Slave Gold 2: Cardinal Warriors (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Becca Van

  Just as the fire raced up his shaft and the knot at the base of his cock expanded, locking him inside of her, her internal muscles squeezed, and he roared as he started to come. Mott’s and Riek’s shouts joined his, and he barely heard Annie’s muffled cries as she joined them in climax.

  The force of his seed exploding from his cock was like an Earth’s nuclear bomb. His muscles were so rigid and his throat tight as the orgasm went on and on. The pleasure was so intense it almost bordered the point of pain, and he wished he could spend the next week in bed with his mate. Aftershocks rocked his body each time Annie’s internal muscles convulsed around him, milking a bit more seed from his body until he was utterly spent.

  Never in all the stars had he experienced such a profound joining. The tether connecting him to his mate and his brothers was so full he was sure they would unravel from overload. Annie was lying slumped over the top of him, and he savored the contact of her skin against his. His heart was full of love, and he wanted to spend the rest of his life loving and cherishing his female.

  Mott kissed Annie’s shoulder and carefully withdrew from her ass. Baro glanced over at Riek to see his brother was staring at their mate with love and wonder, but he was also half off the bed, his chest resting on it and his knees on the floor. He’d been so intent on pleasuring his woman, he hadn’t taken any notice of him. He was about to ask Riek how he’d ended up on the floor, but when warm moisture landed on his chest, he became worried.

  Annie was crying, and he was scared that he and his brothers had hurt her with their overzealousness.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Are you in pain, cosmose?”

  Annie shook her head and opened her mouth to speak, but her throat was constricted and she didn’t think she would be coherent, so she closed it again.

  She couldn’t contain her emotions anymore. Her heart was so full of love and happiness, and after making such sweet love with her mates, she was feeling almost too much. They had been connected in so many ways, and not just physically. She had felt all four of her mates in her heart, mind, and soul. Plus, she suspected being tired didn’t help.

  So much had happened in such a short amount of time, and even though not all of it had been good, she wouldn’t have changed a thing.

  She felt like she belonged for the first time in her life. She didn’t care about the Council Elders or what anyone on this planet thought of her. The only people who counted were her men.

  She drew in a ragged breath when Mott eased his cock from her ass, but she was happy being draped over Baro, so she stayed where she was. Tears burned her eyes as she listened to Baro’s racing heart slow, and although she squeezed them closed, the moisture trickled out. Annie felt Baro tense in response to her tears plopping onto his skin. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and rolled them over until she was beneath him. When she opened her moisture-filled eyes and saw his blurry face filled with concern, the tears fell faster. He placed his forehead against hers and gently wiped her cheeks with his thumbs.

  She buried her face in his neck, clutched her arms around him, and sobbed.

  She felt Shar, Mott, and Riek come closer, and then they were touching her arms and head.

  “Did we hurt you, Annie?” Shar asked in a quiet voice.

  “No,” she managed to wail.

  “Then why are you crying, baby?” Riek asked.

  “It’s…so much,” she sobbed.

  “You feel the connection, dearling?” Baro asked.

  “Yes.” Annie’s sighed as her tears began to slow and she sniffed. She released her hold on Baro and drew back so she could see each of her men. “I guess I’m just feeling a little emotional.”

  “You are allowed,” Mott said, brushing her hair back off her forehead. “You’ve dealt with a lot lately.”

  Annie gave him a wobbly smile. “Yeah, I have, haven’t I?”

  Riek got off the bed and walked toward a door she hadn’t noticed before. It opened automatically, and he disappeared inside. When she heard what sounded like water running, she presumed it was a bathroom. He was back moments later, and after Baro rolled her to her side, Riek washed her face with the warm cloth and then cleaned her up. She would have loved to have gone into that bathroom and taken a shower or bath if they even had those things here, but she just didn’t have the energy. She was so replete after making love with her men and the mind-blowing orgasms, her muscles felt like rubber, with no substance or strength.

