by Terri Pray
She hissed through the gag, the first sound of protest she'd made in over a day. With a low growl she tried pulling away from his hold, but the grip in her hair made it pointless.
“Foolish, and just when I'd thought you knew better. Still, it gives me a reason to remind you of your place. Once we are in my home, the training will be so much easier. I'll have my tools, the chains, the guards to help keep you in place. Oh, at times it will amuse me to have you serve them, just as you did Brian last night. I might watch them, observe as you writhe beneath them.” His hand twisted, lifting her head up from the floor, his free hand moving away from her cunt only to slap open handed against the soft exposed lips.
“Slut,” he growled.
Pain lanced through her body, hips rocking with the blow, eyes wild above the thick gag that stole her ability to cry out fully. Little more than a low whimper found passage through the thick padding.
“You'll welcome this soon enough. Your body will beat in time to the blows I will caress your flesh with. You will be unable to be with a man who cannot control you, or give you the dark pleasures you will crave.”
He lied, he had to be lying.
His fingers slapped against her cunt, twice more, hard, fast, barely giving her a moment to catch her breath before the next blow landed. Three more times his fingers laid fire into her body. With each of the five strikes her hips jerked, thighs tightening, her body crying out for something she wanted to deny, ignore and protect against.
The small hidden button of her clit throbbed, craving his touch, but all he did was slap against her lips again and again, until she fought to keep from curling up into a ball.
“Hear it, the slickness, the way you're so wet now that my fingers come away coated with your need?” He leaned forward, growling into her ear. “You want to shut it out, shut me out, but you know you crave the feel of my cock in your cunt, making you squirm as your body shudders, surrendering to my control.”
Liar. Her mind screamed the word.
“You'd have bitten him— Brian I mean— if I had let him take your mouth. Without the right sort of gag the temptation would have been far too much for you.” One finger pressed into her core, seeking. “You know what you would have done. Even though it would have cost you your life, you'd have still done it.”
Her walls tightened on his finger, hips rocking backward, that unnamed need burning through her body. A soft tap changed her world, the need growing into a raging desire. What had he done?
“Ah, you liked that, hmm, my pet?”
Common sense demanded she deny it, shake her head, growl in protest, instead she whimpered, arching back against him.
Tap, tap, tap. His finger pressed against that small hidden spot within her core, fanning the need into an inferno, her thighs tight, hips pressing back against him, teeth deep in the gag that filled her mouth. Gods, what was she? A slut, a whore. It didn't matter, as long as she gained release from the drive that had been forced into life.
“Already it begins.”
Tap, tap, tap. Her hips rolled, thighs taut. She needed something, an answer that only he could give. A growl of protest became a whimper of need.
“Soon little slut, very soon. You're not quite ready for your first release at my hands.” That wicked finger pulled free from her body, her cunt quivering, rippling with a slow demand for completion. “You will reach it, but through my touch, with my body merged into yours.”
Please, don't leave me like this.
The slick head of his cock nudged between her swollen lips, forcing sharply into her sex, filling her without warning. The grip on her hair ended, his hands leaning forward, cupping her breasts, fingers closing on her ripe nipples, twisting as he rolled his hips. She groaned, rocking back to meet him, the drive, a monster he had created. Her body ignored the cry of sense to deny him, fight him, to do anything to keep her from becoming the creature that now writhed beneath his body.
Too late.
Pain, pressure, the feel of his nails biting into her nipples, his cock driving against her core. No mercy, no thought now for anything other than the pleasure she gave him. She couldn't fight him, no way couldn't ignore what he was doing to her. Even if she could, Celeste knew she wouldn't have done, not now, not this time.
“More my pet, so much more to show you.” He growled, twisting the trapped buds in his cruel grip, his balls slapping against her cunt with each harsh thrust.
No, no more. She couldn't do this!
Panic gripped her soul, as a pressure built between her thighs. Blood rushed through her body with a speed she could not prevent.
