CHAPTER SEVEN
AMELIA SANDERS
I had new hope for the first time since I arrived on Kelon. I had hoped that Michelle would be found and returned to safety. After Ravinn found the opposition camp, I just knew that she had to be there. Ravinn leaving me with his father was a shitty move, but it gave me comfort that he was on the way to speak to the king and tell him what he had found. The quicker the king knew, the sooner that a search party and warriors would be sent to deal with them and return Michelle. It all gave me hope. So when I was finally returned to my home in the trees, it did not surprise me that Stephanie and Brenda were waiting on the veranda for me.
“Amelia?! We thought something bad had happened to you!” Stephanie said as she ran over to me. She gave me a hug, then Brenda gave me one.
“What happened to you? We came to your hut last night to see if you wanted to join us for dinner on the beach. Then when you weren't here, we brought you dinner when we were done, and you still were not here. We were worried, so we spent the night in your bed waiting for you. We thought you were dead,” Brenda said.
“Well, my freedom is over, so I might as well be,” I said as I opened the door to my hut and walked in. They followed me.
“Why? What happened?” Stephanie asked.
“You are not going to believe this. These damn aliens think they can just do what they like with us. I was matched to a Draqua warrior. They want me to be his wife, like they own me,” I said as I began to run the hot water in the tub. I was in desperate need of a bath after spending the night in the sand in a cave and having hot dirty sex with Ravinn. Stephanie and Brenda were quiet.
“What? What is it? Why are you not in shock like I was?” I said, looking at them as I pulled the sheer dress off my body and threw it on the ground.
“Because we too have been assigned to become wives. That was why we wanted to have dinner with you last night. We wanted to talk about it,” Stephanie said.
“But we could not find you,” Brenda said.
“Oh, you guys… I am so sorry. That is awful. Of course you want to talk about it; let's talk about it, but I am going to get into this hot tub if you don't mind,” I said, taking off the loincloth and breast cloth and climbing in.
“Actually, we are both excited about it,” Stephanie said.
“What?” I said sitting up in the tub.
“Yes, we have spent time with the warriors that we have been appointed to. I think I am love. Love at first sight. I'm very excited to be the wife of an alien dragon shifter. It is so unbelievable, and I am grateful to have such an adventurous life when I had such a boring life on Earth,” Brenda said. I looked at both of them very confused.
“But you have no choice in the matter. They are making you marry someone without a choice in the matter,” I said, angry at both of them for giving in so easily. This was why the Draqua thought they could just assign women to be in love; because it did work.
“If I did have a choice, I would pick the same thing. I am happy to, and I think just the way Brenda does,” Stephanie said. The two women looked at each other and giggled. They were beyond happy and giddy about what was happening to them. I wished that I could feel the same way, but I did not. Yes, my life was very boring back on Earth, but it was my life. I made it that way; no one controlled it.
“So that is it? You both are just going to be married off and create offspring with these aliens?” I said, leaning back in the tub. I had already given up on them.
“Yes, for my part. I cannot wait for it. I have to admit I have wondered what it will be like to bed one of these alien dragon shifters,” Brenda laughed.
“It is all Brenda and I have been talking about. We have been trying to sneak a peek underneath those sexy cloths while they're swimming,” Stephanie giggled.
“I feel like a totally new woman. It is so exciting!” Brenda said.
“But who have you been assigned to? What is his name? You do not like him? What does he look like?” Stephanie said as she moved over to the kitchen area and pulled out a bottle of Hiwa. It was as though we were having a girls night. I wanted to be alone to steep and my anger, but I did not think they were going to let me.
“Pour me a stiff drink of that, will you, Stephanie?” I said, realizing that getting drunk could be the answer for now.
“Okay, but be careful. Brenda got drunk on this last night, and she doesn't remember a thing,” Stephanie said.
“It is very strong. You have been warned,” Brenda said as she moved to the kitchen area and began to slice fruit and dried fish on a board. Then she brought it over to the table next to the tub.
"So. Who is the alien that will be your husband?” Brenda asked.
