“There are caves ahead. We’ll shelter there for the night and have a fire and something to eat,” he said, speaking over my head.
“Good.” We hadn’t eaten all day and I felt lightheaded.
We drudged onward for a long while before Ayres finally led us alongside a rocky area of the mountain. Once I was close enough I could see there was a low opening. He crouched and entered the mouth of the cave with me following close behind. Once inside, we could both stand up. I was surprised to see his scythe light up in the darkness like a torch. Ayres went to the center of the interior where a circle of rocks sat ready for a fire. How convenient. Since we were on the main trail it made sense that this cave would probably be one of many to have been used in the past by other contestants. Ayres tossed his fur over to the back wall and pulled off his scythe. He stuck it into the hard dirt floor so it stood upright like a lamp. From his pocket he produced an instrument to make fire. There wasn’t much wood in the fire pit but I could see there was more against another wall. The cave was a good size. About twenty feet deep, fifteen feet wide, and I would guess about forty feet high—some parts appeared to go much higher than that.
I shivered, wrapped up in my fur, while he got the fire going. Seeing as he wasn’t using it, I took a seat on his discarded fur and watched as he found a thin stick and speared a piece of meat onto it. He angled it over the fire, sticking one end in the dirt, and used other sticks to hold it up so it sat just over the flames. Then he went and grabbed more wood for the fire. All the while I sat there like a useless dolt. The silence was only interrupted by the sizzling of the fat from the meat as it dripped off into the flames. Exhausted, and mesmerized by the glow of the fire, I lay down and drifted off to sleep. I awoke later when I felt Ayres’ booted foot tapping me on the ass.
“Time to eat,” he said.
I rubbed at my eyes and lumbered over to the fireside where he now sat. He handed me a piece of meat and I began to eat. There was a wooden bowl beside the fire that held water, probably melted snow. Ayres ate and then drank some of the water before passing it to me. I drank some and handed it back to him.
“That was good. Thanks,” I said.
He grunted in response.
“So, is this how it’s gonna be between us now?” I demanded. “Look, I’m sorry I didn’t follow your orders, captain, but I thought we were a team. You know, helping each other? I don’t know what things are like on Calixtus, but on Earth women are quite capable of handling things. We’re not all helpless little powder puffs.”
“Some of those women you speak of are taken for games on my planet. I’m well aware that many female Earthlings are quite capable.”
“But you don’t put me in that category?” Hauled before their panel I’d been called helpless and pathetic.
“If you were, you would not be here,” he informed me.
“Ah, yes. You need weak crazy girls for you manly men to protect.”
“The implant caused the confusion,” he reminded me.
“So just weak then? Is that really the type of woman you like?” He seemed to like me just fine when he was fucking my brains out.
He shrugged.
“Well, I may not be big and strong, but I do have a brain in my head. I can help you if you’ll just get over yourself.”
“We leave at first light. You’d best get some rest,” he said.
How infuriating he was! He didn’t even consider me worthy enough to argue with. Once this stupid tournament was over, I hoped I never saw him again. I got to my feet and started toward the exit.
“Where are you going?” he demanded.
“I have to pee. I think I’m capable of doing at least that without your help or guidance,” I snapped.
Several feet later and a few turns around the rocky area, I found a place for privacy. Once finished, I brushed the snow off myself as I walked slowly back toward the cave. Viewer bubbles floated around. Since I only spotted two of them I wasn’t concerned. But as I rounded the next corner, just before the cave, a flicker of multi-colored waves of light caught my attention.
“What the hell?”
Suddenly, right in front of me, a holographic image of the leader Baynar appeared. He stared at me with a patronizing leer.
“Well done, Amanda,” he said. “Be proud, you have come far.”
“Ah, thanks,” I said. At least he was impressed with me.
“Before you head back to Ayres, I want to speak with you alone.”
“Okay.”
“I have a deal to offer you,” he said.
“What kind of deal?” He gave me the creeps.
“I can arrange to get you out of there, right now. You never wanted any part of this anyway. I can have you and your friends returned to Earth. All you have to do is say the word.”
“I can go home? Leave...just like that? What about the tournament, and Ayres?”
He shrugged. “You don’t owe him anything. Look at what he’s done to you: implanting a device that made you appear insane; killed your family; took you from Earth against your will; subjected you to a life and death game. And all for what? To free his criminal brother? He’s used you, Amanda.”
Most of what Baynar said was true. Yet, he was a part of it. It was how things were done on his planet. They’d been using Earth and humans for thousands of years for entertainment. No way did I buy that he was all of a sudden developing a conscience. “In the first place, Aunt Erin wasn’t my family,” I informed him.
“But Ayres killed your uncle,” Baynar said.
“No. That woman killed him. Ayres told me,” I insisted.
“Oh, Ayres told you that, did he?” he chuckled a little, like I was an idiot.
“And second, how did you know what Ayres would ask as his boon? I thought it was private till the end.”
“His brother is set for execution. It’s obvious he’ll ask for his freedom.” He waved his hands around as though to dismiss my objections. “None of this concerns you. Ayres’ problems are his own. You can be free, now. All you have to do is accept my help.”
