Battling Rapture (10 page)

Bute Chaeen looked beyond irritated. “Why is the exotic
blocking the slave’s tribute? She shows you great honor by immediately
servicing your cock with her mouth.”

Niki was going to show them all beyond irritated if this
damn woman didn’t keep her hands and mouth to herself. She allowed displeasure
to radiate from her. She didn’t take a deep breath or try to mask her feelings
at all.

“This one is my number-one slave. I leave slave direction to
her. There is an order and the new one hasn’t earned the right to touch me
yet,” Rhine said.

She narrowed her eyes at him. Later, she’d show him what she
thought about this latest foolishness out of his mouth. He lied facilely, and
though the dubious talent came in handy, it made her nervous.

“You have a strange way of dealing with your slaves. Though
I do believe you make sense. I will think on this.” Bute Chaeen actually looked
thoughtful as he accepted a chalice from the same bald blue slave she’d watched
blow him yesterday.

What a wasted life. She stiffened as Rhine placed his hand
on her back and rubbed. He leaned down close to her ear.

“She will do what you tell her,” he said softly.

She looked down at her fist still wrapped around the poor
woman’s wrist. She looked scared and Niki released her slowly and tried to
smooth away the anger on her face.

“What is your name?” Niki asked.

“I am A’Di,” she said softly.

“I’m Niki. Don’t touch him.” Niki jerked her thumb at Rhine.

The other woman looked at Rhine, who just stood there as if
he was a great lumbering ox. She nodded, and stood.

“She needs ice,” Niki said.

The woman’s face was already swelling. Rhine directed a
server to bring him ice in a cloth. He walked to his chair and sat, pulling
Niki onto his lap. Niki looked at the woman, who now stood behind their chair.

“She can’t just stand there. Some big-ass dude just hit her
in the face. She needs to rest,” Niki whispered.

“I understood a third of what you just said. Would you like
me to offer her my other leg?” Rhine asked.

She pinched his side where no one in front of them could
see. A’Di gasped. Niki looked at the other men. Only Gunter stared at her.

“Please, Gunter,” she said. She tried for an innocent look
and the man smirked at her.

He nodded. Niki turned to A’Di. The woman now held an ice
pack to her eye.

“A’Di, this is Sir Gunter. You’re going to sit on his lap so
you can rest,” Niki said.

“Yes, Mistress Niki,” A’Di said.

Niki rolled her eyes, and turned to Rhine. “What’s that
about?”

He leaned very close to her ear. “You obviously have rank
and value to her master. In our world, that elevates you to mistress status.”

“I don’t like it,” she said.

He shrugged.

“Were you just going let her suck your dick right in front
of me?” she asked suddenly.

She hadn’t meant to say anything. He leaned back in the
seat. He shrugged again. His eyes never left her face. Her insides lit and
sparked with the intensity of firecrackers. Her hand rose.

“Niki,” Gunter said sharply.

She remembered why hitting him wasn’t a good idea in this
environment and reached for Rhine’s cup instead. Rhine smiled. Her aunt used to
call that naughty glimmer in a man’s eyes devilish intent.

The screen on the far left wall lowered.

“No, no, no, no.” She wasn’t going to sit through another
fuck fest.

A cheer went through the crowd. It stopped when the blank
screen changed to one of Lord Huntu dressed in what appeared to be a leather
battlesuit. He took up the entire screen and his face was frightening in its
intensity. His eyes alone made her shudder. Where the other Ordanians never
seem to display emotions, this man dripped with menace. Niki shuddered.
Camryn
was married to this man?

Bute Chaeen addressed the image. “Lord Huntu, how—”

“Release my family and all their possessions, now. Every
tribe on Ordan has begun to mobilize in a mutual desire to avenge the slight
you have shown me. I have contacted all of my allies in the galaxy. Fuzar
fighters are now entering your air space to ensure the speedy release of the
Edela, my Council and the Lady Huntu’s kinswoman. Deny me and perish. You have
less than an hour. Huntu out.”

The screen went completely blank. Women began screaming and
men jumped up and fled the hall.

Bute Chaeen yelled to one of his guards, “Bring me a report
on the air space around the planet.

