Kidnapped by a Warrior (11 page)

“
Really?”

“
Yes. She wouldn’t tell me so if it weren’t true.”

Callie
pulled away from him as a faint sound reached her ears. Her pulse raced as it
grew louder, and then she glanced into his eyes. He heard it, too. “I know what
that is. I heard it as I was walking home from my new job the day you brought
me to Addo.”

He
looked at her like he didn’t want to believe it, and then he took her hand and
pulled her along as they ran. But there was no way to keep up with him. He was
over a foot taller than she was, for one thing, and she hadn’t run anywhere in
months. His legs were too strong and his stride longer. She nearly fell more
than once before he finally slowed his pace.

They
wedged themselves inside a cleft in the rock face, but it wasn’t large enough
to conceal them and she knew that. He pulled her close and hissed in her ear.
“Stay as still as possible. Hold your breath if you can.”

She
did both, but as the whine of the drone drew closer, she could do nothing about
the pounding of her heart. Could it pick up such a sound? She had no idea. Was
it heat sensitive? Would it detect them because of that? She swore it slowed as
it passed overhead, but that might have been her imagination.

Once
it was gone over the cliffs, they ran again. She heard it circling back before
they reached his house, but they were inside before it passed overhead a second
time. Callie crouched in a corner while Jakara went to every window to look
outside, and even went up on the roof. When he returned, he told her it was
gone.

“
Who sent it?”

“
I don’t know. The only way I can find out is to
access the computer in my barracks on Addo.”

“
No
. Please don’t leave me alone at
night.”

“
I’ll contact Lesha and ask her to stay with you.”

She
wiped tears from her face. “Please don’t go.”

“
I have to. If they saw you, I need to know that.
Sooner rather than later.”

She
knew he was right, but she would never feel safe here again. He held her close
until Lesha arrived about twenty minutes later, and then he was gone. She
listened to his aircraft fly away and tried to keep breathing.

****

Jakara
made it to his barracks in less than half an hour. He was still pissed off
beyond reason by the time he stormed inside and turned on his computer. As soon
as it booted up he accessed the drone system and scanned it. There were no
regular runs on Voyeur Moon and he knew that, but he’d decided to start there,
just in case they’d been added during his absence.

When
he didn’t see any, he used the database where everyone who flew an extra one
was supposed to file a plan. Of course, if this had been from a private
individual, or from one of the Regum, he’d never find a record of it, but it
was worth a shot. Unfortunately, he found no trace of whose it was or why it
had flown over his house.
Twice.

Because
he’d heard it before Callie had reacted, and he knew it had come from the east,
which meant it had flown over his house. But did whoever had sent it know she
was there, or had they merely decided to start using drones to watch him? His
superiors weren’t idiots. They knew he’d see it and hear it.
Which
meant whoever had sent it wanted him to know they’d done so.
They wanted
him to know they were watching.

But
had Logan or another Section Chief sent it, or had it come from higher up?
And if it wasn’t from his superiors, who was deliberately taunting
him with it?
Someone from Sera or right here on Addo? Had Walton sent
it? The conversation from several weeks ago came back to him. It wasn’t the
first time Walton had warned him, but he’d never come to his house to do so
before.

Jakara
had been foolish to tell himself that because Walton had spoken English with
him that day, something they did as often as possible to keep up their
skills, that
Walton was still on his side. He hadn’t wanted
to believe such an old friend could slowly turn into an enemy, but now he had
to face that possibility.

He
sat still for a few moments, trying to imagine who else would have done this,
but the only person it all pointed to was Walton. Even if he hadn’t brought
Callie home, this would have happened eventually. He should have found a way to
work on the project. Then he wouldn’t have drawn so much attention to his
opposing views. They’d already thought he wasn’t a team player. Now, he had
proof they’d decided to something about it.

He’d
put himself in danger, but that was something he could deal with. Callie, on
the other hand, was no longer safe. He had to figure out what to do with her.
Because he wasn’t giving her up.
Not a fucking chance. He’d
quit his work and hide somewhere if that were possible, but she was in his life
for good now. Of that he was certain. And he’d rather fight this cause another
way than live without her in his life.

She
was asleep when he returned, and Lesha had dozed off as well. After he made
sure Lesha made it safely home, he crawled into bed next to Callie and held her
closely. He kissed her neck, and she stirred. When she realized he was in bed
with her, she turned toward him and embraced him.

He
stroked her hair. “It’s all right, love. I’m here. You’re safe.”

“
Did you find out who sent the drone?”

He
could lie. It would be so easy to do. She’d never have to know the truth. But
that wasn’t fair to her. She might assume she was safe and go outside when he
wasn’t home. He knew she went up on the roof at night sometimes, and he hated
to ask her not to do that anymore, but it would have to stop now.

“
No, but I have other sources to check. Get some
sleep now. It will all be okay. I promise.”

“
I’m not sleepy now.”

He
pulled her close and held her, and then it was so easy to simply slide his dick
into her wet pussy. They slept naked every night now, curled up in each other’s
arms. She lay on her side, one leg over his hip, and he fucked her slowly,
tenderly, as he held her face and stroked her hair.

She
clung to him, gazing at him in the dark with what he wished was love on her
face. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“
I couldn’t go back to flying missions without making
love to you one more time.”

