“Because you don’t know, or you just won’t tell me?”
There was a sudden shout that echoed down the hallway. Tavos paled.
“What was that?” Saskia asked.
“It sounded like—”
“Tavos!” A huge figure loomed behind the servant.
At first, Saskia thought it was Arius. Then, as the man came closer, she realized they had the same build and coloring but that was where any similarities ended. Her senses on overdrive, within a second she took in the deep creases on his face, the broken nose, the hard, cruel lips. The eyes glowed a pale gold instead of steely grey.
Deimos.
“So there she is,” he boomed, prowling towards her. “My nephew’s new plaything.”
“Go,” Tavos hissed. “Inside, now!”
As terrified as she was, as badly as she wanted to retreat, Saskia was rooted to the spot, staring at the infamous ruler with a mixture of revulsion and fascination. Rumors of the depths of Deimos’s evil and depravity were rife in Sandor but nobody of her acquaintance had ever laid eyes on him, let alone been this close. She watched as his eyebrows slanted down and his gaze narrowed; unblinking, reptilian. His nostrils flared.
Oh, fuck…
She let out a startled cry as Tavos grabbed her arm and shoved her unceremoniously back into Arius’s quarters.
They were too late. Deimos had followed them in.
Saskia backed up until her knee hollows hit a sofa and she sank into its plush depths like a puppet with cut strings. Tavos had inserted himself between them and he now spun around to face his king. She was in awe of the servant’s courage.
Like Arius, Deimos exuded a powerful, alpha male aura. Unlike Arius, Deimos seemed to have no self-control or capacity for rational, logical thought. He reminded Saskia of a rabid lion.
As if Tavos didn’t exist, as if he weren’t standing between them, Deimos closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, exhaling with an exaggerated groan. “Pretty,” he said. “Can’t know what you’re like under that shapeless garment but I’m about to find out.”
Saskia let out a whimper. Surely he wouldn’t…
“To think I sent them all down into Sandor when what I was looking for was right here in my own house!” He threw his head back and guffawed, the booming laughter chilling Saskia to the bone. “By the gods, you smell good.”
“Sire,” Tavos said in a remarkably calm tone, “your nephew has already mated with this Omega. By law, you are therefore unable to take her as your own.”
Deimos finally seemed to realize the servant was standing in front of him. His unnerving gaze settled on Tavos. “You forget yourself,” he hissed. “For one thing, I make the rules in this kingdom. Not to mention the difference between mating and claiming. I don’t suppose Arius has claimed her yet. He’s far too sensible to get lost in the heat of passion. No, he’ll do it publicly. Any excuse to show off.” He switched his focus to Saskia. “Has he claimed you yet, sweetheart?”
There was no point in lying. All this madman had to do was tug the robe away from her shoulder and he would see there was no distinctive bite mark on her neck. She shook her head.
Deimos chuckled again. “By the gods, I feel twenty years old again! I’d heard rumors that blood relatives sometimes shared mates, that there was a chance a match for Arius could be a match for me, but I didn’t dare believe it. And yet, here we are! Even from this distance, your scent is inducing my rut.”
Saskia eyed the bedroom door, wondering whether she should make a run for it. Unfortunately, she’d have to pass Deimos on the way and if his reflexes were anything like his nephew’s, she didn’t stand a chance.
The way people spoke about the ruler of Sandor made him sound like a drooling, babbling lunatic. Instead he spoke clearly, was obviously well educated, and he was impeccably groomed. The only hint at madness was the dangerous gleam in his eyes. Saskia was astounded that he hadn’t already batted Tavos aside and lunged for her.
“And if she’s already pregnant?” Tavos tried again.
The man had balls of steel but Saskia recognized his reasoning. A pregnant Omega was sacred. No Alpha other than her mate would dare to lay a finger on her—
“Highly unlikely. Besides, it would still be of my blood. I will mate with her, claim her, and any heir she produces will be mine.”
—unless he was insane. Her heart sank.