“Come for me.” His words were little more than a snarl.
Her vision glazed. The heat was slick between her thighs, while pressure built until it crashed through her body with a shuddering release of desire that stole her breath. The rush that continued until she felt his cock swell against her tight walls, coating her inner being with the thick strands of his own shuddering passion.
CHAPTER FIVE
Time blurred. Day and night had no meaning. The juice had been all but forced down her throat moments after the passion had claimed her body and soul. She'd drifted through the day, into the night and the following day. Her dreams had been frightening things, images that made no sense, shadows forms. The Raven, Davien, her sister— even Donald from the village— they'd blended into one face. Dark, mercilessly cruel talons had torn into her flesh, only to reform her into a creature she barely recognized.
They'd moved. At some point she'd been put back into the chest, the gag back in place after she'd been given a little water. Darkness. The straps had been secured about her body, with no way to break free. She'd been locked within the dreams, and held within the confines of the chest. One day, two, it might have been as much as three days by the time the chest was opened and a pair of strong hands lifted her out from the straps, setting her on her knees on the stone floor.
Lights, candles and oil lamps shed their own circles of illumination across the room. She blinked, trying to clear her eyes and mind from the haze of the trip. He'd only given her one, or maybe two doses of the odd tasting juice, but it had been enough for someone like her, a woman who had never before touched drugs or even alcohol.
He didn't speak at first, giving her a moment to become used to the surroundings. The gag had already been removed, but her jaw hurt. Her mouth was dry from wearing the item for such a long time.
Luxury. If she'd thought Lord Brian's home had reflected wealth, then Davien's showed a source of income a hundred times higher. Family resources? Rents? She'd find out eventually. With money, often came arrogance and mistakes. She'd seen the arrogance already in several forms. Typical of the type of men who tried to control lands that they had no business owning.
“You've weathered the trip well, little slut.” His gaze lingered on her body for a moment. “You'll need a little more time to recover. the poppy juice should be clear of your system by tomorrow, from what I was told about the potion.”
Great, he'd not used it before, or had he? Her mind refused to fill in the blanks left by the trip. Memory gaps created an unsettling feeling that left her wondering what had been real and what had been nothing more than the dreams of a drug clouded mind.
“Alex, get in here, wench!” he called out.
Alex? His wife? Mistress? No, more likely another woman in the same position she had found herself in. A slave in his hands. At least she wouldn't be alone, there'd be someone she could plan with, find a way to escape. Two heads were better than one, or so she had been told.
A door opened somewhere behind her, followed by soft steps that brought a young woman into line of sight. She wore the grey and white of a servant. Her brown hair had been bound and pinned up beneath a white mop cap. It was simple dress for a woman used to hard work. “You called for me, milord?” She offered a quick curtsey, her gaze lowered, hands folded before her.
“Yes, the girl. She will need a bath and feeding.”
> “Standard training, milord?”
“Aye, she's to move as a beast, no speech permitted to her.”
No, this couldn't be happening. A woman who helped him with the training? She'd fallen into a hell hole, a living nightmare.
“Understood, milord. I will see to her care at once. When that is done where did you want her taken?”
“The cage in my room. I will be overseeing the majority of her training myself. Oh, and feel free to explore her. I want her to become used to the touch of women as well as men. Though nothing more than basic touch for now, Alex. I'm not going to rush matters with her.” His gaze finally shifted from the kneeling woman to the maid. “Her name is Celeste, an Irish lass I picked up on my travels. She's been dosed with poppy juice over the last few days.”
“For the trip, Milord?”
“Indeed. She's coming out of it now. I expect, by tomorrow, she will be ready for training on a more in-depth basis. She's a pretty little thing, prideful, though, and observant. Do not let your guard down around her.” He leaned down, stroking his fingers through her unbound hair. Only now did she even begin to recall she was nude in front of this new comer. “In time, I believe she will be a well trained little slut.”
