Forced Handfasting (10 page)

The sound of a door closing snapped her out of her daydream. Jahan walked into the bedroom carrying a tray which he intended to sit on her lap once she sat up in the bed.

“It’s about time you woke up. It’s nearly noon.” He stood next to the bed, and waited for her to position herself in order to take the tray of wonderful smelling food from his hands.

“You brought me breakfast in bed?” No one, not even her own mother, had ever made her breakfast in bed.

“I thought maybe you might be hungry after last night’s….shall I say….activities?”

She blushed with his teasing as she tried to hide her face from his view. “I’m just plain old hungry!” she said back right before she shoved a piece of warm buttered bread into her mouth.

Jahan climbed back into the bed and sat next to her as she devoured everything on her plate. She didn’t have a clue to what most of the stuff was except for the bread, but it was all delicious nevertheless.

“Slow down, little one. There is more if you want it.” He snatched a piece of the thin crispy meat she compared to bacon. “What would you like to do today?”

She was surprised with his sudden announcement. For over a week now she hadn’t left the confines of Jahan’s home by order of the healer. “You mean I can leave the house finally?” She chewed then swallowed a mouth full of bread.

Jahan threw his head back, and laughed. “Yes, my sweet. The healer said you were well enough to take small outings. But, he said I am to bring you directly home if you start to feel ill in the slightest way.”

Excitement raced through her. The thought of seeing her new home, for the time being, thrilled her to no end. Her first memories of Uxslore were a bit cloudy because of her health at the time, not to mention the incident at the market. Now she would be able to see everything she had been dying to see up close from her balcony.

“Well, where can we go? I would like to see some of your world.” She chewed on her bottom lip as she thought about what she would like to do for the day.

“Your wish is my command,” Jahan said then leaned towards and placed a kiss on the tip of her nose. “As soon as you are finished, and dressed, we can head out.”

Sam didn’t need any more encouragement than that. Minutes later she had finished scarfing down the rest of her food, then raced to the bathroom to take a quick shower. Upon exiting the bathroom, she found that Jahan had laid out a set of clothes for her to wear. She was curious to know why he chose the outfit he did, but she didn’t want to waste any time dressing. She could always ask him while they were out.

Jahan was sitting on one of the sofas in the living room waiting for her to appear. “Ready?” he asked as he stood up.

Sam walked up to him, and put her arms around his waist then looked up at him. “Yes! Where are you going to take me?” Over the recent days, she had been more, and more comfortable with Jahan. It was still hard for her to believe that he was the ruler of the planet she was on, but heck, what did she know?

She didn’t have a clue to how big Uxslore was or how many people lived on the foreign planet. The people she had seen so far weren’t much different from her people except for the curvature of their ears. On their outing, she planned on asking Jahan as many questions as she could think of. The first few days in Jahan’s presence had been tense, and uncomfortable so she hadn’t bothered to ask too much about Uxslore. But now that their relationship had gone to a new level she felt as if she had a right to know about her home.

Jahan escorted her down the three flights of stairs, and out the front door to an awaiting vehicle. This one though was a lot different than the one she remembered riding in when they went to the market.

“We are going in that?” she asked as she stared at the strange looking contraption.

“Yes. You don’t want to?” The twinkle in his eyes told her he was teasing her.

The contraption, as she called it, was about the size of a dune buggy. The main frame of the vehicle sat above eight wheels that would probably cushion them from any hole it might hit as they drove along. Rather than bars, like a dune buggy would have, solid pieces of metal encased the passenger seating area.

“What is this thing called?” she asked?

“This is called a Land Roamer. It can go over territory that would prevent our everyday vehicles from travelling. Come on, and hop in.” He held open the door while she climbed in, and slid over to the passenger seat. Jahan quickly followed then started the Roamer up. Its engine purred quieter than a sleeping cat. The top folded back without warning, exposing them to the three suns high in the blue sky. Just before Jahan took off out of the drive, two straps slithered out from below the seat to strap her securely in. Satisfied she was ready to go, Jahan gunned the Roamer out of the drive, and onto the mountain road.

“I see now why you chose this outfit,” she commented. The pants she wore were more like jogging sweats but a lot softer, and the matching long-sleeved shirt kept her warm as the Roamer sped along the curving road. The air rushing into the vehicle had a bit of a bite to it, so she was grateful Jahan had taken the time to pick out the appropriate clothing for her. She just wished she had pulled her blond hair back into a ponytail before they left. By the time they got back her hair would be full of knots.

Instead of going down the mountain like they had when they went to the market, Jahan directed the Roamer up the mountain. The road became more and more dangerous as the curving of the mountain grew tighter as they ascended. Sam looked out the window as the trees thinned out then faded away altogether as they reached the peak. The road came to a stop on the top of the mountain so she figured Jahan would turn the Roamer around, and go back down.

“Wow, what a view!” she exclaimed. High above the rest of the city, she looked down on its occupants who looked like tiny ants moving to, and fro.

“I like to come here to think sometimes,” Jahan murmured as he stared out over the edge of the mountain top. “Sometimes I think I can feel my father when I come up here. He too liked to come up here, especially after my mother passed away.”

Sam felt the sadness in Jahan’s words as he spoke about his parents. She had learned from Jahan that his mother had died shortly after giving birth to his sister. He told her how his mother had suffered while trying to give birth to a breached baby. The healer did his best to try, and turn the infant but in the end the strain on the tiny baby girl had been too much. His sister was born dead while his mother passed away shortly afterwards due to the amount of blood she had lost. Jahan had been thirteen cycles when his mother died. It had been up to him for several months after their deaths to care for his two younger brothers. His father had been distraught with the loss of not only his daughter but also his beloved wife.

