“Let’s get out of here,” Jarrod replied, his voice strained. The chains rattled and Hanna felt the tug on her nipples. “Follow me, slave.”
He pulled on the chain and she tried to keep up with the rapid pace he set while she couldn’t see where she was going. Her heart pounded against her ribs. He was taking her to the king. After having her hope raised and her heart filled, they’d both been dashed to pieces.
She heard the door close behind them. The men’s heavy boots echoed through the hallway. Terrified of stumbling and falling, Hanna tried to concentrate on the simple act of walking, not on where they were walking to.
They were silent as they left the building. Hanna felt the sunshine on her face again, but this time it didn’t make her smile. She could hear people talking around them. Smell unfamiliar scents. The walkway was hot against her bare feet.
Hanna stumbled briefly on something in her path but kept walking. Jarrod didn’t even pause. She choked back a sob. If only Jarrod hadn’t been the one sent to test her, to collect her for the king. Earlier, when her body was being prepared for the king, she had resigned herself to living her life without him. Why did he have to tease her with another taste of his touch? Now she could never be happy with another Master.
They continued a little farther, then turned a corner and stopped. Had they reached the palace already? She drew a long, shaky breath. Then large hands, Jarrod’s hands, gently peeled away the blindness patches.
“Such a good slave. So strong,” he whispered, his voice ragged.
Hanna squinted for a moment, blinking as she adjusted her eyes. Jarrod stood before her. The man she’d always think of as her Master. She feasted her eyes on his handsome form, she’d been so afraid she’d never see him again. But what good did it do to be tempted by his presence? He should have brought her to the king with the patches still on her eyes.
She tried for a regal sneer, but her trembling lip most likely gave her away. “So you two work for King Barrus.”
“Ssh. Keep your voice down,” Micah whispered.
“No, Princess,” Jarrod replied. “We don’t.”
She stepped away, not knowing what to think. “No? So were you lying to me when you said you and Micah owned a cargo ship? Or when you said you were training me for the king?”
“We intercepted the king’s men and took their place,” Micah said.
“What? I don’t understand.”
Jarrod surprised her by gathering her into his arms. She rested her head on his chest and he gently stroked her hair. “I couldn’t leave you to the king.”
Hanna pulled back to stare at him. “You’re not taking me to the king? I’m not going to be his personal sex slave?”
“Not if we can get you to that ship we own without getting caught,” he told her wryly.
Hanna let herself sink into Jarrod’s embrace once more. Did she dare hope that meant he wanted to take her with him? Why else would he have rescued her? She would be so happy with him as her Master.
She was just realizing what he and Micah had risked to rescue her. She gazed up into his warm gaze. “I have no words worthy of what you have done. Thank you.”
“We shouldn’t linger.” Micah’s deep voice broke through her pleasure. Jarrod released her abruptly as if he’d suddenly realized he’d shown some emotion. Hanna didn’t let that dampen her joy. They’d saved her and she was with Jarrod. That was all that mattered.
She turned to Micah. How could she have forgotten him and his role in her escape? She threw her arms around his waist. “Thank you too.” He wrapped his arms around her for a moment, then stepped away.
“Come, Princess,” Micah said. He picked up two weapons, long, black and lethal, that were propped up in the shadows of the alley and handed one to Jarrod. “We have to get out of here before the palace starts wondering where you are.”
“I’ll lead you by the chains and no one will suspect a thing,” Jarrod said. He gathered them in his hands again. Her woman’s spot tingled again, just from the sight of him holding her chains. “We do have a ship and it’s ready to take you back to Vanya.”
“Vanya?” They were taking her back to Vanya? Back to her boring life? Jarrod wasn’t going to be her Master? She refused to move, even though he’d turned to leave the alley. His yanking on the chain hurt her nipples. But they didn’t hurt as much as her heart. “Why can’t I go with you?”
Jarrod stared at her and for a moment she almost thought she saw his expression soften. But then his face froze in that mask she recognized all too well. “You’re a princess. You’d be of no use to me at the trading post.”
He might as well have slapped her in the face. Hanna refused to let tears spring to her eyes. How foolish she’d been. She’d thought if he’d risked his life to rescue her he must have cared about her. Why else would he have done it?
So all he cared about was her use to him? Hadn’t she been of use to him on her knees with his cock in her mouth? But he obviously didn’t even want her as his slave. Then she remembered what Fawn told her. Just because a Master seemed fond of a slave didn’t mean he wanted to keep her.
Fine. She didn’t need him. She’d find another Master. A better one. But one thing was for certain, she wasn’t going back to being the princess’ slave on Vanya.
Hanna gasped in horror. How could she have forgotten the real princess and the other women? Shame poured over her like hot oil. “We have to rescue the others! I can’t go back to Vanya without them.”
Jarrod glared at the princess, both annoyed at her and admiring her loyalty to her subjects. He knew he wouldn’t have done any differently if it had been Micah or other men he’d worked with who were imprisoned. But that didn’t mean he liked it. They didn’t have much time.
“I don’t know where they are and we don’t have the time to search for them.”
“I know where to find them,” Micah said dryly.