She wanted to close her thighs, curl up into a ball on the floor, hide her body from the woman and Davien both. Yet she didn't move.
“She's different than most of the women I've seen you with, milord. I've not seen hair that color before. Almost like the moon.” Alex murmured, taking a step toward the kneeling woman. “It covers her mound also, like a fine down.”
She colored, shifting on her knees at the intense look the other woman continued to give her. Men stared like that, women normally tempered their gaze and never looked on other females in such a manner.
“Aye, unusual, considering the coloring her family has.”
“And her eyes, milord. They are like yours.”
He nodded, looking away from Celeste, a small shrug dismissing the comment. “Get her cleaned up and fed. I have business to attend to before I call it a night. If she fights you, then you know what to do.”
“Yes, milord. At once.” Alex took a step closer to her. The woman's dark gaze hardened, the soft tone vanished from her voice. “Follow me, bitch. On your hands and knees, head up, in silence. I won't tolerate any dilly dallying.”
* * * *
Warm water caressed her body. She'd not been permitted to lounge in the large tub, but had been forced to remain on her hands and knees whilst the other woman had washed her down. Any hopes she'd had of the knowledge another woman lived in the home had died with the way she had been treated. Firm touches, a sharp tone, Alex brooked no sign of disobedience from Celeste from the very start.
She'd submitted to the washing down, her head lowered as she knelt in the tub, her long hair wetted through and scrubbed by Alex's firm fingers. The massage had helped seep away some of the headache Celeste had become aware of. That, at least, had been one small blessing.
Opulent furnishings, thick rugs, well lit rooms. No expense spared even in the bathing room. An entire room dedicated to his toilet, a large bath, buckets of water that must have been heated by a fire, only to be carried up by hand. Thick, creamy soap instead of the harsh lye she had been used to. Under different circumstances she'd have enjoyed the feel of scented suds that slid over her skin.
“A farm girl, that's what the driver said you were. Must be mistaken, I can't imagine a working woman having skin like this.” Alex muttered, washing Celeste down with warm water. “Maybe your father was a land owner of some sort. Jack doesn't like the Irish, so even your lords there are nothing more than farmers to him.”
Jack might not have liked her people, but most of them didn't like the English either— not after some of the fighting and drunken talk she'd listened in on over the years. They were to blame for everything.
No, that wasn't fair. Not by a long shot. Given the chance to fight she knew most of her neighbors would jump on any reason. From weddings to funerals they had drunk too much then looked for a fight.
Water beaded across her skin, sliding down her breasts to gather at the tips of crinkled nipples. It tugged, pulling on her flesh, wicked fingers teasing her body into a slow simmer.
“Hm, His Lordship put you to use then, and from the way you're fighting the need to roll your hips I'd say you'd enjoyed that time or two with him.” Alex swatted one hand down against the wet taut skin of her bare ass.
She cried out, arching with the strike, turning to look at the woman. What had she done to deserve being hit?
“You'll get used to this, pain and pleasure both will come when he wishes.” Alex rubbed her hand over Celeste's stinging ass. “Might as well accept it now.”
She growled, the sound slipping free from behind her clenched teeth. Bad enough he hit her. She wasn't going to take it from a servant.
“Feisty aren't you,” Alex smirked, slapping her hand down against Celeste's ass twice over. “You can fight it all you want, slut. It won't work. I've seen him bring a dozen women in and more. They've all fought him for a moment or two, even as long as a week, but after that they've become his. Body, mind and soul.”
Alex ignored the low warning growl Celeste sent her way. Instead of pulling back, Alex slid two fingers down between Celeste's thighs and brushed them over her swelling lips. Her breasts felt heavy, taut, nipples throbbed as if small fingers caught the tips between them, only to twist with each beat of her heart. Reacting to Davien's touch had been one thing, but this growing heat that rippled through her core from the smack of a woman's hand was another entirely. It was wrong. Women did not touch each other in a sexual manner.
