Kidnapped By the Alien Prince by Tori Kellett
Chapter Three
The next time Callie opened her eyes, there was a different silver alien in her room. She knew it wasn’t Zakaarir from just looking at his back, and he seemed too still, too disciplined to be N’ameth. He was just as large height wise, but his shoulders didn’t stretch to the same width. Not sure how she knew. Maybe it was the effortless way Zakaarir had wrapped his arms around her. All that power, strength, and sheer size should have terrified her, especially waking up as bewildered and as frightened as she had, but somehow it didn’t. Somehow, Zakaarir’s arms had offered shelter and even comfort.
He must have sensed she was awake, even though Callie never moved, because he suddenly turned and smiled. “Good morning,” he said very carefully as if trying the words on for size.
“Good morning,” she replied automatically before something else occurred to her, and she propped herself up on one elbow. “How come you speak English?”
His smile widened. “I’m not.” He tapped behind his ear. “You have a small translation chip, I think you would say, that I embedded just under your skin. It is perfectly harmless,” he added, seeing Callie’s hands fly to her neck. She didn’t feel anything. He tapped his own ear. “We all have one. N’ameth had time to download your language requirements and those of the other females.”
Callie sat up. She was hungry and felt grubby. She didn’t know how long she had been in these clothes, and she had refused food last night, her head too full of bewildering new experiences to feel comfortable filling her belly.
“You look very similar to Zakaarir and N’ameth.” She didn’t say everyone because she had noticed slight skin color and hair differences in the other males as she had followed Zakaarir yesterday.
“I am Azlaan.” He bowed courteously. “I am Zakaarir’s younger and N’ameth’s older brother.”
“There are three of you?” Callie had always wanted a sister or a brother. Hell, she would have happily accepted even a cousin, but when her mom and dad were killed in a car accident by an idiot texting his girlfriend, she was left with no one. Maybe that was why she’d come to rely so heavily on Gary. No matter, it wouldn’t happen again, prince or not.
If she hadn’t been watching Azlaan closely, she would have missed it, but she saw the flash of pain he couldn’t seem to hide. “We have a fourth brother, Zak’s twin. Younger than him by seven minutes, but he and his cruiser have been missing for two seasons.”
“Oh.” Callie’s heart lurched. “I’m so sorry.”
Azlaan shrugged, but she knew it was false bravado. “He is an idiot, and likely trying the same as N’ameth but not as luckily.”
Callie nearly asked “lucky for who,” but that would have been cruel and pointless. “You mean going through a space passage?” She paused, thinking back to the TV shows she had watched. “Do you mean a wormhole?”
Azlaan seemed to ponder this. “Yes, I think they mean the same things.”
“Do you think he went to Earth?”
Azlaan shook his head. “The chances of the passage opening up in your galaxy out of billions of possibilities are astronomical.”
Callie didn’t reply immediately. She was too hung up on the thought that there were billions of galaxies, and suddenly the idea of no negotiations with Earth seemed to make more sense. She wasn’t ready to admit that out loud though.
“You must be hungry. We have the first daylight meal prepared.”
Callie was, but she really wanted to change if there was another uniform she could borrow. She had a lot more questions, but she wanted a shower. “Is there enough water on here?”
He nodded. “You are thirsty? My apologies, I—”
“No, sorry. I meant could I get a shower if you have one and if there is enough water.”
He seemed to pause a moment while he worked out what she was saying, and then his expression cleared. “You wish to cleanse?”
She nodded and picked at her grubby top, so large it was like a dress. But then if it belonged to one of them, she was surprised it didn’t resemble a tent.
He smiled. “There has been a cleansing room set up with different articles of clothing for you to help yourself from.”
“Are all the others okay?” She swung her legs off the bed. She’d only seen Lexie.
He nodded. “Perfectly, but that is the reason I am here. I have been studying healing for some time.” He offered his hand, and she clasped it as she stood. Once he was satisfied she was balanced, he let go. “If you follow me, Calista, I—”
“Callie,” Callie prompted.
He bowed. “You honor me.”
“It’s only a nickname,” she said, puzzled at the reaction.
