Klingon Hearts 09 Hidden - What Lurks in the Darkness Read online

  Well, once I get going on something, there is just no stopping me.

  Okay, I have the sneaking suspicion that this is really nothing more than the longest PWP in history masquerading as a story with a plot. It's official, I'm really writing 19th century 'bodice rippers' set in the Trek Universe.

  NC-17 campers, big time, no ifs, ands or buts. If you can't vote you shouldn't be reading this.

  Yadda, yadda, yadda, you know the drill. Star Trek doesn't belong to me. Only K'Leena, Lucas, Mike, Tessa, Robbie, Kyle and this story do. Hmmmm, not much of this belongs to Paramount anymore.

  Klingon Hearts and Beyond

  Hidden--What Lurks in the Darkness

  by: Tracy L. Sobieski

  It approaches....

  "I don't see why I can't return to duty." K'Leena Paris hated this.

  "Starfleet regulations require...." Deanna Troi began, only to be interrupted.

  "Psychological evaluation and treatment to any personnel held in captivity. I know, I know...but I'm fine, really. I just want to go back to work."

  "Are you still having the nightmares?" Deanna knew she was. Lucas told her how often they woke her up. Her son was very concerned for his fiancée. Troi was counseling K'Leena in the couple's home because it helped the younger woman relax.

  "Sometimes."

  "Why don't you tell me what they're about?" Two months of counseling K'Leena and Deanna had managed to glean nothing more than a rudimentary description of what happened during her captivity. And she thought B'Elanna was hard to counsel. What did Tom call her? Stubborn Klingon--it sure fit. For both of them.

  "They're not important," K'Leena dismissed them.

  "I think they are. Lucas tells me you wake up almost every night."

  "Lucas has a big mouth."

  "He's worried about you. A lot of people are."

  "I'm fine. I keep telling everybody that."

  "K'Leena, tell me about the dreams."

  "You aren't going to okay my return to duty until I do, are you?"

  "I wouldn't be much of a counselor if I did. You need to talk about this."

  "Oh, all right," she forced out between gritted teeth. "They really aren't anything to speak of. It's just the feeling of being trapped and unable to move. And the darkness. It's always dark...," her voice caught. She took a deep breath to steady herself.

  "Tell me about the darkness." Something was here, Deanna could feel it.

  "What do you mean?"

  "Tell me what bothers you about the darkness." What was it? There was more going on here. Why hadn't she sensed it before?

  "It lurks in the shadows. The light doesn't dispel it completely. I can't get away from it, it's always there. It wants to hurt me...and Lucas. There is such hate in it...," K'Leena stopped when she noticed Deanna's stricken expression. "What?"

  "K'Leena, can Lucas come in here? Would you mind?"

  "I guess not." It made her a little uncomfortable, but he was her mate and knew all she was anyway.

  Deanna left the living room and went to get her son from his office.

  Lucas looked up when his mother entered. He sensed her distress instantly and rounded the desk to stand in front of her.

  "Something's wrong."

  "Yes, I need your help."

  They rejoined K'Leena in the living room. She looked confused, though not upset. Lucas couldn't figure out what his mother was so concerned about. He sat down next to his mate, picked up one of her hands and laced his fingers through hers.

  "Lucas, have you ever seen K'Leena's nightmares?" It was not uncommon for Imzadi to share dreams.

  "Always, why?"

  "Just tell me what you see, please."

  "It's always the same. Darkness that clings to everything. Hidden evil. Terror. Pain. She can't move. She can't breathe. She screams and nothing comes out. She can't escape, and I can't get to her. I don't know where she is. I can't -feel- her. I can't find her...." Lucas' eyes met his mother's, comprehension dawning. "These aren't just dreams, are they?"

  "I don't think so."

  *****

  "Do you think your mother is right? That we're picking up on some type of conspiracy that involves us?" K'Leena asked Lucas.

  "Yeah, I do. It all makes a morbid kind of sense. The dreams never had much to do with the Breen incident. You never seemed that upset by what happened to you, not like the dreams upset you. I just kept assuming the nightmares were about what happened. It didn't occur to me that they might be something else."

  "I'm angry about the Breen. I'd like to go back and personally kill a couple of them, but it was -why- all this happened that upset me the most. I don't like the idea that they used us like that. It frightens me."

  "It frightens me, too." Lucas said quietly.

  They were getting ready for bed. She sat at the end of the bed brushing her hair. The red-gold waves reached almost to her waist. Maybe she should cut it short, like her mother's hair. It was a pain to deal with everyday.

  "Don't you dare!"

  K'Leena looked up surprised. Damn telepaths.

  "Get out of my head, Lucas. I'll cut my hair if I want to," she said with mock severity.

  "I like being in your head," he came up behind her on the bed. His voice was low and husky. "As a matter of fact, I like being inside just about any part of you."

