by Renee Rose
What a lie. He didn’t give a veck about preserving his genetic code. He just wanted Cambry. The fierce little rebel with cunning intelligence behind those big brown eyes. The female who snatched a dagger up and looked ready to use it. The beautiful, tough little human. He’d like to tame the wild animal right out of her. Teach her no harm would ever come to her by his hand, but there would be plenty of pleasure.
Teach her not to bolt when he wrapped his fist in that dark auburn mane and pulled her head back while he drove deep from behind. When he pinned her slender wrists above her head and licked and sucked those magnificent little breasts he’d seen shifting beneath her tunic. What color would her nipples be? Pink? Peach?
It wasn’t just physical, though his need for her had been immediate and undeniable. No, he also wanted to find out what had hardened the little human and figure out how to win her softness back.
Cambry. His human. He would ask the prince if he could have her.
He kept his post beside her for the rest of the night, satisfied when she finally did slip into a restless sleep, drifting off for an hour at a time before jerking awake and looking around. She glanced over at him each time and he lifted his chest as if to show her it made him proud to be the one who watched over her. From now on, he’d be the only vecking being who had the privilege. A duty he took more seriously than death. Because if anyone threatened that little human—his female—he’d crush them.
The center of the pod didn’t have windows, so it was hard to tell when dawn came. Living without light would be difficult for the Zandians, who relied on light for energy more than food. They’d have to make frequent trips to Zander’s palatial pod for the crystal-amplified light baths. It didn’t do much to improve the prisoners’—make that former prisoners’—morale, either. The group—mostly humans with a few odd other species mixed in—still wore the downtrodden faces of any refugees. Rok’s female, Lily, had been working hard to instill hope, and some seemed to believe her promise of a better life on Zandia, but most braced their shoulders as if ready for another attack on their dignity.
As the beings began to rouse, he turned on the sunlight simulator. A new group of guards came in for next shift, reporting to him for duty and carrying boxes of nutrition packs. He eyed the packs with distaste. They were disgusting compared to the meals he’d enjoyed on the palatial pod, but he was tired, his energy weakened from lack of food and light. He needed rest, but there was no way in hell he was going to let his female sleep another night in this crowded hall.
As the beings filed forward to receive their nutrition packs, he gave orders to his guards. “They need to be given living quarters today.”
Rok, his superior, had already mentioned the necessity, so he didn’t feel like he was stepping out of line by ordering it done today. “Allow them to self-select who they will house with. Give them housing in the prison cells, offices, closets, anywhere you can find. For those who remain in the prison cells, show them the locks have been disabled. Remove the doors if they’re too nervous. They need to settle in because this pod will be our home for many planet rotations—maybe even a solar cycle, depending on how quickly we can get them trained.”
“Yes, Captain Lundric,” his guards murmured.
Cambry stood up, holding herself with the same ever-present wariness he’d seen on her from the beginning. She’d listened to every word, but mistrust still reflected on her face.
“Start with filling the cells. Sten, you and I will scout other possible housing options.” He lifted his chin at Cambry as if she were one of his men. “You come with us to help scout.”
She clenched her jaw, her hand tightening on the dagger she’d attached to her belt.
Her mistrust shouldn’t wound him so much. Her gaze darted from him to his guard, Sten, then over to the human male still pretending to sleep beside her—the one she’d been afraid of the night before. He knew, in her mind, she’d be smarter to stay in the hall. There was safety in numbers.
Hand still on the dagger, chin lifted, she stepped toward him, accepting his order.
It took all his willpower not to throw her over his shoulder and carry her off to his quarters, declaring her won. Stars, how he wanted to claim that lithe little body.
Soon. Veck, yes, soon.
He fished a nutrition pack out of the box and tossed it to her. “Come.” He resisted the urge to push Cambry in front of him, even though his every instinct screamed to stay at her back where he could protect her. Until she trusted him, it would make her itchy to have him behind her. He led the way down the hall, purpose helping him push through fatigue. There was no way he could sleep until he got his female settled somewhere safe.
“Don’t Zandians eat? Or do you hide the decent food somewhere else?”
He looked over his shoulder at her, surprised a slave on a death pod dared used such a surly tone with him. Not that it didn’t make him hard as veck. He loved the fight in her. It drew him in as much as her hot-as-magma looks.
She had the sense to flinch under his look, her projected confidence flickering. She swallowed. “Sorry, am I supposed to call you Captain or something?”
He smirked. “Little female, you can call me anything you like.” Master. Protector. Yours. “It won’t change a thing.”
Her confidence slipped a little further, and he could almost see her mind working as she puzzled over his statement.
All the offices had been taken by the Zandians, and his guards slept in the bunkroom used by the Ocretion guards before they took over the pod. Still, there had to be some other place for her. He used his palm to activate the doors on room after room, assessing their potential and giving Sten orders on what to do with each one.
When he found a small storage area, big enough for a bed and even a chair, he stopped looking. “We’ll empty this. Stack the supplies neatly in the hallway,” he ordered both of them.
Cambry hesitated, obviously not wanting to enter the small space due to the possibility of being trapped in there with them.
