Stolen and Seduced

by Christine Pope

  Air touches my stomach, and I become aware of my shirt being lifted. A hand wraps along my jaw before my head is being manipulated downward until I have no choice but to look.

  I almost see nothing, my breast blocking the view, but then the unmistakable glow coming off my body catches my attention. I can’t quite make out the roadmap of swirls now supposedly lining my skin, but I can see a dark curve of something.

  It can’t be…

  And yet when my chin is pulled down further and I catch complete sight of the glowing marks on my skin, I can’t deny what the men are saying to me.

  Maybe they put this on you while you were asleep with some kind of alien technology.

  But some part of me deep down knows that this isn’t deception. The marks now on my body are real and they mean...

  My throat closes up, my stomach begins to churn, and my vision has a hard time focusing.

  "She's going again," Jabex mutters.

  "That's okay," Azrhan says. And then my head is being jerked up and my eyes somehow flutter open, meeting his. "When she wakes up again, we'll teach her what being our mate means." He leans closer until his lips brush against the side of my face. "And the pleasures that it comes with."

  Chapter 8

  My eyes blink open as a tinkering noise meets my ears.

  For the second time, I find myself in an unfamiliar place as I look around the dimly lit room. It’s almost identical as the other room, except the bed is on the opposite side with blue sheets.

  Turning my head, a pounding starts in my skull as I find the odd alien from earlier standing a few feet away. He's standing over a platter where a glass and a container are sitting. With his back to me, I can see that he has metal along the back of his neck too.

  Is he just a full-fledged robot or what?

  I blink as the man stiffens before tuning to look at me. His weird, purple eyes scan over me.

  "You're awake. I'll let Jabex and Azrhan know." His words are dry. There’s this unfriendly and dangerous air about the man that has me more fearful of him than the actual alien brothers who kidnapped me.

  At least Jabex seems to have this malicious amusement always hanging in his eyes while Azrhan always appears to be angry.

  This man seems to lack any emotions. He almost reminds me of Saylor.

  Fuck, Saylor… what must she be thinking? How long has it been since I left for Elihu Industries?

  "How long have I been here?" I ask, not really expecting the man to answer me.

  His jaw clenches. "Two days," he says, surprising me.

  "Two days?"

  "That's what I said."

  I sit up, the moments before I passed out swirling in my head as I think about the way Jabex and Azrhan had shown me the markings.

  Before I can think about it too long, I pull my shirt up, looking down. Except, there’s nothing there: no glow, no markings, just smooth flesh.

  There's the sound of a whoosh and when I look up, I find Azrhan standing in the doorway. His eyes stop on me. Then his gaze darts to the other man, who is still standing by the platter.

  " , why are you in the room alone with my mate while her shirt is up?" The alien asks, his words harsh.

  The cyborg-like man only rolls his eyes, his lips pulling down in annoyance. "I don't know." His words seem to hold a challenge despite the clear tension in Azrhan's body as he stands in the doorway with a frown on his face and his thick arms folded over his chest. He's still wearing his true skin, and it makes him look even more intimidating.

  "I was delivering her food when she pulled up her shirt, and that's when you walked in."

  Azrhan's eyes narrow as he stares at the other man, who doesn't seem to be afraid of him in the slightest. The cyborg-like man, Wylfynsen, may be bigger than Azrhan and with the plates of metal all over his body, he’s definitely scary, but even I know it can't be wise for him to be openly challenging the other alien like this.

  When I expect for a fight to break out, Azrhan only shakes his head and steps to the side. "Go," he instructs the other man.

  doesn't say anything as he moves past him and leaves out of the door, which slides shut with a resounding thump, leaving Azrhan and I in the room alone.

  Azrhan moves forward, a pair of dark pants the only clothing on the man as he moves closer to the bed that I'm in. I go to move back when a muscle twitches in his jaw, and I stop.

  "No use in running. You're ours, little human," he says dryly. "That's what being our mate means. There's nowhere that you could run or hide that we wouldn't find you. Not even to your sister and Pyre."

