In Enemy Territory - Shannon West Page 0,67

frequently enjoyed mutual oral sex and frottage. Anal intercourse was strictly off limits for Tygerians, except with their nobyos.

But this relationship, if that’s what this was with Centarlo, had been unexpected. He hadn’t meant to get started with the prisoner, but once he’d given in to his urges, it was too late. And with an unsuitable partner like Centarlo, that could be a problem. After all, he had his career to think of. Clearly, the man could not be his nobyo, and he really needed to put a stop to the fun he’d been having with him—even though he did strongly feel that Rasc was his.

Rasc belonged to him. When had that happened? He glanced over at the man one more time and saw him looking back at him. What was he going to do about him? He had to figure something out.

****

Nights were long on Gatifrey, and this one was no exception, but by seven the next morning it was still mostly dark outside, the first feeble rays of dawn just beginning to lighten the horizon. That night Kylon and the men slept in shifts of approximately two hours, with about half their number guarding the prisoners and being vigilant for any attempts to gain entry to the dining hall, while the other half tried to get some rest. It made for a very long night. Kylon deliberately took the opposite shift from Rasc, so he wouldn’t be tempted to either lie down beside him or keep him company during the tense hours of the night. During his shift, he hadn’t been able to keep from checking on him often, though, and when he didn’t see him next to Setin, he went frantically searching for him, finding him in a small hallway between the main dining hall and a boarded-over exit door. It was relatively secluded, and for a moment, Kylon thought about lying down beside him and waking him up in a way they’d both enjoy. But he knew Rasc would have only just gotten to sleep, and he’d need his rest. Reluctantly, he went back into the main hall to find a place to keep watch.

Kylon hadn’t had much sleep at all, worrying that somehow the messages hadn’t been received properly; that the ambassador hadn’t really arrived and that Larz had no idea they’d decided to make their move so fast. If they’d been betrayed, then he still had confidence that he’d be able to escape this Zargoff Island or any other place they’d put him, and he’d manage to get at least the kidnapped Tygerians safely out of there if there was any way possible. He had no idea how yet, but he was sure he’d figure it out. Still, he worried about other casualties in this new and very small army of his, like Pax or Setin.

Most specifically, he was worried about Rasc, and there was no sense in denying the fact. Despite the fact he had decided this relationship he seemed to be developing with Rasc had no real future, he wasn’t ready for it to end yet either, and he’d do whatever it took to make sure Rasc made it through this in one piece. His only worry was Rasc’s temper. It could flare up out of nowhere it seemed, and Kylon was afraid it would be his undoing if he wasn’t careful. A few of the men were awake by now, unused to sleeping late in the prison. Kylon called to a few of them, giving soft-voiced orders and making sure they offered water and bread to the captured guards. In the end they got some of the older servers to go around to each captive, under close guard, and offer to serve them. Most refused the bread, but all of them took water.

Kylon’s men ate a bit better from the stores they’d discovered in the kitchen. Pax helped by going around to each of them, telling them to eat well because if things went as planned, they might not get another meal for a while. Pax had already confided in Kylon during the night that he expected the commandant to make some kind of move that next morning. From what he’d learned of the commandant’s temperament, they weren’t the type to allow this to go on too long.

No one seemed to know much about this commandant, except for their designation, with was an odd one, even for a Gatifreyan. ‘Ivanni’—which roughly translated to General, according to what Pax told him when