Thea munched thoughtfully for a moment. “He’ll show up soon, I think. They are usually about five seconds too late.” She wiped her hands on a napkin and stood. “Want some more soda?” She picked up both glasses when the woman nodded in assent. Turning, she tilted her head inquiringly at her husbands. They both shook their heads.
Sya’tia had been hesitant when she had first arrived and had been a bit bemused by Thea. The smaller women practically hummed with energy. She was the perfect complement for Kyrin’s somber authority and Daeshen’s exacting nature. But, she had quickly relaxed under Thea’s friendly attention.
Sya’tia gasped as the vampire hunter dashed flamboyantly into the room, brandishing a stake. He surveyed the scene and targeted the vampire with a steely eye. Sya’tia wiggled in her seat in anticipation. The vampire hissed at the man and leapt away from the fallen woman. He called out a mocking challenge to the hunter and jumped out a nearby window with a dramatic swirl of his cape. She hissed in displeasure. The hunter ran to the window and stared out. Nothing could be seen but withered tree branches and scraggly wisps of fog.
Thea darted back in, carrying the now filled glasses and plopped back down beside Sya’tia. “What’d I miss?” she asked breathlessly.
Sya’tia glowered. “The vampire jumped out the window!” Her voice was filled with indignation as she watched the hunter check the unconscious woman.
Thea waved a hand. “They always do that. Sneaky weasels.”
The movie progressed.
Both women cheered loudly as the hunter triumphantly drove the stake through the heart of the now vanquished vampire.
A lively discussion ensued afterwards. Daeshen asked Thea questions about her world’s mythology while Kyrin and Sya’tia plotted a new virtual reality scenario based on the movie. Thea suggested they watch more vampire movies before they put the game together. Sya’tia liked that idea and borrowed several of Thea’s novels to read as well.
They made plans to watch another movie the next evening. Thea suggested something different, so that no one became tired of vampires.
Kyrin smiled down at her. “What movie do you suggest, love?”
“Warlock,” she replied promptly. “Julian Sands was fantastic in it! Sya’tia seems to like horror movies, and it’s one of my favorites.” She beamed up at him.
Sya’tia bounced in her seat a little. “Oh, yes! That was so much fun! I would like to see more! I will bring dinner tomorrow, if that is all right?” She smiled shyly.
“Sounds good, I’ll make crispy treats for movie snacks.” The women wandered off, heads together as they made plans.
Daeshen grinned. “That went well, don’t you think?” His mate nodded solemnly, but his eyes held a distinct twinkle. They both followed the women.
Thea had dug out a carton of ice cream and was scooping it into bowls when the men joined them. Sya’tia paused in her lively dissertation of how the virtual reality decks worked to smile at them both.
She blushed faintly when Kyrin winked at her. She was still a bit bemused by Thea, but found the woman charming and humorous and very welcoming. She took the bowl that was offered to her, still listening to Thea chatter happily and the men’s deeper responses. She eyed the name marks tattooed on Kyrin’s throat wistfully. Both men had touched their marks unconsciously throughout the evening. Their obvious pleasure in them and their mated status made her yearn for a family of her own.
A soft chime announced someone at the door. Kyrin went to answer.
Daeshen settled himself in the chair next to Sya’tia and nibbled at the brown goop on his spoon with a cautious expression. Evidently he decided it was good. He dug his spoon back in with more enthusiasm. Sya’tia grinned at him.
Kyrin returned with Corvin in tow. They exchanged greetings. Thea made him a bowl of ice cream without asking, and placed it in front of him before taking a seat for herself.
Corvin cleared his throat and poked his spoon around without tasting the ice cream. “We have finished the first interview.”
The room fell quiet as four pairs of bright eyes fixed on him with unnerving intensity.