  “You need to rest, baby,” Riek said as he flung the cloth aside and crawled up next to her. “Why don’t you have a nap and when you awaken we’ll have last meal ready.”

  “Sounds good,” Annie replied. Riek lay down beside her on his back, his arm pushing beneath her neck and around her shoulders. She rolled to her side, slung a leg over his, and snuggled up to him with her hand resting on his chest. As soon as she closed her eyes, she felt herself drifting down into sleep.

  * * * *

  Mott hoped that Annie slept for a while. When he’d first realized that she was crying, his heart had ached so badly and he’d been worried sick that he and his kin had hurt her. The relief he’d felt when she'd said she was overwhelmed had brought the joy back to his soul, and he’d wanted to make love to her all over again, but she needed rest more than his randy demands.

  He was a little envious of Riek curling up with her, but they had things to do that couldn’t be put off any longer. After a quick cleansing in the unit off of his room, he dressed in his normal clothes. The warrior uniform was comfortable and convenient while aboard ship, but he liked his casual clothes better. The tan pants were firm but not tight, and they moved each time he did. He grabbed a lightweight vest that had pockets for his weapons and filled them. After being attacked by Sytax, and not knowing who was in cahoots with Rotec, he wasn’t about to be caught unaware.

  When he entered the greeting room, Shar and Baro were already there, as were their personal guard and Annie’s warriors.

  “Davo, Sano, I want you two to make sure all incoming and outgoing comms are recorded. You are to listen to them every day and give a report each night,” Baro commanded.

  The two men thudded their fists against their chest. “Yes, Nava Baro,” they said simultaneously. Each man unhooked their tablets from their waists and moved toward the far side of the room, already at work.

  “Ryker, Deka, Akka, and Byka, if we aren’t with our mate I want all four of you following and protecting her unless told otherwise,” Shar said.

  “It will be our pleasure to ensure Nav Annie’s protection.” Ryker and his kin thumped their chests and bowed.

  “No one but you eight and us are allowed in these rooms,” Mott said.

  “Your command is our wish, Nava Mott,” Ardo replied, and then he and Bako bowed, saluted them, and headed to guard the door.

  “Wait!”

  “Nava Mott?” Bako asked.

  “You can change out guard with Annie’s guard, unless she has left the rooms, and then all four of you will be with our boded,” Baro ordered.

  “Yes, Nava,” Bako responded and left.

  “How long do you think Rotec has had an alliance with the Sytax?” Mott asked with a scowl.

  “I have no idea.” Baro sighed. “Hopefully all the comms will tell us that, but we don’t know if he’s been meeting them somewhere far from here or if he’s left Cardinal. You know as well as I do that the Council Elders have their own personal shuttles.”

  “Can we get onto his shuttle and download the last coordinates?” Mott asked.

  “We could, but he would know as soon as someone boarded it. You know all shuttles record images,” Shar reminded.

  “So how the hell do we catch him?” Mott asked with frustration. “Our bonded could be in danger. You saw the disgust on his face when he saw her.”

  “I don’t think he’d be game to come after her himself,” Baro said. “He’s too much of a coward to dirty his own hands.”

  “I wouldn’t put it pa
st him,” Shar replied.

  “The only thing we can do is watch and wait. Hopefully, as Annie said, he will mess up,” Mott said. “Let’s hope it’s soon. Otherwise I may just take the fuggar out myself.”

  * * * *

  Annie sighed and stretched as she woke. She smiled when she felt Riek wrapped around her from behind. He was spooning her, and even though she would have loved to stay put and snuggle, her full bladder was protesting. When she looked back over her shoulder and heard the soft snore coming from him, she covered her mouth to hold in her giggle. Her big, tough warrior was sound asleep. It looked like she wasn’t the only one worn out by their lovemaking.

  She gently lifted his arm from around her waist and eased out from under him, before quickly slipping a pillow close to him and lowering his arm again. He made a grunting sound, hugged the pillow tight, and starting snoring again. Annie rolled from the bed, glad that the mattress didn’t dip and disturb his sleep, and headed toward the bathroom.

