Deceptive Lord (Lords of Bondage) (9 page)

One of the Asstrumnians
, Brennus Donovan,
approached them.
“I see you brought something back with you.
Looks human.”

“I took her from Avenal for the obvious reason,” Drest stated.

“I had no idea that you were so desperate for a female.
I could have fixed that for you.”

“Not that reason,” Drest replied.
“She discovered my identity.”

Brennus gave Drest a skeptical look, as his friend was naked and the female in his arms was nearly naked, wearing a bit of cloth that barely covered her.
“What will you do with her?
She cannot be returned to her home.”

“I’ll figure something out,” Drest replied.
“I had no choice but to take her.”

Brennus turned toward his two brothers, Brett and Brendan, and he told them to leave the room.
They responded with rude s
tatements and
cursing, but they did exit after he gave them a murderous glare.
“Some of our kind place great value on human pelts.
I’ve never had one, so I cannot judge whether the claims are valid.
What do you think about it
?”

“You actually skin humans?” Eden asked.
She had never heard any stories of people being skinned, but she did not know much about the alien hybrids.
Who knew what they were capable of doing?
She did not like the way the stranger was looking at her, like a fresh piece of meat.
Feeling apprehensive, she leaned into Lord Woodcock, who was still clutching her tightly.
She knew that he had to have given a false name, and she had no idea of his purpose in coming to Avenal, but he had not
harmed her yet.
She had enjoyed talking with him before and he had not seemed dangerous.
She instinctively knew that she would be safer with the false Lord Woodcock than with the others.
She was less sure about the other Asstrumnians.
They
had
looked threatening, despite having features that appeared very human.
They wore strange clothing, including trousers and tunics unlike anything she had ever seen.
Ornate gold armbands and rings that were encrusted with fine jewels adorned their necks and fingers, suggesting great wealth.

Brennus
laughed.
“
No, you would have no value to any of us dead.
Captives of war are given to the
King
, to do with as he pleases.
More
than likely, you will be given to the fine and made available to any of the unmated males.”

Eden shuddered at the thought of being given to these alien hybrids.
If they were able to do as they pleased with her,
she could be subjected to unimaginable abuse.
She was afraid to ask what they did to captives.
Was there any chance of being ransomed?
They may exert a little more effort to keep her alive if that was a possibility.
She started to tremble as her brain conjured up various horrible scenarios in her head.
She felt an urge to flee, although it wasn’t like she could hop from place to place like the hybrids.
She was aware of a cold chill on her skin
.
How she regretted acting on her stupid impulse to take off her outer
tunic!
What had she been thinking?
Surely, she could have found some other cloth to drape over Lord Woodcock’s invisible body.
Now she was paying the price.
She was nearly naked in a room full of hybrids who wished to make her “available” to the males.
Those beasts would surely ravage her and she had to get away from them.
She tried to pull away from the male who held her, but he tightened his arms around her.
She was aware of the fact that he was naked; she could feel the heat of his body behind her, where she was pressed against him.
She
could feel the brush of his bare skin against her own, especially when she struggled, causing their limbs to become entangled.
Struggli
ng and squirming
in his arms only made her tired.
He was much too strong.
She knew that she needed to conserve her strength, so she decided to cease movement for a while and rest.
She glanced at the male who held her, wondering how on Earth she had managed to mistake him for a human.
She thought of herself as being an intelligent female, so it was hard to understand how she had failed to see the signs.
She should have known he had no eye disease.
When his gaze fell on her, she saw his eyes darken to a deep violet red.
For some perverse reason, it excited her and she liked it.
Even knowing that he was a hybrid, she couldn’t rid herself of her inappropriate
attraction
to
him.

***

Drest tightened his grasp on her.
Currently, he felt as predatory as his notorious Asstrumnian ancestors, the ones who were reputed to have captured and enslaved humans.
He liked the feel of her in his arms and he involuntarily pressed her hips against him.

Brennus looked directly into Drest’s eyes and spoke in a serious manner.
“Drest, if you want her, you should mark her now.
If you do not, she will be made to serve many masters.”

Drest inwardly cursed.
This was a responsibility he did not want.
He honestly did not know what to do with the woman.
He had taken her on impulse, knowing that he could not
risk her telling tales of a recent encounter with the Asstrum.
When he had first grabbed her, he had felt her body go completely limp.
He realized that she was frightened, and now that he had actually abducted her, she would be terrified.
He couldn’t leave
her
to the
King
’s fine, which was basically the
King
’s entire family.
He wasn’t sure she would survive living that kind of lifestyle.
He wanted to take revenge on Nefertiti, but he wasn’t willing to harm the innocent to do it.
He also wasn’t sure that Nefertiti would lose any sleep over harm done to her half-sister, as that woman only cared about herself.
“I cannot mark an unwilling female.”

She
turned in his arms so that she could more easily converse with him.
“If you do not do this, then I will
be made a slave to the entire
King
’s family?
Does
that male
speak the truth?”