  The breath is knocked out of my lungs as he says the words. My eyes widen.

  Azrhan’s lips pull to the side. "Yeah, we figured it out, Teagan Aengst. I told you that you looked familiar, and I finally pieced it together while you were asleep the first time. Your sister's face is plastered in every criminal database after all, and you two look very similar. It didn't take long to dig deeper and find your substantially smaller criminal record."

  My hands clench into fists, and I tell myself that this is the moment that I need to try to start fighting. To act like a rebel and not a scared little girl.

  I hold my head high. "Well, then if you know who I am, then you know that my sister will be coming to find me."

  He lets out a laugh, leaning his head back. "Except she won't. It's been days already, and she hasn't even set a foot near our enterprise." He drifts closer until he's standing next to the bed. And then he's leaning forward, his big arms caging me in as he hovers over me. "You're not important to her." His head dips closer until his cheek is next to mine. I feel rough stubble scratch along my skin. "But don't worry, you're important to my brother and I. We'll never let you go or disappear."

  I shoot backwards when the man's tongue slides along my face, much like how his brother's did before I passed out earlier. My heart feels like it's going to pound out of my chest as I look at the monster in front of me.

  His lips pull into a cruel smile, his eyes hard as he remains where he is. He looks like a monster, one that not even nightmares can conjure.

  And yet my core is throbbing from the feel of his tongue along my skin.

  Even scarier are the thoughts running through my head. Because I don't want to run away from the man; instead, my body and mind are screaming at me to get closer. I want his body to crowd mine. I want to feel his tongue glide along my skin again, in more sensitive places. I want his big hands to trail along my body and graze along my skin. I want them to slide between my legs where I'm already wet solely from the man's presence.

  Chapter 9

  Azrhan's eyes brighten and his nostrils flare as he leans toward me. A fluttering sensation in my chest has my jaw clenching as I try to contain the swirl of emotions inside of me.

  His eyes move over my face before drifting lower. "I can smell your arousal, mate." His voice is low and seductive.

  A throbbing between my legs makes me squeeze them together.

  Azrhan lets out a soft laugh. "Stop trying to hide from me. I already told you that you can’t."

  I let out a yelp as Azrhan’s body covers mine, flattening me to the soft mattress. The silk sheets are cold as they slide over my skin, but the alien on top of me is… scorching. Azrhan nuzzles his face into my neck, his knees wedging between my legs, spreading them. My heart goes wild in my chest.

  Azrhan leans back, his eyes meeting mine. His big hands slide along the outside of my thighs.

  A chill runs down my spine, and my skin starts to buzz in that weird way again. Yet this time, it’s stronger and it seems to be directly connected to what the alien on top of me is doing with my body.

  A smirk appears on Azrhan’s face as his hands start to drift toward my inner thighs before moving back out. They knead my skin as they move, and I can’t help the moan that slips past my lips as heat floods my body. He leans forward, his lips touching my neck. He lets out a soft laugh, causing his warm breath to dance along my skin.

&nb
sp; I try to tamper down my reaction, but as the man continues to stroke my thighs and his lips tease along my neck, I can't help myself. I let out another moan, my legs trembling.

  Azrhan fans kisses along my neck, his lips soft and wet. His stubble scratches my skin, but it only serves to set my nerve endings off further. "That's right, mate, just relax and let me take care of you."

  I should be pushing him off me, telling him to get off, but I don’t want to. The way he's setting my body on fire, no one has ever made me feel this way before. And I don’t want it to stop. So, despite the shame that I know it will bring later, I tilt my head to the side, giving him more access to my skin.

  His fingers dance along my skin before I let out a gasp as he roughly pushes my legs further apart. My eyes snap up to the blue ones already watching me.

  "I know what you want, and I'm going to give it to you. Maybe then you'll be ready to admit how much you want me and my brother." His lips move to the corner of mine, soft as a feather as they graze my skin. "How much you need us."

