Stolen Destiny Read online

  He released the band clasp that had kept her wrist from moving even with the rest of her twisting violently.

  She flexed her hand and rotated her wrist. “Thank you, Medic Dlafen.”

  “You are welcome, Mistress Silhouette. You are looking better than you were when I saw you last.”

  “When you saw me last, I was pinned to a wall. I was bound to improve.” She tried to ease off the med bed on Dlafen’s side of the bed, but Kalek grabbed her and held her carefully against his chest.

  He looked at her with narrowed eyes. “Were you trying to get away from me?”

  She looked him in the eye. “Yes.”

  He grinned. “That is against the contract.”

  She thought about it. “Where?”

  “The compliance clauses.”

  “Oh. Darn.” She broke the eye contact and looked around medical. There were three crewmen and two medics; one male and one female human were there, getting basic instruction in the supply cupboard. “What are they doing here?”

  “They each have an aptitude for medical training. They will be given basic instruction here, and when we return to Korvil, they will be enrolled in a medical program.” Kalek nodded to them.

  The humans looked at her, and there was pity in the female’s eyes and speculation in the male’s.

  The female asked, “Why are you in medical?”

  Kalek answered for her. “She injured herself on the other Terran’s face. So she received healing, and she will be punished for injuring herself.”

  “Punished?” Sil looked at him in surprise.

  “Oh, yes. Your body is no longer yours alone. Anyone coming into contact with it will politely be informed that it would be unwise to repeat the experience.”

  She wrinkled her nose. “I am conflicted on that situation.”

  “I have no doubt. The Terran will keep his life because he wasn’t informed of your status. This time. Next time, he will be castrated and sent to one of the mines.”

  She looked at him and read the truth in his expression. “Right. I am sure that these two will pass along the information.”

  The man nodded. “It will be passed along.”

  Sil sighed. “This would be less mortifying if I was on my feet.”

  “You are being punished. Do I need to write that down?”

  “No, Master Kalek.” She said it through gritted teeth. “Pardon. Captain Kalek.”

  He inclined his head. “I see you are learning manners, pet.”

  She made a face.

  “Please, excuse us. My companion just completed an exhausting repair. Enjoy your education.”

  He turned and left them behind, nodding to Dlafen as they passed.

  “That wasn’t embarrassing at all.”

  “I thought you don’t experience embarrassment.”

  She smiled. “I don’t. But I am good at pretending if I have to. They expect to see it, so I show it to them.”

  He chuckled. “So, what do you think of the idea of punishment.”

  “Deeply unfair. You deliberately told me that I could defend myself.”

  He smiled. “True. I suppose I should only punish you for damaging yourself and not seeking immediate assistance.”

  “I didn’t... oh yeah. Fair enough.” She nodded. “What do punishments entail?”

  “Are you still afraid of heights?” He was amused by something.

  “I am not afraid of heights; I am afraid of flying as I lack wings.” She muttered.

  “Your species was not designed to have wings.”

  “My species evolved not to have wings.” She sighed. “We are going flying. Correct?”

  “Correct.”

  She shivered. “Is there more punishment after that?”

  “No, we will go to an officers’ dinner.”

  She winced. “We will?”

  “We will.”

  “So, what is Korvil?”

  “The world I guard as their overseer.”

  “So, what are you doing out here?” She waved her hand to indicate the surrounding area.

  “A world doesn’t collapse because one being has left, and I am capable of doing business on long-range coms.”

  “Ah. Right. So, what is Korvil’s main export?”

  “Tourism. We are at a junction of several trade routes, so weary travellers head to the surface for bright sun, endless beaches, and soft breezes.”

  She stared at him. “You have that, and you are out here?”

  He laughed. “It gets tiresome after a while. Out here, every experience is new.”

  She wasn’t sure what to say to that, so she remained quiet as they entered the doorway to the oxygen farm. The door closed behind them, and he shook his wings out, walking calmly to the railing before stepping up on it and simply falling forward.

  Sil was treated to the view of the forest rushing up on her, and she started to hyperventilate as it got closer and closer. Kalek’s wings opened, and they changed direction with a jerk, and the heavy beats took them upward. She shook and tried to control her breathing as he flew up, dropped down, and then, he did something that freaked her out. He let go of her legs and turned her so that her legs were hanging straight, and he was holding her facing the same direction as he was while he barrel-rolled and flew at increasing speeds around the open area.

  She watched the ground blurring and tried to find something she enjoyed in the flight. The speed was not her favourite, but the dives toward the ground and the change in direction were rather fun.

  He finally flew them back to his quarters, and he set her down on the balcony. She collapsed on the floor and waited until her pulse slowed and the shaking in her limbs subsided.

  He crouched in front of her and tilted her chin to look at him. “You really don’t like flying, do you?”

  She formulated a response. “Watching you fly. Hot. Doing those rolls in the air with me, wondering if you are going to drop me? Not.”

  “I should have stated it, but I have never dropped anyone I am carrying.” He stroked her cheek. “Your skin is grey.”