“How—? Never mind.” Micah had sources everywhere. Jarrod slung his weapon over his shoulder and handed Micah the princess’s chain. “Tell me where and then you get the princess to the ship. I’ll bring them out.”
“No,” the princess said stubbornly. “I’m going with you.”
Didn’t he just risk his ass to get her out of there? “You are not going with me. You’ll be no help at all.”
Her face grew red and she yanked her chain right out of Micah’s strong fingers. Jarrod wanted to take her over his knee and spank her, but they didn’t have time for that right now.
Micah actually handed her his weapon. “You take this, Princess. The holding cells are in the last building straight ahead. It shouldn’t be too heavily guarded, but I can’t say for sure.”
“Are you crazy? Don’t give her your weapon. She doesn’t even know how to use it.” She’d probably shoot him in the back.
“The trigger is right here, Princess,” Micah said, pointing it out. “The safety is on the top. Here. When it is solid red, the safety is on. When it is blinking green, you can fire the weapon.”
Jarrod rolled his eyes. “We could be on the ship by now.” She looked ridiculous, so tiny and fragile, holding that huge TX-95. He grabbed the weapon out of her hands. “You can’t handle this. It’s too heavy for you.”
She rose up on her toes, obviously trying to get into his face. Her hands were balled into tight fists. “Didn’t you just say I was strong? Didn’t I prove myself to you?”
He tore his gaze away from her and faced Micah. “I don’t want her to go with me.” He steeled himself against the hurt he saw on her face. If she got herself killed now, after all she’d been through, he didn’t know if he could live.
The princess lifted her regal chin. Damn, were those tears in her eyes? “The women won’t trust you. I have to go with you.”
“Give her the weapon, Jarrod,” Micah said wearily. “We don’t have time to argue.”
The princess reached for the weapon. Then stopped. “Will it look strange for a slave to be carrying a weapon?”
“No,” Micah said. “Slaves carry all kinds of things for their Masters.” He glanced out into the courtyard. “Listen. I’ll get the Galaxy airborne. You just need to get the women out of the building. I’ll teleport all of you to the ship on your signal.” Micah took off, striding purposefully away from them.
Jarrod paused and caught the princess’s gaze, the weapon between them. “Don’t ever pick up a weapon unless you’re prepared to use it. If you hesitate and are overpowered, it could be used against you.”
The princess nodded solemnly and held out her hand. He handed her the weapon and grabbed the nipple chain. How in the name of the Gods was he going to liberate all those women and keep the princess safe and not get caught himself, when all he could think about was how her soft, pale skin felt beneath his hands and the sounds of her passionate cries as she came beneath him? He didn’t need the distraction. He tugged a little harder than he needed to. “Let’s go.”
He walked as fast as he could without looking like he was hurrying. If the princess had to trot along to keep up, that wasn’t his concern. He couldn’t resist glancing back over his shoulder, though, to admire the way her breasts bounced. Her silver bondage wear sparkled in the sunlight. Her hair floated around her shoulders, turning her into an angel.
Much too good for someone like him.
No one in the courtyard bothered them. In fact, most of the people gave them a wide berth. When they reached the long, low building Micah had pointed out, there were two guards standing in the open doorway, armed with TX-64s. Smaller than his weapon, but just as deadly. So much for light security.
Jarrod looked over his shoulder at the princess. “Stay behind me,” he said under his breath. “And don’t say a word.”
The guards looked so young and innocent or was he just feeling old and jaded lately? Their expressions were suspicious, but Jarrod could tell the moment they spied the royal insignia on the front of his uniform.
They jumped to attention, their weapons at their sides. The taller one, with skin the color of copper, stepped forward. “We don’t get royal representatives here often. What can I do for you?”
Jarrod had no qualms about lying. “The king has ordered me to bring the other Vanyan women to the palace. Bring them out to me now.”
The other guard, even younger, with light hair and freckled spots on his face stepped forward. “But they haven’t been prepared yet.”
Jarrod stared him down. “I don’t question the king’s orders. Do you?”
“No…no…but…”
“But we don’t have any orders,” the other guard finished.
Jarrod’s finger twitched on the trigger of his weapon. If they wouldn’t give up the women without orders from the king, he would have to use force. Damn, he hated using force.
Then the princess stepped out from behind him. She remained a step in back of him, as was proper for a slave. Her hands, holding the weapon, were behind her back. In that position, her breasts, decorated with the thick, shiny nipple rings, were prominent, making the young guards’ eyes practically bug out of their heads. Jarrod also noted his smart little slave stood with her legs slightly parted, so that her pretty pink flesh was easily visible from her bared pussy.
“Please, Sirs. My Master has need of these women. Surely you will not refuse him.”
The guards stared at her for a moment longer before they looked at each other and nodded.
“Go get them,” the older one said.
“Could you please remind them that, as slaves, they should not speak unless commanded?”
The princess continued to impress him, once again proving there was an intelligent mind inside that delectable body. If the women did not remain silent, they might give them away if they recognized him as a guard from the slave ship.
The three of them stood in the afternoon sunshine, not moving, not speaking. The guard was taking in his fill of the princess, his eyes wide, his mouth hanging slightly open. Perhaps she would play in his fantasies tonight.
