Sink (Cold Mark Book 2)

by Dawn, Scarlett

  My body warmed as my heart beat heavily. “That sounds like Malik.” The thought of how surprised Leo had been when Malik had volunteered to handle the Mian who had groped me during a game came to mind. “He doesn’t really like unnecessary violence.” Even if he would hand it out if provoked too hard.

  “Exactly,” Pluma Creo stated. “That is the exact reason why you are alive. While Mian love to fight, it is imbedded in who we are, the east and the west would not be wise to have war. It could possibly end our race should that happen.” Down to the crux of the matter. Survival. The one thing Humans, Mian, and Kireg had in common. Survival on our new planets was always number one.

  Done washing, I stepped out of the bath and wrapped a white towel around my body. “What do you plan to do with me then?” Even after hearing all I had, these Plumas being much more forthright, I still didn’t want to return to my Vaq. I never wanted to be played with again as they had played with my heart. “Do you plan to give me back to my Vaq?” Holding the towel firmly in place, I opened the door and peered down at their feet. These fierce Plumas were still sopping wet. “I would like to know my fate.” To escape it.

  “We haven’t decided yet,” Pluma Creo drawled evenly. “We’ve contacted a trusted litigator in regards to the Plumas’ requests to come onto our land. Depending on the litigator’s schedule, we should hear from the Plumas in a day or two.”

  Pluma Moir bent so that he could peer into my lowered gaze. His long white hair hung over his shoulder, and his deep black eyes captured mine. Hooked. I couldn’t look away. As my body began to warm under his perusal, and his lush lips tilted up at the corners, he whispered, “We’ll see.”

  Handcuffed to the footboard of what I presumed to be their bed, I glared. “There will be no sexual contact in this bed while I am in it.” Yes, they were definitely keeping me close. “Do you understand me?”

  Pluma Creo laughed outright as he climbed into bed next to his other half, one of them on either side of my legs, both staring down at me. “Ms. Valorn, no matter what you think, it would be an entirely bad idea to have sexual relations with you. Your Vaq…would not appreciate it.”

  I fumed. My Vaq considered me theirs, and Mian were extremely territorial. “I’m not talking about me. I know that. I’m talking about you two.” My nose scrunched. “Together.”

  Pluma Moir’s jaw literally dropped. I had never seen that expression on him before. One of complete shock…and disgust. “Killeg is my brother!” He shook, his shoulder shuddering with whatever he was thinking. “Ms. Valorn, that is repulsive.”

  My stare was blank, not understanding why that was repulsive.

  Pluma Creo turned his laughter into his pillow, holding his face against it. “Oh my.” He snorted hard, beating his pillow with a fist as he continued in his hilarity, his entire frame even shaking with it. “Technically, Phila, we are half-brothers…but that is enough.” He started laughing all over again, snorting and sucking oxygen hard.

  Brows beginning to furrow, I asked curiously, “Siblings do not have sexual contact?”

  In unison, they both answered adamantly, “No.”

  “Oh.” I tilted my chin up. “I didn’t know that. Humans don’t…mate…as your people do.”

  Pluma Creo peeked up from his pillow, his crystal blue eyes gleaming. “Your best friend, Jax, would argue that statement, Ms. Valorn.”

  I sniffed. I certainly would not think about Jax doing that. “I meant ‘reproduce.’” We had invitro-fertilization for that - no first-siblings that I was aware of. On Joyal, they took great pains to create the best of the best Humans. Not clones of each other. That section of the government was regulated heavily, and followed strict laws.

  “Ah, yes.” Pluma Moir’s lips slowly lifted into a knowing smile. “We had heard that.” He peeked at me from under his white lashes. “Though, we do not mate just to reproduce, Ms. Valorn.”

  Huffing and settling under the covers, I muttered under my breath - in English, “Barbarians.”

  Dark eyes, so very captivating against his white, long hair, held mine steadily. “That we are.”

  “Where the hell are we?” I whispered to my best friend the next evening. We were standing inside a pristine white kitchen, while the Plumas and Stiller spoke softly inside the parlor in the next room. “There are no windows here. Are we underground?” The structure we were in was small from what I had been able to see. The Plumas’ bedroom, the parlor, kitchen, bathroom, and Jax and Stiller’s bedroom. That was it. I hadn’t even been able to scope an exit door to this place.

