she was applying to his cock.
“My desires have been building since the day we met,” Gemma admitted, raising her head. “I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve been fascinated by you on so many levels, not just your muscles and um physique. You are an amazingly attractive man, no denying the truth, but you’re also kind and honorable, caring...” She inhaled sharply as he played with her clit, adding urgency to the sensations overwhelming her. The stimulus made it impossible to concentrate. “You’re kind of irresistible,” she said with a breathless laugh.
“I’m flattered,” he said in a voice with the low vibration of a purr behind it. “I’ve longed to make love to you.”
“Well then, what are we waiting for?” She leaned over to give him a lingering kiss on the lips then prepared to lower herself onto his impressive, hard-as-steel shaft.
Camron held her in abeyance, gently but firmly, hands cradling her hips. “We have no protection, and I wouldn’t want to risk fathering a child by accident, however wonderful the love making. I can pleasure you in other ways.”
Gemma shook her head. “No worries, I’ve had the inject, and I’m healthy. Okay?”
His grin was wide and his amber eyes took on a faint glow. “More than okay.”
She proceeded with her plan for inviting him into her body, taking him an inch at a time, which was sensual torture for both of them, but delicious at the same time. Camron filled her completely and the ridges added to the pleasure as he moved deeper in response to her encouragement. She had to pause a few times to allow her body to get used to his size but then she rode him hard savoring the sensations of his big, heavy shaft penetrating deep into her core.
The sight of their bodies joined made her even more aroused and having him at her mercy to touch and tease was like no other experience she’d ever had. All the power and strength in Camron’s glorious body was hers tonight, devoted to her pleasure. The way his eyes literally glowed golden and the sounds he made as he moved his hips and touched her body ever so carefully with his huge hands told her she was taking care of his needs as well. Gemma redoubled her efforts to break through his caution and get him to unleash himself. Lose the self-control and leave room for only passion. She knew to the core of her being he’d never hurt her.
Camron held her tightly and their mutual climax brought intense waves of pleasure that had her clinging to him as if they could become one being. For a confused, deliriously happy moment Gemma didn’t know where she ended and Camron began, because their union was so complete.
Gemma collapsed onto his muscular chest with a sigh of pure satisfaction. “Next time on a bed or at least something soft because I want you in every way possible.”
Camron laughed, stroking her skin softly. “You’ll get no argument from me, lovely lady, but this was a rare experience, to be savored. And repeated.”
“Definitely repeated,” she said, rolling carefully to the side, onto the blankets.
They held each other close until Camron declared she was growing chilled despite his best efforts to keep her warm. After a rudimentary bath using one of the extra T shirts and cold water, they both got dressed again and Gemma settled in to sleep.
“Only good dreams now,” Camron said with a smile as he adjusted the blankets for her comfort.
“You’ve made sure of that.” She closed her eyes. “Don’t forget to wake me up to stand guard duty.”
When she awakened the next time, Camron was at work sorting through the bins once more.
“I feel refreshed,” she said as she rose. Stretching like a well-rested cat, she walked over to him. “What did you find?”
His shoulder was tense under her hand and concern washed through her as he was silent. “I think the Wanderer left some of his own belongings in this last container.” His deep voice was tight with emotion and he didn’t offer to show her what he’d found.
Not taking offense because these must be nearly sacred items for Camron, she said, “Wow, it must be incredible for you to touch something of his after all these centuries.”
“If we ever have time after winning the war against the Khagrish, perhaps someday a Badari archaeologist can study this and the other caches the Wanderer left for us. Maybe there are clues to be found.” He sealed the bin and waited for the green stasis light to come on.
Gemma gave him a hug. “I can’t even imagine the life your Wanderer must have led, but I’m glad he existed, to give you and your brothers hope, if for nothing else. Who helped him or what the factors were behind his escape aren’t as important now as the fact he was a real person and he did try to reach down the generations to help as best he could.”
Camron hauled her gently into his lap and held her close. “Good point. When I was a cub and the healer would speak of the Wanderer, I used to get mad he hadn’t returned to rescue anyone else. I wanted us all to be free. As an adult, I can see how impossible it would have been for one man, alone and unarmed, to fight the Khagrish establishment on the planet. He was more important as a symbol—”
Breaking off in midsentence, Camron straightened his spine and cocked his head toward the entrance to their cave. Blood running cold, Gemma slid off his lap and fetched her spear. Crude though the weapon was, the feel of it in her hand gave her courage and resolve. She could fight. “What is it?” She kept her voice to a whisper.
“I hear something, outside. Gather the provisions we’re taking and be ready to leave.” He pulled on his boots and left the chamber, moving with an alarmingly high degree of caution. Hastily, she threw the last few things into the knapsack she’d found in one bin and slung the homemade water canteens over her shoulder. She stood poised for action beside the fire and tried to control her breathing.
