The Demon Master's Wife (Fantasy, Space Opera, Science Fiction Romance) (FORCED TO SERVE)

by McDonald, Donna

  Synar laughed even though fatigue was wearing him down. He guessed that it wasn’t often a Khalsa warrior swore a blood oath for bonding. Usually it was to kill a person or avenge someone. Maybe he’d been thinking about his relationship with Ania all wrong.

  “Swear the same to be my mate and I will rest peacefully for the rest of my life,” Synar demanded.

  “You would ask this of me after abandoning me during our mating week and rejecting me because I changed my appearance? I am not over those defections yet. Would you like to go sleep in your other quarters?” Ania asked sharply, putting her arm across him to belie the harshness of her words.

  Synar closed his eyes, but smiled. “No—I regret both those things and wish to never leave your side again. Lights out. Go to dark.”

  Synar rolled towards Ania, bringing their chests into contact. “These are my quarters now that you are here,” he said softly.

  “Go to sleep then, Synar,” Ania said softly.

  Smiling he did as she ordered, dropping instantly into a dreamless state.

  Chapter 22

  When Chiang walked into medical, he saw Boca massaging Gwen’s legs. She uttered words of release over them as she rubbed, and Gwen’s muscles quivered in obedience, relaxing under her hands. She was using an ancient technique Chiang hadn’t seen in live practice since his healer training.

  “Ki Cha Re? I was taught that it takes many years to master just the right technique of talking to muscles,” Chiang commented, walking over to look admiringly at Boca over Gwen’s bare backside.

  Boca ignored the entreaty in his gaze that went beyond his words and just kept on working, moving upwards to the larger female’s hips and across her ample rear. The Commander was strong in body and spirit. Boca smiled at the thought of Fener Sel dying at her hands, which she was sure would have happened if they had not rescued her.

  Then she chastised herself for thinking like a warrior instead of a healer. It was an ancient anger in her spirit that sought an outlet vicariously.

  “I have been practicing this technique more than three hundred Earth years. I probably mastered it before you were even born, Chiang,” Boca said.

  Chiang raised an eyebrow. “Really? Just how old are you?”

  Chiang heard Gwen snort in laughter from the table and immediately wanted to retaliate for her disrespect of his innocent question. He reached out to smack a bare butt cheek only to be blocked from it by Boca’s fast hands.

  “Do not touch the commander while I am working on her,” Boca said firmly, throwing his hand aside. “I am aware of your prior relationship with Commander Jet. She is purged of your energy now and needs to stay that way until she is healed. I should not have to tell you that.”

  “I do not have a relationship with Gwen,” Chiang said, irritated at having to explain his history with any female. At least, not unless it was necessary to bond with a current one. He made no promises to any of them. “Commander Jet and I are friends—only friends.”

  “Yes I saw just how friendly you had been yesterday when I filtered. Now please move away from her, Chiang. I need to come around to the other side of her body to finish,” Boca said, not bothering to meet his gaze as she argued.

  Gwen laughed and lifted her head from the bed. “As much as I enjoy seeing Chiang made uncomfortable about his history with me, the Greggor is right about our friendship. You do still need to watch him though. Lately, he’s really into older females—or so I hear.”

  Chiang glared at Gwen, who laughed at his expression and laid her head back down.

  “Well I should be safe from being a target of his lack of discrimination then,” Boca said. “I’m only three hundred fifty-five Earth years old. That’s fairly young.”

  Gwen snickered and kept her face hidden.

  “Gwen—I resent your implication. Sarinnea didn’t tell me how old she was or that she was Zade’s biological parent. I’m not into older females. I’m usually into younger ones—much younger ones,” Chiang said, then turned to see Boca’s knowing gaze on him as she stopped rubbing. He realized his mistake when he saw the derision flit through her already jaded eyes. “No—wait—I didn’t mean it to sound like that. Gwen goads me into speaking poorly.”

  “Speak any way you wish, but move out of my way so I can work,” Boca ordered, gratified when Chiang did so without further complaint.

