Sacrifice to the Stars Read online

  His eyes widened in shock. Chromial was dangerous. It was outlawed on many civilized Hashka settled worlds. That she had survived on it for eight months was a miracle. Most women would have gone insane at the interference with her cycle.

  "Do you have any left?"

  "No. I had to use the meds that you flushed down the sink. They didn't work, even with the cream."

  Morrer informed her, "Chromial would have made the next drugs ineffective. Didn't the physician tell you that?"

  She closed her eyes as he prodded at her knee. "No. It was not mentioned."

  Muttering to himself about incompetent doctors, Morrer opened a tube of healing cream and started to rub it into the swollen tissue around her knee.

  Jenner envied him that small touch. After her first wince of pain, she relaxed into the slow massage that he offered her.

  Jenner took in the look of bliss on her face, the lidded eyes as Morrer's touch stimulated as it relaxed. The almost imperceptible parting of her thighs, the dark rainbow curls gleaming in the light of the dispensary. Her belly was softly curved and Jenner had to focus his attention again on any discolouration of the skin.

  "Her hip is bruised as well, Morrer." The skin was starting to flush dark purple and swelling was showing.

  The priest chuckled, his dark hair sliding forward as he worked. "Lie on your back, Tia."

  Her hands trembled, but she folded them under her breasts as Morrer took a closer look at her hip.

  Jenner watched his brother's eyes close and saw his fight for concentration at the tantalizing scent rising from between her thighs. Jenner shifted his place so that he was standing at her feet and the view of her flushed and gleaming flesh tested his concentration to the limit.

  He chanted self-control mantras as he had been taught, but when Morrer asked him to assist in rubbing the cream into her skin, he was at her side before he could formulate a reason not to.

  On his knees, he took the tube and placed a line across the swelling. With the lightest of touches, he worked the pain-deadening cream out in an expanding circle until she relaxed the tightness of her shoulders. It had been paining her that much was sure.

  Morrer was on his feet and he spoke to an acolyte at the door. The young man tried to peek around the older priest, but Morrer wasn't giving up a glimpse of Tia.

  "Darnin was the man who was after you today. Do you know why?" He worked the cream into the softness of her skin.

  Her whisper stroked along his skin like a caress. "He has been getting agitated all week. I am guessing that his reaction was the effect of the Chromial wearing off. My mother once told me that if a man could not see you, the scent could drive him mad."

  Jenner laughed. "It does do that to some. Most men can control themselves until they find a female, but some skipped the meditation that we force on young men here."

  "I wondered. You don't seem wild-eyed or ravening." She laughed lightly and he let his hand wander down her hip across the top of her thigh. He kept his fingers drawing slow circles on her delicate skin.

  "I am old enough to know better. But I am very affected. If I had my way, I would be between your thighs, fucking you senseless right now. Instead, I think a kiss will be distraction enough." He leaned forward and watched her eyes widen with surprise, her breath stopping in her lungs as his lips hovered over hers.

  * * * *

  Tia was trembling from head to toe. She leaned up and closed the distance between them, giving Jenner full reign for his kiss. He didn't hesitate. She was pressed back to the firm surface of the cot as he used his mouth to taste, touch and explore her mouth.

  His fingers, so close to the juncture of her thighs, started to move. He parted her curls with his long middle finger and slid it across her clit and between the lips of her sex. She gasped when he slipped one finger inside her and slid his tongue into her mouth at the same time.

  She shivered faster, the heat in her body raging at his touch, the slide of his tongue along hers, tasting, taking, brought her to the edge of sanity and a flick of his thumb on her clit brought her over.

  Her thighs clamped to hold his hand where it was while she twisted in the maelstrom of sensation.

  He pulled back from the kiss. "Easy, Tia."

  The sound of his voice rippled through her and additional spasms within her caressed his finger. She was gasping, her chest heaving, all from a kiss and a small touch. Essha help her if he used both hands.

  With a certain amount of reluctance on his face, he removed his hand from between her thighs and, in a move that shocked her, licked his finger. Ooh Essha.

  She touched his mind and found a wild swirl of lust held in control with an iron will. The taste of her wore on his self-control.

  Another typhoon of interest was swirling just a few feet away, Morrer stood with his eyes glowing, fixated on the parting of her thighs. With a whimper, she closed her thighs and turned her back to the two men.

  "You do realize that we are just as interested in this view as the other, Tia?" Morrer laughed and he waylaid the acolyte who approached with armloads of fabric. The priest took the armload from the man who couldn't be more than twenty and turned him away from Tia with a hard shove.

  Tia looked over her shoulder at Jenner and his eyes glowed brightly as he looked from the curve of her hips and back to her face. He simply cocked an eyebrow at her and smiled.

