by V. K. Ludwig
He nodded.
“Take that into consideration. If you’re not fast enough for a certain method, figure out how you can make it work using your superior strength instead.”
“Superior.” He echoed that word as if it tasted strange on his tongue, making it clear his cockiness was likely a farce, hiding his insecurities. “So… would I have to hide on Earth?”
“No more hiding.” I scooted closer to him one careful inch at a time, then pushed myself up to sit while he remained sprawled on the ground. “There’s a diplomatic district we could move to. A good fifteen different races live there, representing their planets. Most diplomats brought their sons and daughters.”
“Hmm.”
That sound held little conviction.
Luckily, I knew just what might convince a teenager, and said, “The females on Earth are very curious about other alien races, you know.”
His eyes locked with mine. “They are?”
“Oh yeah. Ever since we permitted interstellar travel, we see more interracial couples. Horns, tails… they find those things quite fascinating.”
That might just have done the trick, because he nodded. “If I don’t have to hide, I’ll think about it.”
“What is this insanity?”
Naney’s voice had both of us scramble to our feet, and I assessed the damage. Zerim had a busted lower lip and bruises bloomed in shades of purple at the bottom of his cheek. A swipe of my hand over my own bloodied my fingers.
She slapped Zerim’s horn before she yanked him toward camp. “You left meat out to rot in the sun and draw predators. Go finish the gutting, then wash up in the yoni.”
“Yes, Mother,” he mumbled and hurried away with a kink in his spine.
When Naney turned to me, gifting me one of those hisses I’d missed so much, I wrapped my arm around her middle and pulled her against me. “You’ve done well with him, kunazay.”
Tiny fists pounded my chest a few times, but they morphed into fingers trailing over my muscles quickly enough. “You need to stop fighting!”
“We didn’t fight,” I said and pressed my forehead against hers. “I dare say we bonded.”
Nineteen
Naney
For two suns, we’d traveled along the western plateau in search of a new tree. Strong gusts slowed our progress, forcing us to put up a temporary camp within a small forest, the trees barely mature enough to hold our nabus.
Yral sat beside me by the fire and pointed at the clay mug holding the already wilting luplap. “I can brew you more.”
“I’m well.”
Those words bittered my tongue.
My heat eased some more with each sun. And with each sun, a troubling sensation took its place: longing. Longing for Zavis’ closeness, those strong arms he’d wrapped around me many times, and the caress of his palm when I’d slept on his chest.
He’d told me my lie would run its course. What if he was right? What if there had been more between us back then, secretly spreading roots, suffocated by one disastrous event before it could bloom?
“What an odd picture those two make,” Yral said as she gazed over at a clearing where Zavis showed Zerim something on his gun. “Earlier, your mate almost blinded himself because of a nock pinch when he tried to shoot a bow.”
My mate.
As odd as it sounded, it was the truth. Zavis and I were bound before Mekara — if through his bite or my sting, we might never find out.
At first, the bond had been confusing, muddled, dissonant. The more time he spent around camp, the clearer it became, giving me access to the way he perceived life.
My chest widened with his pride when he watched our son hunt. My heart quickened with his desire whenever he looked at me. And my stomach tingled with his joy each night he watched me sit with Zerim by the fire.
I folded my legs beside me and sprinkled some ash into the flames. “Still better than what happened a sun ago, when he accidentally dislocated my son’s shoulder while they bonded.”
Yral chuckled and clasped her arms around her knees. “Zerim didn’t seem to mind.”
Which was the very reason I’d stopped interfering. As much as their constant quarrels had concerned me at first, they brought about an unexpected change in Zerim. He was calmer and smiled more, as if each fight shook him so hard that hate he’d carried just… spilled out.
Even now, my son grinned from ear to ear as Zavis tapped his thigh, showing him just how to stand before pulling the trigger. The sight filled me with a warmth so bright, whatever darkness of our past wanted to cling to me faded away. It allowed me to focus on something Mekara had showed me all that time ago: Zavis.