Niki glanced at her companions. A’Di was the only one who
appeared in any way concerned. They each continued to eat slowly and chat
softly. Rhine rubbed the small of her back in slow circles. It didn’t calm her
as it usually did. He reached for a dark-blue item which had the consistency of
meat. She grabbed his hand.

“No, you still have animal blood on your hands.” She picked
up one of the slices and fed it to him. She had visions of him somehow
ingesting the blood and going all flea collar and howling at the moon as though
he was in a werewolf movie.

She tried to keep her eyes on everything that was happening.
It was as if the Ordanians existed in a bubble, unconcerned, as everyone else
screamed and yelled. Guards filed into the room. One of them approached Bute
Chaeen at a run. He spoke quietly to the dictator. Bute Chaeen howled and
pushed over the raised table in front of him. Food and drink tumbled to the
floor. The women surrounding him scattered.

“Sir Rhine, take your people, and go. The guards will take
you to retrieve your things and to your ship.” He flung his hand toward the
door.

“I will have A’Di’s deed first,” Rhine said calmly.

Bute Chaeen looked away as he waved his hand at one of his
people. The man came forward with a small, flat, black electronic tablet. Rhine
pressed a few keys on the gray electronic device strapped to his wrist. Rhine
waved his wrist past the man’s tablet, then checked the information.

Slight pressure at her back alerted her he wanted her to
stand. They left the large chamber quickly. She wanted to be safely away from
this planet. She believed Lord Huntu would attack Tuetvon if they were even a
second late breaking the planet’s atmosphere.

When they entered the room, Tor closed the door firmly in
the guards’ faces.

“A’Di, is there access to the computer mainframe in this
room?” Rhine asked.

“There should be an outlet here.” She walked over to the far
right wall and tapped a panel.

A large square cabinet doorway opened to reveal a small
screen and exposed connectivity points.

“I’ll handle it,” Olaf said. He walked over to the wall.

“I’ll grab your bag,” Tor said. He walked off toward the
rooms.

Niki followed Rhine into their bedroom.

“What is he doing?” she asked.

Rhine reached into his hair and Niki realized he’d turned on
the mini-jammer.

“He’s setting a virus to eat through their computer
mainframe. Tuetvon isn’t much more than what is contained within the walls of
this fortress and the lands it protects. We have to take advantage of this
opportunity while we’re here.”

She nodded. It was a good initial strike. The Contu were
already struggling to understand how to react to Lord Huntu’s threats.

“Please wash the blood from your hands,” she whispered.

There was something about knowing he had the Contu’s blood
on his hands that unsettled her. She almost felt as if it could contaminate
him. He stared at her for a moment before walking into the bathroom.

When he returned she noticed his hairline was wet. The
tightness in her chest eased as she realized he’d washed his face as well.

“Thank you,” she said.

He grabbed his bag. She followed him to the larger room.
Everyone was assembled.

“Let’s get out of here,” Bronwyn said.

* * * * *

Their getaway was smooth. Niki allowed A’Di to sit in her
chair while Niki hovered around Rhine’s captain’s chair. She was urging him to
pilot the ship faster in her mind. She wanted to be as far away from Bute
Chaeen and Tuetvon as she could be before bedtime.

The Fuzar fighter ships accompanied them to the hyper-jump
portal. As she stared out into space, she realized the hyper-jump portal was a
wormhole. She held her breath as they made the jump. There’d been a disturbance
in her belly, similar to taking the giant drop on a roller coaster. Her heart
didn’t quiet until they were safely on the other side.

“You said a week’s worth of travel, correct?” she asked.

“Yes,” Rhine said.

She was a week away from Camryn. The only way she was going
to keep her safe was to stay with her. Especially now that she knew Cam’s
husband was super warlord of the year. Anyone who could send a room full of
beast shifters into a panic with one short message shouldn’t have anything to
do with Cam.

“What is it?” Rhine asked. He stared up at her over his shoulder.

“May I talk with her now?” she asked.

He turned to look at Olaf.

“I can get a signal through,” Olaf said.

She waited, but not patiently.

“On screen,” Olaf said.

Lord Huntu and Camryn were sitting side by side. Camryn’s
face lit from within as soon as she spotted Niki.

