“That doesn’t sound right.” She’d never heard of such a thing. Violence, abuse, and murder occurred all over the galaxy.
“We live in Eden.”
Alex was confused. If they lived in such a wonderful world, with absolutely no violence, why was sheneeded to seal their utopian society? “Okay, so if everything’s so perfect here, why do you need me?” She’d just had her first Damon-induced orgasm, and whatever unfamiliarity had existed between them before had diminished. The warmth of his body remaining close to hers was comforting.
She couldn’t explain it and didn’t particularly like to admit it, but there wassomething flowing between them. She refused to refer to it as magic, though. It was more like raw and passionate lust. If Levi hadn’t charged into the room, she knew what would’ve followed. At the thought, a few things she wanted to do to Damon raced through her mind.
“Alex,” Damon began, pushing a few stray curls away from her forehead. His eyes were shiny and filled with knowledge. She wondered if he would ever share any of it with her. “We need you, because the prophecy states that once the space traveler is amongst us, a chain of events will begin. Events which will help us become forever segregated from the dangers beyond our boundaries. Without the lakes, birds, and other predators out in the jungle, my people will be able to live in eternal harmony. All thanks to you.”
“I don’t know how I’m supposed to do all of that. Besides, aren’t you already segregated by those tall walls?”
Damon shook his head. “Those walls are secure for the moment, but it’s only a matter of time before the barrier starts to slip.”
“So, you’re saying this dead person is the start of these events?”
“Maybe.”
The thought made her uncomfortable. “I hope no one blames me for this.” If they all knew about this bizarre prophecy and she’d been unwillingly cast in the lead role, would these people eventually turn on her? She looked at Damon and didn’t think he would, but she couldn’t be sure about the others.
“I won’t let anyone accuse you of killing, or of any other wrongdoing. I’m going to protect you.” Damon pressed his hands against her upper arms, glaring into her eyes. “Will you come with me, so we can see what’s happened?”
She’d much rather strip her dirty clothes and see what he had to offer once he took his off, but he seemed too distracted. Besides, after the overload of satisfaction he’d unleashed on her, she wasn’t sure she was up to more at the moment.
“Sure, let’s go.” Let’s see what other freaky things this place has to offer.This planet was starting to feel more like hell than Eden. “I’m not going anywhere without my blaster, though.”
Chapter Eleven
Alex had seen more than one corpse before. Some of the shitty places she’d travelled during her long stint as a courier were so crime-infested that anyone could be shot dead in a crowded spot. She was usually good at looking the other way, but sometimes it was hard not to stare. As a result, she’d seen plenty of humans and aliens left to die on the sidewalk, in alleys, motel corridors, and bars. It was never a pretty sight, but it was something she’d mostly become desensitized to.
As a kid, dead bodies had been a frequent occurrence, too. Wherever her father went, he always seemed to attract the wrong kind of attention. Fortunately for him, he’d gotten shot a lot, but never killed. Some of the people who shot at him hadn’t been so lucky. Louis Wales had a steady hand and spot-on accuracy.
On her tenth birthday, he’d stuck a blaster in her hand to teach her how to aim and shoot-both to injure and kill. She’d gotten so good at it so quickly, he beamed with pride. Alex could still remember how happy it made him to know that she could take care of herself if he wasn’t around. He’d said it a lot, but she’d been too young to suspect he actually meant it.
Still, she’d never killed anyone. She had no problem shooting someone’s hand off or disabling them by blowing out their knee, but she was glad she hadn’t had to kill. Yet.
She blinked as she stared at the corpse Damon had led her to. It had been dumped inside the garden labyrinth, and he’d had no trouble finding it.
I’ve never seen anything like this before.
The dead body didn’t have a clean bullet or laser wound anywhere. It no longer looked human, resembling a lump of meat with various open sections, several limbs missing, and the head left twisted at a sickening angle. It was completely covered in blood, with deep-etched claw marks wherever there wasn’t a limb missing. A pool of crimson spread out below the remains, with other darker stuff. It reeked of feces and death.
Alex took another step back, disgusted. For once, she was actually glad she’d spent so much time amongst degenerates and criminals. Otherwise, she’d have already thrown up.
Damon stepped forward, and his fingers slid away from hers. He’d held her hand since the moment they’d left the room and continued to hold it even after they met up with the others. She hadn’t resisted his touchy-feely action, because his warm skin made her feel good. It kept reminding her of what he’d done to her.
If that’s how he heals all the time, there must be some really sick women around Eden.
When his bare toes dipped into the edge of the blood puddle, she cringed. How could he act so natural around something he claimed never happened around here?
She reluctantly turned her gaze back to the corpse and caught sight of a shiny bone peeking through a particularly nasty wound, in what had to have been the chest. Was that a rib? The way the moonlight glistened on the sharp end only added to her revulsion. She wondered if this had been a woman or a man.
Priestess Aleena stood across from them, on the other side of the corpse. She stepped forward, and the hem of her long, white dress almost dipped into the blood. “Do you know what happened to him, Damon?” The blonde stood with people on both sides. The grim-looking man who kept glaring at Alex with a sour expression on his face had taken a step at the same time as Aleena.
Shrubs lined the expanse of wall behind them, and blood was splattered on some of the leaves.
There seemed to be a lot of walls around here. Damon kept referring to this place as a village, but it looked more like a castle or a fortress.
Alex wondered if the population built as many walls around themselves as they did in this seemingly safe haven. For crime not to exist, something strange had to be going on behind the scenes. To not have crime while living in such a concentrated population didn’t sound realistic. It wasn’t how humans behaved, and since she’d only seen bare-footed, blue-eyed, and blonde humans walking around so far, she assumed the population was all human.