The Tigre are a race of accursed people from the planet of Maurania. Some say they are immortal, others say they are demons. None know when they came into being. However, they have spread throughout the known galaxy. Some quest for their mates, the descendants of the planet that escaped the curse, others simply survive, torn between their human and animal halves.
Tael has searched for many years to find the one true love who will set him free of the blood curse of the Tigre Moon. Is Neri the one?
**
“Neri. Come here.” Again it called; her heart thundered in her ears. Magic was considered sinful. The demons used magic.
She stood up, compelled to follow the direction of the voice in her head. She stumbled and almost fell when she reached the door, but then she steadied herself and continued out into the hall. The voice led her outside the compound into the jungle. A small lucid part of her was afraid, but her mind was foggy from the drugs and the command of the voice.
The next thing she knew, she stood in a small clearing, looking up at the twin moons of this strange planet. She blinked in confusion and looked around for a few minutes. “Am I dreaming?” Maybe she had been walking in her sleep. Shrugging, she turned to head back inside before she was caught out here and punished. The only rule she seemed to have was that she not leave the women’s quarters unescorted. She’d done that now, no matter that it had been accidental.
She walked quickly back into the forest, hurrying to get back before she was missed. She turned toward where she thought the palace was and kept going. She felt as if she were being watched. Neri turned her head this way and that, looking. She couldn’t see anything. But she felt it, all the same.
* * * *
He watched her as she paused to look around warily. The dappled moonlight was bright enough to shine through the gown she wore, showing him her curvaceous figure as if she were naked.
He crouched down, ready to make his move.
She stopped with a confused frown. “I am going the wrong way.”
He smiled as he heard her talking to herself. Her heart was pounding so loud, he could hear it from here. He could smell the oils from her bath earlier.
When she turned back around she headed right for his hiding spot and he waited, tensed and ready. He would hunt well tonight. Neri stopped suddenly, and her already pounding heart began to race. He waited in the brush not five centens in front of her.
“Hello?” she said. “Is someone there?” All she got in response was a low growl. Neri reacted immediately. She made a small squeaking noise then grabbed the hem of her nightgown and ran.
Yes! He took off after her. He liked them to give a good chase before he caught them. She glanced back and screamed, her stride never faltering. Her legs pumped faster and faster.
He kept her in his sights. Now he could smell her fear and her sweat. It excited him, almost as much as the sight of her breasts when she’d turned to look back. She would be his before the night was over. Body and soul, he would own her.
* * * *
Neri’s vision blurred. She wiped the sweat from her eyes and kept going. She could hear the creature moving in the brush behind her. All she’d seen was a large dark shape with glowing yellow eyes. She didn’t dare look back now. If she saw it clearly, she knew she would lose control of her limbs and fall. He would be upon her immediately.
The roar that came from behind almost accomplished the same thing. It reverberated through her bones, making her chest ache. Her lungs ached with each breath she took. The drug was still in her system and her body was growing tired.
A twig snapped behind her and she screamed. She chanced one more look back, promptly stumbling over a root at the edge of the path. Neri went down hard and lay there ready to just give up. Then she set her jaw. No, she would not. She steeled her resolve and turned to fight.
The creature was much closer than she had thought. When she turned, she was face to face with it. A small cry escaped her lips at the sheer size of the beast crouched down in front of her, staring at her hungrily.
His shoulders were almost as wide as she was tall, covered with short fur bleached of color by the moonlight. His long muscular arms and legs were also furred. However, the claws captured her attention for the longest time, looking fully capable of ripping her apart. His face was a cross between man and cat, seeming almost human until he opened his jaws and showed off his long ivory fangs.
She had to crane her neck to meet his glowing green gaze. He was a cat-like beast, but larger than any cat she had seen before. Her heart began to pound as it dawned on her what he was. He was the Tigre.
“No!” She started to back away again. He lifted one large clawed hand and brought it down on the hem of her nightgown. She tugged at it, but he just crouched there staring at her with his head tilted to one side.
“Please let me go,” she pleaded then gasped when his large head dipped down and he sniffed her neck. She sat completely still, afraid to move. He moved closer, settling himself beside her, still holding her captive with his hand on her gown. “No,” she whispered.
Yes. Neri’s head began to swim as he once again began to speak into her mind. You are mine now.
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