Cold Mark (6 page)

My lips pinched, remembering just how right it had been. But just as suddenly, I glanced down at my bare hands, and then to his face. My gloves were gone. "Wait a second. I touched you and nothing happened."

He shook his head. "After the initial skin contact, regular contact is normal."

I felt my brows furrow on their own. "Is that why every time a," I tried not to shudder, "Mian touches my skin it's cold at first?"

They nodded.

I scratched my shoulder, watching them eye me. "What do you mean by
regular
contact?" I did not particularly like having my will taken away from me. What had happened in that room was like my body had not been my own.

Leo's lips gently curved. "During sexual contact it can flare again."

I huffed quietly, not understanding them.

Both blinked. They stared right back at me as if they were trying to figure me out.

I hated it, my confusion, but I asked, "What is
sexual
contact?" I had no clue what that was. My lips pursed as their jaws began to slacken. "I'm sorry, but maybe I pronounced that wrong." I spoke slower. "What is
sexual
contact?" The word sounded ... weird. I flicked a hand between us and continued on when they sat silent. "As I'm sure you know, Humans are forbidden from
skin
contact with each other." There was no need for it. Our genetic scientists created all new Humans by in vitro fertilization ... .oh ... oh, Mother Joyal. My eyes were as wide as saucers. "You don't mean ... " My cheeks flamed with heat as embarrassment flooded my entire system. "That ... oh, that's
barbaric
."

Entirely uncomfortable with this line of conversation, I scratched at my shoulder again and glanced out the window. I changed the subject quickly and tried really hard not to plaster my face against the window, for the first time noticing the scenery outside. "Where are we going?" This was definitely a different planet. Everything was in shades of blues, purples, greens, and reds. All of it. Even the plant life. The brown dirt appeared to be the only thing normal on our travel.

Malik recovered the fastest, lounging further on their seat. His long legs stretched in the space between us and brushed my right knee. I quickly shot a glare in his direction and lifted my legs to sit cross-legged on the seat. He chuckled softly, the sound of his laughter like a sweet melody filling my ears. "We're going to our home. Our fortress. It is in Belvar."

I nibbled on my bottom lip and stared out the window again. "Will I live there?"

This time, Leo's laughter tickled my senses. "You are our Soul." He barely raised his left thumb from his leg where his hand rested. "We now wear your rings." His golden stare was pointed. "Yes, you are living with us."

My attention was wholly trained on that ring. "What do they do?"

"The rings do enough," he answered vaguely. He shrugged a negligent shoulder. "You should also know that the three of us are now
bound
together since the Reckoning has occurred. If we die, you also die." A roll of his finger. "So any thought you may have of
attempting
to kill us to escape, you may want to set aside."

I blinked slow as hell. "We're
bound
?" I tucked that dying information away to ponder later.

Malik grunted, peering out the window. "It is a Mian way. By touch, our lives are now linked."

"But I'm Human. How do you know the way of Mian works for this situation?"

Malik's expression turned grim, his simmering gaze finding mine. "Leo and I can feel you."

"Feel me?" That made no sense.

"When you were passed out—which is normal for the female—Leo and I had to deal with the Human slaves. We left you in the care of our guards. The farther we moved away from you, the deeper the pull to return to you was." He sighed quietly, returning his regard to peer out the window. "If you hadn't been unconscious, you would have felt the same. Even with you being
Human
, the Mian way holds true." The way he said 'Human' informed me he found what I was vaguely revolting.

That was comforting. The feeling was mutual. "Where's Jax?" I needed him.

They fell silent as both now stared out their windows. Their shoulders relaxed, and they appeared to not have any inclination of answering me. As if I was not even sitting across from them.

That
was not going to cut it. My voice rose. "Where is Jax?"

Still, no response. They acted like they had not heard me.

It was then it occurred to me. Pluma Creo had been interested in him. "He's with
them
."

Leo's golden eyes were piercing in their intensity. "Because you are our Soul, we obviously received first pick with the Humans—you." A cruel smile tilted his lips, a merciless gleam of satisfaction. "Pluma Creo and Pluma Moir chose your friend next. So yes, he is now with our enemy in the city Vlymun."

A rush of despair so grand that I could not breathe, blasted through my entire frame. It took everything I had not to bawl right there. I tucked my chin down, blinking repeatedly to squelch any tears that wanted to fall. Stiffly, I placed my hands on my lap and said nothing more, now alone on this alien planet without my dearest friend. Heartache could not even describe it. The agony of losing him to the other leaders of the Mian was a steady punch to my heart with every bounce of our vehicle.

While I waded in my desolation, the only luxury I found in our, now silent, trek to Belvar was that Malik and Leo continued to readjust on their seat, appearing to never find a comfortable position.

I stood staring out the vast windows of my new bedroom. We had made it to Belvar. The city was truly a fortress. My eyes took in the sites from the fifth floor of the palace that was now my home. In the far distance, I could make out the deadly metal of the wall that circled the perimeter of the city. That wall had frightened me when it first came into view. It was at least a hundred stories high and deeply grooved with spikes and lasers throughout it, appearing impenetrable. The city inside the wall was now visibly vacant of any Mian since the sun was shining brightly on the city. All the Mian were now sleeping, but before it had been bustling with raucous activity when we had first arrived. Mian had been roaming the streets, traveling to their homes in the suburbs or to their condos inside the city.

