by I. T. Lucas
“Then let’s do it.” Kalugal pushed to his feet and pulled Jacki up. “Where do you want us to sit?”
“Give me a moment.”
Dalhu grabbed an armchair and repositioned it this way and that until he was happy with the lighting falling on it. “Please, take a seat.” He gestured.
Kalugal sat down and pulled Jacki to sit on one of his thighs. “Is that good?”
“Excellent.” Dalhu snapped a photo, repositioned them, snapped another one, and another and another until Jacki groaned.
“Can I go see the dress now?”
“Just a couple more.” Dalhu had her sit in the armchair and Kalugal stand behind it with his hand on her shoulder. “Now you can go,” he said after snapping a few more photos.
“Come.” Syssi took Jacki’s hand and started walking toward their bedroom, then looked at Amanda. “Are you coming?”
“In a moment. I want to discuss the party arrangements with Kalugal.”
“Okay, but don’t be long. We need your hair-styling expertise.”
“Give me ten minutes.”
67
Kalugal
Kian’s sister was a striking beauty. She was regal, confident, a real princess who had mated a simple soldier.
Kalugal had to admit that Dalhu was an impressive male specimen, and he was a talented artist as well, but he was still a simple man who didn’t feel comfortable being part of the royal family.
And yet, they treated him as one of their own, and Kalugal hadn’t detected an ounce of hostility toward the former Brother.
He had many questions that he wanted to ask Dalhu, but not in front of Kian and his people. The problem was catching the guy alone so they could talk privately. Perhaps he would have a chance to do that at the wedding.
“When can I come to see your house?” Amanda asked.
It took Kalugal a moment to realize that she was talking to him. “Whenever you want.”
“You’ll see it tomorrow at the wedding,” Kian grumbled.
Amanda put her hands on her hips and struck a defiant pose. “I rushed over here because you said that Kalugal needs my help to organize a wedding.”
“That was when I thought we were going to have it here in the hotel, but he wants all his men to be there and to hold it in his backyard.”
“Then I’ll help organize it over there.”
Sensing that Kian was about to blow up at his sister, Kalugal intervened. “Thank you for your kind offer, but everything is taken care of. My men have it under control, and it’s going to be a beautiful party. We’re even going to have flowers on the tables.” He looked at Kian. “And thanks to your brother, we will have an air show for entertainment. Perhaps you can have the drones write congratulations or some other lovely message with smoke?”
Kian chuckled. “I don’t think the drones can do that, but maybe we can have them fly in formation. What do you think, Turner?”
The guy shook his head. “They have a different job to do.”
Turner might be a brilliant strategist, but he lacked a sense of humor.
“Well, if I’m not going to help with the party, I can at least make sure that the bride has everything she needs.” Amanda waved her hand at them and then ducked into the bedroom.
“Anyone want a beer?” Anandur asked.
“Bring them out,” Kian said. “I’m going out to the terrace to smoke.”
That was Kalugal’s chance to catch a few words with Dalhu. The doctor had gone with the ladies to the bedroom, Brundar had followed his boss out to the terrace, and the only one left in the room was Lokan, who Kalugal didn’t mind listening to his conversation with Dalhu.
He sidled up to the guy. “I was wondering how you made the transition from a warrior to an artist. Have you always wanted to paint?”
Artistic talent was not encouraged in the Brotherhood, and it had occurred to Kalugal that Dalhu might have crossed over to the clan not only because he’d fallen for Amanda, although that was motivation enough, but also because he wanted to pursue his dream of becoming a painter.
Anandur came out of the kitchen and tossed one beer to Dalhu and another one to Kalugal. Then he went back to get some more.
Dalhu popped the cap and took a sip. “I knew that I could draw, but I only used it to illustrate locations or provide crude portraits of adversaries before photos were invented. When Kian put me in a cell, I offered to draw the portraits of Navuh’s sons, and to prove I could do that, I made a sketch of Amanda. He was impressed by it and told Anandur to get me art supplies. That’s how it started. At first, I only used charcoals and pencils because I didn’t have any training. Later on, I started experimenting with acrylics and oil paintings.”
“You are very good, and I’m glad that you found your passion.” Kalugal took a sip of his beer. “There is another thing I want to ask you. Kian said that your bond with his sister allowed you to free yourself from the compulsory loyalty to my father.” He assumed an innocent smile. “Can you expand a little on that? As you can imagine, I don’t know much about the supposed bond between immortal mates.”
“It’s real, not supposed. And once it binds you and Jacki, you will recognize it. It’s more powerful than any loyalty you’ve ever felt. It will override everything. You’ll do anything to keep her safe.”
“Maybe it’s just the power of love?”
Dalhu shook his head. “Not every pair is fated, but when it is, the connection is stronger than love. Humans fall in and out of love. Immortals mate for life.”
“When did you know that you’d bonded with Amanda?”
“When her brother and his people came to rescue her, and I didn’t kill them because I knew she didn’t want them dead.”
68
Jacki
“It’s gorgeous.” Jacki lifted Syssi’s wedding dress and held it in front of her.
It looked even better in person than in the picture Syssi had shown her.
