Page 26 of I Married A Catman

Chapter 7

Ophelia

We walked in silence back to the shuttle. My blood still boiled from what felt like a brutal assault. On more than one occasion over the years, I faced some initial hostility when I first showed up for a mandate with a new tribe. Only once had I felt compelled to leave as the entire prep work before our arrival had been utterly botched. I believed in missionary work, but only if the locals actually wanted and welcomed it.

That one had been an attempt by the organization to coerce that primitive tribe into adopting their ways and allowing them to appropriate their resources. I not only hauled ass out of there but also reported them.

While the UPO usually did a good job shutting down such exploitative so-called charitable organizations, some still managed to slip through the cracks and do a lot of damage—on top of enriching themselves—before they were stopped. And most tribes and refugee camps did welcome the assistance thatwe provided. We just had to follow many strict rules to respect their culture and their right to self-determination.

A couple of cultures had been more challenging to adapt to than others. Their societal structure, religious beliefs, or general values severely clashed with my own. At the same time, they provided a wondrous training in learning to look at things through someone else’s eyes, casting aside my own customs and belief system.

But the level of vitriol I faced here today took it to a whole other level. I was used to rejection because my foreign presence was seen as a threat, because females were deemed unsuitable to act in any kind of management role, or because a woman unwed and childless at my age was not only a negative influence but also perceived as proof that something was terribly wrong with me.

Getting this amount of hatred because some chick was mad my man didn’t want her seriously took the cake.

I couldn’t blame Oluina for being every shade of jealous for seeing the fine specimen of masculinity that was my brand-new husband slip through her grubby claws. But damn, you’d think she’d have a bit more self-respect than to throw herself at a male who clearly didn’t want her and force him to once more publicly reject her.

I never wanted to be the other woman. Once I realized what had crawled up her butt to make her this angry, I feared for a moment that there had been an ongoing relationship between them abruptly ended because of Kayog informing Gaelec of my existence. I nearly wept with relief once I found out he soundly refused her long before I even came into the picture. He and I had enough challenges to get our relationship going without us also having to deal with him potentially pining away for an old flame.

However bitchy and aggressive as she might try to be, Oluina’s entitled bullying didn’t faze me. It took a lot for me to throw in the towel and concede victory. So long as I believed Gaelec wanted us and was fighting for us, I’d be firing right back, all guns blazing.

Still, our ability to remain here felt more precarious than ever. In truth, I wasn’t certain I wanted to live among people who clearly hated me, not because of any wrongdoing on my part, but merely for existing. That those people also happened to be at the top of the hierarchy made it even more complicated.

Ever the gentleman, Gaelec helped me back inside the shuttle. While I didn’t believe opening doors for females was a matter of courtesy here, it still displayed his attentiveness to me and my needs. The Nazhrals’ digitigrade legs made it easier for them to hop onto higher steps. The ship’s design was clearly made for their people and not overly friendly for humans. Granted, I wouldn’t need a ladder to get in on my own, but each step was nearly double the height of a regular one based on galactic standards. Therefore, I appreciated his help, especially since he offered without me even having to request it.

As soon as we settled inside and closed the doors, Gaelec glanced at me with a concerned and guilty look.

“Are you okay?” he asked with a hint of worry.

I smiled reassuringly. “Yes, I’m fine, thank you. But I won’t lie. This was an… interesting first meeting.”

Despite the slightly teasing way I spoke that last sentence, Gaelec took on a defeated expression heavily laced with guilt.

“I’m truly sorry, my mate. I didn’t expect them to react so strongly.”

“Please, do not apologize,” I said with a sympathetic smile. “You did nothing wrong and cannot be held responsible for the way they chose to act. It would have been a different story if you had just sprung me on them out of nowhere. But they knewI was coming. If they had such a problem with it, they should have addressed it before I even set foot here. That said, is there something I should know about Oluina?”

He groaned, and the right corner of his mouth corked up in a snarl exposing his fangs as he got us airborne. The aggravation and contempt that the mere thought of that female stirred in him crushed any lingering concerns I might have had about her being any type of competition. My mate had no love or even respect for that female.

The malicious and triumphant glee that instantly triggered deep within should have shamed me, if only a little. But I couldn’t—and didn’t really want to—muster the slightest compassionate thought for the obnoxious female.

“Before my arrest and incarceration on Molvi, Oluina and I had been paired for nearly a year. The same day I got caught, she moved on to Moriak. That was the big male you probably noticed sitting at the right edge of the huntresses,” Gaelec said grimly.

I gasped, my eyes bulging in shock and outrage on his behalf. “Putain!She moved fast!”

“She most certainly did. Obviously, once I found out, I was furious, hurt, and feeling utterly betrayed. It especially hurt that the male she rushed to was also the one who sent me on that doomed mission to begin with and who then appropriated the house I finished building but a week prior.”

I whistled through my teeth at their brazen ruthlessness. The immediate thought that popped into my mind was that they colluded to eliminate him and steal his property. Oluina didn’t need to be involved with him to achieve that. But then, doing so would have given her more leverage to exert pressure on him to go on the mission that condemned him to begin with.

However, I had too little information for now to truly draw an accurate picture of what transpired. If nothing else, it confirmed her position at the very top of my shit list, withMatriarch Rozel and Moriak currently sharing the second place. The upcoming days would help better refine their ranking.

The worried look he cast my way silenced my wandering thoughts.

“Please know that I no longer have any such lingering feelings for her. Her betrayal and all those years apart killed whatever feelings I thought I ever had for her,” Gaelec said, tension filling his voice.

I smiled reassuringly. “You don’t need to convince me. Your interactions with her and body language made your dislike abundantly clear. I’m not worried about her.”

All tension drained from his shoulders, and he gave me a grateful smile before turning back to look at where he was flying. To my surprise, we’d only been in the air for a couple of minutes than he was already descending towards that far edge of the village. In my mind, it would have been a far longer journey. But considering the number of bags and a couple of crates containing my personal belongings, it would have been too long a walk from the ship hangar to our destination while hauling all of this, even on a hovercart.

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