Atlantium Trilogy I: Bride of Atlantis (13 page)

In the end, the cause didn’t really
matter. There wasn’t anything she could do about it.

Despite her headache, she was able to
look upon the festival with some interest. It looked much like a
county fair. Stalls lined several narrow thoroughfares, each filled
with the wares of the merchant presenting them. In truth, she could
see little difference, at first, between the festival and the
market she’d noticed when she’d passed through on her first day on
her way to find Adonis’ home. As they reached the center of
activity, however, she saw that the festival included performers. A
stage had been set up near a fountain. To her surprise, musicians
were assembling there. She stopped, feeling a thrill of
anticipation as she watched. Within moments, the strains of a
haunting melody drifted over the milling crowd. Everyone became
still, listening intently.

Doubtless, music was a rare treat
indeed for these folks.

She loved music.

She hadn’t realized, until she heard
it, how much she’d missed it.

She didn’t recognize the song, but the
melody was almost hypnotic. She swayed to it, longing to dance …
but no one was dancing.

Thor took her hand, pulling her
against him. She looked up at him in surprise, realizing only then
that she’d actually put the bickering pair from her mind when she’d
stopped to listen to the music.

Helen, she saw, had
disappeared.

She decided to enjoy the dance, and
the music. Thor, she discovered, was a surprisingly graceful dancer
for such a large man.

The crowd separated around them until
they were encircled, as if they had become part of the
entertainment.

After some minutes, however, others
began to pair up. Alexis was disappointed when the music ended.
After only a slight pause, however, the musicians struck up once
more, this time playing a lively tune. The Atlanteans formed a line
and began some sort of country dance. Unfamiliar with the dance,
Alexis, almost reluctantly, turned to go, but Thor, laughing,
pulled her back. “This is not difficult. Come. I will show
you.”

Alexis shook her head. “I don’t know
how to do this. I’ll just stomp all over your feet and embarrass
both of us.”

“
Coward.”

Alexis lifted her chin. “OK. You asked
for it,” she said, laughing.

What she lacked in skill, she made up
for in enthusiasm. She managed, most of the time anyway, to refrain
from romping on Thor’s feet. Halfway through the third dance,
however, she was just about ready to collapse.

“
Time!” she said
breathlessly. “I need liquid! I’m completely
dehydrated.”

Chuckling, Thor left her and went in
search of refreshment.

Hot from the rigorous exercise, Alexis
was tempted to remove the cloak. No one was paying her any
attention, and most were dressed as scantily as she was, or not
dressed at all. In the end, however, she contented herself with
merely fanning the cloak to cool herself. She was watching the
other dancers when someone suddenly slammed in to her.

A little stunned, she chuckled,
thinking one of the Atlanteans had drunk too much beer or wine and
stumbled into her. In the next instant, however, she was grasped
from behind in a bear hug and felt her feet leave the
ground.

Alexis looked down at the scaly,
inhuman arms gripping her, then twisted around to see what held
her. It was beaked, like a giant bird, but instead of feathers, the
rough, knobby skin of a reptile covered it. It’s wings, stretching
out behind it like a para-sail, were like those of a bat. A forked
tongue flicked from its beaked mouth. Alexis screamed.

Chapter Eight

The festival dropped below her as wind
rushed past her ears. Frantically, Alexis clawed at the arms
gripping her, trying, in mindless terror, to free herself until she
finally realized she was so high the fall would kill her if she
succeeded in breaking free.

Fear gripped her, shattering her
thoughts into chaos. She tried to gather her wits, but she could
think of nothing except that some horrible winged creature had her,
was most likely taking her to dinner, possibly for its
young.

Below her, closing fast, she saw
another winged creature. Her heart almost stopped as the vision
immediately assailed her of the two creatures fighting over her
mid-air, rending her flesh, like two wolves fighting for the same
haunch of meat.

A wave of dizziness assailed her and
she realized that she was hyper-ventilating, that she would pass
out if she didn’t control her breathing.

She closed her eyes. Unable to bear
the images, trying to banish them from her mind, trying to slow her
breathing. Her heart was pounding so hard it felt as if it would
burst from her chest.

When she opened her eyes again, she
saw that the second winged creature was Thor. In his hand was the
sword he carried by his side, the one she’d thought was more or
less purely for decoration. As she watched, he pointed it and fire
shot from the tip in a blinding flash of white light.

“
Oh my god!” She slammed her
eyes shut, tensing against the pain she knew would come. Instead,
she heard the creature that held her scream in agony. It’s grip
loosened and Alexis gasped, now clutching frantically at the
creature she’d only moments earlier tried to free herself from,
feeling her fingers claw uselessly at nothing but air, feeling
herself falling.

The ground was rushing up to meet
her.

She squeezed her eyes closed against
the terrifying sight.

She landed with a thump that knocked
the air out of her lungs, felt arms grasp her against a rock hard
chest. She opened her eyes, looked up at Thor and
fainted.

She woke screaming.

Thor pulled her into his arms, hugging
her tightly, rocking her.

Alexis burst into tears. She’d had no
one to give her comfort since her father had died. She hadn’t
expected the kindness. It demolished her defenses.

Slowly, she regained some control,
enough to realize she was in Thor’s bed, in his home. Had she
dreamed it then? Had it been nothing more than a horrible
nightmare?

“
He is gone. He will not
harm you. I will not allow it.”

Alexis pulled away. “He?” She shook
her head. He must have been too far away to get a good look at it.
“It was a monster. I saw it. It was something horrible.”

Thor studied her a moment. Lifting his
hand, he wiped the tears from her cheeks. “It was a man. He had
shifted into a flying beast to steal you away.”

