Page 11 of Raven Blackwood
I looked around, taking in the cabin’s simple interior. Built sometime in the previous century, it had been state-of-the-art then. Now, the once-modern conveniences were useless, and there was no power to run them. A stone fireplacereplaced them for heat and cooking. The furniture was old and worn, but the couch where I lay still felt comfortable, and it was clean, fastidiously so.
It looked lived-in, though not in a human way. There were no personal touches, family heirlooms, or decorations—just practicality.
I licked my lips, forcing myself to focus. “Will you help me get there?” I pushed the blanket back and swung my feet to the floor.
His gaze didn’t waver. “Yes.”
I thought he would take my hand or my arm and help me limp there. Instead, Koha’vek scooped me up into his arms like I weighed nothing and carried me.
His body was warm, and his chest was a wall of hard muscle. He had an unusual but pleasant scent, like an exotic spice. The only bathroom in the house was inside its only bedroom.
Koha’vek set me down gently, making sure I had balanced on my good leg before he let go. “Tell me when you finish, and I will take you back.” He went out into the bedroom and turned his back to the door.
After all of that, it took me half a minute to relax so I could empty my bladder. A skylight overhead lit the room nicely. It was spotless like the rest of the dwelling. But there was no water or a cloth to clean myself, so I made thebest of it.
Fixing my underwear and pants was tedious as I tried to balance on my good leg. Koha’vek stood patiently with his back to the door, waiting for me to finish.
“I’m ready.”
This time, when he picked me up, I instinctively put my arm around his shoulders to help balance myself. He set me back onto the couch sideways with my legs stretched in front of me. I looked up into his alien eyes, strangely intrigued by him. “Thank you.”
He dipped his head slightly in acknowledgment and went to the kitchen to pump water into a bucket to flush the toilet.
I shifted, testing my ankle. The pain was still there, but the swelling had gone down.
Koha’vek returned a couple of minutes later with a log for the fire.
Silence stretched between us. He didn’t ask me any questions—not yet—but I could feel them hovering in the air. What was I doing out here alone? Where had I come from? What was I running from?
I exhaled slowly, glancing away. “I can’t go back,” I admitted. The words felt heavy, final.
Koha’vek studied me for a long moment. “Why?”
I hesitated. Telling the truth to an alien—stranger—felt dangerous. But what choice did I have? “Because I don’t have a home anymore,” I said finally. “It was stolen from me.”
His eyes darkened, but he said nothing, waiting for me to continue.
I swallowed past the lump in my throat. “I lived on a ranch outside town. It was my father’s. He built it up from nothing, and when he died, it should’ve been mine. But Mayor Jenkins had other plans. He claimed I forfeited it because of some made-up debt. Just like that, everything I had was gone.”
Koha’vek’s expression remained unreadable, but I thought I saw a flicker of understanding there. Maybe even sympathy.
I clenched my hands into fists. “If I go back, Jenkins will take me too. The man who stole my land—he wants more than just the property. He wants me.” My stomach churned at the thought. “Jenkins made it clear that my only option is to become his woman or disappear like so many others who’ve crossed him.”
Koha’vek’s nostrils flared slightly. “That is why you were alone in the mountains?”
I nodded. “My horse spooked when we ran into a grizzly. Threw me, and—well, you knowthe rest.”
He was silent for a long moment, his gaze sharp, considering. “You were willing to risk death rather than submit.”
I met his eyes, my jaw tightening. “Yes.”
He exhaled slowly, his expression shifting—less distant, more thoughtful. “You cannot leave.”
My stomach twisted. “What do you mean?”
“I will not risk you revealing my presence.”
I stiffened. “I wouldn’t—”
