Touchdown Daddy (134 page)

He woke up with a start, his heart thrumming against his chest, and a dull pain beginning to throb at his temples. He looked around the small chamber. It was dark and, although he could see fairly well in the dark, that night he found his left eye troubling him. The untended wounds from the flogging burned his back, distracting him as he tried to focus. He needed to see a doctor... suddenly the deluge of thoughts broke loose through the pain. Natalie, and Barca leading her away, and him being dragged back to this cell. It all came back to him.

He tried to move and sit up, and a wave of nausea hit him. He bent over and threw up. His head reeling, he thought he heard the door to his cell open. He instinctively braced himself and saw a man silhouetted in the doorway as he came forward and bent over for a closer look.

“Erdal?” Dr. Barca whispered. “Can you hear me? I’m gonna take you out of here.”

Erdal thought he was hallucinating. He simply stared back at him.

“Erdal... take these.” He held out two red pills and a bottle of water. “It will help with the pain for a while.”

Erdal took the pills and swallowed them. His vision slowly got better, and he listened carefully to the doctor.

“Wh-where is Natalie?” Erdal whispered. He was surprised when he had to strain himself to speak. He had always thought he was stronger than that.

“She’s in the harem,” Dr. Barca said. “Can you move?”

“Yes.”

“We don’t have much time, or I would have treated you first. We need to go now!” he insisted.

“Why are you risking your life for me?” Erdal asked, incredulous.

“The woman... her blood is rare,” he said, as he took off the restraints. “I have found a cure for the bone disease. Her blood will cure my daughter and all the other children.”

“The King, how did you convince him?”

“I persuaded him that the woman is more valuable to us now. And that we need her,” he said, as he helped him to his feet.

“Thank you,” Erdal said.

“She can’t stay here. Her life is in danger. She still carries your child. And knowing Zutaar, the moment he finds out I have found a cure, he will kill her.”

“But you need her...” Erdal began.

“I have taken enough samples of her blood to last a lifetime,” Dr. Barca explained. “There’s no time. Let’s go. I will get her out and you will both leave right away. The car stands ready at the far back. You must take the back gate of the fifth garden that opens into the Clapwood forest,” he said in a low voice, as he peered outside the door. He motioned for Erdal to follow him.

They made their way through the hallway, walking in the dim light toward the exit door. It opened to the side of the building, and they stepped into the moonless night.

***

Natalie ran as fast as she could as she followed the man who had rescued her earlier. Dr. Barca, they called him. The man who had saved her life, and who would help her get to Erdal, who was already waiting in the car. She trusted him with her life. She couldn’t thank him enough.

No. Thanks to you, Natalie. Your blood saved my daughter’s life,
he had said. And she was once again surprised. She was an ordinary human, but her blood had saved another being’s life.

He gave her the first aid box that contained everything she would need, and instructed Erdal to go straight to their hiding place.

Her heart fluttered and her stomach knotted when she saw him. He glanced at her and gave her a crooked smile. She fought back tears and sat beside him as the car silently levitated above the ground and swiftly moved forward, past the trees in the forest and high above them toward the mountains.

Erdal knew a place high in the mountains, a cabin house where they would be safe, at least for a while.

It was hours later, when she held the first aid box and went toward him, that she saw him differently. She saw the man who he really was.

The night was cold and misty in the mountains. Erdal sat on the chair by the fireplace, where the fire blazed, as she walked up to him. The King’s mercenaries were out looking for them. They had avoided lighting the electric lamps to avoid undue attention.

“Let me tend to your wounds,” she said, in her soft voice.

“I’ll be fine,” he said, in a quiet voice, brooding. He had been brooding since she got in the car with him.

“No, you’re not. Let me see,” she said adamantly.

“I said, I’ll be fine,” he said, gazing at her with his piercing, emerald eyes. His eyes looked fiery in the warm, golden firelight.

“They will get infected! Why won’t you let me treat you?” she said, and he saw tears welling up in her eyes.

He gazed at her with those intense emerald eyes, then conceded. She put the box on the table nearby and opened it. She helped him get out of his shirt. She saw the amulet he wore around his neck. It was a small, cylindrical-shaped silver thing strung on a silver chain.

He sat on the floor facing the fire, his back to her as she tended to his wounds one by one. The large gashes seared his back and she blinked back tears. She lightly touched one of the gashes with the antiseptic swab and felt him wince. She stopped, but taking a deep breath, she kept going...

He stared into the crackling fire and winced at her touch. Her soft hand quietly worked its magic on his burning back. The effect of the pills had long worn off and he needed to rest. His body was strong, and it would heal eventually. He was more exhausted from the emotional strain.

