Page 10 of Redeeming Captivity (Human Pets of Talin #7)
Chapter 10
Tarquin
Tarquin waited until after Lena finished eating her morning meal before giving her the bad news.
“I have to attend a meeting today. I’ll be gone for most of the day.”
Lena frowned at him. She reached out and grabbed the middle fingers of his left hand and held tight. “No.”
“I don’t want to go either,” he confessed. “I find Jafinium abhorrent, but I have to pretend to keep doing my job. I’ve already requested to be picked up early, but that might take a few rotations. While we wait I need to continue the ruse of inspection.”
She tilted her head with curiosity. He easily interpreted the gesture.
“Coming here as an envoy inspector on a surprise inspection of the base and joint Talin-Ossiso military venture was only ever a secondary goal,” he explained. “My primary mission was to check on you. I’m only sorry Holian wasn’t able to send me sooner.”
The Committee of Pet Welfare stopped getting updates on her wellbeing a solar and a half ago. Someone should’ve been sent right away, but Jafinium had enough powerful allies to keep that unnoticed until Holian got an anonymous tip. So many institutions and individual Talins failed Lena that she deserved her anger.
Inexplicably, she didn’t rage at him. She smiled and brought his hand to her lips for a kiss.
“You’re far too forgiving,” he murmured, his rumble dipping down into the deeper sexual thrumming.
She waved a hand to the side, as if dismissing his compliment, then kissed his hand again. It was a clear indication that she only forgave him, not anyone else.
She didn’t just forgive him, but she loved him.
Even after spending time among the human-Talin couples of Sorana, he never thought a human would pick him. It was an indication that the ancestors favored him and his pursuits.
As much as he wanted to remain with Lena, he had to leave soon.
“I could take you with me, but Jafinium and other soldiers will be there,” he explained. She jerked and hissed. “No, I didn’t think you’d like that. I’ve already given you control of the door. You can open and close it at will. You’ll be safe here.”
She looked around the room disapprovingly. It was evident she didn’t want to stay in here without him. He’d spent a good portion of the night thinking about the problem and believed he might have a solution.
“I noticed a spot on yesterday's walk. It could be made into a comfy spot for you,” he said. “You’d have to stay there the entire time I’m gone. That means trusting me to come back for you.”
She tilted her head and pointed out the open door at the foot path they’d taken yesterday to town.
“Yes, about a quarter of a kie-field down the path,” he agreed. “It’s a shelter spot between two tall boulders. I could make you a nice little hidden bed there. If we do this, can I trust you not to leave it?”
She raised an eyebrow with a frown then tilted her head while pulling it back. It took him a moment, but he realized she was asking if she had to stay put in extreme situations.
“If you’re in danger, of course you can leave,” he agreed. “I’d hope you’d come back here. But I know you’ll do whatever is prudent.” After the words were out of his mouth, he realized what an idiot he was. “We bought two information squares yesterday and one of them has messaging capabilities. I’ll sync it with my Ident and we can message each other. That way you can find a different place to shelter and simply contact me so I know where to find you.”
Leaning over, he plucked the square out of the bag of purchases he hadn't emptied from yesterday. They’d been too busy last night with dinner then enjoying other pursuits to bother going through all the things they’d bought.
After making love twice, Lena slept the entire night without a single nightmare. He wasn’t so foolish as to think he’d found a cure, but it did make his ego balloon to know he’d not only given her pleasure but sound sleep for at least one night.
It took a while to sync the square and his Ident with only one hand, but eventually they both chimed in unison and displayed waiting message boxes.
“You’re now Envoy Ambassador Yomul,” he explained, handing her the square. “She’s on a ship heading to a station not far from here and should be close enough at the moment to send me messages. Since I’m an envoy inspector and this is my first assignment, she could conceivably be checking in on me to make sure I’m doing my job.”
She accepted the tech and stared at the empty message box. Balancing the square on her leg, her hand flew over the small universal character stack to type out a message. Faster than he thought possible, his Ident pinged. Lifting it, he read her message.
Envoy Inspector please contact me at your soonest availability. I have several questions about your inadequate procedural outline for your evaluation of Standing General Jafinium.
He was startled by how easily she’d adopted the tone and cadence of a formal message from a superior about to reprimand a subordinate.
“That’s an excellent message to send if you feel uncomfortable. If you’re in imminent danger, simply send an ‘urgency’ request.”
She tapped the few keys required to make the system light up the entire box with URGENCY until he cleared it.