“You stay out here. We’ll hand you the supplies for stacking.” He reached in and grabbed the first box, swiveling to drop it into her arms.
Theirs hands brushed when she took it, and his gaze tangled with hers. She had warm brown eyes, her lashes the same dark auburn of her thick hair. She seemed to be searching his face for something, so he let her look, hoping he showed whatever she needed to see.
She swallowed and took the box, turning away quickly, but not before he saw confusion on her beautiful face.
~.~
Lundric—Captain Lundric, she’d learned—actually growled when his guard Sten tried to hand her a box. Lundric snatched it from him, glaring Sten down with an animalistic show of dominance. She wasn’t sure whether to slap his face at the audacity or laugh at his territorial act over her. She probably ought to be more afraid.
If she had half a brain, she wouldn’t have come on this errand alone with these two. Even with the dagger Lundric had given her, the two could probably overpower her, although she’d give them one helluva fight first.
The image of the two of them shoving her into the storage space and taking turns having their way with her flickered through her mind...and sort of turned her on. No, Sten having a turn didn’t excite her, but the crazy image of him holding her down while Lundric shoved his way deep into her—
Sweet Mother Earth! What was wrong with her? Her panties were actually dampening at the idea of being forcibly taken by this huge specimen of masculine power. What had lulled her better instincts into complacency?
It was too much to believe he really saw into her and understood her needs and desires, and yet...he had. He’d given her the dagger. Now he was supposedly finding some safer places for them to sleep, although she still didn’t know whether to trust his plan. But, if it was a ploy, what did he stand to gain? Someplace to get her alone, maybe?
She stacked boxes neatly outside the closet.
“So what did you do to land yourself on
the wrong side of Ocretion law?” His question was deceptively casual. Even though his back was to her, she saw the charge of tension run through him, waiting for her answer.
“I killed three guards.”
It was true. But she’d also thrown it out as a threat, and he clearly caught her intent because, when he swiveled with the next carton, the corners of his mouth tugged up. “I have no doubt you did.” He looked almost...proud of her.
Bizarre.
As he handed her the box, his focus dipped to her lips like they had the night before. What did he want to do to her mouth? Kiss it? Claim it?
A shiver ran through her. She didn’t even know what claim it meant, but it seemed to fit the hunger flickering behind his gaze. She dropped the carton and immediately looked back, watching Lundric’s powerful back ripple when he stooped to pick up another box. Sten caught her looking and hid a smile as he looked away.
To hell with him. What did he think was so funny?
When they’d emptied the little storage room of all its contents, Lundric turned to her. “Let’s go get your things.”
Her brows shot up. “This is for me?” Her safety meter spun wildly and landed on no way. She took a step backward. “I’m not going in there.”
Lundric held his palms out, as if to show he had no weapon. “Take it easy. No one is trying to trap you, little female.” He drew his fist back and smashed the palm-activated door lock panel beside the door.
She bit back the involuntary shriek of surprise choking her throat. The power behind that fist was dizzying. She made a mental note never to put herself on the receiving end of it.
The panel sparked and flashed and then died out. He shoved the pocket door open and closed. “See? Nothing I can do from the outside now. I’ll fashion you some kind of clip you can use from the inside. You control the lights inside, too. See?” He showed her the button just inside the door that turned the lights on and off.
Prickles covered her skin. Had he really done all this...for her? To keep her safe? Or—since he already believed he’d protected her the night before—to give her some semblance of control over her own safety? It was too much to believe, and yet, something in the way he watched her, as if her reaction mattered—really mattered to him—made her think it was true.
He took a step closer, his expression going soft. When he reached for her face, she jerked away on an inhale. His hand dropped to his side, all the power and hunger she saw there tightly leashed. Once more, the lips turned up. Instead of inspiring anger, it seemed her resistance amused him.
“Go get your bedroll.”
She nibbled on her lip, still assessing the danger. She tossed her ponytail and tried opening and closing the door herself. He was right—it didn’t lock now. With a single nod, she strode back down the corridor in the direction they’d come.
It would’ve been a better exit if she’d gone in the right direction.
Lundric waited until her steps slowed before he whistled. When she looked back, he wore a broad grin. Obviously, the warrior thought it funny.
She pursed her lips and marched back, her worn boots clomping on the floor, Lundric’s appreciative gaze sending heat creeping over her cheeks. When she reached them, Lundric gave a low chuckle.
“You find me entertaining, Captain?”
“Yes,” he drawled. “I find everything about you entertaining, little female.” The parts he left unspoken seared her skin, made her breasts grow tight and heavy, her pussy damp. He inhaled sharply. She sensed tension from him, as if he only barely held back from grabbing her and throwing her down to have his way with her.
Like a skittish animal, she darted away, out of his reach, cursing herself for showing fear. Only the fear this time wasn’t of physical harm. It was something deeper. Darker. Something that had her body feeling tingly and alive for the first time in ages.
She stomped back to the large hull where they’d slept. Only half the beings remained, huddled in groupings. Her bedding had disappeared, as the entire room had been straightened up, the blankets stacked in a neat pile by the door. One guard led a group of eight past her as she came in. She thought someone might stop her, ask where she’d been, but it seemed a human walking around unattended wasn’t cause for alarm.
