Chapter Three
Natalie woke up to the faint, sterile light of the room. She blinked a few times as her eyes adjusted to the dimness. Where was she? She tried getting up and, suddenly dizzy, fell back on the pillow as a throbbing headache hit her. She was naked under the sheets. What the...? She sat up again and looked around. Her black dress lay on the floor. The room was hexagonal with a large rectangular window. It didn’t look like she was in a hotel. She slowly sat up and tried getting out of bed again. Her head spun.
She looked around, thinking. She had been out drinking at a bar and met a stranger. Oh, God... She remembered being in the car with him, and then it was all a blur. She had kissed him, hadn’t she? Or was it a dream? She couldn’t tell. Her head ached terribly. Water... She needed water. Coffee, too.
The door to the room slid open and Erdal stepped inside, carrying a tray. He had brought her food. He was wearing a dark gray suit and gray pants, and his long hair was tied at the nape of his neck. She looked up, surprised. Her heart thrummed against her chest like a frightened bird in a cage, and she quickly pulled the sheets to cover her chest. Her stomach knotted and color rose to her cheeks as he gazed at her with those intense eyes of his.
“Where am I?” she asked him, panic filling her gut. “And why am I here?”
“You are aboard Star Ship Xoraii. We are traveling to planet Estion,” he said.
“Oh, no! Y-your face! Wh-what are you? Let me go!” she stammered as her breathing became labored. She saw it now. He had abducted her – this was no hotel room. She was far from Earth in an alien spaceship.
He saw her trembling, and his chest constricted. What was wrong with him? She wasn’t the first woman he had abducted. There was something strange about her. She made him weak, and it unnerved him. No, that was unacceptable.
Get a grip, Erdal. She’s a weak human. And you detest humans, remember? The darkness inside his head snapped sarcastically. She is the king’s bride. There’s nothing you can do about it.
“Calm down, woman!” he said firmly. Tears welled in her eyes. She hugged her knees, clutching the sheets as tears streamed down her face and sobs racked her body.
He watched her for a while, trying to read her mind telepathically. He couldn’t. Frowning, he strode toward a panel on the wall to her left. A shaft opened up in a wall, revealing a small silver container. He poured out water for her into a glass.
“Thank you,” she said, as she took the glass from him. He observed her as she drank. She could see he wasn’t going to kill her... At least not yet.
“I’m sorry I’m such a mess,” she said, taking a deep breath as she tried to compose herself. She wiped the tears off her face with the back of her hand. She gazed at him. He looks quite handsome in that suit, she thought... A wayward thought crossed her mind. “Um, what happened last night? I mean, did we...?” she asked, as she stared at the dress on the floor.
“I’m afraid we did, yes.”
“Oh, God...” she said, wide-eyed, and she stared at her hands as blood crept up to her cheeks and she blushed furiously.
A smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he eyed at her, amused. She was a strange woman. Why was she so conscious of her sexuality now when mere hours ago she responded to his touch with such passion? His eyes darkened at the thought of the way she had wanted him and cried out his name in pure ecstasy.
“What do you want?” she asked softly, fresh tears welling in her eyes. She had been drunk, and then he had abducted her and had his way with her.
“I serve my King. I have orders to take you to him. You are to be his bride. You will share a harem with many others he already has,” he said, as he sat down on a chair near her bed.
“What is wrong with you? I... I was drunk!” she said loudly. “You kidnap me, rape me, and now you are forcing me to marry this... this king you serve?!” Her voice became shrill, her breath coming in gasps.
“I did not rape you, woman! No matter how much I loathe humans, I would not dishonor my race and force myself upon one of your kind!” he said in a voice so cold that it made her shudder.
“I hate you! You knew I was drunk. It’s not fair!” she wailed, rapidly blinking away her tears.
“You wanted it,” he emphasized, and she saw his intense eyes glint. “You kept talking about this Matt who left you.”
“Oh, no. What did I say?” she asked, as color rose to her cheeks.
