Captured: The Xandari Chronicles (Book One) (Dark Sci-Fi Romance)

by Raven Dark

  Malek’s eyes rolled. “Kassaks. He’s such a mother hen.”

  I grinned at his stubbornness and he winked at me. Some of the tension left me at that playful look.

  Just then, Tarku came bounding in. He sniffed the air and made his way to the side of Malek’s bed. He set both front paws on the mattress’ edge and gave his master’s friend a lick. We all burst into laughter, all except Malek who blew in the dog’s face with a look of false disgust.

  While Raul dragged Tarku away, Z’pheer fiddled around with Malek’s IV.

  “Is there anything I can get you to drink?” I asked Malek.

  “Who are you and what have you done with our nayna?” he teased.

  I rolled my eyes but felt my cheeks heat. “Whatever. I’ll get you some water.”

  They both laughed. The sound was pure heaven.

  Over the next few days, Malek did get his strength back but it was slow-going. I continued to take care of him, now adding feeding him to my daily tasks. When he wasn’t sleeping, he was eating.

  On day three of his bed rest, Malek seemed to be much more like himself. Restless and refusing to follow Z’pheer’s medical advice to stay in bed and relax, he had to be the worst patient I’d ever seen. With boredom came the return of his usual snarky self.

  “No, Malek, you are still to remain in this bed, as per Z’pheer’s—and now my—orders.” Raul said.

  After a finishing his breakfast that morning, Malek had asked for Raul to come in. He wanted to know what the plans for getting the weapon were, and if anything had changed because of his recovery. Of course he’d feel to blame for preventing them from completing their mission as soon as possible, even though it wasn’t fault.

  “What makes you think I’ll listen to your kassak, Raul?”

  Yep, Malek officially sucked as a patient. I sat down in the chair next to the bed, a few feet from Raul, and sighed.

  Raul didn’t look impressed. He crossed his arms over his massive chest as he stood over the bed. “As you’re so fond of pointing out, I’m your king. You have to.”

  “Oh, so that’s how it is then? Now you play the royalty card, huh?”

  “Whatever will keep you in that bed so you can get well. Look, Malek…” He swallowed and looked away. Surprisingly, his hand found mine as if seeking reassurance from me. I squeezed it, warmth filling my belly. He looked at Malek and coughed. “Well, I just wanted you to know…” He trailed off and shrugged.

  Jesus. Why was it so hard for men to open up?

  “Raul, forget it.” Malek shook his shoulder.

  “No. He was your brother. I wish I could have found another way.”

  Malek shook his head. “Don’t do that to yourself. Laric was a fucking ass. He was always that way. I just didn’t see how much of a bottom-feeding jakka he was all these years. You did what you had to do.”

  He and Raul clasped hands in a tight brotherly shake, and Malek patted him on the back.

  “You’re always saving my ass,” Raul said. “It was time for me to return the favor.”

  Malek chuckled. “Don’t get used to it. I’ll be back to saving yours as soon as I get out of this infernal bed.” He looked at me then. “Although, I have been taken very good care of by our nayna, here.” He winked.

  I swallowed, a hint of lust making my heart stutter.

  Raul nodded. “Indeed, she is special.” He took my chin, swept his lips over mine and patted my head. My heart soared at the warmth I’d seen in his eyes. I’d never get used to this side of him.

  Z’pheer yelled for Raul from outside the room, so he left, muttering about pink, furry appetizers.

  Left alone with Malek, I glanced at him and cleared my throat as awkwardly as Raul had. “So…um. How about another game of helioz?”

  His lips quirked. “Only if you at least try to win this time.”

  My throat went dry. God, he was hot. It was easier to be in the room with him when he was vulnerable and not in control. I could deal with him then. But awake, healthy, and recovering? His energy and the sexual chemistry between us made my brain one giant pool of loopy.

  I pulled out the small table and the deck of Xandari playing cards, then shuffled the deck. While waiting for Malek to wake up days ago, Z’pheer had busted out some cards and taught me several games. Now, every day after lunch, Malek and I would play. He’d win, of course. I still couldn’t get the hang of it. It didn’t help that Xandari numerals looked like tiny spirals that all seemed the same.