Jacki had never wasted energy imagining her wedding dress. Her wistful fantasies had revolved around the kind of man she hoped to one day start a family with. But life was full of surprises, and the man who’d found her wasn’t even a man but a demigod, and he exceeded all of her expectations and then some.
“What are all those?” She pointed to the colorful shawls neatly folded and stacked next to the dress.
“Bridesmaids’ saris,” Wonder said.
Jacki’s heart fluttered happily. “I’m going to have bridesmaids?”
“All of us except for Amanda,” Callie said. “She wants to check out Kalugal’s men.”
Jacki frowned. “Aren’t she and Dalhu married?”
Syssi laughed. “She wants to check them out as potential mates for other clan females. And as to your question, Dalhu and Amanda are not officially married, but they are mated, which means so much more than a human marriage. Immortals mate for life.”
“Not all immortals,” Bridget corrected. “Only the fated ones.”
The door opened, and Amanda walked in. “Kian wouldn’t let me help Kalugal with the party.”
“It’s okay,” Jacki said. “His men can handle it. You’ve already done so much. Thank you.”
Amanda waved a hand in dismissal. “You’re welcome, but it was no trouble. Vivian did all the work altering the dress. Try it on.” She shooed her toward the bathroom.
Syssi pushed to her feet. “I’ll help you put it on. This is the last chance to make alterations. I’m not great at this, but I can handle a needle and thread.”
“If you lock the door, I can change in here. I’m not shy.”
Syssi chuckled. “I remember. You had no problem stripping naked in the van.”
“I wasn’t naked, just topless.”
Amanda turned around and locked the door. “I hope you know that a locked door is no barrier to an immortal.”
“I know.” Jacki started on the buttons of her blouse. “Kalugal and I share the master bathroom because the office he converted into a bedroom for m
e doesn’t have its own bath. It has access to the master, though, and when I get in, I lock the one to his bedroom. He told me it was only good as a signal for him not to come in.”
It took her a moment to realize that everyone in the room was gaping at her. “What?”
Amanda shook her head. “Do you want to tell me that you haven’t had sex with him yet?”
“I haven’t.”
“Why the hell not?”
Jacki shrugged. “I’m old-fashioned.”
“Oh boy.” Amanda smoothed her hand over her short hair. “That’s why you are rushing to get married, but you are making a mistake.”
“Amanda!” Syssi glared at her sister-in-law. “How can you say something like that to Jacki a day before the wedding?”
“Because it needs to be said.” Amanda took the wedding dress, put it over the dresser, and then motioned for Jacki to sit on the bed with her.
“I don’t need a lecture about the birds and the bees. I’m inexperienced but not naive.”
“There are some things that you don’t know and should.” Amanda patted the spot next to her. “Sit.”
Jacki shrugged her blouse back on, sat down, and closed one button. She had a bra on, but it would have felt awkward to have a sex talk in a state of half undress.
“How much did Kalugal tell you about sex immortal style?”
“I know all about the bite and the fantastic orgasms it’s supposed to deliver. I’m still scared, but I figured that if all of you are okay with that, it can’t be too bad.”
Callie chuckled. “That’s the understatement of the century. It’s an earth-shattering, mind-altering experience.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” Jacki turned to Amanda. “Anything else?”
“The bite combined with unprotected sex might trigger the start of your transition. So, if you want to wait with that, use condoms, and if you want to prevent pregnancy, you need to go on the pill or get a contraceptive shot.”
“Bridget had already explained all that, and she also said that the chances of Kalugal getting me pregnant are very low.”
“That’s true. But there are exceptions. Eva got pregnant her first time with Bhathian, and they were both immortal, which should have lowered the chances of pregnancy to almost nothing.”
Jacki felt a surge of hope. “I hope Kalugal and I will be that lucky. I don’t mind getting pregnant right away.”
Amanda rolled her eyes. “You’ve known the guy for one week, haven’t had sex with him yet, and you want to make a baby with him?”
“I love Kalugal, and I know that he is the one for me.”
“I can’t believe that Kalugal went along with the no sex before the wedding nonsense,” Carol said. “Immortal males are hornier than bunnies in heat.”
Jacki grimaced. “That’s an unflattering analogy. Kalugal is a gentleman and he respects my wishes. He also feels that I’m the one for him, and we don’t need sex to confirm that.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Amanda said. “To bond with an immortal, you need to have sex with him. That’s how it works. And if the bond doesn’t form, then he might not be the one for you. But it’s probably too late to test it now. The bond doesn’t happen overnight.”
“It did for Lokan and me,” Carol said.
“That’s because you were already an immortal. It takes longer when one of the partners is still human.”
“Both you and Dalhu were immortal when you met,” Carol said. “Did it happen immediately for you?”
“It must have, but I didn’t know that until I tried to distance myself from Dalhu. I realized very quickly that I couldn’t live without him, and that I had to fight for us or never have sex with anyone for the rest of my life.” She turned to Jacki. “That’s another thing you should know. When you bond with an immortal male, you become addicted to him and crave only him. No other male will appeal to you.”
