Defiance (2 page)

It made for a very depressing situation and far too much work for Teeny. She really needed this holiday.

Chapter Two

The ride to the resort was done in silence, but she gasped when the gates of the private hotel came into view.

Jokes about keeping King Kong would have been lost on Zhomos so Teeny kept them to herself. Three-story apartment-style accommodations were on either side of the road and a long, low single-story building sprawled to one side.

He pulled into the rotunda and parked, getting out to open her door and the hatch in turn. The doorman was hovering nervously in the background.

“Do you own the whole hotel?” She blurted it out.

He grinned. “It has been in the family for quite some time. Tradition is important.”

She tried to take her bag, but he held onto it, escorting her into the main building with easy strides.

Teeny moved to catch up, but he made it to the desk before she did. He was speaking quietly with the clerk, and the older woman nodded in agreement as Teeny walked up.

“Here I leave you, but I believe that Thaka has reserved a table for you at the hotel restaurant. I will see you soon.” He took her hand and bowed over it, pressing his lips to her knuckles for a moment before straightening with a wink.

Shivering, Teeny turned to face the knowing gaze of the clerk who smiled slyly. “Good morning, miss. Your name?”

“Christiena Montague.”

A scanning module was set in front of her, so Teeny offered an ocular scan as well as a palm print.

“Species?”

Teeny blinked. “Human, uh, Terran.”

“Terran then. You will be staying here until after the hunt?” The woman had her eyebrows raised in polite inquiry.

“I am staying for a month. I don’t know what the hunt is. What is it?”

The clerk blinked rapidly. “Oh. It is a local tradition. If you are not participating, simply lock your doors and don’t go out on the nights of the full moons. Do you have any plans while you are here?”

“My friend recommended that I take advantage of your spa, so I was thinking a full grooming and a massage.”

“Excellent, Miss Montague. I will book you for immediate treatments, and your personal concierge will help you to your room and arrange the bio scan, as well as give you a tour.”

“Are you full?”

“No. We are expecting an influx of women later in the week.”

“Women? No men?”

“The women are coming for the hunt. It will be quite a party.”

Teeny nodded. “Where can I get more information about the hunt?”

She was very suspicious all of a sudden. It was something that she had learned to trust during her time hunting teens on foreign worlds. You had to listen to your instincts, and hers were telling her that something was running wild on Gakkada.

The clerk coloured. “I am sure that meeting with Selik Zhomos will help you understand. It isn’t my place to tell you if you are here at his invitation.”

Teeny was surprised. “I am not meeting with him. I am meeting with Thakasis.”

A young woman approached with a smile. “I am Jarkatis. I will be your personal concierge during your stay here, Miss Montague.”

The clerk handed the young woman a data pad and inclined her head. “Enjoy your stay, Miss Montague.”

Jarkatis lifted her bag and looked around. “Is this everything?”

Teeny laughed. “Other people would say that I packed light. Yes. That is it. I thought if I were desperate, I could buy something locally.”

“We definitely have several good shops that can help you out there. Shall we get you to your room and then take the tour?”

Teeny nodded. “Please. It has been a while since I have been at a resort for entertainment, and I need all the help I can get.”

Jarkatis grinned, showing the sharp, pointed teeth that Teeny was expecting from a Gakkada citizen. “I am here to offer that help.”

They walked out through a side door into the bright light, and Teeny took in her surroundings. The trees were huge and resembled oak and pine.

The center area of the resort was open and green, all buildings facing inward toward the pool and another long building with Grecian overtones.

“That is the spa, and we will check you in there when you complete your tour. Do you have any questions so far?” Jarkatis was wearing her hair in a long dark ponytail. Her uniform was a loose tunic with a vee neckline, loose trousers and a gauzy sash tied at one hip.

“Yes. What is the hunt?”

Jarkatis stumbled and a hot blush came to her cheeks. “You are staying here and you don’t know about the hunt?”

“I was invited by an old friend. Now, what is the hunt?”

