Enthralled by Tiffany Roberts

Chapter 9

Some foodand a little more time to adjust to the situation seemed to help most of the freshly awakened survivors. Apart from Ella, whose condition remained unchanged, everyone looked a little more lucid, alert, and calm by the time they’d finished eating a mix of the jungle foods Ivy had brought and some of the rations that had been in the emergency supplies.

Even Cole had settled down, offering a mumbled apology to the group for, in his words, “Losing my cool, or whatever.”

They now had a stock of medical supplies, long-lasting food, hydration packets, blankets, jumpsuits, footwear, and several tools that could prove useful out in the jungle. That stock would be bolstered once they checked the other caches that were still accessible, though Ivy wasn’t sure whether the food and medicines in the other rooms had spoiled.

It was a start, and it would take some of the burden off Ketahn as far as having to immediately provide for seven extra people.

But that still left one big challenge for today, and it was one Ivy had dreaded more with each passing minute. It was just as Callie had said—time was giving Ivy’s imagination more space to run wild. And she’d already thought up about a million ways the first meeting between Ketahn and these bedraggled, weakened humans could go wrong.

Still, that dread wasn’t stronger than her desire to see him again, to touch him, to speak with him. Even knowing he was nearby, she missed him.

“Hey, uh…Ivy? You got a minute?” Cole asked from behind her.

Ivy turned to face him and smiled. “I might be able to spare one, but my schedule’s pretty booked.”

He chuckled and stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jumpsuit, which he’d put on as soon as they’d been passed out. If he’d tried to hide the way he ran his gaze over Ivy’s body, he failed miserably. It made her all the more aware of how little she wore in comparison to the others. She gripped the short skirt of her dress.

“Just wanted to say that I didn’t mean to get heated with you,” he said. “All the training they gave us, it really doesn’t prepare you for when shit actually goes wrong, you know?”

“I know, and I’m not holding a grudge or anything. I get it. I mean, I really get it.” Ivy glanced around the room at the other survivors, who sat quietly talking among themselves. “I had quite a rude awakening to put it lightly.”

“I can’t even imagine. A fucking alien, huh?”

Ivy looked back at Cole. He stood at least a foot taller than her, with a chiseled nose and jaw, full lips, thick eyebrows, and deep blue eyes. His athletic, broad-shouldered frame filled out his jumpsuit appealingly. He was attractive—more than attractive, he was gorgeous. But she felt nothing toward him, not even an inkling of desire.

Am I truly in love with Ketahn?

What else could it be? There was a sexy man of her own species standing in front of her and she felt nothing. Nothing.

Guess I prefer my males with multiple sets of limbs and eyes.

“Yeah, an alien,” Ivy said with a soft smile.

Cole eased closer to her; the shift in his posture made the jumpsuit pull taut over his chest and shoulders. “Well, you’re not alone anymore. I’ll look out for you. There’s nothing a little human muscle and brainpower can’t overcome, right?”

Ivy’s brows rose. “Oh. Uh, thank you, but that’s—”

There was a familiar hiss, and Ivy’s head whipped toward it—as did everyone else’s—to find the chamber door open and a big, dark, inhuman shape standing in the blood red light of the corridor. Someone screamed, maybe more than one person, and the air was instantly bristling with tension and terror.

“What the fuck?” Cole said.

Ketahn stepped into the room, and his violet eyes met Ivy’s.

She was about to take a step toward him when an arm banded around her waist and yanked her back. Cole drew Ivy against his side, turning his body toward Ketahn to shield her.

Mandibles spreading wide, Ketahn released a deep, rattling growl and strode forward, legs coming down heavily upon the floor. Several of the other humans scrambled away, their fearful cries lost to Ivy amidst the pounding of her own heart.

She pressed a hand against Cole’s chest and tried to shove away from him, craning her neck to look at Ketahn around the man holding her. “Cole, stop! It’s okay.” She thrust her other hand at Ketahn. “Ketahn, no! Don’t attack him.”

Ketahn halted. Though they seemed directed at her, Ivy knew his eyes were focused entirely upon Cole.

“What is he doing to you?” Ketahn asked in gravelly, strongly accented English.

That drew fresh gasps from the others.

“Oh my God, did it just talk?” Ella whimpered.