  “How are you feeling today?” I asked as I dealt out the cards.

  He snorted. "Frustrated. And I want out of this gods-damned room.”

  “I know it’s hard but—”

  “I don’t want to talk about me now,” he interrupted.

  I raised a brow.

  “If it’s possible, I think I’m sick of myself. If not for me, we’d be only hours away from Gandris Four… He trailed off and shook his head.

  “Malek.” I looked at my cards, unsure what I even wanted to say. “This wasn’t anyone’s fault except Laric’s.”

  “Yes, it was. He was my brother. I should have seen what he was capable of.”

  “How could you have?”

  He dropped his cards onto the table and leaned back, his eyes on the ceiling, looking suddenly tired. “He’s always been an ass, even when we were kids. When we first joined the Order, I was seventeen. He was twenty. Even then, he was always trying to show me up. If I got a commendation, he made sure he got a better one. When I got my purple belt in Bakka, he made sure he got a second level one. He always had to be bigger and better.”

  “He was always competing with you. Always trying to get more attention.”

  “Yes, but he also took care of me. I was a lot smaller than him as a kid and not nearly as strong. He was the one who taught me how to fight, how to use a sword. In some ways, I always felt like I was alive because of him. I looked up to him.”

  I nodded and put my own cards down.

  “I was so busy seeing him as a hero, I didn’t see that his heroics were only to make himself look good. Raul tried to tell me for years, but I never listened. If I hadn’t been so blind, none of this would have happened.” He reached out and stroked my cheek. “We were lucky, nayna.”

  “We all have blind spots when it comes to people we care about.” I thought of Shelly and my jaw clenched. “There’s no way you could have known he was capable of what he did. My best friend sold me out to slavery.” I threw in a shrug. “Betrayal bites the big one.”

  An empathetic smile touched his lips. He put his head back. “I can’t believe he was working with the Rith.” He grew quiet for a minute, his eyes now on me. The intensity of that purple gaze was electric, yet oddly warm and comforting.

  “Little nayna. You have surprised me. You sat here, day and night, by myside whether I was awake or not.” He looked at me in wonder and I had to break the eye contact, looking down at my hands instead.

  “Look at me, nayna.”

  I did as he asked.

  “Laric might have been my brother, but had I been able to get free, he would never have hurt you.” His reached over and squeezed my nape. “And Raul wouldn’t have had to kill him, because I would have.”

  The protectiveness and the possession in his voice made my stomach flutter. I knew what he was trying to tell me. Slave or not, he wouldn’t have let his brother get away with what he did. The words meant more to me than he would ever know. Unsure what to say, I just nodded mutely.

  He tipped my chin up and leaned in close enough that his lips were almost touching mine. “You should never have had to save Raul’s life, but it means everything to me that you did.”

  My brows shot up. Raul’s being so nice was difficult to get my head around, but it was almost more of a surprise coming from Malek. Although, these past few days taking care of him had shown me a softer side of him. Over that time, I’d discovered how observant he was, how funny he was. How much he cared about his bonded brothers. He
was usually so brutal, so wild and dangerous. Was that toughness just a mask he wore? One that hid this gentleness I saw in him now?

  Either way, I wasn’t sure how to handle this… whatever it was from him.

  When I finally spoke, all I could do was say, “Um.”

  He grinned but quickly turned serious again. “I could feel you there with me… right after I was bitten. Talking to me. I kept seeing your beautiful face in my head. Kept hearing your voice pulling me back. I thought I was having some sort of fever dream, until Z’pheer told me. You really were there. With me, the whole time.”

  “I couldn’t leave you.” I lifted my shoulders lamely.

  “I know,” he whispered, his expression solemn. “Thank you.”

  My heart jumped and a shaky smile pulled at my lips. Two of them now? If this was a dream, I didn’t want to wake up.

  As usual when I felt uncomfortable, I went straight to the humor. “Who are you and what have you done with V’ir Malek?” I wiggled my eyebrows.

