The Spawning (6 page)

As aware as she was that he was examining her with a thoroughness that couldn’t possibly miss any flaws, her own focus was on him.

He wasn’t just human-like in a vague sort of way, she realized with a strange

sense of unreality, of being outside herself and oddly detached. His individual features were pleasingly shaped and proportioned and formed a whole that was inescapably handsome—remarkably appealing—breathtakingly attractive.

She was completely certain she’d never seen a human male any more, or even
as
handsome, or as thoroughly devastating to her senses.

Reluctant, vaguely disbelieving of her senses or at least her perception of them, she studied his features again, the slash of straight, black brows above his deep set eyes, the exotic shape and tilt of his eyes, the long, straight bridge of his nose that ended in compact but slightly flared nostrils, the strong cheek bones beneath his eyes, the narrow lips that formed his hard mouth. She couldn’t find fault, though, either with their initial appeal to her or her perceptions.

The ears were intriguing, though she couldn’t see them that well when he was

looking directly at her—as well proportioned as everything else about him, set close to his head—but pointed, elf-like, though there damned sure wasn’t anything else about him that was the least bit elf-like.

His shoulders stuck out on either side of his head at hard right angles, straight and strong, without a hint of a weak slope. His chest was downright massive, impossibly broad, the muscles as well formed and defined as a body builder who focused diet and exercise to achieve anything approaching what she knew, absolutely, was natural to him.

His arms were no less endowed. She thought the bulging muscle of his upper arm was probably as big in circumference as her thigh—and her thighs weren’t skinny by any means.

She’d allowed her fascination in him to lead her gaze downward, along the

THE SPAWNING Kaitlyn O’Connor 25

rippling muscles of his belly to the disconcertingly impressive bulge of his sex before she caught herself and looked away.

He didn’t seem to have any such reservations, she discovered. He examined

everything exposed—which was most of her despite her efforts to cover herself with her arms, hands, and legs—with the same piercing intensity as he had her face.

Wryly, she thought she should appreciate the fact that he at least seemed
as
fascinated with her face as he was her body.

A frown twitched his dark brows together when his gaze settled at last on her

ankle, though. Reaching toward her, he curled his hand around the chain that bound her, tightening it until she saw his knuckles whiten with the pressure.

For a moment, pure rage contorted his features, but fear had barely hit her when he erased the expression. Lifting his head, he studied her a moment longer and then glanced down the line of women until his searching gaze found the lizard-man.

Straightening to his full height, he approached the lizard-man.

She saw when he stopped before the other alien that she hadn’t been far off in her guess about his height. The lizard-man was around six feet tall and the other alien topped him by half a head.

“What manner of beings are these?” he asked the lizard-man, gesturing toward

them with his hand.

Total shock rippled through Miranda when she realized she could understand him.

She felt the same shock vibrate through the other women, saw it in their faces when they met her gaze.

The lizard-man almost seemed to smile. “Earth females.”

Another jolt of surprise went through Miranda—not because she’d understood

him. The robots had obviously been programmed with their language, which certainly suggested the aliens who’d programmed them knew it. It wasn’t even because he sounded like the robots—as if he was using some mechanical device to translate.

It was the fact that he knew
exactly
what they were. How could he know they called their world Earth when he hadn’t, as far she knew, questioned a single one of them? The robots hadn’t.

The language, she supposed, he might have collected and translated through

broadcasts, but the chances seemed remote that he would’ve learned in that way that their world was called Earth.

“Why are they chained?”

There was menace in the question, and it was obvious the lizard-man detected it at once. He shrugged in an uncannily human gesture. “They are slaves—purchased for trade,” he added hastily. “I couldn’t allow them to wander off into the jungle and get eaten.”

A furious denial instantly sprang to Miranda’s lips, but never emerged.

“Purchased? Or stolen? They didn’t come with you willingly or there’d be no

need for chains,” the alien growled.

The lizard-man’s eyes narrowed. “I’m an honest trader,” he said somewhat

defensively. “I traded for them. Their government was happy to take the technology I offered in return for them. If you will look, you will see they are all healthy, breedable females. They were tagged for me for pick up. I was told exactly where to find them and when to look, otherwise I couldn’t have collected such an exquisite selection so quickly THE SPAWNING Kaitlyn O’Connor 26

or so easily.” He shoved his hand into one of the pockets of his space suit and produced a handful of colorful strips that Miranda instantly recognized as the wristbands the clubs commonly used.

She stared at them in dawning horror as what he’d claimed slowly sank into her mind and completely obliterated the urge she’d felt to furiously deny his lies. A wave of nausea washed over her, but she wasn’t certain if it was rage that inspired it or recognition of a completely unacceptable truth.

The black haired alien turned to survey them, his expression eloquent of distaste.

“Their own people sold them?”

“I have a bill of sale if you would like to see it—though, of course it’s in their language. The Vernamin will vouch for me. It was they who suggested the Hirachi might be interested in acquiring females. I was told to speak with Khan, the leader. May I assume that you are he?”

He stiffened and turned to look at the trader. “We trade with the Vernamin. It does not follow that we either trust them or consider them friends. You would’ve been better informed of our needs if you had approached us first.”

Turning from the trader, he strode down the line of women again. Reaching

Miranda, he bent down, caught her upper arms, and hauled her to her feet before she could even assimilate what he had in mind. He stared down at her, his expression grim, though something flickered in his eyes that seemed to belie the contempt in his hard expression. “They are … pigmies! This one is not much more than waist high to me and some are even smaller!” He curled his fingers around her upper arm, spanning it and then some. “Weak—strange to my eyes. I am certain they are beautiful to their own kind—but not as beautiful as our own women! Not strong, capable of bearing strong warriors. Mayhap not even breedable for the Hirachi at all!”

