Consort (Beyond Ontariese 6) (29 page)

“
Did Father send you after
me?” She smoothed the heavily embroidered material of her bodice
against her ribs, her senses still humming. Strolling to a nearby
tree, she leaned against the trunk, needing the stability at her
back. Her teasing tastes of passion had never produced the sort of
emotions E’Lanna enjoyed with Zane.

Lor moved closer, the wind playing
through his curly blond hair. “As a matter of fact, he did. You
shouldn’t be out here alone.”

“
I’m not alone.” She
glanced up at him and offered her best flirtatious smile. “I have
you to protect me.”

He placed his hands on either side of
her shoulders, his turquoise gaze searching her face. “What makes
you think you’re safe with me?”

“
You would never do
anything to displease Father.” A note of disappointment bled
through in her tone.

“
Unlike Zane?” He brushed
her cheek with his knuckles then reluctantly stepped back. “Are
they out here, or were you entertaining wicked
thoughts?”

“
I was enjoying the
sunset,” she claimed with innocent bravado.

“
But you’d rather be
enjoying passionate kisses and bold caresses?” A strand of her hair
flitted against her check. He tucked it behind her ear, his fingers
lingering against her skin. “Will you stop moping if I kiss
you?”

“
I am not moping!” She
averted her gaze. Lor was handsome and experienced, intelligent and
kind. She had often wondered what it would feel like to kiss him.
With a deep chuckle, he pulled her into his arms and pressed his
mouth over hers. She wrapped her arms around his back and parted
her lips, waiting for the first brush of his tongue.

He took his time, nibbling at her lips
and tracing her mouth with the tip of his tongue. When he finally
delved into her mouth, she was panting and restless. His tongue
stroked hers, traced her teeth, then stroked hers some more. She
waited for the knee-melting heat, the rush of tingling fire E’Lanna
felt each time Zane kissed her. Lor’s mouth was warm, his body
strong, but the kiss was no more than pleasant.

Some unseen force slammed Lor forward,
knocking Echo against the tree. She yelped. He groaned then sank to
his knees. He was jarred sideways and flipped onto his stomach. He
went wild, kicking and thrashing as unseen hands restrained him.
Echo screamed, reaching out with her mind. Lor bucked and heaved
against the ground. Fire erupted around him, triggered by his
pyrokinetic gift.

E’Lanna’s mind reflected Echo’s fear.
Was the same thing happening to E’Lanna or was she reacting to
Echo’s terror? Lor’s hands were trapped beneath him, while the
grass around him sizzled. Did the assailants know he could throw
fire?

She was dragged away from the tree,
her attackers vague distortions against the coming night. Invisible
arms wrapped around her, pulling her tight against a tangible body.
They were real. She just couldn’t see them.

E’Lanna’s emotions prevented Echo from
reaching farther. She screamed again, but they were far from the
visitors’ hall.

Sound swelled, building from a distant
buzz to a deafening roar as a transport conduit swallowed her
whole. Light blinded her, then oppressive darkness closed in,
compressing her chest and weighting her limbs. She trembled in her
captor’s arms, lacking the breath to speak, much less
fight.

The pressure eased, but the darkness
remained. She blinked rapidly, struggling to bring anything into
focus. Hands pushed her to her knees, and a gruff voice activated a
row of firestones set high in the barren walls.

Light flashed again, and E’Lanna
appeared, trapped between two burly men. She was forced to her
knees beside Echo.

Are you hurt?
Echo sent the question directly to E’Lanna’s
mind.

No. Are you?
E’Lanna covered her mouth with her hand, her
shoulders shaking.

Don’t speak out loud, and
don’t react to my thoughts.

One of the villains materialized in
front of E’Lanna. Tall and lean, with rawboned features and fierce
eyes, he took E’Lanna’s chin and forced her to raise her face.
“Which one are you?”

Don’t answer
him!

His dark head whipped around, and his
gaze collided with Echo’s. Pitch black, his pupils and irises were
separated by an intense blue ring. Blue strands threaded through
his long black hair. Rodyte! They’d been kidnapped by the
Rodytes.

“
I can sense telepathic
communication.” He strolled toward her, his expression insolent.
“If you have something to say, say it out loud.”

She raised her chin and looked away,
her lips pressed into a mutinous line.

Warm and unexpected, his deep,
rumbling laughter rolled across her senses. He curved his fingers
around her chin and turned her head until she looked into his
eyes.

“
Hello, Echo. Silence can’t
disguise that fiery temper.” He motioned toward E’Lanna without
taking his gaze from Echo’s face. “Take that one to a holding
cell.”

“
No!” The word burst from
Echo before she could stop the impulse.

He arched one dark brow and pulled her
to her feet. “Are you volunteering to take her place? I hadn’t
expected you to be so eager.”

Echo, don’t. At least I
know what to expect. I won’t let this beast be your
first
.

Before she could correct E’Lanna’s
misconception, their captor spoke again. With his hands still
encircling Echo’s upper arms, he looked at E’Lanna. “If we hadn’t
arrived when we did, some blond Mystic would have been her first.
She was all but begging him to take her when we found them in the
moonlight.”

Echo gasped. He couldn’t just sense
telepathic communication, he could hear every word.

“
E’Lanna can’t be mounted
until after she bleeds again. Pass the word. No one is to touch
her.”

Echo felt the blood drain from her
face. They wanted to make sure E’Lanna wasn’t pregnant before they
“mounted” her? That meant they intended to keep them for weeks,
perhaps longer. Echo couldn’t succumb to the terror surging through
her mind. She had to think, strategize. Where were they? Why had
they been taken? The last question sent a shudder down her spine.
Why was pretty damn obvious: They were here to be
“mounted.”

