Behind her, David groaned. “When you wiggle your gorgeous butt like that, I want to make you the main course, not just the dessert.”
She cast him a mockingly annoyed glance over her shoulder. “You have such a one-track mind.”
He shrugged. “A man is entitled to his fantasies.”
“And a woman needs to make sure that her man eats so his body has the energy to transition.”
A grin spreading over his handsome face, David applied pressure to Moray’s flanks and caught up to her. “I like the sound of that.”
“Which part?
“All of it. I like hearing you call me your man, and I also like you taking care of me.”
She hoped he was sincere and not critical. “I don’t want you to feel as if I’m mothering you.” She let out a breath. “I’m well aware of having those tendencies. Let me know if I get too bossy.”
He reached over and took her hand. “I don’t mind bossy as long as it’s the good kind. In fact, it’s a turn on.” He lifted her gloved hand, peeled away just a bit to expose the heel of her palm, and kissed it.
Interesting.
Sari was an assertive woman, but sexually she liked her man to take the lead, which David had done. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. They had taken turns, but Sari’s part had been to initiate, and David had taken it from there.
“I’m not bossy in bed, am I?”
Smiling, he kissed her palm again. “You are perfect.”
It was like telling a woman that she was beautiful. Meaningless words men used to get out of tight spots.
Or inside of them.
Sari stifled a chuckle. “You don’t need to be politically correct with me, David. I have enough confidence to accept constructive criticism, and if there is anything about me that bothers you, I would like to know. I don’t have much experience with relationships, but I’ve lived for a very long time, and I’m leading a clan of people who tend to be very opinionated. Open and honest communication and the willingness to compromise are crucial for making it all work.”
“You are just the right combination of assertive and yielding. I wouldn’t change a thing about you. Does that answer your question?”
His answer made her stupidly happy.
Sari had been perfectly honest about her willingness to accept criticism, but she was very glad that he had none.
“Yes, thank you.”
As they reached the lakeshore, Ojidu greeted them with a bow. “Good afternoon, mistress. Everything is ready for your picnic with the master. Would you like me to stay and serve lunch?”
“No, thank you.” Sari dismounted and handed Ojidu the rains. “David and I will manage. You can return to the castle.”
He bowed again. “Very well, mistress. I shall secure the horses and leave, but I shall return to clean up and take the basket.”
“Hold on.” David dismounted. “If you don’t mind, Sari, I would like to ask Ojidu a few questions.”
She’d forgotten about her promise to let David question her butler, but did he really have to do it now? He could enter transition at any moment, and she wanted their time together to be spent with each other, not on interrogation concerning her mother.
“Can it wait for after your transition?”
“I’ll make it quick.”
Apparently, his curiosity couldn’t wait.
She turned to her butler. “David will ask you a few questions, and I allow you to answer them.”
Ojidu bowed. “Of course, mistress.”
10
David
Sari seemed reluctant to let him question Ojidu, and David wondered whether it was because she didn’t want him to discover unpleasant truths about her mother, or because she was impatient to start their romantic picnic.
In either case, the inquiry was sure to spoil the mood, and he should have let it go. Except, it was too late to do so now.
The butler looked at him with a fake smile plastered on his square-ish face. “What would you like to know, Master David?”
“Sari tells me that before you were her butler, you served the Clan Mother.”
As the cyborg just kept smiling, David realized that unless he asked a direct question, Ojidu wouldn’t answer him. “Do you store in your memory everything that you experience?”
“Yes, master.”
“Do you remember a time when the goddess was in danger?”
“Yes, master.”
“Can you tell me about those times?”
“Which one, master?”
He needed to start thinking of Ojidu as a computer. Unless he told him precisely what he was looking for, the guy wouldn’t know which file to access.
The problem was the limited information they had about the incident. It had happened a long time ago, probably while the goddess was still in the Nordic lands, but that could’ve been hundreds of years ago. Maybe even thousands. There was no way he could pinpoint a specific time.
The only thing he could do was to start at the beginning and go from there. Hopefully, Annani hadn’t been in danger too many times. After all, she was a powerful goddess and could seize people’s minds. Only other gods and immune humans or immortals could pose a threat to her.
“Start with the first time the Clan Mother was in danger.”
“Very well, master. The first time the Clan Mother was in danger was before she became the Clan Mother. The god Mortdh was amassing forces, and she told us that if he won a war with the other gods, he would kill her. That was why she needed to leave her home and escape to the north.”
Sari groaned. “This is not going to be quick, David. Knowing my mother, she got in trouble countless times. She always does things that might expose her, and Alena has to do damage control. Other than popping children like a human female, that’s Alena’s main job in life.”
David nodded. “Let me rephrase the question. Was there ever a time the goddess feared for her life?”
“Please define fear, master.”
Damn, that was difficult. He was asking a cyborg to comment on an emotion instead of a fact.
“Was there a time that the goddess needed your protection?”
“Yes, master. When she left her home and traveled to the north, my brothers and I protected her. She told us that if the god Mortdh found her, we were to shield her.”
“Other than Mortdh, were there any others she told you to shield her from?”
“No, master.”
This was going nowhere.
Sari lifted a hand. “Can I take over, David? I know how to ask Ojidu questions that he can answer.”
“Be my guest. It will certainly go faster.”
“Was the Clan Mother ever physically attacked by humans? And by physically, I mean, did any of them ever raise their hands or weapons to strike her?”
“Hands and weapons were raised.”
Finally, they were getting somewhere.
“Did she command you or the Odus to protect her?”
“The Clan Mother did not command my brothers or me to strike humans down.”
“What did she do to protect herself?” Sari asked.
“The Clan Mother took over their minds.”
“Were any of them immune to her mind control?”