Slave Gold (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Becca Van

  God, I hope so.

  Chapter Two

  Barclay, Darby, and Gilmore Calhoun drew their mounts to a halt and dismounted. After a day of good hunting with their men, Barclay was pleasantly weary. Leading their horses to water, the men let them drink their fill before loosely tethering them to boughs so they could graze on the rich grass. As one, the brothers all knelt at the riverside and quenched their own thirst.

  “It was a good hunt,” Barclay said to his brothers as he rose to his feet.

  “Yes, it was,” Darby replied and also stood.

  “I can’t wait to get back to our dwelling.” Gilmore turned to his brothers.

  The three men were often teased by their warriors for their almost choreographed movements and identical habits, but they took the ribbing in good humor. As they were triplets, the three men were much closer than average brothers. Sometimes it took just a look for one of them to tell the others what he was thinking.

  As Barclay helped set up camp and scout out firewood, he felt a tingling on the back of his neck. Signaling his brothers and his men, he searched the thickly shadowed foliage, looking for signs of danger. He spied a small footprint in the damp earth and studied the unusual pattern the footwear had left behind. He had never seen anything like it in his life.

  Signaling for his brothers’ attention, he pointed, and the three of them followed the prints until they came to the base of a large tree not twenty feet from their camp. Looking up, he was shocked to find a strangely clad female sleeping on a bough at his shoulder height. Women were scarce on their planet and were treasured and revered, but they were never found without an escort. In all his thirty-three years, Barclay and his brothers, as well as his warriors, had only ever seen several hundred women on their home planet. Where did she come from? What is she doing here without an escort? Is she lost? Has she been abandoned?

  He wanted to pluck her from her perch and take her home with him, but he didn’t want to frighten her. With a hand movement, he commanded his men keep the noise to a minimum, and then he gathered his supplies from his horse and set up at the base of a tree across from the female. The smell of roasting venison soon permeated the air and Barclay wondered if the fragrant scent of the cooking meat would rouse her from her deep sleep. The light had dimmed and he could only now just make out her shape, her long legs hanging on either side of the bough. But in his mind’s eye he could see her as he had when he had first come upon her.

  Her hair was a deep, dark, fiery red and her body was slim and lithesome. From what he had seen she wasn’t very tall, at least not as tall as the women on this planet, who averaged six feet and tended to be very muscular. This female was much smaller, and she didn’t appear to have the same muscle definition. Her skin looked soft and silky, and he wanted to run his hands over her to see if he was right.

  Darby and Gilmore joined him. Darby passed him a plate of venison and bread. While satiating his hunger, he imagined what it would be like to hold the strange woman against him. Most males of planet Aeros were near seven feet in height, and since they spent the days hunting and training with their warriors, they were very strong and muscular. The few women on Aeros spent just as much time training with swords and weapons as their male counterparts. They were taught by their sires the skills of weaponry and battle so they would be able to protect themselves if the need arose. No father wanted his daughter kidnapped and claimed by a strange male, and no daughter wanted to leave her father’s household until a betrothal agreement had been arranged.

  There were stories of a time when women were numerous, but history told of a war with an aggressive alien race. The attackers had used unknown weapons that somehow changed male DNA. No one knew why female births had diminished, and for generations Aeros’s scientists had made no headway to finding a solution. The aliens had long since returned to their home world, so the research and experiments they did were like looking for grain among grass.

  There were records from before that war. The ancients had left digital logs detailing the colonization of Aeros by settlers from the distant planet called Earth. Aeros had been lush and verdant then, but the population had destroyed the planet with fuel-driven transport that polluted the air. In hindsight, the war with the alien race had been almost a blessing. Though the attacks on Aeros had harmed the population’s DNA and destroyed the planet’s infrastructure, the ancients had seen rebuilding as an opportunity to start anew. Without casting aside the technological achievements of their people, they had decided to go back to the old ways of doing things.

  Every generation since had benefitted from the ancients’ decision. The air, water, and vegetation were nearly back to pristine condition. Game was plentiful, and the technology had advanced so much that when they used the recycling water cleansers they weren’t depleting any of their natural resources or emitting any pollution. There were still places where machines were manufactured, but the people on Aeros, Barclay and his brothers included, actually preferred the old ways of hunting for and growing their own food, as well as traveling on horseback

  Barclay knew a great deal about the destructive ways before the war, and he would trade nothing about his life on Aeros except for the fact that he and his brothers might never take a bond mate. To have a woman of their own would be a great gift. His attention drifted back to the woman in the tree. Especially one so tiny and beautiful…

  As if sensing his scrutiny, the female let out a soft moan. He saw her lift an arm. Placing his plate on the ground, he rose to his feet and walked quietly over to the tree where she rested. She moved as if to roll over and then gasped, her small hands clutching the limb beneath her. Her body came upright, and she sniffed the air. Because he was just below her, he heard her belly growl when she caught the scent of food. Her head turned and her eyes connected with his.

  “Thank you, God,” she mumbled.

  Barclay frowned.