He paused and seemed to consider the term. She guessed it was like looking through a dictionary, but so far she had understood everything they had said immediately, but then she supposed she hadn’t heard their version of slang yet. “Nicknames are only used with permission in my world. To be granted that honor is an indication of close bonds of friendship or family.”
“Oh,” Callie said, feeling foolish. She wasn’t sure about the close bonds, and for some reason thought about another large pair of hands that had held her much more closely. “Where’s Zakaarir?” The words were out before she had the chance to think about them, and she could have happily kicked herself.
Azlaan looked at her in sudden interest. “My prince is on the planet performing his duties.”
She wanted to know why they weren’t down there, or up here or whatever, but she’d ask that after the shower. Hopefully, while she ate. Callie gazed warily as they entered a much smaller room. It was clean, she had to admit, and there seemed a large selection of clothes on a small table. The shower just looked like a white box, but before she got the chance to question Azlaan, he glanced at her. “Warm or cold?”
“Hot, please,” Callie replied hopefully, and Azlaan pressed his palm against a different colored panel on the wall and asked for cleansing routine number three.
He stepped back and nodded behind him to the box. “Stand in there once you’re undressed. Any problems, just ask for me by name and the computer will link us.” He walked to the door.
“What about towels? Soap?”
Azlaan shook his head. “I’m sorry. We don’t have the capacity for a large amount of water storage on here. This cruiser is more than thirty cycles old.”
Fabulous.She was floating around space on the Titanic, although that had been new at the time, so it was hardly the right analogy. And how was she supposed to get a shower with no water? She just shrugged, and Azlaan stepped outside. She examined the door for a lock and much to her frustration couldn’t see one, so she simplified things by dragging the table over to the door, which seemed to make more noise than she liked.
“Callie?” She recognized Azlaan’s concerned voice. “Are you alright?”
She froze. “Why wouldn’t I be?” She looked around the small room. What if they had cameras? That would be creepy. And there was no way—
“Because the computer just alerted me to a sudden weight change in the room. Heavier than your footsteps. I was concerned you had fallen.”
Callie rolled her eyes. Busted. “I couldn’t work out how to lock the door.”
Gentle amusement sounded in Azlaan’s voice. “My apologies. You just ask for the door to be locked.”
“Oh,” Callie responded, feeling like an idiot.
“I am sorry,” Azlaan said, sounding genuinely regretful. “I know you have no reason to trust me or the warriors aboard this cruiser after the way you have been treated, but not one would so dishonor you or themselves by entering the cleansing room when you were using it.”
Callie desperately wanted to come back with a childish “yeah, right,” but save the obvious whole kidnapping thing, they had all treated her with respect.
“One more thing, Callie. If you speak your favorite fragrance as you enter the cleansing unit, the computer will endeavor to use that, but it must be something easily recognizable.”
Callie nodded and with determination shed the rumpled shirt and stepped into the box. Nothing happened. “Jasmine,” she said because she doubted an alien computer would recognize Deviant, which was her favorite perfume once upon a time when she had been spoiled and had money for luxuries.
Heat suffused the cubicle, and a beam of clear light started at her feet and traveled slowly up her calves. It didn’t hurt, even if it was a bit disconcerting, and she closed her eyes as it traveled higher. The faint scent of jasmine hung in the air, and she opened her eyes when the light turned off. Callie paused in astonishment and ran her hand through her hair. Not only was it clean and dry, but it felt like it had been salon conditioned. Her long hair was her one extravagance, and despite the many times she had told herself to cut it, she never had.
Feeling distinctly more human, which made her smile at the irony, she chose a pair of jeans that were maybe a little snug around her ass, smiling wryly at the lack of any underwear whatsoever, and a plain blue shirt that reminded her of Zak’s eyes.
Zak.
Well, crap. She’d better make sure she didn’t shorten his name out loud. She had the feeling he didn’t need any extra encouragement. She opened the door to see another alien she didn’t recognize. He did the bump-his-chest thing and bowed deeply. “Calista of Earth. I am honored to be your escort to daylight meal. My name is Voren.”
“I’m pleased to meet you,” Callie murmured, and he stepped back to allow her to walk through the door. She really couldn’t fault their manners—if you discounted the whole kidnapping thing again. Voren indicated she should proceed him and then gestured to a door on the left and opened it so that she could walk in. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that despite there being seating for at least twelve, there was only Azlaan present, who immediately rose as she entered.
