Woman Beware Read online

Terrified, Lena screamed and climbed back up onto the bridge. At least the land creatures, whatever they were, didn’t seem desperate enough to cross the bridge to get her. It was a good thing they didn’t seem willing to walk onto the bridge while the fish-thing kept jumping out of the water and shaking the bridge. Lena’s main worry was that the structure would give out before help arrived.

  “Help me! Someone, please, help me!” She repeated her call over and over yet didn’t hold out much hope that anyone would hear her. Still, she had to try.

  Lena heard the scream of a jet in the distance. At least that was what it sounded like. If she was really on another planet, it could be anything, including some sort of flying predator headed her way.

  The fish-thing still jumped under the bridge, beating the underside. The obvious carnivores on either side of the channel had settled down to rest on their stomachs. Apparently, they were content to just sit and watch her. The screaming sound in the air grew louder by the second. She stood on the bridge, as it continued to vibrate, wondering how long she could remain in relative safety.

  After a minute, the sound of wood splintering sent Lena into a fit of terror, and she began her screams anew.

  Chapter Four

  Artu raced through the skies in an attempt to calm his racing mind. Flying was a precious freedom these last years. He had imprisoned himself in his home, coming out only when there was need.

  There was need now. He needed.

  A woman screamed in the distance, and he sighed. When would they learn? She screamed again, and he shook his head. She was several hundred meters away in the far reaches.

  Would the humans never stop attempting to find him a woman? It was increasingly obvious that there was none for him on this world or any other, it seemed.

  Still, it didn’t matter what her reasons were for being in the outlands’ far reaches. She needed and that was all that had relevance now. She needed and he must provide. As was the loneliness and immortality, that too, was his curse.

  He would find the woman, return her to her people and let them see his ire. Maybe it was time to show them a defender’s anger. Maybe then, they would stop throwing women at him. Maybe not. He sighed again at the thought.

  The woman screamed again, and Artu poured on the speed, flying as fast as he could. Wherever the woman was, it was obvious something terrified her. The closer he got, the more he heard her frightened cries. Incidentally, the closer he got, the angrier he became.

  Did the woman have no sense? What’s more, did her people have no sense either? It was criminal to strand a lone female in the far reaches without protection, and it was obvious—to his ears anyway—this woman was without a guard.

  Another terrified scream made his stomach clench, and Artu gritted his teeth. He refused to feel for this woman who didn’t have the brains to stay out of danger. Didn’t they know that, like them, he wasn’t perfect? There was never a guarantee he could reach a distressed citizen in time to save them from harm. Why risk a life to appease his growing angst when he hadn’t even begun to show them a bit of temper?

  Did they hope to circumvent the loss of his last lover or the loss of his sister? Or did they, perhaps, merely wish to keep the other defenders from having to apprehend him?

  Whatever their reasons, they had chosen poorly, and Artu would see to it that the people knew the consequences of their decisions before someone died.

  Why do you condemn your people for their attempted assistance?

  He jerked in flight and rolled over. The strange female voice startled him. It caused him to lose his course for a moment. Correcting his flight path, he scowled. Did the people find someone telepathic now? How would he know if she was sincere or merely telling him what he wished to know?

  I am not the woman you hurry to rescue. The woman is here for you. She aches inside. Heal her pain.

  “Heal her pain? What pain could she possibly have compared to what I feel?” He scowled again at his words. When had he become so selfish? When had he begun to set his needs above or even at the same level as those he had sworn to protect?

  She is your soul mate. Save her from the wildlife and heal her pain. In turn, you shall also heal yours.

  “What do you know of it?” Artu practically growled when he heard the woman scream again. “Are you responsible for her being in the far reaches?”

  You could say that.

  Was the woman laughing? It sounded like it. “It’s nothing to be proud of. She could die out here before I reach her.”

  You will reach her in time. Skuld would have seen the danger otherwise.

  “Skuld? Who is Skuld?”

  The woman chuckled. She is my sister and seer of the future.

  “Seer of the future? Who are you?” he asked as he banked right. He could see the screaming woman now. No wonder she shrieked loud enough to wake the dead. She stood on a bridge surrounded by wild tur’dars with a sashak attacking from below.

  We are the sisters of Wyrd. You might call us the Fates.

  Artu kept himself from losing control but just barely. “The Fates! You’re responsible for all of this shit?”

  Chapter Five

  The rumble of the approaching aircraft grew louder. “It has to be some sort of jet. No bird sounds like it’s flying at Mach five.” Lena had no idea how fast that was, but whatever it was headed her way flew faster than a bird. She was sure of it.

  Moving to another section of the bridge, she held onto the railing, looked up and hoped she could manage to get whoever it was in the airplane, if that’s what it was, to see her. Maybe they could send a rescue team.

  Lena didn’t expect to see a man flying toward her. “Oh, my god. He’s like some sort of superhero.” Her knees actually went weak at the thought. “God, please make him a superhero and not a super villain.”

  He landed on the bridge in front of her with the expression of a man who was good looking and knew it. “What are you doing in the far reaches with no vehicle and no protective guard?” He growled the words as though angry.