E’Lanna was dragged from the room by
two of the men who had abducted her. Could all of them create
invisibility shields?

“
Let’s go.” The leader
nodded toward the doorway.

Echo laughed.
Let’s not.
It was
irrational to think she was going to stroll off to his bedchamber
to be raped. He didn’t react to her laughter or the accompanying
thought. Apparently it was only telepathic transmissions he could
intercept.

“
You’re going to be a lot
more trouble than your sister, aren’t you?”

“
You have no
idea.”

Varrik carried Echo to his bedchamber,
slung over his shoulder. She kicked and squirmed, arched and
pounded on his back. He found the hem of her gown and pushed his
hand up under her skirt, smacking her pampered ass as hard as the
position allowed. She yelped then went perfectly still. The stunned
silence only lasted a moment, then her fight renewed with increased
verve. She might be all fight and fire, but she was still a spoiled
brat.

“
Where are we?” Despite her
breathless tone, she managed to make it sound like a
demand.

“
You could have looked
around if you had behaved.”

Her exasperated cry turned heads in
the sparring area. He just smiled and kept on walking. All this
bluster would blow itself out soon enough. She threw herself
sideways so forcefully, he lost his footing and they landed in a
heap of tangled limbs and billowy skirts.

She swung at him. He caught her wrist
and growled in warning. Laughter erupted all around them, but he
kept his gaze on her. Couldn’t she have waited until they were in
his room before she pitched her fit? He shook his head. This was
going to be interesting.

“
Mounting a virgin is an
occasion to be shared according to the ancient customs.” He spoke
in a quiet, menacing tone. “If I chose to follow the custom, you
would be stripped naked and bound between two poles, with everyone
looking on. I would select three of my trusted friends to verify
your virginity. Think about it, Princess. How would they do
that?”

“
It wouldn’t be any
different than what you have planned.” She tugged against his hand,
but a bit of the fire had left her eyes.

“
They would touch you and
put their fingers inside you, while all the others
watched.”

“
Go to hell.” Her gaze
darted around the room, her breasts quivering with each ragged
breath.

“
After all three had
finished fingering you, I’d let them touch your breasts. They’d
stroke you and suck on your nipples, while I made sure you were
nice and wet.”

“
You’re wasting your time.
I’m not listening.” She stared past him into
nothingness.

“
I’d kneel down and lick
your pussy. I’d use my tongue and my lips and my teeth until you
screamed in pleasure. I’d keep at it until you came, no matter how
long it took.”

“
Stop it.”

“
Then I’d work two fingers
into your tight little hole and carefully stretch you, make you
ready for my—”

“
Shut up!” Jerking her arm
out of his grasp, she tried to scurry away, but he was sitting on
her skirt.

“
When your cream covered my
hand and ran down your thighs, I’d pick you up and wrap those long
legs around my waist.”

“
Do it, Commander!” someone
called out.

“
Is she really a virgin?”
asked another.

“
It’s not the most
comfortable position for a virgin, but my men would sure as hell
enjoy the show.”

“
You bastard,” she
whispered.

He stared into her eyes and asked,
“Shall we go to my room now, or would you like to explore the
ancient customs?” She refused his help as she stood. He forced
himself not to smile. Fearing him would serve her better in the
long run. Shoulders squared, head held high, she walked beside him
the rest of the way.

Her assessing gaze swept their
surroundings. She paused at each corner and took in as much of the
maze as she could. “Where are the holding cells?”

“
I might take you there in
a day or two, if you follow my directives.”

She didn’t respond to the offer. “Is
the entire complex underground?”

He didn’t respond to her question.
“Next door on your right.” Pushing the door open, he motioned her
inside.

After looking up and down the
corridor, she stepped into the room. “Are your women kept separate
from your men?”

“
In a way.” He locked the
door and leaned against it, crossing his arms over his
chest.

Was there a faster way to determine
pregnancy? The other sister would doubtlessly be easier to control.
But that would subject Echo to the lottery. Most of his men
understood that seduction was more beneficial than force,
especially when the woman would be around for a cycle or longer.
Still, many didn’t have the patience for Echo’s temper.

Which left her to him.

“
Take down your
hair.”

“
I’d rather not. Thanks for
the suggestion.”

She was going to have to be
restrained. There was no way around it.

He pushed away from the door and
crossed the room. Thick-lashed and expressive, her eyes swirled
gently, attesting to her Ontarian heritage. Her gown matched her
eyes, a smoky mixture of purple and gray. The rich material hugged
her torso, leaving her shoulders and the upper curve of her breasts
bare. The ornate embroidery didn’t distract from the generous
fullness of her breasts or the contrasting dip of her waist. Who
had she been kissing when they penetrated the Mystic shield? Their
interaction had seemed playful, as if the man had never touched her
before.

She’s a virgin, you ass.
No one has ever touched her before
.

He brushed her cheek with his
knuckles, mimicking the man’s gentle touch. She stared back at him,
her lips trembling. Could he kiss her senseless, channel her
emotional intensity into blazing desire?

Circling around behind her, he found
the pins securing her golden-brown hair and began to take it down.
She stood perfectly still—debating her options, no doubt, or
searching the room for weapons.

“
Why are you doing this?”
The uncertainty in her voice stirred a place deep inside his heart.
He could withstand her anger and ignore her contrary outbursts, but
this tremulous vulnerability called to a part of him he didn’t
recognize. This was how they did it, how women cast their spell. He
must guard his feelings carefully or he’d follow his brother to an
early grave.

“
I want to spread your hair
across my pillow as I thrust between your thighs.” She slapped his
hand away and spun to face him.