Page 30 of Stealing the Lorgor's Heart

With those parting words, he spun away from his subordinate with Jornesh charging after him only to find Lerix already jogging in the direction of the entrance a good distance ahead, his long, thin, barbed tail whipping in the air behind him.

ChapterTwenty-Two

Stacey awoke in the dark, slick hot hands sliding over her breast to her throat. Squealing with surprise, her eyes shot open as she attempted to knock away the hand grabbing hold of her. Gaix’s eyes burned down at her, a lit with a fervor she had rarely seen within them before. Only when he was caught in some maddened haze of his rut had he ever looked that way but now he was staring down at her, and a metallic stench filled her nose. Blood?

“Gaix? What…?”

Her eyes flicked around the room, noting the lit fires—not the banked fires of their camp but fires burning on the altars. Athdar stood by one at the other side of the room, feeding something into the flames that produced a big billow of perfumed smoke. She was in the temple room just feet from the well of lovers’ tears. Her heart thumped painfully with her fear. He meant to kill her like the prince in Lerix’s legend. This wasn’t a pitiful facsimile of a Valentine’s Day retreat. This was more like a bizarre production of the Valentine’s Day Massacre… just with an entirely different cast of lovers instead of rivals.

“No!” she cried, clawing at his hands, several of his fine scales breaking off beneath her fingernails.

He smiled down at her, unaffected by her struggling. “Hush, my little Bunny. Do not be afraid. I have a most wonderful surprise for you. You are being given the greatest of honor and will be the first to enjoy it. I had wished it to be my most lovely and most loyal first. My sweet little breeders. How trustingly they lay with their necks exposed to me, looking up at me with their devotion. I loved them best and so I wanted them the honor to be first in tribute to all of the pleasure and offspring they gave me, but they betrayed me. So now it is your turn, my beautiful Bunny. My little delight.”

“Gaix, please…no,” she cried. “I don’t want to die. None of us do!”

His mouth downturned and pursed unhappily. “But I must. This is the best way to deal with this little problem.”

“What problem?” she gasped as she tried to work her fingers from around her throat.

At least he was simply holding her still and wasn’t cutting off her supply of air but, judging by the knife in his hands, he wasn’t doing it for the sake of kindness. The one thing in her favor was that Gaix couldn’t resist talking about himself and what he wanted at all times. It was a significant personality flaw but one that she hoped could delay him while she attempted to get free… or allowed someone to find them before he dispatched her. She wanted to be free of him but not this way!

His frown grew impatient. “You are the problem. Humans are everywhere now, and people no longer visit with the hope of glimpsing my little human mates. Your species is too soft and delicate for real fun in my bed and bred far too easily. I am admired now for my many daughters, but they are tiring and demanding, and I must keep many nurses on hand. You humans are no longer fun. You are boring, little Bunny—though I do give you credit. You displease me often with your unwillingness to attend to my needs, but at least your skills at dancing make you somewhat interesting. But it is time to let you all go with this final sweet goodbye, designed as a special gift just for you.”

“Then why not just let us go,” she begged, trying to make him see reason. “We could leave… I could leave… and we would go far away where you wouldn’t have to be bothered with us again.”

His scowl eased. Smiling suddenly far too sweetly, he shook his head. “Ah, no. Never. I could not do that. I love you. Each and every one of you. I handpicked you myself, and I never let any of my mates leave me.” He leaned down and nuzzled her cheek before placing a soft kiss there, making her stomach turn. Brushing his nose against her cheek, he sighed. “Trust me this is better. No other male deserves the mate of a Calysii prince. Normally Athdar just dispatches females when I become bored with them but trust me when I say that you are my favorites. I could not do any less but give this honor to you in parting.”

“You will be caught! You won’t get away with this. Your mother…”

“My blessed mother will never know. Nor will she find out. This is a dangerous island, one that I barely escape with Athdar. Even my loyal Lorgor have given their lives,” he added with a chuckle. “Well, that is the story that will be told to everyone, and it will be believed. No one will care that I paid off one of the males to kill the others, and when he returns from his job, he too will be dealt with after I finish with the rest of my lovely mates waiting for me.”

