Sarazen's Claim, Book One (28 page)

She was aware of the eyes on her, the speculation, the disappointment that she had not reacted the way they anticipated. She was aware of the eyes on her people, on Gwen and Andi and Cassie, on Tara and the others who had the potential to become more. Become stronger. Become more of a threat. Her cat identified the ones who feared her, the ones who were curious about her, the ones who looked at her the way that Ne’tare and Te’sha looked at her. With kindness and relief. The kindness was welcome, but she didn’t understand the relief, and when she silently asked Tarek, he looked at her and squeezed her hand.

Later, my one. We will speak of this only between ourselves, and not with so many eyes upon us.

I made a big mistake, didn’t I?

No, you did not. You did what was natural, and right.

He was agitated, she could feel it while he stood in the common room in his wing of the citadel, giving Brennaugh orders to stay with the humans and protect them while he, Ga’rae, Ohlen and Falken took them out for a much needed run. Something was wrong, and she had a feeling that despite what he said, she’d done something that was going to change the course of their lives. And likely not for the better. If Brennaugh knew what those consequences were, he did not speak them aloud, but he looked at her with those kind eyes, the eyes of a warrior, and he lowered them when she continued to stare. Her cat purred with happiness, with affection. The sort she imagined she would feel for a sibling, the sort she could trust.

Tara came to her and kept her voice low, but her cat recognized the strength in her, the potential for so much more strength. The sort of strength she would want beside her when whatever came to pass, passed. “What’s going on? You and the others came back from the meeting and I can practically see the tension rolling off the men.” She didn’t have a complete answer, and she wasn’t ready to confess to Tara that she feared something horrible had just happened. “I honestly don’t know how to explain it. I met his brother, the Queen, their version of a council and a few other people. Some of them looked at me with fear, some with kindness, others with uncertainty and disappointment.” Tara was astute, quick, her mind analytical, and in a flash she drug in a deep breath and nodded, “Not so different from us then, after all. Fearing what they don’t understand.”

She thought on Tara’s astute assesment while she walked beside Tarek, with Gwen and Ga’rae, Cassie and Falken, Ohlen and Andi. Down the same curved stone stairs to the same transport that waited, and Ohlen again flew them out of the small hangar and back out above the citadel. Out through the forest that now smelled of the night air and white flowers that bloomed in the long grass, the petals shimmering in the moonlight. Tarek bent his head and touched a kiss to her shoulder, “They only bloom at night, I forgot how beautiful they are. The shimmer reminds me of your claws, my one.” He took her hand and rubbed his thumb over the tendons on the back of her hand, wordlessly urging her to let her claws slip from beneath her nails.

It was a small hurt, the way they passed through her skin, but he was right. The white color of her claws did shimmer like the flowers in the field, sparkling in the moonlight. He showed her his own, black and matte, his hand so much bigger than hers, so gentle, “What did I do?” She asked, knowing he heard her even though the wind was rushing around them, tearing her words away. “Despite my truth that I do not now or later wish to rule the Sarazen pride, it is well known that I am stronger than the
Asho
. You proved yourself to be stronger than the
Asho’na
, and together, doing nothing more than standing together, we have made it plain that the ruling pair, is weak.”

“But I like your brother.”

“He liked you, too.”

“His mate is a bitch.”

“She is.”

“If I had changed in front of everyone,”

“It would have made no difference. You are able to shift into a fully formed Sarazen cat. Not a single one of our females can do that.”

“What happens now?”

He sighed and touched a kiss to her throat, to her temple, and hugged her back against him tighter. She looked at Gwen, curled up on Ga’rae’s lap with her eyes closed and her face lifted into the wind. Andi stood braced between Ohlen’s arms at the flight console. Cassie sat at Falken’s feet with her head resting on his thigh, a content smile on her face while he combed his fingers through her hair. “Now, my one, we will run together.” Ohlen put the transport down in a clearing, leading her off behind one of the trees, and when she looked over her shoulder it was to see the other men doing the same thing. “Is this the same forest the festival is held in?” She shivered when his fingers scraped sensually across her shoulders, pushing the material of her dress down her arms, catching the dress before it hit the ground and lay it over a conveniently waiting branch. “No, it is two days journey from here, we will be leaving in the morning. Do you need me to help you into the change?” Her cat snorted and stretched inside her, already reaching forward and eager to be let loose. “Don’t think so.” He grinned and his hands went to the laces of his trousers. “Wait for me before you run off,”

She nodded and let out a heavy breath, not looking forward to the pain of the shift, but her cat was already pushing forward and there was no stopping her now. The pain was brief, nothing like before, and soon she was looking at the world in sharp relief, the colors vibrant and alive to her feline eyes. The earth under her feet, her paws was cool and moist, her claws kneading furrows through the leaves and the soft grass, releasing scents her human nose would never have been able to smell. It was unbelievable, and the joy she felt was enough to have moved her to tears. “Never, has there been another as beautiful as you.” She turned to look at where Tarek was crouched, totally naked and looking at her with a deeply possessive, proud expression on his face. Her cat moved to rub alongside his muscled body, purring and groaning at the firm knead of his hands through her fur, rubbing her cheeks over him to press her scent into his skin.

A few moments later, and a golden cat, easily twice her size, replaced that two legged male and butted her with his face, nipping affectionately at her, chuffing in amusement when she slapped him across the muzzle with the tuft of her tail. She jogged off, smelling the others and was eager to see them milling around, the females playfully pouncing on their mates and playing with one another. She sat and watched, oddly content to enjoy their happiness and their curiosity, leaning on Tarek’s cat when he sat beside her. They watched the others play for a time, and then one by one they seemed to notice them sitting there. The males were markedly larger than their mates, hovering close while the smaller females adjusted to their new shapes. She realized the threat that she and the others posed, when one by one the six other big cats came and lay down on their bellies in front of them.

