He did as she bade.
“These men are standard issue, average of what a woman will get. You and men built like you make up a small cross section of the population. When some women see a hard body like yours, they want to touch it and make sure you’re real.”
“Men feel the same about you.”
“They might but no man is going to come up and ask to feel me. He knows he’ll get smacked.” She shrugged. “Double standard but oh well.” She met his gaze. “Isn’t it like that where you’re from?”
“Most men of my country have my build.”
“Lucky. Eye candy as far as you can see.” She sighed in much the same way the woman from earlier had. “If they were all as tall as you, I’d be in heaven.”
“Taller.”
He said it without a hint of mirth. She had to laugh. “You’re teasing me and it’s not fair.”
“I do not tease you. I am average height.”
“Really?”
He nodded.
“Ah, to actually be shorter than the men around me. That would be a dream come true.” Imagining it sent a shiver of anticipation up her spine. No man from Chigaru’s home would call her too tall. If Chigaru was average height for a man, then Kitty might be average height for the women. Perfect.
After Kitty paid, they got their food and claimed a table. Two plates later, she asked, “Since you aren’t taking your soul mate with you, when we find that scroll, can I go with you?”
Chigaru startled and he dropped his fork.
“What? What’s that look for?”
“You don’t know what you’re asking.”
“Yeah, I get it. Your world is really different from mine. I don’t care. From your reaction to certain things, I’m guessing you all don’t have the same technology. I’m sure I could get over that.”
“Our way of life is different from yours.”
“I’m adaptable. As much moving as I did in last seven years, I have to be.” She held up her hand when he would have replied. “Just think about it. No need to answer now since we don’t know where that scroll is.”
“Why would you want to come with me?”
“First, my mother would never find me in another dimension so I could finally settle somewhere and lead a normal life without always looking over my shoulder. Second, I like the idea of being surrounded by men taller than me. I like it a lot.”
“The second is a frivolous reason.”
“So what? It’s my reason.” She stabbed a piece of steak with her fork and popped it into her mouth.
“Kitty—”
“Let’s just drop it for now. We don’t have your scroll so arguing about this isn’t going to get us anywhere. We’re both in a good mood. Let’s leave it that way.”
Chigaru nodded and turned his attention to his food.
Kitty said they were in a good mood, but she was lying. Anger at Chigaru’s instant refusal to let her go to his home when he returned reared up and shoved aside her happiness. So what if her reasons were frivolous, that didn’t make her request any less valid.
Being able to dance meant she had a marketable skill. People always needed entertainment. She could open up a school of dance and train others. If those two didn’t work out, she could fall back on her ability to divine the truth. She wouldn’t have to be dependent on Chigaru for her survival, not after the first few days while she learned the currency and such.
Once they found the scroll, she and Chigaru would be having this conversation again. He would agree to take her with him or she wouldn’t read it. Simple as that. Kitty had always felt she didn’t belong. The sensation caused her to run to new locations, searching for a place that felt right.
Being around Chigaru felt right. She got along with him better than anyone else she had ever met. That had to mean his world would agree with her too. She planned to find out, whether he liked it or not.
Chapter Five
Someone was watching her. Considering her profession, she expected it…but not when she was at home and in her own bed. She kept her eyes closed and tried to sleep. It might be Chigaru.
She had caught him staring at her many times in the last three months. Every time he’d watched her with an expression she couldn’t read. Like he was confused about something. At first she’d thought he might be deep in thought and not aware he was staring, but she’d found him doing it too many times to shrug it off.
Deciding to confront him and demand to know why he was always staring at her, Kitty opened her eyes. She froze with shock and fear. The one causing the sensation wasn’t Chigaru. An unknown person loomed over her.
The intruder wore a hooded cloak that hid their gender and their face. Both those things mattered least to Kitty. He—or she—hadn’t made a sound, hadn’t touched Kitty, but the long, wide sword poised over her stomach had her complete attention.
Some nut job was in her apartment and threatening her with a sword. She opened her mouth to call for help but her words stalled in her throat. No, that was wrong. The words were there. She was speaking but lacked sound. Air passed her lips as she spoke but she couldn’t hear anything.
Trying to talk louder or scream didn’t work either. She started to roll away and realized she couldn’t move. Something held her immobile. The weight of an invisible force pressed her against the bed, making her chest feel heavy.
Chigaru!
She wanted to yell his name. He slept beside her. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. He lay on his side with his back to her, unaware of the danger. She tried to touch him, but her hand wouldn’t move in his direction. He was a few inches away, one good jerk would do it, and she couldn’t manage.
“I return this to you,” whispered the cloaked person as he lowered the sword.
Kitty thought he would plunge it into her. He moved the sword slow. The tip pierced her navel and guided the way for the rest of the blade to its destination. Cold, sharp metal slid into her belly, slicing everything in its path.
She panted with the need to scream but no amount of sound—if she could scream—would convey the excruciating agony. Tears seeped out of her eyes. She cried for the pain and for her inability to stop this or call for help.
Every breath pushed her insides against the blade, hurting her more. But she couldn’t stop breathing, no matter how much she wished she could. She welcomed death, or even fainting, if it meant an end to this torture. She wasn’t that lucky.
