Talent For Trouble (13 page)

And they’d seen her after. When she was too damaged to move and close to death. And since most of this crew had been on that voyage, they had all been affected by the shattering of the crystal.

Most of them probably should have stayed on Geneth Mar, continuing to learn about their new abilities and levels of power, but everyone from the old crew—with the exception of the former captain of the
Circe
and his new bride—had signed on for Darak’s maiden voyage as captain and newly minted StarLord. Agnor, in particular, probably should have stayed behind. His increase in power was still not fully understood. He’d started the previous voyage as a Specitar, and while he remained one, he was able to do so much more than he could have previously.

Specitars usually fit somewhere between Mages and Mage Masters in overall strength, but excelled only in specialized areas. Agnor’s specialty was telepathy. Even before the change, he could reach farther with his mind than almost anyone, except perhaps Shas and most Viziers, but his other psychic skills were not that strong, except perhaps his cognition. He had developed his mental processes—influenced by the telepathy—so that he could solve scientific problems faster than most computers, using human intuition that comps just didn’t have.

Jana had learned that Specitars were given seats on the Mage Council but also had their own Board of Specitars, which was a subsection of the Council devoted to scientific and technological matters. Agnor also served a special function aboard the
Circe
. He was there to send telepathic messages directly back to Geneth Mar. There was no known way to intercept such messages, which made them utterly secure.

But distance was still a factor. At least it had been on that last voyage. After the psi wave, Agnor’s telepathic reach had extended far beyond anything anyone had seen before. He’d been able to ‘path directly back to their home planet from half a galaxy away, without using the relay Talents employed and stationed around the galaxy by Geneth Mar’s intelligence service. Agnor had ‘pathed directly to the Grand Vizier, Darak’s Uncle Brandon, right after the change, and it had raised many eyebrows.

Agnor should still probably be back on Geneth Mar, being tested and examined. His was a rare Talent, among so many Talented people. Just as Micah and Jeri were now cosseted Shas, Agnor, too, should probably be receiving similar treatment, but he had steadfastly refused to give up his position as science officer and comm tech on the
Circe
. Underneath the ascetic exterior and formal robes of the Specitar, Agnor seemed to have an adventurer’s heart.

And he was as horny as the rest of these Council folk. More than once, Jana had seen him balls deep in one of the female crewmembers. He hid a very lean, muscular body under those robes, and Jana was embarrassed to admit she had taken notice. She explained away her fascination with watching him fuck Seta in the rec room as the shock of realizing the tall man was hiding quite a physique under those concealing robes of his. And, if her ladyparts seemed to twinge in…yearning? That couldn’t be possible. Could it?

Jana had turned away from that particular scene, both confused and embarrassed. She’d gone to her cabin and tried in vain to sleep for what seemed like hours. When she finally emerged from her room the following shift, she was tired and out of sorts. Darak left her alone, for once, not commenting on her mental state—which she was certain he knew. He was still shielding her when she wasn’t in her cabin, and he had to pick up on her frazzled energy.

The cabin was the only place of true privacy for her. She was able to engage a reflective field, which would not allow anyone to use psi energy without a great deal of pain. She was safe within the field. Safe from the murmuring voices of the collective. Safe from the empathic senses of the rest of the crew—particularly Darak. Just…safe.

But it really was all just an illusion. She was in a small ship, hurtling through space, possibly headed into danger. The future was uncertain. They were on a Council mission, and that could mean just about anything. Jana hadn’t been told the specifics of Darak’s orders. She didn’t need to know them. All she had to do was play her part, as requested, when the time came.

She didn’t know what that would entail exactly, but she had agreed to help the Council and aid Darak in his mission. She had switched allegiances. Not that she’d ever had a choice in her allegiance to the collective. They’d simply demanded. At least the Council had asked nicely.

Jana wasn’t quite sure what they would have said, or done, it she had refused. For her sister’s sake, and for her own, she really had no other choice than to become a good little citizen of the Council. Jana had nowhere else to turn. The only family she had left in the entire universe was her sister. So, where Jeri went, Jana would follow. They’d been separated long enough as it was.