Camron hastened into the chamber, glancing over her preparations and nodded his approval as he took the backpack and smothered the fire with his boot. He grabbed the brightest lantern and handed it to her before turning the other one off. “Parryfilmunn, his minions and the two remaining trackers are on the cliff across the lake.”
Fear washed through her in a cold wave. “What are we going to do? We can’t go out the way we came in if he’s out there watching.”
Camron crossed the cave in two strides and hugged her. “The Wanderer took care of that too. This chamber is apparently a small portion of a large cave complex. He left directions for a variety of alternate escape routes.” Tapping his temple, he smiled. “I’ve got them here, and I’ve picked the one I think will dump us out the farthest away from where the Khagrish would think to look for us. If you’re ready, let’s go.”
“I am so ready.” Gemma had to control her urge to blindly flee. She rocked on her heels, impatient to take herself out of Parryfilmunn’s reach. Surely they’d never manage to escape again if he caught up to them.
Camron kissed her forehead then moved to the opening at the rear of the cave. “Stick close.”
“Don’t worry.” The skin on the back of her neck was itchy, as if she expected Parryfilmunn and his thugs to come after them any second. She concentrated on following Camron as closely as she could and was grateful for the lanter
“We have to expect he’ll become frustrated and use the ultra-scanner,” Camron said as they hiked past stalagmites in amazingly tortured shapes and dodged under massive stalactites growing from the ceiling far above. “But I’m hoping the mineral deposits in the cave system will protect us from detection, even if he flies right over the area. We’re descending right now too, which may help conceal us.”
Although she should have grown calmer the further they hiked away from the cache, Gemma couldn’t rid herself of the sensation of being watched or followed or both. At one point she spun around, holding the lamp aloft and her spear ready in the other hand but, of course, there was nothing to be seen in the stygian darkness outside the narrow circle of light.
“What’s the matter?” Camron stood behind her, talons and fangs deployed, his own eyes glowing in the dark.
“I had this eerie sensation there was something out there,” she said, a little embarrassed. Her heart was pounding. “I guess my mind is trying to fill the cave with something rather than accept the total blackness.”
“My hearing and sight are much better than a human’s,” he said somewhat undiplomatically. “I sense nothing here but us. We can try to move faster if your nerves are getting to you.”
Annoyed at herself, she waved one hand. “Lead on. I’ll try to keep my jitters to a lower level.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Camron was puzzled over Gemma’s continuing unease as she traversed the cavern system with him, but he assumed she was bothered by not being able to see, whereas he had no need of the light, thanks to his Badari eyes.
They’d walked for perhaps ten minutes after her most recent moment of nerves when he discovered how wrong he was. The only thing which alerted him was the clatter her spear made as she dropped it. He pivoted in time to see the weapon rolling across the cave floor and no sign of Gemma. Desperately searching in all directions, he thanked the goddess for allowing him to see the faint glimmer of the lamp receding in the distance.
What the hell? He sprang into action, running through the cave, dodging the stalagmites, splashing through tiny streams, chasing the light. He called Gemma’s name but got no response other than disconcerting echoes. Why doesn’t she answer? The beacon of the lamp was moving away from him faster than Gemma could run, and he wracked his brain for any scrap of knowledge about a cave predator big enough to snatch a human and carry her away like this. He prayed to the goddess that Gemma was alive and berated himself for being overconfident and not taking her concerns seriously.
The light stopped and he redoubled his pace, sprinting the last few hundred yards. When he arrived at the spot, the lamp lay on its side on the rocky floor and there was no sign of Gemma or of whatever had carried her away.
The cavern stretched away from him in all directions, dark and empty. He stood still and consciously slowed his heart rate. Then he took deep breaths of the cold air, pivoting in a circle, seeking Gemma’s scent. He finally found a trace, mixed with something hitting his olfactory nerve like acid and sending a tremor of revulsion through his body. Refusing to give in to despair, he set off along the trail marked by her scent. Once or twice he heard slight noises, as if something or someone was scrabbling across the rock in the distance but, when he stared in that direction, there was nothing.
Try grabbing a full grown Badari and see how you fare. Cold anger motivated him, displacing a fraction of the fear he’d had, terrified for Gemma. He could not lose her. The scent took him down a side corridor, out of the main cavern, and the walls narrowed as he went. Camron had nerves of steel, but he was bothered by the many fissures and side slits he saw in the rocks. Depending on the size and nature of the predator he was dealing with, he could be swarmed. But whatever grabbed Gemma had to be fairly sizable.
He came out on a ledge about ten feet above the floor of a much larger cave. Bubbling pools of viscous liquid dotted the area, glowing yellow and pale blue from minerals leached from the cavern floor. Along the edge of each pool were a series of what he could only term nests, each with a clutch of blotchy, beige eggs stacked in the center. As he watched, the pyramid of eggs in the nest closest to him vibrated, some of them toppling over and one cracking open. A many legged creature with a body the size of his hand crawled out and seized a small bundle Camron hadn’t even noticed until the motion drew his attention. With a flash of horror, he recognized the tightly wrapped object as a living creature, a cave rat by the size of it, encased in a yellow web-like substance. The newly hatched baby stabbed its prey with two stinger-tipped forelegs and began masticating the still living animal, devouring the web as well.