She remained awake and lucid as the blade severed her spine and the pain she thought couldn’t get worse reached an intensity no human should ever have to bear. Thankful prayers left her lips when her lower body went numb, alleviating some of the pain.
The intruder stopped lowering the sword. “And I give you this.” He twisted the blade with a wrench of his wrists.
Her eyes widened and she rediscovered her voice. Her screams rent the air as she clutched at the blade, trying to pull it out.
“Kitty!”
The strong hand shaking her shoulder dispelled the weight holding her down. Kitty leapt off the bed, panting and crying. She patted her stomach and looked down at herself. There was no wound, no blood. No evidence she’d been impaled by an unknown person.
A dream.
It couldn’t have been. It felt too real. She had never experienced anything that could have fueled such a vivid dream. Thinking about it made her remember every second.
Her stomach churned and she clutched her mouth as she ran to the bathroom. She barely had the toilet lid lifted before she expelled the undigested remains of breakfast.
“Kitty?”
She waved her arm behind her, wanting Chigaru to leave her to her misery. She didn’t hear him walk away, not that she would have, and still felt his presence at her back. Ignoring him, she finished emptying her stomach. Tears continued tracking down her cheeks.
The pain of the ordeal lingered. She kept her hand balled against her stomach, assuring herself it was intact,
and the other clutching the toilet to keep herself steady.
Though she wanted him to leave, Chigaru entered the bathroom and helped her stand. He wrapped his arm around her waist, providing her support, as she bent over the sink and rinsed out her mouth.
Once. Twice. Three times didn’t help. She brushed her teeth and then rinsed for a fourth time, which made her feel a little better. If she could forget that horrible dream, she would be fantastic.
Chigaru ushered her to bed. When he started to walk away, she grabbed his hand. The fear that made her act without thinking disgusted her, but she didn’t release him. She couldn’t. It would happen all over again if she let him go.
He squeezed her hand. “You need water.”
Water. That made sense.
It took a few seconds for her to convey that sense to her hand so she released him. Watching him leave the room scared her more than she wanted to admit. She kept telling herself he would return.
In his absence, every beat of her heart sounded like a thunderclap. She shook with the chill of her fear, and the memory of the blade continued plaguing her. No amount of touching or rubbing her stomach would make it go away.
Chigaru reentered the room and Kitty almost leapt off the bed so she could hug him. She stayed seated and let him come to her. He handed her a glass of cold water. She drank it quickly and regretted the action the second the cold liquid started sliding down her throat to her stomach. The sensation resembled the blade entering her. The urge to cough up the water overcame her but she gritted her teeth and forced it to stay down. She put the glass on the nightstand, no longer interested in the water.
“Kitty?” Chigaru cupped her cheek and urged her to look at him. “You’re safe.”
“It felt so real,” she whispered in a small voice she didn’t recognize.
“What?”
She shook her head, not wanting to talk about it. It was too fresh, still with her. If she talked about it, the pain would return. “So real,” she rasped as she hugged her arms and shivered.
Chigaru stood with his hand on her cheek in his usual silence and waited. His stoic calm helped Kitty bring her errant emotions under control. The tears and shivering stopped first. Focusing on the sounds of busy daytime life of her neighbors helped her ignore the memory of the pain.
“Can you sleep?”
She shook her head.
“You need rest.” Chigaru removed his hand and climbed into bed next to her. “Come.”
Kitty couldn’t refuse. She didn’t have the strength. Laying her head on Chigaru’s shoulder, she huddled against him, burrowing into his warmth and hoping some of it passed to her. When he curved his arm around her waist and held her, Kitty thought she might start crying again.
She inhaled deep to bring her emotions under control. It was a stupid dream. Nothing that warranted this level of theatrics. She felt silly for her behavior and happy Chigaru wasn’t chiding her for it.
The spicy musk of Chigaru’s scent filled her senses. After three months of using her products, he retained his unique smell. It didn’t stink. She found it soothing.
He whispered, “I’ll keep you safe. Rest.”
Those firm words full of assurance helped Kitty relax until she fell asleep. If she dreamed again, she didn’t remember any of it. The music from her alarm woke her a few hours later. She groaned.
Chigaru asked, “Do you want to call in?”
“And owe Vincent money, not likely.” She said the words but didn’t try to move away from Chigaru so she could start her work day preparations.
“Are you better?”
She balled her fists against his chest, not answering.
“Kristar?”
“Don’t call me that,” she grumbled, though she enjoyed hearing him use her real name.
Despite her warning not to, Chigaru had gotten into the habit of using her real name. He did it when they were alone. Though his use of her real name didn’t grate on her nerves as much as when others did it, she still continued her habit of telling him to stop.
At this moment, she wanted him to say her name a hundred times so the enjoyment overshadowed the lingering dread of her nightmare. She sighed. “So long as I don’t think about it.”
“When you want to talk, I’m here.”
“I know. Thanks, Chi.”
He gave her a squeeze. “Up.”
“Up,” Kitty grumbled as she sat up.
