Claiming Their Village Bride

by Abby Aaron

  Four different hands worked to prepare her body for claiming. Jemina watched her mates’ lustful expressions as they worked to gently knead her channel wider. Her fingers danced across her clit, and she grew damper and more excited with each passing moment. “I do not know if I can withstand much more of this delicious torture, husbands.”

  Aras climbed between her legs the moment his brothers’ fingers were removed. He guided the tip of his cock inside and waited for Jemina to signal her consent for him to continue. But she had continued rubbing herself and was now past noticing anything but the delightful waves of pleasure pulsing through her body.

  He wanted to be patient, to wait until he was sure she was ready for him, but her expression of glory was too much to handle. Aras surged forward, only stopping when he was completely submerged inside her heat. Then his body’s own instincts took over. He was pumping inside her. He spilled his seed much faster than he would have liked. Anders pushed him aside when Aras could not find the strength to concede his place.

  Since it was only the first claiming, the Finn warrior did not intend to penetrate his bride with his cock, only gift her with his seed as he stroked himself to completion. Jemina reached up to touch him. She spread her legs wider and urged him to bury himself inside. He should wait, he knew. It was the honorable thing to do.

  Anders sank inside and did not even find the willpower to hold back his release until he could move in and out a few times. His body jerked over hers as his hot seed poured deep within her womb. He muttered words of praise as he eased off of her, followed by regret for not waiting for the second night to claim her.

  Jemina pushed aside the last remarks before motioning for Loinbard to come to her. “I am not a city bride to be eased into the process of claiming. I am a village daughter, ready to carry all my husbands’ seed and know their love for me.”

  Loinbard pulled her knees to wrap around his waist. “Eyes open, bride. I want to see your expression when we join together.”

  Bits and pieces of past dreams popped into her mind, but Jemina pushed them aside for the present. Eyes wide, she stared at her third mate as he slowly positioned himself at her entrance. “Jemina, village daughter of Urijah, bride of Konrad and Finn, you make us complete.”

  20

  Truth and Justice for All

  Several elders and warriors from the Village of Finn arrived before sunrise the next day. They listened quietly to the charges brought against Hendrix and Johan by Alistrair, the leader and Urijah ruler. Jemina had never seen the elder so enraged.

  He paced with bitter energy as he spoke. “Only by the grace of the Creator above did those two not succeed in their efforts to murder a child just past suckling age.” He pointed where Hendrix and Johan sat just behind their own village leaders. “Our healer wept as she used a needle to sew up the more serious of wounds in hopes of stopping the blood loss. The damage inflicted on his tiny body was so extensive: he lay still as death the entire time. I watched as Dalia worked. The boy did not even flinch once.”

  Enoch, the head Finn elder maintained an emotionless stance, but many of the others who had traveled with him could not. One Finn warrior could not hold back his disgust and spat at the men being tried. Further reaction was blocked when Enoch stood to raise his hand. “Until judgment is passed, no one will seek to deliver punishment. We are a civilized people and will act as such.”

  He walked toward Alistrair, mindful to show respect as he waited to be acknowledged. “Your words suggested the boy survived. What arrangements have been made for his future care? The villagers of Finn stand ready to claim him as one of their own. No further harm will come to him. You have my word on it.”

  Aras gained his feet. “The child has already been claimed, sir.”

  Enoch turned to regard the warrior who dared to speak without being recognized by an elder. His disdain increased when he noticed the Konrad colors Aras wore. “Why is an outsider privy to this private matter? Only descendants of Urijah and Finn are involved.”

  Jemina immediately popped up and rushed to stand beside her groom. She had to fight her way through a small crowd, though. In the short time it took her to react, Anders, Loinbard, her parents, brothers and various Urijah warriors showed their support by surrounding Aras. She heard Grandfather Ian offer to respond to Enoch’s inquiry.

