Terran Times Second Wave # 10 - Liberty (3 page)

Abin-Da didn’t require an answer when he spoke. He made comments on her breasts and hips, remarking, “You have the stature of an adolescent but your body is definitely all woman.”

The blush stayed in place and refused to leave until he finally draped her in narrow strips of fabric that formed an almost-skeletal pattern on her torso. A narrow skirt was wrapped around her hips and secured with a metal-linked belt.

Abin-Da leaned back and nodded. “Good enough for dinner with the duke. I will get to work on the rest of your court garb when I return to my workshop.”

“Um. Thank you. Are you sure that this is appropriate? I am not precisely confident about the exposed skin.” Her nipples were covered and that was the best that could be said for the design. Her shoulders and arms were completely bare.

“I know that you are a Death Seer, but for tonight, you are the newest member of the court.”

She smiled slightly. She had already sensed Abin-Da’s end, and it wasn’t something in the immediate future. That was a primary concern for most folks, if it would happen soon. Any death more than a few decades away and they didn’t care.

“And I need to dress accordingly.”

“Of course. Women are spreading their thighs for the duke at the first opportunity. If you are to keep yourself in his attentions, you will need to stand out.”

She held up her hands. “I have no intention of crawling into bed with him. Today is my first day on a new world after a lifetime firmly planted on my home world. I will not surrender that for a turn in the sheets.”

Abin-Da grinned. “If that is what you think.”

Shoklek came in. He looked her over and nodded. “It is an improvement. His Grace is waiting for you in his chambers.”

Abin-Da shook his head. “You cut it very fine, cousin.”

“He is curious to find out what she read.”

She stepped down to stand next to the major domo. The heels that she was wearing caused her to wobble slightly, but she regained her balance and smiled up at both men.

“Abin-Da, thank you for your assistance today and your eye for fashion. Shoklek, lead on.”

He chuckled and led the way out of her quarters and down the hall to the door where the two guards stood.

“The Death Seer is here for her dinner with the duke.”

The guards nodded and allowed him to open the door. The huge, elaborate stone designs on the walls twisted in vaguely suggestive reliefs. Libby knew that if she stared long enough, she would start blushing, but since the front room was the same size as a ballroom back on Earth there was enough space between her and the lewd detail to make it an examination for another time. A long table that would seat twenty was on one side and a smaller table was on the other. It was that table that servants were setting for two.

The major domo led her to the table and stood with her, waiting for the duke to make his appearance.

“He will be here shortly.”

“I stand with you until then?”

“It is protocol. He is always to be seated first.”

Libby nodded and settled in to wait. They were only standing for two minutes when a door at the back of the chamber opened and the duke appeared.

They both stood at attention while he approached, and when he stopped in front of her and took her hand, Shoklek announced, “The Death Seer, as requested, Your Grace.”

The duke bent and brought her hand to her lips. “You have adapted quickly. You look lovely.”

She stared up into those crimson eyes and blinked. “Thank you, Your Grace.”

He smiled. “No need for thanks when the obvious is stated. Shall we dine?”

He led her to the seat, and she was unsure of what to do when he held it out for her.

Shoklek gave her a slight nod, and she slipped into the chair and close to the table while the duke helped her settle.

His fingers skated over her arms as he stepped back and took his own seat.

“Thank you for the invitation, Your Grace.”

“You are most welcome. I must confess to a certain curiosity about your species.” The duke raised his hand and servants scurried in and delivered covered plates to set in front of them.

She waited for the cover to be removed, and when it exposed the small bits of elegant sculpture on her plate, she waited until the duke took his first bite.

She didn’t know where to start, so she watched him for clues. Apparently, the tiny pastry tower was designed to have the small lake spread over it and then the whole thing was popped in in one bite.

Libby tried but she had to cover her mouth. It was good, it tasted amazing, but she didn’t have jaws designed to destroy the construct. She closed her eyes in bliss as her overfilled mouth broke down the appetizer, and she could finally swallow.

