Bound to the Prince (15 page)

She had been sure that she would step on dry
ground, but instead she stumbled over a tree root and fell into the
black waters. The only reason she still lived was her fast
reaction. Fortunately, she had managed to grab an overhanging
branch and hold onto it before she sank down into the depths of the
bog. She wondered about crying for help, but she knew that to do so
would cost her the precious strength she needed to free herself.
She tried to swing to the side, to propel herself out of the deadly
hole, but to no effect. Her legs had already been swallowed by the
slimy mud that constantly pulled her down.

Suddenly, something moved in the dirty water
below. It felt like a giant snake that was gliding along her legs,
then disappearing again. Igraine tugged on the shrub with all her
might, struggling to get out. At this moment the creature wrapped
itself around her ankles, pulling her down.

Igraine cried out and tried to free her legs
by kicking against the unknown animal, but it didn’t let her go.
The water’s surface began to move, then to bubble, and several
black tentacles rose from the surface. One of them grabbed her
around her waist; another imprisoned her wrist, intending to tear
her away from the branch.

It was over. It made no sense to fight any
longer. Nonetheless, she'd try to make this bog monster’s life
miserable, hurt it, kick his ugly ass as long as she could. She
closed her eyes, not struggling anymore, but holding onto the
branch with all her strength. The tentacles pulled harder; drawing
her down…

She winced when a furious cry pierced the
air. There was a swooshing sound near her head which was repeated
several times. She was relieved to feel the creature’s arms around
her body become weak, loosening their grip before they fell off her
completely. When she cautiously opened one eye, she saw one of the
centaurs standing over her. It was Aegis, the first of the group
who had stepped into the clearing. His otherworldly beauty was only
intensified by the physical exertion of the fight. Triumph in his
eyes, he threw back his head and shook his long black mane, sweat
glistening on his muscular torso.

He hacked his sword into the water a few more
times. The monster’s blood emerged from the bog, gurgling like a
red fountain while the creature sank deeper, its tentacles whipping
wildly through the air. Finally it disappeared, and the pool was
calm again, reflecting the sky like a shining black mirror.

The centaur stretched out his arm and wrapped
it around Igraine’s waist, pulling her up to him until her feet
reached solid ground again. Igraine wanted to thank him, but as she
looked into his eyes, she saw wild, reckless desire burning in
them. Aegis didn’t even bother to speak, but grabbed her and simply
threw her over his back. He seemed to cross the marshes
effortlessly, finding his way as if he had been there many times
before. She managed to throw one leg over his side and pull herself
up, so she could sit on his back and ride him.

When they had reached the other side of the
bog and entered the wood, Aegis broke into a wild gallop and rode
with breathtaking speed, forcing Igraine to throw her arms around
him in order to cling to him for dear life. The centaur groaned
with desire when he felt her touch on his naked skin. He rode even
faster, deeper into the forest, while the strong muscles of his
horse back flexed and tensed under Igraine’s thighs.

She couldn’t tell how much time had passed
when he eventually stopped, but the night didn’t seem to be so dark
anymore. Aegis had stopped in a small clearing where the trees
stood so close together that it looked like a green chamber, the
ground thickly covered with heaps of golden and purple leaves. From
between them, delicate white flowers peeked out everywhere. When
Igraine looked up she didn’t see the heavens, only the crowns of
the trees, so densely grown that they formed a ceiling. It was the
loveliest place she had ever seen.

The centaur bowed his horse legs and knelt
down, allowing her to slip off his back. She stood up and watched
him carefully. “Aegis,” she said softly. “I want to thank you for
saving my life. Without you, I would be lying at the bottom of that
horrendous bog now. Elathan will …”

“Elathan? What will he do, woman?” Aegis rose
and began to circle her, pausing now and then to step in her way
when she tried to move further away from him. His eyes wandered
shamelessly over her curves, obviously approving what he saw.
“Didn’t he take you yet? Oh, I know that you want it. I saw you
looking at him.” He grinned at her knowingly, then the expression
on his face became darker, and she sensed how strong his desire for
her was.

