Retribution (Kall Alien Warriors #3) - Sue Lyndon Page 0,54
being cleared.
General Zamek stood before her, wearing his Kall uniform, a sword hanging from his weapons’ belt, as well as a few knives. No ax this time. She supposed that was only reserved for battles. Or executions. She shivered at the memory of him looming over her on the white tarp.
He shot a brief glance at the viewscreen and his face softened.
“You shouldn’t be watching this, human,” he said, heading for the control panel. He pressed a button and the viewscreen went back to normal, showing a landscape view of the valley and mountains.
“It’s so terribly cruel,” she said, wiping at her tears.
“It’s not as cruel as you think,” he replied in an infuriatingly unapologetic tone.
She spun on him. “How can you say that?”
“Only those convicted of grave crimes in a Kall court are sold at auction. It’s better than being sentenced to death, and not all masters are cruel. Some masters treat their slaves as well as they treat their servants.” He crossed his arms over his chest.
“Some masters,” she said, “but not all.”
“Layla,” he said, grasping her upper arms, “I have purposely delayed leaving my warship because I didn’t wish for you to see the auction. Had I realized you knew how to manipulate the viewscreen, I would have locked it down.” He sighed. “I will need to take you to the slave office in Sumlin before we venture to my home. You must be registered as a slave and fitted with a tracker.”
Her heart broke. She’d known this day would come, but her heart still broke. She realized General Zamek didn’t have many options when it came to her, but surely there had to be a way to get around officially registering her as a slave.
“How-how did we get here so fast? I thought we had about two more weeks of travel?” Her stomach clenched. She’d really been counting on those two weeks. She felt as though she’d been tossed into freezing cold water without warning, and no shore in sight.
“One of the Verrsuans we rescued—Amorrga—told us about a new artificial wormhole the Corrtass recently installed along the border between sectors 39 and 40. We were able to barter for passage through the wormhole, thus shortening our travels considerably.”
“Well, isn’t that convenient. I am sure you’re eager to get that tracker in my arm and chain me to your bed.”
He released one of her arms and pinched the bridge of his nose, a gesture that looked very human, and gave her an exasperated look. “You needn’t be so dramatic, Layla.” His eyes darkened. “But if you like being chained up, that can easily be arranged. Now, come. You must get dressed.”
Chapter 20
Zamek guided Layla into the closet and selected a plain gray dress for her to wear, the garment specifically created for today’s trip into town. It was nicer than a slave could be expected to wear, but it wasn’t lavish enough to draw attention at the slave office.
To his relief, she didn’t balk at the dress. She obediently put it on, as well as the leggings and a pair of soft sandals he provided.
If he thought she would agree to become his wife, he might march straight to the local council building and demand a license for their marriage be approved. But human courting customs were different from those of his people. Humans usually dated their potential mating partners for a long time before considering marriage. Months, even years in some cases, or so he’d heard. It all struck him as very strange.
She likely wouldn’t say yes, though he supposed he could force her, just as he was forcing her to become his mistress—a title of which she didn’t seem very fond. Perhaps he ought to stop using it and call her his companion, or something similar. Lover?
But there was no guarantee the Sumlin District council would approve his request immediately, and he would have a better chance if he knew how Commander Edek had managed it. As soon as could be arranged, he wished to speak with Edek and learn how the male got the council to approve his marriage to Betsy Carson. Then he could explore the possibility of taking Layla as his wife.
How long would they have to know one another until she agreed to marriage? While he knew he could force her, the idea of dragging her before a Holy One and compelling her to repeat marriage vows didn’t sit right with him. Such an act would only breed resentment in her.