"The guy with the whips made backpacks out of the tent. I don't think he would have done that if they were tying stuff onto the horses. The guy with Christal, Nicholas I think, said something about trading up the mountain. I think they're going to kidnap us," Ariel reasoned in a scared whisper.
"We've got to do something. These guys are huge. Even Dave would have a problem with any of them. I'm scared to death they're going to kill the guys." Shawna glanced at Allen.
"Wouldn't they have done that already? I mean, I hope it's a good sign they haven't hurt anyone yet." Ariel hoped this made sense.
With his unnatural hearing ability, Lucien eavesdropped on the women. Satisfied they were not planning an escape, he ordered. "Hush or you'll be gagged again."
Startled, Ariel and Shawna continued in silence. Someone lowered Mike from the tree and placed him with the other captive men. When the food was ready, the man with the whips told the rest of the captives their gags would be removed for eating. If they stayed quiet, they would remain that way. If they said anything, they would be gagged and go hungry. He looked down at the men and explained that their food would be put on a plate in front of them on the ground. They would be eating without the use of their bound hands.
Ariel felt a brief surge of relief. Surely, they wouldn't be planning to hurt her friends if they were feeding them.
The man started down the line, first removing the gags from the nervous women. Paula glared but said nothing then it was Christal's turn. "You bastards." Shawna and Ariel paled. "What the hell do you think you're doooiumph—" That's as much as she got to shriek before she was again gagged into silence.
Nicholas was holding the furious woman and started chuckling. "Whoo, boy! A little spit-fire, aren't you." He gave her a squeeze.
Nathan removed Teri's gag. She continued to tremble, her huge breasts shuddering in the man's cupped palms, but she remained quiet with an odd glazed expression as he whispered to her.
Ed, Allen, and Doug, who was clearly upset with Teri's situation, all remained silent. Dave looked bewildered and asked the man how he could eat with his hands tied behind his back. The man smiled down at him. "You'll figure it out, son. No more speaking." Dave shrugged his shoulders in acceptance.
Then, it was Mike's turn. As soon as his mouth was free he bellowed angrily "Ariel, get your ass over here. You stay away from her you bastard!" He glared at Lucien. "Ariel, move it, now!"
Lucien walked over to Mike. "You will not speak to my woman that way." he hissed. He took the tent pole he had picked up earlier and whipped it across Mike's face. Thwack! Instantly a red stripe appeared across Mike's jaw. The men groaned in unison and some of the girls screamed. Ariel charged toward Lucien and was intercepted by an arm wrapping around her waist and lifting her off her feet.
"Not your business, girl." Ariel turned and saw the man with the shaggy hair holding her back. She started to struggle and prepared to scream as Justin put his hand over her mouth. He squeezed her ribs hard and the air left her lungs. "Not your business," he repeated. Ariel quieted, hoping he would loosen his painful grip on her.
Mike started yelling obscenities at Lucien.
The man with the whips angrily hauled Mike to his feet then tied him to the trunk of a small tree. "Need to teach you some manners, boy. No one speaks to Lucien that way." He ripped Mike's shirt off in one rough jerk then walked over and gave warning glances at the men. He turned toward the girls and said, "Quiet!" They stopped screaming immediately but continued to cry.
Lucien decided this would be the male going back to the Indians with Wind Seeker. It was the only reason he didn't flail the skin off Mike's back. As it was, speaking calmly as ever, he said "Five strokes. We don't want his blood wasted."
The leather clad men laughed at the curious statement as Lucien's arm came down and delivered the first stroke. Mike continued his spew of foul language until after the third welt was an angry red, already turning purple on his back. Ariel screamed and shuddered in her captor's arms. For the last two strokes Mike wailed, pleading for Lucien to stop. Mike was left hanging in torment, his back feeling like he'd lain in a wasp nest. He tearful eyes glared at his unhelpful friends while they shook nervously, looking down at their plates and eating their food in silence. The only sounds were the occasional quiet whimpers from the girls.
"Thanks, Justin," Lucien said to the man holding Ariel.