  Boca walked around the commander’s body, noticing Chiang had stepped around to the other side of the table to keep on observing.

  “I am not indiscriminate in my relationships,” Chiang said, defending himself. “I am a normal unmated male with strong needs who only bonds with unmated females of like mind about it.”

  “Chiang, that’s the definition of indiscriminate,” Gwen teased.

  “Fine then. Shall we talk about how I wasn’t the only one?” Chiang asked, stung by Gwen’s teasing in front of Boca, and for reasons he wasn’t sure about or comfortable with exploring.

  “I was deeply connected to Commander Jet yesterday so I saw that too. She availed herself of several men for lack of access to her true mate,” Boca said. “Do you have a similar reason for remaining unmated, Chiang?”

  Chiang opened his mouth to find an excuse and then promptly closed it. When he spoke, he opted for honesty. “No. I have had access to potential mates. I just didn’t want one.”

  Boca bowed her head respectfully. “I respect that decision and completely understand. I feel the same way. Two mates in three hundred years have been enough.”

  “Do you even count the last one as a mate? The Lotharian held you prisoner,” Chiang denied fiercely, the thought of it igniting his anger.

  “I bear his energy still so it is not a choice for me,” Boca said. “Though Ania tells me the demon did cut off his other hand at her request. I enjoy imagining him having to have artificial limbs now. Actually, that reminds me—I need to dispose of the severed hand I kept. I cut the control device out of it yesterday. I don’t need the rest of the organic matter. Do you know if the Liberator has an incinerating device?”

  “What are you talking about?” Chiang asked.

  Gwen raised her head, eyes flashing with admiration.

  “You should have seen it, Chiang. Boca brought back her captor’s severed hand, the one he used to zap her. Ania cut it off and gave it to her,” Gwen said. “I didn’t get to see the real thing happening, but Boca showed me the hand. Served the bastard right.”

  Chiang paled at the story and weaved at the violence, looking around until he found a chair. As a healer, he had seen all manner of things, but cold violence always sickened him. It was why he went into engineering and had refused to train as a warrior. He preferred to use his Greggor strength in other ways.

  “You kept your captor’s severed hand? Why would you do such a thing?” Chiang asked, curious despite his aversion.

  “There was no time or means to cut it open while we were rescuing Gwen and the ambassador,” Boca said with shrug. “I had to bring it with me so I could learn from it.”

  “It’s a tough female who’s willing to cut open her ex-mate’s hand. Still interested in her now?” Gwen asked, looking at Chiang and grinning. “If you are, I’d be careful about making her upset. You might wake up and find something important missing.”

  “I never said I was interested in her. I was just being friendly to someone new,” Chiang defended, wondering if his explanation sounded as lame to them as it seemed to him.

  Gwen turned her face to the other side and looked at Boca, who was working magic on her hips. “You have the most amazing touch. I like you Boca, so I’m going to give you some advice. I know Chiang and he’s very interested. He’s emitting Greggor pheromones already.”

  Chiang stood and smacked Gwen smartly on her bare butt, relishing her startled complaining only to raise his face to Dorian’s angry glare over his action.

  “I knew I should have gone to eat and skipped coming to medical,” Chiang said, swallowing hard.

  Gwen l
aughed as she watched Dorian cross his arms and glare harder. Maybe there were a few upsides to having a male who looked like Zade hovering over you all the time.

  “Get him, Zade,” Gwen ordered, struggling not to laugh. “Chiang smacked me. Boca told him to leave me alone.”

  “I lost my temper. Gwen Jet has the most disrespectful tongue of any female I have ever known,” Chiang said, frowning.

  “Indeed,” Dorian agreed, uncrossing his arms. “I accept your defense. You may pass unscathed.”

  Chiang rolled his eyes dramatically and walked by Dorian, who was fighting not to grin. He listened to Gwen laughing hard as he walked away. At least she wasn’t the broken female from yesterday.

  “When you are well, you will pay for embarrassing me,” he called out in warning as he left.

