Exile to the Stars (The Alarai Chronicles) (39 page)

“We
are now reunited, my Zimma. Let us never again find ourselves viewing one another
across such an abyss.”

“It
shall never be. I shall never permit it to happen, Father. I cannot find words
to express what I have learned of myself through meeting Jeffrey. He is so far
within my heart, has filled its every nook to such completion.”

“And
yet, are you completely sure? As your father I must ask this question. I love
Jeefrey as my son and will deny him nothing, including your hand. Yet he is not
of our people this land or very world. We know little of his homeland, but what
I have heard of it is most disturbing. While he is a courageous, well-thought
and honest young man, Zimma, I also perceive he has been deeply wounded. Such
wounds of the heart often prevent or subvert true attachment.” Rogelf veered to
the side of the walkway and stopped.

“I
am familiar with many aspects of your nature, Zimma, for they were also present
in your mother. Do you understand that, for you, after this night, there is no
turning back? That you will be forever tied to and share Jeefrey’s destiny?
That you will be so tied even though, as an outlander, he might well fail to
comprehend and thus fully respect such a binding? In full knowledge of his
origins, do you willingly and freely accept this?”

Zimma
felt a shiver work its way up her spine. She had never heard her father speak
in such a fashion. The finality of his words forced her to review every aspect
of her new relationship with Jeff. She did not hurry the process.

“As
I have said, I do not have the words to express what I feel for Jeffrey. My
life would cease to have meaning were I to discover he was lost to me. Yes, I
recognize he is deeply wounded. Having said that, I also perceive this
condition springs not from his character but from experiences on this Earth.
Was I not troubled, Father?”

Rogelf
could only nod. “There is no gainsaying that fact.”

“Just
so, and severely. Yet I have been salvaged. I do not propose to know all ends
of my love for this man or his comprehension of it, only that he is mine and if
it must lead us both to a desperate end, even death, then I accept such without
reservation. I will have him, I will have his children, I will have his
destiny.”

Profoundly
moved by Zimma’s answer, Rogelf bowed from the waist with arm extended. “My
heart overflows with gratitude that you are my daughter. May your joining
prosper and bear fruit in due season.”

In
the formal manner of Chaldesia, Zimma duplicated Rogelf’s bow. “As the fruit of
a gentle summer finds expression in plenitude, so shall our children spring
forth and sustain life.”

Brushing
a tear away, Rogelf placed his hands on Zimma’s shoulders just to look at her.
In one afternoon, ten years of agony had faded away. The sun was gone when they
arrived at the warehouse and Zimma reluctantly dropped his hand.

“I
must prepare myself before the Flames of Rishak consume me, Father. Already it
has started. Will you see to the food?”

“I
would be honored.” Rogelf hesitated before saying, “I so deeply miss the
presence of your mother. Do you fully understand the Ritual of Testing? That it
is no coupling for sport or simple pleasure? It must not go awry! Never forget
that Jeefrey is not of our people. If he should…” Rogelf paused to rephrase.
“Please, my daughter, do not put your life at risk.”

Zimma
patted his cheek and smiled. “Aunt Gemma was most dedicated to the task of my
education in this matter. Also, and again, I have given considerable thought to
Jeffrey’s origins. No viciousness resides within him. Now please, Father, be at
rest! We will both succeed.”

Rogelf
relaxed at once. His sister, Gemma, was not one to be diverted from a task she
had set her mind on.

“Then
test him, daughter, and discover whether his strength is worthy of you.”

Zimma’s
eyes sparked and her skin seemed to glow. “Rest assured that Jeffrey will be
tested as no man before him.”

Jeff
left Carl sorting through his acquisitions and searched for Zimma without
success. Apparently she had gone shopping with her father. Tired, feeling
melancholy for a variety of reasons and even a bit homesick for the first time
in months, he retired to his room. Playing the recorder helped, but his heart
wasn’t in it and he blew out the candle.

