Reaching out, he took the topmost cookie off the pile, then gestured to her, Banner, and the others. “Please, help yourself.”
The cookies, full of exotic berries from the hydroponics level, were delicious.
“Better take one over to Dzaou, and Ghidd’ah,” he said, beginning to get up.
“Sit down, I’ll take it over,” said Banner as a couple of people headed over to their table to pass on their good wishes.
From that point on, there were always at least two people standing by their table chatting to them and any opportunity for private conversation was almost impossible. As soon as his glass of ale was nearing the bottom, another appeared, along with the odd glass of spirits. After the first two glasses, he decided there was no option but to give in with good grace, and it wasn’t long before tales were being swapped and jokes exchanged.
He found the evening passed quickly and pleasantly. All too soon, it seemed, the rec began to empty of people and it was time to leave. It wasn’t till he stumbled as he tried to stand up that he realized he’d probably drunk too much. Banner’s hand was there to catch him.
“Easy there,” his Second said with a grin.
“How much did I have?” he asked, steadying himself by holding onto the back of his chair.
“A fair bit,” said Banner, guiding him toward the door. “Not so much ale, but you had maybe five glasses of spirits. Hell, a birth day only comes once a year; you’re entitled to kick back and relax.”
He groaned. “I’m going to have a hangover tomorrow.”
“Drink plenty of water when you get back to your room,” said Zayshul from his other side. “That will help.”
When they reached the door to his suite, he insisted they leave him to manage the rest on his own. The cooler air in the corridor had woken him up a little and he was steadier on his legs now.
Yawning, he headed for the small sink in the kitchen area and getting his mug, he stuck it under the cold faucet. The first mug went down easily, and he poured himself a second, sipping it as he made his way through to his bedroom.
He was tired, but a pleasant warm feeling suffused him, and the fact that everything he looked at seemed to have a soft focus—slightly blurred, his logical side observed—made his surroundings seem friendlier. Setting his mug down on his night table, he unfastened his robe and tossed it onto the end of the bed. Pulling back the covers, he crawled into bed and was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
He came to suddenly, blinking in the dim light as he tried to remember what had awakened him. He’d left the bedside light on, but he knew it wasn’t that. Despite his still blurred vision, everything seemed to be the same. Barely able to keep his eyes open, he gave in and let them close again. Something was nudging at the edges of his mind, but he had no idea what. His thinking was as fuzzy as his sight right now, but he had a feeling it was important. Frowning, he tried to concentrate. There had been a dream, one with Vartra in it. What was Vartra doing in his dreams?
At the edge of his hearing, he thought he caught a faint sound from the main room. A vague sense of urgency began to build in him, but he was warm and relaxed right now and disinclined to move. Likely it was only a change in the speed of the ventilation fans. Unbidden, the memory of his dream of Vartra returned, nagging him till he began to wonder if they were connected. Then he heard the sound again.
Opening his eyes this time, he decided he really ought to get up. He tried to turn over but found his body leaden and slow to respond—moving was too much effort. He’d had far too much to drink and his imagination was playing tricks by creating noises and feelings of unease that didn’t exist, that was all. Closing his eyes, he gave in once more to the lassitude and began to let himself drift.
He dreamed of Zayshul, smelling her scent surrounding him, feeling her naked skin sliding across his, moving along his pelt until she lay on top of him. Familiarity made his body respond instantly to her presence, kindling fires deep in his belly and groin as he welcomed her. Her hand stroked his cheek then brushed gently against his nose. He reached up to catch hold of her wrist, pressing his tongue to her palm and licking it with short, feverish strokes, aware of the toxins her skin carried rushing into his system, fully wakening and enhancing his sensitivity to her.
Her mouth covered his, kissing him deeply as she raked her claws slowly up his thighs. Moaning softly, he clutched her waist, feeling the fabric of the lightweight lab coat she still wore. He began pushing it aside but her hands closed on his, stopping him.