  He didn’t understand her words, but they sounded familiar. He tapped into his data chip, running the phrase thank you, God, and learned that she was speaking English.

  Ah, of course. That explained why it sounded familiar. So many of the accounts of the old myths were in English. Shannon’s vowels were more rounded when she pronounced them, but he believed she’d be able to understand him.

  He accessed the English lexicon, and at once it was as if he’d spoken the language from birth.

  “Where am I?” she asked, scooting her backside to the edge of the tree branch. She drew in a ragged breath when she looked toward his warriors and camp.

  “Would you like help getting down from your perch?”

  The female tilted her head and frowned as if she had trouble understanding him, but she must have eventually realized what he’d said, because she nodded her head and reached toward him. Barclay reached up and placed his hands on her waist. She was so tiny they nearly met in back. He carefully lifted her down. Making sure she was steady on her feet before he took his hands away, he finally released her and looked down. Her height was so diminutive, her head barely reached the bottom of his chest.

  Holding a hand out toward her, he studied her intently. “Come, I will get you some food.”

  She tentatively placed her hand in his, and he nearly groaned as his palm enveloped her soft, cool one. He led her to where Darby and Gilmore sat watching them. She looked from his brothers to him and back again. Her mouth opened, and she licked her lips.

  “Brothers. Obviously. Are you triplets?”

  Barclay was glad he didn’t have to explain about his brothers. Multiple births were a rarity on Aeros and they often felt a little freakish because of all the attention they garnered by their looks, let alone when people noticed that they had the same mannerisms. The only way their warriors were able to differentiate between them was by their voices and the color of their eyes. His were blue, Darby’s were green, and Gil’s were a mix of green and brown. Otherwise they were exactly the same, or so they were told.

  “Who’ve you got there,
Barclay?”

  He turned to the female and looked down at her. “I’m Barclay Calhoun, and these are my brothers, Darby and Gilmore.”

  “Hi, I’m Shannon Regis.” She withdrew her hand from his and thrust it toward Darby.

  Darby looked at her hand and then at her in confusion. He shrugged his shoulders, as he had no idea what Shannon was doing.

  “Sorry.” She withdrew her hand and looked at the ground. “Where did you guys come from? Where am I?”

  “Don’t you remember how you got here?” Gilmore asked.

  “Where are your husbands or sire?” Darby questioned.

  Barclay was silent. There was something strange about this female. He looked over her clothing, noticing the unfamiliar cut and fabric. His gaze settled on a gold bracelet around her upper arm. It triggered some recollection from long ago.

  Could it be?

  He answered her question. “You’re on Aeros.”

  She looked between the three of them in confusion. “I don’t have a husband. What did you mean ‘husbands’? And by ‘sire’ I presume you mean my father. I don’t have one.” Her eyes darted warily to Barclay. “Where the hell is Aeros? I’ve never even heard of it.”

  That response was what Barclay had hoped to evoke, but now that he had, he wasn’t sure what to do about it. Fortunately Shannon’s stomach growled with hunger again.

  His brothers stood up, and Shannon took a step back as she eyed Gilmore and then Barclay.

  “Wow, you guys are huge,” she blurted and then lowered her eyes once more. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude, but you are all very tall. Are you going to answer my questions?”

  “You need food first.” Barclay gestured toward his brother. “Why don’t you sit down with Darby and get comfortable? I will be back in a moment.”

  He joined Gil and watched his brother load a plate with food. As he turned to head back, he indicated for his brother to move away from the warriors nearby. Their warriors were watching them curiously and some of them were blatantly staring at Shannon, which he didn’t like one little bit.

  “What is wrong?”

  “Did you see the armband on her upper arm?”

  “Yes. It looks like some sort of precious metal, and the weave is quite intricate. That woman is just asking for trouble, traveling without an escort and having such valuables on her person.”

  “Doesn’t that band look familiar to you?”

  Gilmore tilted his head and frowned, obviously sorting through his memory banks looking for the necessary information. One of the advancements through the ages had also been medical procedures implanting data chips into their brains. Anything they’d ever learned was stored in that data bank and was on hand whenever they needed to access it.

  His brother’s indrawn breath told him he had found the ancient writings on the gold relic.

  “It is the slave gold bracelet which originated from the planet Earth, believed to be created by the Celtic goddess Branwen.”

  “Yes, dig deeper, brother,” Barclay advised, knowing there was more to the legend than what he had uncovered.

  Gilmore’s gasp let him know that he’d accessed the myth attached to the gold bangle.

  “Do you think…”

  “I don’t know.” Barclay whispered his reply. “But it would explain the strange accent and the unusual clothes and footwear.”

  “Let us go and question Shannon. Maybe we can find out if she knows about the goddess of love and beauty and the slave gold she is wearing.”

  Shannon was looking uncomfortable with nervousness as she watched him and Gilmore return.