He was relieved that she was safe and the baby was safe. She was his mate now. Nothing would change that. He heard her quietly sobbing as she worked on his back.

“I’m sorry, Erdal,” she whispered, weeping. “You could have easily killed me. Why did you endure all this?” Her voice choked as she spoke.

“I couldn’t. You are my mate and I had to save you,” he said, in a quiet voice. “I’m sorry that you had to go through it all.”

“Yes, you got me into this mess. But you tried to save my life, too. It was just bad luck that we got caught,” she said, as she rubbed the ointment on his wounds and wrapped gauze around his chest.

He turned and gazed into her warm, brown eyes, which glowed in the firelight as she looked up at him. He saw the world of innocence there, and the depth of her guilt seemed almost tangible to him. He sensed something more, too, a pull he felt toward her. It charged the air between them. His emerald eyes grew darker...

“You should rest. I... I’ll get some wine. It will help,” she said, as her mouth went dry. She quickly got up and put the box away as she went toward the kitchen.

Her stomach twisted and she felt desire pool deep inside her belly as she poured out wine for him. She wanted to avoid drinking herself as it was an early pregnancy.

She couldn’t deny the strange pull she felt toward him, or the fact that he had chosen
her
, and had sacrificed everything.

She handed him the glass and put the bottle aside when she was back in the den. He took a swig and then gazed at her, brooding. She sat across from him on the rug. She was unlike any woman he had known, and she was right. He was responsible for her and, strangely, she had turned out to be his destined mate. And as she gazed at him with those clear, brown eyes, he thanked the gods that she was safe with him there. Now, when he looked at her, he saw she was so different from Kira.

Kira was tough and a fighter. She was a born leader. This woman was really different, and unusual. She seemed so fragile and delicate, yet she was braver than many and stubborn too. She was a gentle human, and when she looked at him, there was this strange light in her eyes. It was the light of her fiery spirit which he found so alluring.

“You should regularly take the breathing pills I gave you,” he said. “It will take a while before your body adjusts to the atmosphere here.”

“Okay,” she said. “Have you lived here all your life?” she asked him.

He took another swig, draining his glass, and she poured more for him.

“Yeah, mostly,” he said, as he stared into the fire. “I was a slave once, many years ago. My master found me in a crashed aircraft on the outskirts. I don’t remember how I ended up there. I couldn’t even remember my name. They found this recording in the debris that gave away my name.”

“And you never tried to look for your real family?” she asked him, as she gazed at him.

“No. Never got a chance. As a slave, you serve your master in the arena. I trained in sword fighting and became a gladiator. You either kill or get killed,” he said, taking another swig.

She was silent as she peered at him.

“How old are you, Erdal?” she asked him.

“I’m three hundred and five. We Darrenkar can live up to five hundred years,” he said, amused at her shocked expression.

“Wow! You are old. How do you manage to look so young?” she asked incredulously.

“Apparently we stop aging after thirty-five,” he said, and a smile tugged at the corner if his lips.

“Lucky you,” she said softly. “So how did you end up here?” 

“Killing. I was good at it. I was recruited into the king’s royal guard and I eventually became his mercenary.”

He paused and gazed at her. She was quiet and he saw she was thinking about what he said, trying to understand it.

“And then my wife got killed. Humans killed her,” he said, gazing at her. She winced, blinked rapidly.

“Oh... you had a wife,” she said, as her cheeks flushed red and she stared at the fire, wringing her hands.

“And now you know why I despise humans,” he said.

“You must really hate me, then,” she said, in a quiet voice. “And still you tried saving my life. Why?” She looked at him with wonder in her eyes.

“You remind me of her,” he whispered. “She looked so much like you.”

“So all this time you were thinking about her.” Her voice grew shrill as tears pooled in her eyes.

“No. Maybe at first, but you are different, Natalie,” he said softly.

“And you claim to be my mate! You saved me because you saw
her
in me!” she sobbed, tears streaming down her face. “I thought you loved me...”

Erdal couldn’t understand why she was upset all of a sudden. He saw she was clearly hurt.

“Natalie, you don’t understand. She wasn’t my mate. You are!” he said, as he moved forward and held her close. “I loved her once but you are different from her. Natalie, you are a beautiful woman and I love you for who you are.”

Her scent was irresistible. In a swift move, he claimed her mouth with his, devouring her, and she gasped, unable to catch her breath.

He pulled away then and gazed deeply into her warm eyes. He took off the Erasmeth, the silver amulet he wore around his neck, and put it on hers.

“Natalie, will you be my bride?” he asked her, in his deep voice.

She stared at him, still dazed by his passion as she lightly touched the silver pendant.

“Yes,” she whispered after a while. He thought she was beautiful. No man had ever seen her as beautiful.