Leaning closer, she captured an ear between her teeth, nibbling gently on the outer edge, then let her forked tongue flick devastatingly against its interior.
“Slowly,” she breathed, stroking his hair aside then brushing her hand across his lips, hesitating just long enough for him to lick her palm again.
His body convulsed briefly in pleasure as his genitals began to descend. She moved, sitting astride him, leaving him the space he needed. Her teeth gently catching hold of his lower lip, she reached for him, teasing him to full arousal while she nipped her way across his cheek and neck.
Her touch was like fire, and his breath coming in shorter and shorter gasps, he pushed his hands under her clothing, running his hands up and down her back till he spread them across her hips and pushed her up.
As she lowered herself onto him, making him groan in pleasure, somewhere in the depths of his drugged mind he realized it was no dream, and that this was not Zayshul. He was beyond caring, all that mattered was his body’s urgent need for release.
She’d have none of it, and began to pace him, moving herself away from his frantic thrusts, moaning softly as tremors began to course through her body. Her muscles locked suddenly round him, then began to pulse as she finally let him bury himself deep inside her.
He’d barely begun when he heard the sound of a commotion in the corridor outside followed by a loud, sharp noise. She stiffened just as his bedroom door flew wide open.
In slow motion, he began to turn his head to see who it was. Painfully, she leaped off him and sprinted for the door, back-handing the Sholan standing there, sending him reeling back into the main room, then she was gone. The pain her abrupt departure had caused brought tears to his eyes, and with a whimper, his body curled up on itself. Gasping, he lay waiting for the hurt to diminish.
From outside his room, he was dimly aware of the sound of angry raised voices, Banner’s and Dzaou’s among them. Finally, as the hurt subsided, some idea of what had happened began to penetrate through his drugged senses. Pulling the sheet across himself, he managed to sit up and wind it laboriously round his body, then tried to get to his feet.
Now the adrenaline rush had subsided, he was again having trouble controlling his limbs and all he managed to do was fall onto the floor in an untidy and painful heap. Pushing himself up on shaking arms, he managed to reach the door and haul himself to his feet by hanging onto the doorframe with one hand while the other clutched the tangled sheet. Blinking furiously, he tried to make sense of what he could see and hear.
Four Prime guards were holding onto Dzaou and Banner, preventing them from either coming in or leaving, and they were arguing loudly. It took him three attempts and all his concentration before he could manage to get his tongue working enough to speak.
“Go!” he managed to croak as, his legs finally giving way again, he collapsed onto his knees. “Leave!”
The group froze and Banner took advantage of the moment to jerk himself free of one of the guards.
“Kusac!” he called out, before turning on the other. “Dammit! Let me go, can’t you see he needs help?” he snarled as the third guard left the now handcuffed Dzaou to grab hold of him.
“The General has been sent for,” said the guard. “You’ll remain here until he arrives with the Doctor.”
Kusac shut his eyes and leaned weakly against the doorframe. His blurred vision was making him feel nauseous now.
“No Doctor, ” he said. Bad enough that the w
hole Outpost would know what had happened without her seeing him in this condition. He pulled futilely at the sheet, trying to stop it pressing painfully against his erection that refused to subside, but it was now caught under him and he couldn’t move it.
“Just go,” he whispered, ears flattening against his skull in distress as he tried to shut out the sounds of the raised voices.
Silence descended and as he heard the General’s voice demanding a report, he smelled her scent. Hearing her exclamation of shock, he opened his eyes to see Zayshul running across the room to him.
“Goddess!” she exclaimed as she knelt down beside him. “What happened to you?”
“No!” he hissed, trying to pull back from her. Her presence was having a devastating effect on him as the real marker began to arouse him even further.
“I’m not going to hurt you, Kusac,” she began, reaching out to touch his face.
He let go the sheet to try and bat her hand away. “Don’t,” he said, but it was already too late as she gently pressed her hand to his nose then checked his eyes.
