Dara Joy - Matrix 04 (3 page)

Daxan lips parted slightly as he examined her features. The woman was exquisite! Her beauty held the promise of steaming nights and playful, teasing days.

Yet it was her eyes that promised
much
more. One blue and one gold, slightly tilted, they held liquid, exotic promise.

They were arresting.

Daxan tried to exhale slowly. This was a Familiar woman!
How had she come to be on Spoltam ?

He glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one had seen her.

Quickly, he lifted the hood back up over her face. "It
would be best if you are not seen. There have been some Oberion slavers in the marketplace of late."

So he had already discovered her secret. At times, Familiars, like all felines, could be distracted by the oddest things. But then their males had the uncanny ability to
focus
on something or someone to the exclusion of all else. Taj Gian never became distracted and her brother-What did this man just say?

Soosha sucked in her breath as his words replayed in her mind.
Slavers?
Her nostrils flared in anger. "Why do you allow it?" She personally accused him.

"I do not allow it. Or disallow it. It has nothing to do with me."

She snorted in disgust. "A typical response! When they come for you, then it will have to do with you, hmm?"

Daxan said nothing; he just watched her intently.

The man had the disarming stare of a very knowledgeable man. Soosha did not like that one bit. She tugged at her arm to free it.

He held fast.

She was close to a snarl. "What is this horrible planet? I need to know its name so I will be sure to not come here again!"

This time the edges of his lips did curl up. "It is called Spoltam and if you think this a harsh place, you have not traveled much. Spoltam prides itself on being the most civilized of worlds."

"Civilized?
You condone executing someone simply because a wealthy man from one of your older families claims she has stolen a trinket. You call that civilized?"

"I did not say I condone it. I am merely explaining our way of life to you lest you find yourself in a position to be
executed on a daily basis."

She rubbed her chin. "I am not sure there is humor in that."

A line of amusement carved into his cheek. "One would not think so. Spoltam's elder families do have control-especially over this city. You would do well to remember that as well. Aghni is our main city of scholarly pursuit. While it is true our citizenry is categorized- and you may think some of us have undue privilege over others- you must understand that it is the scholars who keep the Blessed Knowledge of Spoltam alive. Scholars devote all their time to study so they can spread the word of Sense to all."

"Yes, I have already seen the sense of your scholars. There is a man tied up in the square, left to stand broiling in the sun! I was told it was so he could learn his 'lesson'."

"He is a servant who disobeyed his master."

"Oh, well then, never mind." She slammed the toe of her boot into the dirt. "Of course he does not matter. What am I thinking? Oh, and where is the nearest portal off of this disgusting world?"

A flash of white teeth in the briefest of smiles let her know he was truly amused by her. "What is your name?" he drawled as he released her arm.

Soosha lifted her chin. "I do not I think I shall tell you."

Daxan crossed his arms over his chest. "Oh, I think you shall."

"I think not. Just point me towards the nearest Tunnel and I shall leave this wretched place forthwith."

"You are not returning to M'yan?"

Soosha faltered. He knew of her homeworld? She was not sure, but she did not think many outsiders knew much of her homeworld. Or that it was called M'yan.

The least that was said about her world and her people, the better.

"No, I am a traveler." That felt good to say, even if her journey had only just begun.

"Did not your King order all Familiar home?"

"How do you know that?" The admission slipped out and it was too late to call it back.

"I am known to several High Guild members on Aviara. The Alliance hopes to entice Spoltam into their fold, so I am kept apprised of everything that might affect us."

"Who are you?"

"I am called Daxan Sahain and you have not answered my question."

She shrugged.

He arched an eyebrow at her. "Let me guess. You want to adventure, so you defied the royal decree?"

Soosha responded with the
shinar y shinjii.

"You are not planning on going to M'yan, are you?" It was more statement than question.

"No. I told you, I am a traveler."

"Mmm.
Yes, you have journeyed all the way from M'yan to Spoltam
- where you have been for, perhaps, a few moments."

"How did you know that?" She swore under her breath as she realized he had tricked her again into giving him more information! Soosha wondered where he was headed with this interrogation!

She did not have to wait long to find out.

"I
am taking you home."

That said, the tall man clasped her wrist and started striding through the maze of alleyways. Hauling her along behind him.

"Wait
!
What are you doing?" Soosha tried to dig in her heels and pull her hand free at the same time.

Against the strength of such a man it was useless. Her boot heels left deep furrows in the dirt as she was dragged along.

"I cannot take you back to your people now; nor can I, in good conscience, let you venture into sure danger. You will remain in my home until I am able to return you to your family- no doubt they are ill with worry over you."

He continued tugging her along.

"You have no right to do this!"

