Bethany's Heart (Unearthly World Book 3)

by C. L. Scholey

  Bethany didn’t know how long she lay on the bottom of her water grave. The creatures ate from her one at a time, sucking her expelled air into their expanding bodies. When they had feasted they simply dropped off to allow another to take a turn.

  Water began to swirl furiously around her. The leech was pulled away with a sickening sucking sound and Bethany heard Arax’s angry voice. She was pulled into his arms, his air bubbles circled her head and she could breathe normally without the pressure of the leech creatures.

  “Damn. Damn. Damn.”

  Bethany heard Arax swear before she slipped into unconsciousness.

  Chapter 10

  “I’m going to kill you.”

  From the fast uneasy look on Arax’s face before he masked his emotions, Finn knew he understood. Finn took in Bethany’s sodden pitiful appearance as she lay on a huge bed unmoving. He strode over to her and when one of Arax’s men came too close Finn gripped the beings shoulders and tossed him across the room.

  “Arax, how could you?” Trex said. “She’s just a tiny human female.”

  “I thought she was lying about not being able to breathe. I’ve heard stories of humans being underwater for hours. I planned on retrieving her before the water rose too high but was distracted. I had a failsafe plan. Our leechins breathe out oxygen in much the same way our trees did at one time. You see, a disease has overtaken much of our plant life in many areas. The pathetic shells of what once was tree life is all that is left. If not for our leechins, our society would be in danger.”

  “Father told me of humans,” Trex said, he was glaring at his older brother. “This human would have been terrified of the leechins.”

  “This human shouldn’t be on our planet,” Arax thundered.

  “We crashed, you ass,” Finn shouted.

  Finn carefully scooped Bethany into his arms. Her breathing was shallow, but she was breathing.

  “She stinks,” Finn yelled. “Where is your washing room?”

  “You are both prisoners,” Arax reminded him.

  Finn set Bethany down and pulled a fluffy white pillow under her head. He then rose and stalked Arax.

  “Guards,” Arax bellowed.

  The twelve guards that raced in were immediately tossed back out. Finn was in a rage. Not one guard moved after tangling with him. Only Trex stood between Finn and Arax.

  “She may never wake because of you.” Finn growled. The ominous rumbling deep within his chest gave testimony to the warrior beneath the healer. “How much of that filth did she ingest?”

  “Not much,” Arax said. If he was worried about Finn’s animosity, it didn’t show, but Finn saw the beings gills flutter at his throat. “The leechins would have sucked the water out of her lungs. Our healer has looked at her. He won’t chance putting her in our healing machine; it’s never been used on a human and we have no idea what the effects would be. He suggested waiting it out until we have no other choice. She should wake soon. I don’t know why she hasn’t woken yet.”

  “Maybe because some big fucking slimy things were playing suck-face with her,” Finn roared. “I went to your cell where she was kept, looking for her. I saw those creatures. No wonder she’s unconscious. First, she’s faced with drowning, then attacked by things you used as a failsafe? Just how fucking stupid are you? Wait, never mind, because I already know,” Finn bellowed. “Your cruelty is only surpassed by the Gorgano.”

  “Arax,” Trex whispered urgently. “There is talk of the Zargonnii making an alliance over this with Tiger Sharks. Make this right. Swallow your pride, brother, before we all die.”

  Arax sighed dramatically. “It was never my intention to kill the human. I had no idea how fragile they are. I would never intentionally kill a female of any species.”

  “Finn?”

  They all turned as Bethany began sitting up. She lifted her hands and sniffed the air in disgust. Finn raced to her.

  “It’s alright, sweetheart. I’m here.” Finn turned to Arax. “She needs a washing area before this shit makes her ill.”

  “Very well.” Tightlipped, Arax strode to a door he opened to reveal a huge pool filled with clear water. “I trust this will do.”

  “Finn, help me stand,” Bethany said. Finn scooped her up. “No, let me walk,” she insisted.

  Finn helped Bethany towards the door. As they passed, she stopped and gazed at Arax. His return gaze was cool. Bethany smiled, barely lifting the edges of her lips at the sides. Finn admired her courage. He admired her more when she balled a tiny fist and smashed it into Arax’s surprised face.