A dull ache echoed through her stomach that she ignored in favor of getting ready for work. The ache persisted on the drive to the club.
Chigaru asked, “Are you sure you’re well enough for this?”
“I’m fine.” No she wasn’t. She had seen her reflection. A blind person could see the bags under her eyes, her ashen complexion, and the tightness around her mouth.
She took two steps into the club when Red asked, “Rough night?”
Kitty knew it. She had to look like shit if Red was calling attention to it. Red believed in minding her own business unless the person in question appeared in dire need of assistance.
“Don’t even ask,” Kitty said with a shake of her head.
Red laughed and winked. “Shame on you, Chi, stressing Kitty like that.”
Chigaru didn’t respond to Red’s baiting. He patted Kitty’s lower back in a soothing manner before walking over to the other bouncers. They greeted him with fist bumps and “what’s up” head nods.
Kitty made her way to Vincent’s office. She hadn’t crossed the threshold before she said, “I’m serving tonight.”
Without lifting his head from the paperwork before him, Vincent said, “No.”
“Look at me.” She jabbed her finger at her face.
Vincent heaved a sigh and looked up. He jerked back a second later. “Damn, woman. What the hell happened to you?”
“That’s why I said I’m serving tonight. I’m in no mood to dance. Besides the twins are here tonight. Everyone will be here for them, not me. I’m serving.”
“Yeah. Serving. Preferably in the darkest corner of the club. Put on some makeup while you’re at it.”
“I am wearing makeup.”
“Put on more.” His tone didn’t have a hint of humor.
Kitty knew he was right, but no amount of makeup would hide the memory of her nightmare or its toll on her appearance. She should have called in like Chigaru had suggested. The part of her that hated giving Vincent money rebelled against the idea. She wasn’t sick, and that wasn’t a good enough excuse sometimes, so she had no reason to stay home.
Besides, the music of the club would help take her mind off her nightmare. She hoped.
The night passed in a blur Kitty didn’t quite remember. She hadn’t mixed up any orders or counted the change wrong so she didn’t worry about the details. The pain of her nightmare didn’t return until she walked into the bedroom on the way to the shower.
She glanced at the bed and it all returned. With a strangled cry, she turned from the room and ran into Chigaru’s chest. He trapped her there with his arm around her waist, not that she wanted to move away.
“I can’t sleep here tonight. I absolutely cannot,” she said in an urgent, pleading tone.
“You cannot run away or you’ll not want to return to this room.”
“Fine.” She started to pull away so she could go to the living room, but Chigaru didn’t release her. She pushed against his chest. “Let go.”
“Tell me about it.”
“No.”
“You need to talk about it in order to forget.” He lowered his voice to a soothing timbre. “It was a dream, nothing else.”
“What the hell do you know? It felt real.” She shoved away from him and had to enter the bedroom since he wouldn’t let her leave. “It felt so real.”
“What?”
She clutched her hands over her stomach as a wave of nausea made her clamp her lips shut.
“Kristar, what felt real? Tell me.”
“The sword.” A violent shudder made he
r stumble and clutch the edge of her dresser. “He stabbed me.”
“Who?”
She shook her head and whispered, “I don’t know. I couldn’t see his face. He said…he said…” Her body quaked.
Chigaru hugged her again. “What did he say?”
“He said he was returning it to me and then stuck the sword in my stomach. He did it slow. I felt every inch of the blade. It lasted so long.” Tears slid down her cheeks and she pressed her face to Chigaru’s chest, not trying to stop them. “Then he twisted it. That’s when I screamed. The pain. The pain.”
“I know.”
She snorted. “I don’t need your pity.”
“You don’t have it. I know the pain of being stabbed with a sword.”
She lifted her head so she could meet his gaze. “Really?”
“I’ve had to suffer such a wound many times.” He glanced at his missing arm. “The day I lost my arm, I had been stabbed and beaten. If not for the wounds, I wouldn’t have lost my arm or failed in my duty.”
“I can’t imagine you failing anything.”
“That day I did. The queen was captured while I guarded her. Her favor is one reason I remain among her guards.”
“I’m sure it’s more than that.”
“There is more but that is the most prominent.” He rubbed her back. “I know the pain of a sword wound. I’m sorry you had to suffer the same, even in a dream.”
“Maybe it’s your fault I dreamt that. I might be vibing off something in your memories. My powers do work in weird ways sometimes.”
“That cannot be the case. I have never had anyone declare they are returning something to me as they stab me. My wounds were suffered in battle. My opponents didn’t have the time to stab me slow.”
“I don’t know then.” She shrugged then returned her head to his chest. Chigaru holding her felt good and right. She wrapped her arms around his waist and stepped closer to him. The nightmare was leaving her in favor of something more pleasant. She tightened her arms.
“Kristar?”
“Don’t call me that,” she said as she turned her face up to his. His lips caught her attention. She wanted to kiss Chigaru. The need for it surprised her. There had been times when she wanted to sleep with a man and felt an aroused ache until she got him in bed, but nothing like the strong desire she felt now. It resembled a pulling sensation, compelling her to close the distance between them.
Kristar (Bookstrand Publishing Romance) Page 9