  “Thank you,” she said gratefully and took the plate of food. They sat in silence as she ate, each of them studying her while she appeased her hunger. She was such a delicate little thing, standing at no more than five foot six or seven. When he had stood next to her he had felt like a veritable giant. Seeing the pink tip of her tongue as she licked her fingers clean made his cock twitch and sit up to take notice. He could just imagine…Don’t go there, Barclay. Until you find out where she comes from and who she is, Shannon is off limits. His brothers shifted, and he knew they were just as affected by the unconscious action as he was.

  “Where are you from, Shannon?” Darby queried as he handed her a flask of wine.

  Barclay watched her sniff the contents of the flask and then take a cautious sip. Shannon must have liked the flavor of their fermented fruit, because she took a big gulp and then another and handed the vessel back to his brother.

  “Moab, Utah,” she answered with a sigh. “How did I get here? One minute I was sitting in my kitchen trying on this bracelet and feeling ill, and the next I woke up here. Well, not here exactly. I was out in the open fields and had to walk for hours to get where I am.”

  Shannon reached for the wine flask once more and asked, “May I?” At Darby’s nod, she tipped it up and drank deeply. “I really like this juice. One taste just isn’t enough.”

  “You may want to go easy on that, little one.” Gilmore took the wine from her. “The fermented fruit will give you a killer headache in the morning if imbibed too much.”

  “Oh. I didn’t realize it was alcoholic,” Shannon muttered. “What does it matter? I’m only dreaming anyway.”

  When she reached for the flask, Barclay placed a cup of water in her hand instead. If Shannon thought she was dreaming, she was in for a rude awakening when she realized what she was experiencing was real. From the little she’d said, it seemed the legends and myths surrounding the ancient Celtic slave gold bracelet and the goddess Branwen were true.

  He remembered learning about Earth and their beliefs from their tutor as a youth, and he had been so affected by the story, since females were so scarce, that he’d felt exuberant hope fill his chest. Looking back he thought maybe it had been a sign from the goddess herself. Maybe that had been her way of letting him know that he and his brothers would be sent a woman of their own.

  “Shannon, you are on our home planet, Aeros.” Darby finally answered one of her questions.

  “Huh? What did you say?” Shannon whispered.

  “You are on Aeros. I don’t know how you got to be here, but I have a theory. You are from the planet Earth, are you not?”

  Shannon drew in a ragged breath as she stared at Darby. Her lips quivered and she clutched the water cup tightly in her hands, but that was the only sign she was upset. “Yes.”

  “The planet Earth is far away from here in the Milky Way galaxy. It would take many months of traveling at light speed for us to reach your home planet.”

  Barclay mentally cursed Darby for saying too much when Shannon began to pant for air. She looked like she was struggling to breathe, and beads of perspiration formed on her forehead. Reaching out he rubbed a hand up and down her back, trying to offer her what comfort he could. He was worried about how she would react when he told her how he suspected she had been transported here to them by an enchanted slave gold bracelet, but maybe he would bide his time before divulging that information. Shannon needed to accept what Darby had told her before he inundated her with more suppositions, even if he knew them to be mostly true. The proof was sitting right next to him.

  Chapter Three

  Aeros! Where the hell is Aeros? And why did they speak about Earth like it was another planet? Wait! Did the one called Darby just say that Earth is months away from here? Are they fucking crazy?

  It was a damn shame they all seemed to have a screw loose. The three of them were masculinity personified. Not only were they heavily muscled, but Shannon had never seen such tall men.

  Male voices farther away from where she was sitting drew her attention. There had to be at least fifty men seated around a large fire talking, drinking, and eating. A few of them looked at her, and when she caught them watching they turned away quickly, almost as if embarrassed and uncomfortable to meet her gaze. When she turned back around, it was to see three sets of eyes watching her avidly.

  Barclay’s eyes were
the deepest blue she had ever seen on a man before, and his lashes were so long it was almost sinful to see them on a male. His shoulders were wide and his pectorals bulged and rippled as he shifted. Her gaze wandered down his ripped abs to his slim hips, which were covered in black pants of some sort. The thighs beneath that material swelled as he moved again, and they were so thick they reminded her of tree trunks. The boots on his feet and calves looked like the Native American moccasins that she had read about in history. As he moved again, she saw something shift against his back. He had what looked to be a strap across his chest, and her eyes followed the leather-looking belt up over his shoulder to a large curved sword strapped to his back.

  Sliding her eyes to her left, she looked at Darby. He was so similar to Barclay it was uncanny. The only difference she could see was his eyes. They were light, piercing pools of green. Gilmore was sitting on Barclay’s left and her right. He looked to be slightly more muscular than his brothers, if that were even possible, and maybe an inch taller as his head was higher than his siblings’. But his eyes were hazel, a mix of brown and green. They showed a slightly mischievous look, whereas Barclay and Darby appeared to be more serious.

  “What do you mean it would take months to get to Earth?” Shannon asked. She was relieved to finally find her voice, though it came out in a slightly elevated pitch. “Whoever heard of being able to travel at light speed? As far as I know that is still just a theory.”

  The three brothers looked at each other as if they were silently communicating and then turned back to her.

  “Where did you get the slave gold, Shannon?” Darby asked.

  “What?” Why hadn’t they answered her question?