  Arax chuckled at Bethany’s angry expression. She hadn’t budged him; he was too powerful for one so small.

  “No hard feelings?” Arax smugly asked.

  Finn tucked Bethany into the crook of his arm. The blow he sent into Arax’s smug expression not only moved him—it sent him ten feet to crash into a wall. Arax was out cold. Finn gazed over at Trex.

  “When he wakes up, tell him no hard feelings.”

  Trex looked relieved.

  The washing area was huge, surrounded in brilliant glowing multi colored lights from an array of stalactites and stalagmites. The pool was filled with the anomaly. Finn settled Bethany into the steaming water. She gazed up at the multitude of glowworms lighting the darkened room.

  “The ass has good taste,” Bethany muttered. “This is beautiful.”

  “You are beautiful. If the ass had good taste, he wouldn’t have allowed someone as breathtaking as you out of his sight.”

  “I missed you.”

  “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to save you.”

  “You’re here now.”

  Bethany leaned over to kiss him, but he held her at arm’s length. “Normally I’d ravish you at the invitation but we need to get this filth off of you before you get sick. I couldn’t care less what you look like at the moment or your, interesting, odor. But for health reasons, this crap is coming off.”

  Finn scooped up water to trickle over her head; his hand scooped each drop with loving care. The moisture drizzled between her breasts after he rid her of all clothing. Bethany leaned back and let him take care of her. Finn’s thumbs washed her face; her sweet cheeks were satiny soft. Dark eyes blinked as he laid her back across his arm to wash her hair. There wasn’t a single second his hands were off her body.

  With tenderness Finn lifted each leg for inspection. His huge fingers made her giggle as he washed between each toe. When there was only one place to cleanse Bethany sighed as Finn traced her mound under the water. Her softness welcomed him as he spread her lower lips. A finger delved deep. Her back arched accepting more of his careful exploration.

  “I want to look at you,” Finn said.

  “I want to taste you.”

  She confused the hell out of him. This one tiny human caused so many huge emotions. Bethany pulled herself onto the pool side and tugged him against her. Finn straddled her face with his thighs as she spread her legs for him to gaze at her. Female Zargonnii would never allow this position. They’d kill him for sure. Finn jumped when Bethany took his hard cock into her hands. He groaned when she pulled him lower. When her lips settled over him he could have roared in response.

  Finn tried to concentrate; after all, it was he who suggested he wanted to look at her. It was hard to explore with his eyes when half of him was buried deep in her mouth. Tiny fingers rubbed his balls in an exquisite circular motion. Her mouth was warm, her tongue wet and smooth. There was so much of him her teeth grazed over his hardness. Blunt little teeth against his manhood were driving him wild.

  As Finn slipped two fingers inside of her, he watched as they disappeared higher. A small bud drew his curious stare and he pressed his thumb against it. Bethany moaned and sucked him harder. Lowering his head Finn determined to taste too. His lips closed over the bud and as his tongue laved she squirmed under him. Her breathing intensified as he lowered pushing more of his length past her lips. He wanted to be closer to her femaleness.

&nbs
p; Never once had Finn ravished a woman’s area, but he was now. His movements became merciless as he explored what was now in his grasp and not off-limits. The dominant warrior Zargonnii came to life with her taste exploding into his mouth. His little female was highly aroused and Finn lifted his head to roar in pleasure. Bethany quivered when he grew into full battle mode.

  “You are my female,” he said on a throaty growl.

  Bethany was weakened from her near death experience. Finn sensed it. He turned and pulled her against the length of him and entered her powerfully. Her entire body was cradled within his arms. From the way he held her, she couldn’t move. He didn’t want her to exert herself. She was only to feel and enjoy. His body curled around her protectively. As they rolled, Finn felt them drop into the pool. He was submerged while Bethany remained on top of him. He could see her expression of distress until he grinned at her. Zargonnii could hold their breath, that she worried for him was sweet. No one had worried over him for a long time; his father was deceased, his mother was a Zargonnii female—which spoke volumes. But his Bethany worried for him now. Finn never remembered feeling so happy.