Deimos shoved Tavos aside and reached Saskia in three great strides. Cowering on the sofa, she gazed up at him. Arius, where are you?
She had barely finished that thought when Deimos’s scent reached her nostrils. While not as powerful as his nephew’s, it was similar enough, and she moaned as her body started to react.
Oh no. No no no nonono…
Horrified by the hot, wet gush between her thighs, using the element of surprise, Saskia leapt to her feet and shot past Deimos, praying to all the gods that she’d make it to the bathroom where she could lock the door.
A hand of iron clamped around her left bicep and yanked her to him until she was pressed up against Deimos’s huge, powerful body.
“You cannot imagine how I have longed for this, little Omega,” he crooned in her ear, one hand tightening around a length of her hair, the other sliding down over her bottom. “Arius was a fool to leave you alone. You belong to me now.”
He buried his nose in the scent gland on the inside of her wrist and inhaled deeply. “Mmm. I haven’t been this hard in forty years.” Then, to Tavos, “Leave us. Or stay and watch, I don’t care. You might learn something about how a real man ruts.” Without waiting for a response, he yanked the robe from Saskia’s body.
She squeezed her eyes shut as if making him disappear from her vision would make him disappear completely. A massive paw squeezed her breast hard while his other hand forced itself roughly between her legs in a sickening parody of what Arius had done to her just hours before.
“No,” she whispered.
“Lots of slick. Excellent,” Deimos growled. Then, unlike Arius, he removed his hand from her sex and wiped it clean.
In her hair.
Saskia shuddered with revulsion, a gesture the mad king obviously took for desire. “You’re going to love this, little Omega,” he whispered, pushing her back down onto the couch.
Every fiber in her being screamed for her to resist, to bring her knee up hard and fight him with every ounce of her strength but at the same time, her thoughts were racing. Deimos was the ruler of Sandor. His cruelty was legendary. Resisting him now would be a pyrrhic victory—it might buy her some time but he would win in the end… either by taking her, or taking vengeance on her family. Thank the gods neither he nor Arius seemed to have noticed her lack of a tattoo yet.
But it was only a matter of time.
She fell back on the bed, resigning herself to the idea of submission. Anything to protect Mama, Dad, and Nat. She wondered whether Tavos served Arius directly, or the entire Sandorus family. Not that it really mattered. He was probably just as helpless as she. He’d fought her corner bravely but at the end of the day, Deimos held all the power. He could snuff out Tavos’s life—or his family’s, if he had one—in the blink of an eye. And why should Tavos risk that for her?
Her body was betraying her once again, her hormones ensuring that Deimos could enter her with minimum resistance. Having tugged down his pants, he pinned her wrists above her head with one massive hand and nudged her thighs apart with his knee. “Hold still, sweet thing. You want this as much as I do, I can see it on your face.”
Obviously the guy had trouble differentiating between desire and disgust.
Suddenly a tremendous roar reverberated around the room. “Uncle!”
“Fuck off, Arius,” Deimos snarled, positioning the head of his cock at Saskia’s entrance.
“No!” she shouted, trying to writhe out of his way despite being pinned at the wrists.
There was a distinctive click and Deimos stilled. Saskia opened her eyes to see Arius looming behind the man, t
he barrel of the gun gleaming in the low light as Arius held it to his uncle’s head.
“Get off her immediately or so help me, I will shoot you.”
Deimos scoffed but Saskia didn’t miss the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. “You wouldn’t dare shoot your king.”
“You are about to rape my mate. Alphas have killed for less. Believe me, if you weren’t king, you’d already be dead, uncle or not.”
The ensuing seconds felt like an eternity to Saskia as she watched Deimos’s face carefully. His internal battle between the rut and his common sense played out almost like a movie, flickering across his features.
She hadn’t realized she was holding her breath until he pasted a conciliatory smile on his face and let go of her wrists, scrambling off the sofa with as much dignity as he could muster. It was almost comical.
Almost.
“I’ll make you regret not pulling that trigger,” he snarled, tucking himself back in.
