A Seacat's Love (Oceanan Trilogy Book 1) (9 page)

Tigif stood in front of the bathroom’s oval mirror. He ignored the landscape artwork that hung on the hunter green wall beside him. Instead, he focused on his reflection.

Why is she playing so hard to get? I know she wants me. Why else would she encourage Challen to go to that dreadful space station full of filthy aliens?
His lip curled.
She wants me to marry Karla
. The mere thought of marrying someone else repulsed him.
Foolish cat. Like a kitten, she is still playing games. She needs to act her age. She is a grown feline
. He thought of Rick.
How dare she stand against me for him!

Leonora’s actions heated Tigif hotter than his orange stripes. He had never been angry to the point of wanting someone dead. This was a first.
You will not take her from me. There has to be a way to get her away from you. Think, cat, think
.

He recalled Rick’s departing words. A cunning smile slowly appeared on his face. Tigif finger combed his hair. He meticulously planted orange-and-black strands along the counter, floor, and shower. Next, he extended a claw and sliced the tip of his middle finger. Chuckling like a mischievous kitten, he placed droplets of blood where Rick would not notice if he happened to give the bathroom a quick look over.

You will not enjoy your victory for long
.

Rick traveled to a deserted area, off a minor road, to burn the aliens’ clothes. As the trail of smoke sailed upward, he reached inside his backpack, pulled out a small handheld vacuum, and carefully cleaned the interior of the car.

Once he finished, he drove to the airport, to the rental office. The representative barely touched the keys when Rick was out the doors. He rushed down the aisles of the airport’s long-term parking lot to where he left his personal vehicle.

During the entire time, he was unable to keep his mind off Leonora. Images of her dissected companions remained in his head. The soldiers’ way of treating her confirmed her fate if she were recaptured. Mary entered his mind.

Leonora was not Mary. She knew how to fight. He also saw how she was no stranger to killing. Still, she was physically weak, and the enemy was great in number. She would have no chance
at surviving without him. This time, he would not make the arrogant mistake of thinking he could play by his opponents’ rules, change them midway, and win. It would be Rick’s rules from start to finish.

Mary’s face faded, and Leonora’s flickered into focus. From the moment his sights locked onto Leonora’s pale blue ones, his mind had not worked the same. How could a pair of eyes possess such an unnatural color? They were pale to the point of being white, with an eerie translucent glow to them. Normally such eyes would be seen as scary, but not to Rick. He found them fascinating and hypnotic.

Each time he looked into them, he could not tear his gaze away. Strangely enough, he experienced the sensation of peering into her soul. This made him uncomfortable for two reasons: He had never felt anything remotely similar with his wife. And he had always heard the eyes are the mirrors to the soul. He never understood the meaning of those words until meeting Leonora.

This scared him. He did not want to look into any woman’s soul. That was a bit too intimate to a man sworn off relationships. Rick touched his scar to reaffirm his decision. Besides, his soul was dead, buried alongside his daughter.

Leonora’s image sharpened against his will. She was a humanoid cat with features that had a lure all to themselves. She was average in height, even for a woman on his planet. Yet she was tall in comparison to the alien stories he had heard about. However, her telepathy was consistent with those aliens.

Her face was pleasant to look at, considering she had so many discolored bruises, made more apparent by her shower. He could only imagine her hair’s natural richness, since it hung in dripping strands down to the middle of her back. And the woman had a backside on her, though she was too thin for his taste. It dawned on him that the scientists had starved her. His chest tightened. He was determined to change that.

His heart had skipped a beat when he first noticed her pupils dilated into slits with the light. Rick remembered they ignited during her fight with the soldiers. After his initial shock, he was
surprised to find that this little trait did not bother him so much. He was, however, glad that her sharp claws returned to normal, more humanlike.

Those claws impressed him and placed him at ease. Leonora would never have to worry about being weaponless if confronted, unlike his wife. Rick doubted Mary would have used a knife on a person if she had managed to get one, even to save her life. Leonora would, and he approved.

Leonora moved with the fluidness of a cat. Her skin was velvety soft, and any hair found on her body was similar to that of human hair, not animal fur.

The human similarities combined with the differences definitely intrigued Rick. However, it was how she placed someone else’s safety before her own, how she showed power and strength when she was ill, that made the most impact.

Rick’s thoughts drifted back to when they first collided. Leonora’s gaze had touched his body, his face, and his scar repeatedly.
I wonder if she finds me attractive?

There was a time when every woman found him attractive. He had been a real lady’s man. After meeting his wife, he had eyes only for her. He had received his scar trying to protect her. Since then woman had looked but rarely went near him. The scar meant trouble. Something they did not want. It had suited Rick fine. He was not interested anyway. This was the first time since Mary’s death that it actually bothered him.

His brows lowered in a deep frown.
What am I thinking? That part of my life is over. Besides, it never should’ve occurred in the first place. I should’ve learned my lesson with what happened to Dad
.

His right forefinger traced the scar tissue that ran beneath his left eye and along his cheek—a permanent reminder of the promise he made to himself long ago.

