Forsaken Realms (Bounty Hunters United Book 1) (8 page)

“Weren’t they curious about your spaceships?”

“Yes and no. The Sarnans perfected the art of astral projection long ago. Therefore they had no interest in possessing or using our ships.”

“You’re certain all of them were killed?”

Syan turned away. “Not all of them, but many perished and vast sections of the planet were made a wasteland. It was senseless.”

“Maybe we should concentrate on sneaking up on the compound and hijacking a ship before Naveen’s guards figure out we’re both still alive. Right now they’re looking for a second body. We should get out of here as soon as we can and tell somebody in charge what’s going on in the Kironian sector.”

“Except for Jason Naveen and his men, I’m the only one who actually saw the damage on Sarna with my own eyes. It’s all in my head. If I’m killed or cryptoerased it will be gone. It could be months or even years until another delegation is sent to check on Sarna.”

A prickly thorn scratched her hand as she passed. “How do you know Jason Naveen is responsible?”

“Because his ships were there! I saw them.” With the broad sweep of his arm, he pushed the brush away so she could follow more easily.  “Naveen and his crew came to Sarna without authorization and set-up a laboratory. I approached them and asked them to leave. They showed no respect for either Sarnans or the Kironians. All I got from Jason Naveen was a self-righteous rant about preserving Sarna through cloning.”

“Ironic, isn’t it?”

“If I had known that Naveen was doing more than merely collecting samples, I would never have let down my guard.”

“What happened?”

“Something went very wrong. I suspect Jason Naveen was experimenting with gene acceleration. Sarna is the perfect place to do it. The flora and fauna are unique. Plants naturally grow at an accelerated rate, and it’s not uncommon for people to live to be four hundred years old.”

“Whoa!”

“How long do people live on Earth?”

“We only recently started living to a hundred and forty.”

A scandalized expression crossed his face. “So little?”

“We’ll be damn lucky to survive the next couple of days.” Gemmina marched ahead. The jungle grew denser and the air became still. The insulated fabric of her shirt clung to her skin, and she wished she had a layer to take off.

“Undress if you like.” The words were delivered with utter casualness as he bulldozed his way through a tangle of vines.

“I can’t do that.”

“Why not?”

“I’m a private person. I don’t undress in front of men that I don’t….”

“Don’t what? I would not be offended. I would love to look at you undressed.”

“No. That’s not me.”

He stopped and seemed to study her. “I have little experience around humanoids beyond the Kironian Federation. You are the first human woman I’ve met. I feel I must apologize for biting you. I was in a desperate state of mind and should not have done it. At the time, I was not thinking of all the complications a bite would inflict upon you. It was selfish of me. Having entered your thoughts, I now know how uncomfortable you are with forced intimacy. It goes against your true nature. You are happier alone. Gemmina, you have my word that I will not take advantage of you. Even after my bite takes full effect, I promise not to act against you.”

“Thank you.”

She recoiled. Syan looked completely earnest when he spoke, and so very handsome. She was sorry he said it at all.

They walked beneath the canopy where little light reached the ground. Even the dramatic edges of Syan’s strong profile were bathed in shadow. In the thickest brush, he used the weight of his arms to push the foliage aside so she could pass, but he was badly scraped.

“I’m not thinking,” she blurted. “There’s a retractable machete in one of those packs. Let’s get it out. It will make this hike a lot easier on you.” She moved to his side and unbuckled the first pack and dug her arm in searching for the smooth, finger grip handle of the machete. “Here it is.”

She offered the machete to him, and pointed out a small button. “Tap the handle to make the virtual blade appear, and tap it again to select blade length.”

He experimented with the glowing blue blade and tested its edge on a few thick vines before making a final selection.

In the side pocket of the pack, she found several tubes of concentrated protein paste. Gemmina opened a tube by snapping off the cap and squeezed a thin line of coral paste onto her fingertip and tasted it. The flavor was a pleasant blend of tart and sweet. “I think this is fruit punch.”

Syan looked interested and his stomach growled. “What is fruit punch? On Earth, do you fight with fruit?”

She squeezed a generous amount of cheerful looking paste onto her fingertip. “Try it. If you like the flavor this tube will be yours.”

