A little thrill went through Suki. The big, powerful cyborg had the ability to crush her, to kill her with one blow, but he was the gentlest male she’d ever met. Nurturing. Caring. Suki had never known anyone like him before, not even on Earth, and while he was still a stranger, there was no disguising the goodness inside of him. It shone through his eyes.
“Why do you look different?” Tark asked. “I mean, different from other human females? The others on my world don’t look like you.”
“Like me?” she asked.
“Yes. Your eyes are different, your size. I’ve heard Earth is full of many different types of humans.”
“I’m from a place called Japan. Perhaps the other humans you’ve met were from other places.”
Tark nodded. The look on his face was one of fascination. She wondered how different his home was from her world. She’d seen many planets since being captured though she never had a chance to explore any of them. As a slave, a whore, she’d had one purpose and it had only involved spreading her legs or giving aliens access to whatever part of her they wished.
Suki ate slowly, even though she wanted to stuff her face as fast as possible. It had been so long since she’d eaten real food she knew she’d throw up if she didn’t take it slow. Everything tasted so damn good! The master had fed her this nasty paste she’d been told was full of nutrients but had tasted like chalk. The food on her plate… it was heavenly. So many flavors and textures. It would be so easy to eat until she burst, but Suki was careful not to overdo it.
When she was finished, she pushed her plate away. Tark had been done for a while, nearly inhaling his food. He put their plates into the cleansing unit, then took her hand and led her back the way they’d come. Tark opened the door to their room and pulled her inside. As the door shut, he turned to face her, his chest heaving as if he’d run a marathon, and his eyes were dark with passion. There was no doubt he wanted her, but Suki didn’t think he would act on it. Not unless she prodded him.
“You need to rest,” Tark said. “You can have the bed.”
“And where will you sleep?” she asked.
He shrugged. “The floor is fine.”
Suki crawled onto the bed and pushed the covers aside. She inched over as far as she could, pressing her back to the wall, then motioned for Tark to come closer. He stopped at the edge of the bed and looked down at her.
“There’s plenty of room, Tark.”
“I shouldn’t,” he said, looking away, a muscle in his jaw tensing.
“Please,” she said softly. “What if I have a nightmare? What if I need you?”
He glanced her way again, just staring for a moment. Then he removed his boots and got into bed, pulling the covers over both of them. Suki smiled softly as she curled against his body, her hand on his chest and her head on his non-metal shoulder. It was a small victory, but she’d take it. His body was tense, and his chest barely moved, as if he were afraid to even breathe. Did he even have to breathe? He’d said his lungs weren’t organic. She wasn’t entirely sure what it meant for some of his organs to be mechanical. She’d never met a cyborg before, not that she knew of anyway. She found him rather fascinating, in more ways than one. After everything she’d been through, Suki never would have guessed she might be attracted to an alien, but then she’d never met one like Tark before.
“Will we travel to your world tomorrow?” she asked, curious about what would happen to her next.
“Once the crew finds out there’s a female on board, they will want to return to Xpashta as soon as possible. Suki, I didn’t see other humans in that tent, but you said you were kept in cages when you weren’t…”
“Servicing customers?” she asked.
“Yes. Were there other humans, maybe held somewhere else?” Tark asked.
“Yoko and I were the only humans from our country, but there were two other humans there. We didn’t get to speak to them much, but one said she was from India. I never found out anything about the other woman.”
Tark tensed. The look on his face was one of panic, and something else. Something she couldn’t quite determine.
“There are more humans? Where did the slaver keep you when you weren’t in that tent?” he asked. There was a bite to his tone, and she realized he was worried for the other women. She hadn’t given them another thought, and it made her stomach ache that she’d failed them.
“The cages are on his ship. It looks much older than this one, and isn’t as well maintained from what I could see. The outside had dents and the metal was tarnished.”
“Suki, can you tell me exactly where that ship is located? Maybe my cyborg brothers can locate it and free those humans.”
She shifted so she could look into his eyes. “Really? You could find them and bring them here? Take them to your world with us?”
He nodded. “They would be free too. All of you could find mates and have families. If they’ve been sterilized like you, they will be given the option of having it reversed.”
She pressed a hand to her belly. “I can really have children now?”
Tark nodded. “Maybe not right away. Your body is healing. Even if you find your mate, it would be wise to refrain from…”
His cheeks flushed and she smiled a little. It was rather adorable that such a big guy could be embarrassed over something like being intimate.