"I am trying to help you. Believe me, the Tunnel to the next world is one
you
particularly would not welcome; although they would welcome you with ropes and chains. Ganakari links directly to Spoltam, you foolish girl, and if you know not what place that is, then you are truly naive."

"I have not heard of this Ganakari!"

"So I thought. Your family protects you against the horrors Familiars face off world. Ganakari is where your king was recently imprisoned.
And
it is where they amass an army to hunt down those like you."

He picked up his pace.

Soosha had no intention of going with this stranger! For all she knew,
he
could be a slaver.

Furthermore, he was wrong.

She knew of the plight of her people.

Soosha sighed. She also knew that her elder brother, Brygar, had a tendency to shield her. Familiar males were ridiculously protective over their family members. While she had known that taj Gian had been captured and had executed a daring escape, she had never been told the name of the planet he had been held captive on.

But that had naught to do with this stranger. "Stop this! I am not a child seeking your protection! Let me go!"

"Be quiet! You are putting us both at risk! I do not wish to have to plea for you if that Cezarim finds us."

Soosha disagreed. She began to fight in earnest.

Not one to quibble, Daxan stooped down, placed a broad shoulder against her midsection and tossed her over his back.

Familiar females did not take well to being handled without their consent.

Soosha proceeded to claw and scratch his back. In such a state, the females of her kind were tempests of fury. Most wo
u
ld have dropped her and ran for their lives at the outset of the fit.

This
man did not so much as miss a step.

7s
he made of stone?
Soosha was furious. "I am not your concern! Let me go!"

"Oh, you are my concern, all right, and I have no intention of letting you go." With those cryptic words, he smartly slapped her behind with the flat of his hand.

Whap!

Soosha could not believe he would have the audacity to do such a thing! After all, she was almost a member of the royal family. How dare he!

Daxan ignored her yells of outrage and kept walking.

Three things occurred to Soosha simultaneously as she bit a chunk of the man's back.

The first two made her spitting mad. The third gave her pause.

First, she believed herself extremely ill-fortuned to have come upon someone straightaway on this world who felt duty-bound to 'safeguard' her.

Second, she did not think she was going to talk, cajole, or otherwise sweeten this man into releasing her until he heard otherwise from her family; or from
taj
Gian himself. She had seen
that
in his golden eyes. All of a sudden, she wondered just how angry
taj
Gian was going to be over this escapade? She had disobeyed a directive from her king. ..

And finally
- and this was without a doubt the worst of the three revelations
- this non-Familiar, unreasonable stranger... seemed to be. . .

Her mate.

By the blood of Aiyah! Familiars always had the innate ability to sense these things; unfortunately, she had discovered the disturbing fact a fraction of a moment
after
she had sunk her teeth into the muscular curvature of his back.

The bite had not been a love nip.

Not even close to a love nip.

Soosha did not think her actions would particularly endear her to this Spoltam stranger, who would know nothing of Familiar ways.

She shrugged fatalistically. One must do what one must do. She bit him again. Harder.

At the sharp sting of her teeth, Daxan sucked in his breath then let it out in a
whoosh.

Soosha waited to see what he would do. She knew what a Familiar man would do- either growl or bite her back. Maybe both.

And not necessarily with displeasure.

Daxan Sahain did neither.

His step barely faltered as he marched along with her bobbing on his shoulder. "If you do that one more time," he
cautioned in a low voice, " you will regret it."

She tended to believe him. As a warning, his tone was fairly potent. And there was something about him that told her that he never cautioned idly.

Soosha's brow knit in puzzlement.

She only knew the ways of Familiar men
- who could be very formidable when irked. She knew absolutely nothing about Spoltam males.

Do they growl when they are angry or aroused?
Do they purr when they are feeling very sensual or content?

And why ever was she a match to
him?

Familiars rarely mated outside their species. She was not sure how she felt about this sudden change in her life.

The man was certainly comely, yes, but she was not seasoned enough to mate. Surely she needed more time to play about? Of course she did!

Moreover, why was she sensing him when it was usually the male that first triggered the response in the female?

The only Familiar woman she knew of that had mated outside of their people was Rejar's mother, Suleila. What could she recall about that mating.. .?

Suleila had said that it was Krue who relentlessly pursued her. Soosha was not sure, but it had sounded as if Suleila had no idea Krue was to be her mate, at least not at first.

Familiar mating ritual was very complex; Soosha did not pretend to understand its intricacies.

She shrugged fatalistically in the philosophical way of her kind. The Familiar gesture said, 'it is upon me now, so I will deal with it now'.

She froze mid-shrug.

Oh no! He will not be able to gift me with the 900 strokes to
love!

Soosha eyes widened at such a distressing thought. From what she had heard,
that
was a lot for a woman to give up!

On the other hand. . . mayhap Spoltam men had their own delights to share?

The idea immediately perked her up.

