Chapter 8 #2
He grinned and watched her devour the berry and reach for another. He’d guessed that Nera rarely let herself enjoy something as simple as good food. She licked her fingers, and for a second, he got a glimpse of what Nera might have been like as a child.
Except he suspected she’d never been allowed to have a true childhood.
Nik took a couple of berries for himself, but let her have the rest. She finished them and licked her lips. “What’s next?”
He laughed and set a plate of grilled and marinated Soukan fowl and steamed rice in front of her.
She tried the dish, was silent for a second. “This is good, too.”
“Told you that you’d like me taking you to dinner.”
A small smile. “So you did.” She took another few bites. “How long until we reach our destination?”
He checked his timepiece. “Another hour. But it’ll be dark by the time we arrive, so we’ll rest and start the hunt in the morning.”
“Tell me about Mexico.”
“Well, we’re headed to New Mexico City. It was the new capital of the country.
The old Mexico City was once a sprawling metropolis, overcrowded and polluted.
The country had a history of problems with drug trafficking and cartels, but in the century before the Terran War, records show the country had turned itself around.
They eradicated the drug trade and helped their country prosper.
New Mexico City was built, and was a shining example of sustainable architecture and planning. ”
She raised a brow. “How’d they manage all that?”
“In the years before the turnaround, an enterprising group of leaders had focused on education for the young. They had the presence of mind, and the patience, to invest in a long-term solution. It was those children who grew up to lead the country onto bigger and better things.”
“And it had a lot of history. I’ve seen many ancient artifacts from there.”
He pulled a face. “Stolen them, you mean.”
“You say stolen, I say acquired.”
He gave a wry laugh. “Yes, Mexico had a long and fascinating history. From what astro-archeologists have pieced together, it had a rich history of ancient cultures. Olmecs, Mayans, Aztecs. We know so little about them, but there are records of fantastic archeological sites, including great stone pyramids and temples.”
“I don’t think we can fit a pyramid in the cargo bay.”
Nik smiled. “They had plenty of smaller artifacts, too. Gold, stone carvings, pottery. The Museum of Anthropology in New Mexico City was built to transfer all the artifacts from the old city’s museums. The collection was said to be excellent.
I suspect a lot of small stuff made it off-planet, as we do see examples turn up from time to time. ”
She tilted her head. “You’re after something bigger?”
“There were lots of stone carvings. I’m hoping the ones that were too big to transport easily might have survived.”
“But you’re after something in particular.”
Looked like she knew him quite well, too. “Yes. The Sun Stone.”
“Sun Stone? I haven’t heard of it.”
“It was an intricately-carved Aztec calendar stone. It was described as showing many different eras and how they ended. It was supposed to predict the end of the world in the Terran year 2012.”
“Guess they got the dates wrong,” Nera said. “2012 was long before the Great Terran War.”
“Right. It was also said to be three-and-a-half meters in diameter.”
“That’s big. And it’s made of solid stone?”
“Yes. It would weigh several tons. We have the tech to move it easily now, but back then, it would have been harder for them to transport stuff like that without a lot of organization and equipment.” And he really, really hoped that meant it was still in place.
He nudged a bowl of Melarian chocolate across the table. “Dessert time. Try this.”
She dipped her spoon in eagerly. “Mmm, delicious.” She licked her spoon clean.
Nik’s cock had been hard throughout the entire dinner, but now it reached new levels of painful. Damn. Everything this woman did made him hard. “Nera—” His voice was a little choked and he wasn’t sure what he wanted to say.
“You just have to ask, Niklas.”
“I want to know more about you.”
She stiffened a little, the tension so fine he would have missed it, if he wasn’t so attuned to everything she did.
“It isn’t an interesting story.” Nebula eyes lifted. “Isn’t who I am now enough?”
“Everything in the past makes us who we are, Nera. Pushing it into a box doesn’t make it any less true.”
She let out a breath. “You start. Tell me about you.”
“I’m the oldest brother. I always liked books. Zerzura is covered in ruins and legends of Terran colonists.” He shrugged. “No surprise I wanted to study and become an astro-archeologist.”
She took another spoonful of the chocolate. “But it’s more than that, isn’t it?”
Yeah, it was. It was something that inspired and fed his soul. “Have you found that thing, that thing that’s necessary for your being? That just immersing yourself in it for a little while makes you feel…rejuvenated? Like you can take on the entire world, the galaxy.”
