Travlr (The Mating Games series Book 2) (2 page)

“You’re ready for tomorrow. Good hunting, my friend.” Judsl smiled and smacked him on the back.

Travlr was relieved he was finished. No matter how hard he concentrated, he could think of nothing more he needed to do. He decided to head over to Razar’s to find out how it felt when he first saw Lista. Razar was lucky to get such a good female. Travlr could only hope and pray he was given a female like her.

Moving up the steps, he could smell food cooking. Razar cooked more than ever because Lista was with offspring. They hadn’t told anyone yet, but everyone knew. She smelled distinctly of young which Razar should know. Travlr said nothing, what was the point? Let them be happy thinking it was their little secret. Meanwhile the whole family knew and all were glad. Razar had taken the first steps for them all and they would all watch and learn from his mistakes. It began with mating and would continue with parenting.

Moving on through the door, Travlr hollered out to his brother and mate. “Razar and Lista!”

They were in the kitchen cooking together. “What brings you here on the eve of your hunt?” Razar bumped shoulders with him.

“He’s just looking for a good meal so he can keep up his strength. His female may be big and mean which will make things tiring for him.” Razar laughed heartily at the picture his mate had painted.

“I always thought you were nice, Lista. That was just mean.” Travlr fought the laugh to attempt to make her feel bad. If she did, she might give him a special treat. Lista was a wonderful baker. How she could bake so good and only cook with a minimal skill, he couldn’t imagine.

“Yeah, just cry me a river.” Lista giggled.

“That’s just not nice. I think Razar is ruining your sweet disposition.” Travlr nodded wisely.

“Here, take the plate of food and sit down.” Razar pushed it to him.

“Finally someone feeds me. You know tomorrow I will be on the hunt looking for my mate. The desert is hot and dirty. Don’t you feel sorry for me?” Travlr asked before shoveling food into his mouth.

“Not really. You will find your mate and have your happy ever after.” Razar counseled as he glanced at his mate. “Rest up and you’ll be fine.”

Travlr wiped his plate clean and sat there looking pitiful. “Is there any more? Growing boy here in need of food. Could you tell me how it felt when you found Lista?” Razar described it to him as he cooked and Travlr felt more confused than ever. “Okay, I understand.” He didn’t really but maybe it was just because, males had a hard time with feelings.

Lista giggled finding the whole conversation funny. Razar slapped some more food on his brother’s plate once it was done and then emptied the pans onto his and Lista’s plate. Lista and he sat with Travlr and they all ate in a companionable silence. Razar was an exceptional cook Lista not so much. Once he was done eating, he knew he had to go to give them some alone time. Once he mated he would want that too. He said his goodbyes and left knowing the next time he saw them he would have a mate of his own.

Travlr drove by the place he had started building the home for him and his mate. There was hope that he would mate a female that would help him make their home but if she was like Narcissi, he could expect no help at all. It was about a mile from Razar’s place and just off the same road. It was a good location since it was near the water and not far from other family members but it still had some privacy.

Going in to work would help pass the time and Travlr’s job was important. He was in charge of all the gold mines on the planet. All the brothers had important jobs that helped make their father’s job easier. Travlr was in charge of commerce and helped their father with many other things. The learning curve had been steep since they had gone from prisoners to being in charge of a world. They had met the challenge and things were going well. Once they were all mated, life would settle down.

Travlr entered his office and began to go through the paperwork. This was well over half his job even though he’d rather tour and work in the mines. He’d only been in charge here for two years. His secretary was a huge help and Fargar, who was not related to Travlr, would be in the hunt next time it was done. Fargar was older than Travlr and needed to mate soon but had not gotten his application to mate in by the deadline. Travlr suspected he was nervous about the whole mating thing.