* * *

Frustration wasn’t something that Darak handled well. In fact, he couldn’t remember a time in his life where he’d been under more pressure and unable to accomplish what he’d set out to do. In this case, all he really wanted was to help Jana recover fully. And, for a citizen of a Council world, full recovery included sex. Lots and lots of sex.

But Darak had to tread lightly with Jana. She’d been through things that the vast majority of people on Council worlds never experienced. With the level of Talent all around on every Council world, the empaths and telepaths, sensitives and telekinetics, rapists never got very far in their plans before somebody became aware and did something about it.

Jana’s case was unique in Darak’s experience. He knew how to heal her physical wounds, but the mental ones made him feel just a bit out of his depth. He’d spent a lot of time with the mind healer, asking questions and trying to learn as much as he could before they left Geneth Mar, but it didn’t feel like enough. He’d been counseled to watch and wait for Jana to make the first move. She had to be Darak’s guide. She had to decide when she was ready to take the next steps of her road to full recovery.

So, when he’d come upon her watching Agnor fuck Seta senseless in the rec room one evening, he’d held back in the corridor and watched her reaction. She hadn’t run away. Not at first. No, Darak had been surprised to note that Jana had stayed in the doorway, watching the oblivious couple for a few very long minutes.

The expression on her face had been hard to decipher. Darak had viewed her from the side, stationed farther down the hall where she couldn’t see him, so he could see her profile. Her eyes had widened, and her mouth opened in shock, but before too long, curiosity had replaced surprise, though her cheeks had flamed with heat. She was embarrassed by what she saw, but also intrigued.

Darak took that as a hopeful sign—until she’d fled.

He gave a great deal of thought to how he should handle her. She seemed tired and cranky. He didn’t want to push her so off balance that she lashed out. He didn’t want her hatred. Far from it. So, he decided to let any teasing he otherwise would have engaged in with any other crewmember, pass without comment. Something was building—changing—within her, and he didn’t want to stifle it in any way. If she was finally ready to come out of her shell, he wanted to do all he could to encourage it.

Which is why, the very next day, he arranged something that might just push her to the next level.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Darak had taken great care in organizing the crew schedule, with the full endorsement and cooperation of the bridge crew. In particular, he arranged a nice long double shift for Sita, to get her into the nighttime rotation, so she could keep a better eye on the yeoman crewmembers that were running the graveyard shift. It was something they had intended to do all along, but hadn’t quite gotten there, yet. Now was as good a time as any and had the added benefit of creating a scenario that might be beneficial to Jana’s recovery.

Or not. Darak didn’t know how this was going to turn out. He might just be pushing too hard.

But one thing was for certain—he couldn’t go on with this incredible level of frustration eating at him. He had to try something. It would either work or fail miserably, but at least they’d be moving in a direction—forward or back, he just wasn’t sure.

Seta sat her double shift, making a great show of yawning and stretching as Darak and Jana stepped onto the bridge, ready to start their own daytime shift. Day and night were merely conveniences used to help the crew keep track of time, but the terms were ambiguous when you were on a spaceship, jogging from star to star.

“Good morrow, Seta, how goes the night shift?” Darak asked, unable to conceal his good mood. He was eager to see how the events he had put into motion would play out.

“I guess I’m not as young as I used to be, Captain,” Seta said with a good-natured smile. She had once been a sex slave and came from a highly permissive world where some Talents trained to bring others to orgasm using their powers of telepathy or telekinesis alone.

Seta dressed in skimpy clothing, which emphasized her lovely body. More often than not, her breasts were visible, the piercings in her nipples adorned with a variety of jewelry she had picked up or been given by past lovers and friends. She was a highly sexual being, and every man on the crew had enjoyed her warmth and open nature many times, including Darak, though come to think of it, he hadn’t had sex with her—or any woman, for that matter—since they’d rescued Jana.

Darak knew that was significant, but he didn’t spend too much time thinking about it. His focus had to be on Jana and her recovery. Whatever they would be to each other would sort itself out later. If she could get past her scars and the horrible things that had been done to her under the collective’s despotic rule.