Right here, right now, he was neither Vetusian nor villain. Neither enemy nor ally. He was my mate, trying his best to be a father to our son after he missed fourteen sun cycles of his life. And he did it so well, accepting Zerim as his son, no matter their differences.
“There’s a group of freeraiders who could bring him to the outskirts of the Yelkut Mountains,” Yral said. “To a hidden launch pad they use to bring in contraband from Odheim. If we pay them, they might consider taking him.”
“Or they might consider selling him out to Krevon. He’s only been Warlord again for a short time and would welcome the chance to strengthen his claim by putting Zavis in chains.”
She cleared her throat. “And what if Earth is truly your best option?”
“Every Jal’zar would call me a traitor. And with Zerim conceived during the occupation…? He could never return here without being scrutinized, or worse.” I placed my hand onto hers. “And what about you? What about all these females?”
“You took care of us for over a decade, Naney, you owe us nothing.” Her attention wandered to Zerim as he approached, and she patted the dirt beside her. “Sit with us.”
He made the sign of Mekara — a tap of his fingers against his forehead before he flicked them skyward — then he lowered himself down. “Did you watch me shoot?”
“We did,” Yral said and tousled his hair, a gesture she’d established when he took his first steps, and one he seemed in no hurry to outgrow. “Your father’s teaching you well.”
He grunted low. “There’s no honor in hunting like this. But Zavis showed me three ways to disarm someone quickly when they least expect it.”
“That’s good.” Yral’s golden eyes flicked to mine, holding them for a moment before she looked at Zerim again. “What of Earth?”
Zerim rubbed his thumb along the base of his horn, shifting uncomfortably in the dirt. “I don’t know. I’m not old enough to decide such things. Mother and I would be the only Jal’zar on that planet.”
“You’re concerned that you won’t fit.”
He nodded, and my heart ached when his shoulders slumped. “But I don’t fit here either, so what’s the difference? It doesn’t matter what color the finger is that points at me.” His head tilted toward me, but only a fraction, making certain I heard him without making eye contact. “At least on Earth I wouldn’t have to hide anymore.”
I didn’t so much as see but sensed the heaviness of Yral’s stare as my own went adrift in the flames. We’d spent fourteen sun cycles roaming the plains, avoiding Warlords, tribes, and freeraiders alike. Nothing but a game to Zerim when he was young.
The older he got, the more questions he asked. Why did he have to hide in trees whenever strangers came around? Why did he have to rub himself with ash, even though it itched his skin? Why did females touch his hair and giggle?
“Getting off this planet would be dangerous,” I said. “If we trust the wrong people, they might sell us out. And even if not, I wouldn’t know how to reach a launch pad while going undetected.”
“There’s a much easier way.” Zavis sat beside me. “I brought a sat sphere with me. All I need is some higher elevation so I can ping the Empire stargazer currently hiding in the shadow of Olem Astra, ready to pick us up.”
I exchanged a look of confusion with Yral. “Empire
ships aren’t allowed beyond the fire belt. Noja will bring it down once it reaches our atmosphere.”
“It’s one of Torin’s ships, equipped with a new stealth technology a woman from Earth developed. He was kind enough to let me borrow it, and the crew’s waiting on my order.”
I couldn’t help but lift a brow at him. “Did you tell Torin what you intended to bring on said ship?”
“Uh-huh.” His fingers walked across the dirt and stroked over mine. “In fact, he was the one who got me in touch with the freeraider who brought me here.” When I only stared at him, he added, “Females have a way of changing us. Ever since he found his fated mate, he’s been… different. It only took one word to convince him to help me.”
“Which one?” Zerim asked.
“Family.” He gifted his son a long smile and nodded. “Oh, he tried hard to get me to accept my anam ghail after he struggled me out of jail. ‘She can give you a family,’ he said, ‘isn’t that what you wanted?’” He intertwined his fingers with mine and squeezed. “I told him I already had a family. A moon later, he put me on that ship.”
