Page 66 of Ahelno
“No, no,” I said. “I told your father I don’t want it. You can have it back. I’m happy with my cottage.”
“It is still yours anyway because we are mated. All that belongs to me belongs to you.”
“Let’s not argue about this right now,” I said. “I’m tired, and I just want to go home.”
“As you wish. May I fly you?” he asked. It would be quicker, I told myself. Not that I was interested in being held by him again. Or that I thoroughly enjoyed flying with him.
“That would be ok, I guess,” I said as he scooped me up and carried me out of the Palace.
CHAPTER 50
Dakleth
I was grateful to Leo for his advice to connect to the intergalactic network and download files on humans. Not much was available regarding their planet Earth, but there was significant information about their physiology and behavior. Human females, in particular, had been trafficked for centuries. Their stories were generally unhappy ones - they were usually kept as pets or in sexual servitude - but it meant they had been studied a great deal.
Thus, I knew what to do when the first tear slid from Andie’s eye. Ptexari did not cry. If I had not already seen recordings of human females crying, I would have been perplexed at this behavior. Sadly, there were lots of videos of females crying in captivity. They often sought comfort from one another, clinging together. Humans were a very touch-oriented species, so I had pulled Andie into my lap to comfort her. Surprisingly, as her sobs subsided and I helped her clean up, I found that I had taken comfort in it as well. I was still recovering from my berserker outburst, and soothing her satisfied my inner beast. He nearly purred in satisfaction at being able to provide for our mate. It calmed me considerably. Taking care of her felt natural, right. It was my duty andprerogative as her male. Seeing her safely home, I felt a deep sense of contentment.
After she closed her door, I took flight and made my way to my estate. It was less than a centine’s flight. Not too long for my back muscles, but long enough to think through how drastically my life had changed. In nearly four weeks, I had gone from a prison camp back to the Palace. I had my first conversation with my mate. In the time since, I had spent a wonderful day with her at the ruins, rescued her from the cliffs, seen her nearly naked at the spa (which I thought about constantly), and held her as she cried.
I had been through a whirlwind of emotions, and so had she. Mine for her were simpler, I thought. I craved her with every essence of my being. I would do anything to make her happy. I still felt guilt for every harm I inflicted upon her person, but I was hopeful that she was letting me spend time with her and that she would allow me to court her.
I considered calling my steward from my wristband to let her know of my pending arrival, but decided to surprise the staff instead. I wished to see how things had been running in my absence. I had not been pleased to hear from Kashtinela that my mate was mistreated. I would be investigating those allegations thoroughly upon arrival.
The guards were alarmed when I backwinged down, then relaxed when they saw it was me. “Prince Dakleth!” they exclaimed, “We did not expect you!”
“Yes, I know. I will be staying here a few days, then returning to the Palace. Please inform the steward to have my rooms readied,” I said, striding through the front door. The security locks had never been changed, even though the estate had technically been transferred to my mate’s account.That should not be. It was beneficial for me at the moment, but did not speak well of my staff’s attentiveness to my mate.
I was already boiling as I made my way down the corridor to the security room.
“Your Highness!” Xomina exclaimed as she hurried to meet me. “Welcome home. How may I assist?”
“I have some things to do in the security room,” I said bluntly. “Bring a small meal to me there and have my rooms prepared. I shall be staying here a few days.”
“Of course, Your Highness!” Xomina gave a small bow. “I shall see to it personally.”
“Other than the meal, I do not wish to be disturbed,” I said.
“As you wish, sire,” she bowed again and scurried off. I entered the security room, and the guard stood.
“Your Highness!” he said. “How may I assist you?”
“I wish to review some of the security footage. Please leave and report to the Captain and tell him to reassign you for the rest of your shift. Report back here tomorrow as usual.”
“Of course, sire,” he said with alacrity. He gave a small bow and left the room. I sat and looked at the video feeds.
“Computer,” I said, “Rewind to show feeds starting the twenty-third day of Aeircar of last year.” That was the day I had been sentenced, and when Andie was escorted to the estate. I fast-forwarded to the afternoon when she had arrived, shuffling, looking like the walking dead as she entered the front door. She showed none of the bright curiosity I had come to know in the last few weeks. No laughter or tears, even. She simply stared straight ahead, face completely devoid of expression, as Xomina pointed out estate features, showing her to my bedroom.
Andie finally stirred as she looked around my bedroom anddeclared she would not stay there. The rejection stung, even though I understood it. Xomina ushered her to a guest room, and the fight she had previously displayed suddenly drained out of her.
Andie did not respond to any of Xomina’s inquiries or offers of food or drink. She sat on the low cushion of the bed, still staring at the wall. It hurt to see her disheveled hair and tear-stained cheeks. No one had thought to brush her hair after her ordeal. I loved her hair. The lush golden locks always reminded me of liquid sunshine. Here, seeing the tangled tresses, with bits of dirt and leaves strewn throughout as remnants of her fight with me, I sagged. I put my head in my hands. I had done this to her, put her in this state. As I forced myself to watch, I saw her crawl under the covers, curl up into a fetal position, and close her eyes. She ignored any attempts to engage in conversation. My hearts broke for her. I fast-forwarded and saw that she hardly moved. For days, she remained in bed, barely moving, eyes closed or staring blankly at the wall.
I sat for hours as I watched her, fast-forwarding, to see the days pass with little to no movement from her. The food and drink that were brought for her remained on the bedside table, untouched. Eventually, a medic came and pushed a needle into her arm to feed her intravenously. She made no sound or movement when that happened. At night, it was a different story. She thrashed, whimpered, cried out as she was plagued by nightmares. She often woke, gasping for air, tears streaming down her face. I wanted to go back in time to hold her and comfort her, but knowing that it was I she was dreaming of, and the way I had held her down as I violated her, made me ill.
I reviewed footage from the other camera feeds, which had markers for when servants nearby were engaged in conversation.
“Lazy thing,” one of the servants said.
“She’s never getting out of that bed.”
