City Of Tears (14 page)

Desire pulsed through her core as she stared into his eyes. He explored her entire torso, not just her breasts, stroking and teasing. Could those intense blue rings hypnotize? She couldn’t drag her gaze away. Her breasts ached, and her nipples tingled, echoing the throbbing in her core. He reached beneath her skirt and dragged her panties down to her knees, his fingers lingering against her skin.

“I can smell your musk. I know you want me. Why do you shrink from my touch?”

“I don’t know you.” She panted. “My body may … respond to certain stimuli, but I don’t want this.”

He nudged her thighs apart and pushed two fingers into her slick passage. “Really?” He pulled back and thrust harder, rocking her against Jaden’s chest. “I can tell how much you despise this.” Slipping his hand out from under her skirt, he sucked her cream off his long fingers. “Pleasure or pain?”

“What? I don’t understand.”

“I am aroused by either. Which do you prefer?”

“I prefer to be released. This need not go any farther.”

Both men laughed.

“We’ve barely begun,” Pern said. “Force goes more naturally with pain. If you want pleasure, lie down on your back and kick off your panties.”

She hesitated.

He won’t ask again. Unless you enjoy pain, do as he says.

Jaden released her arms, and she turned, lying back across the desk. The smooth, cool surface teased her skin as she wiggled out of her panties. Pern returned to his chair, his gaze moving over her naked breasts.

“Now lift your skirt and bend your knees, so I can watch Jaden touch you.”

Without hesitation, she raised her skirt to her waist and bent her knees. Jaden was like a silent puppet, moving at Pern’s command. She stared into the Stirate’s eyes as Jaden caressed her body. Jaden’s fingers were warm and skillful. He rolled her nipples with one hand, while he teased her folds with the other.

Why was Pern contenting himself with such a passive role? She was spread before him, willing, ready, yet all he did was watch.

You know nothing of true power, silly girl. You are his for the taking whenever he wants. You surrendered too easily
.

She snapped her legs closed and covered her breasts with her hands. “I can’t do this. I’m not a whore!”

Pern stood, leering down at her. With a soft chuckle, he splayed his fingers across her belly. “You are a whore. You just haven’t accepted it yet.”

Insulted by his nonchalance, she tried to sit. He easily held her in place.

“If you’re hungry, you must beg food from the crew. When you’re ready to sleep, you must convince someone to share his bed. What do you have to barter except your body on a ship filled with men?”

“I’ll sleep in the lab.”

“The lab belongs to Jaden.”

Ensley’s gaze flew to Jaden as a slow smile parted his lips. Had he done this intentionally? He’d encouraged her to resist!

“Do you want a bed slave, Jaden? Or shall I offer her to the crew?”

“That depends.” He paused dramatically. “I like my bed slaves willing.”

“But Ensley is not a whore.” Pern grasped her knees and spun her body on the smooth surface of the desk. Her head rotated off the edge, arching her neck. “Offer your mouth to Jaden. Demonstrate your willingness.”

Glaring up into his smug face, Ensley gritted her teeth. How masterfully he’d manipulated her. She would rather endure the Stirate’s cruelty. Jaden unfastened his pants and freed his long, thick erection. Her lips trembled, and anticipation made her insides quiver. She needed him thrusting between her thighs, not sliding against her tongue.

“Please,” she whispered. “I haven’t had … I need —” She bit back the words. She would not beg these bastards!

“Yes?” Jaden stroked his hand up and down his length, mocking her with the gesture.

Stubbornness surged with dangerous intensity. She slipped her hand between her thighs and found her swollen clit.

“Oh, no, you don’t.” Jaden grabbed her wrist, then dragged both her arms above her head. “The Stirate offered you pleasure. You were too proud to accept.”

She looked at Pern, shocked to see compassion in his expression. “If you offer your mouth to Jaden, I may take pity on you. But no more pretenses. You
are
my whore.”

Her spirit rebelled against the label, while her aching body demanded she obey. She shot Jaden a furious glare, then relaxed against the desk. Her neck arched, her legs parted, and she opened her mouth.

Jaden released her arms and moved closer, brushing himself against her lower lip. “Lick me, female.” She licked her lips, then flicked her tongue against his flared head. “Again. Stroke me with that hot, wet tongue.”

