Therian Priestess Read online

  After losing his mother while he was a small child, Aylon had turned to his grandmother for affection. Naedar was more than happy to nurture the boy because focusing her attention on Aylon helped her accept the loss of her beloved daughter. Now, decades later, they remained close. Naedar was a healer, greatly respected among the people Aylon would one day rule. She had instilled in him compassion and a hunger for justice meant to balance the harsher lessons of his father.

  “Give it time.” She patted his shoulder. “Her image will fade.”

  “I do not want it to fade.” He stretched, lightly touching the dressing she’d just applied. “As her teeth sank into my flesh, I sensed her regret and determination. She was not crazed. There was purpose behind her actions.”

  Naedar looked at him askance as she wiped her hands on a clean cloth. “What purpose could there be in biting a stranger?” She stilled and her expression turned thoughtful. “Unless she was a soulless blood drinker.”

  “She was not soulless. She was Therian, just like you and me.” He pushed to his feet, too anxious to sit motionless. “If she is wandering the forest alone, I need to find her. It is far too dangerous.”

  “Do you still dream-walk? It might be easier to find her without the encumbrance of your body.”

  He had inherited the ability from his mother, who had inherited it from Naedar. His father dismissed all such “nonsense”, but Aylon had seen spiritual gifts in action too often to discount them entirely. Much of what made Naedar such a good healer had nothing to do with her herbs and potions.

  “It has been many winters,” he admitted, “but I have no reason to believe the gift has left me.”

  “Our spirits reside in our blood, which means a small piece of you is already inside this woman you find so captivating. You should be able to use this connection to track your mysterious visitor.” She ambled over to one of her cluttered shelves and picked up a small leather pouch. “Soak these leaves in hot water until the water turns green then drink the liquid. It will relax you and free your mind to roam. Your gift will do the rest.”

  She handed him the pouch and he thanked her with a hug. “Pray that Khonish will guide my steps or free my mind from her image.”

  Sun momentarily blinded Aylon as he emerged from his grandmother’s cottage. Naedar was the only one he’d told what really happened. Everyone else believed a starving wolf lunged for his throat. His father had been skeptical when Aylon hadn’t produced the wolf’s body, but the incident wasn’t important enough to cause more than a raised eyebrow.

  Aylon paused near the meeting house in the middle of the village. The elders and most of the warriors were planning the next raid. The decisions could easily be made without his input. He’d been so distracted by his mysterious visitor that he’d been nearly useless these past few days.

  His father looked toward the doorway as he entered and smiled. “Are you mended?” Deep and booming, his voice easily filled the cavernous space.

  “For the most part.” Aylon strode to his rightful place at his father’s side and sat. The meeting resumed as if the interruption had never happened and Aylon did his best to pay attention. But even immersed in village business, her image lingered in his mind.

  Night had fallen by the time Aylon sought the welcome quiet of his longhouse. He took most meals with his family, but he slept in the solitude of his private domain. He’d built the house in preparation for a marriage that never took place. By now, he’d expected the space to be filled with the raucous laughter of children. Instead he was often alone.

  He forced the melancholy aside with a firm mental shove and focused on the task at hand. After stoking the embers in his fire pit, he added twigs until he had enough of a blaze to quickly heat some water. The night was mild and the fire unnecessary, except to prepare the potion.

  The herbs smelled foul and the brew tasted even worse, but he was anxious to begin his search. He needed to know more about his visitor. Who was she? Why had she bitten him? Was she still alive? And why had she run away that night on the beach?

  After whispering a prayer to Khonish, asking the Father Creator to bless his journey, Aylon stretched out on his bed and let his mind wander. And her image came readily. She was never far from his thoughts so her features remained vivid within his memory. Moonlight gleamed in her long black hair and her unusual eyes stared back at him with hesitant fascination. Golden flecks shimmered in their dark depths like tiny stars in the midnight sky.

  He closed his eyes and surrendered to the potion’s gentle lethargy. His surroundings faded and his physical body grew numb as his inner being came alive. He could sense the forest surrounding the village, feel the sway of the trees and hear the scurry of nocturnal creatures.

  He pictured her face and felt the softness of her mouth sliding against his. Her taste had been different from anything he’d tasted before. He focused on the memories, using each element to form a pattern on which he based his search. Soaring over the treetops, he scanned, hoping for any sign of her.

  An image formed suddenly, unexpected and unbidden. He saw a swirling light within his chest, tiny specks of its brilliance flowing throughout his body with the rushing of his blood. And from the center of his chest a glistening thread stretched out into the darkness.

  A small piece of you is already inside this woman you find so captivating. Naedar’s words echoed through his mind, urging him on.

  He followed the light thread, suppressing a moment of fear as it led him far beyond the forest, beyond the mountains and the familiar sea. How had his beautiful visitor traveled all this way in only a matter of days?

  Ignoring the questions surging through his mind, he focused on the strand of light.

  He sensed her before he saw her and something deep within him quickened. Excitement and hunger warred within him, each compounding the other. She rested on her side, one of her small hands tucked beneath her lovely face.