  He leans back. Words catch in my throat as he starts to slide lower down my body. He dips his head forward, his face brushing against the rough denim of my jeans. Yet it feels as if there's nothing between us as my skin flushes.

  One of his big hands reaches for the button, and a soft snap meets my ears.

  Oh my God, are you going to actually let him do this? Are you going to let an alien go down on you?

  A loud bang resounds through the room, and I let out a small yelp, jerking away from Azrhan. My head collides against the hard headboard, and I squeeze my eyes close as I absorb the pain.

  When my eyes snap open, I find Azrhan still kneeling on the bed, a couple of feet away from me now. His head is turned slightly as he looks over his shoulder, but one of his hands is resting on my ankle. As if he'd try to stop me from running away.

  My eyes dart to the now open door where I find Jabex standing. His black hair, slightly longer than his brother's, is a ruffled mess, and his eyes are narrowed. A strange, long gun rests in his right hand, a green glow coming off of it. "I hate to interrupt, but we're under attack."

  Chapter 10

  Azrhan instantly kicks into action, the alien pulling away from me as he heads toward his brother, who is still standing in the doorway.

  "Who?" Azrhan barks the question at Jabex. I'm surprised when, instead of continuing to move toward his brother, he stops short. He moves over to the wall, just to the right of the door instead.

  "Don't know," Jabex says, his eyes roaming over me. A smirk tilts his lips, and I realize for us being attacked, he doesn't look afraid in the slightest. "You look... lovely, mate," he says to me, the humor in his words hard to miss. “All spread out and hot.”

  My cheeks warm, and I look away from him, concentrating on what Azrhan is doing. The alien has his hand pressed against the wall, and I watch in shock as a panel slides back from the wall. In its place, an array of weapons slide in. Guns, knives, swords, other things that I can't quite identify. Azrhan grabs a couple of them before stepping back. The panel slides back in place, and it's as if not only a moment ago there was a hole in the wall.

  Azrhan turns toward his brother, his shoulders tense. He seems to be taking this a lot more seriously than his younger brother. "The same people who attacked the office, maybe?" He throws the theory into the air.

  Jabex just shrugs, his posture relaxed. "Maybe."

  "Grab our mate and let’s go," Azrhan instructs him before moving past the frame of the door, disappearing.

  Jabex watches me. I clutch the silk sheets in my hand, my heart racing in my chest as the man leisurely leans in the doorway. "Well, are you going to come on your own free will, or do I need to come over there and drag you out of the bed?" he asks me.

  My lips press together, and I narrow my eyes at him. There's this air of mischief about the man that has me cautiously climbing out of the bed.

  "Great choice," he says. "I may have been inclined to keep you in the bed if I actually had to come over there." His voice drops an octave as his tongue comes out to trail along his lips. I blink, staring at him. There seems to be something odd about his tongue from the small glimpse, but I don't have time to focus on it as the man beckons at me with a finger. "Hurry up," he says.

  I find my feet moving quickly. I stand in front of him. "Am I going to get a weapon?" I ask.

  "So that you can kill us and head back off to your alien hating sister? Absolutely not." He reaches out, grabbing my wrist with his free hand. Lightning shoots up my arm, stealing my breath. "Don't worry, I'll make sure no one hurts you."

  And then he's dragging me down the hall. I try to remember where we are going, but like with earlier, everything seems to blur together. When a boom vibrates through the air before the ground under me shakes, I'm thrown wildly through the air, and my thoughts come to an abrupt halt.

  I expect to go colliding into the wall, but instead, hands wrap around me, hauling me into the air. My heart pounds in my chest for a moment until I'm set on my feet. I turn, finding Jabex leaning down as he picks up his gun. His eyes shoot to mine. He stares for a moment before he blinks and grabs ahold of me again, pulling me.

  He mutters something under his breath, and I can't quite make out the words.

  Azrhan appears around a corner. My eyes widen slightly as I spot the blood covering the man's bare chest. However, it quickly becomes apparent that it isn't his as he strides closer. He glances at me before looking back at Jabex. "They're on board, put her in the safe ward," he orders his brother.

