Experiment (Hybrid Book 2) (4 page)

Pushing between the bushes, she gasped as the arrow caught on branches, but there was a dry area in the centre of the thicket. She lay down, pillowing her head on her good left arm. She knew her medical condition was becoming critical, the chills and fever meant that infection was setting in. The crossbow bolt still protruded from her back, but she’d managed to make a sling for her right arm with her shirt. She’d pulled it off her left side and wrapped it under her right arm, tucking the left sleeve into the top of the neck. It left her side naked but it hardly mattered under the circumstances. The sling helped a little, but she knew that infection was now her worst enemy.

She lay on her side, tucked in under the bushes, hoping that she was invisible to anyone who might still be hunting her. Any defence she could make against an attacker would be pathetic and she couldn’t run anymore.

A tear rolled down her face, and she scrubbed it away fiercely, she bet Tenset hadn’t cried like a baby when Tamas had... she pulled her mind away from the thought. She couldn’t think about where they were or what had happened to them.

She was going to continue to avoid Tamas and his buddies until the ‘good guys’ found her. The Federation was already on the case, Connor had already been found, and Tenset was probably safely tucked up in the med bay on the Apollo. With that comforting thought, she relaxed at last and spiralled down into comforting blackness.

Despite her exhaustion, she startled out of her uncomfortable doze. Heart pounding, she froze as she strained every sense to determine what had disturbed her. A rustle to her right made her heart pound so hard that she was sure it could be heard from miles away. Another slight noise to her left side meant that she was probably trapped.

If she stood up and tried to run in her present condition, even an old woman with arthritis would be able to catch her. She pushed a little further back under the bush, hoping that her imagined little old lady was deaf, with cataracts as well as having crippling arthritis.

Footsteps were heading towards her. ‘Oh god, oh god, oh god, I promise to pray every day’ if you save me’ she pleaded silently, although she had no idea which god she was talking to. She started frantically trying to recall as many deities as she could.

The footsteps were heavy, and the distinctive sound of moving metal echoed through the night. The noise sent shivers up her spine and made her heart race even faster, as she imagined the sound was caused by Tamas’ protective clothing.

“I know that Lord Tamas said he doesn’t care if we bring her in dead or alive now that Tenset’s gone.” Melton’s deep voice came from only a few feet away. Chesara bit down on her fist to keep for crying out, Tenset was dead? She held her breath as the two pairs of booted feet stopped just in front of the bushes where she was hiding.

“But what if we get her alive?” another, younger, more eager voice asked.

Melton sounded resigned. “That’s what I’m hoping. She didn’t ask for any of this. If we can bring here in alive, hopefully we can get some Kalzirian citizens with her healing talent.”

“Do you think he’d mind if we, you know?” replied the younger voice.

“That’s up to you kid, although I don’t think you’d be able to handle her. I had to knock Baxter out and you saw what she did to Tenset. And you can’t tell me either of them didn’t know how to handle women, but that’s entirely up to you. Chesara is scary enough, but personally, I’d rather face Lord Tamas at his worst that have my wife find out I’ve cheated on her. My dick will be staying just where it is, safe in my trousers.”

The youngster sniggered. “I can see who wears the trousers in your house, old man.”

“I hope you live long enough to understand what it means to meet the right woman.”

“The right woman is one that says yes and shuts the door on her way out. She has to be out here somewhere, she couldn’t have got far with that crossbow bolt in her shoulder. I can’t wait to get my hands on those tits. Have you seen the size of them?”

“Zip it, super stud. Try to act your age not your shoe size.” The older voice lowered. “She’s near, I can feel it. As much as I liked her, the way she made Tenset’s eyes cross was classic, but if the Federation finds her first, we’ve had it. Kidnapping their special envoy would certainly earn us a trip to see the Garians and I hate lizards. At the moment, they haven’t been able to prove they were even at the mansion, and we need to keep it that way.”

Both men continued to speak softly, but they were moving away from her hiding place. Despite what Melton had said, she didn’t believe her chances of survival were high if they found her. Melton still seemed to have a shred of decency, but that younger one, she shuddered at the thought.

Her mind strayed back to the news that Tenset was dead. She pictured his grin and twinkling blue eyes. No way could that be gone.

