Hide to Stay Alive (Club Release 1) (11 page)

I look over my shoulder as
I try to open it. I just know some big beast is about to come from
the bowels of the house. When the door doesn’t budge, I frantically
look at it. I press harder on the handle. Fuck! It won’t open. With
my nerves screaming, I run to the backdoor and try it. Fuck! The
son of a bitch won’t open.

That scary hissing sound
floods my ears again. I freak and run down the hall and into one of
the spare bedrooms. I faintly hear the hissing sound again. With my
heart desperately trying to pound its way out of my ribcage, I run
to the closet and leap inside.

I close the door and then
pull a blanket over me. My hands are shaking like crazy and my
heart is still using my ribcage as a punching bag. I make myself as
small as I can and try to stop the quaking of my body. I close my
eyes and focus. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Repeat,
repeat, repeat.

“
Hide to stay alive,” I
whisper in a tone so low I can’t hear it. I don’t need to hear the
words, just lightly breathing them is enough for me.

CHAPTER

13

~ Zar ~

♥

The second I enter my home
the foul scent of fear hits my vents and floods my
lungs.

I automatically go on high
alert. Scanning the room, I don’t see anything disturbed. The scent
of fear is overpowering. I start walking through my home, my gaze
sweeps the place. Nothing is amiss. I see my little seema’s cup on
the counter. It’s standing tall. Not a drop has been spilled to
indicate a struggle has happened.

What on Zaphin could have
scared her so badly? I continue to look around as I follow the
scent of fear. Nothing. No sign of any problems or threats. I stop
for a second outside of her room and sniff. She’s not in her room.
I take a deep breath and follow the trail.

The stench of fear is
strong outside the guest bedroom. The door is cracked open. If I
couldn’t smell her that would have given her away right there.
She’s definitely not a stealthy warrior. I smile knowing if she had
been she wouldn’t be here. I like her just the way she
is.

What I don’t like is the
scent of fear coming from her. I follow the offensive smell to the
closet. Not knowing how she’ll react, I carefully open the door and
look inside. I see her bundled on the floor with a blanket over her
head. Aww, a touch of sympathy for her pinches my heart.

I’m about to step into the
closet when I barely hear. “Hide to stay alive.” Her words turn
that pinch into a painful ache. I shouldn’t be so attached to her
but I am. I’ll worry about my feelings for my seema later. Right
now I have to calm her.

Not wanting to arouse
anymore fear in her, I quietly say, “Calm yourself, seema. You are
not in danger.”

In a surprising move, she
whips off the blanket and looks up at me and then at the open door.
Faster than I would guess she could move, she leaps up and rushes
to me. Alarm spikes my blood and puts me back in high alert mode.
Is she planning on running away or attacking me? Whichever the
case, I’ll handle it. No little thing like her is going to best
me.

With trembling hands, she
looks passed me and tries to tug me into the closet. Not wanting
her to strain any muscles, I step fully into the closet. I watch
fascinated as she quietly closes the door and then turns huge dark
brown eyes on me.

Her gaze darts to the
closed door and then back up at me. The scent of relief coming from
her fills my lungs. I’m glad she’s already starting to trust me. To
my utter surprise, she lunges forward and wraps her delicate arms
around my waist. I immediately hug her and start caressing her back
to stop her body from trembling.

The smell coming from her
changes from relief to concern. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I was
afraid the monster was going to get you. I tried to go outside but
the doors were stuck. What are we going to do?”

Confusion has my brows
drawing together and then worry hits me. I pull back and look her
over. I don’t see any blood. If there had been any I would have
smelled it when I walked into the house. I shouldn’t have even
looked. She’s driving me crazy. Plus, she’s not making any
sense.

She looks a little put
out. Her gaze moves to the door and then back up at me before she
whispers, “The monster, did you see it? How are we going to get
passed it to leave the house?”

I’m surprised that I like
her feisty side. Of course, I’ll never admit that to a seema.
Gaining control of the situation, I grip her arms and ask, “What
monster?”

Her brows draw together
sharply. “Shh, we can’t let it know where we are.”

My fingers move over her
arms to soothe her. My right hand encounters a soft lump. I’m sure
that hadn’t been there before. I raise her arm and look at the
spot. I touch it, the spot is soft. The scent of a muffin wafts to
me. My heart twists in my chest and my stomach feels
heavy.

My little seema is storing
food for later. That’s just what a starving person would do. I’m
gladder than ever that I brought her here. She needs me. Now that
she’s mine, I’ll make sure she’s cared for, for life.

Her worried gaze looks
from me to the door. “What are we going to do?” she whispers
again.

“
I didn’t see any monster,
seema.” At her incredulous look, I almost laugh. To her, the
situation is serious though, so I start digging to find out what’s
happened while I was away. I use my dominant tone to get her full
attention. “Tell me exactly what you saw.” She starts at my tone
just the way I want her to.

“
I was in the kitchen
getting a drink when I heard a horrible hissing sound. I tried to
leave the house, so I could hide in the jungle but the doors were
stuck. I’m amazed you got in.” Her pretty brown gaze slides over me
and then she shivers dramatically. “You’re lucky the monster didn’t
get you. It sounded like it may have big teeth. Sharp ones too, I’d
bet.”

From her scent I know she
believes what she’s saying. Could the fruit or muffins I gave her
have caused her to hallucinate? I kneel down so we’re eye to eye.
“Did you see a monster?”

Tiny lines form between
her brows. “No, but I heard it several times. It had to have seen
me because it was hissing. Do you have any invisible hissing
monsters on this planet?”

