Jonah’s thoughts wandered again to the strange reality of the abandoned hospital. He couldn’t understand why the ancient medical ward was still there. It didn’t make sense. The rest of the old University had been demolished, yet this, the most outdated and unusable building of all of them, had remained so that it could be used as the lost and forgotten skeleton of the new laboratory building. He wished that he could return to the buildings that he had spent his time in when he was studying and working at the University. Walking through the hospital had given him a taste of his previous life, yet reminded him blatantly and painfully of how long it had been. These were not the floors where he last stepped before he climbed onto the ill-fated ship, but those that were had long-since been destroyed. It was a sad feeling to think that he had walked along those hallways so filled with anticipation and even excitement, not realizing that it was the last time that he was ever going to see them. It was a foregone conclusion that within a few weeks, they would return and simply walk along the same path back to the department rooms. Instead, he had moved along that familiar path, the images that he was seeing passing through his eyes and into memory.
Without fully knowing why, Jonah turned away from the crumbling hallway and started back down into the basement so that he could go back up the stairwell and into the corridor above. He stepped out into the corridor and was immediately struck by the energy that filled the space. It was as if he could still feel what the rest of the group had felt when they were making their way down the corridor and out into the open space around the building. It suddenly struck him that he didn’t really know what had happened to them in the time between them leaving him in the basement and them getting out of the building. He could only hope that it had not been as difficult as the last time that they were there. Ignoring the nervousness that made its way down the back of his neck and into his stomach, Jonah made his way toward the stairs that they had climbed to go through the laboratory building. He wove through the floors of the building, trying to remember what doors they had used, until he finally found his way back to the room behind Ryan’s lab.
Jonah hesitated in the backroom. He didn’t know what might be inside the room, if even Ryan himself could be waiting for any that might return. For a moment, he considered turning back around and heading back to the basement, but he knew that he couldn’t. He had to go beyond just the basement and the medical ward if he was going to understand what happened. His hand felt almost electrified as he placed it on the doorknob to the lab and pushed the door open. As soon as he stepped inside he was struck by the cold, still feeling, and sharp, unnerving scent of the space. He looked around and knew immediately that they had not been the last ones who had walked through that room.
There had been chaos in the lab the last time that he had been inside. The conflict with Ryan had tossed the entire space into complete disorganization and left the surfaces covered with blood, chemicals, and other remnants. Now the entire lab was back in its original pristine condition. If anything, it was more organized and cleaner than it had been before. He could smell the cleaners used to wipe away all reminders of them and feel the chill of the temperature having been turned down to accommodate a delicate experiment.
The Valdicians had been here. They had come to the lab after the group left to repair what they had done and bring the room back into the condition that Ryan expected. Jonah couldn’t imagine that they would have done something like that out of any sense of kindness or affection for Ryan. Instead, it was more likely out of a sense of responsibility, obligation, and even fear.
He walked to one of the tables and ran his fingers along the surface. It was cold but dry, telling him that the room had been restored well before, likely only briefly after they had captured Ryan. Most likely they had come into the room to free him and been commanded to fix the damage that had occurred, as if Ryan believed that he could pretend that it hadn’t happened if he didn’t have to look at it. He was leaning down to look under the table when he heard a slight gasp from across the room.
Jonah stood up sharply and looked toward the door. He hadn’t thought to look at the main door to the lab when he first stepped in and now noticed that it was standing open a few inches, revealing a figure standing in the hallway just outside of the lab, a halo of golden yellow glow at its feet.
There was a tense moment when both stood completely still, aware of the other, but unsure of what to do next. Finally, Jonah took a step forward and lifted his lightstick up above his head to shed more of the light toward the figure so that he could see it more clearly. When it did, he could see that the figure was a woman, her hand rested on the doorknob. She looked both startled and confused, but unafraid.
“Hello?” she said.
“Hello,” Jonah replied.
Her head tilted slightly and Jonah wondered if there was something about his voice that sounded different to the people of Earth a century after his own time and that had struck this woman strangely. She took a somewhat hesitant step toward him, crossing the threshold of the lab. Her hand slid across the wall beside her and her finger pressed into a dip on a silver metal panel. In an instant, the room filled with a blinding white light. After days with nothing but the glow of the lightsticks and the light from the small lanterns in the basement and the hospital, the illumination felt like it was exploding in his head. He grasped his temples, pressing against the pain that he felt in his temples and crumbling forward with the shock. It took several moments for his eyes to acclimate to the bright light and for him to be able to open them again. When they did he found that the woman had disappeared. He rushed around the table to the door and looked out into the hallway. He could see the faint remnants of her light moving around the corner at the far end of the corridor and felt an uncomfortable sensation in his belly, wondering who this woman was and why she had come to Ryan’s laboratory in the middle of the night when the building was locked and no one else was supposed to be there.