  “Aras is not only a son of Konrad, but he has a triad bond with a descendent of your own leader, Finn. More significantly, he is the lead husband of Urijah’s own village bride.” With a curt nod, he gave one final qualifier. “I am proud to claim him as grandson.”

  Loinbard gave his brother a playful punch before shaking Aras’ hand. Turning to where Elder Ian stood, he called out. “Glad to know you finally admit to claiming us, Grandfather Ian,” he teased.

  “Who says I claim you? You are the last of the three grooms. Do not call me grandfather again until after the third claiming. For all I know, Jemina may decide she is happy enough with Anders and Aras and doesn’t need you.”

  Snuggling between all three of her future mates, Jemina smiled at her grandparent’s teasing. “Loinbard knows I love him just as much as I do my first two husbands. As for the second and third claiming, all were accomplished last night. All three are my true mates now, Grandfather Ian.”

  She boldly asked Alistrair if he would allow her to speak to the Finn Elder. Urijah’s elder released some of the tension racking through his body. He always did have a soft spot for her and waved her forward. Jemina performed a perfect curtsey to Enoch, surprising him. Villagers rarely showed such respect for leaders of other areas, worried it might signal a wavering of allegiance.

  “Hello, sir. It is an honor to meet you again.” She smiled at him, and his demeanor calmed.

  “I remember you well, Jemina, village daughter of Urijah. The birth of a girl in the villages is rare, indeed. Having the pleasure of traveling with one is unheard of. I am not surprised so many of our warriors asked to be relieved of their duties so they might travel here and seek your hand.”

  “My fathers allowed four of the men from your village to compete, sir. I was humbled by their interest. The men in Finn are impressive fighters, indeed. Your founding father Finn must have been an attractive man. Maybe Crosby resembles him? You no doubt recall how fascinated I was with Crosby when you graciously allowed us to join you and his triad on the way to the city.” Jemina blushed at the memory. How could she have ever been so shallow she wondered?

  Enoch moved closer, not wanting others to hear the admission he was about to make. “Women do seem inclined to gaze upon Crosby. His mother is quite proud of his appearance and the attention it affords her. She has spent considerable time and effort in shielding him from all activities that might disfigure her prize possession. I had hoped time with his original triad, away from her interference, would give him a chance to grow.”

  “My fathers saw his potential, too,” she exaggerated, and heard a warning coo from Aras, and decided it was best to stick to the facts. “In truth, they allowed Crosby in because they thought to please me. Had they had more time to take Hendrix and Johan’s measure, they probably would have excluded the triad completely.”

  “I am still reeling from the shock of those two casting Anders aside. I had worked hard to give them the best warrior of their training cycle. Had it not been for his leadership, Hendrix and Johan would never have progressed enough to guard the wall.” Again, he offered the information in hushed tones.

  Jemina did not lower her own. “The Village of Finn must be proud of its son, Anders. He is an honorable man, skilled warrior and handsome male. It may be fanciful to admit as much, but I believe the Creator intended for me to marry him because Anders is the perfect mate for me.”

  “Yet you are wed to men from Konrad?” Enoch mocked gently.

  “Aras and Loinbard are excellent balances to Anders’ skills. While within our village border, all three have worked as a team to win challenges, represent their villages with pride, and prot
ect me from harm.” She did whisper the next part. “From Hendrix and Johan when necessary, and my own foolish actions on occasion.”

  Enoch threw back his head and laughed. “Am I mistaken, or did the Urijah Village bride claim her husbands instead of the other way around?” he asked Alistrair.

  They found the Urijah elder back to pacing again, but without agitation this time. He appeared to be giving the question considerable thought. “Considering all the unique events which occurred – a village bride with the skill of a warrior and the bravery of our founding father himself, three unattached warriors set on challenging for her hand knowing such would be impossible, forming a triad uniting two villages to claim the daughter of a third… Only the Creator could have foreseen such an outrageous outcome.”