Hating him, knowing he’d bested her, she longed to refuse, to turn her face away, or bite him. Her breasts heaved, and her belly tightened. Warm hands settled on her knees.
Pern
. She couldn’t see him, but his touch was gentle, almost reassuring.

How could she have misjudged them so completely?

She licked Jaden, keeping her mouth open, waiting for him to accept her silent offer. He guided her hands to his hips and slowly sank into her mouth. Pern’s hands drifted down her inner thighs. Tension coiled, making her tremble. Her core rippled. God, she needed release!

“You were disobedient,” Pern said, “and disobedience must be punished.” He traced her slit with his fingertip. Her legs shook, and she arched her hips, desperate for penetration. “You will not be filled because of your pride, but you will have pleasure.”

Jaden began to move in her mouth, long, steady strokes that bumped the back of her throat. She held his hips, accepting the hot slide of his shaft against her tongue, imagining him deep inside her. Pern played lazily between her thighs. He teased her opening, never venturing beyond. His thumb passed over her clit, yet his caress remained feather-light and inconsistent, keeping her orgasm out of reach.

Cupping the back of her neck, Jaden rocked into her mouth. She closed her eyes. Helpless. Powerless. They would use her as they saw fit. Grant her pleasure when they deemed her worthy. Tingling heat rolled through her abdomen and gathered between her thighs. On a dark, elemental level, she had never been more aroused.

“Yes!” Jaden cried. “Oh, gods, yes!”

Pern covered her clit with his thumb and rubbed rhythmically. Heat coalesced beneath his touch, building in tandem with Jaden’s frantic thrusting. Sensation burst within her, showering her body with tingling pleasure. Jaden drove deep one last time, his butt flexing as he released his seed. Pern continued to stroke her, dragging every last shiver from her trembling body.

Lazily squeezing her breasts, Jaden pulled out of her mouth. “Well done, female,” he whispered and refastened his pants.

Pern took her hands and pulled her up. Their eyes were on a level as she sat on his desk. For just an instant the bright blue ringing his pupils vanished, and the entire surface swirled like ink. Deep within her being, longing stirred, stealing her breath and making her moan. He tenderly cupped her cheek; his touch achingly familiar. Then the sapphire rings reappeared, and his brow furrowed. He lowered his hand and stepped back.

“Next time, accept your role, and you will know true pleasure.” A note of confusion remained in his tone.

It had happened again. Had he felt the bittersweet stirring? She searched his gaze, hoping for some hint of recognition, but all tenderness was gone.

“Take your slave from my office,” Pern muttered. “I have work to do.”

“So, what does it do?” Saebin asked as Lyrik entered the aft lounge. She sat across a minrell table from Dro Tar. Apparently, Dro Tar had been teaching her how to play the holographic game.

“Nothing as interesting as we expected.” They’d hardly seen each other since boarding the
Gale
. He’d spent the first few hours eluding a search party and the rest of the day with Hermlin analyzing the mysterious modification. “The shields make us undetectable to conventional scanners, but they were designed so the ship could still be tracked by our military. The modification simply scrambles the tracker signal.
No one
can detect us now.”

“That sucks,” Dro Tar grumbled. “We can’t manufacture interdimensional portals or morph the shape of the ship?”

He laughed. “Is that what you two predicted?”

“That’s what she was hoping.” Saebin corrected. “The real question is why does the overlord want a ship that’s undetectable to his own people?”

“For the same reason he wants you fully operational.” Dro Tar crossed her legs and made a bland gesture toward Saebin. “Whatever he’s into has nothing to do with the Joint Council.” Saebin glanced at him. She’d said the same thing the night before. “When do I get a demonstration of your armor?”

“The next time you piss her off.”

Dro Tar made a face at him and pushed to her feet. “What’s the plan now that we’ve got ourselves an invisible ride?”

“We need to dump the guards, then arrange a meeting with the High Queen.”

Dro Tar whistled. “You’re going to turn in your old man?”

His gaze drifted to Saebin as he said, “He’s left me no choice.” Even if he hadn’t developed feelings for his father’s victim, what Cyrus was doing was wrong. High Queen Charlotte had to know.

“I’ll go see if I can help with the guards.” Dro Tar bounded from the lounge.

