Chapter 11 #5
And that always lurked at the back of my head.
I couldn’t even begin to imagine a scenario where I would ever want to harm my soulmate.
However, that first night when Khel forced me to acknowledge the extreme level of violence I was capable of during that scenario seriously shook me.
In my berserker haze, I had not realized the extent of the savagery I had indulged in.
Although I still couldn’t picture something like this ever happening with my woman, the violent desire she awakened in me actually frightened me.
I wanted to believe that my lack of experience explained the overwhelming sensations that tiny bit of friction provoked.
The moment I flipped her onto her back, I’d pinned her wrists to the mattress to keep my hands busy.
Otherwise, I would have torn her dress to shreds before unleashing my passion on her.
Heaving a sigh, I went to the holodeck next to my suite where Zhara informed me they had uploaded multiple virtual training modules for me to complete during my recovery.
It was essentially theoretical stuff mainly pertaining to galactic laws and rules of engagement.
Right now, I would have given anything to crack some skulls instead.
At least, I actually liked this stuff, so in no time, I ended up falling down a rabbit hole and really soaking it all up.
My com going off startled me. Only then did I realize that more than four hours had gone by.
To my surprise, the message came from Nana Maheva.
I didn’t even know she had my number. I groaned inwardly when the message read for me to drop by the kitchen for a snack.
The elder women of Zhara’s family seemed determined to kill me from a burst gut or lethal indigestion.
Granted, the food was excellent, but I was starting to feel like a goose being force-fed for some foie gras.
Still, I wasn’t going to offend her by declining. However, as I approached the kitchen, the most delicious aroma of baked goods had my mouth watering. I couldn’t tell what expression Maheva saw on my face, but she immediately burst out laughing with an indulgent smile.
“Fear not, sweetie. I am not going to force feed you like I already know Jhola did,” she said with a mischievous glimmer in her yellow eyes speckled with green that her daughter, Aunt Lee, Mama Amalia, and my beautiful Zara had all inherited. “This is just a sweet treat I hope you will enjoy.”
“I’m glad to hear it,” I said sheepishly as I approached.
She pulled a covered plate from the counter next to the oven and brought it to the island.
I stared at the lid hiding its content with undisguised curiosity.
The bratty old lady was deliberately making the mystery last as she turned around to go grab a fork in the drawer.
Only once she set it next to the mystery treat did she lift the lid.
My jaw dropped.
“A piece of a chocolate ryspak tort!” Mana Maheva said proudly.
“Ancestors! That’s my Zhara’s favorite dessert! She talks about it nonstop,” I said with a chuckle.
Maheva nodded. “She does! Sadly, it doesn’t matter how much of it I prepare, we always run out,” she said with an exaggerated air of resignation. “As a matter of fact, Lee just snagged everything. I barely managed to cut that piece for you.”
“Wow! Aunt Lee was here?!”
“Yes. She was only passing through to drop something for Amalia when she smelled the goodies. So she grabbed most of it and ran like a thief in the night,” Maheva said, affectionately rolling her eyes. “Go on, taste it.”
She pushed the fork towards me. I picked it up without her having to ask twice.
I cut into it, the top reminding me of a chocolate mousse with the reddish layer of ryspak jelly beneath it, with a spiced short crust at the bottom.
The explosion of flavors on my tongue wrested an embarrassingly loud and voluptuous moan from me.
Maheva burst out laughing, even as she puffed out her chest with pride.
Damn, that was undoubtedly the best dessert I had ever eaten.
No wonder Zhara was so obsessed with it.
Just the right level of bitter in the chocolate, smoothness of the mousse, sweetness of the jelly, and the right amount of spice and crunchiness from the crust, all of which combined in the perfect bite.
I ate a bit more before forcing myself to stop with half of the pie left on my plate. I could only imagine how pathetic I looked, staring sadly at the remaining dessert while licking my fork clean.
“What’s wrong?” Maheva asked with a slightly worried expression when I didn’t finish it and put the lid back on it. “You don’t like it?”
“No, Nana. Quite the opposite. This is the best thing I’ve ever tasted,” I said in all sincerity.
Her shoulders slouched with relief even as her air of confusion cranked up another notch.
“So why did you stop? Are you still too full?” she asked.
I shook my head. “I’m saving the rest for Zhara. She will kill me if she finds out that there was some tort, and that I ate it all.”
Maheva burst out laughing and shook her head at me as if I was a hopeless case.
“There’s more for her, you silly boy!” she exclaimed in a self-evident manner.
I perked up. “Really?! I thought you said Aunt Lee took all of it?”
“She took all of one tort,” Maheva amended sheepishly. “She probably would have grabbed more if she could have, but I chased her out of the house. There’s a full tort for Zhara alone.”
“Oh fuck, yeah!” I exclaimed before flinching and giving her an apologetic look. “Sorry.”
She chuckled. “Sweetie, you seem to forget I raised Amalia. She is the queen of potty mouths. I doubt you can ever say anything that will shock or offend me. Go on, indulge.”
She didn’t have to say it twice. Not only did I wolf down what was left, but I also licked the plate clean, making her laugh even harder.
Once done, as soon as I put the fork down on the plate, Maheva cupped my face with both hands.
“I’m so happy you are finally together. You were always such a good boy, and you have now grown into a great man. Thank you for saving our little princess, and welcome to the family. My Zhara waited so long for you.”
She drew my face towards hers so that she could kiss my forehead then pulled me into her embrace. I gladly returned it. Every time she visited her daughter Aunt Mercy on Braxia, I always made sure to drop by and grill her about Zhara. Therefore, we developed a close bond over the years.
She patted my cheek, took the dirty plate and fork, and put them in the dishwasher before turning to the cooling unit to retrieve something likely to start some preparation for tonight’s dinner.
As she lived nearby with her Xelixian husband and son, she apparently often came over and cooked with Jhola so both her family and the Praghans would share their meals.
I was about to leave when the news feed on the vidscreen across the island caught my attention.
Based on what Zhara explained, they often had it playing on mute but with the subtitles active.
The ticker at the bottom of the newsfeed piqued my interest. I picked up the remote and turned on the volume.
“Tensions are escalating in the Eastern Quadrant over the trade rules imposed by the Galactic Alliance,” the Avean female newscaster said. “Many planets have either pulled out of the alliance or are considering canceling their memberships.”
The female was replaced by a full screen footage of multiple destroyed ships in space with the blue silhouette of the planet Morenor in the background.
The camera then dove towards the planet, through the atmosphere, until it zoomed in on the landscape where flames engulfed the large warehouses near the spaceport.
“But now, threats of violence and rogue attacks have been launched against Morenor, one of the biggest providers of essential resources for many of its trade partners,” the female news anchor continued to say offscreen as more images of the destruction fill the screen.
“As a new member of the alliance, Morenor can no longer ship those essential goods to its former customers. This has triggered global outrage among the trade unions and various communities of the Eastern Quadrant.”
The images switched back to a close-up shot of the woman.
“More and more leaders in that sector are accusing the Galactic Alliance of using bully tactics to destabilize the markets and coercive methods to force non-member planets to join their ranks. The claims also state that the Alliance uses revenge-like tactics to cause unrest amidst the populations of the worlds who have rejected its invitation. We will closely follow any future development in this growing crisis.”