  Dorian took the chair nearest the table and sat to watch what Boca was doing to Gwen with interest. He was wondering if he could imitate the massaging technique. He certainly enjoyed rubbing her body. Mating urge or not, his female was nice to touch.

  Gwen looked at Boca, whose eyes were twinkling with mirth. Apparently, the older female knew exactly how it was with her and Chiang, but still if it had been her doing the listening, she would want to hear it.

  “Seriously—Chiang is the second best male I have ever bonded with in my life. He spoke the truth about us being only friends now,” Gwen said.

  “If I were interested in finding a permanent bonding partner that would be good information,” Boca said softly with a smile. “At the moment, I am quite satisfied keeping to my own quarters. I am done with males for a while. Those on the Liberator will have to go on as before.”

  “This is a ship with a scarcity of females. You could have all the bonding partners you want any time you want. One day, what you endured will be behind you and you’ll want one again,” Gwen said in encouragement.

  “I appreciate your compassion for me, Commander, and I thank you,” Boca said, lifting her hands. “I am done now. How do you feel?”

  Boca flipped the sheet up over Gwen’s bare body and helped her turn to her back under it. She smiled as she watched Gwen wiggle under the covers.

  Then Gwen sat up and moved around testing everything. “I feel much better. Stronger. Thank you.”

  “You look almost like your old self. Did you thank Chiang for his help yesterday?” Dorian asked, fighting not to smile at her guilty look.

  Gwen blinked at Zade’s chastisement. “It was kind of hard to work in thanks around his flirting with Boca.”

  “Flirting?” Dorian asked, puzzled at the word. “Do I know about this? Explain the term.”

  Gwen snorted. “Can’t believe a Siren doesn’t know what flirting is, especially one who’s had two human mates. Flirting, Zade. There’s got to be a comparable term in your language. Chiang is trying to get Boca to show an interest in bonding with him.”

  “That’s because they are natural mates,” Dorian said reasonably, turning his head at Boca’s soft in-drawn breath. “You linked to each other yesterday. Well, I guess it was through both of us, but the point is that your spirits connected. Chiang is only acting on the unconscious information he received.”

  “I do not want another mate,” Boca said firmly, her voice shaking a bit at the matter-of-fact tone of the lieutenant’s voice.

  “Of course you don’t want a mate,” Dorian said in the most reasonable tone he could manage, seeing Boca’s trepidation for the genuine fear it was. After just gaining her freedom, the Sumerian female was not going to relinquish it to another male anytime soon.

  “Chiang’s rightness for you is just information you should know. It is always a blessing to identify a natural mate. Instinctively, Chiang is seeking you out, and my guess is he will be back, no matter how embarrassed he is at the moment. Should you ever desire a mate, I suggest you look at him first.”

  Boca blinked at Dorian but had nothing positive to say about his news. The last thing she wanted was to deal with another male who was interested in her. It made her want to lock herself into her room for the rest of the day, but she had promised to volunteer in medical.

  “I will check on you later, Commander. Good day, Lieutenant,” Boca said, fleeing.

  Gwen slid from the table after Boca was gone. She walked around to test her legs with the sheet covering only her front.

  Dorian smiled at the show from behind. “You have a very nice body, Gwen Jet. I especially like how rounded you are through the hips. So many females are not so endowed.”

  “My normal reaction to statements about the width of my hips is to tell the speaker to kiss my ass or bite me, but if I did that with you, I think you might actually act on the suggestions,” she said. “I’ll have to ask Sarinnea how to swear at you in Rylen.”

  Dorian smiled widely. “See? We are already reaching new levels of understanding with each other. Perhaps one day you will say that I am your friend as well as the best male you ever bonded with.”

  “Eavesdropping, Zade?” Gwen asked with a grin. “I don’t remember saying your name during that conversation. And we haven’t really done enough for me to know if you’re the best.”

  “Your voice does not lend itself well to whispering,” Dorian said with a smile. “And your referral to me was implied by the lack of embarrassment in saying what you did to Boca in my presence. You have my vow that I will be the best experience for you.”