Tempting as it sounded, I was no fool. I didn’t trust this guy. Something about him made my skin crawl. What was up with his last ditch offer? This tournament was rigged. He would leave Ayres here to rot and execute his brother without a second thought. But since Baynar had approached me, I was worried. If I declined his offer, what would stop him from removing me from the game? He obviously wanted me out of the way.
“Thank you for the offer,” I said carefully. “But can I think about it?”
“What is there to think about?” he snapped. “I’m offering you freedom, foolish girl.”
“Oh, my God! Look at that!” I cried, pointing over Baynar’s holographic shoulder.
“What? What is it?” Baynar swung round, but of course he couldn’t see anything.
“Avalanche!” I yelled, and took off full speed toward the mouth of the cave.
Chapter 16
Ayres stormed out of the cave just as I dived in. We bonked heads causing me to bounce back into the snow crying out in pain. He pulled me inside, then rushed out to look around.
“I heard you yell ‘avalanche’,” he said, coming back in. “Nothing’s going on out there.”
I looked at him grimly and rubbed my head. “There’s a lot more going on out there than you know.”
He crossed his arms and glared at me. “Don’t play games with me, Amanda. I know you’re angry, but that’s no reason to start...”
“I’m not making things up,” I interrupted. “You have to listen to me, Ayres. The game...it’s rigged!” He recoiled as though I’d struck him. Before he could recover, I went on. “Your leader—that Baynar guy on board the ship—he appeared to me as a hologram. He waited till I was alone. We’re close to winning and he knows you’re going to ask to have your brother freed. He offered me a deal. A deal that would free me and my friends and send us back to Earth, and leave you here to rot. The game is rigged, I swear it.”
“Baynar told me you killed Uncle Mick and that I don’t owe you anything. He’s trying to turn me against you. I was afraid of what he’d do to me if I refused his deal. He’s exposed himself to me. I’m a dead girl walking. I didn’t know what to do, so I yelled ‘avalanche’ and ran.”
Ayres walked over to his fur and sat down, putting his head into his hands. It worried me, seeing him like this. He appeared in shock and utterly defeated. I tiptoed over and sat down beside him.
“Are you all right? You believe me, don’t you?”
He lifted his head and stared me in the eyes. “Yes, I believe you, Amanda. You have no reason to lie to me.”
When he continued to stare at me I flushed. “What?”
“Why didn’t you take his deal? He’s right, you don’t owe me anything.”
I shivered, recalling Baynar’s cold stare. “I don’t trust him. How could I trust someone who’s willing to cheat like that? Besides, I couldn’t just leave you here. Your brother is counting on you.”
He smiled at me.
“And it’s not like I have anything to rush back to anyhow, except a straitjacket and rubber room, that is. We’re gonna win this tournament, Ayres. You and me. Together.” Don’t ask me why I was suddenly team Ayres, especially after how he’d treated me. But the thought of his own kind turning on him made me suddenly protective.
Ayres pulled me into his arms and kissed the top of my head. It was strangely endearing. “I was afraid something like this would happen,” he said.
I stiffened and pulled away. “What do you mean? You thought the game was fixed?”
“There’s been some underhanded dealing going on on Calixtus. Warriors talk. Apparently a lot of money has changed hands. I suppose Baynar and his people bet on the wrong man.”
“So what do we do? It’s obvious they’re going to do everything they can to make sure we don’t win.” Including killing me.
“There’s no way Baynar and his cohorts can allow you to live now that you know the truth,” Ayres said, confirming my fears. “We’ll have to outsmart them.”
“How?” Our every move was watched. They probably knew what we were going to do even before we did it. Plus, they may be helping the other team. Lissa and Oro were probably the favorites to win. Good for Lissa—at least she may survive this ordeal—but bad for us.
“We resort to plan B.”
“I didn’t know you had a plan B,” I said.
He smiled wickedly. “I’m always prepared.”
When he leaned down and started kissing my neck I found I couldn’t relax. “What if they come in here now, ray guns blazing?”
“They won’t,” he assured me. “They’ll rig some sort of accident along the way. The world will want to be watching when we meet our demise. Better for ratings, and it’ll appear to have happened spontaneously.”
“Oh.” I leaned my head against him, enjoying the hard muscle beneath my cheek. If this was our last night together I wanted to enjoy it. I closed my eyes and tried to tune out my fears. Ayres’ hands worked their way under my shirt and I felt the cool air on my belly as he lifted it. “I’m cold.”
He stood up and stripped off all his clothes, then began pulling at mine. If this was his idea of warming me up he was failing. I curled into a shivering ball until he sat beside me and pulled me into his arms. Warm kisses rained on my face and warm hands stole all over my body—stroking here, caressing there. Gradually my body responded and soon stopped shivering. My breath came out in little pants as Ayres’ hand slipped between my thighs. The first time we’d done it had been slow and gentle. The second, frantic and forceful. What would the third time be like? A combination of both seemed ideal.