Months
of constant exposure to attack while camping out had resulted in a light sleep
pattern. One moment Jeff was asleep, the next he was sitting up fully alert.
The room was pitch black and there was not a sound to be heard. He was about to
shrug it off when a floorboard in the hallway creaked loudly.

 
“Get serious, boyo,” he murmured, “that ain’t
mice out there.” Jeff had his feet on the floor when he sniffed the air. “What
is it? Can’t smell anything, but damn! I haven’t felt this kind of rush since I
was thirteen.”

A
portion of Jeff’s mind shouted at him to grab the pistol, but the stronger part
wasn’t listening. The door to his room opened with a squeak of dry hinges. That
did the trick. Jeff shot his hand under the pillow in search of the Colt.
Before he could withdraw it, a weight settled on the bed and a hand covered his
mouth.

Lips
tickled his ear and a low-pitched voice growled, “Be still.”

The
hand over his mouth was soft and small, the voice feminine. He did not
recognize it. Alarm overwhelmed desire and he pulled the hand away, thinking,
What the hell is in here with me?

“Zimma?”

Throaty,
derisive laughter whispered into his ear and Jeff was thrust onto his back.
Before he could react, a body landed on his chest and teeth were fastened to
his ear in a hard bite. Within seconds, a tidal bore of desire such as he had
never known swept over Jeff and he didn’t care who was in bed with him.

The
voice snarled, “Take me if you can.” It was Zimma.

Jeff
pulled Zimma’s head down and crushed his lips to hers. He was sleeping in the
nude; Zimma had a thick robe on. Tearing the robe open, he pulled it down over
her shoulders and grasped her breasts. Her pleasure was such that she cried out
and thrust a hand between his legs.

“Now
prove that you will be mine forever!”

Hands
and lips explored with painful urgency until Jeff’s need was so consuming that
he forced Zimma onto her back. Using his weight and arms to hold her down, Jeff
attempted to separate her legs with a knee. Laughing disdain, she thrust him
away with ease.

Licking
blood from his ear, raking his back with her nails, fighting him off again and
again, Zimma drove Jeff until he threw her to the floor in a frenzy. Zimma’s
head bounced off wooden planks, leaving her dazed. Jeff tore her legs apart and
thrust deep inside with a single stroke.

Shouting
triumph and raw exaltation, Zimma clamped her legs around his waist and forced
her hips up with a convulsive twist. Everything faded from Jeff’s existence but
the thrashing, furnace-hot body underneath him and a single-minded drive to
impregnate her that reached beyond the beginnings of humanity. When orgasm
exploded, Jeff was only vaguely aware of Zimma’s screams of release.

He
awoke in bed with his cheek pillowed on a breast and a sense of well being that
was euphoric in intensity. When memories of their loving filtered in Jeff
nearly bolted upright. Instead, he cautiously sat up and stared down at Zimma
as if seeing her for the first time. As he continued to remember, Jeff thought,
What is she? What happened to me? How could anything be so wonderful and
terrifying at the same time?

Zimma
was sleeping on her back, hair spread out on the pillow in wild disarray and
one leg bent out to the side. A brilliant flush on her cheeks swept backward to
include the ears, giving them an elfin look. The flush also extended down her
neck and between generous breasts in a slender leaf pattern.

How
beautiful, he mused, tracing a finger along one edge of the flush. Can there be
a touch of green and blue in it? Is that possible?

Letting
his questions drift away, Jeff sighed with satisfaction and leaned down to
tease a nipple with his lips and caress belly and thighs. Her eyes opened.
Stretching luxuriously, she thrust her chest up and began purring with a
throaty rumble. The pressure of Zimma’s eyes was so strong that Jeff released
the nipple and raised his head to look at her.

Brilliant
green eyes alight with the inner fire of a predator feasted on him; seemed to
be judging the right moment to spring. Bright cyan sparks whirled slowly deep
within her eyes, drawing him closer to discover new galaxies never imagined.