  "I have clothing for you."

  A wave of relief ran through her and she reached for the fabric. Jenner got there first.

  "I will pick a few things. We will be on our way out of the city shortly. I just needed to let the priests know that they don't need to find a volunteer for the ceremony this year."

  She shivered. The ceremony on her home world was very much alive in her mind.

  Jenner handed her a long slip and a loose gown to drop over it. Well, she thought it was a loose gown. As soon as it was over her head, Jenner tightened the laces until her breasts, the plane of her abdomen and her hips were all very obvious.

  Morrer watched with interest. "You are taking her to the clan house?"

  "She will be safer there than with me. She is also waiting for priests from her world to arrive to kill her. They will probably come to you first. Contact me if they do." Jenner lifted her feet and slid them into slippers, one at a time. She braced her hands on his shoulder and heat flared in her body at the feeling of hard muscle under her hands.

  She jerked her hands back as if scalded. The heat in her hands was partially from the wounds under the plastic skin, the rest was all writhing fate and wild hormones.

  When Jenner finished dressing her, he stood, towering over her at close proximity. She held her breath as he reached down and tilted her head up, bringing his face to hers for another kiss.

  "Stop it, Jenner. If I can't, then you can't." Morrer hauled him backward and for a moment, she thought that they would start fighting.

  Instead, a rapid-fire communication ran between them. Tia opened her senses and she could hear them talking. Almost. It was a buzzing in her mind that made her dizzy.

  Jenner jerked his head, nodded and in a sudden move, lifted her off her feet.

  He walked out through a different door than they had entered the temple by and placed her gently on a skimmer that she had to straddle, tucking himself firmly against her back as he reached around her to start the skimmer.

  She squirmed around, pulling the folds of the skirt up so that she could tuck her feet on the floorboards. There were loops of metal that were not attached to the controls, so she grabbed them as the conveyance they were on lifted off the ground. A whispered, "Hang on," in her ear and they were cruising through the streets.

  Chapter Four

  They reached an enormous house just as dawn was creeping across the land.

  An hour into their ride, she had begun to shake uncontrollably. Between her own heat, the iron bar of flesh pressed against her spine and the vibration of the skimmer engine, she was in a sorry state. If the seat had
been slightly more yielding, she would have been rocking herself to orgasm. As it was, the cool metal stilled her response the moment that she pressed against it. It was torture.

  When the skimmer halted in the courtyard of the large manor house, she heard a crooning noise in her ear. "Relax, Tia. Let the handles go." Jenner pried her hands from the bar and cuddled her against him.

  She could feel the chill in her skin, the evening had not been warm and they had flown very fast. "Where are we?"

  "My family home. Our clan seat. There are women's quarters here and you can be safe from any investigation."

  "Women's quarters?" She shivered in his arms.

  "Yes. We reserve quarters for women in early stages of heat. It gives us enough time to find an appropriate match for them." He approached the doors and a startled servant opened them as they approached.

  "You have servants?"

  "A few. This is the clan house after all. Women in heat cannot cook or share quarters with anyone other than their spouse. Conflicting body chemistries can cause a problem with women." He chuckled as she stiffened. "Don't you separate women during that time back on your world?"

  "No. They engage in their daily tasks as normally as you or I would. They tend to find their partners quickly though." She shrugged. "When can I walk on my own?"

  A feminine voice broke over them. "Yes, Jenner. When can she

  walk on her own and who is she?"

  Tia saw an elegant woman, white streaking her hair in a graceful pattern. The black eyes that looked out at her were curious and crinkled in amusement.

  "Mother, this is Tia Soveen, my guest until the final festival day."

  She inclined her head toward the woman, "I thank General Mathwin and his family for the hospitality that is offered."

  "I am Aida Mathwin. You may call me Aida. Why is he carrying you?"

  "I was injured this evening and my knee is a little weak. That and I believe he is enjoying holding me against him." She hoped that embarrassing him would cause him to put her down, but he merely shifted his grip.

  "I certainly am. She needs to be confined in the women's quarters."

  His mother came forward, raising her head to scent the air. "I don't sense it."

  Jenner laughed. "Any of the men in the house will be able to detect it, Mother. She isn't from Emicar IV and has a different mix than the females here."

  That caused his mother's eyes to widen in surprise. "This way then. We have the standard guest room ready. Does she need anything else?"

  "She needs some sleep. And a toothbrush. And a bath. I think I have bugs in my hair." Tia made her needs known. She left the needs of her biological urges out of the equation. As they passed one male early riser in the hall, his dilated pupils and the bulge inside his trousers was proof enough that she was still weaving her particular brand of charms. In embarrassment, she covered her eyes with her hands.