Interesting.
She picked up two blankets—one to lie on and one to cover herself, and swiftly rolled them into a bundle. She should wait here, in this room, to see what was happening with the rest of the prisoners. She shouldn’t be spending time alone with the captain, who had clearly taken an interest in her beyond guard-prisoner.
One of the guards pointed at her. “Who are you camping with?”
She looked around, gut fisting up with dread. None of the groups looked friendly. And she already had her own room.
Which probably came with a whole mess of strings attached.
Somehow, she couldn’t muster a great deal of fear of those strings, though, even having seen Lundric’s right hook and the dark hunger in his eyes. He’d shown respect for her—hadn’t touched her, had given her a weapon, had looked after her safety.
Maybe he didn’t have any dark intent.
Or maybe morbid curiosity had her wondering just how it would feel to have those huge arms cage her, that powerful body drag her into submission. He looked like the kind of male who took a female long and hard. Maybe tied her up first and slapped her ass.
She fought back the reaction her body had to those thoughts and cleared her throat. “Captain Lundric has found a closet for me down there,” she said, waving toward the hallway.
She expected more interrogation, or demands for proof, but he merely nodded and moved on. Free, she slipped out the door, taking long strides back to her closet. In the hallway outside it, she met Lundric, carrying an entire cot—yes the whole structure—under one arm.
“I found you a bed,” he grunted.
She willed her giddy little heart to slow back down. They probably had lots of beds lying around the pod. It wasn’t like he was some kind of hero or something. She stepped back to allow him to enter her closet and shove the bed against the far wall, so she’d face the door as she slept. Exactly where she would’ve placed it. He’d already placed a single chair in, as well.
“There you go. I’ll work on a lock before nightfall.” He turned and walked away before she could even say thank you.
Not that she was sure she was going to.
But the point was, he didn’t wait for any thanks.
She shoved the door closed and leaned her back against it, her mind too full of Lundric.
So far, none of the terrible things she’d thought would happen since she was thrown on this pod had occurred. She hadn’t been executed by the Ocretions. She hadn’t been raped, or sold to a new slave owner. Each new turn was stranger and stranger. And this one with Lundric was the strangest yet.
2
Lundric woke up stiff in more ways than one. After working long past his shift end ensuring the refugees were settled, he’d slept on the floor of the bunkroom, since he’d carried his cot into Cambry’s closet. So the aching neck wasn’t a surprise.
The stiff cock could be attributed to Cambry, too. His dreams had all featured the fiery human. The pretty braids pulling her hair back into the bushy ponytail. The flip of that thick tail when she tossed her head. The length of her legs and the sway of her ass as she walked in front of him, a haughty grin curling her lips.
She had so much fight in her, his little rebel. How he’d love to wrestle her to the floor, feel her wriggling body beneath his as the struggle heated them both. Because he knew it would. He’d smelled her arousal that morning, known the irresistible pull he felt toward her wasn’t just one-sided.
He sat up and checked the time. Veck. His shift was about to start, which meant the refugees were bedding down already. He hadn’t had a chance to fashion a latch for the inside of Cambry’s door. He shoved his feet into his boots and tromped down the corridor.
Cambry’s door was shu
t tight. Was she already sleeping? His cock stirred at the thought of her lying on his bed, just behind the door.
His bed. Exactly where she belonged.
He paused. Should he check on her? No. If he stopped now, he wouldn’t want to leave. Better to make the rounds first and come back. He went to Rok’s office, which served as their headquarters, to meet his guards and assign their duties for the night shift. Rok and his little human, Lily, were nowhere to be found, no surprise there. The two of them spent a great deal of time locked in their sleeping quarters together. Rok had even pierced her with Zandian crystal, marking her as his permanent mate.
A thrill went through him at the thought of adorning Cambry with his gems. He’d do it that night, if he thought it would bind her to him. But their traditions meant nothing to her. He’d be better off buying her as a slave to make himself her master, much as Zander had done with Lamira.
He knew exactly what orders he’d give her, the moment she was his to command. Strip. Kneel. No, maybe not kneel because how would he touch her sweet little pussy if she was sucking his dick? Maybe the first thing he’d do would be to tie her arms and legs wide and spend an entire planet rotation exploring what made her scream in pleasure.
No. Tying her up would be too easy. She liked to fight. Better to hold her down with his body. Or to train her to obey. If you move your hands from this position, I’ll have to whip you…
What he wanted was the assurance she’d be in his bed forever. After his mother’s abandonment, he couldn’t tolerate fickleness. Or flightiness.
His guards gathered, and he handed out assignments, keeping the corridor with Cambry’s closet for himself. Sten hid a smirk, but he immediately quashed it when Lundric stared him down. He counted to twenty-five after the guards dispersed then made his way to Cambry’s closet. The light was off inside. At least, when he peered through the crack, it looked dark. He pressed his ear to the door and listened for the sound of her breathing, but the metal was too thick. He couldn’t hear it.
