Chapter 2

Kharon.

His very name awoke a demanding hunger from the depths of her soul. Even her beloved Caraculla couldn’t evoke the kind of consuming emotion General Kharon did. He was her guilty secret: a man she wasn’t in love with but who owned her desire nonetheless. Kharon was the drug habit she couldn’t shake.

Every waking moment of every day since she’d first had sex with the general was a new adventure in misery. And when school started next semester and he came back, she would lose herself all over again. A willing slave to Kharon’s burning lust. If only Krull could find exactly the right hormonal cocktail to keep the fever at bay.

There was no other way to say it. Kharon was ruining her life, or at least the life of a warrior she’d been trying to build.

Gypsy sat in her special dressing room at the arena trying to summon the will to go out and practice. Her new armor, a gift from the Grand Duchess Von Goth, rested on the bench next to her, its shining metal mocking her. What was the use? What kind of future did she have? She couldn’t go on fighting this unwinnable battle. It was driving her crazy just trying. All her heart wanted to do was go to Kharon, give him her body, and bear him children.

But her head was a different matter. It raged against any thought of domestic bliss. She wanted to be a warrior, damn it! Not some trophy wife of Kharon’s. And what about her lover, Caraculla? Something was happening to them and Gypsy knew it wasn’t good. Things and events were pulling them apart. Oh, he never said as much, but she knew. She could feel it in her gut. Her relationship with him was being destroyed not only by her primal connection to Kharon, but other things were also at work behind the scenes.

Gypsy knew.

She’d been hearing snippets of gossip here and there that Caraculla was seeing someone else. He’d even admitted as much. But the truth was that she simply didn’t have enough emotional strength left to confront him. Especially if he told her they were done.

That would tear her heart out.

But did she have the right to try and hold him? After all, she was locked in this Primal Fever, a natural abomination that she couldn’t control and there didn’t seem to be any relief in sight. Worst of all, when Kharon returned she would be his again and nothing she did could stop that. As it was, it was a daily battle not to go join him in his kingdom and let the consequences be damned. But then she remembered her father and the enormous faith he’d placed in her. He’d pulled her back from the final destruction of her dream and she would never forget his doing that. Remembering what he’d done for her gave her the will to fight Kharon’s pull even harder and keep forging ahead for one more day. She was not going to let this thing beat her. She had come too far and sacrificed too much to let these chemically induced emotions win out.

Gypsy decided to skip practice today and go home. She had put on her armor, packed up her stuff, and opened the door to leave when she spotted her father sitting in the bleachers. Gavin reclined with his arms across the neighboring seats watching two young warriors fight. He didn’t look impressed. Spotting her, Gavin gestured for her to come and join him.

The last thing she wanted to do was talk but he’d seen her so she was stuck. Plopping down on the bench next to him she stretched out, resting her boots on the metal railing. A few moments passed as they watched the two fighters. Even to her untrained eye they looked sloppy. It looked like they were putting on an unconvincing show for whoever might be watching.

Gesturing to the warriors, Gavin said, “What do you make of them?”

Gypsy wasn’t in the mood for games. “They suck.”

“Watch them carefully,” he said, leaning forward and arching his back.

Trying to ignore her depression, Gypsy studied the two males and one thing caught her attention right away. They were staring at each other more than they were fighting each other. It almost looked…no, it was definitely sexual. She leaned forward. Even their blows were subdued, like foreplay. The whole scene was weird. She wondered if the two males had been together. “They’re attracted to each other.”

“Have they been together?” Gavin asked. There was no judgment in his tone, just curiosity.

“How should I know?”

“They have not,” Gavin said. “But in any relationship one person has more power than the other. Which one has the power here?”

Gypsy looked at Gavin but he kept his attention on the fighters far below. There was some kind of lesson in this. Great. So much for a quick chat. She glanced down and noticed the shorter of the two was the one to initiate the sparring and was the first one to stop it. “The short one has all the power.”

“Why?”

“Because he’s controlling all the action. The other male is just responding, following the shorter male’s lead.”

“That’s right, Gypsy,” Gavin said. “So it follows that the shorter male will decide if a sexual relationship will begin. He will also decide when it will end.”

“Yeah,” Gypsy said, rolling the power question around in her mind. The only reason Kharon has this kind of pull over me is because of the Primal Fever. If I could just get rid of it, I’d be free.

The two males concluded their practice and walked off talking in soft, warm tones. Gypsy was too far up to hear exactly what they were saying but it sounded friendly. “Can I ask you a personal question?”

“Of course,” Gavin said.

“Who has the power in your relationship with Mom?” Gypsy thought she knew, she just wanted to hear him admit it. It would be a big truth from him.

“Your mother does. But then you knew that.”

“Yes, but that doesn’t make sense. Why does she have the power? After all, you’re the warrior. You’re one of the most powerful men in the empire.”

Gavin stood up and stretched and for a moment Gypsy thought he wasn’t going to answer her. Then he said, “Because she could leave me tomorrow and I would never recover from the loss. But she would be sad for a while and then move on with her life.”

“Do you really believe that?”

“I believe it enough not to test my luck.” He leaned down and kissed her on the top of her head. “Good night, Gypsy.”

“Good night, Gavin.”