Coveting Ava

by Rena Marks

  “Thank you. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

  Blaze slowly closed the door. The last image Irina had was of a small family.

  “Do you see what I see?”

  “Yes,” she whispered. “You’re as romantic as Joseph.”

  “Imagine her surprise when her grandparents come to visit her next week.”

  “She’s going to love it.” Irina wrapped her arms around his neck.

  He grinned. “I want everybody to be in love. It’s magical.” His wings came out and wrapped her in a sweet-smelling cocoon, blocking the lights. The world became all about Blaze as he bent his head to kiss her.

  Chapter One

  SIX MONTHS LATER:

  “Ava. It’s time to wake up.”

  From what?

  “Ava. Open your eyes.”

  Her eyes were so heavy it was an impossible task. Her eyelids felt glued shut. But she could feel. The barest touch of a fingerpad, skimming down her temple, over her cheekbone, down to her lip with a feather-light touch.

  “Wake up.”

  Her mind was a dull, gray void. She wasn’t even aware if she’d been dreaming or not, but everything in her body ached. Her throat was raw as if she regurgitated sand from the pits of her belly. She felt pinned in place, and almost panicked, wondering why her limbs didn’t work, when she realized she was covered with a heavy, weighted blanket.

  A face—the world’s most beautiful, perfect face—peered down at her.

  “Who are you?”

  Though her voice was scratchy, her libido was not. The man looking down at her was beyond handsome, there was no doubt about that. Darkened stubble lined his square jaw. His nose was narrow, his eyes dark. The top of his hair swept messily over his forehead and somehow called attention to his sharp cheekbones. She kind of liked that—the sharpness looked regal. There was something vaguely familiar about him, but that could have been because he was so pleasing to look at. Perhaps she’d glimpsed his face in magazine spreads. Or maybe that old-time actor from the antique movies her crazy grandparents liked to watch—Keanu something or other.

  “I’m Thomas. Tom Rivers. Do you remember what happened to you?”

  Holy shit, his voice was so deep and husky. It sounded like he’d just had sex.

  Had she had a drunken one-night stand? Her head was groggy enough to be hung over.

  For the first time, Ava looked around. She was in a cold, sterile room. No natural sunlight—it was perhaps a basement. Two men stood at the door with guns angled across their chests.

  Guns. She was a prisoner.

  She didn’t know why she was here, or how she’d gotten here. Last thing she remembered, her grandparents were visiting. They’d taken a trip together, her grandparents, along with her and her mother. Her mom had seen the ancient Grand Canyon once, before Ava was born, and wanted to see it again. During the whole trip, she told them stories about her father, who’d passed before Ava had ever gotten to know him. The one time her mother had seen the Grand Canyon had been with him.

  Her grandparents had gotten misty-eyed over the memories of their son. They’d talked to Ava about tutoring children on their floating city. As they always did. She was noncommittal. She’d never leave her mother alone on Earth-Ground and her mother’s status as a born citizen kept her from permanent housing on Iota Eight. Sure, she could live with her grandparents, but her mom was too proud for that. And so Ava would stay—Earth-Ground bound. But why she was in a basement with a sexpot and two creeps with guns?

  “I have no idea.”

  “Do you know who you are?”

  She nodded. “Ava Saturday-Trask. I graduated with a teaching degree and I also have a nanny degree. I currently teach at Ryland Elementary in Sector AFG-817 of Earth-Ground.”

  “Then why were you in the city of Xenia, Ava?”

  The sexy man leaned in, the dark pools of his eyes glittering. His perfect lips smooth and kissable.

  “Xenia?” She knew her voice was confused. “The new Xeno Sapien city? I don’t understand. I’ve never been there.”

  Mr. Sexy was silent for a few moments, and during that time she noticed—despite the sensual curve—how cruel his lips looked.

  “I watched on the newsfeeds when they arrived to inhabit the city, of course. Probably along with the rest of the world. But physically, I’ve not been to their city.”

  “What month is it?”