An involuntary shudder of pleasure ran through his whole body. As he leaned closer to her, he tried to fight it, unconsciously reaching deep into himself for the means to counter the drugs coursing through his system.
“What happened?” she asked again. “Dzaou says he saw a female breaking into your quarters and when he tried to get in, the night patrol jumped him.”
“I’ve been drugged,” he whispered, finding he could at least speak now. Craving her touch, he clasped his hand round hers. “In one of the drinks or food tonight, and like you did on the Kz’adul. She wore clothing of yours ...”
“Dear Goddess,” she whispered, her voice as low as his. “Who did this to you?”
“I don’t know. Please go. If you touch me again ...”
“I need a blood sample, you need an antidote ...”
It took an effort of will to let her go. Leaning back against the doorframe, he shook his head. “Go, before he realizes.”
“Release Lieutenant Banner instantly,” Kezule was saying. “You can see his Captain is in distress. Next time, assess the situation immediately, don’t wait for me to sort it out.”
Banner was instantly at his side.
“He’s been drugged,” said Zayshul, turning to him.
“I can see that,” said Banner roughly, elbowing her aside.
He heard footsteps and knew by the sound and his scent that it was Kezule.
“Let me see,” Kezule said. “Some drugs carry a very distinctive odor that’s outside your range of smell, but we can detect them.”
Reluctantly Banner moved aside.
A male hand held his jaw firmly but not unkindly, and tilted his head up. He heard the Valtegan sniff a couple of times then release him.
“He’s been given nothing dangerous,” said Kezule, standing up. “Zayshul, you need to leave.”
“He needs treatment,” she began, looking up at him.
“I doubt there’s any you can give him. Banner will look after him. He can get any medication he thinks suitable from Ghidd’ah. He’s been given that analgesic of ours that makes Sholans drowsy and compliant, then some kind of aphrodisiac. You have to leave, your scent is making the situation worse for him. Q’almo, take Dzaou to the brig,” he ordered. “Where are the other Sholans?”
“We initiated a lockdown on their quarters, General.”
Kezule hissed his annoyance. “You’ve overreacted to the whole incident,” he said disgustedly. “Remove it at once! There was no need to go to those lengths.”
“Yes, General.”
“Kusac, I have to take samples,” said Zayshul. “She can be identified by her DNA.”
He shook his head. He’d suffered enough indignities for one night.
“If not me, let Ghidd’ah do it,” she said persuasively.
He looked past her at Banner, sending a mute appeal. “Make them leave,” he said with difficulty. “Now.”
Banner touched him briefly on the cheek as he got to his feet. “You heard the Captain,” he said to them.
He heard Zayshul getting to her feet. “Banner, your Captain isn’t in a fit state to make that decision,” she began. “It’s up to you to ...”
“I’m sorry, Doctor,” Banner interrupted, “but I disagree. He’s been through enough. What he needs now is to sleep.”
As he was walking them to the door, Banner began to protest against Dzaou’s imprisonment.
“Lieutenant,” said Kezule patiently, “as I understand it, he attacked my guards when they tried to prevent him from breaking into your Captain’s quarters. Not content with that, he escaped and forced his way in. No matter what the circumstances, I cannot allow that kind of behavior. A night in the brig will cool his temper and do him no harm.”
“I expect you to find the person responsible for this. Dzaou said she ran past your guards but they were too busy with him to take any notice!”
“As far as they were concerned, he was the one they’d seen committing the unlawful act,” said Kezule, his tone placatory. “Dzaou has already said he can’t identify her, your Captain has refused to give the Doctor any samples, so until he is fit to give me a statement, there’s little I can do to track her down. We both know that this Dzaou is a born troublemaker. It is even possible that Captain Aldatan invited the female to his room.”
He heard a low growl of anger from Banner. “You and I both know that’s unlikely considering his drugged state! Dzaou did describe what she was wearing, at least you can follow that up tonight! You have security cameras all over this Outpost, there must be something on them!”