He nodded at Voren, who banged his chest and left, closing the door behind them.
“Doesn’t that hurt after a while?” Callie asked.
It took Azlaan a moment before he caught on and grinned. “Our warriors are made of steel.”
“I bet,” Callie said and sat down. She eyed the rather strange arrangement in front of her: two black bars about six inches long that looked like you would toss them in a fire, plus a glass of water.
Azlaan winced. “I am sorry. We can only heat or cool things. We do not have the storage areas for meal preparation on here.”
Callie nodded and watched as Azlaan picked up one of his own bars and took a bite. Feeling resigned, Callie copied him. It didn’t taste awful, she allowed. To be honest, it didn’t taste of anything at all really. A bit like some of the diet bars she’d tried at home before she’d accepted her hips were always going to be the size they were. She sipped her water and made a valiant effort with at least one of them.
“If I were you, I would have a million questions, but it may be better to allow Zakaarir to answer them.”
She nodded, unsurprised, then decided to volley a few she thought she might get answered.
“That and the fact that I wouldn’t know if you told me the truth anyway.”
Azlaan jerked back as if she had slapped him. “I—I know and understand you have no reason to believe what I say, but to be called a vescht is the greatest insult you could offer an Ishtaan. Please do not use the term lightly.”
Callie took that in. “What’s a vescht?”
He swallowed. “A vescht is someone who tells untruths, scum.”
“A liar?”
He nodded and pressed his lips together. “We are all taught that a warrior’s honor is sometimes the only thing we have left, and it means a great deal. An Ishtaan warrior would be stripped of his title should such a thing be proven. He would be nameless, as would his family.”
Callie’s heart sank. She had called Zak a liar. She had noticed his reaction, but he hadn’t said a word. “Why are we still on the cruiser? The planet looks the same size today as it did yesterday, so I’m guessing we haven’t moved, and you said Zakaarir and I assume N’ameth aren’t here, so they must have gotten off somehow.”
Azlaan nodded, and Callie reveled in the flash of respect he showed, glad she seemed to be forgiven the insult. “Your quarters are being made ready. Arrangements are being quickly made. I expect you to be transported by one of our shuttles today.”
She pondered that for a moment. “Are the others okay? Is it safe for them to be unconscious for this length of time?”
“It is,” Azlaan confirmed. “But I wouldn’t want it to be much longer. We don’t have the resources on the ship to care for anything more than basic muscle movement, nutrition, respiratory and cleansing functions.”
Callie tried not to wrinkle her nose, but it took some discipline. “Tell me about your planet?”
Azlaan sighed deeply. “Ishtaan is beautiful. She has six seasons—” He used the word questioningly, and she nodded. “—and they are all in their own way amazing.” Callie smiled. Azlaan clearly loved his home. Then his smile fell. “But it isn’t what it once was. The resources in the Wet should have been saved for the Dry, but they have been squandered.” He shook himself as if he hadn’t realized what he was saying, and his smile was bright and very false. Before she could even decide whether to call him on it, a small bleep sounded from a device on his hip. He said clearly, “I am with Calista.”
The next pause was longer before a deep voice rattled off what might have been coordinates, but as Callie knew, anything science-y, which kind of included geography if she was brutally honest, had skipped her gene pool by a definitely uncharted mile. She recognized the voice, though, and was ashamed to sense her pulse skip. Sternly reminding herself she had been abducted against her will, she painted a cool expression on her face for when Azlaan focused on her. Much to her chagrin, he didn’t seem to notice as he was already getting to his feet.
“I am sorry, Callie, but we need to leave. I am aiming to transport you first so you will be there when the other females wake up.”
Callie sighed. It looked like they were making her responsible for all the women, which in a way, she could understand. Lexie had panicked, and both of the hardened, tough warriors hadn’t been much better. She just didn’t know these women. The likelihood of them having no family to miss was practically zero, and while she didn’t exactly have much of a life to miss, she thought they did.
But she guessed sitting here and worrying wouldn’t help any of them. Determined, she jumped up and decided rather than sit meekly in her room, she wanted to go see what was happening. Start her new life.