  Hearty laughter filled the room as he threw his head back.

  I laughed along with him, feeling down-right stupid with happiness.

  “Well, perhaps as you give me my bath, you will find the real V’ir Malek, little one.”

  Heat went instantly to my cheeks and all the way down to my core.

  Fuck, he was hot.

  “Oh, is that right?” I felt bold. Fuck it, I wanted to flirt back.

  The slow nod he gave me set my blood on fire.

  I moved the rolling table aside and stood up. Without taking my eyes off of his, I undid the top ties on my dress and pulled the red material over my head. His eyes went wide, his breath hitched. I felt so powerful seeing my effect on him.

  All that covered him was a sheet—nothing underneath. I pulled it off him, watching it fall to the floor. He was hard and glorious. My mouth watered.

  Was this really me, Danika, seducing my captor? Was I really going to take the initiative?

  I crawled on top of him, his warm body between my thighs, his hardness touching that place in me that begged for him.

  “Oh, shleta. You have no idea what you have done, do you?” Then his lips captured mine.

  Holy shit. Malek had never kissed me like this, not just hot and hard, but with so much passion. And gratitude. It was as if he was trying to wipe away all that had happened between us in that kiss, to let me know how much I meant to him with every stroke of his lips. His fingers delved into my hair, gripping it, not in possession, but with longing.

  I groaned and my arms slid around his neck. Malek’s tongue swept in, searing mine. He gripped my waist, crushing me to him. I clutched at his shoulders, his back.

  Never had I felt so connected to him as I did right then. We’d both been through so much in the last few weeks. Malek and I had both nearly seen us lose someone we cared for in Raul, and both of us had been horribly betrayed by someone we thought we’d trusted and looked up to. I could feel the loss in him, the need to let go, and I wanted to take his pain into myself just as I’d wanted to with Raul.

  When he broke the kiss, his palm slid around my nape and he rested his forehead against mine. “You’re too good for us. Too good for me.”

  My chest tightened, my eyes stinging. It meant the world to me that he allowed himself to be so vulnerable with me. I bit my lip.

  “Well, don’t rush to disagree with me or anything, woman.” He smirked.

  “I won’t.” I grinned.

  He drew back in surprise and gave a shaky laugh at the quick banter, but his breath caught when I started moving my hips, grinding against him.

  Malek made an approving sound in his throat. A thrill raced through me, and I rubbed myself experimentally against him some more, quickly getting wet. An ache was already throbbing between my legs.

  “Rosht.” He hissed between his teeth, squirming into me. He reached for my breasts.

  Before I thought about it, I grabbed his wrists and pushed them into the pillows behind his head, leaning over him.

  “Nayna,” he growled.

  Damn, I missed that growl. “Is there a problem, Malek?”

  “Not even a little. But you’re playing with fire.”

  Oh, I liked this. I really, really liked this. It excited me beyond measure that he was completely into what I was doing to him. Even his threat was playful. His cock bounced against my pussy and I felt another surge of power that I could do this to him.

  I pushed more firmly on his wrists and he gave a surprised chuckle.

  “Am I hurting you?”

  “Hardly.”

  I caught the dismissiveness in his tone and squeezed hard.

  He grunted in amusement.

  Feeling extra bold, I leaned down and brushed my lips playfully across his.

  When I lifted up, he put his head back as if realizing what he’d just gotten himself into. “All right, I see how it is. Is this your revenge?”

  I rubbed myself against him, teasing him. “Absolutely. I don’t suppose there’s a male version of a shleta, is there?” To me, the word seemed relegated to females, though I wasn’t sure why.

  “Ha. Not really. Though if there was such a thing, it would be me. At least according to Z’pheer.”

  I widened my eyes, having the sudden image of Z’pheer calling Malek a slut during one of their little trysts. It was fucking hot. “He thinks you’re a manwhore, does he?”

  “Manwhore?” His shoulders shook. “I love it.”

  I rubbed myself more slowly against him.

  “Stop teasing, nayna. Put my cock inside you.”

  The frustration in his gruff voice made my pussy clench.