  She didn’t hesitate. School had just let out for the summer. It was year-round on the floating cities, but on Earth-Ground where the temperatures weren’t regulated, it was easier to excuse school for the hottest months of the year than to run air conditioning.

  “May.”

  Something flickered in his eyes. Something alarming, and fear skittered upward along her spine.

  “What am I doing here?”

  “You’re our prisoner. You were captured on Xenia and we’re trying to figure out why you were among the Xeno Sapiens.”

  The doors opened and a short, much heavier man walked through. With a nod, he excused the two guards. His hair was longish and greasy, hitting the nape of his neck. “She’s awake.”

  “She just woke.” Tom River’s voice was colder, not as husky as she first imagined.

  “And the kid? Did she say why she protected it?”

  Ava frowned at him, confusion tangling with something else. Dread. Fear. She had no idea what he was talking about. But who would call a child an it? And which of her students did he speak of?

  Her mind was in disarray and she didn’t understand what they were telling her.

  “I haven’t gotten to that yet. There seems to be some memory confusion. She remembers who she is, but she thinks it’s May. She would have lost almost a year.”

  “A year? What are you talking about?” Had she been locked in this basement for a year? Unconscious?

  The older man stared her down. “I’m going to be frank. We had a contract to grab a Xeno Sapien. You got in the way. We discovered you—pushing a stroller. The kid was so purple it was obviously an alien. The hover-stroller was somehow magnetically attached to you so we grabbed you both.” He leaned forward as if chastising her. “And then you pulled a dick move. At the gates, you flung the stroller back toward some hero Xeno Sapiens, who were running to your rescue.” His voice was mocking. “We had no choice but to flee—losing our prize and even a couple of our men. You injured both Tom and Keith and they were captured by the freaks. Fortunately for you, they managed to escape together a week later. They’re still recovering from their injuries. However, it’s you we need to figure out. You see, you kept us from getting paid for obtaining the kid. But somehow, somewhere there’s a connection between you and the Xeno Sapiens, and once we figure out what it is, we can bargain for a price for you. You will be our replacement contract.”

  “I don’t understand. If you had a contract for a Xeno Sapien...what good will I do? I’m human.”

  “Maybe.” A tic worked in his jaw as he stared down at her. “I never said how you tossed the stroller backward. You flung it with your mind. Tom here says you never laid a hand on it.”

  “My mind?” This whole story was ludicrous. She had no telekinetic powers. “You must be mistaken.”

  “There’s no mistake,” Tom growled from next to him.

  The other frowned at him, then turned back to her. “We’re going to test you to see if you’ve given birth in the last year or so. If so, we know that kid was yours. Maybe you’re one of them natural-looking freaks, instead of the monstrosity kind.”

  “I’ve never had kids,” Ava protested. “I’m an Earth-Ground citizen. I swear. I was born on Earth-Ground, but I retain a Theta Eight naturalization.” What the hell did they mean by test her?

  “We’ll see. I’d suggest you cooperate. It’d be less traumatic for you.” With a look, he angled his head toward Tom. Tom followed him to the door where they quietly whispered back and forth.

  At least it was quiet until Tom got angry. They hissed like they
were arguing under their breath. The boss gripped him by the shirt and leaned in until he was about an inch from Tom’s face. As much as she strained her ears, she couldn’t hear what he said.

  The boss left, leaving her alone with the handsome Tom.

  Though he didn’t look as handsome anymore. His skin was flushed a dark purple, mottling his complexion. His forehead was creased with lines. Then his expression cleared as he took a deep breath and smiled at her, approaching the bed. She scooted backward. The smile looked false. The smile looked criminal.

  “I’m on your side, Ava.” He held his hands out as if to calm a skittish cat. “No one here knows, but I’m on your side. You have to trust me, okay?”

  She narrowed her eyes. “I don’t know you.”

  “You do,” he insisted, leaning in and trying to look sincere. “You’ve just forgotten me. A traumatic head injury—the details of which I can’t explain right now. But do as I say and I’ll get us both out of here.”