“But you can’t kill them! If you do, you won’t have any protection against the creatures of this island!” she protested, worry digging its claws into her.

It was possible that Varik already lay dead somewhere. It would explain why no one had come for her. She was certain that he wouldn’t have otherwise allowed anyone to steal her from the common room. She wanted to break down with grief and cry but she somehow managed to contain it within herself. She wouldn’t be giving anything more of herself to the monster looming over her.

Gaix smirked and shook his head. “All a ruse. I am certain of it. There haven’t been any signs of any manner of large creatures much less predators. Athdar has been scanning the area for them ever since we arrived. Truly this saves us from having to devise an unfortunate accident with the boat. I greatly dislike swimming or even being submerged in water. But first, before we leave, I shall track down my breeders, wherever they are hiding, and give my gift to them as well.” He sighed heavily. “They’ve displeased me now so that shall have the ignobility of going last. Is that not right, Athdar?” He peered over his shoulder at his servant.

“Yes, Shining Star,” the gonsi replied, his deep voice echoing through the temple as he dipped his head in a short bow. “But we should hurry. The offerings have all be set as you asked. All that awaits is for you to do your part.”

Gaix sighed but nodded. “You are right. But there is always time for one last kiss.”

Straightening, he drew her roughly to her feet and pinned her back against the side of the well. Her back hit it hard, sending a dull pain shooting through her and a sob broke from her lips. He made a soft shushing sound, and she felt his wet lips press against hers. The contact was brief when he realized that she wouldn’t welcome or return it. Breaking the kiss, he drew back and peered down at her face. A satisfied smile curled his mouth, and he brushed his fingers over the tears streaming from her eyes.

“Do not be sad, Bunny. I know you will miss me, but you will soon be with the goddess of this island and far from such sorrows. And then you will remember me for the happiness I provided you for a short time.”

She bit her lip in an attempt to hold back sobs as his larger body leaned into her. Although he didn’t have the mass or height of a Lorgor, he was still quite a bit larger than her, and she felt her weight shifting. He was really going to do it! Panic filling her, she slammed the heel of her palm into his nose as hard as she could. The crunch of cartilage was satisfying but his shocked scream more so as he jerked upright and stumbled black several feet from her to stare down at her in bewilderment from his streaming eyes. Blood poured freely from nose over his lips and dripping from his chin as he regarded her with hatred burning in his gaze. Distantly she was aware of the gonsi turning in their direction.

“You bitch,” he spat, blood spraying from his lips as he whipped a knife from its sheath at his side.

His blood fell in a cooling mist on her cheek, but she ignored it as she stared at him wide-eyed, her entire tensing in preparation for his attack.

“My prince, let me handle this,” Athdar growled, taking a step forward from the altar but Gaix’s hand shot up, bringing the male to a halt.

“No. Continue supplying the offerings of incense. She is mine and only I shall this privilege. As I told my other mates, they all will be going into the well even if I must cut them to pieces first,” he snarled as he charged forward.

It was apparent that was no longer interested in merely pushing her over the side of the well. He was going to outright kill her now with his own hands. Which explained the blood. Clearly, she wasn’t the only one who balked at being thrown into the well. The difference was that they managed to evade him and escape, probably due to a miscalculation on his part trying to kill them all together. Stacey wasn’t that lucky. Terrified, she didn’t attempt to run but ducked, dropping low at the last minute, her body twisting defensively to protect herself. She felt the impact of the area just below his solar plexus hitting her shoulder and the flail of his arms churning, the blade whistling down far too close to her head for comfort, and then his scream filled her ears as his weight shifted and rolled over her, pitching behind her. She froze, crouched there as she listened to his scream terminate with a solid thump. For a moment, she thought that he might be dead but his bellow of rage from within the well reassured her otherwise.

She hadn’t killed him. She wasn’t a murderess.

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