Jarkatis looked around as if she wanted to flee. “Um. What do you know about our world?”

“You were a melting pot that slowly dwindled to a small and select group who decided to open the planet to tourism in an effort to bring fresh blood in in controlled doses.”

Jarkatis sighed in relief. “So you know that there are shapeshifters in our history.”

“Yes. Three or four different races that offered their ability to bring out a more savage shape are in your blood.” Teeny nodded.

“During the hunt, those shapes run free and seek mates for their daily bodies.”

“Wait. That is happening during my stay?” She was suddenly very nervous.

“It is happening this week. On the first night of the full moons, the men will hunt their mates and attempt to find one that suits them. The following day, they will come here and court their chosen. That night, they transform again, and if she is willing, they take her off for some privacy.”

Teeny swallowed. “And if I have no interest in that sort of silliness?”

“Keep your door locked and stay away from the balcony. You are on the third floor, so most of the younger males will take the hint that you are not here for a partner.” Jarkatis smiled hopefully.

Teeny sighed. “I am getting the feeling that I have been setup and that I paid for the privilege.”

Her escort chuckled. “That is a grim view before you have even seen the place. Come on, let’s get you settled and into something a little more comfortable before the heat comes. We have cool mornings, but the afternoons can be scorching.”

Teeny nodded and smiled. “Right. First thing’s first. First, I relax and have dinner with a friend, and then, I worry about fending off shapeshifters. What do they take the shape of?”

“Some are large and canine, some feline, even a few lizards.”

They were standing in front of one of the apartments, and Jarkatis introduced her to the doorman, and as Arthu smiled at her, Teeny took in the breadth of his shoulders and the streaks of grey in his hair. “Pleased to meet you, Arthu.”

“And you, Miss Montague.”

“Please, call me Teeny.”

His eyes crinkled at the edges as he looked her up and down. “Teeny then. Enjoy your stay.”

There was an elevator that took them up to the third floor where Jarkatis helped her put her bio signature into her door lock before they entered her wide and spacious guest accommodation.

“Wow. This is nice, much nicer than I anticipated. Did I get an upgrade?”

Jarkatis checked her data pad. “No. This is the room reserved for you by Sela Thakasis.”

Teeny snorted. “It figures.” She walked over and opened the louvered doors. The balcony was ten feet deep and twenty feet wide. It ran the entire length of her room with a privacy screen between her balcony and the one next to it.

With light and warming air streaming into her room, she watched as her concierge showed her how to run all the appliances and explained the housekeeping routine.

“I will just be a moment. I need to change.” Teeny took her bag and walked into the huge bathroom, changing quickly into a loose shirt and drawstring trousers. She grabbed her sandals and slipped them on. Ready for the new environment, she returned to complete her tour.

They passed Arthu, and he nodded politely.

Jarkatis showed her the path to the beach. They walked past the pool with its chairs and huge parasols. “There are staff on duty day and night with the exception of the full-moon nights.”

“How many full moons are there per year?”

“Only two per season.” Jarkatis smiled. “Now, we arrive at the spa. The restaurant you will be meeting Sela Thakasis at adjoins the spa and overlooks the sea.”

Teeny was getting the hint that Selik and Sela were more than family names. They were honorifics that were relating to the place in Gakkada society.

The spa staff were delighted to see her and immediately whisked her into the spa for her first treatment.

The attendants in white bustled around her, taking her clothing and giving her a soft blue robe and matching slippers. She was tucked into a sauna for half an hour, and she meditated on the pattern of wood until they came and got her for a mud wrap, a body scrub, a full waxing from the nose down and a mani-pedi.

She lost track of time and was lying on a bed overlooking a wide black sand beach with pounding surf, with a strong pair of hands working out the knots in her body.

Her masseuse was chatty. “So, are you here for the hunt?”

Teeny chuckled. “No. I am here to relax and visit friends.”

“How is that going so far?”