After working for hours, Travlr left to go home telling Fargar to head home too. The plan was to get a good night’s sleep and head out in the morning early to check in before he tracked down his mate. He felt lighthearted right now and somehow he just knew there would be a special female waiting for him. Okay, running from him might be a better way to describe it. Fixing a big supper so he would fuel up. He ate until he could hold no more. Food was packed in his gear but it wasn’t the best tasting or most filling stuff. The meal he had cooked was good. Travlr lived on the top floor of his parent’s house in the apartment Razar had once had. He cleaned up and put everything away. He wasn’t supposed to take a shower, it might unbalance his cleansing so he stripped and went to bed naked.

Snuggling in, he tried to sleep but his brain was going a mile a minute and refused to slow down. He wanted reassurance that the right female was out there waiting for him but he couldn’t be sure. All he had was a deep seated belief that she was. No rhyme or reason behind the belief, just that and nothing more. When he finally went to sleep, dreams of a lovely chestnut haired vixen filled his dreams, but Narcissi was there too.

Waking, he was covered in sweat his blankets soaked. His mouth was dry and his cock shriveled which told him the dreams had not been sweet. Desperate for a shower, he knew better than to take one and could only hope the heavy sweating had been normal for after a cleansing. This needed to go perfectly, he wanted the mate he was meant to have.

“Wondrous day to you, Travlr.” Horlar said with gusto the way he did everything.

“Same to you my good friend. I’m just here to check in. “Travlr said as he signed his name to the list and noted the time they were to take off on the hunt.

“This hunt will be more interesting than the last. There are nearly five hundred females this time with one being added as late as yesterday. Know anything about that?”

“No more than you do. She is Lista’s sister and she wanted to be in the hunt. Maybe she’ll be lucky and get one of the mating groups.”

“Does she desire that?”

“No, but she will need many mates to keep her happy.”

“I see.” Horlar said and Travlr believed he really did. A mating group would suit that female. As far as he was concerned not having her would suit him. He sat with Horlar until it was time to head out. Energy raced through him. A predator whether he looked it or not, he was dying to take off on the hunt. Holar would make the call and he blew on the horn. The sound made every males blood boil with the need to chase, capture, and claim.

Travlr held himself back as the horde of Mazlans ran screaming into the desert. Some of them caught their females right away and those mates were terrified and it would take a good amount of time to calm them. Travlr started off walking working his way through the pairs and groups of found mates somehow knowing his mate was far ahead. As he walked past the latest group, he heard a familiar voice shrilly berating her mates. It seemed he was right, Narcissi was part of a mating group.

That news made him move faster so he was gone before she had a chance to see him and ask him to interfere. Not that he would or even could prevent the claim those males had from becoming legal. Once out of sight he stopped and took a deep breath to see if he could pick up his mates scent. There it was, sweet and spicy and very faint. His mate would make him earn the right to claim her. It would have been nice if he had seen her so her image would be in his mind but he hadn’t.

Taking a sip of water, he resealed his bottle putting it up and started out at a steady pace. It matched hers and he started out that way picking up speed slowly as he went. This hunt had started out in the afternoon and the day had been overcast. The heat was still high and desert still dangerous even though they had crews out rousing animals especially predators from the area. After what had happened with Razar’s mate, when they were attacked by a giant desert cat, no one wanted to risk having predators in the hunting area.

An hour later, Travlr stopped, took a drink, sniffed the air to make sure he was still on her trail, and stretched his neck briefly before picking the pace up some more. He was glad she was heading right across the desert and not hugging the mountains as Lista had. It should minimize the danger and make catching her easier. He was now three hours behind her and dawn was breaking. If she stopped to rest, she would be in his hands in hours. If not, maybe a day or a little longer. No matter what the female did, he intended to have her before the Next dawn.

His pace was a trot and the ground was rapidly falling past him. He stopped twice an hour for a drink and to stretch. The importance of not pushing himself too much and keeping his muscles stretched wasn’t lost on him. It occurred to him that for a small female, she was making good time. Maybe she was one of the tougher females that Earth had? A strong mate he wanted but he liked a female that could be soft and caring too. Whatever she was like he would deal with it. The goddess wouldn’t match him with the wrong mate. It just didn’t happen.

