by Jenika Snow
Styx’s world was made up many different cultures, people, creatures, and beliefs. Being from the Northern tribe, all he’d ever known was living off the land, being deep within the Asaga Forest and knowing that all others feared his kind. He’d never understood that as a boy, how his kind could be taken as a threat, as dangerous, when they were a family, only hunted when threatened or to feed their tribe, but it wasn’t until he’d heard and understood the stories that were told around the fire at night that he realized who and what he was.
He accepted that. He knew he might be alone in this world, but he accepted it.
Bigger, stronger, and when threatened more violent than anything else, his kind—the Soveign Tribe—was known as savages, as barbarians, and as primitive killers. The descriptions fit them well. His kind knew how to survive in this hostile forest, with creatures that were poisonous, waters that ran red from poisons, and predators that could be just as vicious as his kind. In these woods, in this world, he was at the top of the food chain, and anyone that meant him harm felt his wrath.
Styx moved through the forest slowly, stealthily, and made sure to keep his gaze locked on his surroundings. The tribe he grew up in was hours from his current dwelling, but it had been his choice to leave. After his mother died and his father found a new mate, Styx had felt disconnected, and he had wanted to go out and make his own home, his own family. But with no mate of his own, he’d lived a solitary life. It had suited him well, and he’d accepted that way of living.
But the need to find a wife, to have a woman that was his mate, grew strong inside of him until he felt it like a beast in the very depths of his body.
Styx wanted a family, wanted to find a mate and put a baby inside of her, to claim her in all ways. He needed that now more than ever. He either had to go back to his tribe and claim a woman there, which didn’t appeal to him because he’d felt no connection to any of the females, or he’d have to leave the forest to find one.
Styx wasn’t above taking a woman, unwilling if that was how it was, and making her his. He was desperate enough to do anything.
With his spear in hand he moved through the forest, having an idea where the sound came from, but with the mountains surrounding him noise echoed throughout the land, seeming to come from all directions.
Winter was coming, just a short time away, and there was a chill in the air. Being this deep in the woods and so close to the base of the mountains the cold weather seemed to come even quicker. But Styx had survived many winters easily, had supplies stocked, and there was no worry about whether he’d make it through another harsh year.
Styx had never been one to feel as though he fit in with his tribe, which was a reason why he’d left. He’d also not desired any of the available females, and he decided he’d rather venture away from the tribe and find his own way.
The sound of a small creature scurrying across the braches above him rang through the sudden stillness in the woods, but he focused in front of him. Stopping and inhaling deeply, Styx scented a nest of Bringada birds close by. Their eggs and the meat from the adults were delicious, as well as nutritious in proteins.
Turning slightly, he inhaled again, the darkness of the forest coming on deeper, stronger, with the setting of the great sun above him. But his pupils dilated, his vision became sharper, his heightened senses making his vision crystal and clear, and everything around him appear as though light shone on it. Inhaling again, Styx took note of a Morano beast a short distance away. A great creature, which was slow but had deadly toxins, was not what he wanted to fight right now. Had that been what he heard? He inhaled again, and that’s when he picked up several scents coming from one direction.
Female.
Human.
Blood.
Fertile.
He inhaled again, seeing if there were any scents, maybe of a male companion, of death, of anything that would give him more information on why a lone female was wounded and this deep into the woods.
Styx moved swiftly through the woods, going closer and closer to the scent of where the blood came from. His protective instinct flared up, the very thought of a female alone and hurt in these dangerous woods having the male part of him rising up, wanting to protect her. That desire was engrained in him, in his kind. Females, having strengths of their own, were physically weaker than males, but humans, compared to his kind, were even more so. And then he slowed when he saw the swatch of white coming through like a beacon of light.
Styx moved toward her motionless body, her hair this vibrant color like flames licking over wood. The gown she wore was torn in several places, filthy, and he saw one side was completely saturated with blood. Once he was close enough to her he crouched, looking her small body up and down. She breathed, her chest rising and falling slowly, the intervals between them worrisome.
Reaching out he lifted the strip of material that covered her side to get a better look at the wound. It was a nasty gash, and the scent of poisons came through, tingling in his nose with a bitter, uncomfortable sensation. The very thought of leaving her wasn’t an option. Even if her life hung on by a thread, and he didn’t know if he had the herbs and medicines to heal this wound and rid her body of the toxins, Styx would try to heal her.
Mine.
That word played through his head over and over again as he looked at her. She was sick, injured, and although she wasn’t of his kind, but a frail human, she was a woman, compatible with his species, and he wanted her. Had fate looked upon him and brought him this female? He couldn’t deny the scent of her nearing her fertility piqued the male side of him, but it was the desire to heal her that rode him hard. He wanted her healed. Everything after that would be worked out later.
He reached out and pushed away a strand of her hair that blocked his view of her face. She was littered with cuts and bruises, and dried blood was matted in her hair. But she didn’t move, and he knew he couldn’t keep her out here any longer. He didn’t know how long the poisons had been in her system, and the sooner he started treating her, the sooner she’d heal.
