Divided: Brides of the Kindred 10 (52 page)

“We
entered into one of Far’s visions together,” Truth answered for them.

“Don’t
worry,” Becca added quickly, seeing the dismayed look on Sylvan’s face. “It was
a good one. It was Vashtar again—he just wanted to say goodbye.”

“And
is the threat resolved?” Sylvan asked.

“Yes.”
Truth nodded firmly. “The demons are all imprisoned in the black shadow stone.
Vashtar said to be certain it is set adrift in space to act as an eternal
prison for them.”

“I’ll
have it done at once.” Sylvan smiled and then offered an arm to Far. “Glad to
have you back.”

“Glad
to be back.” Far clasped with him and smiled.

“I’d
like to have you down to the Med center to do some tests,” Sylvan said. “But
you look perfectly healthy to me.”

“We’ll
bring him down anyway,” Becca said. “But, um, maybe later.”

She
was touching both her men, standing between them, and she was suddenly aware of
the warm, familiar tingle of desire running through her body. She was further
aware that she was only wearing a thin sheet—and she wanted to be wearing a lot
less in a short time.

“Truth?
Far?”
she sent through their bond.

“Yes,
Rebecca?”

“What
do you wish, mi’now?”

“You
know what I wish, boys. I wish to be back at Truth’s suite with both of you,
naked.”

A
low appreciative growl from Truth and a hot look from Far were more than enough
to let Becca knew her men approved of her suggestion.

“All
right.” Sylvan was looking at the three of them, a knowing little smile playing
around the corners of his mouth. “I see where this is going. The three of you
go and renew your bond. I’ll see you in a day…or a week…or whenever you can let
go of each other long enough to drop by the Med center.”

“Thanks,
Commander Sylvan.” Becca spared him a smile and then hooked her arms through
her men’s again and gave them a tug. “Come on, boys—take me home.”

Chapter
Forty-seven

“So Far is back to normal? I mean,
completely
back to
normal?” Kat raised an eyebrow at Becca.

“Uh-huh. And then some. At least he seemed to be last night.
And the night before that… And the day before that…” Becca blushed. It had been
several days since Far had come back to them and she was taking a short break
in the sex-marathon that had become her existence lately to visit with friends.

“Uh-
huh.”
Kat grinned at her. “Now
that’s
what I
like to hear. You’re going to be having some pretty hot bonding sex for a
while, doll. Believe me, after Deep came back from the great beyond, he and
Lock and I couldn’t get enough of each other for like three months.”

"Kor and I were the same way. It's amazing how fast they
heal." Maggie, who was also visiting, shook her bouncy blonde curls and
gave Becca a friendly smile. "I mean, Commander Sylvan just
barely
released him from the Med Center
and he was all over me!" She blushed. "Not that I mind."

“Me either. I hardly wanted to leave my guys to come over
here,” Becca admitted. “But the two of them shooed me away. Apparently they’re
making a special supper and they want it to be a surprise.”

“Kindred
do
love to cook for their women,” Liv remarked.

“They’re pretty damn good at it too,” Kat agreed and bit down
on the chocolate donut hole she was holding in one hand. “Speaking of which—
Ugh
. This sure wasn't made by
hand." She made a face. “It's awful! Where’s Lauren when you need her?”

“Um, maybe recovering from giving birth?” Sophie suggested,
rolling her eyes. “Honestly, Kat woman—you’re even worse than Livvy was about
your pregnancy cravings!”

“You take that back!” Kat stabbed a finger at her.
“Nobody
was
as bad as Liv! May I remind you that she made us make her seaweed sandwiches?
With
peanut butter?”

"Seaweed with peanut butter?
Really?" Maggie looked disgusted.

"Not to mention waffles with
ketchup and all kinds of other things it makes me gag just to remember!"
Kat exclaimed.

“Okay, okay…” Sophie held up a hand, laughing. “You win. And
I’m sorry you don’t like the donuts I brought. I guess Dunkin Donuts just can’t
compare with Lauren’s gourmet recipes.”

“That’s all right.” Kat gave a long suffering sigh. “I’ll just
have to make do. But next time go to Krispy Kreme. At least their stuff doesn’t
taste like frosted cardboard."

"I
love
Krispy
Kreme," Becca gushed. "It's my mom's favorite too. We used to get a
big box of the plain glazed every Sunday after mass and..." She trailed
off, biting her lip.

"What is it, doll?" Kat asked gently. "Thinking
about how your folks are going to react when you introduce your guys to
them?"