“The woman admits to being raped. She described exactly how she was drugged, taken from a public area, and raped. She woke up back in her own cabin with all of her clothing back on and no memory of being taken back.” He looked up from his bowl. “When we asked her if she could describe her assailant she began to have seizures. We sedated her to stop them, but we are not going to put her back in stasis. I spoke with the counselors, they are going to begin therapy and try to avoid speaking of what the assailant looks like until we can determine the cause of the seizures. It may be the stress, but I’m not sure. She doesn’t have a history of epilepsy in her medical files.”
“We will interview the other women tomorrow. I spoke with the Balance asana. They have not noticed any unusual mental activity. As soon as the women recover enough the asana will come to medical and try to help spiritually.” He rubbed his temples wearily and slid a holoreader to Kyrin. “Here are the transcripts of the interview. Maybe we can get something off the security logs from the times she gave us.”
Sya’tia frowned thoughtfully. “I will have them checked. We found several times in the logs that seemed to be scrambled. The computer didn’t report it because they all fell within the parameters of acceptable time loss. I will crosscheck the static against the time she gave you. Perhaps we can download the information from her cerebcom.”
Kyrin nodded and had his cerebcom download a copy of the transcript into a holoreader in Sya’tia’s quarters. “You should have a copy of the transcripts by the time you return to your quarters this evening, Sya’tia.”
The conversation faded around Thea as she drew into herself. She had managed to forget that little comment about telepathy during the course of the evening. Telepathic? And what the hell is a cerebcom? The information that a small computer had been implanted in her brain, as well as its location and capabilities, floated through her thoughts, unbidden. She was absolutely certain that she had no idea where this information came from. Her lungs tightened in her chest as the implications of telepathy and that little scrap of knowledge she should not have rolled through her mind. Maybe that’s why I’m accepting this so well ... Have they been messing with my mind? How much of me really is me? How powerful are they? She slipped out of the room unnoticed. This was something she needed to think about first. Then, she would approach her husbands. Or kill ‘em. Well, maybe, just a good maiming.
* * * * *
Kyrin bid their guests goodnight two hours later and sealed the door. He turned to Daeshen and sighed. Halfway through the discussion with Corvin and Sya’tia they had both developed low, throbbing aches in their temples.
They exchanged grimaces and started looking for their mate.
“Why is she so upset?” Daeshen muttered
“Your guess is as good as mine,” was the mumbled reply.
They peered cautiously around the door of the library. Laser hot gray eyes lanced them from over the top of a book. “Go away,” was growled from behind the aforementioned book.
Daeshen scooted around Kyrin and into the room. He approached her slowly. “What’s wrong, love?” He quickly ducked when she threw her book at him.
She glared at them both. “What’s wrong? Oh gee, where to start? You’re telepathic and didn’t see fit to mention that ... You stuck a piece of metal in my brain and didn’t find the time to bring that up either! It’s dumping information in my head that makes no sense and I can only wonder what else was done to me.” She glowered at Kyrin, who was slinking into the room. “I’m tattooed and pierced like a biker chick and shaved like a porn star. I got married without being asked.” She continued to count off her complaints on her fingers. “I got to channel your deities. Hell, my own deities don’t talk to me as much as yours do!” She looked around for something else to throw.
Daeshen blinked. “Nothing more was done to you. All of us have cerebcoms, lov
e. They make life easier aboard the ship. The only difference between yours and ours is that it gives you more information about our culture. It’s set so that if you think of a question it will try to answer it, if the information is in our database.”
She glared at them. She had managed to discover that for herself while the men were busy. But much of the information that had come flooding in at her tentative attempts to use the cerebcom had confused her and given her a headache, which had served the purpose of irritating her all the more.
Kyrin spoke softly to her. “You are worried that we have tampered with your mind telepathically, aren’t you? That you may not be the same person you were before you met us.”
She nodded, looking away.
Kyrin thought about that for a few moments. He rubbed the back of his neck, carefully choosing his words. “We could tell you that, ethically, we would not do such a thing. We could also tell you that such tampering is very difficult, if not impossible, to do. This is because the person you are, or anyone is, begins to form from the moment of your birth, and in the case of a telepathic person, even before birth.”
Daeshen nodded in agreement. “This is true, love.” He scooted a little closer when no further projectiles were aimed in his direction.
