Travlr (The Mating Games series Book 2) (3 page)

It was time to stop for a drink and she dug out the native version of chapstick. It was her own fault that her lips cracked since she’d forgotten she had it and hadn’t worn any. She rubbed some on her ankle too and pulled out a cloth to slide into her boot to cover the raw spot. Things weren’t too shabby now but the blister would just have to heal itself. It was time to hit the road again. Tammie wondered what kind of man, no, they wanted to be called male, was on her tail. Was he strong, smart, and handsome? Would she be glad when he caught her or would she turn and fight wishing she could get away?

There was almost no sounds around her at all. She had outrun the other females and therefore all the males were behind her except the one or maybe more than one that chased her. The extra hunters looking for predators had probably not expected any of the females to get this far. Now she would have to look for other predators not just the one behind her slowly catching up. If only she could fly. This world would look so beautiful and be safer from the clouds above. It was a dream she had when she was young. To turn into an eagle and soar on the winds that circled her town. Instead she was just an everyday girl with nothing special to make her stand out.

In a world with two females to every man, if you wanted the white picket fence you had to be more. At least here on this planet she was special. There was still almost nine males to every female. That would change soon, but until then women were treasured here. Sweat collected between her breasts until it rolled down her abs and stained her shirt. Damn it was hot now. Last night hadn’t been half this bad but today was testing her ability to deal with the bright sunshine in her eyes and the heat not only hitting her from above but coming off the ground in waves.

Tammie stopped and finished the last of her water. If it wasn’t a mirage in the distance, it would be a water stop. Probably the last one she would find but luckily for her she had three bottles to fill. If she kept going like she had been she would be out of the desert in a day. The last day of the trek would see her going through a mountain pass and then downhill all the way to the check in station where she would claim her freedom. If she made it that far, what the hell would she do? No money, the creditors had taken every dime, and no place to live.

There was no doubt in this world where the population was about to explode that she could find a job. Her problem was what to do until then. She could survive without a roof over her head. The weather wasn’t bad on most of the planet but she had no food, no clothes, and pretty much nothing else. Dangers also existed here in the form of predators she had no hope of fighting off. The water had the most dangerous ones but the desert had big cats and recently they had discovered some kind of wolf bigger than an elephant. Tammie knew if she didn’t find a way to either find a mate she could be happy with or someone to help her settle here, she might not last long.

A mournful howl rang through the air and visions of giant wolves filled her head. She picked up her speed needing to get out of the wolf’s area. The picture she’d seen during the class they’d been given about the plants and animals on the planet had been of a huge purple beast that resembled a wolf except for its size and its color. The expression on its face had been friendly as it looked at a male the book called its owner. Its mouth had hung open showing off some sharp looking fangs that identified it as a predator. If she met one that was hungry she might not see his friendly side. Her speed increased a little more but she was close to running all out. Tammie wanted to save some energy in case she needed to try to run from a predator.

Her heart was pounding and her legs felt weak. The truth was she couldn’t keep this up much longer. Any time now she would fall into a heap unable to go on any farther. The mountains were much closer now as the strip of desert between the two mountain ranges had gotten narrower. Maybe she should head that way and hope to find shelter. Even without making the conscious decision, she was heading to the right and the closest mountain. It would be alright because with a little rest, she would be good as new.

The mountain was close now and she could see an opening that might lead to a cave. She headed straight to it now as fast as she could go. By the time she reached the opening, she was so weak she collapsed in a heap just inside it. There was some kind of light inside and she could make out a huge cavern but the details were hard to see. In a minute she would get up and explore.

A loud noise woke her up and she realized not only had she fallen asleep but the loud noise had been a snore. Usually she didn’t snore, only when she was ill or extremely worn out. It was obvious she had gotten exhausted and unable to go on. She wished she could say she was all better now, but she ached all over and still felt tired. Pulling off her boots, she examined her feet and saw the first blister was a bloody mess. Other blisters had popped up on her feet too and none of them looked good. There was a pool nearby and she picked up her boots and her pack so she could move to it.

She stuck her finger in hoping it was safe to soak her feet in. No way to be sure, but when her finger was undamaged she washed her feet off with a rag. Her feet felt better immediately. Maybe that mineral that had the anti-aging effects could also heal? It was being used as a cosmetic when it might possibly be a medical miracle.

Chapter 4

Where Did She Go?

Travlr was gaining on his lovely mate until she sped up. Stopping, he looked around trying to figure out what the hell spooked her. He saw no signs of danger and it was beyond his ability to determine what scared her. All he could do at this point was match her increase in speed. At least she stayed in the center between the mountain ranges where travel was easiest. Travlr could shift and catch her in no time but he was reluctant to do so. One reason was he didn’t want to risk her seeing him in his demon form. The form was called daig by his kind but all others who had ever seen it called it demon.

He’d read about demons and could see the similarity in looks, but his kind were not evil. None of them that were here on the planet ever harmed anyone purposefully. The old emperor might be seen as evil but Travlr thought he had simply lost his mind. He had outlived his ability to think clearly and when he had lost his mate he had gone crazy. Normally a daig was put down when that occurred but the emperor had too much power and he’d protected himself. Why anyone would want to live just to make others miserable, Travlr didn’t know. If he ever got to that point he hoped someone would end his pain.

At least the emperor was gone now but it was a shame a whole world was gone with him. When his parents had told them stories of their home world, he had always hoped someday to see it. That would never happen now. He pushed all thoughts out of his mind except the thoughts of his mate. She was making good time for a human and he needed to catch her soon. If she got away, he would have to wait a year before he could participate in the hunt again. For the sake of his younger brothers who because of an old family custom couldn’t mate until he did, his own personal sanity because he was tired of being alone, and his right hand had developed entirely too much strength, he needed to catch her soon.