Becca sighed. "The thought
did
cross my mind once or twice. I've been so happy the last couple
of days it's easy to forget what's waiting for me down on Earth the moment I
bring Far and Truth to meet my family."

"You're going to just go for it like that?" Liv gave
a long, low whistle. You're brave, I'll give you that."

Becca lifted her chin.

"Well, they have to find out sometime. And this way at
least my mom can finally give up the idea that I'll ever go back to the
convent."

"That's a good point," Kat said dryly. "I don't
know too many nuns who have twin husbands hanging around. But you should just
come right out and tell them, don't beat around the bush. And while you’re at
it—”

A knock at the front door interrupted her.

“Who could that be?” Liv asked.

“I have no idea. Becca, could you get it?” Kat asked, gesturing
to her belly. “Getting up is getting harder and harder.”

“Of course.” Becca jumped up and went to the door. When it slid
open, she was surprised to see Garron standing there. “Oh, Garron—hello. Come
in.” She motioned him into the living area. He came willingly enough but then
just stood there, looking around at Kat and Liv and Sophie and Maggie
uncertainly.

“Apologies,” he began. “I, um, was led to believe that my
brother, Truth was here.”

“Oh, he’s not but these are my friends.” Becca made the
introductions and Garron bowed deeply to all of the women in turn.

“Well met, friends of my brother’s mate,” he murmured. “Forgive
me for interrupting your fellowship.”

“No problem at all,” Kat said, smiling at him. “Becca told me a
little about you. Aren’t you the brother that stabbed Truth and nearly scared
her to death?”

“Um, yes…” Garron looked uneasy. “But I assure you it was
necessary and I knew he would recover. I have made many apologies to Becca for
causing her grief—”

“Oh, stop,” Becca said quickly. “I’m not mad at you, Garron.
Kat is just teasing you. You know—trying to be funny.”

“Oh.” He nodded and gave Kat a stiff smile. “A very funny joke,
my lady.”

“No, it’s not if it made you feel uncomfortable. I’m sorry,
Garron,” Kat said.

“It’s all right.” The big warrior nodded at her, looking a
little less uneasy. “I’m still getting used to Kindred ways. Since…” He cleared
his throat. “Since it looks like I will not be going back to Pax.”

“Oh, Garron, I’m so sorry!” Becca put a hand on his arm. “Did
you speak to your mom about it?”

He nodded. “Unfortunately, yes. Ama has forbidden me to
return—or rather, T’lar has. They have declared me
Ver’bain
in my
absence.”

Becca frowned. “Wait—I know that
O’ahn
means you don’t
have a
dr’gin.
But what’s
Ver’bain?”

“Unwanted.” Garron looked away, his lovely turquoise eyes
shaded with grief. “Outcast.”

“Oh, Garron!” Becca wanted to hug him but she was afraid he
wouldn’t like that—especially not in front of four females he didn’t know.

“It’s fine,” he said stiffly. “I am doing quite well in my new
home here aboard the Mother Ship.”

“Oh? Have they given you a suite?” Liv asked.

Garron shook his head. “I am staying in the Unmated Males area
and getting along fine. I have my own small room—it is enough.”

“Oh, well now that everything is back to normal there I’m sure
it’s lovely,” Sophia said brightly.

“And you never can tell,” Kat added. “There are lots of Earth
girls not far from here. You might start dream sharing with one at any time.”

“Dream sharing?” Garron frowned. “I don’t understand. What’s
that?”

“It’s when a Kindred’s mind aligns with his chosen female,” Liv
explained. She looked at Becca. “Did you and Truth and Far ever dream share?”

Becca shook her head. “I don’t think so. We all just sort of
fell together so suddenly after I ate Kat’s wedding cake—we really didn’t have
time.”

"I dreamed of Kor," Maggie said softly. "And he
looked exactly as I'd dreamed when I found him."

“But…what kinds of dreams do you share?” Garron asked, looking
worried. “Are they good dreams…or bad ones?”

“Well, that depends,” Liv said. “I had terrible dreams about
Baird a long time before he actually came to claim me. But I found out later that
was because he was being held in prison and tortured.” She shivered. “Those
dreams were
awful.”

“But the sharing isn’t always in dreams, either,” Sophie put
in. “I mean, the way I knew I was hooked on Sylvan was the fact that every time
I painted a picture he showed up in it—even when I tried to leave him out.”

“Really?” Garron shook his head. “This is all very confusing to
me.”