“Nothing important,” he said curtly.
“Please take me back. I want to go home,” she said, her voice cracking, eyes wide.
“What you say is irrelevant. From now on, you will do as I say.” He tried getting inside her head again, staring deep into her wide eyes. He could see that she was scared, but he needed to read her thoughts so he could gauge to what extent.
He used his ability to read her thoughts, but all he got was a blank. This had never happened before. Somehow, telepathy wasn’t working with this woman. There was something unusual about her. He could feel it.
“Please let me go. Don’t make me marry your King. Where I come from, women are not forced into marriage,” she said, clutching the sheets closer to her. He saw genuine fear in her eyes.
“Well, why don’t you try telling that to the king himself?” he said dryly. “I’m sure he’ll reconsider.”
Her eyes grew wide and her pupils dilated through her tears. Her lips quivered as her breathing became labored, and his chest constricted again. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes momentarily, trying to control his racing heart.
“Listen to me, woman,” he said, in a calm, cold voice. “You really don’t have a choice. You had better hold your tongue before the king, or he will kill you.”
“Kill me, then,” she said, challenging him. He could kill her if he wanted to, but she would never become a slave bride to some alien king. At the moment death seemed like a better option to her.
He stared at her, surprised, as if he had not expected her to say such a thing.
“If I killed you, I would be risking my own life. You are to be the king’s bride, and there’s nothing I can do about it,” he said in a sober voice as he got up to leave. For a second there, she thought his betrayed some measure of sadness. “Get dressed. There are clothes in the wardrobe over there; the bathroom is to your right,” he said, showing her the wardrobe.
“How can you be so selfish?” she whispered incredulously, as tears gleamed in her beautiful, brown eyes.
He stood there, unresponsive.
“I guess men are alike everywhere,” she said at last, resigned.
“Here. Take these. They will help you to breathe better.” He handed her two blue pills, ignoring her comment.
“This is a communicator and a key,” he said, in a formal, detached tone. He placed a small, round disc in her palm. He showed her how it opened the hidden panels in the wall, but not the doors. “You will wear it on your arm and, whenever you need me, you press and hold while you speak, and then release. And Natalie... Eat. You will need all of your strength. I’ll be watching,” he said with as he disappeared behind the door.
Natalie stared after him, bewildered. She quickly swallowed the pills with the help of the water, and the air in the room seemed to grow thicker.
She could not imagine in her wildest dreams that she could be far away from home aboard an alien spaceship. Alone and with an alien. And she had already made the horrible mistake of sleeping with him. Well, she didn’t deny he was an unusually handsome alien. But she was in serious trouble and she had no way to escape. What she dreaded most was the fact that she was being forced into marriage. It was unbelievable. Rage surged through her blood as tears streamed down her face. She was trapped. Would he help her if he wanted to? But why would he want to? She was just another slave for him to take to his king. He was right, in a way. He was just following orders.
***
Erdal lay back in the chair in his chambers, a glass of dark purple wine in his hand. He took a sip and savored the silky taste as it slid down his throat. It was one of the rare native wines they had on Estion.
This woman could be a problem for you, Erdal. She has a sharp tongue, and she speaks her mind. The king doesn’t like that, the dark voice inside his head said.
She was unusual, he had to agree. Compared to the other women he had abducted, she was rebellious. She had questioned him like no other had.
She thought he was selfish. Well, he was just doing his duty. He had seen sadness and resignation in her beautiful eyes that caused a strange tug in his heart. Guilt was something he had never felt before.
It’s not your fault. She means nothing to you. And you don’t have to listen to her, she’s manipulating you. Your job is to take her to the king as planned, the dark voice inside his head prodded.
But still, he couldn’t get rid of the feeling. It all seemed wrong somehow. Everything was different about this mission and he had no clue what to do. A headache returned as he took another sip of wine. He strode out toward the control room to check on their course. They had another month and seven days left till they reached Estion. He heaved a sigh, deciding to limit his interaction with the human female. She talked too much.