  Jax lips twitched as he made breakfast for the two of us at the most ancient of stoves possible. I was surprised that he even knew how to use it. “Think the opposite of underground.”

  My brows lifted high on my forehead. “We’re in a hov-craft?” Our people had been trying forever to make living quarters that hovered far from the ground. They hadn’t succeeded yet.

  He nodded, his dark curly hair in disarray from sleep. Like mine. “It’s the Plumas’ personal hov-craft. From what Stiller told me, they use it in emergencies. It has a cloaking device so no one can find them.”

  I stared. “We’re here because of me.”

  “Most would want to kill you, yes.”

  “Because I’m Soul to the other Plumas.”

  “Exactly.”

  I tapped my fingers on the bar. “If that is true, why would they let Stiller on here?”

  “He’s their best friend. And the leader of their military force.”

  “So they trust him.”

  Jax rolled his eyes. “Of course.”

  “And you?”

  His lips twitched before he glanced back to the bacon he was frying. “Yes. With my life.”

  Sitting on a plush black kitchen stool and leaned on the bar, I snorted. “So you’re bonded as deeply as a normal Vaq. Even though you’re Human?”

  “We are.” His shoulders lifted and fell easily. But he cursed when a spray of oil caught his hand.

  “Jax?” Stiller shouted loudly – abruptly – from the other room.

  Jax glanced over his shoulder at me. “See?” Then, he leaned toward the doorway, and answered in a normal tone, “I’m fine. Just the perils of cooking.”

  “Be careful,” Stiller shouted, sounding relieved, before his low voice could be heard once more speaking quietly with the Plumas. It sounded as if they were arguing, but respectfully, about what to do with me. I couldn’t pick up any exact words, except for my name every so often.

  I played absently with my shirtsleeves – or rather, Pluma Creo’s oversized shirt that I had slept in as a nightgown – that smelled vaguely of the Pluma. Like lavender soap and spiced cologne. My voice was quiet when I finally stated – in English, “You’re changing so much.” I shook my head, my black locks of hair tangling around my shoulders. “I’ve lost so much, Jax. I don’t want to lose you too.”

  His grey gaze bore into the side of my face. But with my stomach in knots, I couldn’t look at him.

  “Braita, you won’t lose me,” Jax whispered, also in English. His familiar tone and gentle words made my throat tightened painfully. My eyes burned when he walked to my side and gently placed two fingers under my chin – touching my skin. When I started to pull back, he raised both hands and quickly cupped my cheeks, holding my face steady. He bent at the waist, placing his face directly in front of mine. Still speaking softly, he murmured, “You’ll never lose me. Never. We both live on this planet. We’re only a borderline away from each other, and since we don’t wear the mark of the west or the east, we can cross it easily. I planned to come and see you. I had already talked with Stiller about it.”

  So close, he breathed, “I couldn’t lose you either.”

  My chin trembled at his honest word. “I’m sorry how I acted yesterday. I’ve just missed you.”

  His grey eyes softened further, and he leaned forward an inch. And he kissed me.

  I stilled completely, my entire body shocked solid as
his warm lips landed on mine.

  It was quick. Just the barest of a brush. But I didn’t know what to do. With my eyes wide, I gasped, and my cheeks burned with heat. “Jax…”

  His thumbs brushed my cheeks in a soothing motion while his eyes gazed directly into mine. “There’s nothing wrong with a sweet kiss,” he whispered, keeping his lips only an inch away from mine. “We are friends–”

  “Aw, shit,” Stiller’s voice rumbled from the doorway.

  I jerked, and we quickly glanced in his direction.

  Stiller’s expression was utterly blank, but his gleaming violet eyes were large on his face.

  Both Plumas were just there, abruptly standing behind him. Glowing dark and crystal blue, eyes peered at us with such intensity that my cheeks flamed even further. Their gazes instantly narrowed, turning death-like in their strength.

  Jax quickly pulled his hands away and straightened to his full height. “This is not what it looks like. I swear it.”