"No one. I mean, it does not matter who it is because I rejected the offer. I am not going to be his wife. And, he does not want me either. He already has a girlfriend,” I said to them.
They both gasped in shock. They had more questions for me. I did not have answers. The rest of the night we drank and ate and talked about things that we missed on Earth. I did all that I could to distract them from talking about Ravinn. I wanted to forget about him. I only wanted to concentrate on finding Michelle. The distraction of the women getting drunk with me worked. We talked for a long time. We mostly talked about our love lives on Earth and how the men we had been involved with there had let us down.
“What about you, Amelia? Did you have a boyfriend? Did he ever cheat on you?” Stephanie asked.
“Well, when I was taken, I did not have a boyfriend. I was single and have been for three years,” I said.
“Three years!” Brenda shouted.
“Yes, I know it is a long time. But the reason for it is because I did have a boyfriend that cheated on me and broke my heart,” I said.
“Tell us! Tell us about this pig,” Stephanie said in her drunken slur.
“Alright, I will tell you. His name was Michael,” I said as I began to tell them my story.
“I met Michael while I was in college. We stayed together after graduation. We both moved to New York City. But we did not live together, I insisted on that. I still wanted my own independent life, you know?” I said.
“Yes! Absolutely!” Brenda said.
“So Michael… I thought he was the love of my life. I thought that eventually down the road, we would get married. He said that I was perfect for him. He said that he liked me because I seemed very pure and innocent. He said I reminded him of a good church girl. I did not see myself that way, but he did.”
“I do not get that vibe from you at all. I think you could be a very dangerous woman,” Stephanie laughed.
“Thank you. I appreciate that,” I said to her.
“Quiet. Let her finish the story. What happened?” Brenda said.
"Like I said, I thought Michael and I would end up getting married. I had been working nights as a transcriptionist working my way up to work in real estate. I got home to my apartment one night around 10 o'clock at night. I walked in, and it was quiet. I walked down the hallway toward my room and heard my roommate, Nancy. Nancy was very slutty. I sort of envied her sense of freedom. I could hear her moaning and the bed hitting the wall. This was normal for Nancy. I did not give it another thought as I continue to walk down the hall, but then I heard her say, Michael, Michael, over and over.”
“No! The roommate?” Brenda shouted.
“It is always the roommate, isn't it?” Stephanie said.
“I thought that maybe it was just a coincidence. Michael is a very common name. But then I heard his voice as he called out her name in return. I lost my shit. I opened the door, and there he was, fucking my roommate. I was devastated. I ran out of the apartment. I stayed the night in a sketchy motel. I could not go back there.”
“That is so sad. I cannot believe that happened,” Brenda said.
“Yes, it was. It was even sadder when I heard his explanation,” I said.
“What? You gave him a chance to explain?” Stephanie said.
“I know. It was stupid.”
“What did he say?” Brenda asked.
“He told me that I was too plain. He told me that I was not sexual enough for him. So basically the things that he told me were the reasons why he liked me, being like a good church girl, were certainly not enough for him.”
“What? You are very sexual! You are a redhead after all!” Brenda said.
“Thank you,” I said.
“Screw that guy! Good thing you got away from him. Imagine if you were his wife and you found him with your roommate,” Stephanie said.
“Yes, you are right,” I said.
“Now it's my turn,” Brenda said. She began to tell her story about a man that cheated on her. But I could only half listen to it. Something was bothering me.
I realized that after finding Michael with my roommate and hearing his reason for doing so, that was when it all started. That was when my self-esteem plummeted. After that, I started to dress very plain. I thought that I wasn't sexy anyway, so why dress sexy? I sat there thinking about all of this.
I suddenly realized that it fit in very well with how I felt when I was at work with Mr. Drake. I was not looking for the approval of Mr. Drake; I was looking for the approval of Michael even though he was buried in my past. This shocked me. That was why Ravinn hurt me so much with his words of rejection. He loved another and did not even think that I was worthy. It came from the experience with Michael. I was still fighting it.