"No problem. She's a tiny thing. I might have hurt her ribs. Sorry, Lucien." The man released her. Lucien gripped her wrist and led her back over to their place by the men. Ariel tried to kick him and back away. "Let me go!" she screamed. Lucien's fingers wrapped under her chin and forced her head up to look at him. She wanted to turn away. The quick glance at his eyes held her and she felt herself once again becoming calm.
After her wrists were rebound, Ariel once again sat silently in Lucien's lap. Her stomach clenched in fear over what Lucien had done to her boyfriend. She kept hearing in her mind his words my woman. The implication terrified her. What did he mean? She didn't know this man, never met him that she could remember and she would have remembered him. She had no doubt about that. As she looked around the campfire she saw, with the exception of Mike, all the bound men grouped together. The man the captors referred to as the Slave-master was watching them closely while he ate.
Her girlfriends were being tended to by their respective partners from the mountain men's earlier discussion. That was what Ariel thought of them as. All of them very tall, muscular and clad almost completely in leather including cowboy boots and hats. Although they all looked different, some dark haired, some blonde, they were all impossibly good looking. They didn't look related, yet something about their manner and features told her they shared a long existence with each other.
Lucien would reach out to the plate and alternate between a bite for himself and placing some between Ariel's trembling lips. At first, she sealed her lips childishly. "Eat. We have a long day tomorrow." She felt the numbness of compliance as she opened her mouth. She saw the other men were feeding her girlfriends in much the same way. It was so strange to watch her friends quietly sitting in the laps of these giants, tears coursing down their cheeks, accepting the food the men fed them, afraid to anger them.
Even Christal was quietly accepting food from Nicholas' hand, glaring at him once in a while and making him grin. Just as Lucien was doing to her, she would notice the men occasionally stroking hair, or caressing the sides of the women captives in their unwanted embraces. Her mind wandered. Her thoughts were a jumble of confusion as she fought to follow a thread. What would happen on the long day tomorrow? Why couldn't she fight and help Mike?
The stress of the past few hours, combined with the food and gentle stroking, was making Ariel sleepy. She was bewildered as she felt herself become slightly aroused again. Underneath these feelings was a vague sense of acceptance she didn't understand. Why wasn't she fighting back, screaming at the man? Damn it. What was wrong with her?
She looked at Mike as Damon untied him from the tree and set him away from the other men. Mike sat sullenly, once in a while sneaking Lucien and Ariel hateful glances as they continued eating. He was somehow blaming her for his predicament, she could see that in his eyes, and her lack of concern confused her. She wouldn't know how to begin to tell him what was happening in her jumbled mind.
Lucien caught Mike's hateful glances at Ariel as well. He realized they were really meant for him. Let Ariel think he was blaming her. Just as well. This would make Ariel's separation from her former boyfriend much easier. Lucien didn't miss the fact Ariel was already used to a domineering male. This would work in his favor for a smooth transition as his companion into the settlement that would now be her life.
Nathan glanced at Lucien. Lucien nodded back to him. Finally releasing Teri, ordering her gently to stay and be still, Nathan approached Mike. He squatted down in front of him, blocking Ariel's view from what was happening. She could see he had Mike by the shoulders and seemed to be intent
ly speaking to him. After a few minutes, Nathan stood. Mike, no longer glaring in her direction, appeared confused. Nathan casually turned and headed back toward Teri, long fangs receding back into his gums and licking blood off his lips.
The captives froze in shock trying to comprehend the impossible. Then, chaos. Nathan returned to a panicked, sobbing Teri. The Slave-master, whip ready, was 'encouraging' the men to remain seated and quiet as they thrashed against the ropes binding them, screaming in fear behind their gags and trying to back-peddle away from the group with their bound feet.
Ariel started moaning and whimpering more fearful than she had ever felt in her entire young life. Her mind broke through the numbness and she screamed, struggling to break free of Lucien's strong grip.
Lucien held her tightly, soothingly stroking her hair, brushing her tear streaked face with his long fingers in gentle strokes and placing light kisses on her forehead as she tried to push him away. She looked into his eyes in panic as he calmed her fears. "Hush. Quiet, little girl. You have nothing to fear from me. Calm yourself." He spoke in a deep, mesmerizing voice.