  I jumped from my chair when the Plumas started charging into the room. I threw my hands up, wondering how the hell I had even gotten into this mess. “He’s telling the truth–” I grunted, when Pluma Creo instantly blurred behind me, slipped a muscled arm around my stomach, and picked me straight up off the ground, holding my back against his chest. “Wait a damn second.”

  “Shut up!” Pluma Moir barked, standing now between Jax and I. In the next second, he turned his glare on Jax. Stiller took three steps forward, pulling Jax a step behind him, but kept his expression as blank as it had been, even in the wrath of his fuming Plumas. Pluma Moir ignored Stiller, and bent ever so slightly, putting his face at Jax’s level, hissing, “Her Plumas will feel her emotions, you fucking idiot.”

  I blinked, but wiggled inside Pluma Creo’s hold. “What?” I couldn’t feel theirs.

  When neither Plumas spoke, both still staring daggers at Jax, Stiller cleared his throat, and stated quietly, “The rings they wear from your Cold Mark allow them to feel your emotions.” He took another step in front of Jax when Pluma Moir took a threatening step forward, but he kept his tone even. “So what my half did was…unwise.” He bowed his head respectfully to his Plumas. “Which I’m sure he is now regretting.”

  Jax didn’t appear like he was going to apologize any time soon. He proved as much, muttering, “Dammit, it wasn’t that type of kiss. I was just…” His dark brows puckered. “Well, I just missed her. And she missed me. That was all.”

  I cleared my throat, trying to hold on to as much dignity as I could, being held as I was. “And my Plumas no longer wear their rings. I have them.” Hidden. I had wondered what those damned things did. Now I knew.

  Comically, all of the Mian inside the room jolted and stared at me incredulously.

  “What?” I asked, noticing the hostility had immediately lowered with my previous words.

  Pluma Creo peered down at me, blinking repeatedly, and mumbled in complete shock, “Did you cut off their fingers?”

  On their own, my eyes lowered to the ground, and my lips thinned. “I didn’t hurt my Plumas.”

  They had hurt me. My breath still caught at the thought, my stomach even churning with nauseous acid at being duped as I had been. They had each other. Loved each other. I was merely a plaything to them.

  Stiller gaped. “Then how did you get their rings-”

  “Enough,” Pluma Moir commanded in the gentlest, but most demanding, tone. “I believe Ms. Valorn has had enough excitement for now.”

  I didn’t raise my gaze. His words were true – and surprisingly appreciated.

  It was quiet for a few beats until Jax turned, and marched back to the old fashioned stove, stating loudly, “She and I still need to have our breakfast.” He paused, and sniffed the air. “If it’s not burnt by now.”

  Pluma Creo grunted, gently setting me on my feet. “Not alone, you won’t.” He peered at Pluma Moir, his voice a deep timber. “We’re staying in here.”

  Pluma Moir nodded once, not speaking, but agreeing while he silently watched Jax.

  “What are you two doing?” I asked.

  My curiosity had piqued two hours after breakfast when Pluma Creo had produced vials of liquid from his bedroom closet. It was now almost dinner time for Jax and me, and he was still taking up the entire kitchen mixing these liquids together with extreme care. Pluma Moir had joined him, bringing what appeared to be a clear piece of engineering adhesive strip with him - about the size of half my hand. Together, they were sprinkling the cooled mixture on the adhesive material.

  Studying his work, Pluma Moir stated evenly, “The medication in your system is almost gone.”

  I fisted my – slightly – shaking hands. “How did you know that I was taking medicine?”

  Absently, he sniffed the air. “We can smell it on you.” He shrugged when I continued to gape at their sense of smell. “It’s understandable, being as far away from your Vaq as you are. Before Killeg and I invented this, many Vaq and their Soul did the same to handle the pain.” He paused thoughtfully, and then chuckled quietly. “Don’t worry. We’ll bill your Vaq for the cost.”

  “Uh…” I stared at their handiwork. “That’s for me?”

  “Yes,” Pluma Creo answered, lowering his face to stare as he coated the outer edges.

  I blinked, “You two invented a way to reverse the side effects?”