“We don’t record from the cameras, Lieutenant. Unless someone in Security actually saw her entering or leaving, then our only two witnesses are Dzaou and your Captain,” said Kezule. “May I suggest that we leave the matter until after breakfast, then we can discuss it in detail? I’ll arrange for M’kou to escort you both down to the Command level. I’ll also see that a guard remains outside all night since the suite is no longer secure.”
His limbs began to shake as reaction set in, and he could feel tears coursing down his cheeks. Turning his head, he tried to bury his face between the doorframe and his arm.
It seemed an age until he heard the door close and Banner was back by his side.
“Can you stand?” his Second asked quietly.
Fighting the impulse to attempt it, he shook his head, trying to rub his face against his arm.
“Let me help you,” said Banner, supporting him.
When he was upright, Banner eased his shoulder under Kusac’s free arm and helped him stagger back to his bedroom. As his Second tried to turn him round to sit on the edge of the bed, his legs began to shake again and he collapsed back onto the floor.
Banner crouched down beside him. “I have to ask, did you invite her here, Kusac? Is that why you wouldn’t let them take the tests?”
“No,” he said, using his hands to pull his legs up till they were pressed against his chest. “It happened, it’s over, leave it,” he said, stumbling over the words as Banner began to swear angrily under his breath.
“What can I do to help? Would you like a shower?”
It struck him as funny and he began to laugh, well aware there was an edge of hysteria to it.
“It won’t help,” he said, wiping his still streaming eyes. “It’ll wear off in an hour or two.” He saw realization dawn on Banner’s face.
“Gods, someone will pay for this!” his Second said, reaching out to cup his hand round Kusac’s cheek. “I promise you they will!”
Banner’s touch and scent were comforting, something reassuringly familiar for the first time in months, and without realizing, he relaxed into it. It was enough to set the tears flowing again as complex emotions—his own and Banner’s—fueled by the drugs still in his system, coursed through him.
Sitting down, Banner put his arms around him, holding him close while he wept.
“Let
me get fresh sheets at least,” he said, smoothing Kusac’s tangled hair when the worst had passed. “Maybe they can get her DNA off these.”
Kusac shook his head. He couldn’t let that happen. Zayshul had been there the night before, they’d find traces from her as well.
“Just help me into bed then go back to yours. I’ll be fine.”
“I’m staying,” Banner said firmly. “There’s no way I’m leaving you alone tonight.”
“I need to be alone,” he said slowly, fighting the drug’s compulsion to agree with Banner. “It’s making me ...”
Banner took him by the chin and turned him round till they were facing each other. “I know what the drug’s doing,” he said quietly. “I’m an empath, remember? I am staying with you.” He let his hand slide down to rest on Kusac’s neck, the gesture an implicit invitation. “It’s your decision whether or not we sleep.”
“I don’t understand why anyone would do this to him,” Zayshul said as they headed back down in the elevator to the Command level.
“I don’t know either,” Kezule said tiredly, leaning against the side wall.
“Was it wise to lock Dzaou in the brig? He was only trying to protect Kusac.”
“Are you that naive, Zayshul?” he asked. “Dzaou does nothing without a personal motive. He’s been seen by the Security cameras watching Kusac’s room, that’s why I started the night patrols a few weeks ago.”
Her blood ran cold as she looked at him.
Misinterpreting her reaction, he continued. “You doubt me? Why did Dzaou have to break into Kusac’s room once Security turned up? He’d reported the incident, it was up to them to deal with it, not him. He actually prevented them from investigating the situation. No, Dzaou suspected your Sholan had a female in his rooms and wanted to catch them in the act. And he did,” he added, as the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened. “That’s what he wanted, though what use it would be to him, I’ve no idea. Your Sholan seems happy enough for the youngest one to mix freely with our females.”
“To force him out of command,” said Zayshul as they began to walk down the main corridor. “So Banner has to take over.”
Between Darkness and Light Page 63