“Great, but I tense up every time someone asks me if I am here for the hunt.”

He chuckled. “I can see that.”

He stilled his questions until she was back in the robe and facing him. She blinked and grew wary at the interest in his expression. “Um. I believe I have to find something to wear for dinner.”

He smiled. “There is an excellent shop near the check-in desk.”

Teeny nodded and edged around him. “Thank you.”

He watched her as she left, and she fought the shudder of distaste as she returned to collect her clothing. His hands had been a little more than professional for the last half of the massage, and she wasn’t sure if he was engaging in foreplay or trying to find the most tender bits. Either way, it was creepy.

She pushed that thought aside and headed to the shop in search of something suitable for a dinner overlooking the ocean.

Chapter Three

Thakasis had grown since Teeny last saw her, but it was still the same bright brown eyes and shy smile.

“Retriever Montague! You look wonderful.”

Teeny smiled and held out the flowing gauzy panels that made up the skirt. The woman at the shop had been correct, a light shawl was definitely required though the afternoon had been exceptionally warm.

“Thakasis, you have grown.” She hugged the younger woman and couldn’t stop the happy grin on her face. “And call me Teeny.”

“Yes, Teeny. Call me Thaka.”

“You seem smaller.”

“You got taller.” Teeny laughed.

The staff were hovering respectfully in the background, and they came forward the moment the women finished their greeting. They were led to a table out on the wide-open air seating area and menus appeared on the table screens.

“So, Thaka, it seems you have invited me here during the hunt. What are the odds of that happening?”

Thaka blushed slightly and looked up from the menu. “Really? How odd. I mean, it is a coincidence of the highest order. I guess that he just finally gave in to all the nagging, and it happened to run right across the hunt. Don’t worry. You can just lock your doors.”

Teeny shook her head. “Right. That is what everyone is saying, but why do I think that it is not the easiest course of action to be taken. If they are shifters, can’t they just pop through the doors?”

Thaka shrugged. “They could, but they won’t. It would damage their courtship prospects.”

“Oh. Good to know.” Teeny made her selections from the menu and folded her hands together, resting her chin on her knuckles. “So, how have you been keeping?”

Thaka chuckled. “I have completed my schooling and am now looking to take on a position at the family concern. Zhom has been eager to have me help him organizing events to bring the tourists here out of mating season.”

“Do all the women stay after the hunt?”

Thaka wrinkled her nose. “No. It is about a ten-percent retention rate, but the hunt night leads to a lot of pregnancies, and those children are returned to their fathers.”

Teeny shrugged and smiled as a nice glass of water and a pitcher of wine showed up at the table. The server nodded politely and disappeared as quickly as she came.

“Interesting. All the women are willing to hand over their offspring?”

Thaka smiled, “Children of Gakkada are best raised in a wilder surrounding than most planets can offer. After the second year of life, the mothers are only too happy to drop the children off for a trip to their fathers.”

The standard meal starter of meats and cheeses came next, causing a shift in conversation.

Teeny allowed herself to be distracted, and the conversation turned to Thaka’s proficiency in hand-to-hand combat training. She had been caught once. She was not going to let it happen again.

When their second course arrived and a third place was set at the table, Teeny smelled a setup.

She looked around and noticed that local men were joining several women who were sitting alone. “What is going on, Thaka?”

“Ah, well, the locals need to eat too, and this is the best place for twenty miles. Plus, the view is very striking.” Thaka looked out over the ocean, and below them, a man swam in, shifted from a fishtailed figure and walked up the beach toward the entrance.

“He just had a tail.”

Thaka gave her an innocent look. “Did he?”

Teeny forked up a few pieces of the appetizer and put them on her plate. “I am fairly sure he did. That is not a shape that was mentioned.”

“Oh, well, they can shift on an individual basis, and frankly, if you could breathe water, wouldn’t you?” Thaka blinked her wide eyes.

Teeny nodded and narrowed her gaze. “I suppose I would. What are you not telling me?”