He set his spear against the trunk of a tree and picked her up. She weighed barely anything, and compared to him she was tiny.
Who is this female?
Once she was safely in his arms, Styx looked down at her face. She was very beautiful, not appearing like the females from his tribe. His kind had dark hair and dark eyes, but this female’s hair was unlike anything he’d ever seen. The strands were red and long, with the waves curling around her slender shoulders. She was also so much smaller than the females of his tribe. He looked at the arch of her eyebrows, the way her eyelashes were a darker shade of red, and the light sprinkling of spot across the bridge of her tiny nose.
What color would her eyes be? What would her voice sound like?
She was too thin for his comfort or liking. Wherever she was from either didn’t feed her well, or she didn’t have access to fat-enriched food. Either way Styx would fatten her up and make her nice and healthy. If she was to get well and heal from her injuries, she needed to eat more. She also needed to put on some weight before winter came. Styx had no intentions of letting her go, not when he’d found her. She’d be his mate and would have his baby inside of her soon enough.
Chapter Two
It was the sound of a fire crackling close by that roused Audrey. Once everything became clearer, the pain settled deep in her body. It felt as though she’d been beaten up and down, and trying to remember why she felt like this just had a fuzziness filling her head.
Shifting, she sucked in a breath at the soreness of her muscles and at the pulling sensation and pain on her side. Audrey forced her eyes open, but had to blink several times in order to clear her blurry vision. She was on her back, and the first thing that came into focus was the rock ceiling above her.
I’m in a cave.
Light from the fire that was close by flickered along the stone walls. She’d been in plenty of caves while growing up, her village was close to the Heckena M
ountains. She turned her head slightly and saw the fire burning just a few feet from her, the heat coming off of it feeling calming.
After that she was aware of the heavy pressure on her, not uncomfortable, but what covered her had some weight to it. Pulling her arms out from under the coverings, she smoothed her hands over what she now knew were furs. They were coarse, but the heat they provided felt really nice, even if she was in pain.
Audrey inhaled. There was a tugging and an ache in her side, nothing too painful, but enough to have her stop moving. The sound of footsteps had her entire body stilling. She closed her eyes, feigning sleep.
Pierces of woods being dropped on the stone ground echoed off the cavern walls. Her heart was thundering fast, her body started to sweat, and she was trying not to show any facial expression for how much pain she was in. It didn’t help when her body was tense, and she was scared to death.
If it were slavers you wouldn’t be in this cave with hides over you. They’d have you chained and sent to the man that bought you.
She sensed the person in the cave come closer, the shadow of his body covering her and blocking out the fire. He didn’t move for long seconds, and with each passing moment she grew more and more tense, her body and mind screaming for her to escape.
“I know you’re awake, female.”
The male’s voice was so deep that it didn’t sound fully human. Although she knew there were creatures in their world that weren’t fully human, even if they appeared as such, Audrey had never seen any of these human-like beings and didn’t want to either. In the woods by her village they didn’t have beings that were like them … but not. But Audrey had no idea where the slavers had taken her, so she had no idea what she was up against.
Maybe you shouldn’t have run off into foreign woods, then.
And not doing that would have meant she was a slave, and that was not what she was going to be. Audrey would rather face this than being a sex slave.
But Audrey still kept her eyes closed, too afraid to face exactly what was standing beside her.
“Open your eyes and look at me, female.”
He had a deep voice, feral in quality, and there was this slight scent. Audrey did as he said, not because he’d ordered her to, but because she knew she couldn’t pretend forever. She had to face this sooner or later. If he wanted her dead he could have done it already. He could have left her out in the woods after she fell. He didn’t have to bring her to this place.
She opened her eyes, her hands in tight fists at her side and her heart feeling like it would burst right through her chest. And then she turned her head and looked at him, feeling her eyes widen at the beast of a man standing beside her. He appeared human … but not.
Swallowing the lump that instantly formed in her throat, all Audrey could do was take in the massive size of him. She was average height for a female at five-foot-six, not overly thin, but also not overweight seeing as her lifestyle didn’t afford copious amounts of food. But this man, this beast, had to be at least seven feet tall. His muscles looked stacked upon each other, and his eyes seemed to have this almost iridescent hue to them.
Like how a predator’s eyes glow when light flashes over them.
This man was not human, or at least not like any human male she’d ever seen.
He stared at her for long seconds, and then turned and headed to the fire. She looked at the back of him, how he was shirtless, the muscles pronounced, unrestrained. The pants he wore were dark leather, and molded to his tree-trunk sized thighs snuggly. When he turned around she was looking right at his chest, at the dips, hollows, and the rolling hills of definition. Audrey was frightened, but she couldn’t help but appreciate how masculine he was.
When she lifted her gaze to his face it was to see that same stoic, hard expression covering it. He looked dirty, like he’d been out in the woods foraging, hunting. Was he one of the “savages” the slavers had been shouting about?
“You must eat and drink,” he said and moved toward her.