She gently stroked the ridges on his temples with her fingertips and saw his eyes darken. His lips were on hers again and his tongue slid into her mouth, grazing hers with a longing that took her breath away. She yielded and wrapped her arms around his neck, running her delicate fingers through his dark hair. His hand stroked her back, tracing her curves and slowly sliding across her waist as he pulled her closer. Pulling away, he leaned back, and then she was on top of him, straddling him.

Desire deep and dark surged through his blood as she bent down and claimed his mouth. He loved her taste. It was intoxicating. Soon the kiss became relentless. Pulling back, he lay back on the rug and gazed at her, admiring her.

“What are you doing to me, woman?”

She saw the darkening storm in his eyes, as he slowly peeled her soft dress off her shoulders and it slid to her waist, revealing her full breasts. Her ivory skin glowed warmly in the firelight and her long hair flowed down her bare shoulders and back. She looked like a goddess in a distant dream.

She felt the bulge in his pants and desire pooled deep down in her belly. Moving back, she helped him take off his pants and gasped. He reminded her of some Greek god as he lay there, and she admired the impressive length of his arousal. She quickly peeled off her panties and straddled him again, loving the feel of him inside her. He pulled her toward him as he took her mouth again with a fierce passion. She pulled back then as he cupped her breasts with his hands, and holding onto his intense emerald gaze, she started moving. Up and down, building a rhythm, taking him with her as they both moved. Their souls united, singing the song of passion, eternally bound in their own universe.  

Her breath came in gasps. The garish sun bore down on her, blurring her vision. Her hands were tied behind her and she couldn’t move. A hulking man walked toward her. He carried the whip. She tried to scream but no sound came out. He raised his arm for the first strike, whip in hand. She closed her eyes. She couldn’t breathe...

Natalie woke up with a start. Sunlight streamed in through the windows, warming her face. She lay naked on the rug with Erdal’s hand wrapped across her breasts. She was overheated by the proximity. She turned and saw him sleeping. His alabaster-white skin gleamed in the sunlight. He seemed so peaceful. She lightly trailed a finger over one of the subtle ridges on his temple. She found them fascinating. It was the native mark of the Darrenkar, Zora had said, and the number of ridges increased with age. They went all the way back around his skull. 

He stirred and opened his eyes, gazing at her.

“Hey, beautiful,” he said, as he bent over and planted a soft kiss on her lips.

“Morning,” she said, and smiled up at him. He loved her lovely smile. The Erasmeth gleamed in the light where it lay at her neck, and taking it in her hand, she gazed at it. “Where did you get this?” she asked.

“The Erasmeth has been in my family for centuries. All I can remember is that it’s an ancient heirloom, and it belonged to my mother,” he said quietly. For the first time she saw him bare his soul to her. There was profound sadness in his eyes. “And now it’s yours.”

She smiled up at him and, sitting up, she pulled on her dress. She held the Erasmeth in her hand. It was a small, cylindrical-shaped, silver thing with runes carved on it. She felt the runes and they glowed under her touch. Then the Erasmeth clicked open. A rolled piece of paper popped up, and she pulled it out.

“I didn’t know it opened.” He sounded surprised, and sat up. Natalie opened the scroll and found strange runes written in an ancient tongue there.

“I think you might be able to read this,” she said, handing him the scroll.

He looked at it and frowned. It was in his tongue and written by hand. He read it aloud.

My Lord,

If you are reading this then it means the time has come. I am writing this with a heavy heart. Both your parents, the king and queen, have been assassinated by the Rok.

My dear boy, remember when you come of age, you must return and claim your place as King. You are Lord Erdal Bu’Rak Urquiorra IV, son of Lord Bu’Rak Rezan Urquiorra. You are the last in the bloodline of the ancient Urquiorra clan, and true heir and successor to the throne.

I would advise you to look for me as soon as you can. I will be waiting. You will probably find me living in an old abode in the valley.

Yours Truly,

Ornek Zorlu

Royal Guardian, 2268

Erdal stared at the note. His head reeled as he read it again. The note was over a century old. His chest constricted and he felt a lump in his throat. If what the note said were true, then King Zutaar was the invader who had assassinated his parents. A vision flashed through his mind...

He saw the bodies of the man and woman lying in a pool of blood, the old man who stealthily took him away from the invaders that night... it all came back in a rush, as burning pain throbbed against his temples. The dreams he had were actually memories. He shuddered, taking a deep breath.

“Are you alright?” she asked him, as she saw his face grow pale.

“Do you know anything about this?”

“I remember now... I remember everything,” he said, in a dark voice, as she saw his emerald eyes blaze with a fiery determination.