  Shiver.

  "Really?"

  "Umm hmmmmm."

  His hands slipped into the v-neck of the robe and found her bare beneath it, much to his delight. When his fingers brushed across her nipples she gasped in surprise. They were so sensitive it almost hurt.

  "Like that?" he purred.

  "Ummmmm, yes."

  Her head fell back against his chest and she leaned back into him. The sash of her robe was undone and he stripped it from her in a matter of seconds.

  She stood up suddenly and turned around. Both hands flat against his chest she shoved him back...hard. Before he recovered, she was straddling him. Their mutual state of undress made for no delay in her taking him in.

  Lucas moaned at her tightness, somewhat surprised she could accept him without foreplay. Concerned, he looked up at her. He felt, rather than saw, the brief pain caused by her haste. When she opened her eyes, she looked right into him.

  He saw an almost feral gleam in the passion-dark blue depths.

  Smiling slowly, she lowered her head to kiss him. Or so he thought. Instead, she bit his lip so hard it bled. Sinking her fingernails into his shoulders she tore the skin there.

  Bitch.

  K'Leena threw her head back and laughed as the word reached her mind. Rolling her hips in slow torturous circles, she dared him to do something about it.

  Lucas returned her grin. It didn't take much to flip her over and pin her to the bed.

  "You may be one-quarter Klingon, but you're a hell of a lot smaller than I am."

  He grabbed her hands, laced his fingers with hers and held them above her head as he leaned down to bite her shoulder, drawing blood himself. She surged against him in response, growling her approval. He slid back into her with a sudden thrust, making her climax violently the moment he was inside her. It took all he had not to follow, when he felt the intensity of her pleasure.

  After she came down and opened her eyes once again, he began to move in deep forceful strokes, keeping their gazes locked the whole time. It was incredibly erotic to see her like this. Wild and uninhibited, she was meeting him thrust for thrust. It wasn't long before she came apart under him a second time.

  Vainly he struggled to stay in control of his passion. He was losing his grip on his emotions. It didn't happen
very often, but tonight he couldn't hold back. Lucas ground into her, desperate to go deeper. His mind seized hers as his body demanded more. He wanted everything, every thought, every desire, every response, everything....

  "Wrap your legs around me, 'Leena," his voice was thick. She wrapped them tight, locking her ankles. "That's it, baby, let me in."

  She cried out when he drove into her, taking him in more completely than ever before. His hands were biting into her hips now, bruising the pale skin. There was a little pain with her pleasure and that small part of her that was Klingon reveled in it. She matched him sensation for sensation, touch for touch, bite for bite. And demanded more. She was in a state of frenzy, clawing and desperate.

  "Put your arms around my neck and hold on," he told her.

  She did.

  He withdrew from her slightly and pulled up to his knees, keeping one hand firm on the small of her back to bring her with him and the other braced on the bed to lever them up. Finding the edge of the bed with his foot he stood up then buried himself once again inside her heat as she clung to him. A few short steps and her back met the wall. Their eyes met in expectation. Blatant desire. Lucas didn't disappoint. He began to move and her head fell back with a moan. He angled her upper body away from him, causing her hips to tilt up, giving him the full access he needed. Setting his legs, he thrust into her...out of her...through her. Using the wall to brace herself and placing her hands on his shoulders, she met him with everything she had. Wild, out of control passion engulfed them both in a maelstrom of fire and heat. Tonight, nothing was enough for either of them.

  Lucas slid his hand from her hip to behind her, caressing her bottom, then moved under her to the point of their union. He drew his fingers back from where they were joined until he found what he was looking for. His teeth nipped at the soft skin just below her ear as his fingertip circled the tiny opening. Her breath caught in anticipation. He wouldn't. He would. She cried out in shock and delight as this new intimate invasion sent her wildly over the edge. He kept her going, stroking her in rhythm. She lost count of how many times she climaxed, reality began to fade along the edges. Wave after wave of ecstasy crashed over her, into her. Nails raked down his chest and she screamed, losing her grip on consciousness when he finally thrust one last time. Reaching his own release he slowly sank to his knees, using the wall to support them both, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

  When she came to, he was looking down on her with a concerned expression.

  She grinned broadly, "Kahless, Lucas,...where did you learn to do -that-?" and he laughed out loud.

  He had never been with a woman like her before. She could do things to him with just a look...or a growl.

  God...he loved Klingon night. Lucas Riker was a lucky man.

  *****

  She ran and it stalked her relentlessly. She screamed and no one heard her. The darkness came closer and closer. Cold and evil. Soon it would have her...and then it would have him. They would be the tools in its rise and the others' destruction. It had waited so very long for this. Soon, they would pay....

  K'Leena opened her eyes and stared into the night, still shaking from the dream.

