The Face of Earth (25 page)

Arriving at her room, he palmed the plate and stepped inside. He looked around in disbelief. Karina was nowhere to be seen. He checked the wardrobe and the shower room, but couldn’t find her. He ran out into the corridor, searching for some sign of her. He stopped when he noticed several coins on the floor. There was a drop of red on one and several on the floor next to it. His heart stopped for a moment as he recognized Earthling blood. Then he had a horrible thought. Premier Bartholos had him sent off the planet in a hurry. The premier had a bevy of beautiful and exotic wives. And he had distracted Agnar long enough to add a priceless prize to his collection; the last living Earthling.

CHAPTER 18

Karina gradually regained consciousness. Her head felt as though someone had taken an ax to it. Her throat was dry, and she put her hand to her neck as she tried to swallow some saliva. She gasped when she discovered her necklace was gone. Now she would be vulnerable to any scan, and people would know what she was. She heard a giggle as she groaned at the pain in her head. She sat up quickly and opened her eyes, regretting the action instantly. She put her hands on her head and looked around at the numerous unusual women surrounding her. They were of many different species and races. They were all extremely beautiful. She focused in on the nearest one. “Where am I?”

The woman smiled and shook her head. Karina realized she had spoken in English. She repeated the question in Yalsan. “Where am I?”

The woman shook her head again. An older woman approached Karina, recognizing the Yalsan language. She spoke Yalsan with a strange accent that told Karina it wasn’t her native tongue. “You are in the palace of the premier. He has brought you here to be his new wife.”

Karina was confused. “Won’t his old wife have a problem with that?”

The woman laughed. “You have good humor. That is good. We get bored so easily here.” She gestured to herself and to all the other women in the room. “We are all the premier’s wives. We will not have a problem with you, I think.”

“Well, I have a problem. I don’t want to marry the premier.”

The woman smiled sadly at Karina. “Not one of us wished to marry him. He did not give us a choice. He is the ruler of this planet, and he takes whatever he wants. We are to prepare you for the ceremony.” She gestured to another woman who brought a gaudy white dress over.

Karina hastily stood up and backed away. “No. I will not.”

“If you do not let us prepare you, we will be punished.” The woman pulled the shoulder of her gown down to expose several yellow bruises. “He does not hit where it can be seen, as he wishes us to be beautiful for him, but he does not allow disobedience.”

Karina’s memories of Fred’s abusiveness came flooding back. She clenched her fists in anger, but spoke calmly. “Very well,” she conceded.

The woman led her into a bathing area with a steaming, shallow pool set into the ground. Others were already bathing; apparently everything the women did was communal. Karina wasn’t shy, and the heated water looked very inviting. She stripped and slipped in, accepting scented soap from one of the women. After her bath they dressed her and led her back to the common room.

Karina felt extremely uncomfortable in the elaborate marriage outfit. Her face was garishly painted and they had attempted to do something with her short hair, curling what they could, adding pins with ribbon and sweeping it up in a rather painful hairdo, tsking at its lack of length the entire time.

The woman who spoke Yalsan led Karina over to a table full of appetizing food. “Eat.” She gave Karina a sickly smile. “You will need your strength this night.” Karina felt nauseous at the innuendo, but sat and ate, watching the women warily. When no one was looking, she slipped a dull knife with an ornate hilt up her sleeve.

After she ate, the head wife led her out of the common room and down a long hallway into what appeared to be some kind of church. At least, it was a room with an altar in it. Karina squeezed the dull knife she had hidden in the folds of her sleeve and felt better. She wasn’t one to go down without a fight, and she would be damned if she let herself belong to this chauvinistic man.

The head wife left her at the altar with a holy man. They stared at each other in silence. After a few minutes, the premier entered the room, dressed in a flattering, fitted suit. He was a handsome man, but Karina could only see the ugliness of his behavior toward his wives. After the short ceremony, the premier led her away.

After escorting her into a large bedroom, the premier turned and locked the door. When he turned back to Karina, he became a different man. Gone was the serene regal expression he had worn throughout the marriage ceremony, and in its place was the gloating, greedy look of a boy who had just shoplifted his favorite candy.

“So. I have been told you are an Earthling.” The premier roughly grabbed Karina’s hand and scratched at the scab that had formed over the wound caused by the fake coin. Her palm immediately started to bleed, red blood welling up. The premier laughed in glee and licked Karina’s palm, tasting her blood. Karina was sickened by this and snatched her hand back.

The premier’s face turned ugly and he grabbed her wrist, twisting her arm behind her back and pulling her close. His breath was hot on her ear, his tone menacing. “You belong to me now. You will treat me with all the deference I am due.”

Karina whimpered and bent her head submissively. “Please, you’re hurting me.” The premier gave her arm a vicious twist before letting her go. Karina dropped to the floor, sobbing.

The premier stood over her, threatening. “Tell me that you are mine. That you belong to me and will do anything I say.” Karina sobbed some more. The premier kicked her. “Tell me!”

“I am . . . yours. I belong to you. I will do anything you say,” Karina managed to choke out.

The premier grinned in satisfaction. He walked to the bed and took off his suit jacket. “Come here.”

Karina rose and walked obediently over. He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her head back so that she was forced to look up at him. He leered at her, licking his lips. “I’m pleased to find the female of your species so submissive. I thought I’d have to break you. Still, I will use your body tonight as it’s never been used before, making you mine so completely that you will never question me.”

He kissed Karina hard on the lips, biting her until her lip bled, then sucking on the wound. Karina thought she might vomit. With her arms behind her back, she slipped the knife from her sleeve. Although it wasn’t sharp, she had heard somewhere that if an object had enough force behind it, it would puncture skin.