  A golden female of staggering beauty sat across from his dark visitor. The blonde poked a long stick into the fire, obviously lost in thought. There was no way she was Therian, certainly not human. Her beauty was nearly painful to behold. Her head came up and she looked right at him, then a slow smile bowed her lips.

  Jatara will be so glad to see you. She has spoken of nothing else for days.

  Without allowing him to return the greeting, the blonde beauty flashed out of sight.

  Aylon didn’t waste energy considering the mystery of who she was or how she’d known he was there. Jatara. His visitor’s name was Jatara and she had been as moved by their short acquaintance as he had been by meeting her.

  He paused beside her sleeping form, drawing energy into his being as he decided how best to proceed. She attracted him like a river’s strong current and he had no desire to resist the sensual pull. Her mind was strong and complex, demanding, far different than any mind he’d touched before. He sank into her being, the light strand leading the way.

  She was dreaming about him. The realization sent joy rolling through Aylon. Their connection was real and vibrant. He wasn’t losing his mind!

  In her dream, they lay on his cloak beside the sea, locked in a passionate embrace. Her arms were wrapped around his neck as he kissed her deeply. This was a scene he was more than happy to join. He melded with her mind, taking control of his dream self as her scent spread through his nose.

  Jatara slid her tongue into the mouth of her dream lover. On some level she understood that the scene wasn’t real, but she had no desire to awaken. The night of the new moon was rapidly approaching and Bellin had been particularly demanding with their hunting schedule. Jatara had obeyed each directive without argument or protest. But through it all the snow leopard’s image had remained in the back of her mind, drawing her, yet encouraging her.

  “Touch me,” she whispered against his lips. “I ache so badly I can scarcely think.”

  His lips blazed a path from her mouth to her upper chest as he loosened the laces on the front of her d
ress and bared one of her breasts. “So beautiful.” He cupped the lower curve as his lips closed around her nipple. The strong suction made her arch and heat cascaded through her body.

  She wanted to strip off her garments and open her thighs so he could push deep inside her. But Khonish was all-knowing. If he sensed that she’d given herself to another, even in a dream, he might use her weakness as a reason to renege on their deal. She couldn’t let that happen. No matter how badly she ached for her snow leopard prince, her mission must come first.

  He pulled up her skirts, his intent obvious. She caught his wrist then waited until her looked into her eyes. “I cannot join with you yet. After you’ve touched me, I will touch you, but we cannot do more right now.”

  “Why?” Tension etched his features making him look even more savage and more appealing. “You said you ache. I ache too. Why must we postpone what we both want so badly?”

  “I will explain it all, I promise. But for now, this must be enough.”

  His blue gaze bore into hers as his hand gently stroked her breast. “I will wait for a full joining if you tell me why you ran away from me the night we met.” She pushed up with one arm and kissed his mouth, using the intimacy to soothe her raging desire. After only a moment, he turned his head and separated their lips. “I will not be distracted by your kiss. Tell me why you are so afraid.”

  “It was not fear that drove me away that night. It was obligation.” Even in her dreams she was not free to tell him the truth and the dishonesty weighed heavily upon her. “I must be certain of my family’s fate before I even consider starting a new life.”

  “But I can help you. We can search for them together and—”

  She placed her fingers against his lips and smiled. “I will not waste these precious moments arguing with you. I need your touch too badly.”

  “Tell me where you are and I will come to you.”

  With a wicked smile she raised her skirts to her waist and parted her thighs. “Would you really rather talk?”

  His mouth claimed hers in a nearly frantic kiss. He pressed his hand over her mound, his long fingers easing between her thighs. She combed his hair with her fingers and returned his kiss with equal fervor. She would have this in reality. Someday they would join.

  He parted her folds and rubbed her nub with the shaft of his finger. Her thighs tensed and sensations pulsed through her core. It was so easy to imagine him there, filling her, moving against and into her.

  “If you do not want me to fulfill your fantasies, think of something else,” he whispered against her parted lips.

  The distinct growl in his warning only coiled the tension tighter. She rocked her hips, unable to remain still while he touched her.

  Suddenly his mouth lifted and his gaze bore into hers. “Let go.” His fingers surrounded her sensitive nub and gently squeezed. “Let it happen.” He carefully pulled and the pleasure crested. Her inner muscles rippled with strong spasms as tingling heat pulsed into her chest and down the inside of her thighs.

  He watched her, obviously enjoying her response to his skillful touch. She blew out a shaky breath and shivered as sizzling aftershocks zinged through her belly. She drifted down from the blissful high and suspicion scratched at the back of her mind. Even with Khonish her release hadn’t been this powerful. If her dream lover where a figment of her imagination, how had he known more about her body than she knew herself?

  “What are you thinking, love?” He brushed a gentle kiss over her lips. “Your eyes are troubled, not content.”

  “Is this still a dream?” She pressed her hand against the side of his face and stroked his lips with her thumb. “Tell me your name.”

  His lips parted as if he would answer and then he nipped her thumb. “You told me names were not important. Have you changed your mind?”

  She didn’t know his name, so a dream character wouldn’t be able to tell her. She relaxed in the knowledge and said, “It is my turn to touch you.”