  Again, Pluma Moir shrugged, and then blew lightly on the material, drying it. “I’m an engineer. Killeg’s a botanist. We enjoy creating items to help our people.” His dark eyes peeked up at me, capturing my gaze as he blew once more on the drying liquid. When I didn’t glance away, unable to, my very being caught on his, his lips curved in a sensual manner. He gradually straightened as my cheeks heated. “When we’re not killing people, that is.”

  I jerked my attention away, and stared at the stove. It was safe there. Bland and boring. “You two are a muddle of unparalleled contradictions.”

  “We are who we are,” Pluma Moir stated simply, humor lightening his tone.

  I glanced his way, and snorted. My lips even curved into a slight smile. “That you are.”

  Pluma Creo caught my attention when he lifted the adhesive strip - with delicate care - and walked toward me. “Lift your hair.”

  I eyed the strip. “You’re sure it’s safe? For a Human, that is?”

  He chuckled quietly. “If the Mian medicine that you ingested didn’t kill you, then this is safe.”

  I guess that was true. “What do you two call it?”

  “We named it Solo.”

  “That’s fitting, I suppose.” I lifted my hair into a high ponytail, and dipped my head forward, showing my coded bars of the Cold Mark plainly. “Slap it on.”

  His tone was quiet as he stepped directly behind me, bring a wave of his scent and heat. “We do not slap women on this planet, Ms. Valorn.” Ever so softly, he placed the strip against my Cold Mark, and it instantly adhered to my skin, providing an instantaneous relief that had my shoulders sagging, my head no longer throbbing, and my limbs no longer on a simmer of fired pain. His fingers traced the strip, just grazing my flesh, making gooseflesh rise and a shiver of…heat…run down my spine. He leaned forward, resting his muscular frame against my back, and whispered against my ear, “We live to please our females, and in return…they love to please us.”

  My chest warmed with a feeling unlike I had ever known. It was a yearning. I wanted to press myself back against him. To lower my hair, and drop my head back, and allow him to hold me.

  I ached for his hands to be on me.

  I sucked in a harsh breath. The raw emotion was enough for me to lurch away. I dropped my hair, and even though I knew what this was…it was dangerous. I swung my fingers between the two of them when they advanced a step in my direction. “You said this was a bad idea. Remember? You said my Vaq wouldn’t appreciate it.” I tilted my chin up and eyed them. They appeared like they wanted to take a bite out of me - in the most erotic of ways. Like I was a tasty treat
they wanted to savor. “You were right. They wouldn’t.” It was best to put on a false face when I was shaking now…and not in pain. I didn’t want to feel this way. It wasn’t Human no matter what Jax said. It was barbaric.

  Pluma Creo’s lips twitched almost playfully. “They would never know.”

  Ah, shit. I had said my Vaq didn’t wear their rings any more. “No.” I shook my head. It wasn’t going to happen - whatever was roaming inside their heads. “No matter what, no matter that I ran from them, I am their Soul. Not yours.”

  At my words, specifically at the word ‘no’, both stopped in their tracks. Good.

  Inhaling and exhaling a large breath, I muttered into the stifling silence, “Okay…so I’m just going to go watch a flicker show with Stiller and Jax.” I pointed to the parlor. “I’ll be in there.” Moving as quickly as I could without sprinting from the kitchen, I headed toward the parlor.

  Pluma Moir’s quiet words almost made me trip. “You may be their Soul, Ms. Valorn, but it is Killeg and me that you want. That much is obvious.” He paused. “No matter your words.”

  “Dragon!” Stiller shouted.

  I gaped, turning my attention from Pluma Creo, who was imitating some type of flapping bird, to the purple haired Mian sitting next to me. “You have dragons here?” I had read about them in the few remaining children’s book from Earth. “I want to see one!” The lingering amusement I’d had, because I was playing Charades with aliens, was now gone. Now…I wanted an up-close-and-personal view of a dragon! Hell yeah…

  Pluma Creo, still mute since he was the individual acting while we played our game in the living room, dropped his arms. His shimmering eyes rolled grandly. He sighed heavily but, by the twitch of his plump lips, he appeared to find my outburst humorous.