  “Indeed,” Gwen said smartly, mocking both his favorite word and his dry tone.

  She gathered up her clothes from another table where they had been neatly folded for her.

  “Thanks for last night and this morning,” Gwen said. “I’ll thank Chiang later—and apologize.”

  “If the Greggor touches your shapely hips again, Boca will have another mate’s severed limb for her collection,” Dorian warned, giving Gwen’s body one more assessing glance. “He should be grateful my mating urge is gone or he might be dead right now.”

  “Stop being so male. I can defend myself, Zade,” Gwen said, turning her back on him. “If I was willing to shoot you, taking out Chiang wouldn’t even get a second thought. Give me five minutes and I’ll relieve you from duty.”

  “Take your time, Commander. I need to make some notes and close out the logs,” Dorian said calmly, fighting not to show his pleasure at her fierce statements. It was hard to believe a short time ago, he’d have chaffed at such harsh words.

  Gwen nodded and walked into the bathroom to change. She waited until she got inside the room to smile.

  Chapter 23

  Synar woke to see Ania sitting in the chair at the desk again, head bent over the books in study.

  “You were really tired,” Ania said, smiling. “Dorian came by to report, but you didn’t even roll over.”

  Synar blinked, stretched and sat up. “My mind is much clearer after resting. Praise the creators.”

  “Good—then we can talk,” Ania said. “I’ve come up with a plan. I just want you to hear me out before you start telling me how it won’t work.”

  “Does this plan include bonding time before or after?” Synar asked, rising to walk to her.

  “Both—now focus on my words,” Ania said dispassionately. “For the plan to work best, I need to have your energy present in me and easily readable.”

  “I like it already,” Synar said, peering over her shoulder. “What’s the part I won’t like?”

  Ania laid out her plan, staring into Synar’s eyes that grew wide in horror. She reminded herself that his reaction was the normal one and that her pleasure over her plan was not. She bit back her urge to accuse him of being afraid to deal with the situation.

  “Is what you suggest even possible?” Synar asked, his voice tight with apprehension.

  “With your brother’s permission—yes,” Ania said softly.

  “Why would Conor ever agree to such a thing?” Synar asked in disbelief.

  “Creatures who seek power over others can never have enough. The need for more is like a
blood sickness, driving them to rash acts,” Ania said softly. “Malachi and his kind readily agreed to the demon conversion, sure they would find a way to surmount the contract with their own will. Their overconfidence was predictable and ultimately their downfall. Even you have said that Conor would probably do anything to get a chance to control Malachi.”

  “Ania—my life force quivers to hear you speak so knowledgeably about such things,” Synar said, walking away from her. “What do you know of the lust for power?”

  Ania turned from the books and faced her chair towards Synar, who was now looking for a change of clothes.

  “As I tried to tell you before when you refused to hear me, Malachi and I have a lot in common,” Ania said flatly. “The creators saved me from his fate—and Conor’s. They educated me until I gave up the pursuit of power completely. Some creatures are redeemable, but it takes a lot of willingness. I was someone who ultimately proved willing to be changed.”

  “You are the most enlightened and kind being I have ever met. I cannot even imagine you being like either of them,” Synar told her. “Why should I not just have Dorian use his Khalsa skills on Conor?”

  Ania looked at her hands and then back at Synar, who was waiting. “Do you want the evil to extend to Dorian? No matter who kills Conor, you will still be losing another member of your family and have to live with his death. I would rather not kill Conor if we don’t have to take that level of action. Think of what I am suggesting as putting him in prison until he can start being reformed like your father wished.”

  Synar dropped everything in his hands to stare at Ania in shock.

  “You are advocating mercy, yet I am suddenly filled with an enormous sense of dread,” he said, his voice tight as he fought the clenching in his gut. “Why?”

  Ania sighed. How could she explain to someone like Liam Synar what had taken her nine hundred years to learn for certain? Physical death only set a creature back on the wheel of life to be reborn to suffer again more quickly. Better to learn all you could while you breathed and hoped the creators of all granted you peace when you died.