With the premier still distracted by her bloodied lip and sure of his dominance, Karina raised the knife and slammed its point as hard as she could into his side. The premier screamed as it went up to its hilt into his body. Karina pulled it out and stabbed him again, this time in his lower back. She raised it to strike again, but the premier released his hold on her hair and staggered back. He stared at her in horror. The expression on her face was no longer one of submission, but of rage.

“I
am
an Earthling woman. No man will have dominion over me. Least of all a man like you.” Eyes blazing, Karina closed the distance between them and stabbed the knife into the side of the premier’s neck, then viciously yanked it out. Dark blue blood came gushing out of the wound, and the premier fell to the floor, gurgling as he tried to call for help. His mouth sprayed blood on her with every breath. He inhaled to scream, but choked as the blood filled his windpipe.

Karina watched impassively as he drowned in his own blood. When it was over, Karina realized she was still holding the knife. She let go and it dropped to the floor. She felt dizzy and sat down on the bed. She looked at the premier’s body lying on the floor, and the full force of what she had done hit her. She may have killed a man who was going to hurt her, but she had also killed the ruler of an entire planet. She had a feeling his subjects wouldn’t be very pleased with her. On the other hand, she was sure his many widows wouldn’t be grieving.

A noise at the door caught Karina’s attention. She had hoped she had until morning to come up with a plan for escape, but it looked as if she had run out of luck. She picked up the knife and stole softly across the room. The noise continued, a scraping sound at the lock. Karina thought it odd for a key to make that sound. Then she realized that someone was picking the lock. She could only assume that whoever it was knew he wasn’t supposed to be there, and so must not have permission to enter.

Karina decided to take a chance that the person on the other side of the door was an ally. Knife in hand just in case it wasn’t, she unlocked and threw open the door. Crouched on the floor, blinking in surprise, was Agnar. He stared up at her as she stood framed in the doorway, dressed in finery, holding a knife, covered in blood. Karina was surprised as well. She shook her head in disbelief and laughed. “Have you come to kidnap me back, Agnar?”

Agnar stood, somewhat rattled by her gory appearance. “Something like that, yes.” He pushed past her into the room, taking in the pool of blood and the dead body on the floor. He looked at her as if she were a woman gone mad. “You killed the premier?” he exclaimed.

“Something like that, yes.” Karina grabbed him by the wrist. “Shouldn’t we get going? I don’t want to be here come morning.”

Agnar snorted. “I should say not. You won’t get a good reception.” He grasped her wrist in return, pulling her out of the room and through a maze of corridors. One final door and they were outside.

Karina picked up her skirts and followed Agnar at a run across the lawn and into the trees. The woods became denser the farther in they went, until they finally arrived at a clearing where Agnar’s ship gleamed in the moonlight. They hastily boarded and ran to the bridge. Agnar took off as quickly as possible and headed into space. Karina held on to a rail, her knuckles turning white as she watched the planet get smaller on the rear viewscreen. She breathed easier as they continued their retreat, until the planet wasn’t even a dot on the screen. She sighed in relief and sat down in the captain’s chair.

Agnar set the ship on autopilot and turned the pilot’s chair to face Karina. He folded his arms across his chest and gazed at her sternly. Karina suddenly found herself feeling like a little kid who’s been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. She looked everywhere but at Agnar.

“Karina.” She glanced at his face for a moment but didn’t answer. He tried again. “Karina. Look at me.” She looked at him, holding her chin high as if daring him to reprimand her. She sat in the captain’s chair, dressed to the nines and covered in blood. Agnar had never been so attracted to or amused by a woman as he was now. The corner of his mouth lifted and a chuckle escaped. Karina stared at him in confusion. He laughed outright. “What am I going to do with you? I have never in my long life met a woman who was so much trouble, or worth so much trouble as you.”

Karina raised an eyebrow at the insulting compliment. Agnar laughed again as he rose from his seat. In two quick strides he reached her and lifted her up out of the chair, kissing her soundly. Karina lost her breath at the passion in the kiss. He stopped and looked at her, their faces close and their breaths rapid. Her blue eyes gazed into his, and he felt as if he were losing himself. He leaned forward and kissed her again, this time softly, sweetly. This time, she returned the kiss. His lips parted in surprise, and she slid her tongue into his mouth, kissing him passionately. When they parted once more, Agnar lifted Karina into his arms, cradling her. He cleared his throat, staring into her eyes. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to do . . .”

Karina stared back unashamedly and whispered, “Then do it.”

Agnar grinned and carried her toward the door. He almost dropped her when the proximity alarm sounded, startling him. He growled in frustration and set Karina down. She moved to the navigation console and plopped down in the chair, twirling it around to face the forward viewscreen. From this position she wouldn’t be visible to anyone who connected, but she would be able to see them.

A Bitowan cruiser filled the starboard viewscreen. Agnar was caught by surprise, since he had been expecting a chase ship from Raffort Prime. He looked at Karina, who stared expectantly at the forward viewscreen. They must have come for her. His heart broke at the thought of losing her so soon after she was about to give herself to him, but he knew if she wanted to leave, he’d let her go. His heart was her captive now. He stopped the ship, opened communications, sat down comfortably in the captain’s chair, and waited for the inevitable call.

*
         
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*

Caman headed to the premier’s rooms early that morning. It was his job to deal with the premier’s new brides after their wedding night. The women invariably suffered from cuts and bruises, and sometimes even broken bones. From what Equaria had told him of Karina, he expected the worst. He hoped the premier hadn’t hurt her too badly. As Caman approached the premier’s bedroom door, he noticed it was ajar. Finding that odd, he paused for a moment before entering.