“I still haven’t quite made up my mind,” Arius retorted, the gun still pointed at his uncle. Saskia marveled at how calm he was, how steady his hand. “Tavos?”
“Yes, Sire?”
“Please toss my mate that robe over there.”
Tavos did as he was told and Saskia covered herself with it gratefully. She’d been so freaked out by Deimos she hadn’t even thought about Tavos seeing her naked. Tears of humiliation pricked her eyes and she blinked them back.
“Return to your apartments, Uncle,” Arius went on, his voice like steel.
Deimos scoffed. “I really ought to thank you. I can see now that she’s nothing but a dirty whore. And she reeks of your seed.” He drew himself up to his full, considerable height. “No matter. By dawn I shall have my pick of Omegas to choose from. Even if you do manage to impregnate this… pitiful creature, I will have an heir yet. And you will have to obey him as you must obey me.”
Saskia was watching Arius. Not by the tiniest flicker did he betray his thoughts. “Out,” he said coolly.
Deimos glared down at Saskia, then spat on the floor in a final act of defiance before stalking out of the room.
The relief was almost tangible.
Arius pushed his hair back from his face, put the safety back on the gun and set it on the nearby table. “Tavos.”
“Yes, Sire?”
“Please fetch us some food and wine. And some water.”
“Of course, Sire.” Tavos’ blue eyes settled on Saskia and she froze, wondering whether he was about to tell Arius she had caused all this by trying to escape. When he slipped wordlessly from the room, she almost sagged with gratitude.
The door closed with a soft click and in a trice, Arius was beside her on the bed, yanking her into his arms.
“Are you all right?”
No! she wanted to scream. She was anything but. In the space of just a few hours she had been kidnapped, manhandled, kidnapped again, forced to mate, then manhandled again. Not to mention her status as an Omega fugitive and the potential repercussions for her family. She wondered if she’d ever see them again. No doubt Arius would never leave her side even for a moment after this. Not with his uncle in the same complex. “I’m fine,” she mumbled. “Hungry. Tired. Very thirsty. But fine.”
“I’m so sorry I had to leave you.”
She was genuinely taken aback. He didn’t seem like the type to ever apologize.
“What did he mean… he’d have his pick of Omegas at dawn?” she asked. Deimos’s statement had sounded too certain to be mere bluster and she was worried.
“That’s why I had to go.” Arius sighed, got up and began to pace. Saskia was relieved; she was rapidly beginning to realize his scent had an effect on her body regardless of how tired or hungry she was, and every minute she spent in his proximity seemed to increase her desire. His nostrils had been flaring while he was beside her, so she was certain it was the same for him. Luckily he seemed to have more self-control than his mad uncle.
“Deimos came up with this ridiculous notion that some people in town might be hiding Omegas.”
Her heart suddenly crashing against her ribs, Saskia clenched the robe more tightly around herself, forcing her voice to remain steady. “In what way?”
Arius chuckled bitterly. “He’s never yet found an Omega he deemed suitable at the Facility. Therefore, he came to the conclusion that there must be more out there, hiding. Ones who never came forward when they were supposed to.”
Her laugh sounded too high-pitched and forced, and she prayed he wouldn’t notice. “Surely the penalty for doing such a thing would be severe. I can’t imagine any Betas being willing to risk it.”
“Neither can I, to be honest. Which is why I had to go down into Sandor and call off the troops.”
The horror of it all crashed over Saskia like a wave and she began to shake. She was well aware there were other Omegas in hiding. In fact, it would be ridiculous for anyone with an ounce of common sense to think she was the only one who had refused to enter the Facility on her eighteenth birthday. There were many more like her, and the mere thought of them being dragged from their beds in the middle of the night, rounded up and delivered to Deimos—it was too much. But she had to know. “Did you… did they… find any?”
He shook his head. “Oh, they’d started rousing women out of bed but of course no adult Omegas were found.”
Saskia was grateful she was already prone on the couch, otherwise her knees would have given way from sheer relief.