“But pray tell me, what can a pointed-eared
elf do to your body that I can’t do better?” He reached down and
closed his fingers around her throat, warning her not to meddle
with him. Then she felt his hand as it slid into her soft shirt and
caressed her breast.

Igraine reacted without thinking. She reached
over her shoulder and unsheathed the elven sword Elathan had given
her. The centaur was surprised to find the sharp blade pressed to
his neck, drawing a small rivulet of blood that ran down over his
suntanned chest. He looked down at himself, a disbelieving look on
his face. Actually, her attack seemed to amuse him. Her resistance
seemed to have increased his desire instead of driving him
away.

“You are a fiery one, little human,” he said
in a mocking tone. “Taking you will be my greatest pleasure.
Elathan can have you afterwards, if he still cares. But then he
will always smell my scent between your thighs.” A wide grin spread
over the centaur’s handsome face. “He‘ll never forget that I had
you first.”

With one swift movement he pulled his own
sword from his back and attacked her so fiercely that she dropped
her weapon. Igraine jumped after it and landed on the forest floor,
the impact knocking the air out of her lungs. Quickly she rolled
over on her side and managed to grab the sword. From the corner of
her eye she saw him raise his weapon, furious now, and clearly
determined to go for the kill. Without thinking, she swung around
her sword and sliced the centaur’s side. A fountain of blood
emerged which soon painted the leaves on the floor dark red.

She never saw it coming. Aegis raised on his
back legs and kicked her head so hard that she was knocked down to
the ground. Her eyesight was blurring quickly, and she couldn’t
move a limb as she watched him lift his sword for the deadly
blow.

At the same moment a high-pitched, metallic
sound pierced the night, and Aegis’ right arm was flying through
the air, severed from his body. Sword in one hand, spear in the
other, Elathan had catapulted himself off his horse’s saddle and
leaped towards the centaur, attacking him in midair. Aegis
collapsed to his knees, his left hand pressed against the bleeding
stump Elathan’s sword had left.

Elathan towered over him, his eyes burning
red with rage. “What have you done to her?” he hissed, his voice
dangerously low.

“Only what she begged me to do,” the centaur
spat out, showing an astounding courage while facing his certain
death. Elathan's fingers tightened around the hilt of the
sword.

“Elathan, no!” Igraine threw herself between
the two immortals. The elf was trembling with uncontrollable fury,
his chest heaving with the effort to control his temper. She laid a
hand on Elathan’s cheek and made him look into her eyes. “I am
unharmed. Look at me.”

He only glanced at her for a short moment,
but she knew that he had seen that she was telling the truth. Like
an ancient warrior statue, the prince stood over his enemy, a spear
raised in his hand. “Centaur, you have acted against my orders. I
made you swear that you would protect the Lady Igraine. Instead,
you wanted to take her against her will, and when she didn't
comply, you even tried to kill her. This is high treason, and the
only punishment is death.”

“Even if he saved my life before?” Igraine
asked softly. She told Elathan what had happened on the moor.

Elathan surveyed the injured centaur,
contemplatively. Then he suddenly stepped back, glowering down at
Aegis with open disgust. “You will live, but only for the reason
that Lady Igraine asked me to spare you. Go back to your brothers
and let them tend to your wounds. If you survive, you will leave
this forest and be banished from Fearann as long as you shall live.
It will be interesting to watch how a creature like you will
attempt to hide in the world of the humans. If they catch you and
take you to one of their laboratories, you'll wish that I had
killed you first.”

Aegis didn’t press his luck. He grabbed his
severed arm and left the clearing, never looking back.

At this moment the sun rose up in the east,
bathing the clearing in the soft light of early morning. Elathan
turned to Igraine and searched her face for a moment. Then he
raised his spear and pressed the sharp tip to her neck. It was a
ritual as old as time, the triumphant hunter claiming his prey. The
fight with Aegis had left a small wound on her arm. The prince
reached out with his free hand and dipped his fingers into her
blood. Slowly he smeared it across his cheeks and over his lips,
tasted it with his tongue.

“The hunt is over, Igraine,” the prince said,
his golden eyes burning with desire.

