Chapter 28

Chapter

Twenty-Eight

R ixx crouched on the flat roof of the building, cutting a quick glance at the closed hatch. He had not wanted to leave Myrria, but Zala had practically pushed him up and out the square door cut into the roof. His mind reeled with the shock that Myrria's husband, who she had assured him was long-gone—had returned. He had almost let himself believe that Myrria was his wife, but now reality had cruelly intruded and reminded him that Kurril was not his home, Myrria was not his, and the planet was not safe.

He scanned the tops of the other low buildings and the taller rooftops, grateful that no one else was on them. At least, he would not be spotted ambling across the tops of the city's houses as he searched for the one that Zala had promised would be a safe haven for him.

Two streets over with a red roof and yellow awnings. That should not be hard to find.

Zala had whispered to him that he should ask for Madam Serena and tell her that Myrria and Zala sent him.

"Be sure to say my name too," the little girl had whispered as the two voices downstairs had grown louder.

Rixx had nodded solemnly, but he'd lingered as he listened to Myrria's voice rise. He did not like the sound of this man, even if it was him who belonged in the family and not Rixx.

Zala had given him a push, and he'd hoisted himself through the hatch as the sound of clattering dishes reached him. Then the door was closed, and he was alone on the roof.

Rixx peered up at the sun rising higher in the sky, breathed in the air that was already heavy with heat, and forced himself to move. His footsteps were silent—something he'd learned from hunting on the sands—and he crept quickly from one roof to the other. He stayed close to the edge so he could peer down and mentally chart his progress.

At the corner of the street, he eyed the gap between buildings before taking a small running start on his toes and leaping across. He landed in a crouch and stayed immobile for a few beats, hoping that no one below had heard him. If they had, they didn't care. There were no shouts, no tempos on the ceiling, no one hanging from the windows and yelling up.

He continued crossing rooftops, sometimes leaping up higher and sometimes dropping low, until he came to another corner. There was the building with the red roof and yellow awnings, just as Zala had described.

Rixx hesitated. Unlike the other buildings that were weathered and unkept with dirty shutters and litter on their roofs, this building glittered like a jewel. The fabric awnings were clean and edged with tassels, the paint on the outside wasn't faded and stained, and the roof was spotless. Not only that, but music drifted out from an open window along with a heady scent that was both sensual and welcoming.

His stomach clenched as he realized that he'd smelled that scent on Myrria when she'd returned from her errands the day before. She'd been in that building, which meant that Zala had sent him to a pleasure house.

When he'd first arrived on Kurril, the only thing he'd wanted to see was one of the famous pleasure houses. Then he'd been taken captive by the Zevrians and all thoughts of females who were free with their favors had been banished from his mind. But now he had been sent to one. But not as a patron, as a wanted criminal.

He took a deep breath as he eyed the rungs bolted into the side of the building and hoped that Zala was right about her mother's name being enough to get him inside and well hidden.

"There is only one way to find out."

The Dothvek quickly climbed down from the roof and dropped to the ground, swiveling his gaze to both sides. It wasn't early morning, but Kurril was not the kind of place to rouse early. And he was sure that the pleasure house would not be the type of establishment to open before dusk.

He tapped the shiny red door, trying not to knock too loudly and draw attention to himself. A curtain in a side window fluttered, and the door opened a crack.

"The girls are sleeping." The voice was soft and dreamy, not what he would have expected from someone manning the door. He'd thought the house would be guarded by some burly males, if not on the outside then certainly on the inside.

He focused on the wide, blue eye in the crack of the door. "I'm not here for the girls. I'm here for Serena." When the eye narrowed, he added, "Myrria sent me—and Zala."

The shrewd gaze softened and the door opened. "Come in. I will get Serena."

Rixx stepped inside, the cool air and dim lighting instantly slowing his pounding heart. The music he'd heard outside the house was coming from the upper levels, and he tipped his head to see that the interior of the house featured a central open hall with balconies and rooms winding up to the top. Twinkling lights were strung across the opening and there were even swings and colorful silks suspended at various levels by heavy wires. He imagined that both the swings and silks were occupied by costumed females when clients were present.

The lower level of the house was a single great room filled with various clusters of chairs, settees, and enormous cushions. At the far wall was a long, hammered-copper bar backed by a massive mirror fronted by shelves of bottles. But instead of the surface being littered by glasses and remnants from the previous evening, the bar was spotless.

Now that Rixx studied the interior more closely, he saw that everything was pristine. There were no stains on the furniture, no grime on the wooden floors, no surly men passed out, no weary female pleasurers lounging on the velvet cushions. He quickly knew that this was not a place for desperate and hopeless females or for males who dared to step out of line.

He turned to the female who'd let him in, and his breath caught. She was petite, with large blue eyes set into a dark brown face, but when she smiled, she bared rows of enormous, pointed teeth that could have flayed him in a matter of seconds.

"We've never had a client sent to us from Zala," she said, eyeing him from top to bottom now that he was inside. "Or Myrria."

Rixx tried not to focus on her teeth, reminding himself that Zala would not have sent him someplace dangerous.

"Don't toy with him, Velen."

The sultry voice immediately pulled his attention to the winding wooden staircase that ringed the interior of the building and the female who was descending the final few steps. It wasn't only her lavender hair that was striking, but the fact that her sheer blue dress barely covered her impressive curves. Even though she was barely dressed, the female radiated power and dominance.

Rixx's mouth went dry. He had never seen a creature like her. Not on his home world and not in his travels through space. She might have been human, but there was something otherworldly about the way she moved and about the way her gaze bored into him, as if she could peer into his soul.

"Sorry, Serena." The toothy female giggled as she stepped aside. "Just making sure he's not trouble."

Now Rixx understood why they did not bother with big males at the door. They did not need to when the small creature could rip anyone apart with a few bites. He suspected that it only took a well-timed grin to keep rowdy patrons in line.

When Serena reached him, she touched a hand to his cheek and nodded approvingly. "Any friend of Myrria's and Zala's is welcome here—even if he's got a bounty on his very handsome head."