Empress Hiding Page 19

  As he walked back to the officer at the desk, Melody’s frantic progenitor barreled through the office door with a small duffel in her clutches and hastily bowed to Rafal. The Prime Magistrate motioned to the female to stand aside as he spoke to the officer at the desk.

  “The progenitor will accompany the prisoner by choice,” Rafal kept his voice low so as not to alarm the female waiting nervously behind him, “My cellat will arrive shortly to escort the Blood-borne to her final destination.”

  Rafal purposefully leaned in and let his beast growl for them both as he threatened, “They are not to be disturbed until he arrives to take them into custody.”

  It was bountifully clear that message was received and understood – the fear that Rafal smelled from the officer almost turned his stomach.

  Rafal turned and barely nodded to the female as he exited. The Crowned Prince made a mental note to review all security officer dossiers for competency and qualification – he was zero for three on the ones they had encountered this day.

  Glancing at his timepiece as he once again strode toward the Blood-borne quarters, Rafal commed his Dalis and, giving him the names of the two officers whose badges he had collected, ordered the steward to remove their names from all – including their quarters – access privileges except that of the garbage processing facility onboard.

  Grinning to himself and putting that small matter to rest, the Prince realized that he and his Chiyoto would not get their walk before their meal this evening. Barely having time to lament that fact, Rafal’s memory was suddenly inundated with the painful cries of both the triacate and its progenitor.

  His beast growled long and low at the feelings of fear that echoed bone deep through both of them.

  And they could not reach Chiyoto’s quarters fast enough.

  Just the thought of the treatment of that Blood-borne predator at the hands of those useless officers and the fear that had radiated from the triacate made both he and his beast need to touch and to taste their Chiyoto – their Blood-borne predator – their Yasak – to reassure their souls that she was fine.

  Maybe it would be best that he not wait to bring his innocent Chiyoto to their bed – that he should claim her and keep her safe beside them beginning tonight.

  His beast roared in agreement.

  Chapter 12

  Balstir’s hydenna topped the final hill that looked down over the Royal Compound to include the Red Guard housing facilities and training grounds – the entire layout was almost breathtaking in its expanse.

  The hydenna’s excellent eyesight took in all of the detail of the operations and sights in the magnificent valley below. He spied the clamoring activity around the landing arena, noting that it appeared the Khedive’s transport was preparing for departure – the personnel working around the Royal Cruiser near the hangar busy with pre-flight operations.

  Suddenly, the unmistakable scent of his Captain alerted him to the fact that the being that had just exited the main operations facility and was now headed in his direction must be Kilgar. The hydenna took only a moment to note the being’s stride for confirmation of the identity, and immediately tore down the hill to meet his commanding officer and friend.

  Kilgar had just completed his comm with the detail that remained with the Somdech and her sons when he spied the hydenna headed in his direction – he glanced at his timepiece to note that Balstir had apparently made record time with this delivery.

  Balstir was Kilgar’s senior teyman, and the young male had earned Kilgar’s respect both on and off the battlefield. The young guard had been in the original group of guard recruits over a decade ago when he and Hondo had taken occupation of the deserted ranch and residence and began its rebuilding – Balstir’s strong family ties to his mixed blood parents had always amazed Kilgar whose family ties were anything but strong.

  Kilgar’s life had always been in service to the crown, or, in more blatant terms, in service to Rafal and Hondo. Having been the youngest of four strong siblings in a prominent Crimson courtier family, Kilgar’s only talent lay in fighting – not in the law or in the field of research or in writing or the arts. As such, he was not of much use to his parents’ stature in courtier social status. But Kilgar used his strength and that of his beast – the largest known demercriere on written record – to his advantage. And even though his loyalty would always lie squarely beside Hondo, and he had no true feeling as to the meaning of close blood family, he had readily taken Balstir under his tutelage. To the present day, Kilgar treated him more as a little brother outside the presence of the necessary military decorum.