Kyrin rubbed his chin as he continued, “But I believe that you would have a great deal of difficulty believing us right now. I would imagine that you are feeling that we have betrayed you and your trust?”
She nodded, listening, but not quite ready to give up being pissed off at their high-handedness.
Daeshen smiled and patted her knee. “Then you should wait and speak with someone else? Perhaps one of the asana? They would be able to explain the abilities inherent in our race to you better than we could.”
“Your race,” she growled softly, suddenly furious again. “Your race can kiss my ass. Where the hell do you people get off? You seem to think you have the right to do this to us. Like we are some lowly beings that should be grateful that you deign to notice us and make our decisions for us! How dare you?”
Both men winced, hearing her say the things they had thought.
Thea stood and started pacing; finally giving vent to the things that had been roaming around in her brain. She was starting to feel like her brain was a hamster in a wheel. A lot of effort and not going anywhere.
Daeshen fell back, looking up at her with a startled expression.
“I think I’ve been a pretty good sport about this! But enough is enough!” She advanced on Kyrin and poked him in the chest, following when he backed up with a slightly panicked expression. “Oh, sure, you all come off as peaceful, humble little scientists! NOT! What, you think they’d get away with this kind of crap on Star Trek? HELL NO! Spock would have been all over Kirk like a bad rash in August!” she snarled up in his face.
Kyrin exchanged a bewildered look with Daeshen, who was still sitting on his ass staring at Thea like she was a mouse that had suddenly grown fangs and claws and launched at his jugular. He cleared his throat. “Now, darling ...”
“Don’t you ‘now, darling’ me, mister!” She growled again. “You are not nice people! You try, but fail. Oh sure, some of the women were asked, but it’s not like they had all the information before they made their decision, did they? You all smile so sweetly and say ‘come away with me, I love you, I need you, you are everything I ever wanted.’ Shyeah right! Just forgot to mention that little DNA conversion-get-yer-ass-shaved-never-see-your-family-or-friends-again thing, right? And THEN you wonder why we are pissed off and resentful, and oh, maybe, just a little DEPRESSED!” She panted, hands fisted at her sides. “And don’t even get me started about waking up naked and tied up like a bondage queen? Oh, aren’t you two Mr. Sensitivity?”
Color flooded Kyrin’s cheeks. “Uhh ...” he ventured intelligently.
Daeshen winced. “We thought you liked that stuff,” he mumbled.
Kyrin shook his head franticly when Thea turned on the other man like a furious snake.
“Oh yeah! Every woman dreams of being kidnapped and waking up TERRIFIED while two strange men grope her!” she screeched and swatted at the side of his head, missing when he quickly scooted back from her. She glared at him when he jumped up and darted behind Kyrin. He peered at her from over the other man’s shoulder.
Thea glowered at them. They were staring at her with bewildered, wary eyes and comical expressions of absolute dismay. Her lips twitched.
They backed up another step.
Kyrin stumbled over Daeshen as he stepped back. He eyed his furious little mate, thoughts racing through his brain. “We don’t like it either, Theadora. But, you have to understand our side of things --”
“No, I don’t, actually,” came the sneered response.
Daeshen sighed and rested his forehead on Kyrin’s shoulder. “We do love you, mate. And we have waited for you all our lives. We are more sorry than you can know that we could not court you and allow you time to know us and accept us.” He felt Kyrin nod in agreement. “Our people are desperate, Thea, and you know that desperation can bring out the worst in anyone. Please, just give us a chance; give our marriage a chance. We are trying to make it better. We are doing everything we can.” He looked up at her with sad eyes.
Thea felt her expression soften. They looked so sad it broke her heart.
Both men slid toward the door. “We will leave you to your thoughts, my dear,” Kyrin told her softly. “Come to us when you are ready,” he continued as they began to slink from the room.
Thea brooded silently. She had been ready to have a rip-snorting fight complete with screaming, yelling and more than one thrown object. Instead she felt like she had been kicking puppies in front of children. She glowered at her lap. Men suck.