  He lay back across the cloak and folded his hands behind his head. “Are you sure you would not rather ride me?” He punctuated the question with a sexy smile and another shiver ricocheted through her body.

  “Soon, my love. We will be together soon.” Emboldened by his willingness to let her play, she pushed up his tunic and unfastened his trousers, parting the front to reveal his cock. It rose long and hard from his flat belly, obviously eager for her touch.

  She curved her fingers around the shaft and gave him a little squeeze. His hand covered hers and he showed her how to stroke, how fast to slide and how firmly to grasp. Her gaze shifted back and forth between the impressive column of flesh encircled by her fist and the pleasure reflected in his expression.

  It made her feel wild and powerful to know she could make such a strong man tremble with need. When they were finally free to join this would be inside her, stretching her, filling the ache already forming again between her thighs. She moved her hand faster and felt him harden even more.

  His eyes squeezed shut and his lips parted as his hips began to rock into her steady strokes. Liquid beaded on the very tip and she swiped it with her thumb, spreading the moisture over his sensitive skin. He groaned, so she did it again and again.

  Khonish had used his mouth on her. Did females pleasure their mates the same way?

  Before she could explore the possibility, her snow leopard prince cried out and his shaft twitched against her fingers. Streams of milky liquid shot into the air and splattered across his tight belly. She massaged him firmly until the last shudder passed and he opened his eyes.

  “This is just a taste of what we will share when you return to me.” He straightened his clothing, unconcerned with the seed clinging to his skin. “How long must I wait? Where are you? Why will you not let me help you?” He pulled her into his arms and kissed her, his tongue moving boldly in her mouth.

  She was breathless when he finally let her go and she wanted the dream to never end. “If I have found no sign of my family when the new moon has come and gone, I will return to you.”

  He accepted her answer with a nod and paused for another deep kiss. “If you were not afraid, why did you bite me? You said it was obligation. To whom are you obliged?”

  “In time. I will explain everything in time.”

  This didn’t seem to please him, but he reluctantly let it go. “Who is your blonde companion? She knew I was here and intentionally left us alone.”

  Again Jatara was struck by how real he seemed. It was almost as if…she couldn’t explain why this dream seemed so different from all her others, but it definitely felt like more than a dream.

  He stared at her expectantly. That’s right, he’d asked about Bellin. “She is my friend and mentor. You have nothing to fear from her.” That was all he needed to know for now. “And as for why she left us alone, she is probably tired of hearing me complain about not being with you. I have struggled to concentrate on my mission ever since the night we met.”

  “Is there some way I can help with your mission?”

  She smiled and snuggled into the warmth of his chest. “You already have.”

  * * * * *

  The new moon shone its silvery light down upon Jatara as she approached Khonish’s massive dwelling. Her strides were long and sure, her shoulders squared. She was not the frightened woman-child he had encountered a moon cycle before. She had seen such wonders—seas of ice and towering mountains that speared the heavens. She’d met amazing people and learned that the world was a vast and awesome place.

  “Do not let him intimidate you,” Bellin advised.

  How could any mortal being not be intimidated by a god? “I am not afraid.” That much was true. She respected the power at Khonish’s command and was anxious to explore her own potential, but she was no longer afraid. Her blood pulsed with restrained power and her being brimmed with latent abilities desperate for release, yet now she carried the life experiences of each of the men whose blood she had consumed. This was the f
inal step in her transformation. Khonish would anchor all the power she had harvested over the past moon cycle. He would imprint it permanently upon her soul, so her descendants would benefit from Bellin’s gift as well as Jatara herself.

  As they neared the front door, Khonish pulled it open. He stood silhouetted by the light behind him as he said, “I was not sure you would make it in time.”

  “You should have known better, brother dear.” Bellin looked at Jatara and smiled. “We held up our end of the bargain. Now it is time for you to hold up yours.”

  He inclined his head and motioned them inside with the sweep of one muscular arm. “How many natures was she able to collect?”

  “All of the important ones.”

  It was an obvious evasion but Khonish didn’t press. Instead, he turned to Jatara and said, “Are you willing to submit to me body and soul?”

  It was just such a sacrifice that had brought her to Khonish the first time. Could her new nature be solidified without paying his price? Bellin had avoided the question every time Jatara asked what the final step would entail. “Definition does not require a physical joining. I would prefer to wait until I’ve located my mate.”

  A smile lifted one corner of his mouth, making him look impossibly arrogant. “I did not realize you were an expert on such matters.”

  “I am sorry, Great Lord.” She lowered her gaze. “I did not mean to offend you.”

  His warm fingers touched her chin, raising her face until she looked into his eyes. “I am not offended. I am intrigued. You have changed much in the past moon cycle.”

  She had known it would come to this. Khonish had made his price clear from the beginning, her surrender for his power. And the idea had not bothered her until she met the snow leopard prince. It was his hands she wanted upon her naked flesh, his cock she longed to fill her. But there was more at stake than her happiness. If she did not submit to Khonish, all her efforts over the past moon cycle would be wasted. No, this must be done. And not just for her, for Therian females everywhere.