What if this Spoltam male does not wish to mate with me?
Soosha worried her lip. He was not Familiar; he would not know he was to be her lifelong companion.

Should she tell him?

At the moment, it did not seem as if he would embrace the news. Especially since she had just bitten a chunk of his back.

Mayhap she should wait a while before informing him they were to spend the rest of their lives together?

And that he must be true to her forever. Just like a Familiar man.

Yes, she would give him a little time to learn of her; then he would have to mate her.

Feline in temperament, it never donned on Soosha that the man would not cherish her. A Familiar's attitude could often be summed up as: "I have decided to be in your presence; of course you must adore me!"

Having thought through her present dilemma, Soosha relaxed against the man's broad shoulders. "You can let me down now; I have decided to go with you to your home." She made her voice sound especially sweet.

Daxan arched his eyebrow. "Just like that, hmm? Had a change of heart, have you?" He did not let up his hold on her for an instant.

"Yes, actually I have. Your words have sense and if I am a guest in your home, I will have a better chance of learning of your people. It is the reason I am traveling, after all.

Now that I have calmed down, I see the benefit in what you suggest. Since you are well known to the High Guild-and my senses tell me you speak the truth- I no longer have qualms about going with you. You may release me."

There. It was a good proclamation. And reasonable, too. Soosha could have purred at her own fine sense; humility not being an attribute of her kind.

"I think not, my lady Familiar."

She could not believe her dainty little ears. "Wh-what did you say?"

"I believe you heard me correctly- but allow me to explain: I do not like being ordered about. I have even less liking for being told what I will and will not do. You have made your declaration; I am having trouble trusting in your words."

The line of her back arched up as her integrity as impugned. "That is ridiculous! Familiars do not lie!"

"Keep your voice down!" he hissed. "Do you wish others to know of you as well? Have you no sense of the danger?"

Her arm sliced the air, dismissing his concerns. "Adventuring is always fraught with danger. That is what makes it so delightful."

"Mmmm. You are either very naive or very foolish." He rested his chin against the back of her upper thigh. The skin was remarkably smooth; it was all he could do not to nuzzle against it. "I am wagering it is both."

Her nostrils flared at the insult. This Spoltami man was quite vexing!

Sometimes that can be a good thing, Soosha...

She thought about it. Familiar woman generally loved complexity in their males. She just was not sure she liked the trait in
him.
After all, he was not Familiar!

He had no right to be so vexing.

It might be better all around if he was not so difficult. Generally speaking, she could charm a bowl of calan stew from a starving man. This man, however, might be somewhat more difficult to manage. ...

As if to prove her assessment, Daxan choose that moment to suddenly bite
her
on the thigh.

Soosha's mouth dropped open at the sharp, sensual sting of his teeth.

The hot nip sent shivers up her leg.

Other women might be offended by what this man had done; she admired him for it. His reaction hinted that he might be a passionate lover and that pleased her.

Still, she needed to set her boundaries. Her kinswoman, Suleila, had once instructed her on these important matters of life. 'Begin as you mean to go on,' Suleila had told her.

Of course, later Soosha had found out that it had actually been Suleila's mate, Krue, who had impressed such wisdom on Suleila.

No matter. Good advice was good advice.

"You go too far Daxan Sahain." Even to her own ears her protest was rather tepid.

Daxan smiled slowly. "No, my lovely Familiar woman,
I reciprocate."

With that warning, he skirted past a side gate of a stone-walled dwelling. Soosha barely had a glimpse of a small garden before they went through an arched stone doorway. The plantings were quite colorful in this area; she would have enjoyed investigating their interesting scents but he did not stop.

Inside, the floor was a tumbled mixture of polished stones.

Through an open doorway, Soosha got a brief glance of someone cooking as they passed. A rather rounded
Zot.
Soosha had heard that
Zots
were native to the planet Zarrain. They were highly sought after as cooks, but they were extremely sensitive about the responsibilities of properly feeding those they served.

This one was swinging both snout and tail in syncopated rhythm as he clattered several pots about in blissful preparation of a meal.

Daxan whisked her past several additional open chambers and then up a wide stairway. Jouncing her all the way.

The dwelling seemed rather large to her. "Is this entire dwelling your home?" Familiars were known for being overly, sometimes inappropriately, inquisitive.

She could feel Daxan smile against her thigh. "Yes."

"What will your family think of you bringing me home like this?" Soosha already knew he was not mated, she was referring to his blood relatives.

"My family does not reside here."

His response perplexed her. Familiar families loved to live together- every day brought plenty of opportunity for squabbles! What would life be without the friction of your family to irk you along? Who better to annoy than your closest loved ones?

"You do not live with your family?" Her tone was so endearingly concerned that his hand involuntarily caressed the curve of her backside.

"Spoltam adults live in their own domiciles. Families grow out and apart."