“Most Kindred stuff seems confusing at first,” Kat said
comfortingly. “Don’t worry, hon—you’ll get used to it.”

“I’m sure I will.” Garron looked at Becca. “Apologies, Becca,
but I think I’ve trespassed on your time with your fellow females for long
enough. Could you tell me where Truth might be? There is something…” He coughed
and his cheeks went red. “Something I wish to discuss with him.”

“Oh—he and Far are back at our suite, making a meal together,”
Becca said, wondering what in the world he could have to discuss with his
brother that would make him embarrassed. “You can join us if you like. I know
you don’t know hardly anybody here yet—our door is always open to you.”

“Thank you.” Garron gave her a genuinely warm smile. “You’re
very kind. Truth was lucky to find a female like you.”

“That’s so sweet.” Becca smiled at him. “So I’ll see you for
dinner? Um, last fare?” she amended, remembering that was what the Rai'ku
called it.

“Maybe.” Garron’s turquoise eyes slid away evasively. “But even
if I don’t attend, thank you for the invitation.” He bowed to Becca and then
bowed once more, deeply to Liv, Kat, Sophie, and Maggie. “Ladies, it was good
to meet all of you. I will take my leave now.”

Becca saw him to the door and watched it swish shut behind him
with a heavy feeling in her heart. Kat must have seen the feelings written on
her face because when Becca came back she nudged her gently with one elbow.

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Oh, it’s just Garron.” Becca sighed. “I just feel terrible for
him—he seems so lost up here on the Mother Ship. And I can’t help feeling like
it’s my fault he got kicked out of his home planet.”

“Listen, if what you’ve been telling us about Pax is true, it
sounds like you did him a favor,” Liv said.

“He’s going to be fine once he settles in,” Maggie chimed in.

“And with eyes like those?” Kat whistled appreciatively. “Not
to mention he’s got the Kindred build—he’ll be dream sharing with some girl in
no time.”

“I don’t think so,” Becca said. “He had a girl he was really in
love with and, well…she got killed.” Remembering Garron’s sad story about Nella
still put a lump in her throat.

“Oh, poor guy,” Sophie said sympathetically. “I hope he’ll be
okay.”

“I do too,” Becca said softly, thinking of her new
brother-in-law. But she had a worried feeling about Garron she just couldn’t
shake.

A feeling that something was about to happen that would change
his life forever…

Epilogue

Ur the demon wandered the halls of the
Mother Ship, seeking a new host.

Being cast from the body of the warrior he
had chosen still angered him—how dare the host deny him his rightful place? For
a time he’d had high hopes that the vision he had twisted in the girl, Becca’s
mind, would bear fruit and allow him to find his way into the warrior Truth
after all. But then the Goddess had interfered—not to mention that round little
fool, Vashtar.

Ur’s hopes had been shattered and then, to
make matters worse, all of his brethren had been banished to the blackness of
space. It was a wrong that must be avenged although how he was to do that, he
did not know. Though he himself had been able to escape the pull of the shadow
stone, no other demon had. Ur was the only one of his kind left aboard the
Mother ship.

He was not used to being defeated and his
spirit form hummed with anger as he cast about, looking for a new body to
inhabit.

The problem was, all the unmated males
were protected by the lingering essence of that damn amulet—the star of
purity—which Vashtar had given them. The star’s influence contaminated them. Ur
knew living inside a male tainted by the star would be intolerable. The rest of
the males on the ship were all mated, their minds protected and made inviolable
to a demonic presence by the bonds they had with their females.

Though he tried again and again, Ur found
all the minds around him locked to his prying mental fingers. It was no
use—every one he tried was sealed tightly shut against him, protected by the
sickening love bond which proved an impassible barrier.

All of which left Ur with no place to go.
A lesser demon would have dissipated or allowed his essence to be drawn back to
the Black Planet.

Ur was not lesser.

I will
not be defeated,
he hissed to himself as he stalked through
the long, twisting metal corridors for the thousandth time
.
I will find a host—and then I will make them pay. Make them pay
for evicting my brethren and locking me out.

Though he was invisible and had no
physical presence unless he exerted an exhausting mental effort, his essence
could still be sensed by the corporal beings walking through the hallways. They
shivered as Ur passed through them, as though a cold wind had blown through the
corridor. Some experienced sad or depressive thoughts—others had brief, violent
impulses or unspeakable mental images which they quickly shrugged off when the
demon passed by. One young human girl actually burst into tears as Ur passed through
her.

