Plan

Alyssa’s place was so small that he… loved it. He found it cozy. Her bathroom was so small and her tub even smaller. He spent a good one-hour smelling all her soaps and perfumes, committing them to his memory, learning her. He came out in Benny’s clothes, and Alyssa stifled a laugh for they were short on his sleeves and ankles. But when she looked at his neatly shaved face and hair combed back to perfection, she noticed his true manly features. That square jaw line was supposed to be… nibbled at.

Since that was the best room the cottage had, Alyssa had to give it to him. “Knock it when you want to come out,” she said before locking it. Though she had locked it from the outside to prevent him from escaping, she knew that the strength, which Lykaes possessed, was beyond comparison. They could lift trains and trucks like toys. They could raze a building down, and they could rip people like they were dolls. Yet she hoped that being a healer, Fenris was a softer Lykae.

She had made Benny guard the door and with a sigh, she had gone to the kitchen to assist Coira. Food was the weakness of Lykaes and she intended to take full advantage of that fact. 

An hour later, when he had knocked on the door and Benny opened it cautiously after calling her, she stopped herself from laughing. The healer looked so cute, yet manly, so edible, and yet spicy. 

Alyssa, along with Benny, whose spear was pointing at him, had escorted him to the dining room for lunch.  

Trays of cheese, yam and oat bread, fruits, lamb chops, hash brown potatoes and what appeared to be ginger ale sat on the table in a room he thought was their dining place. Yummy smell wafted through the air, making his stomach grumble loud enough for Coira to giggle. 

Hungry as a bull, Tova devoured the food, groaning in admiration as the three watched him with wonder. When he was halfway through his delectable cuisine, he wiped his mouth with a napkin and asked, “So what is the proposition you are suggesting and why should I help you? You have to give me a solid reason to stay back. Else my men are going to come here, ransack this place and might just kill…” he pointed at Benny, “him. And then they will take you two as slaves.” Tova took another bite of the lamp chop and groaned tasting the succulent meat. The girl was a great cook. He wanted to lick her finger. And the thought made his shaft go north. He shifted in his place imagining what he could do with her fingers, his fingers… 

“Kill me?” Benny’s face blanched and he winced. 

Alyssa felt dizzy. She shouldn’t have kidnapped him. Now, even if she tried to kill him, he would resist and it might cost Benny’s life. As she looked at his broad chest and those muscular biceps that moved beneath the fabric of the white shirt he was wearing, she swallowed saliva down her dry throat. Her initial plan to coerce him physically to tell his secrets about his occupation was thrown out of the window. New plan: Coerce him with seduction… mental seduction. She wouldn’t allow him to touch her. And yes, she needed to tell him the truth. She licked her dry lips. 

Tova’s breath hitched and he stopped eating when his gaze was caught by her action of licking her lips. His fantasies plunged to the gutters once again. But he couldn’t allow them to see his vulnerable side. 

“Fenris,” she said softly. 

Her voice was like warm chocolate dipped with honey. And Tova was dazed. A moment later when he came out of the daze, he put his hand up. “Wait!” He took a deep breath and gulped his food down. “Let me finish eating. I would like to walk the talk!” He looked down at his plate and resumed eating hoping he hadn’t let out any visible emotion. Why were the tips of his ears so hot? He was sure he sounded high and mighty through that hoarse voice he managed to crack. 

‘What an arse!’ thought Alyssa, gritting her teeth. He was acting so high and mighty and hot and arrogant that she felt like flicking his forehead with her fingers. But a brown curl loosed from his head and fell on his forehead, distracting her thoughts thoroughly. A sudden desire to play with that curl rose. Suppressing it she replied “Sure. We can talk later.” Since her small cottage was on the verge of Vonhurst forest, she could take him on a walking trail that led to a small creek, which was fed by a waterfall from the hills beyond. 

Coira smiled and served him with more chops. “This is for ye, healer! You would need it!” 

Rest of the lunch was eaten in a perfect quiet. Only sounds of munching and gnashing and slurping and belching were heard. 

Before leaving for the small walk, Benny pulled Alyssa close to him. “I am going to stay behind you with my spear. I am also going to carry my quiver and bow. Don’t worry, I have dipped the tips of the arrows in the concoction made from Wolfsbane and Psylocibe. If he attempts to run, an arrow like that would knock him off for a few hours.” 

Tova gnashed his teeth every time Benny went to her or touched her. New plan: Benny’s hands would decorate his mantle… soon. 

Alyssa nodded and then walked to Tova. She waved a hand in front of him. Tova started walking in the direction she pointed. As he walked away from her cottage, he realized that she was staying away from the humdrum of the towns, which made him wonder what she actually was? She definitely wasn’t a Lykae. She was so… human. Her little was located atop a grassy knoll and nestled amongst lush greenery. It reminded him of… home, his home…

The path they took was like a rust colored scarf draped over the green hills that were a part of the Vonhurst forests. It undulated over the earth all the way up to the top until it met the horizon. Nestled in a chorus of trees, the trail was pebbled with gray and red stones and rust colored sand. They walked in silence for some time, each within their own thoughts. 

So close to her...

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