Falcon’s Captive (18 page)

The twin lights bounced closer, but the danger they represented barely registered. Nakos was above her, pressing her left arm against the ground while trying to straddle her waist.

“No! By the spirits, no!” Sinking her nails into his naked chest, she struggled to buck him off her. Grunting, he tore her hand off him. That done, he captured her right wrist and forced her arm down along her side. Her wild thrashing briefly prevented him from resting his weight on her middle, but all too soon, he had her.

Again.

“It’s her, isn’t it?” one of the men holding the burning branches asked. “The Wilding you caught earlier. What is she doing here?”

“She tried to warn me not to look for her people.” Nakos sounded as out of breath as she was.

Nakos’s companions stood on either side of her with their fires so close she could make out his determined expression. Another emotion simmered beneath it, one she couldn’t fathom.

He leaned over her, nearly blanketing her body with his. As his breath caressed her cheeks, she stopped struggling. She’d been here before, his helpless and willing prisoner, her body responding to his and her pussy softening.

“What now, Jola?” he asked.

She didn’t answer because the truth was, nothing mattered except this moment. She vaguely recalled the determined woman who’d come here tonight, but that woman had been pushed aside by a creature who wanted only one thing.

“No answer? Then I’ll tell you what’s going to happen.” He ground himself against her until she gasped and squirmed under him. “Right now we’re going back to where my companions and I are camped. In the morning, you’ll show us the way to the top of that peak of yours.”

His edict made her laugh.

“Don’t do this, Jola. Your response, to say nothing of your opposition, won’t change the outcome.” Still tightly gripping her wrists, he leaned even closer. “Have you forgotten what I can make your body do?”

How can I?
“My body, maybe, but not my head or heart.”

“Which means?”

“That I will never betray my people.”

She should be accustomed to his silences, but this one gave her too much time to think. They were close to where she’d spent her entire life. She was surrounded by memories both good and bad about what it meant to be Falcon. Until he’d entered her world, she’d never questioned that existence, but now—

“I’ll tell you what I’m thinking,” he said, breaking into her thoughts. “If the only thing you cared about was your freedom, you wouldn’t have come here tonight. But you did because I succeeded at certain things.”

Before she could react, he’d crossed her wrists one over the other. Easily holding both with a single hand, he reached behind him. Because the dress she’d retrieved from her home had ridden up around her hips during their struggle, it was a simple matter for him to slide a practiced hand between her legs. The moment he touched her cunt, she tried to lift herself off the ground.

“You’re wet there, Jola. No matter what you say or do, you can’t keep that from me.”

Much as she wanted to deny his words, she couldn’t. Maybe her only salvation lay in telling him nothing, not moving. But although she forced her legs to relax, her pussy twitched. When he slid a finger past her wet labia, she suspected he’d felt the movement. Concentrating on not reacting to his exploration got her past the next few moments but then she lost focus.

He knew so much about her, how and where to touch her, what covered her in heat. And yet his command of her body went deeper than that, triggered her heart somehow and made her long for what she and Raci had briefly experienced. Most of all she wanted to give back. To belong.

“What are you thinking, Jola?” he asked, not sounding as harsh as he had earlier. “Maybe you’re full of hate for me. If that’s what it is, I understand. But I’m not convinced it’s that simple.”

His features were drenched in red from the flaming branches, and she guessed her features were illuminated as well. His grip no longer threatened to cut off the circulation in her hands, and the finger at her entrance simply rested there. Earlier today she’d reveled in the joy of flight. Now another sensation claimed her.

“Still not answering?”

“I have nothing to say.”

“Because your body is saying everything? Never mind.” He sighed. “I know you better than that.”

Before she could mull over what he’d said, he pulled her to her feet. One of his hands forced her right arm behind her and against her spine while the other gripped her hair and pulled her head back so she had no choice but to again stare at him. His companions hadn’t said anything, but even if they had, she probably wouldn’t have paid attention to them. She still felt loose and easy, far from the muscled predator she’d been not long ago. In human form as it became dark, she’d grown chilled, but having Nakos this close warmed her.