“Are you safe?” Camryn asked.

“I’m safe,” Niki replied. She signed, “Are you safe?”

Camryn frowned. “Niki—”

Niki signed, “Sign it.”

Camryn signed, “I couldn’t be safer. Truly.”

Niki believed she believed it. “Rhine says we are a week out.”
She turned to him. “Is a week seven days to you?”

“Yes.” He was staring at her oddly.

She didn’t care. Camryn was her only family. She was also
the only family member who had ever given a damn about whether she was happy or
sad, lived or died. She breathed through the pain in her chest and stomach.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” Camryn asked frantically. She
leaned forward and her husband touched her arm.

She’d forgotten Cam could read her if she wasn’t careful. “I
just can’t believe I’ve found you. Or you found me.”

“I always have and I always will, Niki.” Camryn smiled
sweetly. “Venn needs to talk with Bronwyn and the guys. Get them to let you
call me again.”

Niki nodded.

Venn looked around. “Everyone is unharmed? Bronwyn is
unharmed?”

“I am unhurt, Brother,” Bronwyn said. “Hello, Camryn.”

“Hi, Hon.” Camryn waved at the young woman.

“Who is behind you?” Venn asked.

“New slave. A’Di,” Rhine said.

“New slave. When did you pick up any old slaves?” Camryn
asked.

“We have to go.” Rhine signaled Olaf.

“Wait, Rhine—” The feed was cut on Camryn’s next words.

“That was rude,” Niki said.

“We don’t want to worry her unnecessarily.” His voice was
pitched low and tender.

She remembered Rhine had a thing for Cam. Dizziness
overwhelmed her. She’d put his feelings for her sister out of her mind and had
sex with him in order to survive. Somewhere along the way, her rule against
getting involved with men attracted to her sister stopped mattering. All that
seemed to matter was what he made her feel.

“Take the bridge,” Rhine said.

His hand snagged her arm and she allowed him to lead her
from the bridge before pulling away. If he’d insisted, she knew she could never
have freed herself. She followed him down the hallway and to the room he’d
given her.

“Niki, why are you in so much pain?”

“I’m not.” She made sure to stare him in the eyes.

“Niki.”

“I thought I was your number-one slave,” she said, her tone
harsher than she wanted.

“We were under duress. I had to think up something to cover
your actions. He was expecting me to discipline you and allow A’Di to suck my
cock. Would you rather I let that happen?”

“No, but these stories come to you so quickly and easily.
What do you do for your cousin?” she asked.

“I serve on the Tribal Council. I am Venn’s
second-in-command and I am his ambassador. For the most part, it is my job to
give him advice and keep the peace.” He shrugged.

“Do you like it?”

“I was trained from an early age for the role. Venn and I
were raised together by my uncle. When it was clear Venn would be the Huntu to
win the right to rule, I was trained to help him. Venn is a good man who has
shown himself to be a good leader. I am honored Uncle Ivan thought I would make
an excellent second.”

Pride dripped from his voice and she made note of the way he
spoke of Venn. It was clear their years together had bred fierce loyalty.

He’d answered all her questions and she wouldn’t push him
anymore about Venn.

“Where is A’Di going to sleep?” she asked. “Do you have a
room for her?”

He took her hand and pulled her closer until he could wrap
her in his arms. She stood stiffly at first with her arms by her sides and her
cheek pressed against him. He rocked her slowly and rubbed her back.

“I thought I told you I don’t like to be handled.”

“I thought I told you that you lied,” he said.

She tried to pull away and the hand rubbing her back began
to massage. Her body relaxed involuntarily.

“Give her this space and come stay with me.”

He kissed her hairline and her insides melted. “Okay.”

Did it matter if she kept sleeping with him at this point?
It wasn’t as if everyone here couldn’t tell she wanted to. It would only be for
seven more days. She could enjoy him that long.

She still had one more thing on her mind. “Rhine, was the
shifter dead?”

“Which shifter?”

“The one who hit A’Di.”

“No, I sensed it would make you uncomfortable. Which I still
don’t understand.” He pulled her closer.

“I thought you said the Contu were related to the Nestvur.
Aren’t they strong? He looked as big as you. His fangs and claws were super
sharp.” She shivered.