Ariel fought the numbing wash threatening to claim her again. Lucien continued to relieve her fear as one by one the other Vampires went over to Mike, leaving him glazed and disoriented. As Lucien got up to take Justin's place, Ariel's shaking bound hands reached out to him.
"Please," she sobbed in a quivering whisper, "Please don't kill him."
Lucien squatted down in front of her, gently holding her chin. "No, Ariel. He won't be killed. He'll be fed and completely recover. I've already decided his future and he will not be allowed to die and deny me the pleasure of my plans for his treatment of you." Ariel felt the icy chill of his words rack through her body.
Vampires, Ariel thought in disbelief. She was still reeling at the picture in her mind of Nathan's fangs. Oh my God! This can't be real. This can't be happening.
Yet, here was Lucien standing and returning to her with a strange look of ecstasy in his eyes, a slight red hue around the irises as fangs slipped back into his gums. He sat and placed the quivering girl back on his lap. She tried to pull away and he began his calming caresses again. "He'll be fed and tended to by the Slave-master now. He won't remember this incident when he wakes up. It's our way not to kill those who sustain us. We'll all need our strength for the journey back to the settlement." Lucien explained this to her as if it should make perfect sense.
"Calm down, Ariel. No one's going to hurt you." Lucien looked over to where the Slave-master was hand feeding a weary Mike. "I won't let anyone hurt you." He turned back to her. Looking into his intense, dark blue eyes, again she felt herself calming, accepting everything he said. Even his words of taking her far away to a settlement didn't seem to be so upsetting. Unbidden thoughts started penetrating her mind. She didn't want to escape. She just needed to stay with Lucien, lean on his strength, bask in his gentle caresses. Lucien would take care of her.
Lucien was pleased by how easily Ariel could be influenced. It would help keep her from harm. He lifted her up into his strong arms and noticed the other Clansmen also heading into the shadows with their new companions. The Slave-master gave Lucien a nod, indicating the men were well-secured and would be watched closely. Content the captive men could cause no further trouble, Lucien slipped into the woods with Ariel.
Blankets had already been spread on a soft, secluded area of grass. His large saddle rested at the top edge of the make-shift bed and Ariel heard the horse shuffle in the leaves a few feet away. She started to regain her senses as Lucien laid her on the blankets, head almost touching the saddle. He started gently caressing her throat, her breasts and her panting rib cage. She whimpered as fear surfaced through her confused thoughts and she started struggling and scooting back off the blanket to get away from him. He quickly grabbed her ankle and she tried to uselessly protest with her bound hands. He kept talking in quiet tones, calming and reassuring her. Ariel could feel herself lapsing once again into the bewildering acceptance. She swung out at him one last time trying again to stop his stroking. "Quiet, Ariel." He took her bound wrists, lifted them high over her head and looped them over the horn of the heavy saddle.
Ariel started sobbing as she tried in vain to lift her wrists over the hook of the saddle. "Please stop. Don't hurt me," she begged.
"You need to settle down, little one. I'm only going to pleasure you. Stop your struggles. They won't help you. You know I have ways to calm you." Ariel whimpered and fought to control her ability to struggle harder. "My venom, for instance, can quiet and still you." Ariel froze. "You must realize ultimately, I will have you. You are mine. Acceptance will be so much easier." Even in her panic, Ariel thought he sounded like he was more sad than angry with her for fighting.
His dark gaze, voice and caresses were hypnotic. Ariel started to feel the now familiar, confusing, lethargic arousal throughout her body. She managed one more whispered, "Please."
"Ssh. Just feel, Ariel," he whispered back. Her nipples were starting to strain at the tight top she wore and the strip of cloth between her thighs was getting wet. Lucien looked down on his little treasure. She was beautiful, so fragile in structure, with the body of a sensuous woman. The striking color of her hair thrown so casually over her shoulder, trying to hide her full right breast... Oh, how he longed to unbind it, run his tapered fingers through its silk. A pleasure for another time and, he smiled to himself, there would be plenty of that.