Tough soldier or not, Camron had to fight to control his stomach. The idea of Gemma being held helpless in the same manner as the cave rat galvanized him. He could smell her scent faintly and now he left the ledge, jumping to the cave floor and making his way through the narrow spaces between the ponds.
Where are the adults? Out hunting, he surmised, from the number of web encased victims. The hatchlings must go through huge quantities of food when they first emerged. Some of the nests were empty, only broken shells, tiny bones and vestiges of the yellow webs. He kept his situational awareness ratcheted up high. He couldn’t afford to let one of the adults or a gaggle of the hatchlings ambush him.
Ahead a large yellow bundle lay halfway in a nest, and he broke into a run.
When he arrived, Gemma’s fingertips were protruding from one side and space had been left for her nose, but otherwise she was encased in the yellow webbing. “Goddess, please let her be alive.” He touched her fingertips and was reassured as she tried to curl them to grab his hand. “I’ll get you out of there in no time.” Keeping an eye on the stack of eggs close by, which was rocking as the first one had done, he deployed his claws and sliced through the webbing, starting with the shroud over her face. He had to be careful not to scratch her and the material was resistant to being disturbed.
He kept one eye on the progress of the eggs and tried to lift the web casing with Gemma inside away from the nest but it was attached at several points. Now he sawed frantically at the tethers, breaking through the last one as the first pair of eyes and legs peered at him from a cracking shell. With a roar, he kicked the nest, knocking it loose from the pool’s wall. The hatchling scuttled over the lip of the now deformed nest and came at him. He booted it hard as it jumped. The hatchling fell in a lifeless lump but more were coming, attracted by the sound or the smell of prey.
Camron worked harder on the web casing, until Gemma had both arms free. He handed her his belt knife, taken from the Wanderer’s cache, and she hacked at the shroud with a vengeance as he fended off more hatchlings. “We have to go,” he said. “I’ll carry you and we’ll get the rest of this off as soon as we can.”
She made a supreme effort and tore the material away from her legs. The web’s bonding to the fabric of her utility pants was evidently weaker than to her skin. “Hurry,” she said, panting. “The adults are huge.”
He swept her up in his arms, turned and ran toward the ledge where he’d entered the cave.
“It stung me when it grabbed me—I was paralyzed briefly and, by the time I could move again, the creature had spun the web over my face,” she said in a shaky voice. “Look out!”
Her scream was the only warning he had before two man-sized creatures dropped from the stalactites above. If he hadn’t stopped literally in the instant, the monsters would have landed on top of him. Camron had glimpses of hairy, spidery bodies similar to the hatchling, but he found the creatures flickered in and out of his vision.
“I can hardly see them,” he said, blinking hard as he set Gemma on her feet.
“Well, I can and it’s terrifying.” She held the knife at the ready.
Camron set aside the problem of a threat invisible to Badari eyes. He’d deployed fangs and talons and stood at his full height, displaying his natural weaponry. The creatures skittered, retreating a foot or two but stood as if conferring, rubbing a few of their hairy legs crosswise. Camron wished he had a pulse rifle or some grenades. “Stick with me—we’re moving.”
“There are more coming in from the sides,” she said in a low voice. “We might not get out of here.”
“Oh, I think we will.” He lunged forward with no warning, grabbed the nearest cave spider, and tore it apart before hurling the ichor-dripping pieces at the nearest nest. He spun to the left and seized another which was creeping up on them and treated it in the same brutal fashion.
The hatchlings in the nests where the pieces landed swarmed them with gusto. Camron grabbed Gemma’s hand and pulled her with him as he sprinted toward the ledge, making quite a bit of progress before he was confronted by a wall of five adult spiders. Not being able to see them clearly messed with his mind but, if he looked slightly to the side, his peripheral vision picked up the outline. Their natural camouflage was effective.
“Now what?” Gemma asked, her back against his. “We’re surrounded.”
He tried to be reassuring, offering a bit of trivia he’d once heard in a class. “Nature is efficient. Predators don’t usually tackle prey too large for them, and we’re clearly too big for these creatures."
Gemma wasn’t having any of it. “Nice theory, but if enough of them swarm us—”
The chittering rose to a crescendo and cut off. The cavern became so silent Camron heard water dripping from the stalactites. All the adult spiders he was facing swiveled to stare to the right, so he did as well and swallowed hard. A new player had entered the cave, with a body three times larger than the others, perched on legs at least five feet tall. He heard Gemma swear under her breath as he did his best to win his silent standoff with the giant spider, who he guessed was a queen or an alpha. Reaching out, he grabbed an unwary adult and ripped it in half as he’d done with the others, tossing the oozing body parts into a nest, rousing the hatchlings there to a frenzy.
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