He had a brief impression of her mind—she
was unmated which left her open and vulnerable. Had he wished, he could have
taken her over as easily as putting on a suit of clothing. But she was female
which would have made for an uncomfortable fit. Besides, he knew from so lately
indwelling the human scientist, that an Earthly body could not hold up to his
demonic presence for very long at all. No, he had best continue his search for
the perfect male Kindred host. One who was strong, one without ties or bonds of
any kind to keep Ur out.

He had thought that the Kindred warrior
Truth had no such bonds and then his brother and their chosen female had
somehow cast Ur out anyway. And now, of course, the three of them were
completely bonded, putting Truth forever beyond his reach. How they had managed
to do that when he had been so sure—?

Ur stopped suddenly, feeling a pull.
Scanning the area, he tried to determine where it had come from. He was right
in front of one of the Kindred’s many Med Centers—could the feeling be coming
from there?

Like a shark which can smell just a few
drops of blood miles away in the ocean, the demon could sense a possible host,
even inside the noisy, busy Med Center.

Slowly, he drifted in, scanning for the
faint signal, following it unerringly to its source.

There, lying on a sleeping platform was a
male body. A Kindred too. Not as young as the male Truth, whom Ur had first
picked for himself, but still hale and strong with many years of life left in
it all the same. Best of all, Ur could sense no bond between this male and any
female.

It is perfect! But how could I have missed
it?

“…moved him from isolation to a private
room,” a male Kindred was saying of the figure on the bed. “But we still don’t
know if he’ll ever wake up.”

“Such a shame,” a human female who looked
to be a nurse replied. “A Council member too.”

“Not just any Council member—the
Head
of the entire Council. He holds the Orb of Power and has the right to veto
anything, even if the rest of the Council okays it. Rumor has it that it’s
caused chaos in the upper ranks.”

“Even worse! What was he doing leading the
charge against the possessed males like that?”

“Well, his mate died over a year ago and
their bonding was never blessed with any children,” the male replied. “I suppose
he felt he had nothing to lose.”

That explains it!
Probing deeper into the unconscious male’s
mind, Ur felt the old, severed bond the two were talking about. The male
used
to be linked to a female and the remains of that bond had made him almost
undetectable.

But he was here now, unconscious and
completely undefended. The more Ur looked at the warrior, the more he liked the
new vessel. He was a Blood Kindred and the fangs he sported were appealing.
Also it appeared that this particular host had much more than health and a
strong body to offer.

A Council member, did they say? The HEAD
of the entire Kindred High Council? How interesting…

It might take a while to get such a body
up and moving again—especially if there had been some damage to the brain or nervous
system. But Ur had plenty of time. After all, the longer he waited, the less
the Kindred would suspect that anything was amiss.

With an unheard cackle of pure, malevolent
glee, the demon let his essence sink into the unconscious warrior.

He would bide his time and when he finally
came forth, the Kindred wouldn’t know what hit them.

Read
on for a preview of Brides of the Kindred 11:
Devoured
, coming in summer of 2014…

Devoured

Chapter One

“Are you sure it’s safe?” Tess looked around
the Human/Kindred Relations building, or the HKR, as the people who worked
there called it. One of those people happened to be her good friend, Di, but
what she was suggesting made Tess awfully nervous.

“Safe?” Di raised one silver eyebrow at
her sardonically. “Sure, hon—a hell of a lot safer than you are down here in
Tampa.”

“But what do I do once I—” One of the
massive Kindred warriors walked by and Tess dropped her voice to a whisper
before continuing. “What do I do once I get up there?”

“Hide, of course. Until it’s safe to come
back down here and move to Hawaii or China or the Moon or wherever you can
think of that Pierce won’t follow you.”

Tess closed her eyes for a moment.
Don’t
bother running, Princess,
Pierce’s voice sneered in her head.
You’re
mine
and I never let go of what’s mine.

“There’s no place he won’t follow me,” she
said in a low voice. “No place he won’t
find
me.”

“Correction, hon—there is
one
place
he can’t and won’t find you because he can’t get up there. And that’s the place
you’re headed.”

“But—”

“No ‘buts,’” Diara insisted. “My next tour
of the Mother Ship leaves in fifteen minutes and it’s a big one—big enough that
nobody’s going to notice if we come back with one less tourist dying to check
out the Kindred way of life.”

“But I don’t know anything
about
them,” Tess protested. “I’m not even registered for the draft.”

