Kidnapped by a Warrior (4 page)

She
didn’t ask why again. She merely watched him for any sign of bullshit, but he
seemed perfectly sincere. “So what happens now?”

He
sighed out loud. “Keeping you here would mean severe consequences for me, and a
fate I won’t condemn you to if you’re caught. We have to leave. I have to hide
you.”

Chapter
Three

Jakara
showed Callie to the only spare bedroom in his home. “It’s a bit nicer than my
quarters on Addo, and no one will find you here.” They’d taken the ride from
Addo to Voyeur Moon in his spacecraft, after he’d sneaked her out of the
barracks and across the tarmac. The only reason they hadn’t been seen was
because there was a party going on at headquarters and even the guards weren’t
at their posts. But the entire thirty minutes of their flight, he’d checked his
scope for any aircraft following him.

“
Won’t you be missed at the party?” She’d been afraid
to leave the barracks, so he’d had to tell her about the party. There was no
point in telling her what kind of a party it was. That would have only upset
her even further.

“
No. I’ve already falsified my report.”

“
What do you mean?”

“
I mean I lied about having taken you to
Addo
first.”

She
started at him, blinking several times. He didn’t want to tell her what he’d
done, because then he’d also have to explain why he’d gone out of his way for
her. But she wasn’t a woman who would accept a pat answer and move on. She’d
already proven that.

He’d
told her far more than he should have about the Regum and the Tyranns, but
something in this woman called to him. She made him want to spill every secret
he had. No one had ever affected him this way, and he was thrown off balance
because of it.

“
In my report I said that you got away and
are
still on Earth. I explained I had to repair my stun
beam. I surmised it had failed and that’s why you were able to escape me.”

“
Won’t you get caught lying?”

“
Not unless you say something to my Section Chief.”

“
Why would I do that?”

“
You wouldn’t. So neither one of us has anything to
worry about, do we?”

She
walked around the room, touching the bed, dresser, desk, and the drapes. She
pulled them aside and glanced out at the dark night. “Why is your home on a
different planet than the barracks?”

He
took a seat on the bed. “That’s complicated.”

She
turned to face him. “Tell me anyway. Please. I’m trying to understand all this,
but I can’t if you keep giving me vague answers.”

“
Perhaps you ask too many questions?”

She
didn’t answer, but he hadn’t really expected her to. He didn’t owe her an
explanation, but perhaps a bit more information would suffice, and then she’d
stop probing.

“
The barracks were not originally built for the
Tyranns. They were used for the Regum’s army. But now the
Regum
house most of their troops on Sera, and they deign to allow us to keep a small
contingent of troops on Addo.”

“And
why were they willing to give you this planet?”

“Voyeur
Moon is not desirable to most of the Regum in terms of its rocky terrain and
the difficulty reaching it.
Addo
and Sera are close
enough together that our passenger shuttles can travel back and forth with
ease. This one requires a longer journey, and consequently they don’t want to
spend the time and money to develop it. It’s not as visually stunning as
Addo
and Sera. Plus, since the Tyranns have claimed most of
it now, we’re hoping the
Regum
will simply give us
what we want.”

“
You mean give you this planet?”

“
Yes. We want to make this planet our own. We want to
rule ourselves. We want to live here the way we want to.”

“
Do you know any of them personally? These Regum?”

He
frowned. After what he’d told her about their propaganda, he didn’t want to
reveal his past association with one of them, so he decided to tell her just
enough to satisfy her curiosity for now. “I did once, when I was a boy. My
parents were friends with his parents, but my parents had views similar to
mine. Those differing views eventually tore their friendship apart, and
consequently I lost my friendship with their son.”

“
That’s sad.”

“That
is the way of our worlds.”

“
What was his name? Your friend I mean.”

There
was no harm in telling her that. Who would she relay the information to?
“Eldon.
He is a Regum of the Second Order.”

That
was Eldon’s title, but she didn’t need to know that Eldon was part of a growing
number of Regum who weren’t any happier with the archaic restrictions their
rules laid on their people than the Tyranns were. And she didn’t need to know
that Eldon was part of an underground society working to establish a third
class.
One which would bridge the gap between the rigid Regum
and the extreme Tyranns.
Or that Jakara was still in contact with Eldon
from time to time when he needed a favor that only a Regum could pull off.

“
So you’re at war with your own rulers,” she said.

“
You simplify it too much.”

“
So explain it to me. Tell me how it came to this. I
want to understand.”

He
studied her face for a moment. She wasn’t lying to him. He hadn’t come across
many Earthlings who cared about their history or politics very much. “It
started off with asking the Regum to teach less restrictive beliefs about sex
to our daughters. This request isn’t a new one, but they’ve never relaxed their
teaching.”

“
What about your women? They must be curious about
sex, despite being told it’s horrible.”

“
Many are, but as I explained earlier, they are
taught to fear it from birth. But over the years, some strides have been made
in small groups. Once our technology evolved and those isolated groups found
each other, they began to band together.”

She
nodded several times. “Global communication changes everything.”

“
Yes, it does. The Regum relented for a while and
allowed us to bring over the Velone women, but then they reversed their
decision and used the exploding star to further their agenda.”

