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But the main thing she latched onto was his reaction when he saw her. While grateful she protected him, he hadn’t given her a second thought.
Jelena withdrew and licked the wound to seal it. She put his arm back at his side with a gentle squeeze. Her heart slowed as she gazed at him. The obsession she’d carried about the man dissipated, taking the pent-up tension she carried so long with it. In its place, something new bloomed. The memory of her reaction to Zamush’s blood took hold. The intense rush he’d given her was like no other. Warmth wrapped her in remembered pleasure. But the scene of him with those other women twisted the satisfaction away. Her heart squeezed. Her breath labored.
So now what?
Thank the Goddess BoD interrupted her spiral into pitiful musings. She had better things to do than feel sorry for herself. I don’t know, she confessed. She rubbed her eyes and sighed.
Time to sleep… A feminine, elusive whisper floated by.
Did you hear that? she asked BoD and glanced around.
Hear what? What’re you talking about? Maybe you’re tired and need some sleep. After you’ve had some rest, you can figure out what you want to do. BoD’s tone was gentle.
She rubbed over the heavy weight that squeezed her chest. He was right. Dropping her hand, she added to the compulsion she’d given the Akurns. She commanded they forget all about her and not to wake until she was out of sight. With one last glance at Sychar, she left him and her dreams behind.
Time to sleep, little sister…
There was that strange female voice again. Not bothering to ask BoD if he heard it, she shook her head, trying to clear the fog closing in. Turning around, she headed to her room.
The memory of Zamush’s impressive face reared up. Savagely, she brushed it away. Yeah, maybe BoD was right. Things had to be clearer in the morning.
The journey to her room was all a blur to Jelena. The urge to sleep overrode everything. Even BoD’s voice was background noise as she stumbled into the room. She couldn’t care less what he yammered about as she pulled his harness off, making Shther leap from her shoulder to avoid getting tangled in the straps. She dropped the crossbow on the foot of the bed.
Her pet landed next to it and turned to her. His four pink eyes rotated as if annoyed.
“Sorry,” she mumbled. Keeping her eyes open was a Herculean task, so she closed them and flopped face-first onto the soft pad–clothes, boots, and all. Twisting her head, she rested her cheek on the soft mattress with her arms above her head. Consciousness faded.
“Hello, Jelena. I’m so relieved I’ve finally found you.”
Jelena jerked. She’d been staring at nothing when a woman’s voice caught her by surprise. Twirling around, she was confronted by one of the weirdest things she’d ever seen. It was a woman, but not like anyone she’d met before. She appeared to be a mixture of human, alien hybrid, and Akurn all rolled into one unique package.
The woman’s height was the first thing Jelena noticed.
She had to be close to six feet tall, with a thin, willowy body encased in a lilac gown worthy of any princess. It had gold piping around the border of the floor-length hem, with a trail of cloth behind. The sleeves were covered with a slight flare at the end. The pale-gray bodice held her bountiful breasts high, and those plump mounds moved with each breath.
Jelena examined her features.
Silky straight, platinum hair parted in the middle and was fastened at the nape. The strands ended above the woman’s ankles. Her dual-colored eyes were identical to Jelena’s. Oval-shaped, with a black pupil surrounded by the starburst of orange in a sea of dark brown. Instead of Jelena’s pale complexion, the woman’s skin tone was a rich golden brown—as if she spent her life in the sun’s rays.
Jelena peered closer. Aside from the hair, skin and height, the woman looked like... her. She took a step back with a gasp. Hand on her throat, she asked, “Who are you?”
The woman clasped her hands in front of her with a winsome smile. “I am your sister, Jazmi-Tiamat.”
Jelena scoffed and crossed her arms. “What kind of name is that?” She shook her head and waved her hand. “Whatever. Listen, you and I might look alike, but it doesn’t make us sisters. Besides, if I had any sisters, the people at Azadi wouldn’t have kept it secret.” Ever since she could remember, the Akurns at Azadi treated her like a second-class citizen. If there had been anyone else like her, the last thing they’d do was keep it a secret. Besides, MoMo said nothing about her having siblings. And she wouldn’t lie to her about something like that.
“I understand your confusion. Believe me, if I could’ve found you sooner, your life would have turned out much different.”
“Found me? You act like I was lost.”
The woman’s calm demeanor didn’t change except for a slight downturn of her mouth. “In a way, we were all lost. See, you and I come from a set of identical quintuplets separated at a very young age by Akurn rebels. While they took our sisters and me to Earth, the woman who raised you kept you here on the moon.” She sighed and her frown deepened. “I’ve spent my whole life looking for all of you. You’re the last one I needed to find.”
“Oh, yeah?” Jelena put her hands on her hips and pretended to look around. Wasn’t anything to see except a kaleidoscope of colorful fog whispering around them. “So, where’re the rest of them? They traipsing around in the fog somewhere?”
Jazmi didn’t so much as walk as glided to her. “If you allow me to touch you, I’ll show you our sisters.”
Jelena’s heart raced. The woman didn’t scare her, but the idea of having sisters made her mouth dry. “If this is a trick.” She raised her hand, palm up. In the center was a crystal of sharp ice shaped like a fighting star. “I can defend myself.”
Jazmi’s dual-colored eyes dilated. The reflection from the shimmering crystal danced in their depths. “Oh my, that is lovely.” She gave Jelena mischievous smirk. “I’m afraid if I wanted to hurt you, you would never see it coming.”
