Haulcon's Revenge (3 page)

“
This place is not my first desire. But, I had to get you out of the open area until you awakened.” His sigh was heavy. “There are no others coming.”

“
How do you keep doing that?” The sound of her croaking voice let her know she was about two breaths away from freaking out.

“
What?”

“
Answering questions I didn’t even ask?” she shouted.

He raised one blunt-tipped finger to his mouth. “Keep your voice down. We don’t need to draw any company.”

Licking her lips, she glanced toward the mouth of the cave. It wasn’t big, barely large enough for two people to enter side by side. The inside area was smaller than her living room. That wasn’t saying much since she lived in a studio.

Heat surrounded her. Twisting to the side she realized the man was beside her. She hadn’t even seen him move. She squeaked, the only sound able to come out of her contracted throat. Every muscle in her body had drawn tight from fear, causing her to not only ache but to quiver as well. As a wildlife photographer, she had been up close and personal too many times with a lot of scary types of animals. Because of those experiences, she had learned how to keep herself calm and levelheaded to be able to escape danger. However, every ounce of her training and know-how had not prepared her for a beast/creature such as the one beside her now.

Do I scream? Run? Play dead? What was the protocol?

“
Please. I will not hurt you.” He held out a piece of meat of some game animal.

She wasn’t sure. However by the size of the small drumstick she would guess rabbit. Not taking it, she met his gaze. His eyes were so clear she could barely tell there was a hint of green tint to them-like fresh moss.

“
You need to eat. Nourishing your body is important in keeping up your strength.”

The meat did smell wonderful. She couldn’t recall the last time she had eaten. Her stomach felt hollow and empty and she was a little queasy and lightheaded.

“
That would explain why you passed out. Eating is very important.”

Snatching the food from his hand, she moved along the wall trying to put as much space between them as possible. Even though the small area only allowed her a foot of distance. “You’re doing it again.”

A thick ebony eyebrow raised high above one eye. “What are you talking about?”

“
Are you a mind reader?”

His brows pinched together over the bridge of his nose as he glanced away. Then as if he needed space from her, he stood and slowly crossed the cave and stared down into the fire. “Apparently, you and I have connected in some way.”

“
Connected?”

“
Yes.” He still had not looked at her again. Instead he was staring so deep into the fire, unmoving, that she wondered if he was considering jumping into it.

She hopped not. It would be a shame to ruin such an amazing body. She recalled how he looked, lying out in the open field his body tied to trees by thick ropes. He had been bloodied and bruised, his handsomeness unrecognizable. Fear that he would die had caused pain along her spine. Fear that she would not be able to save him. There had been so much desperation in his voice she had wanted to weep. However, she had kept herself together and worked tirelessly to free him. He was nude and hurt and she had not given one thought to the muscles and tone of his form. However, now with the firelight dancing along every bare curve, the desire to trace and play along the shadows and light on his bare skin made her fingers tingle and her lungs tight.

There went that eyebrow again, as he tilted his head and gazed her way. Intense. That was the only word she could think of to describe how eyes that had been moss green a moment ago now appeared black—void of any of the previous color.

“
I don’t understand how it happened.” He ran a hand over his head, as if the situation frustrated him somehow. “A simple feeding from a human—”

The bite. Lifting a hand to her neck she searched her throat frantically as she attempted to find the place his teeth had sunk into her. They had pierced her, only giving a moment of pain. However, her neck was smooth, no opening or sores that she could find.
What kind of magic monster was he?
What in the hell?

“
Not hell,” he growled. “Why is it that you humans are always equating any being you don’t understand with it being from hell? I’m just as created by the Great Spirit as you.” His gaze was pale green again, as he murmured, “
And the evening and the morning were the fifth day. And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after his kind: and it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.
”

Hearing the Bible verses from his mouth shocked her.

She realized that in her ignorance somehow she had offended him. However, she didn’t apologize. Her hands squeezing the warm meat in her hands, she asked, “You’re one of those…uhm…” Her mind searched for any word that wasn’t a form of creature. But that was a lot of times how people referred to the things that lived and moved deep in the forest and mountains. They were warned by the media and government to keep away from them.

“
Valf.”

“
What?” Curious at his word, she stared at him.

He turned, facing her, his chin raised with pride. “I am valf.”

Valf
. That was a word she’d never heard before. Her father was a science man and frequently mumbled about the beasts of the field when she took a moment to pay him a visit, but she generally attempted to get him to talk about anything else. Anything that made her dad seem as if he was still present with her. She shook off the melancholy that thoughts of her father always seemed to bring.