I felt sick to my stomach as I realized that I had been dealing with it for so long, all because one jerk cheated on me with my roommate. I should have never let myself be so affected by him. He was nothing. He was in my past. Now, I was all the way across many galaxies, and he was still affecting me. I was so stupid. I was on an alien planet, and I was still letting hurt from my past dictate my happiness.
Late in the night, the girls left my hut and went back to their own living quarters. Then I was alone as I lay in bed drunk. I closed my eyes, and as soon as I did, I saw Ravinn standing naked in front of me. I saw him hovering over me, holding his long, thick cock in his hand. I could not get the vision of him fucking me out of my mind. Finally, I had to touch myself in order to get some release. Only then could I push it out of my mind and get some sleep.
The next day, I was looking for any sort of distraction to keep my mind off of Ravinn. I walked down the tree staircase to the sandy ground. I had a plan to go work and learn in the communal kitchen in order to occupy my mind.
“Amelia! I was just going to come visit you,” Ephane said as he caught up with me on the path.
“Ephane. It is a pleasure to see you again. How are you?” I asked with a smile. I was genuinely glad to see my friend again. Being with him was boring, but it was also a good distraction.
“I am great. I have a free day today. I planned on going for a swim and then I was going to do some net fishing,” he said.
“Net fishing? What is that?” I asked.
“Well, that is the reason I was looking for you. I was going to see if you would like to learn how to do it. It is very easy. You stand in the shower Lowe's and then you cast a small snack and round up the fish in it to eat. I can show you how to do it, and then we can light a fire on the beach and eat what we have caught. Swimming and fishing: a very leisure day, if you are interested?” he said.
“That sounds perfect. I would love to join you and learn how to do the fishing with the net and prepare them to eat. Lead the way,” I said, very happy that I suddenly had a lot of things that I would be doing to fill my day.
A few moments later, I was swimming in the cool, crystal-clear water. It was very beautiful, and I realize that I have not taken advantage of being in this paradise as much as I should. It was like being on an island on Earth. There was an abundance of sealife swimming all around us, and vibrant colors. It was very beautiful. Ephane swam around in circles, playing. He was not shifted into dragon form, and I realize that I had not seen him shift at all. He didn't seem as reckless with it as Ravinn did, always flying around.
I groaned in anger at myself for comparing him to Ravinn. I was not supposed to be thinking of him at all. After an hour or so of lying in the sand and soaking up the rays and jumping over the ocean waves, Ephane showed me how to fish.
I had a lot of fun casting the net trying to throw as hard and far as I could and then pulling on the drawstring to cinch it closed. I did it for almost an hour before I was finally able to get it right.
“Look at you; you are a natural. You have not been on Kelon for very long and you are already just as good as a Draqua,” Ephane said with a smile.
“Thank you. I do like learning new things,” I said to him.
“Yes, you do seem like a curious and intelligent human female. I like that,” he said as he stepped closer to me. He grabbed the string of the net and wrapped his arm around my waist in order to do it. He was very close to me, and his body was pressing against mine. I looked up at him in order to make sure that he did not get the wrong idea about this. But I was too late. As soon as I turned my head up to him, he planted a kiss on my lips.
I immediately noticed a difference between his kiss and Ravinn’s. Ephane had a kiss that was a little weak and timid. Ravinn had a kiss that was hungry and confident. I put my hands on his chest and pushed him away from me.
“What are you doing? Don't do that,” I said to him sternly.
“I thought it was what you wanted,” he said confused.
“No. It is not what I wanted. I just wanted to hang out. Don't Draqua just hang out with each other without having to force themselves on you?” I said sarcastically.
“I thought it was obvious that I was interested in you as a mate. I would hope to petition to request that you be mine. I think we get along well,” he said to me.
“What? Not you too. It doesn't matter what you want. It doesn't matter what I want. I have already been assigned a mate. That damn Ravinn. If you can believe that,” I said in anger.
“If you are already assigned, why did you not tell me? I wasted all this time on you,” he said as he stomped through the water back to the shore, leaving me with the net in my hands.
“Are you serious? I thought we were friends!” I shouted at him. But he did not care. He was very pissed off. He gathered his things and stomped onto the village path.
