A Hero’s Welcome (13 page)

It felt rough to the touch as he picked it up. It looked similar to the sack containing their meager food supply. And thankfully it was just big enough to wrap around his waist to cover his nudity.

Inhaling deeply, he smiled. With the cloth protecting his privates from prying eyes he felt like a civilized human being once again.

The next step on the agenda was to find the trail back to the spaceship.

* * * * *

Annie
’
s stomach grumbled violently as she spied the camp
’
s wooden trap door that would open to the food cellar.

At this point she was willing to eat just about anything. Well, certainly not human flesh.

She scrunched up her face in distaste as she stepped over a sun-dried human pelvic bone the Yellow Hairs had obviously used as a seat in front of a campfire.

Perhaps she’d find a hearty dish of dried berries and pig sprat in the cellar?

The bread and raisins she
’
d collected last night before they
’
d run were almost gone. If there
wasn
’
t any food in the cellar, she
’
d probably break down and cry or at the very least do some serious hunting for a vulture or two.

Vultures
didn
’
t taste that great. A bit stringy, but she
’
d eaten a few when food had become scarce.

Cool air slapped against her face as she lifted the food cellar door and descended into the gloomy interior. If the Yellow Hairs
hadn
’
t left any food here, she
’
d have to have a chat with their Queen.

Annie bit her bottom lip in frustration. She
couldn
’
t do that. She was now an outlaw. If she got caught…

Oh God, now she knew how Joe felt.

Trapped.

Frustrated.

Angry.

There was no way she was going to be put on a fucking machine and made to bear babies for the hub.

The thought of abandoning those women and babies in the prison weighed heavily on her mind. There was nothing she could do now. Her dream job was gone forever. She had been so close. Could taste the victory. But now it was over. She
’
d never be able to hold the tiny newborns in her arms. Never be able to watch the babes as they suckled from their mothers
’
breasts or teach the female children how to hunt or encourage them to follow their own dreams.

She wiped a stray tear from her eye and sniffed back a sob.

Freeing Joe had been the right thing to do. She
couldn
’
t let herself drown in her own selfishness. She
’
d done what felt right, even though everyone else believed she
’
d been wrong.

When it came down to it,
she
had to live with her own decisions, no one else. If she
hadn
’
t followed her own principles the rest of her life would have been miserable.

At least now she had a little happiness with Joe. How long it would last was anyone
’
s guess. If he decided he
didn
’
t want to take her with him to wherever he came from, she
’
d survive. It would be a lonely existence but she could do it.

“A bag of food for your thoughts.”

Annie froze as the familiar female voice sailed through the opening of the cellar. She whirled around to find the silhouette of
Jacey
, the Queen, blocking her exit.

Hysteria ripped along the edges of her mind. She clamped down on it. The thought of screaming a warning out to Joe was at the forefront, along with fighting hand to hand with the Queen. But the Queen was very experienced in hand to hand combat. Annie
wasn
’
t. If she screamed for help, Joe would come. And the Queen would capture him too.

“What are you doing, Annie? Why are you leaving me for a mere slave?” The Queen’
s voice was sharp, commanding.

Anger burst inside her and she started toward the Queen.

“Why can’
t you leave us alone?”

“Do you know what you’
ve
done, Annie? The council has put a price on your head. They want you dead.”

The breath in Annie
’
s lungs halted. Dead? No one had ever had a death price put on her head. At least not in her hub.

Despite her best efforts, Annie
couldn
’
t stop her legs from shaking with fear.

“So, you’
ve
come to take me back then. To watch them kill me.”

Annie braced herself to fight as the Queen walked down the dirt steps toward her. She came to a stop a couple of feet away. The Queen smiled softly.

“No. I came to warn you.” She reached out and Annie flinched as the Queen’
s warm finger gently fondled Annie
’
s left nipple ring.

“To warn you and to give you another chance. I like you Annie. I want to help you.”

“If you can help, help us both. Or there isn’t anything I want to hear from you.”

Jacey
grimaced.
“So, I’m too late then. I thought I might be. I watched how you allowed him to take you from behind by the river. You were taught better than that, Annie. You should never let the male have the dominant position.”

The thought of the Queen watching Joe make love to her made Annie sick to her stomach. The urge to slap her was so urgent, Annie almost did it. Her upbringing stopped her. No one hit the Queen. Annie might be on the run but the Queen was still her boss. And the boss was allowed to do whatever she wanted to any female she picked.

She forced herself to hold perfectly still as the Queen
’
s warm hand slid over the bottom curve of her breast. Only days ago the caress might have aroused Annie. It did nothing to her now. Nothing except make her angry.

“Joe said you saw us last night and that you let us go? Why?”

“I want to speak with the male.”

“Never.”

“He’
s a male, Annie. You tell him I want to speak with him and he’ll do it.”

“No,
Jacey
! He
’
s a man! He has a mind of his own! You can
’
t force him to do what he
doesn
’
t want to do.”

A confused smile twisted the Queen
’
s lips. It was a smile Annie
didn
’
t much like.

“Then you convince him, Annie. Convince him to talk to me. Perhaps I can convince him to return with us.”

“No.” She said the word so quickly it made the Queen blink in shock. Obviously she
hadn
’
t expected to be turned down.

Annie stuck her chin out in defiance. “No, I won
’
t do it.”