  Lena stared at him for a minute. His scowl made her mad. What did he have to be angry about? She was the one the Fates decided to dump here in the middle of nowhere.

  “Far reaches?” Lena parroted. “The far reaches of what? Hell?” Good grief, Lena! Where have your wits gone? she asked herself when her tongue wouldn’t obey her and ask him where she was and how she got there. Surely she wasn’t afraid of the man. No, she was angry. That was it.

  “Anywhere more than five miles from the cities are dangerous, woman. Don’t you know that?” He frowned down at her as though she were either careless or just needed a keeper. “Where are your people? I would talk to them.”

  “My people, as you put it, are on Earth.” She waved her arm at the strange land creatures that wanted her for dinner. “Where the hell am I?” She screeched when the fish, or whatever it was, hit the bottom of the bridge again, shaking it enough to make her stumble into the man who reached out to steady her.

  Lena tried to ignore the strange shot of electricity that shot up her arms when he touched her. She also tried to ignore the way he smelled. The spicy scent nearly had her rubbing against him like a cat in heat.

  Get a grip, Lena!

  As much as she hated to admit it, he made her feel safe. Against her better judgment, she leaned against him and looked up. She almost sighed. His blonde hair fell over his brow, making her want to reach up and push it back.

  The better to see your lovely blue-green eyes, my dear superhero.

  What had Garrick the goon called him again? He had called the man who was supposed to be her match, the defender of something or other. He had also said he would find her after he dropped her here on this god-forsaken planet.

  “I am Artu Traon, Defender of Priska.” Releasing her, he backed up and bowed before her as though he were some sort of strange knight from the days of old.

  The fish with the teeth hit the bridge, an
d it shuddered under the impact once more.

  Lena screeched and ran into his arms again. “Get me out of here, please.”

  Artu tightened his arm about her waist and frowned down at her. His face may have worn that mask of impatience he’d had since he landed, but his voice was gentle. “Fear not, little one. The sashak shall be disappointed, yet again. He shall not get the dinner he expects this night.”

  “Thank goodness for that.” Lena squealed when Artu leapt into the air, effectively freeing her from the confines of the bridge. “Where are you taking me?” she asked, though she supposed it didn’t really matter. After all, she was away from the drooling, snarling animals and the aggressive river creature.

  Goodness, he’s handsome. She glanced at his profile as he flew them over a beautiful valley. Nothing marred the gorgeous landscape until she saw what appeared to be a huge pack of the hyena-like creatures that accosted her on the bridge roaming about the fertile land.

  “Does it matter where we are going?” he asked with his frown still in place.

  Lena was afraid to say yes, for fear the surly man would carry her back to the bridge and leave her for the wildlife.

  “No. She shook her head. It doesn’t. As long as I’m not in the wilds of a strange land with creatures trying to make me their dinner, I’m all good.”

  “I thought you might say that.” He sighed as though disappointed before he turned his attention back to flying over a large body of water.

  She took the opportunity to study her rescuer while he flew them through the skies. Artu wasn’t as perfect as Garrick had seemed. He was better looking, however. There was something compelling about him. His nose didn’t fit his face as perfectly as Garrick’s, but there was something endearing about its size. It wasn’t huge. It was just a touch larger than it should have been. Lena was sure he would be devastating if he ever smiled. That he was no stranger to good humor was evident in the laugh lines around his mouth and the creases at the corners of those gorgeous eyes. Those sea-blue eyes could capture a person’s attention and hold them without trying.

  She knew that for a fact. They had done the same to her when she first saw them. He smelled nice, as well. That was obviously a plus since he held her tight against his body. She leaned over to give herself a whiff. She had already run about three miles by the time Garrick and his strange compass snatched her up and brought her here.

  What in the world are you doing? She scowled when she realized what she had done. Why should she care whether she smelled? Just because the man was easy on the eyes and, apparently, a superhero of some kind, to boot, didn’t mean she was going to fall for the man. She didn’t give a damn what that strange device or Garrick the Gatekeeper said. She had sworn off men. Permanently.

  Lena stared down at the blue water, wondering what kinds of terrors it held. She must have stiffened, because he chuckled, his breath tickling her ear.

  He can laugh! It was too bad she wasn’t looking at him. He might have actually smiled, and she missed it.

  “There are many types of predators here. It would be best if you learned to identify them quickly.”

  “Why don’t you think it’s odd that I’ve told you I’m from another planet?”

  “Why should I? Off worlders visit here all of the time.”

  That made sense, she supposed. “I didn’t know that.”

  “Doesn’t your world have an alien visitors’ bureau?” Artu looked genuinely confused.

  “No.” She laughed. “The people on my world can’t agree whether or not there are aliens, let alone spend the money to set up a visitors’ center for them.”

  “Surely they don’t think that your planet is the only planet with life.” His astonishment might have been amusing if his assessment hadn’t been correct.

  “I’m not saying that I thought so. It’s just the popular consensus that we are alone in the universe.”

