The Tracker's Quest: (Forced To Serve #6) (7 page)

Arghane also hadn’t commented on her legs being covered by footless stockings. She had worn them for modesty under a short skirt, which she had chosen because it allowed the most freedom of movement. She was wearing her weapon vest over a shirt which was nearly transparent, but it was the only kind she had found among the beautiful clothes in the closet. She tried not to hate it, but the shirt made her look as open to bonding as one of the Siren certified escorts on the ship.

Her uniform vest proved doubly useful when Arghane arrived at their door bearing their weapons. He returned hers with a hard stare containing a warning she chose to ignore. His disapproval didn’t matter to her. All that mattered was her blaster being back in its normal spot along her ribs. The extra bit of security allowed her to forget about any future side effects her sleazy clothing might cause.

Seta did nod slightly to the angry male as a concession since he was doing the suzerain’s bidding. “I am ready to see Endara’s female sire. We can do so at your convenience.”

Not saying anything much to her or Ji, Arghane simply walked off, assuming they would fall in line and follow. She did of course, and felt Ji quickly fall into step beside her as they walked across the canton’s perfectly groomed grounds.

Though they passed by many males working and tending to their businesses, the most they got from anyone was a nod. Apparently the suzerain’s directive had spread while they slept, but the antagonistic energy rolling off those who saw her walking around freely with a weapon was still blatantly obvious to her. If Ji noticed their animosity, he paid it no mind.

They entered the canton’s medical building where Arghane barked commands to a female sitting behind a desk. Nodding at his abrupt orders without smiling, the medic rose to retrieve a room key from a wall rack containing many.

“I told Ineid you were coming. There was no response. We forced a stimulant on her this morning so she would remain alert,” the medic said.

Seta snorted. The female medic’s lack of compassion for one of the suzerain’s official mates was appalling, but then most everything about her father’s canton was.

At the door of the room, Seta stopped and turned to both Arghane and Ji. “I wish to talk with her alone. Perhaps she will be more receptive to sharing information if she doesn’t feel threatened by two males in the room.”

“Agreed,” Ji said, turning to stare at Arghane, his gaze daring the male to disagree.

“She may attack you, Seta of Trax. That’s why she got put in here in the first place. The female attacked the suzerain when he attempted to get another child on her. The scratches she left on him took much time to heal,” Arghane said.

Seta tightened her jaw, briefly wishing the female had succeeded in causing lasting injury.

“If I can stop you from touching me, I think I can handle one rightfully angry female,” Seta declared.

Not waiting for Arghane’s response to her taunt, she unlocked the door and handed the key to Ji for safekeeping. She acknowledged his nod of understanding with one of her own before opening the door quietly and slipping inside.

Chapter 6

All light from outside had been blocked by a dark shade that only allowed slivers to leak around the edges into the room. In the middle of a small platform almost bare of comfort, a tiny frail female sat rolled into a ball with her skinny arms hugging her knees. She looked malnourished. . .and that was the least of her issues. Her gaze was vacant and resentful.

“Ineid? My name is Seta. I’ve come to see you because I need your help to rescue your child, Endara,” Seta said.

“I know who you are—Seta of Trax,” Ineid said flatly. “I have heard much of your quest. Your sire disapproves of your Siren suitor and hopes he dies in the desert of Ethos while helping you.”

Seta sighed at Ineid’s gossip. Apparently information still flew fast among females on Ethos even without the aid of com devices. She walked forward, heading to the female’s side. “Yes. I am Seta of Trax, though the name evokes nothing but regret.”

“You would be wise to flee while you can. The suzerain intends to kill you,” Ineid said quietly.

Seta grabbed a chair which looked ready to break any moment and pulled it close to the bed to sit. “Yes. I believe he does intend it, but the suzerain will not find my death an easy task. Now please cooperate while we have this time alone. I need to ask you some questions about Endara.”

“Why do you taunt me? I know no one with that name,” Ineid declared.

“Is Endara not your birth child?” Seta asked.

“No. I have no birth child. Suzerain Trax used me for a female incubator, but what came from me was never mine. I saw the being only for a brief moment when she slid out of me in this same vile place.”