Chapter 10: Mine to
take

Igraine smiled sweetly at the prince, casting
a meaningful glance to the spear pressed to her throat.

“So, the hunt is over,” she said with
provocative little smile. “What will you do next, my Prince? Kill
me and serve me for dinner, perhaps?”
Elathan lifted one pale brow, accepting the challenge. “Dinner?” he
repeated, mockingly. “My dear, at dinner time there won’t be
anything left of you at all. I will devour you alive.”

The moment he lowered his spear Igraine dived
to the ground, retrieved her sword and swung it in his direction
with an elegant move. “Why don’t you come and get me, elf?” she
asked, a wild joy glowing up in her eyes.

Elathan jumped, whirled around in the air
with breathtaking speed and landed right on top of Igraine,
grabbing her around the waist and pulling her down with him. The
impact hit her hard; her sword clattered to her feet. He encircled
her closely with his arms and shielded her while they rolled
quickly over the forest floor, like one body.

Igraine was so surprised by his attack that
she couldn’t even breathe, let alone move. The prince had
protectively cradled her head against his neck, and she heard a
deep, low sound emerging from his throat. She couldn’t work out
what it was at first, but then she understood.

The prince was laughing. He laughed as
happily as a child at play, enjoying himself immensely while he
rolled around with her on the floor, covering them both with golden
leaves. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever heard. She
couldn’t help bursting out laughing, too, helplessly giggling while
she buried her face in his hair. After coming close to death twice
in one night, it felt so good to be in his arms, feeling the warmth
of his skin against hers.

When they came to a halt, Elathan lifted
himself up on his elbows, but nailed her body to the ground with
his weight. During the fall, his hair had come loose from the
leather band, and it fell like a waterfall over his wide shoulders,
covering her. They both stopped laughing when their eyes met.

Elathan looked at her face for a moment
before he pulled her to him and kissed her senseless. She moaned
and wrapped her arms around his neck, answering him with all the
longing and passion she felt for him. Willingly she opened her
mouth for him so he could claim her with his tongue, licking and
stroking lightly, biting her lips until they felt bruised and
swollen.

His hands found their way under her tight
top, sliding up her skin until his long fingers touched her
breasts. Igraine moaned, rubbing her aching nipples against his
palms while he caressed her, his soft chuckle telling her how
delighted he was.

But the prince’s patience had worn thin after
the night’s exertions. The act of hunting never ceased to arouse
him, and he always lusted for a soft female body to take when he
returned. Besides, he had already waited far too long. He desired
her more than any other woman before. Her lush body tempted him,
and her sweet scent was all around him, driving him mad. Enough was
enough.

He grabbed her shirt with two hands and
ripped it from her body. Only moments later, her trousers went the
same way. Igraine struggled for air when she lay naked before him
while his eyes wandered adoringly over her body. Elathan unlaced
his armor with his long fingers, took it off and dropped it to the
ground, followed by his shirt, boots and trousers. Finally, there
was nothing left to separate them anymore.

Igraine glanced at her new elven clothes,
only rags left now. “Oh no,” she sighed. Elathan was already
ravishing her body, covering her neck with tiny love bites, moving
his lips down over the curve of her shoulder, then down to her
breasts. “Be quiet, woman, I’m a damn prince,” he murmured against
her naked skin. “You’ll get new clothes every day if I desire to
undress you like this.”

Igraine screamed softly when he kissed her
breast, sucking her deep into his hot wet mouth, then slowly
descending over her belly until he reached the juncture between her
thighs. She was aching for him, already pulsating with need when
she felt his tongue there again, parting her womanly folds. He
groaned with pleasure when he tasted her desire. Slowly, slowly he
licked his way to her tiny nub that burned and throbbed, waiting
for his touch. He suckled at it, lightly tugged it between his
lips, teasing her. Igraine grabbed a handful of his silken hair and
pressed his head closer to her, silently begging him to increase
the pressure. The elf answered with a deep chuckle before he began
to circle her with his tongue, giving her pleasure beyond anything
she had ever felt before. She threw back her head, breathlessly
whispering his name.