Alien Mine (27 page)

Zacar grunted back then gently pushed her forward. She walked through the passage with her heart in her throat. Her knees shook terribly and she was sure the inhaler in her pocket would burn her through her clothes.

Once they reached the main cave, she forced herself to smile at him. "Please excuse me. I need to uh...use the bathroom." She drew away from him and gestured vaguely in the direction of the showers.

He looked down at her for a moment. She thought he would touch her but he stepped back. "I need to return. Do not go in there again."

She hesitated but couldn't resist asking, "What would you do if I did?" She shouldn't waste time and give him the opportunity to think about searching her for the inhaler. But it galled her that he would refuse her access to her own mountain.

"Take you out."

Her blood froze in her veins then she relaxed. His matter of fact tone said he meant take her out of the cave, like he just had.

She couldn't give Zacar the opportunity to search her. "Uh, I better go. The bathroom, you know."

He nodded and she rushed to away on shaking legs. Once there, she turned around, frantic for a place to hide her inhaler. At last, she put it inside an empty bottle she used to keep the soap slivers for recycling. Now that she'd been caught carrying an inhaler in her pocket, she'd have to stash them around the cave and hope she got to them in time when she needed them. Remembering the way that damn Zurian had pointed to where she hid the inhaler in her pocket, she grabbed a tube of toothpaste and put that in it. Maybe she was over-reacting, but she wasn't about to take any chances with a race that killed weak babies.

When she returned from the bathroom, Zacar simply insisted on feeding her lunch then disappeared into the tunnel again. Curiosity drove her crazy. In the end, she couldn't help herself.

When she was sure they were all in the new alien-made cave, she sneaked into the tunnel again. The lights were on already so they wouldn't give her away. She should be able to have a quick glance at what they were doing if she just stayed in the tunnel and crouched down to take a peek.

No one stopped her. Crouching inside the tunnel, a few meters from the entrance to the huge cavern, she could see two of them installing some kind of panel with blinking lights along one wall. Light suddenly flooded the cave and the side of the mountain disappeared. At first, she covered her head, convinced the mountain was collapsing on top of them. When a huge spacecraft glided smoothly into the cavern and landed in the middle of the new chamber, her mouth dropped open. Then, as suddenly as the mountain had opened up, it became roughly hewn rock again.

They'd parked a spaceship in her mountain. Her mind simply wouldn't wrap around it.

A hatch door opened with a small hissing noise, and Zacar walked down a ramp that slid smoothly and noiselessly to the steel floor.

Steel floor?

For the first time, she noticed that they'd covered every inch of the floor with the steel material they'd brought with them. That was a really big spaceship, but she didn't think it could carry the amount of metal they'd been lugging into her cave.

Every now and then, she looked at Zacar and noticed all over again how masculine and handsome he looked. He wore a black uniform, accentuating everything she found attractive about him. If not for the ridge on his head and the color of his eyes he could almost pass for human.

He stopped and turned his head to stare at her. How did he always seem to know she was there? For a long moment, they locked eyes then he walked over. She stood up, petrified and turned on at the same time, as he stalked closer. Grunting softly, he bent over and kissed her on the lips.

As always, she melted into him. He took his time, nibbling her lips, exploring, his tongue conquering the warm depths of her mouth. His kiss reassured her and, feeling braver, she leaned into him, resting her hands on his shoulders. She smiled up at him when he lifted his head.

"Please show me your spaceship."

She moved her hands as far as she could reach and rested them on the collar of his uniform. Smoothing her fingers over the emblems crafted there.

"No, you have to leave this cavern. The warriors have to work," he said firmly and without apology. His words had the effect of ice water thrown in her face.

"Don't you trust me?" Her lips suddenly had a will of their own. They trembled, no matter how hard she pressed them together.

"This is warrior business."

If she heard that excuse again, she'd scream. With an awkward movement, she lifted her hands from his shoulders and stepped away. He took her arm and walked her out, but even his gentle touch couldn't disguise her status as his captive. It had never been illustrated more clearly.

She remained quiet all the way out of the passage. When he moved toward the tent, she pulled against his grip on her arm until he stopped and looked down at her. He never raised an eyebrow or frowned. If only she could read his facial expressions. He waited patiently and that got on her nerves as well.

"I don't want to make love with you." She sighed. "I don't know why I call it making love. Your word is more correct to describe our relationship. It's only breeding, nothing as special as two people making love."

"Show me making love."