“I’m sorry to hear that, Seta. Perhaps Agnor could give you a boost before you leave, if you’re so inclined.” Darak nodded to the tall science officer who had just arrived on the bridge for his shift.

Agnor smiled at Seta, and she smiled back at him. They were about to enact the plan Darak had hatched with them hours ago.

“Would you care to join us?” Seta asked Darak with a purring sort of smile as she stepped into Agnor’s arms.

Darak was aware of Jana’s quick intake of air as if she’d been startled by the question. He was pleased by her reaction. She was aware of what was about to happen, and somehow, his participation—or lack of it—mattered to her.

“Sadly, no. Not this time. Someone has to run the ship, after all,” Darak quipped. Seta laughed as Agnor swooped down and placed a kiss on her neck.

Then, Seta did something that wasn’t in the plan. She looked pointedly at Jana, making eye contact as Agnor ravished her neck and moved lower.

“Darak hasn’t been with any of us since becoming captain. Even before that,” Seta told Jana in a conversational tone, even as Agnor began to kiss her nipples. “I’m not sure what you did to him, Lady Jana, but I think you might’ve ruined him for any other woman.” Seta smiled and winked at Jana. “Lucky girl.”

Seta moaned as her head dropped back, and she wrestled Agnor’s robes open, reclining back on the nav board she had switched into standby mode when her shift ended. It was just the right height, Darak knew from prior experience. And Agnor didn’t waste any time, sliding deep into Seta’s receptive body.

Jana’s face was scarlet as she stood frozen, not too far from Darak. He was afraid she would run, but instead, she seemed rooted to the spot, fascinated by what she was witnessing. Good. Darak could work with that.

He walked silently over to her, sliding his arms around her waist from behind.

“Do you like what you see?” he whispered against her ear. He felt her shiver in his arms, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“Are they going to...? Right there?” Jana wondered, still staring and seeming scandalized.

“Why, yes, I believe they are. I know for a fact that console was made with this sort of activity in mind. When we designed the ship, we built it for comfort.”

Jana sputtered a bit, then finally turned slightly in his arms to look at him. “You designed a ship for fornicating?”

Yeah, she was definitely scandalized. And outraged, too, if he didn’t miss his guess.

It was adorable.

“Well, she served other purposes, too. We fitted the
Circe
with the most advanced systems available in every respect, but I will admit freely that the happiness of the crew was high on the list of priorities. And we Council Talents do like our pleasures. Decadent, isn’t that what the collective calls us?” Darak put the pressure on, wanting to push Jana past her comfort zone just a little.

He slid one hand up to cup her breast through her clothing and squeezed. His gaze held hers as her mouth opened in a little O of surprise mixed with definite pleasure. Darak was too well acquainted with pleasing females—this one, in particular—to mistake that look. He felt a pang of relief. He wasn’t pushing too far too fast. She was with him.

So far.

“The collective calls you many things,” Jana hedged, holding his gaze, but pointedly not moving out of his embrace.

Darak had to smile. “I’m betting most of them aren’t repeatable for a well brought up girl like yourself.” He saw her agreement in her eyes. “No matter. I’m sure we’ve called them a lot worse.”

“There’s a difference,” Jana whispered, moving into his touch as Darak caressed her. “Most of the things they said about Geneth Mar have proven to be a lie. I’ve seen how you really are. Even if you do fornicate like rabbits on holiday. They were right about that part, at least.” She shook her head slightly, sort of disgustedly amused. “But the things you think you know about them...” Remembered horror entered her gaze. “It’s worse than you can imagine.”

“Shh...” Darak gathered her close, kissing her deeply, wanting to erase the bad memories with good feelings of pleasure. He didn’t want her thinking about the past. Only the present. Only the here and now. Only him. And the
Circe
. And her crew.

He lifted her in his arms and sat in his plush captain’s chair, with Jana on his lap, still kissing her. When he finally let her up for air, he was glad to see the horror gone from her eyes. Now, those lovely orbs were filled with the fire of passion. The light of desire. He liked seeing that flame in her gaze and wanted to put it there as often as she would let him.