  When she saw the large swim-type bathing pool, she nearly squealed with delight, but she was hungry and didn’t want to linger. She made use of the facilities, washed her hands, and stepped into the big cleansing unit. The hot water immediately started flowing after she closed the door, and she washed herself, savoring the fact that the unit wasn't like the one on the spaceship and more like a shower on Earth. The Cardin’s technology was amazing, because she could see the water going down the drain being pumped back through some type of recycling system and pouring from the small waterfall into the big bathing pool.

  As soon as she stepped out and closed the door behind her, warm air surged all around her, drying her hair and body. She realized she must have stepped onto a sensor pad, because hoses or tubes of some sort had dropped from concealment in the ceiling.

  No more towels to launder. Although they probably didn’t do that either. From what Annie had seen on the spaceship, once something was used it was placed in the recycling unit and automatically cleaned. So much time, resources, and the environment on Earth could be saved by all this knowledge and equipment.

  When she was done, she hurried back to the bedroom and reluctantly put her clothes back on. She was going to have to ask her men about some more clothes. She loved wearing the warrior uniform because it was so comfortable, but if she was supposed to be a ruler, too, she would probably need more suitable attire, but she would worry about that later. Right now, her belly was letting her know it was empty.

  As she entered the greeting room, she sighed with disappointment because Shar, Mott, and Baro weren’t there. They were probably off catching up on ruler stuff since they had been away for so long. She just hoped she wouldn’t be spending most of her time alone. Plus, she needed something to do. There was no way in hell she was going sit around on her ass bored out of her brains.

  She looked up when two of her men’s warriors came in from the balcony.

  “You’re Davo and Sano, right?”

  “Yes, Nav Annie,” they replied together, bowed, and thumped their chests.

  “Why do you keep doing that?”

  “What, Nav?” Davo asked.

  “The chest beating.” Annie nearly smirked when the image of Tarzan beating on his chest and hollering at the top of his lungs filled her mind.

  “Our salute is a mark of respect, Nav Annie,” Sano explained.

  “Okay,” Annie began. “I thank you for the honor and your respect, but I’m not a warrior. I’m just an ordinary Earth woman and not used to any of this. I would really appreciate it if you all would stop doing that.”

  “We cannot.” Davo had an appalled look on her face.

  “Why not?”

  “You are the bonded to our Nava. You are our Nav.” Sano looked confused.

  “Can you at least drop the Nav?”

  “It would not be right,” Sano said.

  “Even if I ordered you to?”

  “What would we call you without your title?” Davo asked.

  “Annie. That is my name.”

  “I don’t think the Nava would be pleased to hear us calling you by name,” Sano said.

  “Leave my men to me. From now on you will all call me Annie.”

  “Is that an order?” Davo asked.

  “Yeah, I guess it is.”

  “As you wish, N…Annie.”

  “Good, I’m glad that’s cleared up. Where is everyone?”

  “Your mates had a meeting with the Council Elders. Our kin Ardo and Bako are guarding them. Ryker and Deka are standing guard outside,” Sano answered.

  “Where are Akka and Byka?”

  “Your bonded sent them on a task,” Davo replied.

  “Oh. Is there any way I can get something to eat? I’m starving.”

  Sano bowed. “I will order nourishment from the kitchens.”

  “Have you guys eaten?” Annie asked.

  “No, but we will…”

  “Make sure you get enough food for yourselves as well.”

  Sano bowed again and then walked toward the balcony door.

  Annie walked around the room exploring and then entered the kitchen. It looked pretty much like a kitchen on Earth, but the appliances were out-of-this-world modern. She was going to have to get someone to teach her how to use everything so she could cook for her men. That was going to be really difficult since she didn’t know what she was eating half the time. Maybe she would spend time in the kitchens and get someone to teach her.

  When she saw a bottle of unopened lacca, she picked it up and grabbed three weird-shaped glasses after searching the wall cabinets. She loved that everything was concealed and all she had to do was wave her hand for the panels to slide away.