The trader looked disconcerted and then angry. “I was told you would find them appealing.”

“They lied to you!” Khan growled.

“They
are
compatible for breeding,” the trader insisted. “Many have already bred with Hirachi males and produced good stock! They appealed to other Hirachi males …

and I have seen to it that they can speak the Hirachi tongue and understand.”

Khan’s gaze flew to the woman’s face—the woman that made him lightheaded

just looking at her, that he’d chosen to use as an example purely for the fact that it would give him the opportunity to touch her as he’d so desperately wanted to—that he’d just thoroughly insulted. Never, that he could recall, had he so effectively made such a complete ass of himself. He felt his face heat with acute discomfort as he studied her expression and found confirmation of the trader’s claim that he wasn’t particularly fucking delighted with at the moment. Briefly, he scanned his memory to discover just how damning his remarks had been, but he didn’t get far before he realized he didn’t particularly
want
to remember what he’d said when he’d thought there was no way any of the women would understand him.

Dragging his gaze from the woman, he focused on the trader again with an effort.

“The spawning is not a time when a Hirachi male thinks with his brain,” he growled uncomfortably. “If creatures such as these were all that were available ….”

“Not such as these …
just
like these. It took a great deal of time and effort to track them to the source. They were thoroughly examined and tested to assure quality THE SPAWNING Kaitlyn O’Connor 27

and also that they were
exactly
the same as the others genetically so there could be no doubt that they were compatible for breeding.”

“Why did you not track our own females?” Khan demanded testily, reluctantly

releasing his grip on the woman’s arm and striding away from her when pulling her closer held a lot more appeal and he began to realize that temptation might get the best of him.

Something flickered in the lizard-man’s eyes as Khan joined him once more, but he merely shrugged. “I tried. The Sheloni would not barter for the location of the world they stole the Hirachi from.”

Unable to resist, Khan turned to study the women assessingly, his gaze moving

with a will of its own to the red headed one he coveted so much he could taste it in every pore, so much he was having a hell of a gods damned time trying to maintain even a semblance of only mild interest. “To whom do you mean to trade them if we have no interest?”

The trader studied them through narrowed eyes that made him wonder just how

successful he’d been in hiding his absolute fascination. When he spoke, though, Khan felt himself relax fractionally—briefly.

“They do appear a weak lot. I’m not certain they would be of much use to anyone for labor. I suppose I would have to see if any of the other tribes of Hirachi on this world were interested and, if they are not, then I will have to settle them in a brothel somewhere. They have a certain appeal, you will admit, despite their strangeness. I would not mind fucking one myself—though, of course, they are completely unsuitable for breeding for my people.”

Khan’s expression tightened. “Is this all that you have?”

“There were a few that were diseased and had to be disposed of. Which part do you find least appealing? The size or the color? I believe they come in other colors. I only selected these because their own people assured me the light ones were most desirable. They may have steered me wrong. I had not considered that. They seemed honest enough and eager to trade. I should have considered that they might want to unload the most abundant, or least desirable. I’m certain that I can find at least a few that are sturdier, perhaps a bit taller, although these seem to be average for their species.

Would you prefer I collect another selection and return with them?”

Miranda couldn’t quite interpret the look Khan bent upon the trader, but it seemed to make the trader uneasy.

“What would you require in trade?”

The trader turned to study the bins. “One load of
jasumi
for the lot of them?”

Khan’s face tightened. “Those are promised already to the Vernamin—three

bins—and we have not even reached full quota yet.”

The lizard-man licked his lips. “A half a load then … since I can see these are not just what you want. I will bring a better selection when I come again and more, and then, perhaps, we can discuss a full load?”

Khans hands clenched and unclenched as if he was contemplating wrapping them

around the trader’s neck. He leaned closer. “It is the custom among the Hirachi that the females
chose
the males,” he said in a low growl through clenched teeth. “The only thing more repellent to the Hirachi than an unwilling female is
slavery
, trader.”

The trader looked uneasy, but he managed an off-handed shrug. “Next time I will THE SPAWNING Kaitlyn O’Connor 28

be certain to bring
volunteers
,” he said with an oily smile. “And be assured that I will see to it that they are far more desirable.”

THE SPAWNING Kaitlyn O’Connor 29

Chapter Three

“He is a trader,” Khan growled when he met the questioning gazes of the men that had congregated at the far side of the compound, waiting for word regarding the interlopers.

He debated for a moment whether he could master the urge to pace off his

agitation, but finally sat down to face the others, wryly certain that he would find the calm he needed if he put his back to the timid little creatures behind him.

“With slaves to sell,” Gerek said flatly, drawing his attention.

Khan’s lips tightened. “With slaves to sell,” he affirmed grimly.

Gerek’s expression twisted with disgust. “The slimy bastard!”

“Are they as strange looking up close?” Teron asked, struggling to keep his voice and his expression neutral when the truth was he’d barely been able to contain the urge to move closer to see them better.

Khan met the other man’s gaze, wrestling with his reaction to the females—the

one of the red hair most particularly. “In face and form they are very like our own females, despite the strange color of their skin, their eyes, and their hair,” he said finally.

Teron’s brows rose. “What color are their eyes?”

Khan frowned, but for the life of him all he could recall was the color of one pair of eyes—green. “All different,” he muttered finally, recalling that he’d noticed that much, at least, primarily because it was as strange as they were. Why would they all have different colored eyes? “You can see for yourself. Go to the trader and tell him I sent you to examine the females. I didn’t see any sign that he’d beaten them, but they’re all bruised and scraped up—obviously not well cared for even if they were not

deliberately mistreated. You should make certain none of them have injuries that need to be treated.”