“Slick and warm. Good. He might want to use you a little later.”
“Bitch.” The word gained life before she could stop it. All the anger and frustration of the past few days were forced into those few letters.
“Now that wasn't the wisest of moves. Speaking is forbidden to you.”
Just another woman, what could Alex truly do to her? With a snarl Celeste pushed free of the bath, launching herself at the maid, nails racking for the other woman's face. How dare she lay hands on her like that!
In a tangle of grey and white fabric the two women rolled across the floor, a scream of pain adding a measure of satisfaction to Celeste's world. Her nails had found their mark, five lines of blood raised on the woman's cheek. As one form they tangled a path across the room, Alex screaming for aid from Celeste's blows. Years spent working with the animals, kneading dough, taking care of the farm, had left Celeste with a strength few women could have laid claim to without growing to an unnatural bulk. Now she put that to good use.
“Whore!” Alex screamed, reaching out for Celeste's face only to have her hands smacked to one side as Celeste grabbed the other woman's wrists, forcing them to the floor as she straddled the servant with her own dripping form.
“Maybe I am forced to play the part of the whore, but I'll not be taking such words from you again!”
“He'll strip the skin from your back!” Alex spat up into her face.
“It'll be worth it, I'll play no slave or whore to a woman.” Pride, anger, fury, frustration, the need for revenge— it no longer mattered what fueled her actions. “If you lay hands on me again I'll snap your damn wrists before I wring the life from your body.”
The look in her eyes or the woman's blood under her nails, it didn't matter what brought the fear to Alex's face, as long she remained mindful of this moment. Iron creaked as the door opened. Firm strides slapped against the stone before his hand grasped her by the back of the neck, throwing her to the floor in a wet heap.
“What devilry persists here?” He turned, his icy fixing upon her shaking form. He'd punish her, but she didn't care. This once she'd disobey him, break the rules, just as long as it kept Alex from touching her again.
“She spoke and struck out at me, milord,” Alex explained, making no move to rise from the floor. “I was bathing h
er, and gave her a slap or two, then touched her. She thought she had the right to protest. She spoke, then launched herself at me.” The woman touched the lines of blood down her face. “She marked me, milord. Attacked and maimed me. She's nothing but a bitch in need training.”
“I see.” He didn't look away from the woman on the floor. “And you were unable to control her?”
“She's a savage, milord. Not taught the ways of decent women.”
Decent? What decent woman would be caught in such a place as this? Not of their own free will. A mockery of the word. With a haughty smile Celeste looked brazenly at him, lifting her chin.
“A savage she may be, but she's proud of what she managed to do to you.” Davien spoke softly, his words carrying on a chill breeze. “However, she broke my rules in speaking.”
“And in attacking me, milord.”
“No, in that she broke no command of mine. I said nothing in how she was to treat you, or others.” He shrugged, only now turning his gaze toward Alex. “If you cannot prevent a mere slave from striking you, then perhaps I have misjudged your ability to handle such matters.”
“Milord!” Alex tried straightening her clothing as she rose from the floor, tugging the skirt and top back into place, stray curls of dark brown hair loose about her neck. “I swear to you, I have never knowingly let you down on any such matter as this. Give me a second chance to prove I can aid you, please.”
Celeste frowned, but kept silent, watching the other woman closely. Desperation tainted every word, each breath. What did he have over Alex that she would plead to be a part of such evil? Wealth, power, something of that ilk had been the key to bend the woman so willingly to his cause. Nothing else made sense.
“Denied, you've shown me your lack of ability here, and I will not waste time on giving you a second chance when such a mistake might cost me the girl.” He spoke almost as if Celeste were a prized mare, a treasure he had paid good money for and refused to ruin her breeding potential under the care of an ill trained groom. “Now get out. I have a small matter of discipline to attend to now, thanks to your foolishness.”