  He winked at her.

  It was ludicrous.

  Even more so was the fact she wanted to believe him. How desperate was she that she wanted to believe the words of a criminal over the blank recesses of her mind. Of course, she had nothing else to go on. No memories, no recollection of what was going on, nothing. She was completely baffled by her surroundings, her location, the people—no, the kidnappers—around her.

  “I promise. I’ll keep you safe. Nothing will happen to you.” He sounded sincere this time.

  She really had no choice. And for that, she’d have to pretend. She swallowed once and sent him a tentative smile.

  He was with her the rest of the day and as time wore on, he turned into a nicer person with the guards and boss man gone. She didn’t trust him, of course. There was still something fake about him. But he seemed earnest whenever he claimed he wanted to help her. She didn’t delude herself that it was for his own agenda, but she smiled and nodded her head. She would find out soon enough what was going on. Eventually, she would piece together the puzzle.

  He stayed with her in the basement room that night, sleeping on top of the covers on her bed. She held as still as she could until she finally grew too weary to fight sleep. By the time they both woke, it was morning. He went out and got them some food. She looked forward to being alone so she could search the place, but the two guards returned in his absence. From the door, they stared at her. She had nowhere to go, nothing to do. They had full view of her bed, of every move she made. Soon they began to talk between themselves.

  “Apparently she was fucking them,” one said to the other.

  The second one snickered.

  “Rumor has it she birthed a half-breed.”

  “Can’t be. Those freaks can’t multiply.”

  The first one shrugged. “Maybe they can with humans?”

  “Or maybe she isn’t human. As soon as we can get one of them scientists here, they’re gonna check her out.”

  “If she is human, I’m gonna fuck her hard. I just don’t want pussy tainted by freak.”

  Ava’s heart pounded. Just then the door opened.

  “Get out,” Tom snapped to the guards. “I’m here now.”

  “Yeah, yeah. You know the rules. Whenever you leave, we take over.”

  But they walked outside the door and Tom slammed it behind them, locking it from the inside.

  “Hey, precious, are you okay?” He set down the bags on a small table near the bed and came to her.

  Precious?

  Her nerves seemed to shatter, her lip quivering so hard she could hardly speak. Why did that word sound vaguely familiar? And why would he—a hardened criminal—call her that?

  He wrapped his arms around her. “Ava, it’s okay.”

  It didn’t escape her notice that he was so warm and solid. Why couldn’t these circumstances be different?

  Her tears stung her eyes. The pressure felt like hot needles stabbing at her. “I want to go home so bad. And I don’t know where home is.”

  “Shh,” he crooned. “I’ll take care of you, Ava. I promise. You’ll see.”

  She didn’t know if it was her emotions or what, but it felt good to be held. He smelled good, though it wasn’t any kind of cologne wafting from his warm skin. Too bad he was evil because he really was such a gorgeous male specimen.

  He gently wiped her face and kissed her forehead. “Feel better?”

  She nodded. Just a release of that much emotion helped. She felt wobbly, but not overflowing with heartache.

  “We have to keep our strength up. Let’s get you fed.” His voice was gentle, actually likeable. It was confusing.

  He pulled sandwiches from the bag—roast beef. He handed her one, unwrapping it for her. She took a small bite and groaned. The sandwich was delicious. It could be poison, but she warred with herself and took another bite. At this point, she’d take a painless death with the risk of poison over starvation.

  He ate his, too, in a companionable silence. Since she was pretending to trust him, she might as well pump him for information.

  “What do they eat?” she asked, indicating the door where the guards had gone through.

  “I had to bring them the same thing. These are from a little deli uptown. But as soon as they all start to trust me, they’ll leave me alone in the house with you, and that’s when you and I will make our escape.”

  “How will they trust you?”