Seta frowned when the female looked away to stare at a wall. “I am sorry for your suffering. The child you carried for the suzerain has suffered as well. Endara has been sold for a high union price to a wealthy mining canton on the other side of Ethos. I’m going to find her and bring her back here. To do that, I need your help.”

“No,” Ineid said sharply. “I will not help you. The suzerain does not appreciate the value of any treasure in his possession. All he knows is how to break things, including me. Did you know my first mate traded me for another female? He told many lies about my worth, but I no longer care about the pain of his betrayal. Death is coming to free me. I wait eagerly for it.”

Seta tightened her jaw and hardened her heart. She understood how Ineid felt, but her empathy didn’t change what she had to do. “The suzerain will never allow your death. He wants more children with you. Tolerating his possession could buy you some time while I find Endara and figure out how to help both of you.”

“Don’t waste your energy. One fate is no worse than another here on Ethos. Perhaps the Creators will render a compassion to her they have so far failed to show me.”

Seta breathed calmly and deeply until Ineid’s hard stare swung in her direction. “I want to show you compassion. I know this prison,” she swung her hand around, “is not what any female deserves.”

Ineid snorted and wiped her leaking eyes with her sleeves. “How many times were you bartered for the suzerain’s profit? Did your suffering change anything? That selfish male will never change his ways. And I will never think differently about the progeny he forced on me. Leave the child where she is.”

Seta shook her head. “No. I cannot.”

Ineid’s laugh at her insistence was a dry bark of uncaring.

“Then your breath is as foul as your sire’s and your words as useless to me.”

The madness in Ineid’s gaze made Seta shiver with concern for the damaged female. She steeled herself to keep pressing for information because no amount of sympathy could undo the cruelty that had been done to her.

“Ineid—please help me. I need to know about your species and why the suzerain of a mining canton would want to buy such a small child for a mate. The miner obviously knew something about the child the suzerain didn’t. What is special about Endara?”

“He called her his treasure because she brought him great wealth. That’s why he wants to make more of her, but I will not let it happen. You cannot violate a dead female. If you want to show me genuine compassion, use the laser weapon strapped to your body and free me from this life.”

Rising, Seta walked away from the bed, shaking her head while she did so. “I cannot. Does the suzerain already know what Endara is capable of? Is he not being honest with me?”

Ineid laughed low. “I said what was needed to get him off me. After he sold the child for so much, he thought he would make another who would bring an even greater price. Since that hasn’t happened, he wants the first child back so he can ask for seven fortunes for a ransom. Can you not see he uses you to achieve his ends because none of his males can find her? He’s sent several out. None have returned. The miners kill them to protect their own.”

Seta let out a heavy sigh. The news was not surprising, but it was depressing. No wonder Chief Arghane didn’t want to go with them. It wasn’t about her and Ji. It was about facing the miners. “Will you tell me what you told the suzerain?”

“No. But I will tell you what I surmise from the rumors I heard about her. The child may be a
ne plus ultra
. On my planet, I was born with no great talent. So I pledged my life to the first male who pretended to care. When he left our planet for work on Ethos, I foolishly followed. I knew he was angry I had remained barren. He told the suzerain my children were supposed to be gifted. He told him my adama’s curse on our mating kept him from giving me one,” Ineid complained.

“Your
adama
?” Seta asked.

“No. If you will not promise to kill me, I will tell you no more,” Ineid declared.

Seta watched as she rolled to her side and turned her back to the room. The female’s paleness was alarming. Obviously the stimulant’s effects had run out.

“Try to stay alive while I’m gone, Ineid. I will be back. And I swear I will try to help you,” she said, walking to the door. She sighed when she heard another harsh laugh in response to her promise.

“Be warned, oh too compassionate child of the wicked Trax. Chief Arghane is bidding against the Siren for rights to you. He has pledged all the wealth he has earned up to now. I heard the medics whispering about it in the halls. Maybe when that twisted Ethosian forces you to kill him, you will indeed come back and use your dark skills on me.”

