The nails that had softly scraped his back now sank into his flesh, droplets of blood sliding down his spine. “Who owns you?”
Here we go again. “You do.”
“Who governs your fate?”
“You.”
Her eyes narrowed to tiny slits. “Never forget that, Tristan, or I will make you suffer for it.”
Tristan vaguely heard someone, a female, calling his name from a faraway place. It was a voice he felt compelled to answer. However, his mouth refused to work.
The voice continued to echo in his head. Familiar…
Julia!
Fear tinged her voice. Had someone threatened her? Either way, she needed him. In a panic to reach her, he fought his way through the dark haze still enveloping his mind.
Wait. Was his body soaked with sweat? Was he trembling? What had just happened? He had been inside Julia’s car, peering out at the scenery of this planet he had come to admire. The red hills and stone homes, all while breathing in the clean, crisp air. Then the darkness had invaded his mind. He had been unable to stop from sinking into his memories. But how had he relived those memories so vividly?
The answer hit him, and he jolted. Zirra. Somehow, she had forced him to remember scenes from their time together.
He bit back a violent curse. She hoped to remind him that she was out there, searching for a way to steal him from Julia, didn’t she? He bit back a curse.
Bit by bit, he pried open his eyelids. Julia was crouched in the open car door at his side, her lovely face inches from his. To the left, cars whizzed past the driver side window.
“Are you allowed to park here?” he questioned hoarsely.
A sob burst from her throat, half laugh, half desperate cry. “That’s all you have to say after going catatonic for the past ten minutes?”
“Aye.” He massaged the back of his neck.
“Well, the answer is yes. This is the side of the road. Now tell me what the heck was wrong with you.”
“I was dreaming of the past,” he forced out.
“Nope. Try again.” She shook her head. “That wasn’t just a dream. You were in some sort of trance.”
Perceptive female. “I was relieving my past with Zirra. Vividly.”
“Ohhhh. So you were experiencing PTSD?”
He had no idea what PTSD was, but he nodded, anyway, certain it had something to do with the rising tide of self-hate, disgust and sickness.
Though her expression remained unconvinced, she did soften. “Are you sure you’ll be okay?”
He rested his head against the seat buckle, his energy quickly deserting him. He felt himself sinking into sleep. “Take me home, Julia.”
She hurried back to the wheel. When they reached the house, she acted as a crutch, helping him to the couch. Then she locked his box inside the plant stand, and raced to the kitchen to fetch him a glass of water. He drained the liquid with one gulp and set the glass aside, then stretched out his long legs. When she snuggled up beside him, he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close, and tried to get the rest of his mind out of the past.
* * *
JULIA HAD NEVER witnessed anything like what she’d seen in the car today. Tristan had been deathly still, barely breathing, alternating between ice cold and fiery hot.
Thank the Lord he’d awakened on his own. She didn’t know what she would have done if he hadn’t.
Yet, as her eyes had met his, she’d almost wished he would sink back into the trance—anything to hide the horror and pain written all over his face.
What memories had caused such a look? What had he suffered?
Toying with the fine hair on his arm, she breathed, “Tristan?”
He didn’t stir, didn’t face her. “Aye, Julia?”
“Please tell me what happened. That isn’t an order but a request. I would give anything to help you.”
Silence greeted her pronouncement. Silence so thick an oppressive fog descended all around them.
“Speaking about what you endured might help ease your inner pain. And I promise I won’t judge you or laugh. I’ll simply listen.”
Several more minutes of silence. And then he spoke hesitantly at first.
“Zirra kept me for several seasons. She was a cruel mistress, demanding my devotion, my affection, and when I wouldn’t freely give them to her, she punished me.”
He continued on, telling her more about Zirra, as well as all the other guan rens who had emotionally scarred him. He described horrors such as she’d never imagined, terrors done to this strong, proud man whose only mistake was bedding the evil sorceress. Julia listened to his every word, trying, hoping, to absorb some of his pain into herself.
“In the end,” he said, “I lost my will to fight. I simply expected and accepted what was done to me.”
“You are not a pleasure slave with me,” she said softly. “You are a man, Julia’s man, and I am your woman. You’ve said so!”
“Julia—” he said, his tone laced with regret.
“No. Don’t deny the words or tell me that you are only what Zirra made you, or that what we have can’t last. I know differently.”
“We can take measures to prevent the box from being stolen, but we cannot prevent time from passing. I will never age, never die. And you will, Julia. You will.”
Ohhhh. She hadn’t thought about that. “What if—what if you fell in love with me? The spell would be broken and you would be mortal. Just like me.”
“Oh, that I could, sweet draga. But you must remember I will return to Imperia. So I do not and I will not love you.”
She fought back an ocean of tears. “You think I’d rather you stay here as a captive than return home as a free man, even if I will be miserable without you?”
“Nay,” he said fiercely, taking her hand in his and bringing her knuckles to his lips for a kiss. “Think you