Picking up her book she went to her workroom. After a few minutes of questioning her cerebcom and sorting through the responses she managed to lock the door. A few more minutes of struggling produced the soft strains of Loreena McKennitt’s haunting ballads. She flopped down on her stool and glared at the ceiling balefully.
Dragging several pieces of heavy cloth out of boxes she laid them out in a makeshift pallet. A few skeins of yarn wrapped with another cloth formed a pillow. Surveying her bed with satisfaction she smiled. The quiet and feeling of privacy soothed her ragged nerves. Grabbing her book she stretched out to read until she was sleepy. I need to take my mind off this for a while. Just a little while.
Finally she turned out the light and closed her eyes, trying not to think about her life and the men who were becoming so important to it.
Chapter Ten
Thea woke slowly and sat up. She groaned softly at the stiffness in her muscles and cautiously stretched to loosen them. Last night’s “discussion” with her husbands was still swishing around in her sleep-hazed mind. She made a mental note to herself to find a bed for her workroom since this was probably only one of the several times she was going to find herself needing a retreat from her darlings over the course of their lives.. And I’m not going to sleep on the floor every time they do something stupid or I need some time to myself.
Her belly cramped with sudden hunger. She licked her lips, distracted from her pout and glower session. Fish. Mmm ... And some eggs, too. She unlocked the door to her workroom, heading for the dining area to order a large breakfast of sushi with a side of smelt roe, eggs over easy, watermelon pickles, and milk.
While she waited for it to come she slipped into the bedroom and quietly pulled out some fresh clothing to wear. She glowered at the warm tangle of limbs curled in the center of their bed. The hubbies certainly looked comfy. Men suck. For a few blissful moments she contemplated a nice, cold glass of water right in the center of them. Setting aside her thoughts with a sigh she went to take a quick shower before her breakfast arrived.
* * * * *
Kyrin yawned and stumbled into the kitchen for a glass of water. His nose wrinkled at the unpleasant odor that assailed it. He looked at his wife blearily. She ignored
him and continued enthusiastically crunching her way through a pile of fragrant white-green cubes between bites of what looked like cloudy white mush. He shuddered and didn’t ask, he simply got his glass of water and stumbled to the bathing area.
He made sure the door slid completely shut behind him. He didn’t want the smell following him.
For good measure he grabbed a bottle of deodorant and sprayed the room liberally. What was she eating that smelled so awful? He wasn’t going to ask though.
She might make him try it
Thea chewed on her pickle slowly and added a few more lines on to the sketch she was working on. She watched Kyrin scoot out of the room from the corner of her eye and smirked. Nothing like the aroma of fish eggs and sweet pickles first thing in the morning to start your day off right! Humming to herself more cheerfully now, she slurped up another swallow of her milk and thought about what she wanted to do with her day. And few things make a bad mood better faster than sharing it with an innocent victim!
After finishing her breakfast she stacked her plates and ordered tea and some of the seaweed biscuits the men preferred for their own breakfast to be delivered in approximately thirty minutes. That completed, she locked herself in her workroom again to work on her tapestry.
Several hours later she peered into Daeshen’s office. It was empty. She did the sneaky ninja stalk to the bedroom. Empty. She scampered silently to the door of the bathing area. Score! She heard the faint sounds of splashing. More sneaky ninja stalking to the door of their suite. After a brief triumph dance she strolled down the hall. Okay, part one complete! Now, if I can just figure out where Sya’tia is ... She consulted with the cerebcom briefly. It would not give her detailed information for privacy reasons, as it was Sya’tia’s off day. Mentally shrugging she decided to explore a bit.
The sheer size of the ship soon overwhelmed her. The crew and passengers all seemed to be very friendly. Although they rarely paused to speak to her, everyone had a smile. She stopped by Sya’tia’s cabin, having asked directions from a crewman passing by, but there was no response when she pressed the “doorbell.”
The Ta'e'sha Chronicles: Daughters of Terra Page 12