Seta sighed. “Thank you for all the warnings, but nothing changes what I have to do. May you be at peace until we meet again.”

The news about Arghane didn’t surprise Seta. Like the news of her father’s deception, it only depressed her. Maybe Ji was right. Maybe agreeing to her father’s quest and coming back to Ethos had been a foolish thing to do. Certainly she and Ji should just escape, but even fleeting hope would prevent her from doing so. In addition to the rest of her female family, now there were two other innocent beings—a mother and child—whose fates would haunt her for life if she didn’t at least try to change their situation.

Zorinda’s power swirled in her midsection letting her know the demon was aware of her churning thoughts. But there was no comfort in alien strength at the moment. No being, no matter how powerful, could change a culture and society with brute force. Sadly, Ethos was just one of many primitive planets based on similar principles of individuals as commodities.

The Peace Alliance involved themselves in the cultures of planets which offered them something valuable in return. But Ethos? Ethos and its endless deserts were not going to be going into the valuable category any time soon. Help from the Peace Alliance was improbable. Suzerain Trax would continue to rule over the lives of his followers, including those he created.

So where did that leave her? She was beginning to suspect her plan of avenging Rena’s death was no more than a half-hearted dream. Seta pushed away her epiphany as she exited into the hall.

“What did she say?” Arghane demanded.

Seta shook her head. “Nothing of any value. The suzerain’s interactions with her have warped her mind. Hate for him rules her entire being.”

“She will adjust in time. All do,” Arghane said with a shrug.

“Ineid is starving herself,” Seta said sharply. “She refused to tell me anything because I refused to shoot her. Did it ever occur to you that females have sensibilities and feelings just like males?”

“You speak foolishly. We all belong to Suzerain Trax—even you,” Arghane said, glaring at Seta despite the Siren’s frown at his words.

Seta snorted. “You are wrong, Arghane. No one owns anyone else. That is against nature. One day you will see it for the truth—and so will the other males on Ethos.”

“How am I supposed to believe the independence of a female destined to be mated to one of the most possessive species ever found in recorded literature?” Arghane declared. “Your guardian here would kill any male he saw as competition. Obviously he has not told you how bloodthirsty his kind are.”

“See? That’s exactly the proof you are wrong, Chief Arghane. If such a condition were true, you’d already be dead. Apparently the word has spread you are competing for me. Give it up while you can because Ji won’t have to kill you—I’d gladly do it myself. Or didn’t I make myself clear about my preferences the other day?”

Arghane’s glare bounced off her back as she strode away. Even long-legged Ji had trouble keeping up with her as her legs ate up the ground.

Chapter 7

Alone once more in the union suitor quarters, Seta looked at Ji who had studied her silently during their rapid trek back to their quarters. She undressed slowly, tossing each piece of clothing on the bed after searching it thoroughly. Given Ineid’s expansive knowledge of their task, Seta now believed something in the domicile was bugged because gossip had spread too quickly. Ji had obviously missed the hidden device in his search.

She looked at him hard, willing Ji to understand what she meant when she touched her fingers to her lips before speaking. “I failed to find out anything useful from Ineid. All I got for my efforts was to become covered in Ethos desert dust. I’m going to take advantage of the cleansing area. Would you like to join me?”

Ji raised one eyebrow. “I seemed to recall us fighting about our connection only a few hours ago. In fact, we were still debating it when Arghane showed up. What is prompting you to make such an enticing invitation?”

Seta shrugged and slipped off her leggings and skirt. “Haven’t you noticed that resignation to one’s fate is a common mood setting for females on this Creator-forsaken planet? I am resigned to servicing you, Siren. After today, I’m afraid you’ll trade me for a better model like Ineid’s mate did.”

Before she could begin the process of tearing away her hygiene straps, Ji was suddenly standing in front of her and grabbing her hands.

“That’s not how it will ever work with me,” he said softly.

“Do you swear you speak true?” Seta asked.

Ji nodded. “Aye. If you are only for me, then I will be only for you. It is the Siren way. Our link will prevent it, or at least make it extremely improbable.”