He
nodded.
“
That
is my friend, Brennus Donovan, one of the
King
’s sons.
The
King
has a large family, and our people have few females, leaving many without a mate.
Our people do not generally keep slaves, but when captives are taken, they are often enslaved.
You wouldn’t
be free and you wouldn’t be in a position to deny them.
However, t
hey w
ould
not take you if you
were
marked
.
Our laws generally forbid those who are marked to remain slaves
.”

“Then you will have to mark me, just like
he suggested
.
He called you
Drest, so I take it that is your real name.”

“
I am
Drest Kavanaugh
, Master Seanacha, a bard for the Tuatha Broin
.
We still follow many of the Celtic ways, but we have become more modern over the years.
We are part Celtic, but we are also part extra-terrestrial.
Some of our ways
are different from humans.”
He looked deeply into her eyes, hoping to convey the seriousness of the situation.
Once he marked her as his, she would be bound to him
physically.
He would be bound to her as well and would experience great suffering if they were parted.
It was like an addiction, which was why he practiced abstinence.
“
You do not understand what this marking entails.
You should know more before you give consent.
I would bite you, but it would not hurt.
A tattoo would form there and would remain for some time, essentially branding you.
That would keep the other males away.
A bond would form between us, but it would be a strictly physical one, designed to increase mating urges between a physically compat
ible pair.
”

“I didn’t realize the hybrids were so different than us.”

“
We believe that
it
was the method used by the extra-terrestrials to mate with humans thousands of years ago, and
our species resulted from those first initial matings.
The bond would affect both of us and
would lead to frequent copulation, and it would remain until you were impregnated.
That would happen
only
if you
were
marked, but not all females are able to be marked.
It’s a physiological process that is dependent on genetic compatibility.”

“I’m nearly five years from my fertile period
.
”

“You would be kept for that long, then.
After you conceive, the bond is no longer active, and
it would be possible to part ways, if we both wish it.
You may be able to return to your home by then.
If I mark you, I could not promise you any restraint.
Some of our
kind are
able to resist the mating urges, but those that cannot and are unable to mate will lose
complete control of their Asstrum abilities.
Some even lose their minds.
An Asstrumnian who cannot control their abilities can be extremely dangerous to other Asstrumnians.
I would not want to risk that
, so there would be a physical relationship between us.
If you are given to the
King
’s fine, you would most likely remain unmarked, but not untouched.
”

“
The physical part, would it hurt, given our different physiologies?”

“No,” Drest stated.
“Actually, I couldn’t say for certain because I’ve never had a human female.
I don’t believe your physiology is that different from our females, so I don’t believe it would be a
problem.
The
rumor is that humans are smaller.
I’m unsure of the truth of that, but I could
examine you first before marking you, if you wish it.
Have you any experience with human males?”

She
reddened.
It was clear that
she would decline his offer of an examination.
“I’m not completely ignorant of men.
You will not have to concern yourself with virginity.”

He
was not completely surprised that she had had a lover, although he did wonder what had happened to the male.
“Would you like me to mark you now?”

“What happens after I am marked?
Will I stay with you?”

He
decided he would keep her at his private family lodgings instead of
his rooms
at the
King
’s stronghold.
He knew the others would leave her alone once she was marked, but she would still be a temptation.
He would also have to periodically travel, leaving her alone for brief periods.
“You will live with me.”

“Mark me
.
”

He pulled her close and he felt the tremor of her body.
He sensed her nervousness and he didn’t want her to feel frightened.
He tightened his arms around her and gave her his warmth
.
To distract her, he coaxed her lips to open and he explored her mouth with his tongue.
Her sweet taste tempted him to do more than was strictly necessary.
He slid his hands underneath her tunic and acquainted
himself to the feel of her outer thighs, hips, and buttocks.
Her curvaceous shape excited him, made him want to be inside her.
Some of their people claimed that human females were more feminine than the Asstrum, and it was also said that the pleasure found within a human female’s body could not be surpassed.
He took a deep breath and tried to force himself to go more slowly with her.
He didn’t wish to maul her.
When he felt her body grow more relaxed, he lifted her against his erection and he moved his mouth to the skin of her shoulder.
He tasted the area with his tongue and nipped at her slightly.
He moved his mouth to the skin of her throat.
As he tasted her flesh, he felt his small fangs elongate.
It took him by surprise, as
he had not really believed that the marking would work on her.
She was a human and their species didn’t usually interbreed.
He felt a surge of lust as he realized he would soon have total access to her body.
He latched onto her throat and gave her skin a little prick.
He would not have to sink his fangs too deeply into her.
I
t
would
not hurt
her either, as i
t
was supposed to work
like an aphrodisiac
.
He heard
her moan softly
and she
sank into his body
.
The tiny scrap of fabric she wore was all that separated her from his nude form.
The urge to claim her completely was overwhelming and nearly impossible to resist.
He felt himself grow impossibly hard and he reflexively
pull
ed
her closer to him.
He needed to reach his bed in record
speed, before he succumbed to his urges.
He closed his eyes and concentrated on opening a portal that would allow for instant travel.