  “Unbelievable.” He shook his head and barked out a laugh. “What backward planet did you say you were from?” he asked before he frowned. “Wait a minute. If your world doesn’t know there is life on other planets, you obviously have no means of transportation to reach other worlds.” He turned his attention to her and narrowed his eyes. “Who are you, and how did you get here then?”

  Chapter Six

  “Good questions. My name is Lena. Lena Mulgrew. As far as how I got onto that bridge, have you ever heard of a man called Garrick the Gatekeeper?”

  “I don’t believe I have, Lena.” He tightened his grip and banked right.

  It was all Lena could do to keep from moaning. Every time he pulled her closer, her body clenched and her heart began to pound. She bit her lip. She couldn’t fall for the man. She refused to fall prey to another male.

  Just because he is a man doesn’t mean he will hurt you. Give him a chance. Get to know him. Heal his pain.

  Heal his pain? Where had that come from? She thought about the strange voice in her head. Was it one of the Fates that Garrick told me about? She tilted her head and waited for an answer, but there wasn’t one forthcoming.

  “How long before we get to wherever you’re taking me?”

  “I had planned to take you back to the visitor bureau where you could find a way back to where you belong, but if you have no way to explain your presence here, there could be a problem.”

  Lena could understand that. Here, she was an illegal alien. She knew what they did to illegals back home. They usually deported them. What will his people do to me? If Artu’s reaction was any indication, they didn’t even know where Earth was. Will they imprison me, dump me on some deserted, god-forsaken world and forget about me, or will they understand that I don’t want to be here anymore than they want me here?

  “How so?” It was obvious that he would know the answer.

  “They could imprison you.” Artu sighed as he approached an island with what looked like a mansion carved from stone.

  He made it increasingly obvious that she was an inconvenience he would rather not have to deal with at the moment.

  Lena frowned. “Look, it’s not like I asked that goon, Garrick, to dump me off here. I had a good life back home. I had a great job, a house that was almost paid for, thanks to a couple of good business investments, and an awesome car.” She looked around. “I don’t have anything here. Hell, I don’t even have the right to be here. Do you think that I want to stay here on this god-forsaken planet where I have nothing but jail time to look forward to?”

  Artu stared down at her, his expression unreadable. He didn’t even give her the courtesy of an answer to her question. “You will have to stay here until we can figure out a way to explain you to the authorities. There are only a handful of reasons why they would accept you as you are. We need to figure out which one will work best for you.”

  He landed gently on a balcony and released her. “This is my home. You have nothing to fear here. You can even swim in the fresh-water springs and wade in the ocean with no worries of being eaten by the wildlife.”

  Reaching out, he touched her hair. “I love the color of your hair. It is very unusual here.”

  It surprised her. He had been very gentle when he touched her hair, almost reverent, then his expression turned hard again. Lena wondered if she’d imagined it.

  “Really?” She reached up to smooth it back. “I hate it. There’s nothing like growing up with red hair and having everyone teasing you or insulting you about it.” I’d rather be dead than red on the head. The old taunts rose up in her mind.

  “No one would dare insult you here.”

  Yeah, right. Everyone would if they found out she was here and shouldn’t be. “What makes you say that?”

  “Because you are with me.” He smiled, his white teeth flashing in his tanned face. “I have a reputation for being a bit of an—”

  “Asshole?” Lena interrupted.

  Crossing his arms, he frowned down at her again. “Among other things. However,
I had been about to say idol. The people here look upon me as an idol, a hero. They will not question your presence so long as you are here with me.”

  “Why do you think they won’t bother with me if I’m with you?”

  “Because, they have taken it upon themselves to find me a woman.” Reaching up, he thrust the fingers of his right hand through his hair. “They think I am not happy because I am lonely.” He paced in front of her as though thinking.

  “Are you?”

  “Am I what?” he asked as he continued to pace. It was almost as though he didn’t remember what he’d said.

  “Lonely?” Tilting her head, Lena looked at him. She really looked at him. He was the man in the photo Garrick had! Is he the man to whom the Fates decreed I should be with? Are we really soul mates and neither of us would be complete without the other?

  “Don’t worry. You won’t have to stay here long. I have some connections. I will find a way to get you papers.” He seemed angry again as he stalked away from her, leaving her standing on the balcony that overlooked the picturesque island.

  Mountains rose up out of the sea. Water flowed down from the peaks in giant waterfalls leading to small inlets that fed into the large ocean. Lena wasn’t sure she had ever seen water so clear and blue. It was a place where she could have retired to had she been on Earth.

  She felt Artu walk up behind her as she looked over the side of the balcony at the wondrous beauty outside the tall walls of his mansion. “Do you think you can find a way to get me home?”

  Artu stared down at his feet. He was silent for a moment before he looked up and met her gaze. “I don’t think that would be possible.”

  Lena’s eyes filled with tears. Will I never see Earth, my friends and family, again? Wrapping her arms around herself, she turned away so he wouldn’t see her cry. He would, no doubt, accuse her of attempting to manipulate him with tears.

  It wasn’t as though she had a great life back home, but it had been her life. Then, by the whim of the Fates, she found herself here on this planet. She was so far away from home that she wouldn’t even know where to look for Earth amongst the stars.