She
moaned loudly as he brushed his hand down her back and over her round, firm
ass. How he loved to spank that ass! When he moved his hand between them and
massaged her clit, she came, crying out loudly. He never tired of that. It was
always so real and perfect, that he thought his heart would burst with joy each
time he was able to bring her to orgasm.

He
didn’t hold his own back tonight because he was exhausted. Once he finished, he
pulled her close again and held her until her breathing changed and she drifted
back to sleep. “I love you, Callie.” It wasn’t the first time he’d whispered it
to her while she slept.

Jakara
stared into the dark, wondering how in the hell he was going to keep his
promise to her. How would he keep her safe now?

Chapter
Ten

Callie
put on a brave face when Jakara left on a mission early in the morning. The sky
was cloudy, and he told her rain was promised later in the day. She used to
love rainy days, and looked forward to reading some of the books Jakara had
brought back from Earth for her. She also knew the drones didn’t fly in the
rain any more than was necessary, so that meant she wouldn’t be listening for
it to come by again.

He
made sure she remembered how to reach Lesha or him if she needed to, and then
he kissed her again and told her he’d see her later that night. Once he left,
she watched the sky for a long time, well past the point where his craft was
out of sight, and then turned around in surprise as thunder rumbled over the
hills.

She
went back inside and paced the house, but then realized her uneasiness was
likely from the approaching storm. She’d always been sensitive to them. The
thunder was closer now, and when lightning lit up the sky she jumped a little.
She hadn’t seen any in so long. The first raindrops were tentative, and then
they became fat and more frequent as the wind picked up. It was a real
thunderstorm, and she clapped her hands. The only thing that would make this
perfect was if Jakara were sharing it with her.

Callie
dug in the box where she’d put all the books, finally taking out
Brave New World
. She sat in the
armchair, legs draped over one arm and her back resting on a pillow she propped
against the other. While she listened to the rain hit the windows and the wind
howl outside, she opened the book and began to read.

She
was nearly halfway through the book when she realized the rain had stopped.

But the wind is still howling.
Or at least, she assumed it was
wind.

She
got up and stretched, then put the book on the chair and walked over to the
window to see if there were still clouds in the sky.

It
wasn’t wind.

Callie
backed away slowly, fighting the urge to scream. She placed a hand over her
mouth, and yelped when she backed into the sofa.

As
she made her way to the room where Jakara kept his communications system, she
fought to keep moving. If she lost it now, there was no chance of contacting
him. She had to do this.

Her
entire body trembled, and she realized the whimpering sounds were coming from
her. She locked the door, and then turned on the system, trying to remember
everything he’d told her. Panic filled her mind, hot and prickly, but she tried
to keep it at bay. This was her only chance to tell him they were here.

The
sound outside was louder now, and she knew she didn’t have much time. She had
to warn him. But what if he’d already made the hyper jump and was too far away?
What if he couldn’t reach her in time?

“
Jakara,” she whispered. “Why did you leave me
alone?”

****

Jakara
was getting ready to make the hyper jump when his radio crackled. At first he
thought it was merely static and reached over to turn down the volume, but then
he heard a female voice and his hand froze in mid-air.

Callie!

He
turned up the volume. “Callie, is that you? Are you all right?” To hell with
whoever might be listening. He was already turning the ship around.

“
There’s a drone in the yard. It landed.”

That isn’t a drone
. “Lock the door and hide. I’m on
my way back.” Jakara disconnected the transmission, knowing it had gone on too
long regardless. By the time he reached her, it was likely that Logan or
another Section Chief would as well, but he had to try.

Why
the hell had he left her alone? But where would he have taken her? He’d had
weeks to figure this out, and instead he’d played with fire all this time. If
anything happened to her it would be entirely his fault, and he’d never forgive
himself.
Never.

****

Callie
did as he said, but she couldn’t stop the scream in time when she heard one of the
windows break. The doors were both steel covered with wood, but he had plain
old glass in all the windows. The interior doors were solid wood, so she knew
the lock wouldn’t keep whoever was in the house out of this room for long.

She
wedged herself under the desk and tried to stay calm, but that was like trying
not to breathe. Callie closed her eyes and pictured Jakara’s face, willing him
to somehow reach her in time. When this was over and she was back in his arms,
she was going to tell him she loved him. It was time he knew that. She knew
he’d whispered it to her more than once when he thought she was asleep, and
she’d always held back from telling him the same thing out of fear.
But no more.

There
was nothing to fear from him. And now, she might lose him forever. What if
whoever had come here knew he was hiding her, and they hurt him because of it?
She’d never see him again, and she’d never have the chance to tell him how she
felt.

Callie
forced her breathing to slow down, and she fought to control another scream
rising up in her as she listened to two pairs of heavy boots stomping around
the house. The sound of cupboards and doors opening and closing reached her
ears. She couldn’t understand their words, but one of the voices was the same
one she’d heard weeks ago, arguing with Jakara.

Walton
…

He’d
been right about Walton. And now she had no way to warn him because she didn’t
dare risk contacting him again.

****

Jakara
approached Voyeur Moon as fast as he dared to fly. Callie had contacted him
nearly twenty minutes ago. There was no way she could stay hidden in the house
that long. It wasn’t large enough. Even if she’d locked herself in the
communications room, an axe would soon make short work of the door.