Jarrod wouldn’t blame him. She’d be playing in his fantasies for the rest of his life.
He had to return the princess to her home. She had people to rule. A daddy who was king. She was mistaking sex and submission for something more.
Besides, what princess would want an escapee from a tranium mine as her prince? She deserved better than that.
The sun beat down on them, making him sweat. Jarrod was beginning to get a little worried that they’d been found out. Why was it taking so long? Finally the guard appeared, leading the six women chained together between heavy metal collars. They were naked, their long hair mussed, their faces drawn. Their eyes grew wide, however, when they saw the princess. Or was it when they saw him? A few of them gasped, but the guard yelled out at them to be quiet.
The guard handed Jarrod a manual key for the collars. Jarrod took it and then reached for the lead chain. “The king thanks you for your service,” he told the guards. Then, trying to appear casual, he turned, leading the princess and her women away from the building. He hoped they could make it out of the compound before he had to signal Micah to transport them. For that matter, he hoped Micah had the Galaxy off the ground. As long as the ship was in the air and they no longer had a roof over their heads, the transporter would have them off this planet in a second. But it wouldn’t take much to make everything go wrong.
Jarrod heard voices growing louder behind them. Was someone questioning the release of the women? He didn’t look back, just began to move a little faster. They cleared the gate and he brought them all behind a small storage building just outside the compound.
“Hold hands,” he ordered. “We must all be connected to be transported together.” The women circled around him, whimpering. The princess took his hand with her small, soft one and murmured softly to the other women, gathering them around.
He pushed the signal button on the leather cuff on his wrist. And hoped Micah was there to get the signal. Jarrod turned to look at the princess, who was gazing up at him with her wide green eyes.
“I didn’t know you could lie so convincingly.”
She frowned. “I haven’t lied.”
“Sure you did. When you mentioned your Master needed the women.”
She just shook her head and looked away from him, putting her arm around one of the other women.
Before Jarrod had time to think about her reaction, the jolt of energy from the transporter knocked into him. “Hang on!” he called out. He grasped tighter to the princess’s hand and rode out the brief wave of pain that always accompanied a transport.
When they materialized on the Galaxy, the Vanyan women began shrieking and crying, gathering around the princess. Their chains rattled loudly as they moved as much as their bonds would allow them. One of the women, also small and blonde, placed her hands on the princess’s cheeks, tears streaming down her face.
“Hanna, what have they done to you?”
“I am fine, Your Highness, “the princess said, bowing before the other woman, confusing Jarrod. “Don’t worry about me. Are you all right?”
Jarrod stared at the two women. What was going on? Micah stepped into the transport room and threw a puzzled glance his way. Jarrod frowned.
“We are fine, thanks to you,” the other woman said.
“Thanks to these men.” The woman he thought was the princess, the woman whose body he enjoyed, whose flesh had turned red under his hand, turned to him. There was no smile on her face, no sense of the joy she’d shown him not so long ago. “Princess Serena of Vanya, these are your heroes, Jarrod and Micah. They risked their lives to rescue us from Noria.”
Princess Serena smiled at Micah and then Jarrod. “We will forever be in your debt.”
He looked at…Hanna, was it? “You’re not the princess?”
She lifted her chin again and stared at him. “No.”
“I don’t understand.”
She shrugged, but he could see the hurt in her eyes. “It doesn’t matt
er.”
“Yes, it matters.” He unhooked the heavy chain from her nipple rings and tossed it away, the clatter loud as it slid across the floor. If she wasn’t royalty, maybe they had a future after all.
“No. It makes no difference at all.” Her voice was so cold, she sounded like someone else.
“Sorry to interrupt the reunion,” Micah said, “but Jarrod, I need your help until we reach light speed. I think we should take a little detour in case someone tries to intercept us.”
“Do you think they’ll come after us?” she asked. Some of the women cried out in fear.
“It’s a possibility.” Jarrod handed Hanna the key. “Here, unlock the collars and then go into the lounge.” He pointed to the short hallway. “That way. Strap into the chairs and hang on. It could be a rough ride.”
She nodded and turned away from him without a second glance.
If she’d never been his, why did he feel like he’d lost her?
* * * * *
If the Norians sent anyone after them, Jarrod and Micah never caught sight of them. Jarrod took them light-years out of their way before charting a roundabout course for Vanya. Their journey would take an extra day, but would be well worth it.
After they decided they could relax, Micah leaned back in his pilot’s chair. “So our little slave isn’t a princess after all.” Jarrod didn’t like the leering smile on his face. “Interesting.”
“She’s not our slave,” he growled. “She’s my slave.”
Micah shrugged. And there was that smile again. “She might have something to say about that. She didn’t sound too happy with you.”
No, she didn’t. “She’ll get over it.” Wouldn’t she?
Micah stared at him. “That’s it? You’re just going to sit there and hope she gets over the fact that you told her you didn’t want her around?”
Damn, had he actually said that? “You gave her a weapon! I was trying to protect her.”
“Maybe you should tell her that.”
Chains of Desire Page 9