  Footsteps pound through the hall, and both brothers raise their weapons. They drop them when appears. The man of steel seems composed, and I can’t help but to stare as his hand comes into view. Where clawed metal fingers were earlier, it appears as if the tips have been cut off, little holes in its place. My eyes widen as I try to take it in.

  He really is some freak cyborg.

  His shoulders stiffen, and I duck as he lifts the fingerless hand in our direction. A blast goes off as Jabex drags me down to the ground with him, covering my head.

  Glancing up, I find 's hand still raised, and I watch in fascination as the alien shoots bright, steaming, red sparks out. His face is molted into a mask of concentration.

  A scream sounds behind us.

  lowers his hand.

  "A warning next time, . That was too close to our mate," Azrhan roars at the other alien. Jabex pulls me to my feet, his grip tight.

  's lips only pull into a pinched frown.

  Turning to look in the direction of where shot, I find an alien lying on the ground. There’s multiple holes in his body, steam coming from them.

  My eyes widen.

  "The safe ward," Azrhan says again, looking at his brother.

  Jabex gives a sharp nod before pulling me in the opposite direction of the dead alien.

  My feet have a hard time keeping up with his pace until we jerk to a sudden stop. He turns to the wall, placing his hand in a spot. Beneath his hand, the wall starts to glow. A panel opens up, just like before in the other room, and my lips part in shock.

  The technology on this spaceship is like nothing I've ever seen before.

  Jabex glances at me before gesturing to the inside of the room. "Get in." He doesn't give me time to go on my own, instead pushing me into the room. I almost fall, but his rough hand stops me. His crystal blue eyes meet mine. "You'll be safe. This should all be over soon."

  And then he's gone, the steel door sliding back in place behind him.

  I stare at the wall for a moment before finally turning to look at the softly illuminated room. There's not much to it, only a couple of beds, but I look around, having a feeling that there's some secret panels in here too.

  If this is their safe room, or ward, or whatever they called it, then they likely have food and supplies stored in the walls.

  But that's not my focus as my gaze lands on the little keypad next to the door. I move closer, finding it odd that they ha
ve one when everything else seems to be operated by handprints in secret places.

  Maybe it’s a backup safety measure.

  I tilt my head to the side slightly as I study the keypad. It doesn't look too fancy. It almost looks like human technology.

  But even if it isn't, you may be able to get into it anyway.

  I'm not my sister's best tech girl for nothing…

  Chapter 11

  The cover on the keypad gives away with a snap, and my lips pull into a grin as the grey, cold piece of metal falls into my hand.

  This is my escape.

  It's going to be tricky, getting out of here while the place is under attack. And there's also the fact that we're in the air, god knows where.

  But maybe they have some communication device somewhere here on the spaceship. Even if it's not just a phone, I should be able to find some kind of way to use it to get in contact with Saylor.

  I've studied alien tech just as much as I've studied human technology, and I'm confident that if I just find something, then I can use it. All I need to do is finish getting out of this room.

  I narrow my eyes on the exposed wires sitting inside the panel. The wires vary in color and size. I have no doubt that if I just start pulling cords, it'll blow the system and then I'll really be stuck in here.

  And if they have some type of safety precaution in place, it just may kill me.

  Which would be better than being a hostage on this spaceship, allowing aliens to... to...

  Kiss you? Touch you? Go down on you?

  I push the crude thoughts from my head, not wanting to focus on them. The guys may keep saying that I'm their mate and they're going to bring me pleasure, but eventually, that's going to change. They're going to remember that I'm valuable to my sister and try to use me to draw her out.

  Or worse, they'll just hand me right over to the AHA. The alliance will also try to use me to get to my sister. And there's no telling the methods they'll use. They want my sister more than anyone, her list of crimes against them too long to remember. They'll wreck my body, trying to get me to tell them where the base is and after that's done with, if I make it through it, they'll hang me out like bait. Expecting my sister to come and turn herself in.