“I wouldn’t have expected him to help you,” I said.
“What I didn’t expect was to come here and find out that my family had grown while I was gone,” he said and appraised Zerim. “You have no idea how proud you make me.”
Zerim sunk his head but it did nothing to hide his smile, sending another wave of warmth through me. All his life, our son had tried hard to get the acknowledgement of others — something Zavis showered him with.
“We’re all very proud of our Zerim,” Yral said and reached a waterskin toward Zavis. “Mokhot?”
He shook his head. “Not for me.”
Because he’d poisoned himself with drink for so long, he could no longer touch it. “When was the last time you’ve slept?”
He wrapped his arm around my waist and slowly pulled me against his chest, as if giving me the option to retreat if I wanted to. “When you knocked me out cold.”
I eased against his strong chest. “You still can’t sleep?”
“Sometimes.” The tip of his nose nuzzled my strands, and he let his voice fall into a whisper. “I like this. Sitting here by the fire, talking. We should have done this more often when we had the chance.”
Yes, we should have, but we’d wasted our time fighting each other. “I’m going to bathe. We have to break camp with the first light, and who knows when we’ll find another yoni.”
His fingers glided down along my arm as I rose, tugging on the tips of mine ever so slightly before he let go. He kept my gaze with an unspoken question. Can I come with you?
Fourteen sun cycles ago, Zavis would simply have come along. The fact that he now asked made me nod as I strolled away and walked through the darkness toward the outcropping hiding the yoni.
He didn’t follow right away but remained by the fire, resonating the night with his deep-throated chuckles, sending playful punches toward Zerim.
Thick vines covered the entrance of the yoni, which I pushed aside before I slipped through the fissure. Traces of minerals clung to the moist air. Mildew mixed into it since the water contained little salt, which showed itself on the patches of blue, glowing terani blossoms floating on the still surface.
I peeled out of my cotton tunic, dropped my leather covering on the black rock, and slipped into the water. Many times in the past, we’d had to sacrifice being close to a yoni in favor of safety. Memories like that made moments like this all the more precious, and I scooped water over my hair by the handful.
A footstep brought a grin to my face. “You’re too heavy to sneak up on a Jal’zar.”
“And you’re beautiful,” Zavis said and squatted by the edge, watching me, the gray of his eyes not as cold as the first time we’d met. “Can I join you?”
When I nodded, he slipped out of his jeans. My womb spasmed at the sight of his half hard cock, but it wasn’t what stole my breath. My lungs faltered when he lifted his shirt, revealing the scar.
Puckered and faded, it reached across his ribbed abdomen, but that wasn’t all. Other scars, dozens of them, branched out from it like the young twigs of a mother tree. Instead of leaves, they carried the Jalut rune signs for soulbond, shaman, family, fate, love… and so many more.
I waded over and stroked my fingertips over the pale ones first, then those a bit darker, until I circled the one that had barely crusted over, the skin around it an angry red. “Son.”
He took my fingers, his hand shaky, and guided them to the other fresh cut right beneath it. “Mother.”
“They’re beautiful,” I said and tugged on his hand, gesturing him into the water. “The salt will sting but will also help these wounds heal.”
He confirmed as much when the water sloshed around his body, and his face scrunched up for a moment. The very next, he slung his arm around me, and brought my legs to wrap around his waist.
My cheek sunk into the crook of his neck all on its own, and my nostrils flared at his familiar scent. “Why did you scar yourself?”
“Because you weren’t around to do it for me.” His chuckle caused my head to bounce on his shoulders, but it didn’t last long, dying away as he pressed his palm against the back of my head. “Oh, Naney. Not a sun passed without me thinking of you, worrying about you, wondering if I would ever see you again.”
“You were in my thoughts, too.” Not matter how hard I’d tried to ban him from my mind, he always found a way back in.