The draft was an agreement the governments
of the world had with the Kindred that allowed males of their race to call
brides from Earth. Being something like ninety-nine percent male because of a
genetic mutation—supposedly the same mutation that made them all over six foot
six and hugely muscular—meant they were always short of women.

All unmarried women of a certain age were
supposed to be signed up for the draft but Tess wasn’t because technically, she
was still married. That was because Pierce wouldn’t sign the divorce papers no
matter how often she sent them over.

Instead, he just kept coming over to her
apartment and talking about how he’d changed and he wanted her back. Tess had
been down that road before so she had refused. But now it seemed he was done
asking. The last time she’d sent the divorce papers she came home to find…

Tess shook her head. She didn’t want to
think about what she’d found inside her apartment. Just remembering made her
feel like she might cry or throw up.
Poor Gus…

“You don’t have to know anything about the
Kindred except they’re good guys and they don’t beat and imprison their women,”
Di said, interrupting her morbid thoughts. “Unlike certain ex-husbands I could
name.”

“He’s not technically my ex since he won’t
sign the papers,” Tess pointed out.

“You wanted him out of your life badly
enough to cough up for a divorce lawyer when you could barely afford to pay
rent,” Di pointed out. “Just because Pierce is being an asshole about it—like
he is about everything—doesn’t mean he gets to win. As far as I’m concerned,
you two are splitsville.”

Tess smiled at her friend and pressed her
hand.

“Thanks, Di. You know, you’re the only
friend I’ve ever had that could see through him. He can act so charming when he
wants to—he even had my mom fooled, right up until the end.”

“You mean when he refused to let you go
see her in the hospital?” Di shook her head. “Yeah, I see through him all
right. Bullshit is bullshit, no matter how you try and dress it up.”

“Thanks.” Tess pressed her hand again and
wiped away a stray tear. Even though her mom had been gone for well over a
year, it still hurt to think of her. Hurt to think she had died alone because
Pierce was too crazy jealous to let Tess go see her in time.

She turned her head for a minute to try
and get control and saw her reflection in the shiny smoked glass window to her
right. A short, plump girl with long dark hair and big brown eyes stared back
at her.
I’m nothing special to look at,
she thought, swiping at her eyes
and taking a deep breath.
I mean, sure I have a pretty face but it’s on a
plus-sized body. What is it Pierce sees in me? Why won’t he leave me alone?

“Oh, sorry, hon! I shouldn’t have said
that about your mom.” Di looked genuinely distraught. “Me and my big mouth.”

“No, no—I’m fine. Just a little nervous,”
Tess protested, trying to smile. “I mean, I don’t even know where I’m going to
stay once I get up there.”

“I
do,” Di said firmly. “I know the perfect place for you.
You’ll blend right in and no one will be the wiser.”

“But what if I get caught? I don’t want to
get you in trouble.”

“What trouble?” Di shrugged. “If anybody
finds out we’ll just say you got lost from the tour and wound up spending the
night. Nobody has to know how long you’re up there.”

“But what if Pierce comes looking for me?
What if he figures out I’m up there and he comes up with a tour to find me?”

Di put a hand on her hip. “Do you have any
idea how long people wait to get on one of these tours now that the Mother Ship
is finally accessible?
Years.
And once their name comes up, they have to
be approved by the senior tour director. Which just happens to be…”

“You,” Tess finished for her with a little
smile.

“Me,”
Di agreed, patting her neat cap of silvery hair. “So
guess who is
never
going to get approved to go up there.”

“What if he says it’s police business?”
Tess countered.

“Oh, please!” Di scoffed.
“What
police
business? No Earth agency of any kind has jurisdiction on the Mother Ship. He’d
have to go through the Kindred High Council to get approval after I’ve turned
him down.”

“Really?”

Di nodded firmly. “Really. And even then
he’d have to have a
damn
good reason to go aboard. Somehow I don’t think
the Kindred High Council is going to think ‘hunting down my ex-wife so I can
continue being an abusive asshole to her’ is a good enough excuse to let him go
up.”

“Well…” Tess could feel herself wavering.

“Tess…” Di looked her in the eye. “Stop
making excuses and listen to me—more than fifteen hundred women a year are
killed by an abusive husband or boyfriend. You’re one of my dearest
friends—don’t make me watch you become a statistic. After what you found in
your kitchen when you came home yesterday—”

“All right, all right!” Tess held up a
hand to stop her. “Please don’t say it—I’ve been trying really hard not to
think about it.”