  Annie carried the lacca and goblets back into the greeting room and placed them on the floating disc table. She opened the bottle, poured the liquid into the three glasses, and sank down onto the sofa thing.

  A chime sounded, and Sano hurried toward the door. “The nourishment has arrived.”

  Annie nodded and took a sip of lacca. It didn’t taste as sweet as she remembered, but she was so thirsty she drank it down in one go. She watched Sano and Davo set the food out through blurry eyes. When she realized she couldn’t see properly, she blinked. Sweat broke out on her brow, and she began to feel ill. That’s when she realized something was wrong with the lacca. It must have gone off. She lurched to her feet when Sano picked up the goblet. She shoved it from his hand, and the goblet and liquid landed on the floor.

  “Don’t…drink…” Annie gasped out before collapsing to her knees and then onto the floor. She curled into a tight ball as agony ripped through her stomach, and she threw up. Her muscles were uncooperative when she tried to move. Except for vomiting, she felt like she was paralyzed, but the pain in her belly intensified so much, if she could have writhed, she would have. She began to get scared as she continued to purge and her vision faded away.

  * * * *

  Riek bolted upright when he felt pain and fear. When he realized Annie was no longer at his side, he rushed from the room. What greeted his sight scared the hell out of him. Sano was leaning over his bonded, who was on the floor. Davo was on his comm unit calling for the healer.

  “What’s wrong? Annie!” Riek yelled when he saw she was sick. “What the hell happened?”

  “I don’t know, Nava,” Sano said.

  “Nav Annie pushed the lacca from Sano’s hand and said don’t drink. “I think the lacca made her feel ill. She was fine until she consumed the fluid,” Davo explained. “Healer Must is on his way.”

  “Nav Annie is showing signs of consuming poison,” Sano said as he reached for the goblet on the floor.

  Healer Must entered the room then rushed over and knelt down next to Annie. He ran his medi-scanner over her body and then met Riek’s eyes. “Your female has been poisoned. We need to get her to medical immediately.”

  “What the hell was she given?” Riek roared his question. He was so scared and angry that someone would harm his mate. He immediate
ly thought of Council Elder Rotec. “Where did that bottle of lacca come from?”

  “Nav Annie brought it back from the meal room,” Davo said.

  “What poison was used?” Riek asked Healer Must.

  “Let me scan the lacca first to make sure,” Must said. He rose to his feet and waved the scanner over the full goblet still resting on the disc. “Hevil.”

  “Fuck!” Riek called to his male kin with his mind as he gripped Annie’s cold hand. Just a small drop of the juice from a Hevil plant was enough to kill a warrior. Annie was so much smaller than they were. It would be a miracle if she survived.

  “Quick,” Healer Must said urgently when his assistant hurried into the room with a transport bed.

  Riek gently lifted Annie into his arms and carefully placed her onto the hovering portable medical bed. Must’s assistant waved the handheld cleanser over his bonded, and within seconds she was clean again. He followed as the two healers guided the medi-bed toward the door. “Scan that lacca bottle for DNA. I want to know the results as soon as you have them. Meet us in medical.”

  “Yes, Nava,” Sano answered.

  Riek hurried to catch up with Annie and took her hand in his as he walked beside the moving bed. His male kin were already waiting for them as he and the healers entered medical.

  “Tell me,” Shar ordered in a hard, cold voice.

  When Riek finished explaining, there was total silence for a few seconds, and then Baro, Shar, and Mott all roared with fury.

  “Find the fucking fuggar and detain him,” Shar yelled.

  Baro glanced over to where the healers were working on Annie. “I will find him.”

  “No,” Shar said. “You need to stay here with our mate. Send our warriors.”

  Baro glared at Shar for a few moments and then sighed with resignation. Riek knew exactly how his kin felt. He wanted to hunt Rotec down and rip his head off with his bare hands, but until they had proof, there would be no retaliation.