Chapter Ten
Nylek winced as he made his way around the perimeter of the room, trying to convince his legs to move normally and willing the pain in his body to go away. The treatments he had received on the ship had effectively begun to heal his wounds, but not receiving a healing from Ciyrs had left him feeling weaker than he ever had this long after being injured, and he could tell that some of the gashes in his skin were still only tenuously healed. No matter what he was experiencing, however, he hadn’t wanted to spend more time lying in the bed in the clinic. He felt like he had been trapped in a bed for longer than he ever had, and it made him feel fragile and vulnerable, things that he couldn’t stand feeling. As soon as he was able, he had gotten out of bed and left the clinic, insisting that he go to one of the homes in the kingdom for the rest of the time that they were in Uoria. He would have preferred to be back in his own home in the Denynso compound, but he knew that the journey was too far, and by now nearly everyone who had remained in the compound when they left for Earth was now in the kingdom with the Mikana.
Elon and the Mikana doctors didn’t seem confident that he would be well enough to return to Penthos with the others when the ship left, but Nylek refused to accept it. Until they had boarded the ship again and were gone, he wouldn’t admit that he wasn’t able to go with them. For now, he would keep walking, keep moving to start rebuilding his strength and encouraging his injuries to heal further.
The door behind him opened and he saw Mina step inside. She looked startled to see him out of bed and held a stack of blankets toward him.
“I brought these for you,” she said.
Nylek looked at his mate, feeling his body and his heart burning for her. It had felt so long since he had left her behind in the compound so that they would be able to communicate with Creia while they were gone. He had missed her so desperately, but since he had returned to Uoria injured, she had seemed skittish and unsure around him. It was as if she didn’t know if she should get close to him or if it might hurt him further.
“I shouldn’t,” she said. “You should be resting. Without Ciyrs…”
“I don’t need Ciyrs,” Nylek insisted. “I’m healing just fine on my own. I just need you.”
“You need to rest,” she said. “Just get back in bed. Get some sleep.”
He could hear the emotion and tension in her voice, and knew that she was struggling seeing him wounded after being apart for so long. Of course, he had been injured before, but that had been as a result of battles that she understood. She knew what they were facing and the dangers that they would experience while fighting. When he left Uoria with the others, though, she didn’t know what he was going to encounter or what he would have to do. It was bad enough that he came back hurt, but she also knew that he hadn’t returned with everyone else, and that the encounter wasn’t over. His mate couldn’t stop worrying about him because the situation hadn’t yet come to an end and they had no way of knowing what else they were going to have to face.
Mina turned and started back out of the room, but Nylek followed her. He got to her in the hallway that led away from the bedroom and out of the house. Without saying anything, Nylek wrapped one arm around her waist and swept her up against his chest, crushing his mouth down on hers. Mina didn't resist but gave herself completely into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck and opening her mouth to allow his tongue to slip through her lips to massage against hers. The hesitation was gone, replaced by passion and need that told him his mate had missed him with the same fire that he had missed her during the time that they were away. He no longer cared about the pain that still lingered through his body. All he cared about was feeling her and reconnecting with her now that they were back in each other’s arms, at least for the time.
Nylek led Mina back into the bedroom and kicked the door behind him. His mouth continuing to play across hers, he turned and lowered her to the bed. He stepped back and stared down at her as he peeled off his shirt and tossed it to the side. Mina stared up at him, her eyes widened in awe of the sudden kiss and her lips slightly swollen and red with its passion and intensity. He undressed as Mina watched him, revealing himself to her completely and purposefully. She watched him with a blend of emotion in her eyes. There was a powerful, slumbering hunger that he knew was reflected in his own eyes as well, but there was also something softer and more tender. Nylek could see her gaze settle on the lingering bruises and scars of his wounds, but she didn’t wince or try to look away. Instead, she focused on them, following them like she wanted to know everything that he had gone through when he was away from her.
He could see Mina's eyes roving across his body, taking him in as if memorizing every inch of him, committing to memory the new injuries that had changed the landscape of the skin that she already knew so well. They had completed their bond years before, but his passion and love for her had never changed. He still craved her with every breath and felt the flutter deep within him when he thought of her. She was the greatest aspect of his life and the most precious companion he had and would ever know. He stepped forward and reached for the waistband of her skirt. He eased it down over her hips, revealing only the thin, gauzy panties that she wore beneath. Growling deep in his throat, Nylek removed the rest of her clothes almost frantically, tossing them aside as fast as he could. He wanted to run his fingertips over every inch of her and feel her smooth curves against him. When he was gone he had dreamed of filling his hands with the softness of her nearly every night. Now that she was stretched out in front of him, nothing separating them, he wanted to show her everything that had filled his mind in those long, dark moments.