The scent was suddenly fainter, almost as if she had veered from the chosen path. What a tricky female fate had chosen for him. She had left the main path and he would have to backtrack to find her. Either his mate was sneaky or she had no clue what to do. Either of those things would make this an interesting hunt. As long as it ended in success, he would enjoy the chase. Once he backtracked a short ways, he smelled where she’d started to head to the mountains. Nothing had changed as far as he could tell so he wondered why. He would know once he caught his female.

It wasn’t far before he hit the mountains and as he closed in the path became rougher. At the mouth of a cave he found a spot where his female had stopped and he could see she’d taken off her shoes and he smelled her blood. Upset that she was injured, he was more determined to catch her quickly so he could care for her. Her dedication to out running him made him wonder why she was so opposed to mating him. Most mates came here for a better life hoping to find a good male that would love them with time and that they could have a family with.

His brother Razar’s mate had also been an exception to that rule. Maybe the males in his family were just always going to get the wild and capable ones. They would have females that would test their abilities, the females that were smarter, stronger, and the most able. Travlr saw the pool and the water she had dripped when she washed with it. He hoped she knew better than to drink from untested pools. Even bathing with the water could be dangerous. Her trail led him into the cave. It was an interesting path that he would enjoy exploring if he wasn’t on a hunt for his mate. There was light coming from rocks and some from the ceiling. It helped him to find the way his mate had come.

Travlr wasn’t a tracker or a professional hunter even though his kind had those. He was just better than most and all of his kind was good at tracking. It was the exceptional senses that others were unaware his people had. He could see like an eagle, scent and hear like a bloodhound, his skin was sensitive beyond any creature he knew and his sense of taste was helpful too. Sometimes he could suck air into his mouth and distinguish what was nearby. It was amazing how many traces of nearby objects the air carried. That was why he was getting concerned with all his exceptional abilities, he hadn’t caught his mate yet.

Her scent was getting stronger but she was picking up speed. Wasn’t she tired of running yet? He was hungry so she must also be. Stopping for a second he popped some jerky into his mouth to chew on. It was a jerky he made himself from a recipe he and his mom had come up with together. It was a tad sweet but spicy too. Chewing it was probably a mistake because it would make him thirsty and there was no water in here that was known to be safe. The need to do something while he followed her was just overwhelming and if he didn’t chew on something, he might grind his teeth down to stubs.

This time as he followed her his thoughts went to his brothers. Glendar was the next one in line to take a mate once he got his. Maxar was after him and the two of them shared the responsibility for the Oison weed industry. There were more aspects to it than to the gold mining because it had to be grown or harvested in the wild. They currently did a little of both but soon it would all be grown on farms. Once it was harvested, it had to be processed and then it had to be made into cigarettes, cigars, and tobacco for pipes and other smoking implement. Once it was ready to sell it was distributed to stores and other venues.

The gold was mined and they had a small refinery where they were made into bars and sold to wholesalers. They had decided not to further refine the gold at this point but leave it as a possibility for the future. Money was pouring in and they had big plans for their planet’s future. Mates were one of the first things they had started to search for but it would be a slow process. Slower if he didn’t get a move on and claim his. It wouldn’t surprise him if he was the last one to get his female and check in.

A scream echoed through the cavern and it sounded human. There were so many things Razar his brother who had just gone on the last mating hunt had told him that could cause a female to scream like that. None of those things were good so Travlr flat out ran to find her. He still watched his path and looked for dangers but he was drawing close to her in mere minutes. She was thrashing and screaming but had not yet been harmed only frightened. She was wrapped up like a present by a vine that was attempting to drag her off.

“Let her go or you’re going to lose a good length. I know you can understand me, just do it now.” The vine slowly and reluctantly unwrapped its lunch and slithered away. I took a moment to examine my mate to see if she was injured and to appreciate her good looks.

Her chestnut colored hair looked red when the light hit it and her eyes looked golden green. It was a color not found among his kind and he’d bet it was unusual among those of Earth too. She wasn’t tall, maybe five foot five. Her body was curvy and it made his mouth water. The fates had been kind as far as looks went and he hoped she had a kind disposition.

“Hey, thanks for the help but I need to get on my way.” His mate looked nervous as she should if she hadn’t wanted to get caught.

“I don’t think so Beautiful.” He pulled his com out of his pocket and took her picture. Sending it to the check in, he felt calm for the first time since the hunt started.

“Hey, what did you just do?” She asked as she pouted.

“I am Travlr, your mate. When I took your picture I sent in it in so they would know you were caught.”

“My name is Tammie but I’m not sure I want to be a mate.”

“Alright, then why did you sign up for the program?”

Tammie sighed. “I didn’t. They forced me into it.” Tammie went on to explain what had happened and how she had ended up on Oison. By the time she was through, Travlr was livid. It made him even angrier because he couldn’t do a thing about it. If they complained, Earth might not give them any more females and his brothers and his friends would live the rest of their lives alone.

“What they did was wrong and I wish I could fix things for you but all I can do is promise to do anything in my power to make you happy. Never would I hurt you or cause you pain.” Looking into Tammie’s eyes, he was sure she believed him. “Let me take you home and I will take care of you. We can talk and see what you wish to do next.”

“You won’t force me?”

“Never.” Travlr would feel insulted that she would think that if he hadn’t known what she had been put through. It was amazing the females on her planet didn’t overwhelm the males and make them treat them better. They were the majority after all.

He led her out of the cavern after taking pictures and sending them to his computer and his brother Razar. Eventually he planned to come back here and explore, hopefully with his mate if she’d have him. Once they got back out into the desert, he made a call and they sat and waited for pickup.