She shifted backward as much as she could, given the pain she still felt. She winced when her side pulled again, but he was shoving a cup toward her. Looking between him and the mug, she didn’t want to accept it, but didn’t want to upset him. He shoved it toward her again, his brows going down as his annoyance was clearly written on his face.
“Drink.” His voice had gone harder, and she found herself reaching out and taking the cup, her fingers brushing along his. A shiver moved up her spine at that small contact, and she quickly looked at the cup’s contents. The mug was made out of a horn of some animal she couldn’t identify, and the contents smelled sweet, but also having bitter after notes.
“What is it?” she asked, and looked at his face. His focus was on her mouth, and when he looked her in the eyes she watched as his pupils dilated to take up nearly all of the iris.
“It’s herbs. It’ll help flush the toxins out and ease the pain.”
Toxins?
She thought back to running from the slavers and remembered when she’d gotten hit with something on her side it must have been tipped with poison.
“Drink,” he said again, more determinedly, his voice deeper, darker.
Audrey glanced down at the horn cup, her throat tight at the thought of drinking it.
He could have killed you easily already.
Audrey brought the cup to her mouth and took a small sip. Just like it smelled, the liquid was sweet, but had bitter after notes.
“All of it,” the man barked out, and Audrey tipped the cup back and drank the rest of it. She handed the horn back to him, and he made this grunt of approval. He stepped away from her, disappeared behind a rock outcropping, and she pushed herself up even more.
Glancing around the cave once more, she took note that there was a pallet set up across from where she was, placed on a raised rock podium. A few primitive looking chairs and even a table were on the other side of that. To her left she could only see the cave, and to the right it was no different, although light filtered from where the man had disappeared.
After a few moments Audrey felt the pain in her side start to diminish, and she glanced down, pushing away the animal fur so she could see her wound. She didn’t have her auction gown on anymore, but she did wear a loose shirt type tunic. The openings for her arms were cut larger than normal, and chilled air moved along her exposed flesh. Pulling the material aside she could see this off-white colored bandage covering where her wound was. Gritting her teeth as she pulled back the material, she saw there were thick leaves and a grayish paste over the wound. A small amount of blood could be seen mixed in with the gunk on her wound, but there was almost no pain.
“More herbs and leaves from the Ekasha plant. It’ll cut down on the healing time, and promote the wound to close.”
She snapped her head up and stared at the man, who now stood a few feet from her, a wooden plate in his outstretched hand.
“Eat,” he said in that gruff, deep, and slightly accented voice.
Audrey didn’t know what in the hell was going on, or who this man was, but instinct told her she needed to obey him if she wanted to get through this ordeal.
Chapter Three
Styx watched the female eat, and when she went to push the plate away, food still on it, he barked out the order for her to finish it all.
“If I eat anymore I’ll be sick,” she said, looking at him with huge blue eyes. He’d never seen a female with eyes of that color. The males and females of his tribe had eyes the color of the ground: a rich, earthy brown. But this female, so small and fragile compared to him, to his kind, had eyes crystal clear.
Styx inhaled deeply, sensing she was telling the truth about not being able to finish the meal. He wasn’t pleased, however. She needed to eat more, to fill out more, not just for her health, but because Styx preferred fuller, thicker females. Once she gained weight, she’d be able to handle the kind of mating he wanted and needed. She’d be able to carry and deliver his young without tro
uble.
Styx took the plate, disappointed there was half the plate of food left. But he had to remind himself she was healing, and that she’d been poisoned. He might be alone, left his tribe to be on his own and hadn’t seen them in longer than he could recall, but he remembered the females of his kind well enough to know this human was far from what he was used to.
This young female had him curious.
He set her plate aside and just watched her. She was gorgeous, with a wreath of red waves that fell over her shoulders and down her back. Her face was pale, probably far paler than normal due to the blood loss and her clear fear. And then he inhaled again, taking her scent into his lungs, smelling her innocence, the fact she was so close to being fertile. The primal beast inside of him rose up and took note that this was his female, and he’d have her eventually. Styx might have taken his wife here without her consent, but he wouldn’t force himself on her. He wouldn’t rape her. That, Styx would never do to a female.
The silence stretched on for some time, and Styx stoked the fire. The nights in the forest created a chill in the air that seeped into his bones. He wanted, needed this female to stay warm so she could heal. The herbs he’d given her would speed up her healing process and should have the pain diminished to almost nonexistent. She’d need to drink several more mugs before he felt confident enough that the toxins were completely flushed from her system, but he didn’t plan on letting her leave anyway.
“Why am I here?”
He looked over his shoulder at her and saw she had the blankets pulled up to her chest. He didn’t answer right away, just threw another log onto the fire, watching the flames lick at it.
“You’re here because you were dying.” He looked over at her again. “I couldn’t allow that to happen.” He turned and faced her fully. “Bringing you back to my home was the only way to ensure you survived.” She didn’t speak, but he noticed the way her pulse beat at the base of her neck rapidly. He could smell her confusion and the slight scent of fear. The latter was this sharp aroma that had this tingling setting root in the back of his throat.