He laid me back and leaned over to lick and kiss my breasts. He suckled my nipples, one, then the other, making them both stand at attention. All the while, his hand stroked between my legs. I spread my thighs wide and was rewarded for my compliance with a large finger slipped into my pussy. Now he licked a trail from my breasts down to my belly. A second finger slipped inside of me. His movements were slow, drawn out. It would take him forever to put out the fire raging inside of me.
“Ayres,” I cried. Damn him, he was taunting me on purpose. I wanted his cock inside of me...now. Suddenly I felt like such a harlot, but I didn’t care. If my life were to end tomorrow, I wanted to die with an ache in my pussy and a smile on my face. I almost forgot my resolve to torment him this time around.
“Yes?” he practically purred.
“Fuck me already.”
“Such language, Amanda. I’m shocked.”
Wiggling around until I got free of him, I pushed at his chest urging him to lie on his back. Torment me, will you? I got down to business with his cock, licking the long length of him until I had him gripping the furs. Next I slipped him into my mouth and deep throated as far as I could go, all the while cuddling his ball sack with both hands. Now who wants it bad? For several minutes I sucked and teased until he broke out in a sheen of sweat. At last, taking mercy on him, I straddled his body and guided his enormous cock to the opening of my pussy. I slowly sat up, letting him slide inside— controlling the speed at which he advanced. He gripped my hips and I began to ride him like a cowgirl.
“Hang on,” he ground out.
My hands braced against his chest, until I let go and brazenly gripped my breasts, lifting and squeezing them as though an offering. The effect seemed to turn him on even more. His eyes shut. Swiftly he rolled me over onto my back. Now he was the one on top and in control.
“You want me to fuck you?” he demanded.
“Yes!”
His cock pushed inside of me right to the hilt. He thrust over and over until I was in a mindless frenzy. Soon my world exploded and for the first time I screamed my head off. I don’t know what came over me in that instant, be it the frantic sex or the threat of death, but my guard slipped. “I love you,” I cried.
Ayres didn’t respond. He only increased his pace until he came as well, this time he actually yelled.
Afterward, curled in his arms, just as I began to doze, I could have sworn I heard him whisper, “Love you, too.”
But it was probably a dream.
Chapter 17
We got an early start the next morning. The air was freezing but the snow had lightened up. I’d slept restlessly, being worried about what today would bring. The surrounding snowy mountains suddenly seemed much more ominous. I hoped my yelling ‘avalanche’ hadn’t given Baynar any ideas.
Ayres was ever watchful, appearing even more so today. He wouldn’t allow me to trail him by more than a few paces. When one of the viewer bubbles floated past, I was tempted to tell the world about Baynar’s offer last night. How would the inhabitants of Calixtus feel knowing their precious game was rigged? When I’d made this suggestion to Ayres he had shrugged it off.
“Won’t do any good,” he’d said. “No one would believe you. Besides, who’s to say the viewers aren’t already getting an edited version of what’s happening here?”
He was right. There was no way of knowing.
“How long till we’re out of the Cold Land?” I asked, shivering under my fur.
“If we keep up this pace, should be by sundown.”
Hours later we sat by a small fire and cooked more of the Deaodon meat. We ate quickly, leery of an ambush, and continued on our way. It seemed strange that we’d been allowed to come so far. I wondered if perhaps Baynar had another fate in store for us. This was day six. Tonight we’d reach the edge of the Safe Zone and soon the game would be over. Had it already been almost a week? How time flew when you were playing for your life.
Sun peeked over the mountain, reflecting off the snow. My feet were freezing despite my boots, which were made more for warmer weather hiking. I had given up on feeling my hands, which gripped the edges of my fur around my shaking body. Gradually, the farther we traveled the warmer the air became, and tufts of grass poked up through the sno
w. The closer we got to the Safe Zone, the more my anxiety grew. Every whisper of wind, snap of an overhead branch, or scurry in the snow made my hair stand on end.
Despite all my concerns, I was glad the end was coming—one way or another. All this stress was killing me. If by some miracle we were able to complete the game and actually win, Ayres would have his boon and I’d be free. Back to Earth I’d go. Perhaps I’d get them to beam me somewhere safe where nobody knew who I was. I’d always wanted to see England. Maybe I could get Ayres to toss in some money as well. I deserved some compensation for all my troubles. Returning to Earth, and what would happen to me afterward, hadn’t entered much into my thoughts. Ayres had been such an overwhelming presence in my life. I didn’t know what I’d do once he was gone.
Gone.
A pang gripped my belly at the thought. For years he’d tormented me; lovingly, teasingly, and terrifyingly. He’d been my constant companion for so long I wasn’t sure how to function without him. I put a hand to my head, thinking about the implant he’d hidden there to keep tabs on me. Would it remain? Could he use it to find me again...if he even wanted to? Or would he forget me easily and slide back into his life, glad to have all this trouble behind him? Welcome heat flushed over me when I remembered the feel of his hands on my body. Each touch of his lips on mine made me quiver in anticipation. And when we joined as one, I felt truly complete. Love, or lust, the reality of him was far better than any fantasy I’d had.
Ayres froze suddenly and I walked into his back. “What the h—” Rudely, I broke from my rumination.
Survivor Planet Series 2-Book Box Set Page 9
