by Ann Raina
“You know I can’t.”
“Then leave!” He wiped spittle off his lips. “I don’t want to be reminded of my idiotic decision over and over again!”
She let out her breath in a desperate sigh, hands put on her hips.
“Okay, you win. I’m the nasty bitch that led you astray. Every minute was a lie and we both have to deal with it.”
“Did you plan to kill Felberi?”
Sajitar watched her pale. She opened her mouth for a reply that did not come.
“Tell me, Ray, was that part of the plan you and Wang had?”
“No!” Rayenne stepped closer, thought better and retreated to a safe distance. Sajitar raised his brows in silent mockery. “I would’ve put him to sleep once we reached Belson Park. I didn’t want him to die, but Sananda did not believe me.” Her shoulders sagged as she stared at the floor. Her lips twisted at the painful memory. “She did it all wrong. All those pursuers would have been unnecessary, but she did not trust me.”
“Now she does. I hope you’re happy with what you’ve accomplished.”
“My happiness has gone around the corner and I can’t reach it.”
Sajitar closed the ring around his neck, unwilling, but knowing that time might run short. Rayenne’s gaze was upon him. She flinched and pity was back in her eyes. As he had been doing since the moment of his imprisonment, he wondered how much of her affection had been an act, a masterful piece of performance to keep him close to her. It was unbearable to be a part of a scheme he had not been able to look through.
“What’s that in your mouth?” she finally asked.
Sajitar hung his head. The rush of anger left him hollow and he wanted her gone to try and forget what she meant to him. He played with the shackles in his hands.
“She does what she can to make me crazy for her.” He pointed at the yellow stone. “It’s Talagg-bark.”
“I’ve never heard of it. What’s it for?”
Sajitar could not help but smile at her naïveté.
“Do you think that she leaves it to chance how men fall at her feet? Talagg-bark makes any man horny within an hour. And horny and being imprisoned…” He grimaced. “You get the picture.”
“Oh.”
“Yes, there were times when I felt better, thank you for asking.” He turned away from her, putting the soft rings around his wrists. When she did not leave, he glanced over his shoulder. “Would you want me like this? Bound to immobility with you in charge?”
As he had expected, Rayenne was torn between saying yes and her moral philosophy. She took a deep breath, pressing her lips tight.
“I don’t need any…playroom accessories to get excited. You have a gorgeous body and a good character. I don’t need more.”
“It’s nice listening to you after you sold me out to my enemy.”
“You are right, I made my choices and I have to live with them.”
Sajitar turned back to her, trying to find out if he had been wrong about her for weeks. He stared into her beautiful eyes.
“Will you truly leave me to her clutches? Didn’t it mean anything to you what we lived through in the woods?”
Rayenne hardened her face to his pleas. He felt the distance grow and stepped back from the bars, nodding, yet unable to hide his disappointment.
She cleared her throat.
“As I said, the decision was already made.”
“Oh, yes, one bitch delivered me to another. I really am a lucky man.”
His reluctance fell like a veil when he met with Sananda in one of her many bedrooms. He had not seen this one before, or maybe the expensive decoration of silver and dark red was new, illuminated by an unseen source. The drapes were down, the rest of daylight excluded from viewing Sananda Wang in a wisp of satin softly playing around her slim body down to her ankles. She was barefoot and approached him like an elegant cat on a narrow fence, dancelike and sure of every move. Instead of perfume she used her looks, moves, and words of seduction to make him weak in the knees. The door closed behind him and Sajitar was already down on the bed, caught in her web of lust and devotion. His heart raced and in his mind he had her already undressed.
“Welcome back, Sajitar, my most wonderful lover.” She pulled the net from his face and threw it away over her head. “I cannot summon words to describe how I barely survived without you being here.” She kissed his lips, sensuously exploring his mouth with her tongue, tasting the rest of the Talagg-bark. He pulled her close, lost in a trance only Sananda could inflict upon him. Kissing, breathing, and touching were the only things he noticed. He moaned deep in his throat to find her so willing and so giving. He needed the touch and the relief and to reach it he was eager to please her. When he turned, his arms were tied to the bed and Sananda pulled at the silvery ropes. He grimaced when his wrists were stretched against the headboard.
“How did you do this?”
Sananda laughed a low, merry laugh that made him feel good down to his toes.
“I am the master of this room, my love, and everything here listens to my commands.” She sat between his legs and started massaging his feet. “Hmm, I had almost forgotten how strong and muscled you are.” Her hands traveled up his shins while she kept eye contact. “So perfect. So adorable.” She reached his knees and went higher. Sajitar held his breath. There was no doubt how excited he was, and then with one sweep, the loin cloth was gone. He begged her with his body to satisfy him, but Sananda had other things on her mind. “I will make you happy, Saji, just give me some time.” She caressed the brand, sunken in reverie. “You suffered it like a real noble man. I admired you, Saji, and you went away. Left me broken hearted.” When she looked up, pain and anger mixed. “You had no reason and you gave me no explanation. You just went like a betrayed husband.”
He summoned his strength to answer.