I will not repeat it
. A few seconds later, his mind replayed the sound of Leonora’s voice.
I never did like my name. But hearing her say it, it sounded almost…musical
. His lips pressed together. He did not want to feel anything positive for this woman. She was not human, and she would soon be leaving Earth.

Rick blamed his body’s responses on Lance. His team leader had been unmerciful the last six months. He had sent Rick on assignments without a break in between. Being around Leonora made it worse. He had to hold strong if he were to keep his promise. Besides, he did not want to be added to her list of abusers.

It angered him each time he thought of it. How could anyone torture and mutilate a person for being born of a different race? Worse, how could it have been his own government? They were supposed to be the good guys, not Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

It made no difference. What they did was wrong. Rick made a career out of protecting the innocent and hunting those who were guilty. Now it seemed that he must go against his own government to protect the lives of two innocents. This did not bother him as much as Lance Blaisdale’s behavior did.

Lance was the closest thing Rick had to an older brother. They were the best of friends for six years. They shared jokes, friends, and insecurities. Lance had been there for Rick, night and day, after Mary’s death. He had kept Rick sane and moving forward.

It was a joke to either man to even consider a life without the other. They knew each other so well they could predict the other’s reactions. This was why Rick could not understand how his best friend could do something so despicable behind his back. It made no sense. The Blaisdale he knew would never be associated to such a horrific deed.

You knew about the aliens. Why did you take me to where they were being kept? Did you think you could persuade me to join you? It makes no sense. You know me too well to even consider it. How did they get to you?

As soon as the aliens were safe, Rick planned to locate his commander and find out what happened to his friend. For now, Lance was the aliens’ biggest threat. He understood the way Rick thought. He knew where Rick lived, his friends, and his connections. Rick was positive it was only a matter of time before Lance would figure out who freed the aliens and came after them.

This was the sole reason he drove like a maniac through the streets. What other excuse could there be for him to rush back to
Leonora’s side? Surely, it could not be the image of her being in an empty house with a virile man obviously enamored with her.

Rick drove into the garage and pressed the close button before the doors lifted fully. He jumped out of his car, neglecting to shut the door. He ran up to the entrance, jammed the key in the hole, and twisted it, almost breaking it. He burst into the small office and hurried into the living room without warning. No one was in the room. Rick stood motionless. His hearing strained to detect a noise. All was quite, too quite. A disturbing thought crossed his mind. He hurried to the guestroom. He turned the knob and found it locked.

His temper flared. “Nora!” He banged on the door while pulling on the knob. “Open this bloody door! Now!”

Leonora sat on the edge of the bed feeling her forehead. Her fever was down, but her body ached terribly. She gave in to the mattress’s lure and lay down. She detested being weak and vulnerable. It was why she chose a dual career as a scientist and Seacat. A Seacat’s training regimen placed you in top form. However, no training could prevent poisons from weakening the body.

To humans it was medication. To the felines of Earth, it was medication. To Oceanan felines, it was poison. Why? Because their DNA structure was a combination of the two.

Onssa, just let it all end now
. Her lashes lowered partway.
If I close my eyes, I may never wake up
. They drifted lower.
I could fall asleep in a second. But Tigif might get in. I have to stay awake—at least until Rick gets back
.

Tigif had tried several times to persuade her to open the door. Each time she ordered him to go away and leave her alone. Fifteen minutes passed since his last attempt. He seemed to be on a schedule, so she expected his dreaded knock any minute.

What if he manages to get in? What should I do? Better yet, what will he do to me?
She huffed.
If he tries anything, I will defend myself
. Placing an arm over her forehead, she sighed.
I hope he is not that dumb
.

The vigorous turning of the doorknob made Leonora jump out of her skin. A yelp escaped her lips at the savage banging that followed. The door shook. The hinges protested. Leonora bolted from the bed and into a fighting stance.

“Nora! Open this bloody door! Now!”

“Rick?”

“I said open this door!”

Leonora raised her hands and looked heavenward. “Thank you, Onssa.”

Never had she known such joy or relief. She no longer had to beat up her sister’s fiancé. She swung the chair to one side and unlocked the handle. The lock clicked, and the door swung open. She barely leapt out of its way.

Rick paused beneath the doorframe. His attention riveted to the bed, to what he expected to find. What he did not expect was to be thrown off balance once again. Only this time his body cushioned hers. He was stunned. He was elated. Nothing he pictured had transpired.

“Oh, thank Onssa, you came back!” Leonora cried between the hasty kisses she planted on his face.

Her attack was without mercy. She somehow found the stone situated where his soul used to be and began to chisel away at it. Her clean scent sailed to his nose. Invisible strings moved Rick’s arms from the floor to her waist. His hands secured her feminine curves to his straight lines. A wave of warmth drifted over the frozen tundra, causing it to melt slowly. His loins coiled in response. It felt nice. It felt right. It felt fake.

Rick understood why. Leonora was kissing the mask, not him. “Wait, Nora, wait.” He reached to the left side of his jaw. He lifted the end of the mask, peeled it off, and then threw the plastic skin aside. “Now, where were we?” he huskily asked tightening his arms around her waist. Her pale eyes made him forget all thoughts of not taking advantage of a downtrodden woman.