  “And now your new family unit lays claim to a child from outside the borders of any village?” Enoch asked, his eyes moving toward Jemina again. She nodded and moved back to stand with her mates.

  “Thank you for not calling him an evildoer, sir.” She was engulfed by her men, Loinbard from behind, Anders and Aras at the sides.

  “Children are innocents; it is only when one is an adult that actions cause people to feel the need to place labels on them. As chief elder of Finn, I take no pleasure in the responsibility of taking such action against two of my own people.” Enoch moved so all gathered could hear his verdict. “Hendrix and Johan, you have been found guilty of attempted murder of a child from three villages.”

  Johan toppled his chair as he objected. “The boy is an evildoer, roaming the area outside of civilized communities. He may be young now, but think you he won’t grow up to threaten those in the city and villages! Had we come upon a cougar cub like those fools did, would you expect us to bring it here so these villagers can raise it? It will grow into a wild beast and pray upon those foolish enough to let it live. It is so with the boy, too. Destroying a threat now is better than waiting for it to become more dangerous.”

  “Our ancestors learned the truth about evil long ago,” Enoch scowled at him. “It is not born of flesh, but cultivated by malicious actions. It cannot be determined by laying eyes on a person, but from regarding his behavior. The only evildoers I see here are you two, former Finn warriors. As for the boy having no village to call home. You have none, but he now has three. His mother is from Urijah and his fathers are from Finn and Konrad.”

  Loinbard brushed aside Jemina’s red hair so he could be better seen. “It’s Konrad-Finn, sir.”

  Smiley found the Village of Konrad to his liking once he settled in. The village elders had welcomed Anders, son of Finn without hesitation. They had been a bit less hospitable to the ferocious looking hound at first. Jemina got him to perform a few of the tricks he had mastered as a pup. Concern for the beast waned when the villagers saw a wee bride commanding him to sit, lay, and turn over.

  Soon children were begging their parents for a pet like the new Konrad-Finn bride had. Smiley was allowed to roam around the outer ring of their new home during the heat of the day, and only tethered outside at nighttime as an added level of protection against any who might try to breach their family unit.

  The sheer number of new people she met had Jemina’s head swimming the first few days. Most of them were family members. But she soon came to understand there was an intimate group within that set. Her new fathers-in-law, Ryder, Wolf and Kia were a secret, serious lot. They watched over their wife, Attie and young children with sharp eyes.

  For her part, Attie welcomed Jemina without reservation. She promised to help the new bride learn the ways of her new home and begin transitioning to Konrad customs. “They are a serious lot,” Attie had confided. “Trust is not something easily earned, but once you are accepted within the ranks, you will be privy to more secrets than you care to know.”

  Jemina knew Loinbard and Aras harbored some dark secret they had yet to share with her. Whatever it was, it troubled them deeply. When the time came for her to learn of it, Jemina promised she would guard it and her new husbands with her very life.

  She still had not met Anders people. In the morning, he, Aras and Loinbard would travel to the village of Finn to escort his mother and younger siblings back to Konrad. Enoch would have returned home from his time at Urijah by then and had time to explain the situation to all involved. Anders agreed to let the older boys of his mother’s family unit decide for themselves if they would relocate to the new village. He knew his mother would not protest the change. Now that her husbands were dead, her heart no longer lived in Finn.

  Vincent, the boy Aras, Anders, Loinbard and she had claimed as their own had found a best friend in Smiley. He rarely talked to anyone but the dog, something that worried Jemina greatly. Part of her wished Enoch had sentenced Hendrix and Johan to death rather than expelling them from all civilized societies. At least then the boy would know justice had been served and the demons that had attacked him could never return.

  Aras had tried to locate the rest of the boy’s family as they journeyed home but had not been successful. Her lead husband had made a pledge to the child to keep searching at a later day. Vincent sadly nodded his understanding as they pressed on toward Konrad. While his small body healed, his mind still struggled to come to terms with the abuse he had been made to suffer.