If only she could forget what he represented.

S
itting cross-legged on the ground near the now snapping campfire, Jola turned her shoulder toward the heat. Nakos had tied her hands so they were crossed before her. Another rope led from her wrists to his right hand. The other two men had stretched out on their sleeping blankets but showed no sign of being interested in going back to sleep.

“The last thing I expected,” Nakos said, “was to see you tonight. Why?”

“I told you, I had to try.”

“Try what?”

“To get you to leave.”

He considered that for a moment, then idly scratched his flat belly. Thanks to the loose garment that reached from his waist to knees, she couldn’t tell whether he had an erection.

“Does anyone know you’re here?” he asked.

“Do you think I’d tell you?”

“Probably not. Another question. Did you really believe we’d give up and walk away simply because you asked us to?”

“I had to try.”

“Why?”

She needed to concentrate on her every word, not let his presence distract her, which was no easy matter. They hadn’t been apart from each other for long, yet the time had dragged. Now that she was looking at him again, she knew looking wouldn’t be enough. It shouldn’t be like this! She shouldn’t want him.

“Tell me again, what did you believe you needed to try to accomplish?” he pressed. “You risked a great deal, and for what?”

“You don’t understand. You’re the one who has risked his life by coming here.”

His companions tensed. “Just
his
life?” one of them asked. “Or all three of ours?”

“All.”

“What is she talking about?” The question came from the other man. “What has she told you about this place?”

Nakos frowned. His fingers crawled along the rope he held. “Not much. Not, it seems, nearly enough. What takes place here, Jola?”

She was weary of this conversation, exhausted from trying to defend herself against his impact on her. In the morning, maybe, she’d have found the words to turn these men around and start them back toward where they belonged.

“I was born here,” she whispered. “I’ve never wanted to be anywhere else. When you talk about traveling here, there, and everywhere, I don’t understand. Why aren’t you content to remain in one place?”

“We have a home: Ekew.”

“But you gave it up. Why?”

Now it was his turn to place silence between them. Finally one of the other men spoke. “We haven’t given up on Ekew. All of us want to return and fight the Outsiders for it. But Tau—his dreams and visions—”

“Not just dreams and visions,” the other man interrupted. “We
must
have the right weapons if we’re going to succeed.”

“Have you tried fighting with the weapons you have?”

“Of course.”

“And what happened?”

“We lost.”

“That’s why you gave up, because of a few failures?”

No one spoke for a long time, making her guess that each was asking himself questions maybe he hadn’t before.

“You’re a woman,” Nakos finally said. “As such, you can’t be expected to understand what it takes to insure a tribe’s safety.”

“I know what it takes to remain alive: vigilance.”

“Ha! Perhaps if you’d been more aware of your surroundings, you wouldn’t again be a prisoner.”

Unable to argue with him, she shrugged and patted the ground around her looking for the most comfortable place to stretch out. Nakos could prevent her from doing so, but if he didn’t, she’d at least get some sleep. After her long day, rest was more important than anything else, even having sex.

Maybe he guessed what she was doing because he shook his head and tugged on the rope. “I’m not a cruel man. You don’t have to sleep on rocks and dirt with no covering.”

There was only one alternative: next to him, sharing his sleeping pad. Shivering, she tried not to look at it.

“What are you afraid of?” he asked.

“Nothing. But neither do I want—”

“I know you don’t want me, but it doesn’t matter. Come here. It won’t be the first time we’ve spent the night together.”

She’d been wrong. He hadn’t insisted on fucking her after all. In fact, once he’d secured the rope between them to his wrist, he’d stretched out on his back while she’d lain on her side facing him, because that was the only way she could stay on his pad and under his blanket. At first he’d been so tense that she’d been tempted to try to massage some of that tension out of him. Fortunately, he’d fallen asleep, snoring lightly. Listening to him breathe, she wondered at his ability to ignore her.