“I think we've gone past her,” said Melton, “comb this thicket.”

Shutting her eyes, she forced her breathing to slow and her heart to beat normally; trying to focus herself so she could use her gift if needed. The thought of purposefully harming someone made her feel sick, and she didn’t want to hurt Melton. However, the thought of being back in Tamas’ power strengthened her resolve. Maybe she could just knock them out as she had Tamas.

Her healing ability was negatively influenced by nervousness and stress, but she’d coped well enough to heal during stressful situations before, and she kept telling herself this was no different. All she needed was skin to skin contact, but with two of them she didn’t know how she’d manage it, she’d never used it on two people at once.

“Here kitty, kitty,” called the young eager voice as he moved closer and closer to her hiding place.

She gasped when a strong hand grabbed her ankle, and Melton announced, “Gotcha.”

“Hi Melton, long time no see,” she managed with a smile, after she regained her breath from the pain in her shoulder and ribs caused by being dragged out from underneath the bush.

“Evening, Miss Chesara. Nice night for a stroll,” he said with a smile.

“You do know I’m not coming back with you, don’t you?” She tried to make her words commanding and fierce, but even she acknowledged she sounded weak and feeble. She couldn’t make herself do it, she couldn’t just kill him in cold blood.

“I’m sorry, I really am, but neither of us has a choice about that. It’s too late to head back now, but we’ve got a camp set up near here. I’ll have a look at the wound, then there’s dinner and a bed waiting for you.” He gripped her left elbow firmly.

“Yeah, my bed,” sniggered the young guard.

“You wouldn’t let him would you Melton?” she said and turned ‘puppy dog’ eyes on him.

“If I remember rightly, you’ve never needed much persuading before in that department, but you’re hurt already, and I’ll not see you injured anymore.” They walked for another ten minutes until she stumbled. Without pausing, Melton dipped and scooped her up into his arms.

“Run on ahead, Thompson, get some water boiling and the medical chest out.” Completely exhausted, and knowing there was nothing more she could do, Chesara closed her eyes and leaned her head against his chest.

Searing pain in her shoulder brought her round, screaming. She was lying on her belly on some sort of sleeping bag while Melton murmured, “Hold on for just a while longer, I’m nearly done.”

A bloody stick was tossed beside her head, followed seconds later by such searing agony that she thankfully passed out again.

When she again pushed back out of the swirling blackness of unconsciousness, the smell of burnt meat came to her and she foggily asked, “You cauterized it?”

“Yep. I’m sorry about that, but it’s the only way I know to stop infection without a hospital. You would have done better staying out of it for a bit longer. It’s a bit of a nuisance that you can’t heal yourself isn’t it?”

“Fucking bummer if you ask me,” she ground out, before pulling herself to a seated position on the sleeping bag.

Finding out that she was chained by one ankle to a tree didn’t cheer her up in the least. She winced as she tried moving her shoulder. It hurt like hell, but it was better with the arrow out. Her ribs had also been re-bandaged, and she shuddered a little at the thought of the other guard seeing her body.

“Thanks for the treatment.”

“Don’t thank me yet. Orders are to return you in one piece if possible, and I’d feel a failure if that piece was dead. Besides, I’d miss all our genteel conversations.”

Chesara just looked at him, too exhausted even to swear.

“Here,” the young guard proffered some sort of meat wrapped in bread, and she grabbed it with her good arm, tearing into it. “You’ll need your strength,” he said with a leer.

She favoured him with a look of utter disgust. “Back off spotty, I’d rather fuck a Garian than get within ten feet of you,” she growled around her sandwich.

Melton smiled to himself as he methodically cleaned the long knife he wore at his belt alongside the stun baton.

“Tamas did say those that capture her get a bonus didn’t he?” Thompson’s voice whined slightly.

“Lord Tamas did indeed mention a reward. And since I’ve got the first watch, you can sit and contemplate what you’re going to do with your gold, while I do the rounds.” He leaned in close to his colleague’s ear, “but if she’s harmed in any way, you will be entertaining Lord Tamas yourself.”

“But he said we could,” Thompson started.