  “What’s the matter, Malek, I thought you liked being on the receiving end.”

  He laughed, a full, rich, delighted sound. “I will get you back for this.” He yanked his hands free easily and grabbed my hips, crushing me to him with a hungry growl.

  I giggled, fire filling my veins. I supposed he’d had enough torment for now. I lifted my hips and slid his cock inside my pussy, seating myself so that he filled me, hilt deep.

  We both moaned.

  His hand dove into my hair and his lips crushed mine while his hips surged up, driving him even deeper, if that was possible. An animalistic sound left him. I kissed him back with all I had, letting his tongue sweep inside. Letting mine dance with his.

  Every stroke of our kiss made me hotter, and I rocked my hips against him, feeling his hardness slide in and out, soaked.

  Malek rumbled in pleasure, his eyes drinking in my every curve while his hands roamed over my hips, pushing them back and forth.

  My nipples peaked under the raw heat in his gaze. I took his hands, lacing my fingers with his. His eyes danced, but instead of trying for control, he let his fingers fold over the backs of my hands.

  If I’d felt bound to him before, it was nothing to the sense of connectedness that seemed to click into place inside me now. He watched me so intensely, it felt as if we were looking into each other’s souls. I rocked my hips against his, each stroke making me feel closer to him.

  Malek ran his palm over my chest, between my breasts, the heat making me drugged with need. He tweaked my nipples until they hardened to the point of pain. My dropped head back, pushing my breasts into his palms.

  “You should see yourself right now,” he growled. “You look like a goddess, riding your man like that.”

  I took him in deep, up and down slowly, then rocked my hips a little faster, speeding up my pace, impatient.

  “Oh, Malek.” A goddess. My man. My man. The endearment made me feel gorgeous, cherished, and from a man as brutal and dark as him, it meant so much more. The idea that he thought of himself as my man instead of as a master nearly made me cry.

  Suddenly I was riding him hard and fast, and tossing my head.

  Malek’s hands ran up my sides to my back, cupping my shoulders, holding me in place while I slid up and down on him. “Fuck, you’re so perfect.” He thrust fast
er, and I fed off his need, thrashing.

  We came as one, both of us cursing and clutching at each other for dear life, the same orgasm rocking through us as if we really were one. Malek hummed into my neck.

  When we’d had enough, I swung off him and flopped down beside him. He pulled me close and I rested my head against him, my breasts squashed against his chest. It felt fantastic.

  “That was...” He shook his head and massaged my back.

  I nodded, panting. “Yes, it was.”

  We both laughed.

  When his breathing returned to normal, he looked up at me. “You finally gave in.” But there was no smugness, no arrogance in his eyes. They were filled with warmth. “Thank you, nayna. I told you that things between us didn’t always have to be so dark once you stopped fighting what your body wants.” His fingers caressed my nape. “I want you to want me. I want you to want all of us, my brothers. Because we want you, too. All of you.”

  He was right, of course. And not just because I was ridiculously attracted to each of them. There was more, so much more between us.

  Home wasn’t really in the cards, I knew that. Perhaps I’d always known that. I hoped that the longer we were together, the more we’d all grow together. If we did, would that mean that one day they’d come to love me? If I had to spend the rest of my life away from Earth, could I be happy knowing I was trapped in a life in which all there was for me was being a slave? Or would nothing change?

  Well, I didn’t have to make any such big decisions right now, so I pushed those thoughts aside and just enjoyed the moment.

  “I have a confession to make.” I smiled a little shyly.

  “Oh?”

  “Sometimes I like when I fight back.”

  “Is that so?” he rumbled, nipping my neck.

  I shivered, my pussy starting to ache all over again. “Uh huh.”

  Suddenly I wanted to give him just about the only thing I had to give him right then. I lifted my head. “Malek?”

  “Hmm?” He placed a kiss on my shoulder.

  “How do you say ‘thank you’ in Xandari?”

  His eyes softened with warmth. He pointed to the shelf behind his head, and I grabbed his bracelet, handing it to him. He pressed the blocker button, shutting off my translator so I would hear the words in his language.