She, on the other hand, couldn’t separate herself from him. Oh yes, she managed not to touch him, but his heat not only touched her skin, it seeped into her. Every time she let down her defenses, she relived his hands boldly exploring her. Most unsettling were memories of the night he’d taken climax after climax from her.

She wanted him to start her on that journey again, wanted his hands on her naked flesh and his cock housed deep inside her. Just thinking of how it had felt when he’d finally stopped teasing her and taken her stole her breath. If she thought she could do so without waking him, she’d roll onto her back and bend her knees so she could touch herself. She’d try to bring herself along slowly so the pleasure would last. As she lightly stroked herself, she’d imagine Nakos was guiding her along that delicious journey and, as he had in the past, he’d know exactly what she needed.

Something in the fire snapped, making her start. In the aftermath, she berated herself for losing sight of why she’d come here. In the morning she’d try again to convince Nakos and the others that their being here wouldn’t bring them the success Tau was looking for. The problem was, she didn’t know how to get her message across to them without betraying the Falcons.

Only the elders could decide whether to let outsiders see what it truly meant to be a Falcon. If the right was hers, she’d stand before the Ekewoko and demonstrate that it was possible to be both human and predator—and that in predator form, a Falcon became a powerful killer.

It wouldn’t matter that the Ekewoko were many times larger than a Falcon—because only a Falcon possessed the deadly speed, talons, and beak needed to tear flesh apart. A Falcon could blind an Ekewoko or tear out his throat before the enemy knew what had happened. Once that had been accomplished—

A new sound splintered her thoughts. This one hadn’t come from the fire but was closer. Focusing on Nakos, she again imagined touching him in a way men and women everywhere understood. Instead of waiting for him to arouse her sexually, she’d make the first move, maybe by running her damp tongue over his chest. As she did, she’d press his arms against the ground so he couldn’t touch her. It would be his turn to squirm and gasp, to—

“No, by the spirits, no!”

Nakos’s outburst brought her upright. Careful not to put strain on the rope that had turned them into one, she glanced at his companions, but they remained motionless. Concluding that they considered what was going on none of their business, she turned her attention back to Nakos.

He muttered something she couldn’t understand, and his legs jerked. Much as she wanted to step between him and what had to be a nightmare, she waited.

“No,” he repeated. “Ah no, please.”

His legs still moving, he began punching the air. He might be trying to ward off an imaginary attacker, but she didn’t think it was that. A grim look contorted his features so much she barely recognized him.

“I can’t, please, don’t ask me…”

Don’t ask you to do what?
she longed to say. Instead, she pressed her arms against her chest. He’d started rocking from side to side. If he turned over, the rope would be trapped under him and she’d be forced against him. Fortunately, he only continued the strange rocking motion, and she was put in mind of a mother comforting a frightened child. Perhaps he was trying to comfort himself.

“I know, I know. By the spirits, I can see but…”

Propelled by the pain and horror in his voice, she closed her fingers over the hand closest to her and held it against her breasts. She couldn’t be certain but thought the gesture calmed him a little. He was still speaking, the muttered words no longer making sense. Having fallen apart after Raci’s death, she understood grief, but what he was experiencing went beyond that.

Determined to do what she could without endangering the Falcons, she hadn’t told the Falcons of her plan to get close to the strangers camped near the base of Raptor’s Craig, which meant no one of her kind knew what had happened to her. As a consequence, just like the first time Nakos had captured her, she had only her own resources to rely on. When he’d jumped her earlier today, she’d reassured herself with the knowledge that she could change from human to predator now that she was on sacred land. As soon as the timing was right, she’d shift form and be free. Tonight, however, freedom was the last thing she was concerned about.

“You aren’t alone,” she muttered as she continued to hold Nakos’s hand between her breasts. “I’m with you, and if you need to talk about your nightmare, I’ll listen.”

His legs continued to churn, albeit less violently than earlier.

“Is it one you’ve had before? If it’s new, maybe it’ll fade away and become nothing, never return.”

“I love—love you. Please, no.”

Who was Nakos saying that to? Surely not her.

“It’s only a dream,” she continued. “Nothing to be afraid of.”