“
No.” My mind races to
solve this problem. Hissing sounds are what she heard. Nothing in
my home hisses except me at times.

She lets out a harsh
exhale and then her worried gaze jerks to the closet
door.

Breathing! That’s it.
“Have you heard the hissing recently?” I ask.

Small white teeth worry
over her lip for a second. “No, do you think it left?” Hope fills
her tone and lightens her eyes.

I barely hold back a
laugh. In her current state, I don’t think she’d appreciate it. I
look deeply into her eyes to make sure she understands me. “There
is no monster, little seema. What you heard was the house adjusting
the oxygen levels to supply the right amount for a human. All of
our buildings have air systems that adjust to the beings that enter
them.”

Her gaze shifts around the
room and then down. I watch her small teeth come out and nibble on
the edge of her lower lip. Embarrassment scents the closet as she
realizes what’s happened.

The need to hug her washes
over me. No seema has ever affected me this way before. It must be
purely because she intrigues me. In time the feelings I have for
her should lessen and become normal.

I take her by the hand and
lead her out of the closet. I can’t help but notice the way she
stiffens and looks around as we enter the bedroom. I like the fact
that her natural instinct is to survive. Her small frame relaxes
more and more as we get closer and closer to the living room. It’s
obvious that she’s beginning to understand that there really is no
monster.

I lead her to the couch
and pull her into my lap as I sit down. She yelps and stiffens.
Fear once again scents the air around her. I hate it but it’s time
for her to learn her place in my world.

“
Relax. I apologize for
leaving you here alone. I should have let one of the others solve
the problem. You are the first human I’ve brought home. I won’t
leave you again until I believe you are ready to be here alone.” I
remember the only two seemas I’ve ever brought home and realize how
different she is.

Innocence emits from her.
I remind myself that unlike the others she didn’t ask to be here.
Only time will tell if she chooses to work at the club as the
others did.

I rest my hand on her knee
and resist the urge to caress her thigh. “It’s time for you to
learn what is expected of you here on Zaphin. The majority of
zaphinians are born dominant. That means we need submissive beings
to dominate. You are my submissive. My name is Din Zar TocGar. You
will call me Din or Din Zar whichever you prefer. Your position for
the moment is that of a seema, which means you are here to take
care of my house.”

I pause to let her absorb
my words before continuing. She’s nervous but that’s to be
expected. “I’ll teach you to cook zaphinian food and to clean this
home. You are also going to be taking care of the plants here and
sometimes at the club I’m part owner of. The plants are important,
they help keep the air quality to a level that actually makes us
all healthier. Humans benefit from the plants as much as any other
beings. You will also be taking care of my sexual needs. Do you
understand me so far?” I could smell her fear rise when I’d said
she was to relieve me sexually. I’m guessing she’s never had a good
lover or she’s very inexperienced. I can handle both
problems.

“
Yes,” her voice is low and
hesitant.

I can smell anxiety and
fear the strongest on her. My need to properly train her has me
hardening my gaze. “How are you supposed to address me,
seema?”

She swallows hard and
fidgets in my lap. “As Din or Din Zar.”

“
Good, now answer my
question properly.” This is a critical moment in my dominance over
her. If I show any signs of weakness she’ll be confused about her
place. That is something I can’t have.

Her body moves as she
fidgets under my stare. “Yes, Din Zar.”

I smile and stroke her
back. Now her scent reveals relief and a touch of pleasure. She
shows great promise. “Now is a good time for you to ask any
questions you want.” I watch as her facial expressions change while
she thinks about what to ask me. Worry suddenly scents the air
around her. I don’t like this smell coming from her. An enemy,
yes—her, no.

She wrings her hands for a
moment. “If I don’t work out, you know, if I’m not able to please
you, are you going to take me back to the planet you found me on
and sell me?”

The fear in her voice
causes my heart to ache for her. “No, I’ll never do that to you. If
you don’t work out in my home, you’ll get the opportunity to go
live with another Din or become a live-sex-plaything at the club.”
I suddenly realize I don’t know her name. “What’s your
name?”

“
Hallie Mead.”

She doesn’t answer me
properly but I let it slide as I feel her name sink into my heart.
Hallie is a good name for her. It’s lively and sweet.

Little lines appear
between her drawn brows. “What’s a live-sex-plaything?”

This time, I quickly
correct her. “What’s a live-sex-plaything, Din? Say it.”

She fidgets in my lap.
Pink blooms across her cheeks. “What’s a live-sex-plaything,
Din?”

My heart races a little at
the sight of her flushed cheeks. I want to see them flushed for a
different reason. A vision of her pink and moaning beneath me
flashes through my mind. Pushing down my growing desire, I answer,
“Live-sex-playthings live at Club Release. That’s the name of the
club I’m part owner of. You will become very familiar with it and
the playthings.”

I caress her back and
cover her hands with one of my own. She is a delicate thing.
Fortunately, she’s mine. Right now she needs information to fully
understand her position. “A live-sex-plaything offers sexual
release to the warriors that go to the club. Most of the time they
are dominated by zaphinians but sometimes other beings are allowed
in and the live-sex-playthings see to their needs.” A shiver races
through her and her eyes widen. Anxiety wafts from her to
me.

“
I don’t want to be a
hooker.”

“
Live-sex-playthings are
not hookers. They choose to be dominated because it pleases them.”
At her confused look, I continue, “They get pleasure from giving
pleasure. I’ll admit that live-sex-playthings usually have above
normal sexual appetites. Those appetites help the warriors of this
planet to unwind after a mission or a hard day of
training.”