Graciously he took hold of her hand and drew her fingertip past his lips and licked the paste slowly from her finger. His lashes dipped, and a dreamy expression crossed his face. “I like it. Would you give me more?”

Her breath caught. The delicate touch of his tongue sent a fiery spark straight to her core. She handed the tube over immediately. “Take it. It’s yours. After all you’ve done today, you must be starving.”

Concern creased his brow. “What about you? I don’t want to take your share.”

“You’re not. Don’t worry. See here’s another tube?” She read the label. “This one is ‘mocha.’ My favorite.”

“What is mocha?”

“Coffee with chocolate.”

“What is chocolate? What is coffee?”

“I knew you were going to say that.”

“That’s because we are linked.”

“No, it’s more than that. I think I’m starting to ‘get’ you.”

Syan stared longingly at the tube in her hand.

“You want a taste don’t you? I’ll share. All you have to do is ask.” She snapped off the cap, squeezed a little onto her fingertip, and offered it.

This time, when he took her hand, his thumb gently stroked her palm, and he drew her finger deep onto his mouth and sucked.

A shudder of intense pleasure raced through her. “Don’t do that.”

Excitement lit his gaze as he finished licking the tip of her finger before releasing her hand. “I like mocha.”

Gemmina was left trembling and wanted him to touch her again. She handed him the tube instead. “Keep it. It’s yours.”

He stared at her. “You are very beautiful. I like the color of your skin. You are mocha.”

She gulped. “Thank you.”

“I am searching your thoughts and trying to figure out the meaning of your name. Gemmina is a precious stone?”

“Sort of. Gemmina is a made up name. A gem is a stone of value. I once saw a ruby in a storefront in New Mumbai and thought it was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.”

A moment of confusion shone on his creased brow. “What is a ruby? Did I miss something?”

“A ruby is a deep red gem.”

“Yes, I see that now. It suits you. A gem is something beautiful and nearly indestructible?”

“I’ve not thought of it that way, but, yes, that’s what it means.”

Syan appeared puzzled. “And the surname ‘Nayar’, what does that mean? I am getting a mental image of a soldier.”

It felt odd to be talking about herself. No one ever asked her these questions. “Nayar means a strong leader, like a general.”

 “Oh. Again it suits you.”

“I gave myself that name.”

“Why? Did you not have a name?”

She released a tense breath. “I’m an orphan, and I was called a lot of names, none of which I wanted to keep. As soon as I was old enough to think for myself, I gave myself a strong name and led myself into a different life.”

The jungle foliage took a beating from the machete. “What sort of life did you have?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

Syan turned toward her. “Because it makes you sad?”

“No, because it makes me angry.”

“I am sorry to hear this. I would be angry, too. We have no orphans on Kiron. There is a place for everyone.”

“How nice for the Kironians.”

The machete stopped mid-swing. “You are being sarcastic?”

“What do you think?”

“You do not have to be.”

Part of her wished she could be softer and at least polite to this incredible man, but it wasn’t in her. “I’ve been meaning to ask this. I’ve let you lead us into the jungle, but do you even know where you’re going? This planetoid is large enough to wander for a very long time, far longer than our supplies will last. Ideally we should be doubling back toward Naveen’s secret compound because that’s our only hope of stealing a ship and skipping town.”

Syan squared his shoulders. “I have an excellent internal compass. We are headed the right way. I am confident of that.”

“Really?”

“You do not trust me to lead?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“But you implied it.”

Even as she shrugged it off, knew he was right. “I’m used to leading myself. By the way, I’ve got excellent hunter’s instincts too, and my internal compass is telling me that we are off course.” She pointed slightly to the right. “We should be skewing this way.”

With a mild expression he offered her the machete. “Would you like to lead? I am happy to follow. I trust your instincts.”

A quick sweep of her palm created space between them. “No, thanks. You’re doing fine.”

“Shall we keep moving?”

Admittedly she was challenging him out of habit. The day was so hot she had no desire to fight her way through the unruly thicket they were standing in.

“Yes. You lead.”