  “Five minutes of terror is a suitable punishment, I think.” She checked her shaking, and when she thought she could stand, she did.

  He sighed and got to his feet. “I had hoped you would enjoy it.”

  She moved slowly into his quarters. “There were aspects that I did enjoy, but I have to ask you, did you fly that way on your first day?”

  “No. I was happy just to rise and not crash.”

  “Right. So give me time, please. Getting used to this kind of thing is not something that was in my realm of possibilities until a few days ago.”

  He nodded and steered her to the couch. “Have a seat. I will get you something to drink.”

  She lowered herself to the couch and curled on her side. He came back with a glass, and he held it out to her. “Sit up and drink this.”

  “What is it?”

  “Fruit juice. It should help you stabilize your blood sugar.”

  She took the glass, sipped it, and drank it quickly. He took the glass from her and set it down. “Now lie down again.”

  Her feet were at the arm of the couch, so she slowly toppled over and settled her head on his thigh. She sighed, and he stroked her hair. “So, are there any other punishments I can pick? I don’t want to associate flying with you with punishment. I would like to be able to learn to enjoy it.”

  His hand paused. “What would you consider appropriate? Remember that the punishments can not inconvenience me.”

  She frowned but then said, “Confinement to quarters would be good. Having to research a distasteful subject maybe?”

  “Anything physical that you don’t enjoy?” He continued to stroke her hair.

  “I am not a huge fan of butt stuff or frustration. Both of those are marked as highly unpleasant in my book.”

  He chuckled. “Butt stuff?”

  “Anal sex. It
can be all right, but it is rarely good. At least for me.”

  “I am getting some ideas in case issues arrive in the future. I am sure that they won’t, but it is good to have a plan.”

  She chuckled. “Yeah, I could have said I don’t like tickles. That is true, but it isn’t what you are after.”

  “Tickles?”

  She rolled to look up at him. “Yeah, I can’t see them building in a ticklish response. It wouldn’t fit the entire imposing structure of you to see you giggling because someone touched your ribs.”

  Kalek stroked her hair off her forehead. “So, what is the purpose of this tickle?”

  “The purpose? I don’t know. The effect is uncontrollable laughter.” She smiled.

  “So, how does this work?”

  “Ah, the nice thing about this suit is that it is too thick for the tickle response to be activated.”

  “You have gotten my curiosity aroused. I will have to examine this response after dinner.”

  “Um. Please don’t.” she looked up at him.

  “Why?”

  She wrinkled her nose. “I think it is just an involuntary reaction that removes control, and once it is triggered, I have no control to stop it. It isn’t like normal laughter. You don’t have the same slow let down as you do with normal laughter; it just cuts off, and you feel stupid.”

  “Why stupid?”

  “Because the person tickling you is in control, and you are like a puppet until they let you go.”

  “I am now very curious, but we should see if your change of clothing has arrived. You look like you have regained your colour.”

  “My what? Clothing?” She sat up and turned to look at him.

  “The uniform is daily wear; for an officers’ dinner, everyone dresses up.”

  “So, why is this happening today?”

  “Because there is another Hmrain arriving tomorrow, and we are expected to do it again, so this is a run-through for your benefit.”

  She watched him head to the delivery unit, and there was a small packet in his hand.

  Sil was surprised. “Is that it?”

  He smiled. “This is it. Don’t worry. I will help you dress.”

  “This is a two-person job?”

  Kalek chuckled. “Only the first time. Now take a shower, and then, we will get you wrapped up.”

  She nodded. “Dry showers are weird.”

  “Water is heavy. It is easier to launch without having to carry enough to bathe in.”

  “I do understand it, but they are still weird.” She got to her feet and walked past him, opening her suit as she went. The solar shower was quick, and she was squeaky clean when she removed the eye coverings, and then, the blower started up to remove all the cells and fragments left behind. The vast amount of space in the shower was amusing, but she guessed that Kalek got more room because he simply took up more room.

  She finished and stepped out into the hall with her dirty uniform over her arm. He spoke from behind her. “Ready to get dressed?”

  She jumped slightly, looked at him, and blinked. He was wearing a long, deep blue silk skirt that was pleated at the waist, as well as an ankle-length vest in the same colour. “Yeah, I am distinctly under-dressed.”

  He smiled. “Let me take that.” He took her suit, walked to the cleaning unit, and hung her suit up in the cleaning cupboard. She watched how he placed things, and when he closed the unit, she walked ahead of him to the living room. And when he said stop, she stopped.

  He opened the packet, and there was more fabric than the flat pack indicated. The first item that he wrapped around her was a similar dark blue silk to the one he was wearing, but hers was thinner. The straps that held the skirt low on her hips wrapped up her waist to the narrowest part. The top was a band that had straps that attached over her shoulders and to the middle of the band behind her.

  “On Korvil, you will have a dresser, but for now, you must make do with me.”

  “I always thought a dresser was a piece of furniture.”

  She could see him smile slightly as he tightened the straps so that her breasts were supported.

  “Your hair is lovely, but that will also need a professional’s touch.”

  Sil shrugged. “I need some pins, and I can do most of it myself.”