“I-It looks like a spider,” Ahmya stammered.

Cole’s hold on Ivy tightened, and he dragged her farther back. “Will, grab that fucking flare gun!”

“Don’t you dare!” Ivy snapped. Placing both palms on Cole’s chest, she pushed with all her might. It was enough to thrust herself out of his grip, but not without producing a sharp tear as his finger caught on her dress.

Ketahn’s mandibles snapped together with a harsh clack, and he surged forward, the fine hairs on his legs bristling. Rage radiated from him in waves. Somehow, Ivy had set herself into motion a fraction of a second before him; though breaking free from Cole’s grasp had thrown off her balance, she took advantage of her momentum, spinning and stumbling toward her mate.

She managed to insert herself between the two males just before Ketahn would’ve collided with Cole—meaning he collided with her instead.

Ivy was vaguely aware of his legs scrabbling over the floor as though he were skidding to a sudden stop. She was much more aware of the air being forced out of her lungs by the impact, but she wrapped her arms around Ketahn all the same.

All four of Ketahn’s arms enveloped her, and he lifted her off the floor. His voice was low and frantic as he spoke to her, his words tumbling out in a blend of English and his native language that she understood without having to give it a second thought—most of which came down to my mate, my heartsthread, are you all right? What have I done?

One of his hands caught her chin and tipped her head back so she met his gaze, while another smoothed over her hair. Though fury still smoldered in his eyes, it was overpowered by concern.

“Oh fuck, fuck, fuck. It’s going to eat her!” Callie cried.

He turned his face toward Callie and snarled, “Ketahn no eat Ivy!”

Though she felt as though she’d run into a concrete wall, Ivy’s lips twitched into a smirk that she promptly tried to contain as she forced herself to glare up at Ketahn. “You were supposed to wait until I called for you.”

Ketahn returned his attention to her and let out a soft huff. “Waited too long. I had to know you were safe.”

This time, Ivy allowed herself to smile fully. “I’m safe.”

“Why did that male have his arm around you?”

“He was trying to protect me. From you.”

Subtly shifting his gaze, Ketahn glared at Cole. “I protect you. Not him.”

“Yeah, well, I haven’t had a chance to tell them much about you, and you just kind of barged in here all scary-like.”

His mandibles drooped, and he hooked his thumb under her chin, grazing her skin with a claw. “You say I am not scary. I am sexy.”

Ivy’s skin flushed. “Um, yeah. To me.”

“Wait. What the— Are you fucking that thing?” Cole demanded.

She stiffened. Cold crept down her spine. Drawing back from Ketahn, she looked at Cole. “That’s none of your business. And he’s not a thing.”

Gently, Ketahn lowered Ivy to her feet, positioning himself so his body was blocking her from Cole. He didn’t take his hands off her. “She is my mate.”

“He’s a giant…bug,” Diego said.

Everyone stared at Ivy and Ketahn, their expressions etched with horror, disgust, awe, and uncertainty. Ivy hadn’t even considered what the others might think about her interactions with Ketahn. But no matter what they thought of her in that instant, Ivy refused to feel ashamed of what she felt for Ketahn. They didn’t know him like she did. They didn’t know the things he’d done for her, the things he was willing to sacrifice. They didn’t know the things he was willing to do for them.

She understood their fear, their repulsion. But she would not allow them to make her feel sinful.

“I am vrix,” Ketahn said firmly. “And I will make you lessons to survive.”

“This is the alien you talked about?” Callie asked.

“He is,” Ivy said. “His name is Ketahn.”

Callie’s dark, rounded eyes ran over Ketahn’s form. “When you said he was different, I never would have thought he’d be this different.”

Ivy gave Ketahn a sidelong glance. “I didn’t get a chance to prepare you for what you’d see.”

“I don’t know what you could’ve said that would’ve prepared us for…this,” said Will. “I-I mean, for him.”

Cole looked at the others, his brows furrowed. “Are you all seriously going to ignore the fact that she’s fucking that thing? It’s a damn spider!”

“Not spider,” Ketahn growled, leaning toward Cole with his mandibles flaring. “Vrix.”