Alexis stared at him, sniffing. “A
man?”

“
I should not have left you
alone.”

“
But—I don’t understand. You
said—everyone said it was safe here.”

Thor gently pushed her back against
the pillows. Sliding under the covers beside her, he wrapped his
arms around her once more, pulling her fully against his
length.

Alexis didn’t protest. She felt
chilled to her very marrow. She snuggled gratefully against him,
burrowing her head beneath his chin. He filled her senses: the
warmth of his skin seeping into hers, warming her; the hardness of
his muscles—his sheer size—soothing her with the illusion, at
least, of safety; his scent welcome, reassuringly
familiar.

“
I will protect you. I will
let no harm come to you. I give you my word.”

“
You didn’t catch him,
though, did you?”

“
No.”

“
Do you think he’s
dead?”

Thor seemed to wrestle with his
thoughts a moment. “He was not alone.”

Alexis pulled away from him so that
she could look up at him. “I’ve decided I don’t much like it here,”
she said, trying to make the words come out in a joking tone.
Instead, it sounded child-like, terrified—which she was.

Thor lifted a hand, brushed the hair
carefully from her cheek, then threaded his fingers through it,
cupping the back of her head, pulling her to him as he lowered his
head and captured her mouth with his own.

Alexis kissed him back with urgency,
opening her mouth to him as she felt his tongue touch her lips,
suckling on his tongue as it plunged inside. He groaned, his hand
moving from her hair, down her back until he cupped her buttock,
gripped it, pulling her against his rock hard arousal.

Alexis moved her uppermost leg over
his waist, undulating against him in an effort to get closer, and
closer still. When he would have broken the kiss, she followed him,
plunging her tongue into his mouth. Rolling until she lay half on
top of him, Alexis rubbed her moist cleft against his swollen
member, pressing her clit against the rounded head of his cock,
then rocking back before pressing fully against it
again.

He moved so that he was gripping both
cheeks of her bottom, lifting her, impaling her on his erection.
Alexis groaned, ending the kiss, trailing her parted lips along his
cheek to his neck as he changed his position again. He came
upright, shifted until he was sitting on his bent legs, Alexis in
his lap, impaled to the root of his swollen shaft. She had looped
her arms tightly around his neck to keep her balance as he changed
positions. She loosened them, leaning back to study his face as she
began to move slowly against him, in a grinding, almost circular
motion that sent sharp needles of desire flowing through her from
her clit into her belly, causing her muscles to contract around
him.

His face hardened with desire, a
muscle flexing in his jaw as he sought control, but his hands
kneaded her buttocks, urging her to set a rhythm.

Alexis ignored him, catering to her
own needs, feeling her body build quickly toward climax as she
massaged her clit against him, moved her body so that she could
feel his cock nudging against her G-spot teasingly, tantalizing her
with the promise of imminent release.

He gasped, gritted his teeth, as
Alexis threw her head back, groaning as the pleasure began to
produce little quakes inside her, the muscles in her belly
clenching and releasing in a like rhythm to her
movements.

Bending, Thor took her breast into his
mouth, suckling her nipple hard.

Alexis cried out, quaking with
pleasure as her climax took her abruptly, pleasure rushing
throughout her body.

Thor threw her to her back among the
pillows, pumping into her so hard and fast he lifted her from the
bed with each thrust. She dug her heels into the bed, slipped her
arms around his waist and dug her fingertips into his buttocks as
she arched to meet him.

He stopped suddenly, arching back, his
face reflecting the intensity of his climax. Inside her belly, she
could feel him, throbbing, pulsating, could feel heat flood her
belly as his seed washed through her.

She released her grip on him, her
arms, weak and heavy with fatigue, falling against the bed as he
lowered himself against her, gasping for air. In a few moments, he
moved to the bed beside her, pulling her with him so that she
rested once more snugly against his side.

Alexis shifted, turning so that her
back was to him, nudging his sated member with her butt.

A faint smile curled her lips. Who’d
have thought a great he-man like Thor would want to snuggle
afterwards? He was a wonderful lover. It was a shame,
really.

* * * *

Alexis was uneasy when Moira left her
at Aurora’s door the following morning. She had not seen Thor.
Typically, he was gone when she woke, and Moira, unfortunately, was
not handy enough with her vocal chords to tell Alexis where he’d
gone—even if she’d been so inclined, or knew.

Moira had managed to convey the
information, however, that Aurora was expecting Alexis.

Alexis knew what that
meant.

Tests.

Aurora smiled at Alexis’ expression as
she entered the room and stood nervously by the door, motioning for
her to come forward. Reluctantly, Alexis moved from the door and
sat on the edge of the chaise, where she’d lain the last time she’d
found herself in Aurora’s chambers.

“
You look frightened to
death, child. Did I not tell you that there was no need to fear the
tests?”

Alexis nodded jerkily. “It’s just—I
really hate hospitals, doctors, medical tests.”

Aurora studied her thoughtfully a
moment and a look of sympathy crossed her features. “Your
mother?”

Alexis felt a touch of surprise,
despite the fact that she knew by now that her thoughts were not
private in this place. She nodded.

“
You do not trust easily,
Alexis.”

Alexis shrugged. “It depends, really.
Sometimes, about some things—and then I usually regret
it.”

Aurora closed her eyes. “He was a
charming rogue, and you a young woman lost and in desperate need of
comfort. Don’t blame yourself for failing to see the warning signs
about Eric.”

It was kindly said, and yet Alexis
knew she would never be able to forgive herself, not completely. It
was she who’d opened the door for her father’s murder. If she had
not allowed Eric into her life, he would not have seen what there
was to gain by killing her father.