The threat, was that whether or not Tarek wanted to rule the pride, he had the ability and had served as the commander of their entire fighting force. While T’mai might have ruled the pride that whole time, he hadn’t fought one single battle himself, and when push came to shove, Tarek was the stronger male. And she, was the stronger female. Together they were a force to be reckoned with, could challenge and win any fight so long as they were alive. She already had thirty in her own little pride, three of whom could change fully, seven more with the potential to do so, and all of them came attached to the strongest warriors Saraz had to offer. Warriors loyal to Tarek, human hybrids loyal to her. And the potential to provide Saraz with the final thing that the current pair had not.

Offspring.

Threat, threat, threat.

Three strikes, as her father would have said.

Tarek coughed a soft sound and everyone got up, he shoved at her and trotted off into the trees, looking back over his shoulder to swing his head at her demandingly. She joined him, and soon her cat took over and they were running through the forest. She’d never felt such exhilaration in her entire life, and while they ran, her thoughts were consumed with joy. Later, she would worry, later, she would deal with the uncertainty of their future. For now, tonight, she just wanted to run and experience the way it felt to be a powerful creature, racing through the trees on this alien planet that was now her home.

Twenty Six

Ne’tare had a massive spread of food waiting for them when they got back to their suite, but before she could even think about food, she had another craving that needed satisfying. If there was a flat surface, Tarek fucked her on it, bent over it, or against it. They didn’t get to eat until well into the early morning hours, and she didn’t object when Tarek carried her to the transport that would take them from one planet to the neighboring one where this season’s festival would be held. He tucked her into the bed in their cabin and told her to rest, leaving her with a kiss and a grin.

She slept for a few hours and got up to shower and change into a fresh dress, had a snack and went in search of the others. But she didn’t make it very far before her sensitive ears picked up a hushed conversation she was certain she wasn’t supposed to hear. “The toxin will render them unable to communicate through their bond. You’re certain?” A male voice she didn’t recognize said, and another answered, “Yes. Ne’tare and Te’sha have proven to be obstacles, they fix the meals for all of the humans themselves and thus far we’ve had no opportunity to introduce the pollen into their food.” She held her breath to ensure that not a single sound escaped her, and ever present in the forefront of her mind, she felt her cat contain her scent. Tarek had told her that it took most Sarazens well over half their lives to master such a skill, and he was delighted by her ability to do so.

Right now, hearing this plot to poison her people, it was very fucking useful. But since she didn’t know the scents or the voices of the men in the room, she couldn’t identify them. “Will it take effect by the time they reach the festival grounds?” The first asked, the growl of displeasure plain in his voice. “Provided that they consume the food and drink given to them, yes.”

“Will it be fatal?”

“No. Did you want it to be?”

“Not yet. It would look suspicious if all the females were to die suddenly at the same time.”

“You realize that if you remove or kill the females, their warriors will have to be put down not long after. The loss of their mate will drive them insane with rage,”

“I am aware. But right now, it is not our concern. Preventing these abominations from mating legally within our population, is.”

She reached silently for Tarek, and in one horrifying moment realized that there was some kind of static, an uncomfortable buzz that prevented her from speaking to him along their bond. She must have already ingested whatever toxic pollen they had intended. Thankfully it wasn’t fatal, though that didn’t make her feel any less sick or frightened, this time, but next time…she silently retreated back the way she’d come, grateful for the soft soled slippers that made her steps utterly soundless. She made noise when she reached her doorway, leaning forward and called out an uncertain, “Hello?” It wasn’t long before a warrior rounded the corner and touched his fingertips to his chest, “
Asha’na
, are you well?” Not the owner of one of the two voices, not the right scent, so she smiled at him sheepishly and twisted her fingers while she made herself flush. “Yes, sorry. Tarek wasn’t with me when I woke up. I’d like to visit with some of my people, would you mind either taking me to them, or bringing them here?”

He seemed genuinely glad to take her to a smaller version of the observation deck she remembered from aboard Tarek’s warship, and when they arrived, moments later another warrior brought Andi, Gwen and Cassie, and the rest of her crew a little while later. He wasn’t one of the two she’d heard either, so she smiled and closed the doors behind them, using the sequences she remembered Tarek teaching her to secure the room. She was successful, and once the control panel turned red, she turned around and filled her crew in as fast as she could. “I must have already eaten or drank something with the pollen in it, I can’t speak to Tarek along our bond like before. Can you?” Gwen tried, hissing and reached up to touch her temple with a shake of her head, “Hurts, like static.” Cassie tried and gave the same answer, both of them looking a little panicked. Everyone looked at Andi, and she almost crumpled with relief when Andi opened her eyes and let out a shaky breath. “Got Ohlen. What do I tell him?”

“Everything I just told you.”

There was silence while Andi communicated with Ohlen, and she waited on edge for her to open her eyes and relay whatever his words were. “He’s coming with the others now.” She nodded and unlocked the doors, awaiting the arrival of the four males. She winced as she felt static in her head, pressing at her temples as the pain increased. It stopped just as quickly as it started and moments later Tarek, Ga’rae, Ohlen, Falken, Brennaugh and the six other warriors came storming through the door. Tarek secured it behind them and immediately reached for her, tilting her head back to look in her eyes, “Are you hurt?”