Ivy made to step forward, but was held back by Ketahn, whose fingers flexed possessively around her waist. She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Look”—she dropped her arm to her side—“what I do with Ketahn has nothing to do with our survival on this world. And it doesn’t matter how different he looks, because he is the only one who can teach us how to survive here. To find a safe place to live. To thrive.

“Right now, there are…problems among Ketahn’s people. So we all need to put aside whatever hang ups we might have and work together, because we don’t have a lot of time before we need to be on the move.”

“The hell do you mean?” Cole asked. Though he’d backed farther away, his eyes were fixed on Ketahn. “This place right here is our best bet. We have shelter and supplies here. We’re not going anywhere, especially not with that thing.”

“Your supplies are limited, and this place is going to be flooded soon.”

“Flooded?” Diego asked.

“We’re at the bottom of an impact crater right now,” Ivy said. “There are parts of the ship that are already flooded, and probably have been for years. And the rainy season is already starting. Even if the water doesn’t reach all the way to this room, once it floods, it’s going to be incredibly dangerous to get in and out of this ship.”

“Then w-what are we going to do?” Lacey asked.

Ketahn drew in a deep breath, and there was a low, drawn-out rumbling in his chest. “You will make strength and be ready for travel. I will protect you until you can protect yourself.”

Cole scowled. “I can take care of myself, thanks.”

“Dude, will you just shut up already?” Callie said, glaring at Cole.

Diego shook his head. “We don’t even know what’s out there. Crazy as this is…Ketahn might be all we have right now.”

“You’re just going to trust that monster with your lives? Just like”—Cole snapped his fingers—“that?”

“Ivy looks like she’s doing pretty damn good, so yeah,” Callie said.

“You going to fuck a bug too?”

“You son of a—”

Will caught Callie by her shoulders, but that didn’t stop the woman from pressing her lips together and shooting Cole a death glare.

“It isn’t worth it,” Will said quietly.

Callie stared at Cole a little longer before she huffed, nodded, and turned away, moving to sit against the wall.

“It is time for you to close your lips and be silent,” Ketahn said in a measured but warning tone. “You will see what is outside this place soon. The jungle does not care about your big words. It does not care how far you traveled. It does not care that you come from the stars. All of you are small, and soft, and weak. Alone, you will not live.”

“Is…this supposed to be a pep talk?” asked Lacey.

Ketahn turned his face down toward Ivy, tilting his head. “What does that mean, my nyleea?”

“Um, a pep talk is kind of like…trying to make someone feel brave and confident?” Ivy brushed a palm down his arm. “But I think you’re just scaring them.”

He grunted, mandibles dipping, before he looked back toward the others. “I…believe in you, humans.”

Callie snort-laughed and covered her face with her hand. “Unbelievable.”

Ivy caught her bottom lip with her teeth and tried to stop herself from smiling.

She failed.

Ketahn glanced between Callie and Ivy, a hint of uncertainty in his eyes. “What?”

“Nothing,” Ivy said.

“Yeah, nothing,” Cole grumbled. “I wish this was all a fucking joke.”

Ignoring Cole, Ivy extracted herself from Ketahn’s hold and made her way to the bags on the floor next to Ahmya. She crouched, stuffed the empty waterskins into the bags, and closed them.

Ahmya settled a trembling hand upon Ivy’s forearm. “Are…are you really okay?”

Ivy looked at the woman, but Ahmya’s dark, fearful eyes were focused on Ketahn. “Ahmya, look at me.”

Ahmya slowly dragged her gaze to Ivy.

“Do I look hurt?” Ivy asked.

Ahmya shook her head. “No. It’s just…just…” Her gaze flicked toward Ketahn. “He looks…”

“I know. He scared me in the beginning too. But I promise you, he is kind. He’d never hurt me.”

Withdrawing her hand, Ahmya cradled it against her chest and looked down. “I’m terrified of spiders. E-even the tiny fuzzy ones with big eyes. And he’s…”

“Big and scary?” Ivy suggested gently.

The dark-haired woman nodded. Her skin was pale but for blotches of color on her cheeks. These people hadn’t been out of stasis for nearly long enough to be processing all this, but as always, it came down to time—and how little of it remained. Ketahn had intrigued the queen enough to earn eight days of respite. But by that eighth day, they needed to be far, far away from here.