Nylek forced himself to slow down. As much as he wanted her, it had been too long and he had wanted her too much for him to simply rush through and make it end too quickly. He reached forward and placed his hands on either side of her ribs, then ran his hands down along the deep curve of her waist. Applying gentle pressure, he ran his palms around the full swell of her hips and then up her belly onto her breasts. The warm, familiar lushness of her body filling his palms made his body tremble with anticipation of the pleasure they would soon enjoy. He allowed his thumbs and forefingers to gently squeeze her nipples, feeling them harden beneath them. Mina arched slightly into the touch and he saw her eyes flutter closed as her lips parted. She was no longer resisting him or trying to avoid the need that she felt for him. Instead, she was soft and compliant beneath him, just waiting for Nylek to guide her as he reclaimed his life and pushed aside the injuries to show her that he was still just as strong as when he had left her side.
He drew in another long breath to keep himself calm and slow. He had to constantly remind himself not to move too quickly, to let himself enjoy everything that was to come and to savor every second of it. Memories of the taste of her brought him to his knees at the edge of the bed and his hands to her thighs so that he could ease them apart. They parted easily and willingly, and Mina’s body opened to him. Nylek could already see how wet she was and the warm, musky smell of her body was enough to drive him nearly to the edge of what control he had. She was ready for him, waiting for him, but he still wasn’t willing to let this end yet. There was so much more that he wanted to explore with her now that he was back with her and they had nothing but time to explore and enjoy each other. This was purely about them and he had every bit of privacy to indulge himself in every detail that his beautiful Mina offered. It was a gift that he wasn’t going to take for granted.
Resting one hand lightly on her belly to hold her in place, Nylek ducked his head down and drew his tongue through her folds, moaning at the taste of her as it filled his mouth and reached into him to begin fulfilling the empty ache within him. Mina gasped and reached down for him, but he eased her hand away from his head, wanting her to relax and simply enjoy the attention that he was giving her. He licked her again, pausing for a moment to flick the tip of his tongue across the sensitive pearl of flesh. It began to come forward with his coaxing, further intensifying the sensation that he was creating for her. Nylek brought his other hand down and carefully eased one finger into her body. He felt himself melt slightly at the softness of her hot, wet walls closing in around it, and pressed it deeper until the heel of his hand rested against her pelvic bone.
He moved his finger gently within her as he continued to trace through her core with his tongue. He didn’t want to leave any of her untouched or neglected. Nylek applied slightly more pressure against her upper wall, exploring the pattern of ridges until he found the smooth, slightly softer spot that he knew would push her to the brink of her control. It was a spot that he had discovered in the long afternoons and blissful nights that they had spent together, and one that he loved to touch and nurture, bringing whimpers to her lips and tightening the muscles through her hips and thighs. He rubbed his fingertip onto it a little harder and heard Mina draw in a sharp breath. Her body was starting to tremble and he knew that her own control was close to shattering. Nylek rose up over her and took her hands in his. He pushed them back and pinned them on the bed on either side of her head. Mina gasped slightly, but he could see her chin lift and her mouth open as if seeking him. Continuing to exert every bit of control that he could, he slowly stretched out across her. Gradually their bodies met so that their skin melded and she was fully enveloped in him. Nylek slowly lowered his mouth back to Mina’s and brushed it slowly across her lips. She whimpered softly and parted her lips further. He dipped his tongue briefly into her mouth, allowing it to glide across the inside of her bottom lip, seeking out his mouth.
Nylek lowered his mouth to hers and offered a deep, languid kiss. He could taste all of the kisses that he had missed while he was gone, all of the words that he didn’t hear, and all of the moments that they hadn’t been able to share. After a few moments, he ran his hands down her arms and along the sides of her body, then wrapped one arm around her waist so that he could pull her closer to his body. In one smooth, controlled movem
ent, he rolled both of them over so that she lay on top of him. The new position caused the warmth of her core to nestle against his erection. It was a promise of what was to come and he could feel the intensity of his desire for her increasing even further. Nylek reached for her legs and tucked his hands around the backs of her thighs so that he could pull them gently and cause her to straddle him. Mina pressed her hands to his chest to push herself into a sitting position, putting her body on display just for him.
In that moment, it seemed that Mina had found her confidence and was no longer intimidated by his injuries or by the unknown conflict that he had experienced. Neither of them expected what had happened when they agreed to help Creia. Nylek hadn’t been part of the group of warriors who had gone to Earth or who was still in the Mikana kingdom. When he agreed to travel with them as a connection between those on Earth and those remaining in Uoria, particularly the King and Queen, he expected the journey to be primarily exploratory. There was always the chance of violence any time that the Denynso were involved in anything. Their reputation as fierce and aggressive warriors extended throughout the universe, and they had fought countless species and battles. The sudden brutality that they encountered, however, had been far outside of what he thought that he was going to experience, and he knew that it had been horrible for Mina to relay the messages that he sent through her to Creia. She was a distant witness, knowing what was happening and yet separated enough from it that she couldn’t do anything about it or even be completely sure that she really did know what he was going through. To tolerate it, she had built up a barrier, closing off the emotions that she had been feeling so that she was able to handle the responsibility that had been presented to her. It kept her locked away from him, unable to reach what she was really going through and commiserate with him for his own suffering.
The Alien's Glimpse (Uoria Mates IV Book 5) Page 7