He
stopped. She didn’t need to know that the Tyranns themselves were becoming more
extreme all the time, and that’s why a third class was beginning to form.
One which opposed the gang-rapes going on with the Earth women.
Then again, if she knew he was part of those who opposed the treatment of her
people, she might respond differently to him. Right now, she likely viewed him
as nothing more than a captor who would abuse her the same way.

“
It still sounds like civil war to me,” she said.

“
You’ve had revolutions on Earth throughout your
history.”

“
I know that.”

“
How would you know such a thing studying art?”

She
shook her head as if she were about to try to explain something complicated to
a child, and it was all he could do not to cross the room and take her into his
arms. He’d show her he wasn’t a child, but a man, capable of bringing her to
heights of passion she’d never even dreamed about.

“
Art history isn’t only the study of paintings or
sculptures. As our civilizations evolved, so did the art depicting their
day-to-day lives. I learned as much about wars, politics, and religion
throughout history as I did about how those civilizations depicted each of
those events through their art.”

Her
passion intrigued him. Would she show the same strength of conviction in bed?
“What is about art that stirs such emotion in you?”

“
I don’t know. I can’t explain it. I can only tell
you how it makes me feel. It touches my soul. It connects me to my ancestors.
It’s
beauty and history in one. What touches your soul?”

What a ridiculous question.
“Battle.
Fighting
for a cause.”

“
What about the stars?
Or music?
Have you no art on any of these planets?”

“
The stars?
They tell the past and the
future. We use them for guidance when we fly. And music and art are the
pastimes of the wealthy ruling class. They’re for those who are gluttonous,
dull of mind, and bored.”

“
I disagree. Music and art have been shown to boost
intelligence in our children. They inspire us. They move us to create and to
love.”

“
And does your porn industry do the same thing?” Her
words were noble, but their entire planet was obsessed with sex for the sake of
the act itself. That’s why their women were targeted. He’d already told her
that.

“
What? It’s not even close to the same thing.”

“
I disagree. We’ve heard people on your planet call
it
art
.”

“
Porn degrades women and reduces sex to nothing more
than an act. There is no emotion or love behind it.”

“
You don’t have to be in love to have sex with
someone.”

She
averted her gaze as a blush crept up her face. “That doesn’t mean we have to
act like rutting dogs, or use each other like our bodies aren’t connected to
our minds.”

He
stood and took a few steps toward her. “Sex is a basic need.
For
us and for the people of Earth.”

She
glanced into his eyes again, and he swore he glimpsed lust. “So when you have
sex with women, it’s just sex. There’s no emotion behind it.”

“
That depends on the woman.” He took a few more steps
toward her, and now he noticed the way her pupils were dilated, and the rapid
rise and fall of her chest and shoulders.

“
Is that why you’ve brought me here?
To this secret home?”
Her voice was breathy, but he no
longer detected fear in it.

“
Would you rather I take you back to the party? I
think you’ll find what you were just talking about there. My superiors and
fellow soldiers, acting like rutting dogs and using bodies for one thing only.”

Her
eyes widened as understanding filled her face, and then she shook her head.
“Thank you for not doing that to me.”

“
I told you I wouldn’t leave you to that fate.” He
was inches from her. Her scent filled his head, making his dick rock hard. She
was likely not even aware of the pheromones coming off her in waves. Most
humans weren’t. “I also told you I won’t hurt you.”

“
Why have you brought me here, then? Why did you take
such a risk and lie about what you did with me? Please tell me the truth.”

He
reached out with one finger and moved a lock of hair off her face. When she let
out a small sigh that was clearly a moan she’d tried to cover up, he couldn’t
take anymore.
“Because I want you, Callie.
I have
since the second I stepped out of my spacecraft and saw you.”

****

Callie’s
entire body trembled. She could hardly be called experienced in bed, but she
wasn’t a virgin. What harm could this do? She couldn’t deny her attraction to
him. But what would happen afterward? Would he go back on his word and send her
to the other men to be used as a sex toy?

Jakara
moved closer still, and now she caught his scent. It was nothing she could
identify, but it ramped up her arousal until she could hardly stand still.
Every fiber of her being ached to touch him.
When he cupped
her face with two strong hands, she couldn’t stop the moan.

“
You want me. Admit it. I want to hear you say it.”

“
I want you,” she whispered.

“
You have nothing to fear from me. I can’t impregnate
you, and we’re immune to your diseases.”

“
Okay.” She couldn’t even process what he’d just
said. It didn’t matter. All she wanted was that full mouth on hers.

He
gazed into her eyes for a few seconds, and she had no clue what he’d done to
her, but her body relaxed a bit. Then he bent his head and kissed her. Callie
would have fallen if he hadn’t encircled her in strong arms. She parted her
lips to let his tongue
inside,
and moaned loudly in
the back of her throat as his teeth and tongue assaulted her mouth.

The
eternal question of how aliens kissed was finally answered. They kissed like
nothing she’d ever experienced or imagined during long, lonely nights. She
wrapped her arms around his torso, barely able to reach around him. His body
was tight and warm against
hers,
and as he stepped
closer still she felt the unmistakable bulge of a huge cock brush her abdomen.