“I had not agreed to get branded like an animal. I didn’t want it, but you did not even ask.”
Her fingers lingered on the circles and letters. She pouted looking up to him.
“What more can a man want than being loved so much it shall be forever?”
Sajitar’s heart started a painful gallop. Her tone indicated that she had already thought long about how this evening would take place. Did I say something wrong? What is Sananda up to that I have not anticipated?
“You could have loved me without that. I made it easy for you and you always wanted more.”
Sananda’s smile held much more than amusement about his words. He knew she was thinking hard in that beautiful head of hers and he was unsure whether he would love or dread what she had in mind.
“That’s the privilege of women in general. We get what we want and think of something else. Life’s much spicier with new challenges, don’t you think?”
She slipped from the bed.
“Don’t dare to hurt me once more, Sananda! I swear I will make you pay for it!”
Like a dancer, Sananda went through the room, laughing and singing softly to herself. She turned and swung her arms, presenting her body in a unique way. Sajitar’s mouth went dry. She had a perfect balance between upper and lower body, though she was petite. Her fingers played an unseen instrument in the air and all the time she smiled and sang as if she had forgotten about the man on her bed. Standing on tiptoe she reached for something on a high shelf and when she found it, she turned and waved at him.
Sajitar was anxious she might leave him. Due to the Talagg-bark juggling his hormones, he had no choice but to hope for satisfaction, no matter how. The urge in his groin grew with every minute and even worse while watching Sananda dance to the music. He wanted to command her to come to him or get up and force her down on the bed. He could not do it, and the more he was frustrated, the more he wanted her to do what he bid. He craned his neck to find out where the ropes were fastened, only to realize that she could hold B-horses with the locks at the end. He was torn between pride to be considered such a stallion and helplessness that he could not change his situation if
he wanted.
She stopped to drink and came back to him, lips wet and inviting. Sajitar lifted his head to expect her kiss. She tasted of some sweet fruit and he wanted more. She withdrew, not without gently kissing his freshly shaven cheek.
“Not so much at a time, Saji.” Her clothes fell to the ground soft like feathers. “Your ticket to the moon is valid, but the spaceship will take off a few minutes later. Some preparations have to be made.”
“The spaceship is already late,” he tried to joke. “Ground personnel should hurry with the checklist.”
“Already on its way.” She laughed and held a head harness before his face. His smile vanished. “Oh, I know, it’s not what you expected, but conversation is only interesting for so long. I want you to concentrate on what I do with you.” She kissed his cheek and ear. “Come, Saji, you want to play along. I know it.”
“No, Sananda, I want to have a chance to say stop.”
“No need to. I promise to behave.” Her eyes told of the many wonders of love and lust. She was used to be convincing and when he hesitated she caressed him down to his groin. “You want this. You want me to go down on you and shoot you up to the moon a second later.”
He swallowed his doubts in a rush of craziness and nodded.
“I knew you would be reasonable, my love.”
“Wait! What’s that in the middle?”
“A gag with Talagg-bark and a center piece to keep your tongue down. No talking anymore.” Sananda pulled the strings over Sajitar’s head before he could think again. The gag settled in place and she closed the strings behind his head. “Nice look. Don’t fret, Saji. Just enjoy. I keep my promises.” She caressed his cheek, then crawled down toward the foot of the bed to fasten his ankles. Sajitar did not protest, absorbed in watching her snug derrière. She crawled backward and purposely touched him. He twitched, caught in the game and hoping to get more.
Sananda smiled at him and he realized he might get more than he asked for.
He wanted to call stop and let me think about it, but there was her hot mouth over his cock, her hands on his balls and still he got a front row look at her buttocks. He flexed his fists, torn between simply enjoying what she dished out and fighting how much his body wanted to be taken. A tiny voice urged him to stay tough and not let her win, but the attack of lust ruled and the effect of the Talagg-bark left him no choice.
His eyes were wide when she placed her derrière on his face, tempting him, allowing him her scent but not her touch. He moaned and pulled at the bonds to no avail.
Sananda giggled like a girl playing her favorite game.
“I knew you’d want me, Saji. You always did. And I can’t tell you how much it excites me to see you strain for my love.”
She turned around to sit across his legs, teasing him by licking his glands while she kept eye contact. Her small teeth showed and he watched her nip and tug at his balls, completely drawn to her despite his attempt at staying cool. The sensation was incredible. He did not want it to end. She gently bit him and rolled her tongue around his cock like an experienced whore and yet she was so much more. Rich men would have paid her thousands of credits if she had been at their service, but she only took men she adored.
Sajitar panted. He fought for air while Sananda used lips and tongue and hands to drive him crazy. He was already dizzy and yet yearning for more. Harder, he wanted to plead, but only guttural sounds escaped his throat.
“I set the rhythm,” she warned him when she placed her petite body over his straining cock to ease him inside of her. He was crazed and close to collapsing. If she talked to him, he could not tell through the rush of blood. His cock seemed to have a life of its own, craving satisfaction. Sananda still smiled, put her hands on his belly and stretched as far as she could. His cock hit her cervix and that small touch was enough to push him over the edge. He exploded inside her and would have screamed if he had been able to. He did not hear anything she said or demanded. He could not say afterward whether he had hurt her.