“I love you,” he whispered into my ear, letting the bristles of his beard brush over my temple. “Love your strength, your perseverance. But most of all, I love how gentle and loving you can be underneath.”
How many times had he assured me of his love this sun alone? Five? Seven? I soaked it all up, nourishing a soul that had suffered with hatred and loneliness for so long.
I wetted my fingers and let the water trickle over the cut on his cheek. “Zerim got you good, hmm?”
“I’m getting too old to fight, Naney.” His palm, calloused from fleshing furs, stroked up and down my back while he waded us through the water in lazy circles. “When I rode east earlier to scout the area, I found paw prints. Too many to be just a random leap of yuleshis.”
“Could be freeraiders.”
“Could be some Warlord out for my head,” he said solemnly and placed a kiss onto my forehead. “North, east, south, or west. I would follow you in any direction, no matter how scarce the food, how dry the plains, how biting the winds. But…”
I kept his gaze and finished what we both knew. “But Zerim.”
“I knew you might refuse to leave Solgad, and I was prepared to stay if you let me. Torin holds my votes until my return. That was before I learned that I have a hybrid son.” Clasping my chin between his fingers, he placed a single kiss onto my lips. “It took me fourteen sun cycles to come back to you and, by Mekara, I would wait another fourteen if it meant I could finally claim you fully. Make you mine. But time is against us, leaving us with only two options: I leave with you or I leave without you.”
“I don’t know what to do, Zavis. Zerim wants to follow you, but his choice is based on his frustrations. He might never be able to return to Solgad. How will he ever find a mate? What if he doesn’t like Earth? He’s nearly mature, but he doesn’t understand that this choice might never be undone.”
He nodded in understanding and slipped me down along his body, then turned me around, scooping water over my hair. “Do you realize this is the first time I’ve seen you fully naked?”
Because for the first time, we neither hid from others nor from each other. “You never bothered undressing me.”
He tsked and massage my scalp, stroking my hair before his hands slipped to my breasts, where he rubbed my nipples between his fingers. I moaned at the touch and rolled my hips, sensing his hard shaft pressed against my backside.
“Well excuse me.” He lapped at the scar he marked me with, then let his voice fall into a mockingly high pitc
h. “Your seed is all I need, Vetusian. Give it to me or I’ll kill you.” When it ripped a laugh from my throat, he cupped my cheek and kissed the breathy remnants of it. “What a wonderful sound. Almost as adorable as your little purr.”
“I don’t purr,” I snarled.
“We’ll see about that.” In a fraction of a breath, he grabbed my hips and lifted me out of the water, sitting me on the stony edge before he prodded my knees apart. “A hundred things I wanted to do to you, but never had the chance.”
Without warning, his head sunk between my thighs, and his mouth covered my cunt. Time suspended itself for a moment as the hot caress of his tongue lapped at my slit, bringing a tremble to my legs.
Never before had he kissed me there, his tongue dipping inside, teasing my channel with slow circles before he suckled on my lower lips. His mouth ravaged my cunt, letting the glorious pleasure of it rob me of all fight.
I dug my fingers into dark hair streaked with gray. “Fuck me, Zavis.”
His smile hardened lips devouring my cunt, and each suckle tormented me with pleasure that swirled into my womb. “Nobody orders me, kuna.”
When my legs began to shake and my vison clouded, he dipped his tongue deeper. It curled inside me, his tip stroking over that nub hidden within, teasing ripples of pleasure from it. They ripped a primal noise from the back of my throat, and my back arched as I crested against his mouth, fingers yanking on his hair like I was possessed.
My arms flopped about when he pulled me back into the water, my mind still spinning as I let my fingers search for his cock. He was harder than ever before, his veins so thick I could trace them with my finger.
His groan made his chest vibrate, yet he made no attempt at slaking his lust. “Your heat isn’t quite over yet.”
He pressed my body against his and continued wading, a Vetusian holding a Jal’zar, separated by our past but united in our souls, our son… our hearts.
Twenty
Naney