  In the beginning, adjustment away from home had been difficult for Balstir – the male still found it difficult to go very long without visiting his parents and his adopted female sibling when the opportunity presented itself. On the flip side, it still got to Balstir the way Kilgar went through relationships – if they could be called such – as Balstir was quite the “conservative male” whereas Kilgar would always be the “life and stud of any and every setting – party or no.”

  Kilgar watched Balstir’s approach with that definite big-brother pride – even though he knew the pouch held tightly in the dangerous predator’s teeth was not something he greatly anticipated. The hydenna stopped just short of his position and raised its snout to Kilgar who took the pouch and began to speak even as Balstir became present in front of him – sweat and saliva coating his cognate face and neck.

  “How did he get past your detail?” Kilgar handed the younger soldier the wet towel from his shoulder and, subsequently, the electrolyte brew the Captain had attached to his utility belt before opening the sample bag that housed the Perse Assassin’s identification.

  They began to walk back to the facility together – Balstir still naked from the hydenna’s presence, but such was not even a concern for a soldier on Bohrea Cardinal.

  “I have no idea, Kilgar,” Balstir’s breathing was indicative of the hard run he had just completed as he downed half of the brew, “But I do not like it – he was in Guyanni’s sector, and that obsessive genrathe does not miss anything – especially after spending last night in the depths – he was at full cap,” he wiped his neck and chest with the towel, threw it over his shoulder and ran his fingers through his sweat-soaked hair, “Unisha was collecting all of his pertinent belongings when I left – hopefully they will give us a better idea.”

  Kilgar growled at the lack of answers as he pulled the chip from the bag, “Good. Still intact,” Kilgar placed it back in the bag, “Good job on the extraction,” he made a very unhappy and confused face as he looked toward the landing pad and lifted his wrist comm to his mouth to speak.

  “Yeah, about that …,” Balstir began, but Kilgar held up his hand to halt the Teyman’s speech.

  “Tower, this is Captain Marid, why in the realm of godsfall is that kahrolasi cruiser still on the Prince’s property?”

  The voice that answered was obviously very flustered and wanting to please Kilgar.

  “Captain! The Khedive says they are still short a passenger – some sort of surveyor or something. They read that he is close, and they are simply waiting for him to board.”

  The demercriere growled from within, and Balstir felt anger flow readily from his Captain.

  “Tell them to make final preps because they are leaving now without their kahrolasi surveyor – you will hear that from the Prince shortly.”

  Kilgar cut the comm and keyed in the code for the implant in Hondo’s ear.

  “Hondo? This is Kilgar – tell the royal ahmaks their kahrolasi surveyor met with an unfortunate accident and to get the godsfall out of your demesne. The reading they are getting on his chip is coming from a bag in my hand. I am on my way back to you. Kilgar end.”

  The feral growl that sounded from Kilgar’s wrist comm as the Captain cut the transmission made Balstir’s beast stand at full attention – it sound
ed like the Prince’s wartrige would attack at any moment.

  Kilgar cut the comm and, tucking the bag in his utility belt, rubbed his hands over his face again.

  “That pich is completely mad, Balstir,” the Captain sucked in a breath just as the launch engines on the Cruiser fired, “Praise the Gods,” he muttered, off-topic, as he watched the majestic ship rise slowly off the landing pad. He rubbed his face again and turned his attention back to his Teyman, “Now, about what? Did you not do the chip extraction yourself?”

  Balstir swallowed hard, hoping not to set off his apparently already volatile Captain.

  “Kilgar . . . ?”

  Kilgar stopped in his tracks and turned to his Teyman.

  “Oh, holy siktir, Balstir! Just lay it out!” The apprehension boiled off him now, “This day certainly could not get any kahrolasi worse!”

  Balstir was slightly taken aback, but he knew Kilgar was not upset with him.

  However, it was clear that the Captain was certainly upset. And on a hair trigger.