For now, he continued to calm her with powers no mortal possessed. Using his nail, briefly extended to the claw he needed for this occasion, he sliced through the shoulder straps and down the front of her tight top. Her breasts already straining at the confinement of the covering, spilled into sight just as the moon came from behind the clouds. Ariel saw a faint red glow around his irises as his desire started to unleash. She felt a brief flash of fear that quickly dissipated with his calming voice.
As if far away, not a real part of her, she felt him undo the fastenings of her shorts and pull them slowly down her thighs, calves and off her small feet. She lay before him naked and serene, her shuddering stopped and her fear hidden deep within her mind. Slowly, Lucien started to explore every inch of her body with his hands, followed closely by his mouth. He started at her forehead, massaging with the tips of his strong fingers, working down to her jaw, her throat. His kisses followed the trail, stopping at her parted lips.
He traced the outline of her pout with his tongue as his hands made their way to her breasts. He started plucking gently at her nipples, his tongue thrusting between her lips in the same rhythm. Ariel felt a small buzz, almost like a slight shock. It was starting to make her shudder with hungry need. His lips were so soft and full against hers. She craved the feel of his tongue exploring the wet depths of her mouth, his taste spicy and intoxicating. His tongue became more demanding as the tips of his fingers started rolling her hardened buds and squeezing a little tighter. His fingers, pulling at her nipples in a rhythm matching his exploring tongue, were affecting her in ways her body had never felt before. Never had she experienced such a heightened sense of arousal. She felt the lips of her sex dripping with her juices as his kissing and stroking went blissfully on and on.
She whimpered softly in protest as his lips left hers to travel to her aching nipples. Still, his hands continued to move. As his lips started kissing, licking, suckling one nipple, one hand continued to keep the other at a tight peak. His other hand had fluttered and stroked down her flat stomach, pausing briefly to circle and explore her naval before traveling to slightly raised hip bones, then lower still. As he reached her heated sex, she sighed and willingly parted her thighs. She felt him stroke her pussy like a soft pelt, stroking, then a single digit parted the folds of her labia. Slick with passion, he started to press deeper, separating the puffy lips and entering her core.
Ariel moaned in abandonment as a second finger joined the first. She started thrusting her hips upward, needing more, needing to be filled with this wonderful
feeling. Lucien's thumb brushed her clit and she quivered, moaning softly. His mouth left her nipple with a trail of wet kisses following the path his hand had taken minutes before. As his mouth reached her sex, he knelt back. He lifted her legs over his broad shoulders spreading her wide. He gazed at her, exposed in the moonlight. With a slight dusting of curls on her mons, nothing was hidden from him.
The red deepened around his irises as his desire increased. His mouth sought to devour her. Tonguing her passage he inserted his fingers far up inside her warm, wet channel. Ariel was in ecstasy, gasping as his tongue started to lap. He gently nipped at her clit. She felt a pressure building within her needing to be released, her juices flowing freely from her channel to trail down between her ass cheeks. He kept on, driving her to the edge of madness. She was losing all control, giving herself to this beautiful stranger.
With a thrust of her hips, Lucien pressed the secret spot within her and she groaned, the orgasm ripping her to pieces. She started to cum over and over, she couldn't stop. Just as she knew she would die from so much pleasure, she felt a sharp sting at the juncture where her thigh met her pussy. As her body started to finally relax from the passionate climaxes, she saw Lucien, head bent to the slightly concave juncture, drinking her blood.
There was no pain as a sleepy, sexy feeling started to wash over her. She started to lose focus and became alarmed for a moment. Lucien sensing her fear, stroked her back to calmness. As he removed his fangs and sealed the wound shut with his tongue, he lay back on the blanket. He kissed her and Ariel had never felt such love. His strong arms lifted her up and curled her onto his body. Gently he began rubbing her back until she fell asleep.
Lucien was ecstatic. He felt the unfamiliar surge of the Vampire expressing its pleasure deep within his soul. He had tasted her and had to will himself to stop. He couldn't take a chance of lowering her ability to endure the long journey ahead. Never had he enjoyed such life-giving richness. Lucien wanted to roar his demand. Her thick, copper taste held a hint of spice. He was awed by his feelings. Lucien had found his mate.
Ariel's Desire: A Novel of Vampirism and Submission Page 3