  Jenner's dark chuckle next to her ear didn't help matters. Her body revved its engines, but since she was in a helpless position, she couldn't take action. Her clit throbbed, her labia were slick and she was rubbing her thighs together like an insect.

  "Shut up, Jenner."

  His mother hooted with laughter, she had obviously noted the reaction of her clan member.

  A large set of locked double doors faced them.

  "This is where I leave you, Tia. I will see you when the meds have left your system." Jenner set her on her feet and while she was still reeling, he slid his hand under the tight winding of her braid and kissed her until her knees buckled.

  When he pulled away from her, his lips shone in the morning light and his body was flush against hers, leaving no part of him to her imagination. "Behave, Tia. My mother is known for her patience, or is that the lack of it, I forget."

  Blinking, she stepped back out of his embrace and took the arm that Aida offered her. She limped through the double doors, hearing the slam as they closed behind her.

  She was trapped.

  "The doors aren't to keep you in. They are to keep the men out. They are chromosomally activated. Women can come and go as they please, but the men can't cross the threshold. You aren't a prisoner. You are welcome to visit the grounds, but know that we do not stop the men from active pursuit. If you want to stay safe, stay inside."

  That was to the point.

  "I don't know how things were with your last heat—"

  She stopped Aida there. "This is my first."

  The woman stopped and turned, astonishment was written on her dark skin. "You are what, twenty-one, twenty-two?"

  "Twenty-six. My family delayed my first heat with diet, medication and herbs. They were trying to prolong my life. When it finally came, the symptoms were subdued with Chromial. I have run out of the drug and am now at the mercy of my own body. Not pleasant."

  Aida gave her a hug. "I will ask you about the delay another day. For today, I will have food sent to your room when the sensors indicate that you are awake."

  "Thank you. For what time I am here, I am grateful for your hospitality." Tia acted with all the politeness her Gran had drummed into her.

  The older woman smiled and opened a door. "These will be your rooms while you are here. You can access any vids we have on record. We have a series of treaties and scrolls in the library, down the hall and to the right. You have full access to this wing of the house and no one will bother you."

  Relief flooded Tia's mind. "Thank you. It's a relief." She yawned and took a few steps into the room that she had been assigned.

  The bed was narrow, just her size and an open archway must lead to the bathroom. A vid screen and a small sitting area completed the suite.

  "It's wonderful, thank you."

  Aida smiled and nodded an acknowledgement. "If I may ask, how long has this heat lasted?"

  Tia struggled to assess time, "Eight or nine months, I believe. It becomes harder to concentrate on time with my body rioting at every sound."

  "Well, there will be no disturbance of that nature here, relax and be at ease. I will speak with you later in the day."

  Tia nodded her thanks and when the door closed, she made a beeline for the bathroom. A set of combs and brushes were on a small shelf under a mirror. She ran a bath with thick bubbles and removed her hairpins, one at a time. The long cable of her braid snaked down and finally hung to her calves.

  As she unwound the braid, she sighed in relief. Her hair would be finally, properly clean. With a heavy curtain of hair hanging to her ankles, she stripped off her clothes and stepped into the bath. The bubbles and water relaxed her until she could barely keep her eyes open. She soaked for close to an hour before she hauled her body, dripping and flushed, from the bath. One towel for her hair and another for her body, she wandered back into the bedroom and crawled beneath the sheets.

  She was safe, she was tired and she was going to get some sleep.

  * * * *

  Aida was reeling with shock. She didn't know any woman who had been in heat that long and not gone insane with lust. Hashka were designed for pleasure, to give and receive. Their gods demanded it. To fight one's body was to fight the will of the gods.

  She exited the women's quarters and was unsurprised to see her son waiting for her in the kitchen.

  "Is she settled?" Jenner turned and reached on the counter behind him for an apple that he rolled between his palms.

  "What the hell were you doing, bringing her here? She is so far into her heat, she could snap at any moment," Aida whispered furiously.

  The kitchen staff were arriving and they smiled at Jenner. He took his meals early when he was at the clan house.

  "She needed to be safe. Morrer and I discussed it at the temple and he cleared it with the head priest. On the last day of the festival, she will be sacrificed for Lassing."

  That was more surprising than having a strange woman from another world turn up in her son's arms. "She's the sacrifice? I thought Mavin had volunteered for it."

  "Mavin is not a psych
ic." He grinned. "Fortunately, as precedent has shown, she need not be a virgin on the night in question."

  Aida got a strange feeling. She had never seen her son in this particular mood. Frustrated and yet in a heightened state of anticipation. "You want her." It was not a question.

  "I do and she responds to my voice more strongly than anyone I have ever met. Her scent is intoxicating and it is only in early stages."

  She could see that he wanted to go on with his description, but she waved him to silence. "Does she have any clothing?"