Decadence: Darkstar Mercenaries Book 4

by Carven, Anna

  A series of emotions flitted across Connor’s face—anger, disbelief, denial, fear, acceptance.

  His shoulders slumped. He raked a hand through his dark slicked-back hair. “You’ll grind me into dust if I don’t agree to this.”

  “Something like that.”

  Connor cursed viciously in some language Ikriss had never heard before. “What fucking choice do I have? Sure, no problem. I’ll sell it to you. You just gotta pay me what I paid for it—eighty seven million credits.”

  “No. One credit.”

  “One? Are you fucking out of your mind, Kordolian?”

  Ikriss just stared at the human. Perhaps I was wrong. Maybe you are stupid. Did you not hear me correctly the first time?

  He simply waited.

  Above his dark collar, Connor was starting to sweat.

  “Jesus,” the human said at last. “Fine. I’ll cut my losses on this one and move on. The old man will kill me, but I’ve survived that before. You can have the damn shop. Give me your legally registered name on Earth, and I’ll sign it over to you.”

  “Not to me. To her.”

  The human blinked. “To… Sienna?” His face had started to turn red. Ikriss couldn’t tell whether it was because of fear or anger.

  “You lost her,” Ikriss said pointedly, leaning forward. “You cannot get her back simply by purchasing a building. You had your chance to claim her, and you threw it away. She is mine now, and if I ever see your face near her shop again, I will kill you.”

  The human froze, his eyes reflecting pure fear.

  Ikriss put his holo-glasses back on, feeling a faint tingle as the false image settled over his form. “Arrange the transfer. You have one Earth hour to get it done.”

  Without sparing Connor another glance, he silently exited the vehicle and walked past the confused, angry guards, disappearing into the crowds thronging the snow-covered pavement.

  He effortlessly blended in with the humans, becoming just another face in the crowd of thousands.

  In this strange, mesmerizing melting pot of human activity.

  Her city.

  And now it was his, just as she was.

  To protect until his last dying breath.

  Epilogue

  Two Weeks Later

  “This is the last one for the night,” Sienna declared triumphantly as she placed the dish onto the pass. It was a simple old-school sticky date pudding with copious amounts of butterscotch and a little twist—a dollop of spiced crème fraîche spiked with copious amounts of brandy.

  “For the humans,” Eva corrected as she whisked the plate away. “Cute couple,” she said with a wink. “They’re going to share this one with two more glasses of champagne. They’re celebrating. Apparently, their Syndicate debt got written off. Weird, that seems to have been happening a lot lately. Oh well, not that I’m complaining.” As she left, Eva couldn’t help but glance over Sienna’s shoulder into the kitchen beyond, where a small army of very serious and rather dangerous looking white-haired men with glasses quietly chopped, severed, and filleted various carnivorous delights that ranged from Earth fish to curious looking off-planet species that she had never seen before in her life.

  This food—prepared raw or cooked; spiced and flavored very simply—was rich in fat and protein. It wasn’t for the main dining room. Instead, it would be sent upstairs to the second floor, which had been converted into a general mess for the warriors of the Darkstar Mercenaries.

  Unbeknownst to her, Ikriss had somehow managed to buy the entire freaking building and put the title in her name. Then he had set about modifying to the upper floors into a Kordolian fortress. The rooftop was now a landing pad for alien cruisers. The upper floors had been converted into a headquarters where various intelligence gathering and training activities were carried out.

  All this had been done secretly and impossibly fast—in the space of two damn weeks.

  Most humans would never know it, but The Whisk and Pin was now one of the most heavily fortified and guarded places on Earth.

  And it was busy. Like crazy busy. After the shutdown, people had streamed back in, and strangely, she’d found that the rumors about Kordolian occupation had actually drawn a whole bunch of new customers—humans that were intrigued and fascinated with Kordolians in spite of their fearsome reputation.

  There were always those types.

  In the first week, Cleo, Emmett, Eva, and Sienna had struggled to keep up with the demand. At the end of each day, she’d been so exhausted she’d even turned down sex with Ikriss.

  She’d turned away the sexiest creature in the Universe.

  That was total insanity.

  So she’d had to come up with a solution. The good thing about having a squadron of elite guards watching over you at all times of the day was that they all had crazy knife skills.

  And they were all quick studies—like scarily so. She only had to show a Kordolian warrior a recipe once, and it would be replicated perfectly afterwards.

  So sometimes, she put them to work in the kitchen, and as time went on, they started to run the mess hall upstairs on their own, using her recipes, only interrupting her every now and then to ask about some technique or ingredient or other. She’d spoken with Ikriss about hiring more permanent staff, but it would take time, because anyone that came onboard would have to be known within the Darkstar network and they would have to undergo the most rigorous security clearance in the known Universe.

  Oh well, after what happened last time, she could afford to wait a little. After all, the second week hadn’t been so exhausting. She actually had the energy to allow Ikriss to sweep her off her feet and reduce her to a hot, quivering mess.

  The Kordolians upstairs were happy.

  Her customers—both old and new—were happy.

  Her friends were happy, even if they were still a little freaked out by all the Kordolian activity. Somehow, she’d managed to convince them that Ikriss and his crew weren’t the evil demons the Networks made them out to be, and the Kordolians were perfectly discreet about their identities, wearing those freaky holo-disguise glasses whenever they came into contact with the general public.

  Really, their conduct had been absolutely perfect, but that was to be expected.

  After all, Ikriss was their boss.

  Sienna lifted her sleeve and wiped the sweat from her forehead. She was just about to dish up some of the leftover pudding for herself and Eva when a familiar warm tingly sensation ran down the back of her neck.

  She knew that feeling.

  She always got that feeling when he was around.