“How are you going to contact the High Queen without alerting Cyrus?” Saebin remained at the minrell table, but deactivated the game.

“I’ll have Trey set it up, unless … Can you contact her directly?”

She shook her head. “Telepathy has never been my strong suit. I can navigate established pathways, but I’m no good at creating them. Even then, I’m better at receiving thoughts than sending them. I might be able to reach Krysta. Would that be safer than Trey?”

“It’s six one way, half a dozen the other. I just hate to keep involving them.” Three subtle beeps announced an incoming transmission to Lyrik’s audiocom. “Go ahead.”

“It’s Tann, sir. I’ve been scanning COT communications, making sure they haven’t picked up our trail. You know how tracker teams are, sir. They won’t give up until they’ve exhausted ever possible lead.”

Tann had a tendency to ramble, so Lyrik nudged him toward the point. “Is there a problem?”

“Not for us.” Lyrik could picture the lanky young man’s elaborate shrug. “The NRS is out in force at the Conservatory. I’ve tapped into a news feed if you want to take a look.”

“Send it down.” Lyrik walked to the vidscreen recessed in the far wall and pressed the bottom right corner of the screen. Audio reached him a moment before the images formed. Angry voices overlapped, and people pumped their fists in the air. The crowd lined the far bank of Mystic Brook. Beyond the swiftly flowing water stretched lush grass and a stately building surrounded by a railed gallery. Pink clouds hung low in the violet sky. The boisterous protesters abraded the tranquil setting.

“What is this place?” Saebin moved up beside him, her gaze fixed on the vidscreen. “Why are they so angry?”

“This would be the latest protest of the NRS.” He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. “They’ve never been this overt before.”

“Where are they, and what are they protesting?” Her voice sounded oddly hushed, drawing his attention away from the screen. She reached out slowly as if she could touch the images. This wasn’t the first time she’d seen a vidscreen, so what accounted for her awe?

“The building in the background is the Conservatory. It’s the Mystics’ headquarters and training center. Today is the annual Choosing. That’s cause enough for the NRS.” She lowered her hand and glanced at him, her cheeks flushed, eyes unusually bright. “Are you all right?”

She rubbed her eyes and nodded. “I felt an odd — rush when I first looked at the image. My armor has compensated. What are the Mystics choosing?”

Should he be more concerned that the Conservatory gave her a rush or that her armor was able to compensate? Shaking away the disquieting thought, he answered her question. “Children with great potential are brought to the Conservatory on this day every cycle. The Master Level Mages scan them and select the very best for apprenticeship. It’s an honor just to be invited to the Choosing, and only a handful will actually be selected.”

Saebin returned her attention to the protesters. “Why do they care what the Mystics do? Were their children not selected?”

“In a way. The vast majority of the NRS members have no Mystic abilities.” He sighed. They felt threatened by the Mystics’ awesome power, intimidated and envious. Yet, their frustration was justified. Every member of the Joint Council had some sort of Mystic ability, so who represented those without?

“Do the Mystics misuse their power?” She turned from the vidscreen and teetered, color bleeding from her face.

“Saebin.” He reached for her, but her knees buckled before he could catch her. Steadying her as best he could, he eased her limp body to the floor.

Saebin screamed, her body arching off the treatment table. The man on her right slumped in a chair, while her handler sprawled on Saebin’s left. They were bound together like a human chain, wrist to wrist, palms touching. Energy flowed through Saebin, searing in its intensity. Thoughts, memories, and information saturated the energy.

“Saebin. Saebin release the past. Listen to my voice.”

Krystabel. The ghost again. “What do you want with me?” The pain eased, but her frustration was just as strong. The image shifted out of focus, accenting sound.

“Everything will happen quickly. You must be ready.”

“Ready for what? You speak in riddles.”

“Ready to bring me home. Seth is the key. I’m not sure how, but he will lead me home.”

“Seth is a child, little more than an infant. How can he be the key to bringing you back?”

“I can’t explain it, but I know it must be soon. My spirit is dispersing. There is not much time left. If I remain in this dimension much longer, I will be lost forever.”

Saebin shuddered violently as the room focused again. She was still strapped to the treatment table, but the others were gone. “They say you’re my mother. Is that true?”