“Well, I guess I lost a friend,” I said as I decided to pull the net myself. I pulled out onto the beach and looked at the two fish that I had caught.
“You are going to the communal kitchen. At least I can pitch in,” I said as I pulled the net over my shoulder and walked it to the kitchen.
“Was that him?” Brenda said as she bounced in the sand over to me. “I saw you out there with that Draqua. He kissed you,” she said, whispering to me like a schoolgirl.
“No, that is not him. That is not the one I am assigned to. Brenda, do you know where I take these fish?” I said to her, trying to change the subject.
“Yes, over here,” she said as I followed her.
I took the fish to the kitchen and then I began to walk back in the direction of my hut. Along the way, I heard a familiar voice.
“What do you mean?! That cannot be true! The human, Amelia?” the voice said. I turned to see that it was coming from one path over. After hearing my name, I had to take a look. I crept through the brush toward the other path. There, I saw Talia talking to Ephane. Oh no, I thought. He told her what I said about being assigned to marry Ravinn. I should not have said anything. Ravinn was not going to like this. Why was Ephane telling Talia anyway? It was none of his business.
"It is true. The human female told me herself. Then I went to check with a mutual colleague of mine. He works as a guard for Ravinn's father. Not only did he confirm it, but he said that the human female and Ravinn were together all night on another island sealing the contract,” Ephane said.
“What?! That cannot be. Ravinn told me he was on a mission last night, not playing with a human female,” Talia said.
“It is true. I can assure you that,” Ephane said to her. Talia stood there in shock. Then she began to cry uncontrollably. She ran off down the path. I remained quiet. I felt very bad. She did not deserve that. I looked at Ephane; he had a smile on his face before he walked away. He had done it on purpose, to punish me, or to punish Ravinn.
The rest of the day, I stayed in my home. I did not want to go out and cause any more problems than I already had. Ravinn hated me for allowing him to do things to me. Talia hated me for being the other woman. Ephane hated me for rejecting him. I was sure that somewhere off in the distance Michelle hated me for the fact that I had not done more to assure her rescue.
The next day, I stayed indoors until the evening came and Stephanie and Brenda urged me to go have dinner with them on the beach. I was starting to get a bit of cabin fever, so I went. I figured if I was with them, I was protected from all the drama happening around me. I envied Stephanie and Brenda's happiness. They truly did adore the warriors that they were going to be married to. They found the alien life exotic and adventurous; they hardly talked of anything else. I wished that I could be just as happy, but I could not.
“Amelia, we are going to stay out on the beach as late as we can. Others are going to build a fire, and we are going to drink the Hiwa and have a good time. Please say that you will stay,” Brenda said.
“Yes, say that you will stay and have some fun. You have had a scowl on your face for the last two days,” Stephanie said.
“No, thank you. It is nice of you to want me to have a good time, but I am very tired. I am going to make my way back home. You two have fun,” I said to them. They groaned at me as I left. I walked through the pass headed to the tree staircase that would take me up into the tree canopy. As I walked, I heard hushed whispers. Then I heard my name.
“Yes, Amelia Sanders. She is a human female with red hair, very small. I want you to get rid of her. Take her back with you, or kill her. I do not care. You decide. Just make sure that it is done within the next few days,” Talia said.
I put my hand over my mouth to stop me from shouting at her. I could not see her, but I recognized her voice now. I could not see who she was speaking to. I was scared to move because I did not want to step on a twig and create a noise. She already wanted to kill me. If she found me alone like this in the bush, she would just do it now.
“It will be done,” the deep voice said. I did not recognize it. My heart was beating so fast I thought that they could hear it. I was holding my breath so that I would not breathe too loud. I did not know if they could sense my presence. I was so scared.
“Good. Tell no one of this conversation, or that you even know me,” Talia said before she turned and walked away.
I waited until the coast was clear and then ran all the way back to the beach where I joined Brenda and Stephanie. They rejoiced in my return, and I had to pretend like everything was okay. I needed to gather my thoughts and figure out what to do. I was going to have to tell Ravinn. He was the only one that could stop her.