She felt pressure on her right shoulder.

Glancing to the side she saw the man beside her again, his gaze a vivid green and filled with compassion.

Swallowing, she said, “I’m going to need you to stop doing that. Matter fact, stop doing a lot of things you’re doing. Like mindreading and ghosting around this cave.”

One corner of his wide, perfect lips twitched as if he was going to smile, but he didn’t. “Ghosting?”

Waving her hand with the rabbit around in front of her, she pointed around the cave. “I don’t know what you call moving from here to there and here…but I can’t see you moving.”

He chuckled. “I will do my best to move slower.” Lifting the hand that rested on her shoulder he stroked her temple. “On the mental connection. I don’t even understand how or why it is happening. Once I do…then maybe I will be able to stop it.” Standing he moved back to the fire. “Eat.”

With the distance granted her, she took in a deep breath as she brought the meat to her mouth and bit into it. It was unseasoned but tender. In two bites she had torn all the seared flesh from the tight-knit bones.

“
You need more. Come closer.”

Not sure if her legs would support her, she crawled toward the fire. Not too close. She watched him snap the cooked, skinned animal with his large hands and pass half of it to her.

Reaching out, she took it. She’d never felt so famished in her life. Without manners she gnawed around the bone consuming every piece of meat.

When the bone gleamed in the firelight, she was only slightly embarrassed to see she’d finished way before he had. With his fingers he removed one chunk of meat after another and popped it into his mouth.

She licked her lips at all the tender juicy meat that still remained in his hand.

“
Would you like this piece too?”

Shaking her head, she glanced away. Shame filled her core. This man had been severely hurt just… She glanced outside. It was still light outside. Was it the same day? She was unsure of how long she’d been out of it.

Patting her pocket, she went to pull out her cell phone to check the day and time. But, it wasn’t there. Then she remembered she always placed it into the front pocket of her backpack. Looking around she searched for her things. “Where’s my stuff?”

He pointed. “There.”

In the shadow of the back of the cave she saw her navy blue pack. Crossing to it, she opened it up to ensure all her items were present. She removed her cell phone.

Of course in the cave there wasn’t a single bar and no battery life.
Great. There went my option for calling for help.

“
I’ve already helped you.”

Damn
. She would really have to remember he could read her thoughts.

“
You have.” She would just leave it at that, understanding a little more about his kind, they were literal. Digging back into her bag she pulled out an article of clothing. “Here.”

He frowned. “What is this?” Opening up the material, he stared at it.

“
Shorts. Haven’t you seen a pair before?”

“
Yes. What would you like for me to do with them?”

She guffawed. “Put them on. As delightful as your body is. It is a little distracting to have a conversation with a nude man.”

“
Truly? Well, clothed, a female form can be just as alluring.”

What
? “Well, I’m sure that is true. But I don’t have that issue in or out of clothing.” Nope most men didn’t ogle at her dressed or undressed. Generally, even when she was dating someone and they moved to the sex part of the relationship, it was always done in dim light and she wore a long nightgown. She wasn’t a prude. She just understood that plump hadn’t been in fashion since the Rubenesque period.

Smiling to herself she thought about how much this man looked like a Greek god.

“
The men you have been around are fools.”

His words drew her gaze. Staring at him, she picked up on that onyx gaze again. There was heat that seemed to be coming from it as he stared at her, but she chalked it up to the blaze in the middle of the cave more than him being remotely attracted to her.

“
Anyway. Shorts, please.”

With a nod, he stood.

Averting her eyes, she tried not to think about all that delicious bronze skin just a stone’s throw away from her reach. She had made sure to keep her gaze above the navel so as not to be taken in his lower region. Although when the nights got lonely for her, it was nice to be able to have something to think on. But, it was for the best. No use torturing herself.

“
Better?”

No. Was the single word that came to mind as she stared at him in her sweat shorts. Even though she was a full-figured girl and knew that he would be able to fit into her pants, she didn’t anticipate how he was going to look. Damn, the man made those dark grey shorts mouthwatering. His thighs were so thick that the material pulled snug and cupped him in every place she had tried not to think about. She was sure that she could bounce a half dollar off his ass. Not to mention the way the material stretched along his cock she wouldn’t have to imagine hard just how hung he was.

Damn. Damn. Damn. Get it together girl.
She glanced into the fire not wanting to see in his gaze if he had picked up on her thoughts about his body.

“
So, what is your name?” She asked wanting to keep her mind on the mundane.

“
Haulcon.”