  Slowly, she turned and came face to face with the creature of her deepest desires.

  He hadn’t bothered with his holo-disguise—after all, there was nobody back here that he needed to conceal his identity from.

  “Sienna.” His voice was a deep, ovary-melting rumble.

  “Uh, hi, Ikriss.” Unable to help herself, she looked him up and down. Her heartbeat sped up. She almost dropped her wooden spoon.

  Stars, this man.

  She would never, ever grow tired of the sight of him.

  He’d finally allowed his horns to grow back to their full, majestic length. The holo-glasses simply made them invisible, but whenever he took them off, she was treated to the sight of those long, curving, beautiful horns, which emerged from his temples like a dark crown. His moonlight-colored hair was pulled back from his face and woven into tiny, intricate braids that curved over his scalp and ended in a long, high topknot. He wore a rakish black jacket that looked to be made of some sort of leather-like material. Fitted trousers and high boots completed his outfit. She could see the impressive bulge of his cock beneath his trousers.

  Oh, my.

  It didn’t take much these days, did it?

  “You’re early,” she murmured, leaning into his presence; allowing his scent and his irresistible aura to wash over her. “I thought you said you’d be back in the early hours of the morning.”

&nb
sp; His eyebrows rose in amusement. “Is that a complaint, my amina?”

  “Nothing of the sort. Color me pleasantly surprised. You’ve been working too hard lately. You need to relax.” Her eyes narrowed. “Is that something you Kordolians even know how to do?”

  “Is that something you know how to do?” He reached out and brushed away a stray wisp of hair that had escaped from her cap.

  Then he leaned in and kissed her. He tasted of male musk and spice. Sienna instantly melted. In the background, the Kordolian warriors studiously ignored them as they dished up their carnivores’ feast. One by one, they disappeared into the new elevator.

  Eva poked her head around the corner, took one look at Ikriss and Sienna, and promptly disappeared back into the dining room.

  Suddenly, they were alone.

  Again.

  Sienna wrapped her arms around Ikriss’s neck. She pulled him toward her and replied with a kiss of her own.

  Stars, she needed him. It scared her how much.

  She pulled away and stared up at him, suddenly feeling hot and flustered and definitely horny.

  “Done for the night?” Ikriss rumbled, glancing around the kitchen.

  “Not with you. But thanks to your terrifyingly efficient guards, we’re mostly all cleaned and prepped for tomorrow, so with work, yes. Mostly.”

  “Then allow me to help you to relax.” Ikriss flashed his fangs.

  Sienna yelped in surprise as he swept her up into his arms, carrying her away from the kitchen as if she were as light as a feather.

  Down the hallway.

  Out into the cold, dark night, where it was quiet and beautiful.

  Where his silver face shone under the artificial lights, reflecting the hyper-colored glow of the city.

  And his golden eyes burned through everything… her soul included.

  “Where?” she asked, her breath turning into curls and tendrils of mist.

  “Your nest,” he said simply. He set her on her feet and retrieved those crazy holo-glasses from his pocket. He put them on, and her silver-and-fanged, pointy-eared, horned Commander was suddenly transformed into an almost-human. “We can walk from here.” He shrugged off his coat and slipped it over her shoulders, covering her white chef’s jacket. Underneath, he wore a tight fitting Kordolian style black tunic that highlighted his perfectly sculpted torso.

  He slipped his warm hand into hers and led her down the alley and out onto the sidewalk, which was still buzzing with people and traffic.

  She could hardly believe he was here with her, walking hand-in-hand through the streets of New York with her as if he were just an ordinary human like her.

  He, who had saved her from a fate worse than death not once, but twice. Who had cheated death himself and been made anew.

  And now they were going home to her tiny apartment, which was messy and warm and nowhere near befitting of a powerful Kordolian Commander.

  How crazy.

  But Ikriss didn’t seem to mind at all. He’d told her he liked her homely little place, just as he liked walking the streets of the city with her.

  As they walked, he curled a possessive arm around her waist. Their steps settled into a comfortable rhythm.

  Something made her look up. Through a gap in the aerial traffic, she saw the night sky in all its infinite glittering glory.

  What was hiding amongst those distant stars?

  An old tendril of fear coiled around her heart, but then Ikriss gave her a gentle squeeze and chased it away like mist before the blazing sun.

  Impossible man.

  “Let’s go home,” he said gently.

  She nodded, and they kept walking.

  Almost there now.

  Home.

  It wasn’t just this city, but anywhere in the Universe.

  As long as she had her Ikriss by her side.

  * * *

  Dear readers, thank you for supporting my work. I hope you enjoyed this latest installment.

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  Also by Anna Carven

  Dark Planet Warriors

  (in order of publication)

  Dark Planet Warriors (Book 1)

  Dark Planet Falling (Book 2)

  Into the Light (Book 3)

  Out of Darkness (Book 4)

  Darkside Blues (Book 4.5)

  Forged in Shadow (Book 5)

  Infinity’s Embrace (Book 6)

  Electric Heart (Book 7)

  Brilliant Starlight (Book 8)

  Darkstar Mercenaries

  A Darkside Interlude (Book 0.5)

  Taming Chaos (Book 1)

  Shattered Silence (Book 2)

  Fractured Souls (Book 3)

  Decadence (Book 4)

  Hyperspeed Dreams (Book 5 - Lodan & Tasha - next release)

  Hidden Planet

  Destroyer (Book 1)

  Catalyst (Book 2)

  Dark Planet Warriors: Earth Files (a series of short stories)

  Book 1 (Rykal and Arin)

  The Dark Scions

  Vengeance, Chaos, Power - The Complete Trilogy

  Novellas and more:

  Sanctuary - A Dark Planet Warriors Novella