There were so many more Mian just inside Belvar than there were Humans on Joyal.

All in one place.

It had been an overload to the senses, scaring the crap out of me to the point I had wanted to hunker down on the floor of the vehicle as we drove through the winding streets. There were enormous concrete skyscrapers and brutally curved glass buildings circling the palace, which was so fortified with guards that it made me feel claustrophobic. That was before we had even exited the car. Once inside the palace, I had become even more uncomfortable as Malik and Leo stood on either side of me while they showed me my new home ... and all the guards inside who had stared with disgust and curiosity.

And this was where I would live.

I turned away from the floor to ceiling windows, peering into my new bedroom. It was bare except for a bed and a chest of drawers that had no clothing inside of it. Malik and Leo's bedroom was adjoined through the door on my right. They said this was a room made specifically for their Soul if I wished to sleep outside of their room. They had created it many years ago, but it was for me to design the interior.

I sighed quietly and walked to the door that led to their room, the oversized white nightgown I had been gifted swishing around my bare feet. I placed my hand on the doorknob, gazing at it. Leo and Malik had been correct. When I was not directly next to them ... I could
feel
them. The oddest part about it was, it felt natural, just a simple pull to be near them. Though earlier it had not been. I had literally walked out of my bedroom and came face to face with six guards standing outside my door when Malik and Leo had gone to tend to business. There had been a brutal need to be near them, even though I had no clue where they had been.

I
had
been plenty upset when the guards would not let me find them.

Apparently, on this ruthless planet, making ones guards bleed was not the
done
thing.

I now had ten new men with guns outside of my door, the other six fired.

My chest heaved as I glanced back to my bed. I had laid there for two hours staring at the ceiling, wallowing in self-pity from missing Jax. I had even flipped the switch so the windows frosted to black, eliminating the sun shining inside. It had done no good. I was still wide awake ... and frightened. There were noises outside from animals I could not name, and they sounded dreadfully vicious. The deep rumbles of the guards' voices outside my door did not soothe, instead bringing on panic.

I did not trust Malik or Leo for that matter, but it was better to be with the devils I knew.

I opened the unlocked door as quietly as I could.

Their bedroom was even larger than mine. At the front of it there was a large black leather couch and two silver recliners with a coffee table between. Bookcases lined each side of the room, which were overflowing with ancient books. When they had first shown me their bedroom, I had been shocked by the quiet nature of it, but then I had seen all of the weapons they had inside their immense walk-in closet—most with dried blood on them—and decided against the room being unassuming. The one massive bed inside the room had confused me, but Malik had informed me that all Vaq slept next to each other.

By the slim glow that shone from my room to theirs, they appeared to be doing just that. I sighed in relief and quickly went back to my bed and grabbed my comforter. Dragging the ridiculously enormous thing behind me, I silently slipped into their bedroom. Only their heads showed above their own fluffy comforter, but there was a light snore coming from Leo, his golden head of hair shimmering in the light of the sun from my room. Malik was not snoring, but his breathing was heavy with the rise and fall of the comforter on top of his body.

Once I had my comforter all the way past the doorway, I dropped it on the concrete floor. I moved to one of the silver recliners and, quietly grunting with the effort, shoved it across the room to the foot of their bed. I stood on tiptoe, peeking at their faces, but both were still asleep. The heavy breathing and quiet snoring never stopped. Already feeling a little safer, I grabbed my comforter from the floor and shut our adjoining door, letting the darkness consume the bedroom. Padding quietly across the cold and smooth concrete floor, I lowered myself onto the recliner, covered myself up, and released the footstool.

In a rush of movement, it lifted with a loud
thwack
.

"Shit," I whispered in English, my attention slamming in their direction.

They did not stir.

My lips lifted in victory. I may actually sleep this day.

Though my smile faltered when the snore abruptly stopped, and Leo grunted, "For a Human, who bears ten marks on her wrists, she is remarkably pathetic at stealth."

With an aggravated huff, Malik rolled in bed. "At least she finally shut the damn door."

I blinked. "Good night." Or afternoon, whatever it was right now.

Malik grumbled in irritation, "Just go to sleep, Braita."

"Okay," I whispered. I snuggled further into my comforter and closed my eyes. They were letting me sleep here. And they were not too angry. That, I could handle.

My groggy eyes slammed open into darkness when I heard their bedroom door click closed. I watched as Leo jerked upright in bed. His golden eyes cut through the darkness with a violent glow. He also appeared to have a gun aimed at the door. I still did not remove my hand from under my nightgown where my palm rested on the handle of the knife I had thieved from their closet of horrors.

Unexpectedly, Leo lowered his weapon and yawned so grandly that I thought his jaw might crack from the pressure. "Winslet, this is not a good time." He lifted his free hand in my direction. "As you can see, we have company."