With a smile and a nod, she looked down and her fingers flew across the small character stack and wrote out another message.
I expect to have your full attention once you’re done with this current assignment.
He sounded a rumble of amusement. “Yes, you absolutely will.”
He wasn’t certain, but he might have scent-bonded with her already. He shouldn’t have done so while on this planet and in potential danger, but once she’d said that magical word “love” he’d lost all common sense.
Now all the epic romantic poetry about scent-bonding made so much more sense. It was an impossible impulse to control. Especially around someone as special and perfect as Lena!
The ancestors must understand and that’s why they made sure all this happened.
Lena
The spot Tarquin led her to wasn’t bad. It was far enough away from the path that no one would accidentally stumble on her. It was also a little bit of a scramble over loose rocks and small boulders, another deterrent to the casual walker. Not that walking around on this planet was common, but when all the transports were busy, the soldiers would use the footpaths instead.
Tarquin tried to carry her, but she insisted on using her own feet. She needed to know how difficult it would be to get to the spot. It turned out to be easier for her than Tarquin.
She could fit between the rocks where he had to climb over. Once they were between the boulders he’d found, she realized that there was no way he’d seen them from the walking path yesterday. He must’ve spent a good portion of the night going over a topical map while she’d slept.
He’d known she wouldn’t stay in the room without him and planned accordingly. It warmed her heart to know he understood her and knew how to make her feel comfortable and safe.
The spot was a good size and she could easily fit lengthwise between the two boulders if she wanted to. She was shaded by the sun because one of the boulders was leaning on the other, creating a nice shelter.
“I need to make sure they’re steady first,” Tarquin said, making her stay back while he pushed against the leaning boulder in several different places. The thing was solid. She almost giggled when he climbed up and jumped up and down on it, making her think of her little sister playing on a stump when they were young.
Satisfied it was safe, he jumped down and started unpacking all the items he’d brought. Along with several canisters of water and almost all the bedding, he’d grabbed the entire bag of purchases from yesterday. She doubted she’d need most of it, but it was nice that he wanted her to have all this stuff to stay entertained.
Honestly, she was more eager to have some alone time with the larger information square. It had a basic processing program so she could quickly type or dictate the stories she’d developed in her head over the last two years. The characters from her imagination had become her friends and the only things that kept her sane. She wanted to do right by them and record their stories. She’d probably never share them; Talins didn’t have much interest in fiction, especially the fanciful things going on in her head.
“This should be as good as the mat back in our room,” Tarquin said as he put down a base layer to smooth out the ground made up of small stones between the boulders. The base layer hissed as it spread out and fluffed up. Then he shook out the blankets he’d brought and finally unbundled the pillows. She was shocked at how much he was able to tie together. By the time he was done, she had a nest almost as fluffy as the one back in the barrack.
Unlatching the boots, she toed out of them and stepped into the nest. She smiled up at Tarquin as she settled down then patted the spot next to her.
“I wish I could join you, but if I don’t leave soon, I’ll be late,” he said. “The sooner this meeting and inspection of the grounds begins, the sooner it will end.”
She nodded and stood back up, stepping to the edge of the nest and wrapping her arms around Tarquin’s waist. He had to hunch over to fit in the space, so he was already in a perfect position to wrap his arms around her and lower his shoulders over her head. She sighed with happiness as he rubbed his cheeks into her hair, filling the air with the scent of caramel.
Tarquin’s Ident chimed, reminding them he had to leave.
“I love you,” she whispered, astonished at how easily those words slipped past her lips without conscious thought. She opened her mouth to say more, but nothing else came out. What was wrong with her?
“The words will come when they’re ready,” he reminded her, sensing her frustration. “You are the most perfect human to ever exist, brave Lena. I don’t know if Talins know how to love as humans do, but I’ve bound my soul to you. Without you, I’ll die, and I wouldn't want it any other way.”
His words were both heartfelt and a little disturbing. What did he mean he bound his soul to her? Was dying without her hyperbole or sincere?
Another chime sounded from his Ident and this one seemed almost angry. Pulling away, Tarquin sounded a purring rumble. “I’ll be back soon. Send a message every mark so I know you’re well and safe. Don’t forget to use Urgency if there’s an emergency.”
She nodded her head and he turned and leaped onto a nearby boulder, and with another bound, he was out of sight.
Fluffing pillows against one of the boulders, she settled down to look up some things about Talins before she started recording her stories. She had questions, and hopefully the base's unibase might have some answers.