by A. G. Wilde
A phekking Tasqal.
Everyone knew Tasqals were vile creatures and his own mor had sold him to one.
He’d been hardly old enough to fend for himself, much less Sohut.
The memory of those first few nights in the pits mining precious metals came back to him hard and he tried to focus on spreading the tilgran waste over the roots of his plants.
The pits had been bad. A network of dark, damp, caverns filled with the stink of excrement and sex. No adult, much less chid, should have been sent to work in such conditions.
But even then it was better than working for the Tasqal female above ground. She’d have wanted him and Sohut in her bed. He’d known the only reason they’d been thrown in the pits to dig was because they’d been too young to fill her gaping cunt.
It was a horrible realization for a chid and an even more horrible one for a chid to live with.
He’d kept it from his brother—kept most of the bad things away.
At least, he’d tried.
Just as he did then, he had to work and focus. He couldn’t let the past consume him.
Work. Focus.
He put the last of the tilgran waste along the roots of the plants and lifted his gaze to the pink sky.
He needed to get back to his animals.
It was the only thing that would push the memories away.
The animals always needed tending to, and that helped. It helped to keep his mind off things.
It gave him peace and quiet in his own head.
He loved the serenity…the solitude.
It was his and he owned it in his own space.
Nothing could take that away from him.
“Doo yoo need en-nee help?”
Riv closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Nothing except that.
She could hear him inhale deeply, even as his shoulders stiffened.
Damn.
It was very clear he disliked her presence.
After he’d left her in the barn with the huge death-dog, she’d decided to wait it out there but then she was pretty sure he was probably going to leave her there if she let him.
She’d finally found him a long way off from the buildings in a field with large trees that looked laden with red and orange fruit. As she neared the trees, she realized the “fruit” had thick fur. They were the shape of peaches, some with fur redder than others, some with fur more orange than others, and some with fur that had a balance of both colors.
He’d been shoveling some soft purple mush onto the roots of the trees, moving along the line as he did, unaware of her approach.
She hadn’t meant to creep up on him but having no shoes, her steps had practically been silent on the soft ground.
When it was clear he hadn’t seen her approach, she’d finally decided to say something to him.
“Do you need any help?”
Now she stood watching him as he exhaled slowly.
He’d snapped his head in her direction then, a growl rumbling through him.
Lauren tried to smile.
“I could help with whatever you’re doing, you know. I don’t have much experience but…I could help out anyway. I’m a fast learner. You won’t know I’m here. I won’t even get in your hair.”
Her gaze moved to his hair then, to the golden coils decorating some strands, before her eyes settled on his face.
Even with the cloth around his face, she could see his jaw working as he clenched his teeth.
Instead of replying to her, he made a low growl before he moved off to another section of the trees, squeezing random fruits as he moved past.
Lauren gulped and followed him. Behind her the huge dark dog walked in her footsteps, almost as if it thought she was its new friend…or plaything?
She wasn’t about to forget the way she’d been knocked backward by the animal. If it had wanted to shake her in its mouth like a chew toy, it could have.
With that thought, she hastened her pace to catch up with the blue alien.
He still hadn’t said anything to her. He seemed to be ignoring her, actually. Or, at least, trying his best to do so. The rigid set of his shoulders told her he was all too aware of her presence.
She wasn’t usually one to fill awkward silences, but she felt the need to say something.
Maybe that need stemmed from not having anyone to talk to for a whole year.
“You know, these look like peaches back where I’m from, though smaller,” she said, her eyes on his back as she trailed behind him. “And without the fur.”
No response.
“I can’t think of any fruit that had fur. Sure, we had fruit with weird outer skin.” She paused. “Like dragon fruit…that was kinda strange.”
No response.
“Did you plant these?”
With a grunt, he glanced back at her, his brows dipped behind his dark glasses.
Okay, maybe she was talking too much.
Moving over to the other row of trees, but careful she wouldn’t lose sight of the alien, Lauren reached up and touched one of the fruits.
The fur was unbelievably smooth. She could imagine this would make great bedding or mats of some sort.
The fruit was hard when she squeezed it so she moved to another tree down the line and did the same thing, following the actions of the alien in the row next to her.
As they worked in silence, she could almost feel his eyes on her, but she kept her gaze on her task…whatever this task was.
She assumed he was checking if any of the fruit was ripe and by ripe, she assumed the fruit would be soft when squeezed.
It didn’t take long before she found one that her fingers sunk into without breaking the skin.
Elated, she squeezed the fruit again. “Hey! I think I found one.”
The death-dog, Grot he’d called it, came closer and bumped her with its nose and she was sure she heard a grumble in the next row.
Looking his way, she found the alien was still moving down the row, ignoring her.
“Uh, I think I found one?” Her voice waned and her smile fell.