  The waves they created lapped at Bethany’s waist. Her beautiful long tanned legs were firm under his touch and silky soft. She straddled him, riding him with her back arched and her stunning sleek, black long hair hanging down her back. She had mentioned her mother was Inuit, her father Caucasian. Finn had no idea what that meant or if it was important. What was important was that she was with him, that she meant everything to him, and she cared for him. Really, what else was there?

  Finn lifted his body up into a sitting position. His hand gripped her ass, dragging her down as she rose. His other hand played with a breast. Zargonnii female only had breasts when they nursed. Bethany’s were beautiful. She was aroused again; he felt the warm wetness of her insides soak his cock. He pressed her head to his chest, wrapped his arms around her and thrust fast up and down until she was screaming his name. Finn loved the sound of his name on her lips. Twisting to get his feet under him, Finn rose to a standing position. He gripped her hair, arching her back so he could gaze into her face as he took her harder.

  Her eyes were wide, her mouth open to gasp in air. His thumping resounded throughout the room. Each slap to her thighs sent her forward—he dragged her back. Zargonnii males mated every two years. When they did mate it was for long periods of times over the course of two weeks, knowing it would be a long time before they could satisfy their needs again. By the end of their Holiday, many males were hard-pressed to drag their exhausted asses home. Zargonnii females were hardy enough to take what the males gave. Bethany was not. Finn tempered his brutal thrusting when her body went limp. She wasn’t going anywhere, he reminded himself. She was his forever. This wasn’t a Holiday, it was so much more.

  Finn bellowed his release. He lowered them both back into the water where he washed her again. Bethany was cuddled to his chest, unmoving. She sighed and dug her slender fingers into his fur.

  “Finn?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are we mated?”

  “Yes.”

  “Finn?”

  “Yes.”

  “I love you.”

  Three simple words. Finn had no idea the depth of his emotions for her until that very second. Someone loved him. He then realized Bethany was right; for a warrior, he was sensitive. In his arms lay his destiny, his love, his life, his everything. He’d murder ten thousand cyrons if he had to, to keep her safe. Finn grinned at the thought. Sensitive, maybe, a bad ass, for sure.

  * * * *

  Bethany stood outside holding Finn’s hand. She was dressed in a simple garment of silver shorts and a matching shirt, both of which clung to her. A gift from Arax. Her own clothes had been shredded from her tumbling around the cell as the water filled her prison. Arax had taken them to a remote area where the sun shone bright; they were basically alone. The water they stood in front of looked pure and clean.

  “I have opened you a water portal,” Arax said with a wave of his hand. He looked at Finn. “I cannot send you home. I have searched your waters but everywhere there is scum in some form. You would be fine, but your mate’s flesh would be peeled from her bones during the journey.”

  “We have fresh water,” Finn said.

  “Yes, that’s true. But you also have defenses. I can’t simply open a portal and have you step through into fresh water. The journey is longer and complex. This planet has relatively safe water in most areas. It’s easier to configure.”

  “I’ll drown,” Bethany said.

  Arax sighed. “No, you won’t drown but you’re not going to like the alternative. The only communication we have with other planets is our portals. The planet I am sending you to can contact your world directly. It is the closest to Finn’s planet.”

  “Back it up, water boy,” Bethany said and narrowed her gaze onto Arax. “What do you mean, I won’t like the alternative?”

  Arax clapped his hands and Bethany groaned when one of his people came forward holding a large leechin creature.

  “Oh no,” she moaned.

  “I’m afraid it’s the only way. This big guy will last you the trip, he won’t fall off, and you will be able to breathe.” Arax looked smug while he explained.

  Finn took her in his arms. “I’m sorry. I can’t leave you here; I don’t know how to get back. This isn’t really a planet, it’s a place.”

  “I know it’s a world within a world. How can something exist and yet not?” Bethany asked.