When she opened her mouth to respond, he stiffened and, though she didn't hear a thing, she knew one of the other warriors approached. Their hearing really was extraordinary.

Viglar appeared behind them. Once again, she only heard those grating sounds coming from their throats. She touched her ear. What was up with the translator?

"I have to go to the ship. Tonight, you show me." He bent down to kiss her but she turned her head away.

"No, Zacar. I can't show you. Part of making love is trusting your partner. There has to be trust and caring between us. And you don't trust me." Could he hear the bitterness in her voice? Did he even care?

"I trust you."

"Just not enough to show me your spaceship. Not enough to allow me to show concern for your warriors or to understand everything you say. That's not trust. It's called captivity."

"I will think on it. Tonight you show me making love." He captured her chin in his hand, turned her face back to him, and kissed her--one of those kisses that weakened her knees even when she was furious with him. By the time he drew away, she was clinging to him.

Angry with herself for getting so lost in that stupid kiss, she stomped away. She looked around the main cave and shook her head. Who would've thought the cave could be toasty warm and comfortable to boot? A few months ago, she'd worried about having enough food for the winter. Before Zacar, she had been concerned that she would freeze to death in the cave if she ran out of coal before the snow melted. Now, she obsessed whether that stubborn, domineering alien loved her or simply kept her around as a convenient pet.

In front of the TC, Azagor tinkered with one of the probes and she walked over to him. They thought she didn't know what it was but she'd been watching them carefully. The probes looked exactly like the ones on those really old sci-fi movies, except once these ones were sent out they were cloaked.

She made sure to stop a good distance away. They got real nervous when she went too close to them. And Zacar got downright hostile.

"Azagor?"

"Yes, breeder of my leader?"

Natalie sighed then decided to ignore the new irritating name she apparently now went by.

"Zacar said on your planet you killed weak babies."

He seemed to search for words but she noticed he didn't look away. She'd learned over the past weeks that this was a tell-tale sign when one of them wanted to hide something. Maybe it was because she held him when he was wounded but, to her surprise, he answered her. "It is our tradition. We survived on our planet and became strong because we never tolerated weakness."

"So, what would Zacar do if I gave birth to a weak baby?" She held up a hand. "No, don't tell me. I don't want to know."

Taking her at her word, he continued to tinker with the probe. It was telling that he didn't try to reassure her.

Even knowing she might get answers she couldn't live with, she couldn't leave it alone. She had to clear her throat before she could speak. "Is it common practice on your planet?"

"Is what common practice?" He looked up and, for a moment, appeared endearingly confused. She had no doubt he could take on a raider camp by himself but to her, he was the most approachable, the closest she'd ever been to having a little brother.

"Killing the weak," she reminded him.

"Yes, especially in the old times."

He concentrated on the probe, busying himself with pressing holo buttons. In spite of him muttering and focusing so fiercely on the probe, she knew she had all his attention.

"And now?"

He didn't answer her and the silence stretched. Natalie was about to walk away when he spoke. "It still happens."

What a lovely role model for any children she might have.

"His father's breeder--" Azagor stopped.

She stepped closer, her palms stretched out to him. "Please, Azagor. Tell me what you were going to say about Zacar's father's breeder. Are you talking about his mother?"

"Yes. It is the term for mother."

"Please, Azagor. I need to understand him."

"You should ask your questions of our leader." He turned back to his task. "I have to fix this."

"Of course," she said through clenched teeth. "I'm sorry for bothering you when you've work to do."

She went to her tent and sat down on the bed with her head in her hands. What could have happened to Zacar's mother? He'd said that breeders only found his copper form acceptable. What a strange way to word it. Did his father hold his mother captive as well? Fed up with going in circles thinking about it, she stalked to the greenhouse.

She watered her plants and went through her storeroom, looking for the extra pair of boots she had stored. Somewhere. By the time she found them, it was time for dinner.

Zacar fed her and then picked her up before she had swallowed the last bite. He held her in his hands, dangling off the floor and spoke with his face right in hers. "Now you show me making love."

She couldn't help but smile and she stroked his bald head, her finger tracing the veins and then the ridge on his forehead.

"It's very complicated. You have to first take me out to an expensive restaurant." He looked pointedly around the cave as he swung her into his arms and walked toward their tent and she giggled. "Well, either that or you have to arrange a romantic dinner with candle light and special food."

"Fire is romantic?" he asked.

"Trust me, candles add a lot of romance to a dinner."