  Attie, her new mother-in-law had several young sons. They were a loud, bossy lot who adopted Vincent as an honorary brother. When they played, they dragged the shy child along with them. Tonight, Vincent was staying at Attie’s family unit. Thursdays were to be Aras, Anders, Loinbard and Jemina’s bonding night in this village. Their family unit would be assured at least one childfree night a week to enjoy their privacy. They had made love every opportunity that presented itself, but still could not manage to get enough of one another. Tonight, though, Aras had postponed more intimate matters to discuss something of great importance involving his childhood family unit, and the impact it would no doubt have on their own.

  It was a serious issue. Her first husband was taut and at a loss for words. She placed her hand in his own and lent him some of her courage. “We are a family now, Aras. Nothing you can share will jeopardize our unit.”

  “Loinbard wanted to share this information with you before the first claiming. He felt it was the only honorable thing to do. I selfishly did not want to delay joining in the most intimate ways with you, and pushed his concerns aside. Now I realize it was unfair to both you and Anders. You should have been given a chance to understand the battle he and I face so you could make an informed decision to join in or walk away.”

  “Considering all the events which led to us becoming one family unit, the Creator most want us to join forces to help in whatever battle you face, brother,” Anders said. He slapped Aras on the back before sitting down to hear the details.

  Loinbard pulled Jemina to rest on his lap as she listened to Aras’ account. “Loinbard and I had two sisters. One died at birth, along with our first mother. We were no more than ten cycles old at the time. Having already lost two fathers recently, the deaths were quite difficult for us to comprehend. Then Ryder, our only remaining parent joined Wolf and Kia’s triad. They claimed Attie from the city as a bride. We did our best to challenge the new union at first, but eventually we melted into a new family unit. Attie was a bleeder. She went to our healer when it was time to give birth to her first child. Another girl was born to our family, only we never laid eyes on her.”

  “Did she perish during the birthing process, too?” Jemina’s heart ached for the men she loved and the losses they had been forced to bear.

  Loinbard took over the tale now, cradling her as if to protect her from all evil. “Our sister lived. Attie was close to death, though. Ulthia, our healer, knew of only one cure that could stop the loss of life giving blood seeping from Attie’s body. Our second mother was given a choice no mother should be forced to make. She could spare her own life by trading her newborn daughter for the lifesaving remedy.”

  Anders had been listening
quietly until now, but now joined in the conversation, seeking clarification. “Trade with whom? Like the compound in Urijah, Finn’s healer’s building is impossible to penetrate. It is cocooned in the village’s protective borders. Various safety boundaries separate the birthing room from invaders.”

  “Yet babies go missing from there every cycle,” Aras said, his voice bitter. “Our elders searched high and low for the blood thirsty demons responsible. They searched everywhere but the most obvious place, the birthing room itself.”

  “After meeting your mother, I find it impossible to believe she would exchange any child’s life for her own,” Jemina countered. Attie was a loving, overprotective mother. Sacrificing one of her own children would not be an option. “I know of few mothers who would do as much.”

  “She did not make the decision,” Aras said. He began walking around the room, a nervous energy filling him. “Attie refused outright. The healer had already watched my birth father Ryder deal with the loss of one wife. She could not bear for him to do so again, so she chose a course of action that exposed the entire web of lies involving babies who go missing from the birthing rooms. Ulthia brought my father and his new triad into the room where their wife was slowly bleeding to death.

  “Then the healer told them about the Tree of Life which grows in the city. One seed would bring their beloved back, but it came at a terrible cost. If they chose to save Attie, they had to forfeit their daughter to the city to receive the seed.” Aras stopped pacing. His eyes came to rest on Jemina. For the first time in his life, he truly understood how his father could make such a desperate decision. A part of him had always resented Ryder for giving up his flesh and blood child, an innocent baby. Yet now he knew the depth of love a man could have for a woman. Creator forgive him, he would do the same, desperate thing if necessary, to save his beloved Jemina.