“That’s not a problem. But does it work the same for him?”
“Yes, but for males, the addiction takes longer to set in. Don’t worry about Kalugal straying, though. The bond is powerful enough to hold him tied to you without the addiction. He will never desire another female again.”
Jacki lifted a brow. “Forever? What if I die?”
“If Fates forbid you or he dies, the bond will disintegrate, and only the addiction will linger, but not forever. Eventually, it would be possible for you or him to have sex again.”
“What about love?”
Amanda shook her head. “I’m not sure about that. We are not supposed to get more than one fated mate, and even one is a rare blessing.”
69
Lokan
Kian leaned against the balcony’s railing and took another puff of his cigarillo. “If we get rid of the director and his lackey, there is no guarantee that they will shut down the program.”
With the ladies gone, Lokan wasn’t surprised that the men had started talking shop again, and he was quite sick of hearing about the paranormal program and his brother’s peculiar obsession with taking it down as soon as possible.
He didn’t know Kalugal well, but it just didn’t make sense.
When Kian had decided not to take the other trainees, it had been after he’d consulted with Turner. And if Turner hadn’t been worried about the potential threat the program posed to immortals everywhere, then Kalugal was probably blowing the problem out of proportion.
Turner was cautious, smart, and thorough. There was no way he hadn’t considered all the ramifications.
Lokan had a feeling that Kalugal was plotting something, but he couldn’t say so without causing a rift between them before they even had a chance to reconnect. Besides, he had no idea what Kalugal might be scheming. If he could only get him alone for a few moments, he might be able to coax it out of him, or at least get a sense of something.
On the face of it, Kalugal was too good to be true.
He claimed to have no aspirations for the island, he was much more accommodating than Kian, willing to make concessions in the name of cooperation that Kian was not. And he was winning everyone over with his charm and finesse.
“What I’m worried about is the safety of our locations,” Turner said. “Kalugal’s home is the most vulnerable. The keep has over a hundred residences that are occupied by humans, so I’m not worried about the director knowing that address. The village is invisible thanks to William’s ingenuity, and no one can enter the tunnel without us knowing about it.”
Maybe that was Kalugal’s impetus for shutting down the paranormal program as soon as possible. Jacki was no longer emitting a signal, but her location had been marked.
“You’ll have to move, buddy.” Kian released a puff of smoke into the air. “Even if we get rid of Simmons, your address is noted somewhere in their database. It’s not safe.”
Kalugal waved a dismissive hand. “Why do you think I’m pressing so hard for corrupting their data? I like my house and my bunker. I don’t want to move.”
“You should consider relocating, at least temporarily, until we deal with the problem.”
“I can deal with whoever they send.” Kalugal leaned against the railing next to Kian. “Can I have one of those cigars you seem so fond of?”
“Cigarillos.” Kian pulled out the pack and offered it to Kalugal. “My wife acquired them for me.” He chuckled. “She didn’t like the smell of cigarettes, so I tried to smoke cigars, but those take too long, and I don’t have the patience for it.”
Kalugal pulled one out and sniffed it. “It smells good.”
Kian handed him the lighter. “The clan owns many hotels all over the world, and as you can imagine, occupancy is low right now. I’ll gladly host you and your men until this is done.” He took a puff and watched Kalugal light up his cigarillo. “In fact, our property in Hawaii is the perfect honeymoon spot. You and Jacki can take a couple of weeks off. Consider it my wedding gift to you.” Kian took another puff. “And that includes your men as well.”
Kalugal shook his head. “I’m not taking Jacki anywhere near other humans. Not while the virus is still spreading, and Jacki is still human. But after she transitions, I might take you up on your offer.”
“Right.” Kian tapped the small cigar. “I keep forgetting that she’s not immortal yet. I also worry about Jin. She still hasn’t transitioned.”
“How long does it usually take?” Kalugal asked.
“It has been eight days since Arwel and Jin started working on her transition, and it usually takes no longer than two weeks. But the strep throat infection she had might have weakened her body, and we know from experience that transition doesn’t start unless the body is in perfect condition.”
“Then it’s doubly crucial that I keep Jacki isolated from other humans. She could catch the flu or a cold and her transition would be delayed.”
Kian cast Kalugal an empathetic smile. “You need to prepare yourself mentally for the possibility that she is not a Dormant.”
“I’m aware of that. But as you’ve said, it seems like the Fates had something to do with Jacki and me finding each other. And that makes me hopeful.”
“It’s okay to hope, but you also need to prepare for disappointment. What will you do if she doesn’t transition?”
“I'll keep her and enjoy my time with her for as long as she lives.”
Kian’s eyes were filled with sorrow. “I wish you all the happiness you can have, but I have to warn you. One day you will have to watch the woman you love die, and the pain of it is going to crush you.”
“I know.”
“Then you’re a brave man.”
Or one who was head over heels in love. Except, Kalugal didn’t seem like the type. His brother was in perfect control of his emotions, and Lokan was sure that he wouldn’t let himself fall for Jacki until she transitioned.
“Not at all,” Kalugal said. “Letting Jacki go now is a much scarier prospect.”