  “Uhm, well, the reason the extraction is so clean is because the Somdech – or whatever she is or was – had ripped the shoulder completely open to get to the chip by the time we arrived,” he swallowed hard under Kilgar’s almost unbelieving stare.

  “By the time you arriv….oh, holy realms of godsfall!” Kilgar’s voice fell almost to a whisper with that exclamation and continued as such, “Please tell me ‘no’. . .”

  But Balstir nodded his head in the positive at Kilgar to indicate that he had to tell his Captain ‘Yes.’

  “The Somdech took the assassin out, Kilgar!” his expression was one of disbelief, “That unbelievable Perse pich we watched take the championship at the last harvest celebrations? She just … like he was nothing and …” Balstir halted somewhat, but then finished his statement, “And …and … aw, siktir, Captain! What the godsfall is she?”

  Kilgar sobered as he grasped Balstir’s shoulders – he not seen Balstir this upset since his first tournament kill.

  “She is our Somdech, Balstir, the beloved and bonded mate of Prince Hondo Sadid,” Kilgar was more serious than perhaps Balstir had ever seen him, “She and those young males are his life and we are sworn to guard that important commodity with our own lives, yes?”

  Balstir’s entire face screwed up in question.

  “Save the ‘gods and empire’ routine, Kilgar,” Balstir raised his arms to shrug off Kilgar’s hold, “My vow or loyalty is not even at question here, and you know that,” Balstir stared his Captain in the eye, “All I am asking, sir, is what is she?”

  Kilgar almost grinned at his Balstir as he turned to continue walking.

  “She is marabilla, Teyman.”

  They had reached the building and Kilgar grabbed a pair of pants from the hooks – multiple sparring pants and shirts were hung at each outer entrance to accommodate any being entering from a presence without accoutrements on them – and tossed them back to the stock-still Balstir who stood speechless at Kilgar’s rear. It was evident that all of the nightmare legends of the iblistic creatures – that could climb walls and hang from ceilings and mask themselves by mirroring their surroundings and make a being go completely mad by messing with their thoughts and the Gods knew what else – were running through the teyman’s mind all at one time.

  “But marabillas are not rea-,” Balstir caught himself in the ridiculous statement that the nightmares were not real – that was a completely illogical statement at this juncture – so, he cleared his throat and continued as he quickly donned the pants, “At least, they say the creatures are very rare and completely solitary and do not mate, right?”

  Kilgar chuckled loud enough for Balstir to hear him as they continued walking down the empty outer passageway.

  “Oh, marabillas are real, my friend, and those twins in your charge today are evidence that they certainly mate, yes?” Kilgar halted at the sealed hatchway, “And whoever they are,” Kilgar paused as he keyed the code and slapped his palm on the pad to access the main facility, “They have certainly never witnessed the unbreakable bond that exists between Prince Hondo Sadid and his Shelvana.”

  Then the Captain took off in a hurried jog toward the landing facility as he shouted over his shoulder to Balstir.

  “Get suited and get your squad and their charges here immediately,” Kilgar lowered his voice as he faced forward and spoke only to himself, “Because the Prince will want to hold his family as soon as possible.”

  Kilgar did not want to even think of his brother’s – blood or not, that is who Hondo was to him – state of mind once he shared the news and the contents of the sample bag attached to his belt.

  Because he knew Hondo would see it for what it was.

  An act of war.

  Rafal passed Sila in the main passageway on his way to Chiyoto’s quarters, and acknowledged his Chiyoto’s body guard as much as he had acknowledged the two anonymous males involved in the previous incident – which was not at all.

  Some relationships were a matter of trust.

  And needed to be out of the public record and public eye.

  Even half a hallway away, Rafal caught a whiff of her creamy peppermint and musk and, suddenly, the distance between him and his Chiyoto grew exponentially. His beast growled with possessive lust as his footsteps hurried while his mind consciously kept him from actually running.