She wasn’t getting through to him.
She could almost laugh at her circumstances.
First, she’d been stuck behind a glass barrier with no one to speak to.
Now, she was outside that barrier and she still had no one to speak to because the one being in her presence didn’t want her there.
Beside her, a loud boom vibrated through the air as Grot…barked? It was such a deep sound, she stared at the animal, unable to comprehend how that sound could come from a living thing.
Yea, this was no chihuahua.
But the sound caught the alien’s attention.
With a grumble underneath his breath, he moved over to where she stood, his blue hand grasping the fruit she was holding, barely brushing over her fingers before she let go.
He paused as he squeezed the fruit before snapping it from the tree and walking away.
“Why, thank you, Lauren. You’re welcome, sir,” she murmured low as she followed him, but he continued on, either ignoring her or deciding not to respond.
She was pretty sure he heard her, even if he couldn’t understand what she’d said.
As they left the field, her bare feet treading in the path he made through the grass with his boots, the death-dog followed behind.
A yawn made her mouth spread wide.
She didn’t know how she was tired when she’d spent the day doing nothing.
She was more tired than she’d realized, actually.
Maybe finally sleeping properly for two nights in a row had her body wanting to catch up on months of lost sleep.
Looking upward, the sun was still high in the sky, though.
Stifling back another yawn, she followed Riv.
He headed to the enclosure with the cow-hippos next, closing the gate behind him. When he turned to face her, his brows were still beneath his shades.
Lauren fought back a smile.
&nb
sp; He was so grumpy. There was no reason to be irritable, especially in such good weather.
He had no idea how lucky he was, living out on such a beautiful farm, free from aliens who wanted to rape or eat him.
Compared to where she’d been, this was paradise.
Leaning against the enclosure fence, the death-dog settled by her and she watched Riv work.
He began shoveling uneaten hay and grain while the animals mostly ignored him.
He moved with the efficiency of someone who knew exactly what they were doing.
“So,” she said, “you do all this work alone? No one to help you?”
Riv paused and looked her way.
His brows weren’t beneath his shades now but they were starting to go there the longer he looked her way.
It was almost as if he’d gone into his head while working and forgotten she’d been watching him.
“I couldn’t do all this work alone. I sucked at doing anything manual. Not that I didn’t try or anything.” She paused. “I worked in a bank back on Earth. I was an investment banker. But I guess we were alike, a little.” She smiled at him. “I farmed for great portfolios and interest rates. You farm for…” She tilted her head and shrugged. “I don’t know what you farm for.”
Riv’s brows were beneath his brows now and she resisted a chuckle.
She was talking too much.
And, the funny thing about it was that, even though she knew he couldn’t understand her, she couldn’t stop speaking.
A year without having anyone to speak to had been torture. She realized that now.
For the most part, she’d talked to herself to keep from going crazy. But right now, she never valued the gift of conversation more—even if it was with a guy who clearly didn’t like her.
So she kept talking, lowering her voice so she wasn’t bothering him, and told him about her job back on Earth, of the clients she remembered, and her coworkers.
She told him of her parents and her friends, of her little two-seater car and her horrible neighbors.
Whatever came to her mind, she spoke about it and by the end of the day, when the sun began going down, she felt surprisingly fulfilled.
Talking was indeed therapy.
When Riv set his rake down and turned to look at her, brows still beneath his shades, she knew he’d had enough of her and it was time to go inside.
He moved toward the gate then, his eyes on her even though she couldn’t see them. She could feel them, though.
That intense gaze of his was locked on her.
He paused at the gate and gave her a long look and Lauren found herself swallowing hard.
Suddenly, his presence was overpowering.
When he’d been moving around the enclosure and not directly beside her, she could almost forget that he was the large, dangerous male that had opened her box and snarled at her.
But now that was coming back to her.
It was coming back to her really quickly, for in his silence there was danger lurking—a bit like how a snake could be silent and then launch itself at you suddenly.
Without a word, he exited the enclosure, slammed the gate shut and walked toward the main building.
She guessed she should follow him then?
14
Entering the main building, the dog trailing behind her, Lauren stepped into the corridor of the dwelling and headed to the front room where she’d held her host at gunpoint.
There was no sound other than her own movements through the space and, once again, she wondered where he’d disappeared to.
He didn’t seem to want to spend even a second longer than necessary in her presence.
But the fact that he left her alone to fend for herself must mean that he trusted her, right?…if even just a little. Either that or he just didn’t care what she did or what happened to her. She could try running away and leaving his farm and she doubted he would bat an eye in her absence.
Resting herself into one of the chairs by the table, her feet drummed on the floor as she waited. The dog, Grot, came and rested in front of her, laying on its side, its four eyes blinking at her before it looked off uninterestedly.
Well, at least he was better company than his owner…who was still missing.