He was looking at her with amusement in his eyes. “You do not have to consume it in one bite.”

She swallowed and delicately licked her lips. “Apologies, Your Grace. Food etiquette was not my best subject.”

His gaze focused on her lips. “What was your best subject?”

She blushed and folded her hands in her lap. “Marksmanship.”

It was a small lie. Sexual-social etiquette had been her best subject, but marksmanship had been a close second.

The first course was cleared and the second was set before her. She assessed the implements that were laid out and prodded the food on her plate delicately before she plunged into the cross between salad and pasta.

“It appears that you cannot lie without your skin telling the tale.” The duke chuckled as he ate.

“I am sure I do not know what you mean, Your Grace.”

“I have read the reports of your studies. I am very sure that you are aware that marksmanship was not your best subject in training.”

“Perhaps I was mistaken, Your Grace.” She shrugged and finished the dish after he did.

He laced his fingers together and rested them on the table. “When we are alone, you may call me Rajon. Your Grace is far too formal for such a casual setting and for one with such intimate knowledge of me.”

She blinked until she realized that he meant his death. “Thank you, Rajon.”

“You are quite welcome, Liberty.”

They made it through the meal with only minor chitchat. Whatever he wanted to say, he was not going to say in front of the serving staff.

Nine courses later, they were alone with only glasses of wine on the table and a carafe standing by.

She rolled the glass between her palms. He hadn’t dismissed her, so she was stuck waiting on him.

“Now, Death Seer, tell me what you saw when you touched me.”

He was leaning back, and the gems studded in his hair twinkled at her.

She thought back to the moment of contact, and she swallowed. “Your wife dies and you join her, willing yourself to death in her embrace. It is over two hundred years from this date, and you have had a good life with her.”

He nodded and sipped at his wine. “How does she die?”

“I cannot say.”

“Cannot or will not?”

She shrugged. “I have not touched her hand to read her death. I can’t see a death without contact unless there are many folk involved.”

It was a partial truth. The hand that he was touching as he lay dying was hers and life was fleeing them both as they were curled together under a blanket of stars.

He nodded and got to his feet. “Bring your wine and follow me.”

“Yes, Your Gr — Rajon.” She took up her glass and followed him, the cool air caressing the exposed flesh of her torso. The bands that supported her breasts warmed the areas they covered, but the rest of the open work exposed her to the breezes.

He led her through the door he had emerged from while she had been waiting with Shoklek.

Libby froze in the doorway of what was obviously a bedroom.

He turned and beckoned her inside. “I will not pounce on you; come and see what I have been sent by the Guardian Base on Yaccaro.”

She walked up to him, and he put a hand on her spine, turning her toward a draped expanse on the wall. The fabric was the same rich red as Rajon’s eyes.

“What am I looking at?”

He chuckled and stroked his middle finger over the wall under the drape.

The fabric pulled aside in even curtains, exposing a painting that took her breath away.

The landscape was undoubtedly Miexhar, but that was a distant awareness in comparison with the image of Rajon with his arms around a small woman, a human woman. A Terran woman.

Liberty licked her lips and took a gulp of wine. A Terran woman with a scar on her shoulder blade from a dog bite when she was six.

She swallowed again as the placement of the chalk-white hands and the gleam of his red eyes showed his intimate intent with the woman wearing nothing but a loose drape around her hips.

“Do you see anyone you know?” When he spoke, his fingers caressed her back and stroked her scar.

“Um, where did you get this again?”

“It was sent to me by a matchmaking seer on Yaccaro. Her husband is an acquaintance of mine, and I believe she is one of your people.” His hand moved over her spine.

“What does it mean?”

He chuckled. “It means that you are my destiny, or so I have been told.”

She looked up at him. “Do you believe it?”

He grinned. “I believe I am open to the possibility.”