“And I say you can’t, you nasty little shit. Who do you think Lord Tamas will believe when I tell him you tried to contact the Federation to get a bigger reward?”

“You wouldn’t, you went to school with my mum.”

“I did. Your younger brother is twice the man you are and your family would be far better off if he inherited. Don’t give me an excuse to help an old school friend.” With the threat in place, he rose and walked off into the gloom.

Chesara stared out into the night, picturing a full squad of Federation soldiers just out of sight, with Connor at their head. She’d lost Tenset, she couldn’t contemplate the idea of Connor being gone too. Her skin crawled as she felt the youth’s eyes appraising her.

“I had a long talk with Baxter the other day,” the skinny red haired youth broke the silence.

“Good for you. Now go brush your teeth and get in your pyjamas. I’m sure mummy will be back to tuck you in soon.” His face turned a startling shade of red in the firelight.

Gritting his teeth, he continued. “He told me, that once you’ve touched a hard cock, you beg for it.”

“Yeah well, Baxter’s a man, you’re not. Do us both a favour, go wank your pencil dick and leave me in peace.” She fervently hoped she could work on his inexperience, shaming him into leaving her alone.

She hadn’t wanted Baxter either, and look how that had turned out. Besides, in her current state she couldn’t fight a fly, so she hoped that her body’s reaction would also be knocked out by its debilitated condition. She turned from him, looking into the fire, hoping he’d slope off to his own bed soon. When she heard some rustling, she assumed he’d done as she’d suggested.

“Do you think this is a pencil dick?”

He was standing a few feet away, naked as the day he was born, waving a considerably more impressive erection than she’d thought possible given his long, skinny frame. This really was starting to get out of control, and she frantically groped around for something to say and came up with absolutely nothing.

“Speechless are you? I can see to you just as well as they did, just you wait and see.” Stepping forward, he reached for her.

Chesara scooted back as far as she could before the cuff on her ankle stopped her. Her shoulder screamed her as she raised both hands to ward him off.

“Now wait a minute, Thompson is it? I really am impressed, but I’m not up to anything at the moment. Crossbow bolt in the shoulder, and broken ribs remember? If you leave me alone now, I promise I’ll ask Tamas for you personally when we get back, you seem like a decent sort of chap...”

He stopped her by kneeling down beside her and pulling at the belt holding her oversized trousers up. She pushed at his hands. “Get the fuck off me.”

The hard smack across her face sent her to her back, her shoulder and ribs screaming in protest.

“My father always says you have to let animals know who’s boss.”

Grabbing her wounded shoulder, he squeezed hard. Her scream was cut off by his hand across her mouth.

“Wouldn’t want to upset Mr Melton would we?” he snarled into her ear. “Even though the man’s an idiot for treating an animal that just happens to look like a person as one, I don’t happen to share his warped views. I’m a true Kalzirian, just like Lord Tamas.”

He pulled off the clean shirt she’d been put in, and squeezed her breast hard. She again tried to shout but found the shirt being pushed into her mouth as a gag. Laying on her to keep her still he forced the pants down, then flipped her over onto her front. Her ribs felt as if they we’re being broken all over again.

“Thought you’d prefer it this way, it’s how animals always do it.”

She felt his erection pressing against her bare butt, but with his weight on her and her injuries, she couldn’t move, although she thrashed about.

“Gone on, wiggle for me; you’re only turning me on even more.” She stopped immediately, and he laughed.

“Let’s see if Baxter was right,” and he knelt back hauling her up by the hips, pointing her butt at the night sky while her face was pushed into the dirt by a hand on her upper back. She felt a finger invade her, and tried to jump further away from it, but he held her tight.

“Seems he was right. You fucking want it bad, don’t ya?” he said as he rubbed his hard on across her bare butt.

“No I fucking don’t, get off me you bastard,” she tried to scream, but it wasn’t very effective through the shirt, funny how she couldn’t come up with any more interesting swear words when she most needed them. Even funnier that she was thinking about that while someone was in the process of raping her. Now that her good hand wasn’t trapped under her body she tried to spit and remove the fabric.

Hands held her hips tightly as he positioned himself and pushed inside, groaning as he started thrusting strongly.