“I can see why you come up here. It is gorgeous.” She smiled at Jahan to get him to wash away the sad thoughts she knew were running through his mind.

Jahan faced her. “My father loved my mother very much. They had been married for nearly ten years before they had me. My father told me once that they thought my mother was barren, but in their eleventh cycle of marriage, the goddess saw fit to gift them with a child. My mother often told me about how my father would sit for hours next to my cradle just watching me. I guess he thought I was an illusion that would simply disappear one day. Three cycles later my brothers were born, twins of all things! My father had his hands full then with three boys. The cycles went by, and when I was twelve, my mother conceived again. She wanted a girl so badly, but my father was worried because my mother was getting older, and he was afraid the pregnancy would be hard on her. Sadly, it wasn’t the pregnancy that was hard on her, it was the birth. After that, my father was never the same again.”

Sam could identify somewhat with Jahan’s pain. He lost his mother due to her death, but she had lost both of her parents due to their selfish ways. They didn’t want to be strapped down with an infant to look after. They wanted to continue on with their carefree lifestyle while she was raised by nannies then shipped off to boarding school where she remained in until she went off to college.

“Would you like to see Uxslore in a different way,” Jahan disturbed her private thoughts which was a relief. She hated thinking about the way her parents had totally disregarded her.

“Sure.” She wasn’t prepared for what Jahan did next when he started the Roamer back up then back it up all the way to the edge of the circle.

“You’re sure,” he asked her. She could see the mischievous child in him as he watched for her reaction to whatever he was about to do.

She wasn’t about to back down, no matter what he had planned. She didn’t want to look like a chicken. “Positive.”

“Ok.” Jahan smiled then looked out the front window of the Roamer.

A barrage of fear swept over her when she realized Jahan was heading straight for the edge of the mountain. Her hands gripped the seat tightly at the same time the Roamer launched itself over the side of the mountain. Strangely though, she didn’t experience that stomach dropping feeling she hated whenever she went on a roller coaster. The Roamer glided out into the open sky, leaving behind the bulky shape of the mountain’s peak.

“Holy crap!” she squealed in delight. She twisted, and turned in her seat to try, and take in every angle of the view the Roamer now offered. They had to be thousands of feet up in the clear blue sky! It was amazing to be able to look down, and see the ground in all its glory.

Shades of green, brown, yellow, and white mingled together to create the trees, flowers, roads, and grass as the Roamer dipped, and turned. A couple of times Jahan steered the Roamer so close to the ground that she could see several children running after them while waving. She waved back at the tiny dots as they skimmed along below. She glanced up to catch a glimpse of the three suns that hung high up in the sky. The two red circles sat like guards alongside the larger yellow circle that let its light, and warmth caress the ground. Never in her wildest dreams would she have believed she would be where she was at the current moment. It was breathtaking.

Jahan directed the Roamer until she spotted what she thought was a large body of water. Small waves broke across the lavender surface of the water before hitting the shore.

“Why is the water lavender?” She had seen all kinds of colored water but never lavender. While most of the water on Earth was blue, there was the odd times when the water was brown, or even black looking.

“This is the lake of the gods. There is a form of algae that lives in the water that gives it its color. The lake has been that way ever since my people came to Uxslore.

“Can you swim in it or is it not a safe thing to do?” A big fish jumped out of the water then landed with a splash as it sunk below the surface again.

“We swim in it all the time when the weather is warmer. There is a common beach that the children like to go to but, I must admit, it can get crowded when the weather is nicer.”

They rode above the surface of Uxslore for quite some time in silence, each lost in their thoughts. Jahan would periodically steered the Roamer closer to the ground when there was something of interest to show her. He didn’t realize though that everything was interesting to her. As a teacher, she wanted to learn everything she could about this world. Her mind and eyes were like sponges, absorbing every little detail then storing it for later use.

After about two hours of flying, Jahan lowered the Roamer until she felt the tires hit the firm ground beneath her. It was amazing for her to watch as the Roamer transformed from flying vehicle to land Roamer again without a second’s hesitation.

“Where are we?” she asked as she looked around for the mountain she lived on with Jahan.

“I thought we might stop, and grab something to eat.”

“Oh God, yes! I’m starved!” Just the thought of food set her stomach to rumbling. Ever since she started feeling better, her appetite had returned with a vengeance. So far that wasn’t much in the way of Uxslore food she didn’t like, except for the red wormy things that one was supposed to eat while they were still alive!

The Roamer came to a stop in front of a lone building. She was positive it wasn’t open until they walked in, and was greeted by a friendly face.

“Lord Jahan! It is such a pleasure to see you again!” A short, rounded woman rushed over to greet them.

“Bertha! It has been a long time.” He wrapped his strong arms around the much smaller woman. He placed a kiss on her pink cheek as she touched the side of his face with her chubby wrinkled hand.

“You’ve come to eat I hope,” Bertha asked as she looked up at Jahan.

“Of course! You know I couldn’t stay away from your cooking for long! What’s the special today?”

“Ah, you chose a good day to stop by! It’s Gorna stew with a side of Hapsure.”

“Ah Bertha, you know the way to my stomach! I haven’t had Gorna stew in a long time!” Jahan laughed.

Sam wasn’t sure what either one of them was talking about but the smell coming from the kitchen told her stomach she was going to like it.

“You brought a young lady with you, have you?” Bertha smiled warmly at Sam for the first time. “Hello, I am Bertha.” She nodded her head in introduction.

“Hi, I’m Samantha, but most people call me Sam.” She couldn’t help but smile back at the older woman. There was an air about the woman that made one instantly like her.