A pained expression ripped across the Queen’s face. It made Annie sad. Made her wish she hadn’t hurt
Jacey’s
feelings. But she had and there wasn’t anything she could do about that. She would protect Joe any way she knew how. Even if it meant offending her Queen.

“Fine,” the Queen snapped. “The next time he’s fucking you and you’re both not looking over your shoulders and you get captured, don’t come running to me for help.”

The Queen turned and walked stealthily up the dirt steps.

Annie watched her disappear in the oncoming dusk. Her mind whirled crazily. Her heart pounded in her ears. The urge to run almost overtook her but she remained steadfast in the coolness of the cellar.

She needed to warn Joe. Needed to find him and get him out of here.

Quickly she ran her hands along the dark shelves in search for food. Her fingers brushed against something. Without seeing what was there she began stuffing the items into the grub bag.

A moment later she scrambled up the cellar
’
s dirt steps and peeked out into the evening dimness. Nearby, the ugly vultures nibbled on the male skeleton. Tree branches moved in the hot evening breeze and birds chirped gaily here and there. Other than that, she detected no other movement. The Queen was gone.

And there was no sign of Joe.

Her thoughts tumbled together in a mass of fear. Had they captured him? Taken him away from her? She ached to call out to him. To see if he would answer. But she knew she had to remain silent. Cautiously she slipped out of the cellar and stepped into the gloomy twilight. Her back tingled as she imagined a bullet crashing through her spine.

Thankfully nothing happened.

She sprinted to the nearest tree line. Once there, Annie headed toward the area where she
’
d last seen Joe.

Chapter Sixteen

Joe had just found the east trail when he spotted Annie running toward him.

“We have to leave!” she gasped as she
barreled
into him. Her eyes were wide with panic.

“What’s wrong?”

“The Queen. I saw her! She’
s found us.”

“You saw her? Where?” Automatically his gaze searched the surrounding meadow. He saw nothing.

“In the cellar,” Annie breathed.

“Did she see you?”

“I talked to her. We have to go. Now!” Her eyes were frantic as she grabbed his hand and began pulling him along the darkening trail.

“What did she say? How did you get away?”

“She let me go. Oh Joe, we’
ve
got to get you out of here.”

Dammit
!

“Any place around here where we can sleep without being seen? First light we can pick up the trail.”

“The gully. I think we can make it there before darkness hits. But we have to hurry.”

Joe grabbed the heavy sack from Annie. “Lead the way,” he instructed.

It took Annie only minutes to have them secured in the gully behind the dark remnants of an old burnt out tree.

He watched Annie carefully. She sat cross-legged in front of him, the grub bag between her legs. Her full breasts bounced lightly in the increasing darkness as she searched the contents and handed him dried berries and another handful of dried meat.

Despite her rapid breathing and the occasional sounds of her swallowing her meal, she was quiet. Too quiet.

“What did the Queen say?” he finally asked, breaking the strained silence.

He heard her swallow. Could feel her fear zip through the warm night air.

For a long time she
didn
’
t speak and when she did he heard the tremble of terror in her voice.
“She wants you.”

He grinned. “Did you tell her I
’
m already taken?”

“This is serious, Green Eyes.”

“C’
mon
, if she was serious she would have given us away last night and you said she just let you go. She’s playing with us. If she was serious about taking me, her women would be scrounging around looking for us.”

“I mean she
wants
you.”

Joe swallowed the piece of dried meat that tasted oddly like beef jerky.

“She told you that?”

“No, but I’m a woman. I know these things.”

“I see. Woman’s intuition,” he could barely keep himself from smiling. “Are you jealous?”

“Should I be?”

Oops, looks like her claws were coming out.

“What exactly did she say?”

“She wants to talk to you. Tonight.”

Joe blinked in disbelief. “Why?”

She inhaled and moved against him. One of her soft breasts flattened against his arm. He could feel her rapid heartbeat pound violently against his flesh.

“She wants to fuck you.”

“She said that to you?”

“No, but why else would she be following us without her entourage?”

“I thought you said she’s only allowed to take a female mate?”

“She is. But what the others don’t know…If she can have you without anyone knowing about it…
You wouldn’t fuck her, would you?”

“Of course not. What the hell kind of question is that?”

Her tense body seemed to relax a bit at his answer.

“She say anything else?”

“I told her you couldn’t talk to her and she left.”

“We just met and you’re already bossing me around.”

She smiled and cuddled closer.
“You don’t like me this way?”

“If I didn’t like you this way, I wouldn’t be here, Annie.”

She seemed pleased with his answer.

He drew her into his arms and they lay down on the warm ground.

“I’
m tired of running, Joe,” she whispered. Exhaustion drenched her voice. “So tired. We need to sleep. We need to get moving at first light.”

“Annie—”

A warm finger touched his lips silencing him.

“
Shh
. Don’
t talk. Just sleep.”

Sleep?

Shit!

Now he knew something was wrong. Up until now all she
’
d wanted from him was sex.

“Don’
t tell me you
’
re
that
tired?” he teased.

“I’
m not
that
tired, Green Eyes. I
’
m never
that
tired. It
’
s better we keep quiet. Don
’
t draw attention to ourselves.”

She had a point. They
weren
’
t the quietest lovers. If they started having sex anyone could hear them and their hiding place would be revealed. Besides, under the circumstances sex was the furthest thing from his mind.