Page 8 of Tavarr's Mate
I shake the thoughts of death away and try to figure out where we’re headed.
I’ve studied maps of Tallia before, but I can’t remember the names of all the continents, though I know there are twenty in total. The planet is also covered with many vast oceans, as well as numerous salt lakes as large and vibrant with life as an Earth ocean.
Normally any kind of air travel makes me queasy, but the hovercraft glides so smoothly toward the horizon, that I don’t feel any amount of motion sickness. I’m nervous as hell and frightened, but I’m not puking my guts out for a change.
The Kleaxians are speaking amongst themselves and gesturing at the females. I wish I spoke their language. Only a few skilled linguists from Earth have grasped it. Vonn speaks some English though, and I hope he’ll understand me enough to finally realize I’m not Harry’s mate and he’s taken me for the wrong reason.
But even if I can make him realize I was leaving Harry, will he let me go?
Though I don’t know much about Kleaxian culture, and the tidbits Harry told me were influenced by his disdain for them, I know they mate for life and that the males are protective of their females. But I also know some of the Kleaxian females captured by the human scientists also bore marks from severe beatings.
They’re savages who beat their women, Harry had once said, as if he was so much better than them simply because he’d never raised a hand to me.
How many times did his cruel words cut so deep I flinched as if slapped? How many times did I cover my ears and wish I could scrub his remarks from my memory? I’d lost count, and now that I’m finally free of him, I’m still not free.
Another man has claimed me.
A fierce alien who hates me and wants nothing more than to make me suffer, judging from the livid stare he has directed on me.
The hovercraft reaches a new landmass and travels over a thick forest, not slowing until we’re near a large lake. Beside the body of water and the sandy shoreline, a multitude of black, gleaming solar rooftops reflect the sunlight. Many of the roofs also contain flourishing green gardens spaced between the solar panels. A flock of huge blue birds sweep out of the surrounding trees upon our descent and fly over the lake. As we land in the center of the village, I notice the houses are constructed of stone, giving the settlement an old-fashioned look despite the residents’ superior technology.
My heart lurches. We’ve arrived in an alien town, and Kleaxians are streaming out of their homes to gather around the craft. A short distance away, I spy two more hovercrafts, but they sit empty. Vaguely, I wonder how many frightened human women were aboard those ships.
A shudder passes through me. Thousands of women resided in Capital City. Have they all been taken prisoner? Were any human men taken alive?
The Kleaxians rise from their seats, and some of them disembark the craft, while five of them approach our corner.
Five aliens to five women. I gulp.
Vonn’s headed right for me. He says something in his native tongue and the force field shimmers bright green, then disappears into the air.
He steps forward, winds a hand through my hair, and proceeds to drag me off the ship. I hurry to match his rapid steps. The crowd parts around us, and I catch glimpses of Kleaxian females being led around by leashes, some of them scantily-clad or naked.
Oh God. If that’s how they treat their own females, there really is no hope. I need to escape, and quickly. Before this huge angry alien tries to murder me.
Run and hide, run and hide.
The mantra is still repeating in my head, beckoning me to stay vigilant and seize the first opportunity to escape.
We reach one of the stone houses on the edge of an outdoor market, and Vonn pauses at the entryway with his hand still gripping my hair. The door opens a second later. He pushes me inside with a force that sends me tumbling to the floor. My hands and knees burn from the sudden scraping impact on the hard surface.
His boots fill my vision.
“Punish mate of Erixa’s killer.”
He kicks me square in the stomach, knocking the wind from my chest in a surge of blinding agony.
Chapter Four
Pain.
Misery.
Fear.
It’s all I’ve known since Vonn has taken me captive.
I’ve been in his house for seven days now. Each morning I awake hoping for a chance to escape, but he keeps me locked in his home. Sometimes he even keeps me locked in a cage.