When she left him he was on the verge of unconsciousness but satisfied. He knew that Sananda had him back for good.
The question remained whether he could stand what she wanted to do with him.
Chapter Thirteen
Rayenne searched for an occupation to digress from the single thought of how to leave Wang’s palace without raising suspicion. So far she’d had no luck. There was no reason to travel back to the city and if she did, she would not know where Sajitar was kept. The place of Wang’s abode was secret and remote so she still had no clue how to leave and find it again. She already had the idea of a transparent cloak that shielded the palace and the surrounding land from searching eyes. There had to be a reason—however strange—that neither police nor other master criminals had ever detected Sananda in her lair.
Sananda had been careful not to let Rayenne know anything about the ride. Before she even thought about the drink she’d received in her coach, she had already been asleep. Realizing that Sananda would trust no one, Rayenne had refrained from curses and complaints. If she wanted to play the game she had to obey Sananda’s rules.
From her luxurious suite, Rayenne went for a walk through the large garden to enjoy the sun and maybe find out by the surrounding hills where she was or what kind of machine worked to hide the whole place. No one hindered her and she took it to be a good sign to walk free. However, the guards were present wherever she went. She could not tell if they were out to watch her, but it was obvious she would not go anywhere unnoticed. The coaches waited in a large barn, the B-horses were sheltered in paddocks larger than small towns she had seen. Tessla and Bunty were in one of them and the peaceful sight of the two companions standing close to each other made her smile.
She went to caress them when her gaze fell upon a man on the path to the left of her, slowly sweeping old leaves into a heap. He was tall and lean, his hair dark and short, uncovering large ears. He wore a light yellow shirt and close-fitting pants that ended at his knees. She stood rooted to the ground. Logic said it could not be him, but her heart wanted it to be him. The tunic he wore was mud-stained and fringed at the short sleeves. Rayenne doubted it was the latest in gardener fashion, but he wore the clothes with a stance that said he did not care for his looks.
She had watched Thannis for weeks in the village to eventually find out about his past. She had had no success until she left the village with Sajitar, but she knew his looks and bearing perfectly. And this man with the tunic was either Thannis or some close relative.
When the man turned and looked up, a smile blossomed on his face.
“Thannis?” Rayenne started walking without thinking. “Why are you here?”
“I?” The man stopped sweeping and put a hand on his chest, looking over his shoulder in mock surprise. “I’m Ranien, the gardener.” He left the wheelbarrow and got closer, opening his arms as if to embrace all the plants around. “Keeper of herbs and some lore about the woods and what grows around.”
“That’s a mighty title.” She could not help returning his smile. A part of her was disappointed. She longed for a friendly soul.
“Yes.” He laughed and bowed to her. “At your service. If you have questions about this garden, I’m your man.”
“I’m Ray. Nice to meet you.”
“Very nice indeed.” He cocked his head to eye her, smiling impishly. “You are a guest of the lady, I suppose? Have you seen the wonders of this garden already?”
“No, I came out to look after my B-horse. We’ve been through the woods for a long time and I wanted to make sure he’s okay.”
“You’ve traveled long, I’ve heard.” He propped both hands on the handle of his rake and gave her a look of undivided attention. Rayenne could not help but compare him to an eager yet innocent child. “Was it adventurous? Compelling?”
“We sure had some adventures, yes. But it was no journey for the sake of traveling. We just wanted to make it through.”
“You had company, I understa
nd.”
“Yes, I came with Sajitar.”
Ranien rolled up his eyes and did not even try to hide his displeasure. Seeing her quizzical gaze, he sighed.
“Sajitar left the premises and caused a lot of unrest. The lady disapproved of his departure and undertook quite a few steps to get him back. So it was on you, finally, to bring him home. My congratulations. You saved us much trouble.”
“Why?” Rayenne kept her face blank. This man appeared to know much more than she would have credited him, so she would learn what she could.
“Haven’t you heard?”
She shook her head and he sighed.
“Saji was her favorite. He had everything he could have wanted and still he fled the premises to go undercover somewhere. All the other people living and serving her suffered a lot because of his behavior.” He ogled her as if to judge her position toward Sajitar and the lady. “Did he not tell you anything?”
“He spoke little about his time here. I think it’s a nice place. Beautiful. Her home is more of a palace than a house.”
The gardener nodded vigorously.
“It’s a marvelous estate. The building has many rooms, some large, some small, and even a separate wing with rooms only for the lady.” He wiggled his brows. “No one goes there without her special permission.”
“I see.”
He frowned and bent to have a closer look at her.
“Why did you call me Thannis?”
“I told you, I mistook you for someone else.”
“Where did you meet this other man?”
Rayenne pondered what to tell him. The resemblance to Thannis was as obvious as rain was wet, but she hesitated to reveal her knowledge.
“Some time ago, in the woods.”
“And he looked like me?”
“In a way, yes.”
“Older or younger?”