Her gaze was locked on his face for a beat, then she cleared her throat. “I don’t think so.”
“That’s what history and learning is for me. It just…fills the well.”
“I was too busy surviving.”
His fingers curled around the edge of the table. “Someone hurt you?”
“Not exactly.” She shoved a hand through her hair. “I was trapped, expected to be anything and everything. To survive, I had to find a way to preserve me—hell, I had to find me first.” A wry smile. “I’m not sure I’ve even achieved that yet.”
He swallowed. “Klavinoi.”
She shot to her feet, her chair tipping over and crashing to the floor.
He rose slowly. “I’m sorry.”
When he took a step closer, she stepped backward. Her face was pale.
He held out a hand. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t pry. I just…dammit, I want to know everything about you. You tell me when you’re ready. If you’re ever ready. Your secrets are yours, Nera.”
“How…how do you know the name of that planet?” She spat the words out.
“Xander.”
She lifted her chin, her mouth firming. “Of course, that nosy cyborg. Fucking Centax Security can never keep their noses out of other people’s business. And since your cousin has him wrapped around her little finger, I assume she—and by blood you—have access to whatever information you like.”
“He mentioned it in passing. You’re on their radar. But he had no details. He mentioned Novalia as well.”
She waved a hand. “Novalia was information I dispersed to muddy the waters.” She looked at him. “I never wanted anyone to know my past.”
He swallowed. “I’m sorry. If that’s what you want, that’s the way it will be.”
She shook her head. “You are a good man, Niklas. I’ve run every search I could on you and your brothers.” A tweak of her lips. “I know the name of your first pet, and the name of the first girl you had sex with.”
His eyes widened. “Ah…well.”
Nera’s face turned serious. “You’re too good for me. I’ve always known that.”
He grabbed her hand, entwining their fingers. “Don’t say that.”
“I’m a bitch, Niklas.” A harsh laugh. “Even your biocomputer doesn’t like me. I have no family, no friends…only enemies. I’ve made my life like that, carefully cultivated it. I care for no one, and no one cares for me.”
Her matter-of-fact tone made his chest hurt. “I care about you.”
She tugged on her hand. “You’re stupid to do that. You care, you get hurt. That’s how life works.”
He didn’t let her pull free. Instead, he tugged her an inch closer.
“Some hurts are worth it. Some pay you back a hundred times over. I can’t tell you how many times my brothers have made me angry, pissed me off, slammed me with truths I didn’t want to hear, made me envious…
but they’re worth it. Every second of it. ”
“Some hurts break you.”
“I won’t break you, Nera.” He reeled her in closer, and slid his hand along her arm. So soft. Such a contrast to the hard shell she showed the galaxy. He stared at her face. So beautiful, yet she ignored it. She didn’t paint it, enhance it, flaunt it, or use it.
He cupped her cheek, his thumb running across her sharp cheekbone. “This is one hell of a face.”
She shrugged. “Genetics. Luck, or perhaps a sign I have a lot of e-creds.”
No, there was no way she’d paid for this face. She would have preferred a nondescript face that let her blend in over this beauty.
“There’s one hell of a woman under it, too.
” He squeezed her toned shoulder with his other hand.
“Strong muscles. Discipline and training. Brilliant mind. I’ve seen you leap into a fight with the coolest look on your face.
All that attracts me. I’ve seen the hunts you’ve executed, and I love watching you figure something out before me. It really turns me on.”
“That hardly happens.” A quiet snort. “I let you use that brain of yours and work it out first, then I just steal it out from under you.”
A laugh escaped him. “That’s sexy, too.”
She cocked her head. “I know it’s made you angry in the past.”
“No, that’s Dathan. It just made me brood because I wanted to know more about you.
I wanted to get closer to you, but I didn’t know how.
” He stepped in until they were plastered against each other.
“I didn’t know how to get past your protective walls.
” He pressed a finger to the pulse at her neck. It was racing.
“You’re past them now,” she whispered. “So, what are you going to do about it?”
He touched his mouth to hers but ruthlessly controlled the desire pounding through him. He wanted to push her to the floor, tear her clothes off, and feast on every inch of her.
He pulled back and touched her cheek again. “I want to give you pleasure.”