“Don’t ask me to—no, I can’t. Anything but that.”

“No one is asking you to do anything, Nakos.” Although she was whispering, her throat burned, and if anything, the ache in her heart became more intense. “It’s a late summer night, peaceful, perfect for sleeping.”
And sex.

Bit by bit his legs quieted. The muscles in the hand she held were still taut, and every time he took a breath, he held it until she thought his lungs might burst. She shrank before the possibility that this warrior was dependent on her to keep his nightmare at bay, but if she didn’t try, maybe it would destroy him.

A faint whimper pressed past his lips. There was something—a femininity maybe—to the sound that made her wonder if whoever was in his nightmare might be responsible for it. Then he moaned, the note masculine and yet not one she’d ever heard from his throat. She became convinced that he wasn’t alone in whatever horror he was caught in, and that she wasn’t part of it.

Another soft whimper pulled her thoughts off herself.

“Don’t cry. Please, don’t cry,” Nakos begged. His fingers were so tightly clenched she was afraid his nails would pierce his palms. “Atch, I see. By the spirits, I see.”

“What are you seeing, Nakos?”

“Their burns. No, please, no.”

“Whose burns?”

“The smell—their screams. Stop screaming! Please, no more.”

Galvanized by the agony in his voice, she pressed her body against his. Her arms went around his head. His heart pounded.

“I’m here, Nakos,” she soothed with her mouth against his ear. “There’s no screaming. Everything’s quiet, and it’s night. You need to sleep, only sleep.”

A shudder rolled through him, prompting her to spread her legs so they were on either side of his. With her dress askew, her pussy kissed his thigh. Before she could think of more to say, he took a long and deep breath. Although she couldn’t make out his features, she sensed he was no longer asleep. Tuning into the sound of his breathing, she imagined air going in and out of his lungs as reality returned to him. His heat against hers quieted her. Hopefully the same thing was happening to him.

“What are you doing?” he muttered.

Risking a great deal.
“You were having a bad dream. I was trying to—I didn’t know how to make it end.”

“What did I say?”

Surprised by the question, she considered sitting up, but before she could, he wrapped his arms around her. An arm pressed against the small of her back while the other warmed her shoulder blades. One thing she knew: he was concerned he might have said too much. Was he determined not to let just her into his private world, or was his nightmare indicative of something he kept from everyone?

“What did I say?”

“Not much that made sense,” she assured him. “You muttered a lot, and from the way you moved, it was as if you were trying to get away from something. Do you remember? Maybe you were running from an enemy.”

“Enemy?”

Even before she’d mentioned running as a possibility, she knew that wasn’t right because she’d concluded that he’d been carrying on a conversation with one or more people while staring at something that horrified him.

“Someone was screaming.” Although she lifted her head so she could make out his expression, she was content to remain against him. Keeping her pelvis still wasn’t easy. “I don’t think it was you because the voice you used wasn’t familiar. And you said something about burning.”

With a sound somewhere between a grunt and a sigh, he sat up, pushing her off him as he did. She didn’t try to scoot away but remained close so his heat continued to reach her.

“Is that what I said?”

About to tell him no, she nodded.

The fire had again turned to little more than coals, but now the moon was up. Between it and the stars, she noted how intently he was watching her. Men, even Falcons, were private creatures when it came to their emotions. They were loathe to reveal any more of what they were thinking or feeling than they absolutely had to, but maybe if she waited him out, she’d find a way to break past his defenses.

“I seldom remember my dreams,” she said, hoping the admission would get him started. “And what I do makes little sense. Fortunately, I hardly ever have a nightmare.”

“It wasn’t—”

“Yes, it was!” she snapped, then looked around to make sure his companions were still asleep. “Don’t lie to me, or yourself.”

Instead of replying, he picked up the rope that held them together and stroked it. Watching his hands at work calmed her. Just the same, she couldn’t distance herself from memories of when he’d touched her and how she’d responded. They’d been physically close most of the time they’d been together, and yet the connection had never felt as strong as it did right now.