  Glancing at his timepiece before he scratched the door for entry, he realized he was actually over an hur late. He stopped himself before he scratched and took a moment to work the strands of his long hair back into the brass sleeve Dalis’ mate had fashioned for him cycles ago. That was when he noticed the ripped sleeve and deep gash on his forearm.

  “Oh, godsfall,” Rafal exclaimed under his breath as he fiddled with the tear, attempting to somehow lessen its appearance by trying in vain to cover the bloody mess and hold the material together.

  Which is exactly what he was doing when Chiyoto yanked the door open and started to speak loudly, “What ar …?”

  His attention was instantly pulled to her beautiful and oh-so-serious face that immediately transitioned from aggressive annoyance into the most gorgeous smile both he and his beast had ever seen, and the demanding voice that had begun upon her appearance quickly faded to a whispered call to his soul.

  “Rafal.”

  Rafal’s hands quickly dropped to his sides and the lost smile that had been resurrected just for her quickly pulled across his handsome face – and he could see her eyes and felt her breathing practically swoon for him.

  But probably not as much as the Rafal’s entire being did for his Chiyoto.

  “Hello, ashia,” he spoke breathily as he stepped through the doorway and shut the door behind him, his entire focus on her translucent pink eyes until he let them drift downward over her generous breasts – unfastened and standing firm, their peaks showing her excitement to see him. They were obscured from plain sight only by a flowing, deep emerald top with long sleeves and deep magenta stitching around the sleeve openings, collar, and hemline. Underneath and hidden due to the length of the blouse, she wore what seemed to be quite tight-fitting – oh how he would like to see them across her plentiful ass – matching magenta jonpurs tucked securely into … Neltskin boots?

  Rafal wondered at the cost of such a rare pair of footwear for someone who seemed to be traveling well below the class that could usually afford such a luxury …

  He cocked his head and raised his head back to her waiting face.

  “Your boots, ashi . . .”

  She rolled those gorgeous eyes, and Rafal’s beast lunged for a taste, but Rafal managed to keep his balance although he did take another step toward her.

  And she took a step backward, away from him.

  “I know, I know,” she laughed that flirty little laugh again as she lightly bit her bottom lip, “The toe on t
he right one is more rounded than the other, but they were only our second pair. At least they are the same length, yes?”

  She moved the boots back and forth and lifted each one as she spoke, although her eyes never left Rafal’s face.

  Disbelief covered his being.

  “You mean, you made the boots, ashia?” He asked as he took another step forward.

  And Chiyoto took another step back.

  “Aye, Rafal, we made the boots,” her beautiful face started to lose its amusement, “Is that so difficult to believe? Do you think me unable to …”

  Rafal quickly shook his head as he took another step toward her – and she took hers backward almost in unison with his this time.

  The Prime Magistrate pulled to a stop and placed his hands on his hips – an annoyed frown spreading across his handsome face that just moments before had sported a smile. His beast was becoming very frustrated with this small talk and her continued deliberate distance from them.

  And, now, so was he.

  But she was about to run herself into the wall behind her.

  “Chiyoto,” his voice lost all of its gentleness, “I am sure you are quite capable of making the boots, ashia,” he tried to keep his beast’s annoyance out of the intonations, “I simply asked because they are the darkest indigo I have ever seen. Now,” he did not even pause in his sentence as he rapidly took three quick steps toward her, resulting in her response actions literally running her back into the wall after her first two steps away from him, “Why are you retreating from us?”

  There was nothing gentle in his voice now as her collision confirmed that she was, indeed, purposefully backing away from him.

  The tingling across his skin began in earnest – both he and his beast breathed deeply as they welcomed its sensations.

  They heralded their connection to their female.

  Chiyoto looked like the trapped being that she was as Rafal closed the distance between them, his movements stopping just shy of his torso brushing against her breasts. She nibbled her lower lip again as she lifted her gaze to his and tried to smile.