  He took a big sigh as if this was hard for him to say. “We don’t have time or resources to get any old doctor here. The scientists refuse to come out. They want me to videotape a medical scan of you—naked. So they know you’re human, in appearance and with recordings. You have to willingly let me take it to show them you trust me and not anyone else because the plan is for me to gain your trust. They’ve been waiting for a doc to get here, but the higher-ups don’t want to risk sending one of their own scientists out here for nothing. Or for a trap. So unless we can get them the recording, no one will trust that we’re doing anything to...”

  Her eyes filled up with tears.

  “It’s okay, Ava. We don’t have to,” he said quickly. “It’ll just establish trust quicker that I can get it from you and give it to them. Then hopefully we can break away. But it’s not necessary. I’m sure they’ll get one of the scientists out here before long. I just didn’t want to go that route, because what if he decides to take you right then and there?”

  They ate their sandwiches in silence. When they were finished, he gathered the trash back into the same bags and set them by the door.

  “Would you like a shower? I’m here. I can watch the door so no one comes in.”

  She nodded.

  He held out his hand to help her from the bed and led her to the small bathroom. “I’ll be right out here. It’ll be safe. I promise.”

  He really was going out of his way to keep her somewhat safe, despite the situation she was in.

  While she showered, she thought about what he said. Eventually, they were going to get what they wanted. Her naked, under a scanner. She may as well grit her teeth and have Tom do it. At least he wouldn’t hurt her.

  Her head snapped up. What the hell was she thinking? Of course, Tom would hurt her. He already did, if he kidnapped her. She couldn’t fall for his false caring act. She had to remember, he was one of her kidnappers.

  There was a bathrobe hanging on the back of the door. All she had to wear was the same flimsy disposable gown she had been wearing since she woke. Her hair was short enough to dry naturally. She scrubbed it with a towel to get all the moisture out and headed out to the main room.

  Tom had made her bed and gotten rid of the trash. His back was to her in the kitchenette area.

  “Do you have a scanner and recorder here?”

  He looked up from the counters he was wiping in the small kitchenette. “They made sure there was one left here.”

  “You’re right. It’s best if you do it. Get the rest of them to trust you faster.”

  He looked
more than pleased, almost as if he won a small victory. “I’ll make it as easy as possible. It’s just you and me in here.” He approached her, tucking a strand of damp hair behind her ear. “I want you to forget about the camera. Tell yourself it’s just us in the room.”

  “I’ll try.” She took a deep breath.

  “Go into the bathroom,” he said. “I’ll set up the camera and get the scanner. You can come out here when I’m done, drop the robe, and lay face down on the bed. I’ll record everything from that angle before we have to turn you over to get the front.”

  Her limbs were jerky as she returned to the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

  She stared at herself in the mirror. Her dark hair was almost dried now. She ran her fingers through it so the longer pieces in front would straighten a bit. They pointed sleekly, mimicking the angle of her jawline.

  Her eyes were too large for her face, even with the strange, uplifted corners to them. Where they lived, she’d never seen another person up close with the tilted eyes. She’d seen pictures. And she knew others existed, just not in the area of Earth-Ground where she’d grown up.

  There were dark circles under her eyes. But her lips were reddened as if she’d bitten them recently. He’d study her back first. She dropped the bathrobe and turned her back toward the mirror, wanting to know what Tom would see first. She had no reason to trust Tom...but she had no reason not to trust him. Quite frankly, he was her only option right now. She’d rather have an option than nothing.

  The barest edges of something on the back of her neck caught her attention. What the hell was it? She angled her head over her shoulder, trying hard to look in the mirror. It seemed to be a tattoo of something. She’d never gotten a tattoo. Was it done while she was unconscious for a year in the basement? Or was it done on Xenia, where she’d lived like the men here claimed? She reached out with her fingers. The skin was unnaturally smooth and inflexible, a bit thick. She couldn’t feel much beneath it.

  “I’m ready,” Tom called out.

  His voice made her jump. She scrambled to yank the robe back up, tying it tighter than necessary around her waist. She opened the bathroom door and stepped out. Tom faced away from her, toward the small kitchenette.