“It doesn’t matter now, anyway.” He strode back to her and cupped her face with his huge hand in a curiously affectionate gesture. “Christ, if I’d come home just moments later… He didn’t… did he?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“I still want to kill him.”
“Why didn’t you?” It slipped out before she could think about it. Arius stared at her for a long moment, then there was a rap on the door.
“Tavos,” he said, getting up and letting the servant in.
“It’s not much, Sire, it’s still early and most of the staff are asleep,” Tavos said apologetically, going to a nearby table and setting down a tray beside a jug and a bottle. “But there’s bread, cheese, fruit, stew, water, and wine.”
“Excellent. You may leave us.”
Saskia couldn’t stop gazing at the food. It smelled divine and she realized just how hungry she was.
Tavos slipped out and Arius picked up the tray before setting it down beside her. “Eat and drink your fill. You’ll need your energy.”
Trying—and failing—not to dwell on that statement, Saskia began to nibble on some bread and cheese.
“Wine?” Arius asked, pouring himself a glass, sipping from it and then turning to her.
She nodded, still chewing. The cheese was delicious.
“You should try the stew,” Arius said, pouring another glass of wine and handing it to her.
She took a tentative sip and grimaced.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, almost belligerently. “This is a good vintage from one of the best vineyards in Sandor!”
“I just… didn’t expect it to be so… strong.” Sour.
Realization dawned on his rugged face. “Of course,” he said, amused. “You’ve never had wine before, have you?”
She shook her head.
“It gets better with each sip. Trust me. But you should probably go slow, and have some water as well. Wouldn’t want you to get dehydrated.”
The man is an enigma, she decided as she ladled some stew into a small bowl. How could such a fierce, predatory Alpha also be so… tender?
Chapter Six
Arius was about to drop from exhaustion and still Saskia’s scent made his senses reel, filling him with the desire to swipe the food tray off the sofa and ravage her again and again. His physical reaction to her presence was astounding, and while he knew the rut would wear off in a few days, giving them both some respite, right now he could barely imagine that ever being the case.
Coming
home and finding Deimos sprawled on top of her had also given rise to the deepest, most profound fury he’d ever felt. And Arius was no stranger to anger.
Dazzling white spots had danced in his peripheral vision and his stomach had tightened into a knot of steel before he was able to ascertain that he’d arrived in the nick of time.
Just a couple more seconds and it would have been too late.
The mere thought was enough to make him want to throw his head back and roar with jealous, possessive rage.
That he’d been able to restrain himself from tearing his uncle limb from limb was a miracle. The desire was still almost impossible to resist.
Forcing his mind back to the present, he swallowed the last dregs of his wine and stalked back to the bottle for a refill. Anything to put some distance between them. While his base instincts were urging him to fuck Saskia again, reclaim her as his, remove any trace—or thought—of the other man from her mind and body, on a logical level he knew she’d been badly frightened and he needed to take some care. Not to mention the poor creature was obviously starving. She had all but inhaled the stew and her glass, too, was empty.
“Would you like some more?” He indicated the wine bottle.
“Thank you.” She glanced up at him, her eyes huge, full of an emotion he couldn’t quite pinpoint. “You were right. It does get better the more you drink.”
“Told you so.” He handed her the now-full glass and watched her throat move as she took a couple of long swallows. Most of her body was engulfed in his robe, and the way the material swamped her was oddly endearing. He was reminded again how small and fragile she was. “You should have some water, too.” He poured her a glass from the jug.
“I’m fine for now.”
“That wasn’t a request,” he said. “Wine only dehydrates you more.”
She took the water from him with an ill-concealed scowl and he felt a grin tug at the corners of his mouth.
Yes, I’ll take feisty over sad any damn day of the week.
“Good girl,” he added as she drained the glass. She licked her lips and the sight of her little pink tongue darting out was almost too much for him. “Be right back,” he grunted, and made for the ensuite.
Primal Possession: A dark Omegaverse Romance (Alphas of Sandor Book 1) Page 5