Libby looked back at the clinch depicted on the portrait. “If it is your destiny, why can’t you see the woman’s face?”

“Oh, didn’t I tell you? This portrait was not for me; it was addressed to you, care of my palace. I merely decided to keep it.” He chuckled. “The joys of power.”

Libby blinked and tried to step away from the duke. “Um, in that case, I am not sure that it was truly for me. Anyone could have that scar.”

“It was addressed to you by name.”

“How could she know about that?”

“Apparently, she has a notification system that alerts her to any new Terrans entering the Nyal Imperium. She has this idea that they are not safe on their own, that they need to find their ideal mates as quickly as possible. I was fascinated at the idea of having a Terran for my very own.”

Libby eased away from him. “I heard you tried to buy me.”

“Death seers are very difficult to find. Having you in my court will be a coup.” He set his wine down on a nearby occasional table and he crossed his arms over his chest.

“So, that is all you want me for? As a trophy?”

“I want you for many things, but we have time, Liberty. You will come to me when you are ready to.” Rajon twisted his lips in a smile. “I can wait.”

Libby blushed. “So, why the peekaboo clothing?”

“I never said I wouldn’t enjoy the view while I wait. Your body’s curves are delightfully enticing. I look forward to seeing you in more of Abin-Da’s creations. He has an eye for flattering a body.”

She scowled. “I am not here for your amusement.”

Rajon turned her toward him and lifted her chin on his large hand. “That is where you are wrong.”

He leaned in and kissed her, brushing his lips across hers in a slow introduction.

Libby’s blood pounded in her veins, and she blinked up at him with amazement. “I am not sure how to respond to that.”

He chuckled and stroked her cheek. “You have an appointment with my physician in the morning. Day clothing will be provided. I look forward to seeing you when the doctor has concluded his examination.”

“So, I am dismissed for the evening?”

He raised his brows. “Would you care to join me in bed?”

Libby bit her lip. “Um, good night, Your Grace.”

He laughed and inclined his head.

With her shoulders back, she walked toward the door she had entered by and she pressed her fingertips to her lips. They still tingled from the contact.

In the doorway, she turned, and he was watching her from in front of the portrait. Blushing at getting caught staring at him, she crossed the front room and left through the door with the guards on either side.

Liberty touched her lips again as she returned to her quarters, three doors down. Knowing what the interior of the duke’s quarters looked like, she was sure that those other doors were dummies.

Her own quarters were welcome after the weird semi-formality of the evening. In her dressing room, she reached behind her and found the small connection that held the top in place. A snap and a tug and the entire collection of bands unravelled, leaving her dressed only from the hips down.

The skirt unsnapped, and she sighed as the fabric slithered to the floor. Naked, she walked out to the balcony and hoped that the darkness was enough to cloak her. The stars were so different; the light was even a different colour as it touched her skin. With a sigh and another look upward to the place where Earth was supposed to be, she turned and walked to her bed, unravelling her hair as she went.

The bed was springy and had a light sway to it. She snuggled under the covers and hoped that she could sleep. It had been a very eventful first day at work.

Rajon watched his mate from the shadows. She didn’t have a problem with her body if her naked stance on the balcony was any indication.

Tomorrow, she would start receiving the genetic alterations that would enable them to mate. When he had first seen the image, he had doubted that he would be attracted to such a tiny creature, but now that he had met her, he could think of no one else.

There was no woman in his court that caught and held his attention like the Terran had done in five minutes. Prince Drehl’s woman knew her business. Liberty Trout was definitely the female he wanted to bind his life to.

His mistress was not pleased with his selection, but she would have to find another target. Lohra-Ahn was talented and enthusiastic in bed, but he had known from the first moment they had touched that it was not going to go further than a liaison. Unfortunately, she had been playing the long game, as he had found out when he announced their separation. He would deal with whatever she chose to pull out of her sleeve. Nothing was going to stop him from being with his true match.

Liberty would be his.