Syan stepped ahead of her and swung his powerful arm in an arc making the virtual blade glow white-hot. Soon he hacked a tunnel through what had looked like an impassable wall of brush. A virtual blade did some of the work, but it responded directly to the effort expended. His arm never seemed to tire. The task was exhausting to watch, and she knew it must be taking a toll on his already spent reserves. They walked a long way, fighting their way through jungle. The heat wore on her. “You haven’t seen anymore of that bava vine have you?”

The machete stilled; he turned. “It’s everywhere. Would you like to stop and rest? I sensed you were tired but also knew that if I said anything you would be defensive.”

Gemmina knew he was right. “I do need to rest, but only for a few minutes.”

A big smile warmed his face. “I need to rest, too.” He walked toward a yellowish vine, sliced a long portion of it off, and brought it to her.

She accepted the juicy vine with a smile. “Thanks.”

“I like doing things for you.” Syan turned away from her and yanked the top half of his body hugging pressure suit over his head, revealing a flawless wedge-shaped torso rippling with muscle. “The day is hot.” With his back turned he tossed the discarded shirt near the packs and cut another bava vine, drinking several sections dry before glancing over his shoulder. “Do you want more?”

“Yes.”

He hacked another chunk of bava away, then faced her.

A gasp of awe escaped her. His coppery chest was smooth, no body hair, and heavily tattooed from shoulder to shoulder in an intricately wrought triangle of geometric patterns that glowed emerald green.

“You are staring.” He handed her the section of vine. “I have heard men of Earth mark their skin as well.”

“They do.” She could barely trust herself to speak, and it was all she could do not to reach out and touch the solid curves of his lean torso.

“You may touch.” With care, he took hold of her hand, which was slightly sticky with bava juice, and brought it to his chest.

His skin felt hot beneath her palm. The tattoos had a faint almost phosphorescent quality. She scanned the beautiful designs noticing they were not simple abstract designs as she had first thought. On closer inspection she saw what appeared to be stylized birds of prey and stalking cat-like creatures hidden in the dense line work. “What do these marks mean?”

He crouched lower bringing himself to eye level with her. “I’m glad you asked.” Without releasing her hand he traced her fingertips across his skin until they hovered near the cat-like creature. “This is a picture representation of my name. It was my father’s name as well. On Kiron a ‘syan’ is the largest hunter in the jungle. It is twice the size of the biggest man. On Earth I believe you have a similar creature called a tiger.”

“Yes, I see that now.” Her gaze flickered between the tattoo and Syan’s shining black eyes, which tipped upward ever so slightly at the corners.

“Young men must earn each mark by doing brave things and passing many tests.” He traced a faint triangle in the air, moving his finger from shoulder to shoulder and then to a point above his navel. “This area on a man’s torso is called a ‘shambu’ or chevron. It takes a man many years to fill in. Recently I received my last mark on my twenty-eighth birthday. Now my shambu is complete.”

His face beamed with pride, which she took note of. “Does that indicate something special?”

“It means I am eligible to claim a life mate.”

Dear God, it was getting hard to breathe. “Oh.”

He moved closer. “You are the first woman to see my completed shambu.”

Her heart raced. “I’m honored.”

“On Kiron showing a woman your shambu is not a casual thing. It’s very personal.”

“Then why did you do it?”

His lips parted, and he appeared to be breathlessly waiting for her to say more. She sensed he was considering asking for her permission to touch. “Gemmina….”

This was no time to think or get caught in reason. Purely on instinct, she cupped the sides of his face, pulled him close, and kissed his beautiful mouth. There was no resistance, only thrilling heat. His lips were soft and carried the faintest hint of sweet bava. Immediately he tangled his fingers in her hair, drew her close, and held her captive against his chest. The kiss deepened into a warm, intimate meld. A heart pounding sense of intoxication rose as she glided her tongue across his. Her thigh brushed against his. She wanted him to topple her to the ground and lie with her so badly it hurt.

If she wasn’t cautious, she could fall helplessly in lust with Syan. Enslaved even, and what if this was a trick? Needing anyone so much, let alone a stranger from another world, was unsettling. Terrifying and unfamiliar emotions rushed to the surface. There were too many unknowns. The thought
could this be the effects of the bite?
Raised doubts. Syan was Kironian. The legality of even being in contact with him muddied her conscience. Her level-seven status was on the line. Everything she’d worked so hard for could disappear.