Chapter 3

It’s Hot in the Desert

Tammie took off at a high speed. She didn’t run all out, that would be foolish. Instead she paced and she stayed alert. It hadn’t been her choice to come here, Earth had passed new laws regarding debt. Her father had died after a long illness and the cost in the hundreds of thousands had been passed on to her as his only child. Paying on it as she could, she’d not really worried too much.

There was a small estate that would be sold to go toward the bill and an insurance policy. It never occurred to her that a hundred thousand dollars would be left owed and that payment would be demanded immediately. Few people could cover that expense so everything she owned had been seized and she had been sold to the program that provided alien brides. Slavery was alive and well on Earth now.

Tammie wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. She wasn’t a soldier or a survivalist, she worked construction, mostly carpentry although she was a good all-around worker. Her mom had died when she was young and Dad had raised her like a son. She played sports and went hunting and fishing as a youngster. Delicate, she might look but she was tough as nails. Good thing too under the circumstances.

Stopping for a drink and to stretch her aching neck, she also pulled out some jerky and bit off a piece. It might not be a bad thing to find a mate, it just depended on who it was. Earth was no longer a place she felt safe. Things were getting funky there, someone was manipulating laws and rules in order to make money. It would be a good bet her fellow citizens had no idea what had happened to her. Tammie had just slipped through the cracks and there was no telling what her few friends, boss, and coworkers had been told about her.

Wetting a piece of cloth, she wiped off her face. It was time to go now or she would be caught. Setting out at a slightly faster pace, she stayed to the straightest path to her goal. Even if she decided to mate, he would have to prove himself by catching her first. He already had a home field advantage so she would make him expend some energy to catch her. It was the least he could do. It wasn’t long before the streaks of light announced the arrival of dawn. All she needed was the sunlight beating down on her. She heard sounds in the background but none came close.

There were nonparticipating hunters patrolling the field on the lookout for predatory animals not allowed in the area. Something had happened during the last hunt they wouldn’t allow to happen again. At least no one had died. Tammie had felt like killing the officers that had come after her to escort her to the bridal ship. A few had been nursing wounds, she had always been a bit of a brawler. It was true she fit in better with the men she worked with than with women. Once they got to know her they treated her like one of the guys.

Speeding along over the sand, Tammie’s mind kept jumping along going over the past as she tried to sort out what the future might bring. They had all been assured that if they were selected for this hunt which was a Mazlan mating game, a mate would be on their trail. That meant someone was following her hoping to bring her to heel. Poor dumb smuck didn’t know she’d be more trouble than she was worth if he caught her. There were mountains to the left and more mountains to the right. She was headed right through the flat sandy middle at the fastest reasonable speed she could go and someone was coming up on her ass as fast as he could. Good times, if you wanted to get caught.

The decision was still being argued in her head. Maybe she was stubborn or contrary, she just didn’t want everything to turn out for the best when she’d been forced into it. She wanted to return to earth like an avenging angel of destruction and hunt down everyone involved in what had happened and punish them. It was no more than what they deserved and it would save females in the future from being mistreated in this way.

What the hell was she thinking? It wouldn’t happen, she would be caught, mated, and end up barefoot and pregnant. She was tired, maybe that was what was making her so damn depressed. Even though she was in good shape, this was one hell of a march. There was no place to hide unless she traveled to the mountains that were a far ways out of her path. Faster was the only thing that would help her and that might not be enough. The sunlight was currently hitting her right in the eyes.

The heat was slowly rising and the sweat running down her back was turning into a damn river. Tammie thought one of her toes had developed a blister but it felt like it had popped. There was also a rash on her arm that itched like crazy. The top of one boot had rubbed a raw spot on her ankle and a bug was buzzing her around her nose. With her luck the damn thing would probably bite. Her lips were chapped and soon they would crack. Her eyes felt like sand was in them but she didn’t know if it really was or if they were just tired and dry. This day was starting out on a high note and just getting better. Not!