  Arax took the leechin and stepped forward. “When this drops from you, release it into the water and it will find its way home. I wish you well, little human. You would have been fun to add to my collection. Perhaps there are more humans alive on Earth that would give up their hell to stay with me.”

  Bethany balled her fists. “You stay away from humans. We’re not toys.”

  Arax grinned at Finn. “I’d wish you well, but you’re an ass and I don’t like you.”

  “I’d rather be an ass than a fish, scale boy.” Finn took the leechin. Bethany tried not to vomit. “Don’t fight it, it will keep you alive.”

  “I won’t fight it, but I don’t have to like it either.”

  It took everything Bethany had not to try and rip the leechin from her face as it sealed itself to her mouth and nose. The suction cup clamped over her skin and before Bethany lost her mind Finn grabbed her in his arms and jumped. The funnel tube sent them reeling but there was no way Finn would let her go. All Bethany could do was hold on and hope it would end soon.

  The loops in the funnel-tube twisted and turned. She was on the water slide from hell. All around her the waves seemed to grasp at her, pulling her forward, gaining in momentum. At one point her shorts turned into an exceedingly uncomfortable wedgie and her shirt was under her chin, a flashback of a small bikini and waterpark came to mind. She groaned. Bethany knew for certain Finn would be missing a double handful of hair on his chest when this was over.

  The leechin suddenly fell, spiraling back into the funnel pool as it was reclaimed. Bethany thought her lungs would burst and began to flail, needing air, until Finn forcefully broke the surface with a magnificent leap. With her hair in her eyes Bethany took in sweet gulps of clear air. Finn kept his hold on her waist.

  “I’m beginning to loathe water,” Bethany said. She yanked down her top to cover her exposed breasts and wiggled her shorts into a comfortable position. She wrung out her hair between her hands. Finn did the same with his own.

  “Yep,” Finn replied.

  It was time to start a new leg of their journey.

  Chapter 11

  “We will be safe here.”

  Bethany was aided from the water by Finn. “Is this place like your planet? The sky is so clear, so beautifully blue.”

  “No, unfortunately. I know you are used to blue skies, when they aren’t hellish grey. My planet has an array of different colors, pastels. My sister-in-law describes them as a rainbow on cra
ck. The beings here won’t take too kindly to us but they will not risk harming us either. We will be able to contact my planet.”

  “These trees look like dragon blood trees. Huge umbrellas. I’ve seen pictures of such trees but never have I seen one this close. They’re magnificent,” Bethany said.

  Bethany turned in a slow circle. She stepped into a beam of sunlight, sick to death of being wet. After determining they were alone, she shed her clothes and draped her shirt over bushes. She screamed when the thorns on the bush went wild shredding her clothing. Finn retrieved what was left. The long red vines with multitudes of prickly thorns snaked their way into the air to weave and duck.

  “Finn?” Bethany tugged her clothing back on and frowned at her torn shirt.

  “The vines are attached at the root and cannot come close to you. Stay away from them. They can’t hurt me but would rip your soft flesh. Damn Blu, he was right in a sense. Simple annoyances could kill you. I will have to watch you very closely on my planet.”

  “Simple annoyances? Ninja plant is a simple annoyance? Holy hell, Finn. A polar bear is turning into a simple annoyance.”

  “I suppose telling you the plant is kinda cute wouldn’t aid matters?”

  “Nice, Jaws.”

  “Why do you refer to me as Jaws?”

  “Never mind. You wouldn’t understand.” Bethany took a few steps away from ninja plant and dug her toes into the hunter green grass. “Everything smells so beautiful.”

  “We should find some shelter, it will be dark soon.”

  Finn took her hand and began heading for a number of bushes. The area was covered in fog, and Bethany reached out to touch the substance. The swirling motion was deceptive. The smoky substance could be manipulated to form a hard surface. Finn used his hands to cut out square shapes. Bethany touched the thick fog, it was rock hard hanging in the air.

  “This is weird,” she muttered.

  “It’s something close to floating ice. I can cut blocks and make us a shelter. It will keep the elements out. It also keeps the heat, so once inside I can warm the brick with my gaze.”