“I wonder where your owner is,” she murmured, and Grot’s focus came back to her. “Do you know where he went off to?”
The dog didn’t answer. Instead, it looked away again, its eyes reflecting boredom.
Lauren chuckled slightly. “You know, when I was young, we had a Golden Retriever and I used to talk to him all the time. Ask him about his day, tell him about my problems…you know, the typical things you talk to a dog about. One day my father saw me talking to the dog.” She leaned down on her elbows, her face resting in her palms. “I was in a really bad mood that day and I was shouting at the poor animal, asking him why he wouldn’t talk back to me. My stepdad came out and saw me. You know what he said?”
Grot didn’t make any indication he was even listening.
Lauren continued anyway. “He said that I should stop forcing the dog to talk because if he did speak, I wouldn’t like it.” She paused, the memory running through her mind. She remembered it like it was yesterday. “I never talked to the dog like that again. Dad was right. It would have scared the hell out of me if my dog had answered.” She looked at Grot, who was still staring at nothing in particular. “On Earth, dogs don’t speak,” she whispered, eyeing Grot. “Funny. If you spoke right now, I wouldn’t even be surprised… Guess that’s what knowing aliens exist does to you. It messes with your mind and your perception of reality and everything you thought you knew. For all I know, I could still be in the terrarium imagining all this.”
Easing up off her elbows, Lauren inhaled deeply as she glanced around the room.
“That wasn’t supposed to end like that. It was supposed to be a funny story but I guess this is no laughing matter.” She sighed. “I just…I guess I’m nervous, you know?” She paused. “Your owner really doesn’t care that I’m here, does he?”
Grot raised his head a little to look at her, a low sound in his throat as if he was telling her not to get her hopes up about that.
“Yea, you’re right. But…where does that leave me then?”
As she watched the dog get disinterested once more, its head resting back on the floor, Lauren swallowed hard.
Where did that leave her?
The female was noisy.
Even two rooms over and with the cleansing unit on, he could hear her talking.
Who on Hudo III was she even speaking to?
Her soft, feminine voice sounded happy even though she was in less than desirable circumstances.
He hated happy people.
Their happiness was irritating.
Using the soap berries to create a lather, Riv soaped himself, his scowl still prominent.
She was still talking.
He could hear her.
Her native tongue was one he’d never heard before, and he’d heard many. Life in the mines had exposed him to most of them. But hers was different.
Some of her syllables were drawn out and some were barely pronounced. It sounded almost as if she was speaking Urgli—there’d been one being in the mines who’d spoken that language—but the words the female said weren’t Urgli words.
Geblit had said she was a…human. The word came back to him suddenly.
He’d never encountered that species before and he could only assume she’d come from some far out planet.
Turning on the water spout, he allowed it to wash the soap suds from his frame before the blast of warm air hit him to dry him.
Satisfied, he exited the cleansing unit and went to his room.
Phek.
She was still talking.
Outside the cleansing unit, her voice was even clearer in the silence of the dwelling.
And he could smell her too. Her scent still lingered in the corridor from when she’d walked through it.
<
br /> It was so strange to hear a conversation in his house that even though he was scowling in her direction, he couldn’t help but stop and listen a little.
A female hadn’t graced his dwelling in, well, forever.
His brother, Sohut, didn’t invite females over and he certainly didn’t, so hearing a female inside his space was a little jarring.
Slipping a loose tunic over his shoulders and pulling on a fresh pair of trousers, he walked slowly toward the sound of her voice.
She was sitting by the table, arms crossed as she spoke to Grot, who, surprisingly, was laying by her feet, listening to her speak.
How he could stand the constant chatter, Riv didn’t know.
He paused by the doorway, frowning at her.
Of all the things Geblit could have brought to him, why this?
Geblit must have known he’d bought an intelligent being; he must have known she wouldn’t fit in with the other animals in his Sanctuary.
It wasn’t as if he could put her in one of the enclosures…could he?
She looked in his direction then, big brown eyes widening slightly as she saw him standing there.
No. He couldn’t put her in one of the enclosures. Even if he wanted to.
That would be cruel.
He was many things, but he wasn’t cruel.
He’d let her stay in the spare room for one more dark-cycle then he’d take her to the exchange and find someone who would take her off his hands since Geblit wouldn’t return for her.
It took him a few moments to notice she was still staring at him and the realization made him stiffen a little.
Even when she wasn’t speaking, it was as if he could hear her anyway.
That, and she was looking at him strangely.
Her eyes were the most expressive he had ever seen on any being and whenever she was focused on him, it felt as if she was looking through his soul.
She better not.
She wouldn’t like what she saw there.
Right now, though, he couldn’t quite make out what she was thinking.
Not that he wanted to know.
Anything she was thinking could be kept to herself for all eternity.