“I know what he looks like, but really, Ahmya…he’s not a spider, and he doesn’t mean you or anyone else here any harm. It’s asking a lot, but I need you to trust him. Or…at least trust me enough to follow him. I know we’re not close friends or anything, that we hardly know each other, but me and Ketahn are just trying to help everyone.”

Ketahn’s stride was slow and heavy as he moved to Ivy; it was always a deliberate choice when he walked like that, because normally his steps were silent no matter how quick his pace. He stopped beside her—in front of Ahmya—and eased down, folding his legs to drop his underside onto the floor. Though that didn’t mask his size, it put his head far closer to the level of Ivy’s.

Ahmya sucked in a sharp breath and drew her legs to her chest.

“I do not want to scare,” he said with gentleness in his deep voice, “only to protect. Ivy is my mate. You are her kind. So you are my kind, too.”

The woman nodded.

Ivy smiled and handed Ketahn one of the bags. He accepted it and backed away, providing Ahmya some space.

Rising to her feet, Ivy slipped her arms through the straps of the other pack. “We’ll be back, okay?”

“Wait, what are you doing?” Lacey asked, eyes rounding. “Are you leaving right now?”

“My mate dens with me,” Ketahn rumbled, wrapping one of his lower arms around Ivy’s middle and drawing her close.

Cole curled his lip and turned away.

“You have some supplies here and plenty of food left over,” Ivy said. “We’ll…let you all rest and think everything over.”

“So you just wake us up and leave?” Cole asked.

“Really, man, what is your problem?” demanded Callie. “Would you rather she left us in those pods to die?”

“Please,” Ivy breathed, “please, let’s not be at each other’s throats. This is hard on all of us, okay? But I promise you, with Ketahn’s help, we can all get through this. It’s not the fresh start we all envisioned, but…but it’s something, right? We’re alive. All we can do is our best. We’re going to make mistakes, but as long as we make them together, we’ll be okay.”

“Yeah, she says that as she leaves,” Cole snapped.

“Why don’t you go take a nap or something, man?” Diego said; he was still beside Ella’s pod, once again checking her pulse. “You’re acting like a cranky toddler.”

Anger sparked in Cole’s eyes, but he clenched his fists and seemed to swallow it down. He nodded repeatedly. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. This is a lot. It’s a fucking lot.” He turned away from the others and stalked toward the far end of the room, where he sat with his back against the wall.

Ivy frowned. She hadn’t expected any of this to be easy, and she’d never thought of herself as a leader in any capacity—especially not now—but she’d known that action needed to be taken. If things continued this way, though… The greatest threat to the humans would be each other.

“We all, um, internalize things like this differently,” she offered, “and you guys are still foggy from stasis. Get some rest, cut each other some slack, and we’ll discuss all this again when we’re feeling better, okay?”

“Yeah,” Will said, putting on a tired smile. “Thanks, Ivy.”

“You’ll be back soon?” Ahmya asked, flicking another uncertain glance at Ketahn.

Ivy’s frown only deepened. “As soon as I can.”

“Tomorrow,” Ketahn said. “We will return tomorrow.”

“Are we safe in here?” asked Lacey.

“Given the state of this room versus the amount of time that’s passed, I’d say we’re okay. It’d look a hell of a lot rougher otherwise,” said Callie.

“The alien got in here,” Cole called from the other side of the room.

“Nothing else will,” Ketahn said, exchanging a brief, solemn glance with Ivy. “You are safe here.”

The humans—minus Cole—said their goodbyes, and Ivy’s attention lingered on Ella even as Ketahn led her to the door. For all the hope that had swelled in her heart knowing there were seven more survivors and that she had a chance to help them, there was a dark shadow cast there, too. She was determined to see these people through whatever ordeals awaited them. She was ready to face any hardships necessary to ensure their survival.

But even barely knowing them, Ivy wasn’t sure if she could face the very real possibility that in a day, a week, a few months, there’d be fewer human faces on this planet. She’d awoken these people…could she bear it if she lost any of them?

She clung to Ketahn as they made their way off the Somnium, desperately shoving aside those dreaded what-ifs by focusing on his scent, his warmth, his solidness.

And she refused to acknowledge the most dreadful possibility of all—that she’d lose Ketahn before all this was done.