  He rose to his feet. “What do the pins look like?”

  She flattened her palm and said, “Hairpins are just stiffened wire with kinks twisted into them.” She drew the shape. “If I can get some wire, cutters, and round-nosed pliers, I can make what I need.”

  He smiled. “You can?”

  “Sure. It would be better if I can dip the edges into some hardening resin or something so it doesn’t dig into my scalp, but that can wait for later.”

  He stepped back.

  “How do I look?” She turned in a circle, and her skirt flared out, letting her know by the draft that it was not concealing much when she twirled. “Note to self. No twirling.”

  She looked at her feet. “Shoes?”

  He walked over to the pack, and some dark ballet slippers were handed over. They snugged around her toes and had a rough sole for grips on the decking.

  She sat and started braiding a lock of hair at the side of her face. When she was halfway along, she reached under her hair and brought out the feather, weaving her hair around it so that the end of the feather puffed out the bottom, but the feather held her hair in place.

  He blinked. “I thought you had lost it.”

  She smiled. “Of course not.”

  Sil stood and put her hands on her hips. “So, how does it look?”

  “It will definitely do for this evening.” He walked up to her and leaned down for a kiss. “In fact, I believe we should remain in and discuss things you don’t enjoy.”

  Sil blinked and dodged his kiss. “Nope. Once we start, we won’t stop.”

  He caught her wrist and narrowed his eyes. “Silhouette, I am hungry.”

  She groaned and muttered, “Fine, but you are going to stain your skirt.”

  He blinked and gave her a slow smile. “That is your reason?”

  “Pretty much. You get me fairly wet when you touch me, so that is going to stand out on the dark blue.”

  He kissed her and swept her skirt out of the way, his hand sliding between her thighs. She let out small sighs and moans as he continued to slide his hand around her sex and teased her opening. When he pulled his hand away and slowly licked his fingers, he murmured, “Now we are both hungry.”

  Sil gasped. “That’s mean.”

  “And yet, it will mean that we are both going to be aware of the passage of time this evening.” He finished licking his knuckles and offered her his arm. “Shall we?”

  Silhouette took his arm, and they left his quarters. She shivered now and then as they walked through the halls. She wanted to go back and finish what they had started, but they had an obligation. If this was a practice run for her, she would manage it. She always managed things.

  The men and women gathered got to their feet when they entered the captain’s dining room. There was a chair at the head of the table, and the other chairs were occupied. Sil had a bad feeling about this.

  Kalek walked to the head of the table, sat, and pulled her down onto his lap.

  The rest of the officers sat.

  Yamet was next to them, and he smiled. “Good evening, Captain. You are looking smug tonight.”

  Kalek wrapped his arm around Sil’s waist. “I am feeling rather smug, Yamet.”

  Sil sighed. “I am sitting right here.”

  He murmured in her ear, “And here is where you will be when we are dining with another Hmrain. Become used to it. My species is very predatory when it comes to finding intimate companions.”

  She looked up at him in surprise, and he kissed her in front of his senior crew. It was not a polite peck, and she snapped her hand down to grab his wrist as his free hand moved into the slit
in her skirt. She panted as he raised his head. “At least let them eat first.”

  He smiled slightly. “Excellent point.”

  He raised his head and nodded to a server in the corner. Dinner began a little later than anticipated, but the officers were highly entertained at the expression on the captain’s face as he looked down at his new acquisition. She could see it in their expressions. Sigh.

  Chapter Eight

  Yamet broke protocol and asked her a question. “So, Mistress Silhouette, how are you enjoying life aboard the ship?”

  She opened her mouth to answer and paused as Kalek’s hand found its way between her thighs. “It is a bit nerve-wracking. One minute I am having a nice time then terrified, and tense.”

  She used her fork and stabbed at some of the vegetables on her plate before putting them in her mouth. She relaxed as Kalek moved his fingers away for the moment.

  Dlafen chuckled. “I am glad my senses didn’t lie. This is very entertaining.”

  Sil looked at him and sighed. “You should try it from my point of view.”

  He laughed. “What makes you think I can’t? Initial contact is just to determine a baseline.”

  Kalek asked, “So, what are you feeling now.”

  “Well, whatever you were doing caused her nervous tension, pleasure, and wistful relief.”

  She stabbed at more vegetables. “Forget I said anything.”

  “Oh, no. I seldom get to discuss what my kind do.”

  “What is your kind?”

  Yamet chuckled. “Dlafen is an example of the third sex of Byrcal. They are charming, empathic, and can broadcast on very specific frequencies.”

  Kalek took a piece of his meal between his fingertips. “Hmrain frequencies.” He put the item into his mouth.

  Sil had to say, “Isn’t it odd that you developed with a Hmrain frequency?”

  Dlafen chuckled. “Why would it be odd? You did as well.”

  She sat fixed. “What?”

  Kalek swallowed audibly. “Your brain operates on Hmrain frequencies. That is how we were able to find you. The sensuality test is just to make sure that bonding with a Hmrain won’t be unpalatable to you. The higher the rating, the easier the transition.”