Zimma
sat up, gripped his chin and turned his head with easy strength. When she
leaned close to examine his ear, Jeff could feel the heat from her skin.
Turning his head back, she raised her lips in a feral smile.

“It
was a good bite, do you not think so?”

Whatever
they were, whatever the sparks represented, they proved so hypnotic he didn’t
move or speak. Her gaze softened and Zimma pulled Jeff’s head close for a long
kiss. When she released him, Zimma sat up straight and bowed.

“First
Love’s greeting, my Jeffrey. May all our joinings know such rapture.”

The
formality of Zimma’s bow and her wording left no doubt in Jeff’s mind that what
he had experienced the night before had no analog on Earth. Jeff took Zimma’s
hand and bowed over it.

“My
greetings to you, Lady. I stand in awe of your beauty and the joy of our First
Loving.”

Placing
a hand above her pelvis, Zimma dimpled pleasure.

“The
strength of your seed assures me that our children will be strong and
numerous.”

“I
am hopeful I did you no serious injury,” Jeff responded. There was a large
bruise on her neck and several others on her breasts.

“They
are of no significance,” Zimma replied with a languid smile. “You were
challenged to gain entry and suffered no opposition to that end.”

Her
eyes came alight with the same predatory glow, with the same brilliant sparks
that orbited a point of phosphorescent green. Growling under her breath, Zimma
pushed Jeff flat and leaped on top to straddle his hips.

When
they awoke the second time, Jeff got dressed long enough to find a jug of water
and some bread. They were dehydrated and downed the water at once, but took
their time feeding each other hunks of bread. Later, Zimma had Jeff sit on the
edge of the cot.

Extracting
a damp cloth from the small bag she had brought, Zimma cleaned the bite on his
ear. She did it with such careful precision and purred so loudly under her
breath all the while that Jeff did not move. He knew it was Zimma beside him,
but he also knew it wasn’t the Zimma he was familiar with.

Her
behavior throughout the night had been so alien to anything he had experienced
on Earth that he would not have been surprised to see her transform into a
mountain lion. That was it, Jeff decided. She had already transformed and he
had no idea what to expect.

Spreading
a light coating of salve on the bite, she lay down and held her arms out with a
sunny smile. The Zimma of earlier memory had returned. Jeff entered her arms
with a great sense of relief.

Before
dozing off he reviewed a long list of questions in his mind. Even unanswered
the questions urged a conclusion that was unsettling. Brushing the questions
away, he smiled and closed his eyes. Whatever Zimma was, he could not imagine
life without her.

An
appointment at the farriers to replace Cynic’s badly worn shoes forced Jeff to
get out of bed mid-afternoon. They dressed slowly, reluctant to break the spell
of their time together.

“Will
you stay with me for the nights remaining to us?”

Brushing
her hair to work out the tangles, Zimma turned to Jeff with a matter-of-fact
smile.

“Of
course. When duty permits, we will never sleep apart again.”

The
sense of complete finality in Zimma’s voice was so strong that Jeff paused in
tugging on a boot to look at her. When she grinned and stuck out her tongue, he
gave a shout and hobbled over to grab her in an enthusiastic embrace.

At
the farrier, Cynic’s behavior was beyond reproach. He stood obediently, letting
each of his hooves be shod without a single protest. Knowing Cynic, Jeff grew
suspicious.

“Why
so cooperative? Are you not feeling well?”

Cynic
responded with what amounted to a sly smirk.
“After mating throughout the
night, what more could you stand?”

Jeff’s
abruptly stepped back to stare at Cynic.
“My emotions were that strong?”
Cynic was stabled at least a mile from the warehouse.

“Horse-brother,
my head still aches! Even were my stable mates disturbed, and they no more than
horses.”

“Holy
shit,” Jeff muttered. “I had no idea.”

He
was still mulling it over when Carl dropped in to have his new mount shod. A
grin split his face ear to ear the moment he saw Jeff.

“Glad
to see you made it through the night, bucko.”