  Lucas.

  Strong arms pulled her trembling body close.

  I know, Imzadi.

  *****

  ...and manipulates....

  Mike Burns sat at the bar of the Officer's Club, nursing a beer. Six months ago he and Lucas would have been here together. Not that he begrudged his friend the happiness he'd found. Far from it. K'Leena and Lucas belonged together, anyone could see it. Even someone as jaded as he couldn't help but notice how incredible they were together. But he missed his friend. His life seemed so empty compared to what Lucas had. Maybe it was time for him to start thinking about settling down as well. The thought stayed with him for about half a second then he dismissed it. He wasn't the same as Lucas, he would make a lousy husband. There were far too many women out there that interested him.

  Like that stunning brunette sitting alone in the corner, drinking a glass of wine. The last thing he wanted was to spend yet another night alone. Putting on his most charming smile he walked over to her.

  "What's your name?" Mike asked the heart-stoppingly beautiful woman. Young woman, she couldn't have been more than twenty or so. Far too young for him only a year away from thirty, but he couldn't help himself.

  "Tessa," she replied warily.

  "Dance?" He held out his hand in invitation. She took it after a moment of hesitation.

  They moved with fluid grace. She seemed built for him. Being well over six foot himself, Mike didn't like tiny women. Of average height, she fit to him like a glove. Generous curves filled his hands perfectly. When her enormous clear blue eyes met his, he was lost. He had to have her. His hand moved up her back to cup the nape of her neck as he bent his head to hers.

  "Come home with me?" his lips lightly brushed her ear as he spoke.

  She didn't know if it was his touch or the provocative words that sent a shiver of desire straight through her, but whatever it was made her want him like no one ever before.

  Tessa pulled back to look once again at the pale green eyes of the handsome man holding her. He was serious. She shouldn't, she knew, but no one ever wanted -her-. Men never wanted her: they were repulsed by her, frightened by her, but they never wanted her. -He- wanted her. He had to know who she was, everybody did, but she could see nothing other than desire in his eyes.

  "Are you sure?" she asked, shocking herself with the realization that she was actually considering his offer. It was probably the wine talking, she never could handle her alcohol very well.

  "How old are you?" Mike suddenly realized she might not be as old as she appeared.

  "Twenty-three," came her slightly amused reply.

  "Then, yes. I'm sure," he told her with a dazzling smile.

  "Okay, I'll go with you." She threw caution to the wind. It might be her only chance at this.

  "Come on, I don't live far," he said, grasping her hand and leading her from the bar.

  *****

  He was good, she had to give him that. They weren't in his apartment ten minutes and Tessa was completely undressed and sliding between his sheets with him following right behind her. Mike was incredibly good looking. The hard flat planes of his body caught the moonlight and the sight made her breathless. He was hard everywhere. Not an ounce of spare flesh on him. Dark brown hair was liberally sprinkled across his chest and down his belly. His legs were long and heavily muscled. He looked like a very strong man. Tessa should probably be leery of him, she didn't know him from a Breen agent, but she just couldn't find it in herself to distrust him. His eyes were too clear, his touch too gentle, his voice too kind...and no one had -ever- made her feel this way before.

  Mike was reeling at the woman in his arms. She was perfection personified. From the raven black hair to the long slender legs entwined with his, she was everything he ever wanted in a woman. Her response to his touch was driving him to distraction. She surged against him, offering herself to whatever he wanted. He could feel it in his bones. There were no masks tonight, no hidden agendas, no pretenses. She wanted only to be with him now, to give herself completely and to be taken as completely.

  It was a heady, overwhelming feeling for him to be so utterly out of control.

  He settled down next to her, his hand roaming freely over her body. Her lips softened, opening under his. His tongue explored her mouth, tangling with hers as his caresses became more focused. Her breasts swelled at his touch. Fire streaked through her at the light teasing touch flirting across her erect nipples. She was trembling with anticipation when he finally lowered his head to take one peak with his mouth. Hot. Scorching hot. She cried out, surprised at the intensity of feeling he lit in her.

  His hand kneaded her belly as he played with her breasts. Something was nagging at him to go carefully, something so out of place that it managed to work its way into his fevered thoughts. What, he couldn't sa
y, but he knew instinctively rushing her headlong to release would not be wise. His touch slowed to a languid stroke. Smooth, soft, gliding over her heated skin. Finding her mouth again, he kissed her thoroughly. His hand explored every inch of her body. Every curve, every plane, he wanted to know all of her.

  Tessa was drowning in sensation, completely unprepared for what was being done to her. She hadn't realized it could be like this. Fire and heat, tension and excitement, desire and fear all swirled together in a hurricane of passion. The bold evidence of his arousal pressed into her hip. Tentatively she reached out and caressed the amazingly silky skin that covered such hardness.