Chapter 13

Kleena

Kleena adjusted her headscarf to mirror the way the other women in the village wore theirs. She walked next to Erhan, the two of them sticking close together as a married couple should.

Their hands brushed against each other, deliberate and planned moves to paint a picture of two people in love.

Her thoughts flashed back to the night they collected water at the well. It had been a week since, but she still occasionally found herself remembering the exciting jolt she felt when their hands had briefly touched.

They arrived at Calla’s stall where she had already started setting up her homegrown herbs to sell.

“I’m glad you’re here, I appreciate your help.” She smiled brightly at the couple.

When the sun sat at its highest peak in the sky, Calla instructed Kleena to go and eat something.

Kleena instantly agreed, feeling quite hungry, and walked over to Erhan where he was admiring a large sword. She grabbed his hand and dragged him away from the blacksmith’s weapon display.

They sat next to each other with a view of the village, Erhan’s hand casually resting on her back. It was a convincing act of intimacy, but the affection never reached his eyes.

The meal was pleasant and the perfect opportunity for them to act like they were crazy about each other, feeding each other bites of food and holding hands.

Somewhere between the fake touches and smiles, Kleena couldn’t help but wonder what a real romantic dinner with Erhan would be like.

Would he caress my hand and kiss it? Would he stare lovingly into my eyes and show me a softer side of himself?

Erhan’s voice pulled her out of her musing. “Kleena? Can we go, or do you want something else?”

She shook her head. “We can leave.”

A short, frumpy woman quickly approached them as they stood up. Her smile was wide and made her eyes narrow into small half-moons.

“I’m so sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if you’d help me. I’m Atilda, and in charge of decorating the village hall for an upcoming festival. I wanted to hang some streamers but I just couldn’t reach the ceiling. You’re a tall gentleman. Maybe you can reach that high?”

They were silent as the woman rambled, speaking nonstop until she’d asked her question.

Kleena looked up at Erhan. “This would be a nice way to get to know more of the village’s people…”

He nodded. “I’d be happy to help.”

The trio arrived at the village hall a few moments later, its exterior decorated with bright flowers and greenery.

Upbeat music was coming from inside the building, creating a happy atmosphere.

The inside was mostly empty with chairs and tables stacked in a corner. A group of women were standing around the only table that was set up and pushed against a wall.

“Ladies! I brought someone to help with our little problem.” Atilda sounded very proud of herself.

The women hurried over to them and happily greeted them with wide smiles. Erhan deftly got onto the table, Kleena watching with faked admiration. He picked up some streamers and started stringing them up, but Atilda voiced her displeasure.

“That’s not quite high enough, dear. Can you go higher?”

Erhan called Kleena over. “Honey, I’ll need your help.”

She got on the table and took the streamers from him. “What do I do?”

“Just hang them, I’ll lift you high enough.”

He swiftly and effortlessly picked her up by her hips as she let out a little yelp.

“Wait, Erhan… that tickles.”

“What?”

She squirmed, moving around to shift his hands on her sides while giggling loudly. “Please, it tickles!”

Erhan began to lower her, but it was too late, and her squirming threw him off balance.

He strained, using his powerful tail to keep him upright, but his grip on Kleena made her squirm even more. Now laughing so hard that tears were rolling down her cheeks, they tumbled off the table and onto the floor. Erhan used his tail to cushion her fall and landed on the ground with a huff.

“Oh no! Are you all right?” Kleena stopped laughing, checking him for injuries.

Her hands stilled when she saw that he was shaking with laughter. She started laughing again too, falling back onto his tail.

He turned his head to look at her. “I can’t remember the last time I actually fell…”

They eventually got the streamers up, but it took much longer than intended because Kleena would giggle and squirm through the entire process.

Kleena smiled as they returned to Calla’s stall, still thinking about their tumble earlier.

“Are you two truly together? You’re such an odd couple…” A nasal voice disrupted the peaceful quiet between them.

“Excuse me?” Erhan’s voice was low, and his tongue flicked out, tasting the air between them and the sour-faced older woman.

“Well, I’m just saying… you’re not even the same species. How are you married?”

Erhan’s lips curled in disgust, but he remained silent.

Kleena reached up to smooth a nonexistent crease on his shirt, smiling and playing the attentive wife.

He looked down at her, and she held her breath as the intensity in his eyes made her heart shake to the core.

What is this look in his eyes? Wow, it’s so intense!

“… never mind.” The woman hurried away, clearly convinced by the moment the couple just shared that their relationship was the real deal.

Erhan cleared his throat and broke eye contact with Kleena, who exhaled slowly, still shaken. They returned home hand-in-hand, careful not to cause suspicion in anyone else. Once they were back at Calla’s house, Kleena sat at the dinner table, chewing on her lower lip.

“Erhan, it’s been a week. Don’t you think it’s safe yet? There’s been no sign of—”

“No. You’re being impatient. We can’t just assume the slavers are gone because we haven’t seen them recently.”

“But—”

“No buts. I’m a trained soldier, and I know more about how they operate than you.”

Kleena grunted in annoyance. “That doesn’t mean you’re right. I’m not an idiot, and it doesn’t make sense that we haven’t gotten even a single piece of evidence to indicate their presence.”

“I am right to be cautious.”

“You’re being paranoid.”

Erhan simply looked at her, his eyes shining with confidence and Kleena defiantly met his gaze.

The two of them fell into a sullen silence that continued the rest of the day.

That evening, Kleena sat outside on a rock, the wind softly blowing through her hair.

Erhan slithered over to her. At first, he said nothing. Then, after a few moments of awkward silence, he spoke. “Zeethra.”

She looked up at him. “What?”

“It means ‘sky.’ In my language, the word represents freedom and the unreachable. It’s often used in poetry and song.”

“Oh.”

Erhan moved closer to her, lowering himself until they were at eye level. “I want you to be free, and to do that I must protect you. Do you understand?”

She slowly nodded and sighed. “Teach me some Niri words.”

Erhan’s eyes brightened. “Zeethrak means ‘dream’ and can be a literal dream or an aspirational vision. Essaru means ‘home.’”

“Such a beautiful language…essaru…” She thought of her own essaru, or at least what it once was. There was nothing for her in that so-called “home” now. But maybe there’s an essaru for me with…

Kleena cut off the thought before it could finish and simply listened to Erhan speak for the next several hours.

A few days later, Kleena tended to a minor cut on Erhan’s arm. He had gotten hurt while fixing another part of Calla’s fence.

Her touch was gentle as she cleaned the cut with water and a sponge. As her fingers traced the intricate patterns of his scales, she couldn’t help but marvel at their smooth, cool texture.

She looked up to find that he was already staring at her. Erhan watched her intently, his eyes reflecting both curiosity and something deeper.

Her heart hammered.

She looked back down as her fingers strayed from cleaning his cut. She traced invisible lines with her fingers, going down his chest.

When she reached the juncture where his torso blended seamlessly into his serpentine lower body, he let out a low, involuntary moan.

She froze, her eyes widening.

“I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” she asked, her voice filled with genuine worry.

He shook his head, a faint smile playing at the corners of his lips. “No, it’s just… that part is very sensitive.”

Kleena’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment. “I didn’t know,” she whispered.

Where else is he sensitive? What makes him moan?

Her heart was racing like crazy, and she quickly withdrew her hand.

I shouldn’t be thinking these thoughts. I can’t and shouldn’t entertain such ideas.

Erhan continued to watch her, his expression unreadable.

She stepped back. “All done. Your cut should heal nicely.”

“Thank you.”

“Anytime.” She smiled and avoided his gaze.

I’m not falling for him. No. Nh-uh. Nope.