Rule (The Draax Series Book 2)

by Elizabeth Kelly

  “She is,” he said.

  For the first time since I’d met him, he didn’t look irritated. It was obvious how much he loved Bella and how much she loved him. The way he was with her reminded me of my own father and an aching sadness settled in my belly. I missed my father, even after all these years.

  “Human, are you all right?”

  I nodded, blinking back the tears that were dangerously close to spilling past my lashes. “Yes. Bella loves you very much, it’s obvious.”

  “She is my girl and I love her,” Bran said. “It is still rare for females to be born, even with the humans, and the moment I saw her face…”

  He stopped, his throat working, and then said, “She is special.”

  “Did her mother die in childbirth?” Despite Bella’s purple skin, I knew she was half-human. It didn’t matter if the Draax babies had human mothers. The males were always green, and the females were always purple. I wasn’t sure of the exact reason although I vaguely remember studying it in biology in high school. Something about the gene that decided skin colouring being dominant in the Draax.

  I also knew that while extremely rare, occasionally a woman would die giving birth to a Draax baby, even with the gallberry plant.

  “No” Bran said. “She returned to Earth a moon after Bella was born.”

  I couldn’t contain my look of surprise. What woman would voluntarily leave their child on another planet?

  “That’s strange,” I replied, trying to keep my voice neutral. “I’ve actually never heard of a woman leaving the breeding program after having a baby.”

  “She was not in the breeding program,” Bran’s voice was growing strained. “She joined us as our mate because she wanted to.”

  “Us?”

  Bran studied the wall. “Court and me. We shared the females we slept with.”

  Hot colour flooded my cheeks. I wasn’t surprised, I’d woken up to both of them touching me, but still… it was one thing to suspect they did threesomes, quite another to hear it put so bluntly.

  “Oh, right,” I said stupidly. “Draax like, um, threesomes.”

  He didn’t reply and I chewed on my bottom lip. “I didn’t realize that two Draax would mate with one woman though. I thought it was more of a casual thing.”

  “It is unusual but not unheard of for two Draax to mate with one female,” Bran said. “Our preference was to share our female, even as a mate.”

  “Was?” I said.

  Bran’s mouth tightened into a thin line. “We do not share our women now.”

  “Why not?” The question was asked before I could stop it.

  He glared at me, his anger radiating from him in thick, slow waves. “That is none of your business, human.”

  I stumbled back, my hands protecting my kidneys. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been so nosy.”

  The anger left his face and he gave me a remorseful look. “I will not hurt you, human.”

  “No, uh, I know that,” I said as I backed down the hallway. “I’m just really tired now and… um, good night, Bran.”

  “Good night, Evelyn.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Evelyn

  I shot into a sitting position, my heart thudding in my chest and my arms raised to protect my head as I peered into the darkness. The last shreds of my nightmare clung to me, and I rubbed my chest and tried to take deep, calming breaths.

  I wasn’t on Earth now and Alex would never hurt me again. I dropped my hand to my side and rubbed. I must have been tossing and turning because my sheet and quilt were tangled, and my side was aching. It’d been a terrible nightmare, and I shuddered all over. I’d been back in our dingy apartment, asleep on my mattress. Alex had come into my room and dragged me off of the mattress by my hair and into the living room. Troy was standing in the room and Alex threw me at him before walking away.

  I shuddered again. The nightmare had been so real. I could still feel Troy’s hot breath on my face, smell the garlic that always lingered on his breath, as he’d bent over me and grinned. “Mine, you little bitch. You’re all mine now and you’ll never get away.”

  My pulse was speeding up again, and I pushed back the quilt and the sheet and climbed out of bed. I was already craving some juice and I knew I’d never go back to sleep if I didn’t have a glass. Hell, I probably wouldn’t sleep anyway – the nightmare was still too fresh – but at least my side wouldn’t hurt as much.

  I slipped out of my room and walked quietly to the kitchen. By the time I got there, I was freezing and wishing I’d thought to put my sweater on over my tank top. The house was even colder at night and my fingers were going numb. I grabbed a glass from the cupboard and the jug of juice from the Draax version of a fridge and poured myself a glass.

  I drank it quickly, relishing the taste of it as it slid down my throat, but the cold juice only served to make me colder. My body shaking, I went to rinse the glass, muttering a curse when it slipped out of my numb fingers and fell to the floor. It shattered against the tile, and I winced and took a quick look at the doorway before crouching and picking up the larger pieces.

  “Ouch! Shit!” My finger was bleeding, and I stood and eyed the sink and then the pieces of glass on the floor. Blood was starting to drip, and I used the edge of my tank top to stem the flow. Shit, I would have to go and grab some shoes. If I tried to walk over to the sink, I’d end up with glass in my foot and –

  “What is going on?”

  The deep voice scared the hell out of me, and I whirled around. The man standing in the dark doorway was not a Draax, but Alex. Alex, with his cruel sneer and his hands already balling into fists, ready to hit and hurt and make me beg for mercy.

  His big body was blocking my only exit, and I skittered away until my back hit the far wall. I slid down and covered my head with my arms, the hot tears already falling.

  “I’m sorry,” I said. “I’m so sorry. I’ll clean it up right away, Alex. I promise. Please don’t hurt me.”

  “Shh, Evie.”

  The big body knelt in front of me and I took in a whooping gasp of air. The man standing in front of me wasn’t Alex, but Bran. The light flicked on, and Court hurried over and joined us.

  “What happened?”

  “I am not sure,” Bran said. “Evelyn, are you -”

  “She is bleeding.” Court’s voice was full of alarm. “Little human, where are you hurt?”

  My heart was still thudding along like an elephant in a stampede and I couldn’t stop crying. Alex wasn’t here, he couldn’t hurt me, and I knew that, but for some reason the fear was still eating at my stomach, making my body shake and my breathing shallow.

  “She cut her finger, I think,” Bran said.

  He reached for my hand, and I flinched and ducked my head.

  “Shh, little human. I will not hurt you.” Bran’s voice was oddly gentle.

  He stood, and I made a sharp cry of fear when he tugged me to my feet.

  “Shh,” he said again and then lifted me into his arms.

  I stared wide-eyed at him as he carried me out of the kitchen. “Court, grab some bandages and another glass of gallberry juice, please.”

  Carrying me easily, Bran strode into the living room and set me on the couch before turning on the fireplace. The flames roared to life, and I didn’t object when Bran took the blanket from the back of the couch and dropped it around my shoulders.

  “Let me see your hand, Evie,” he said.

  I held out my hand. Blood was still dripping from my finger and I moaned when it splashed onto the floor. “I’m sorry. I’ll clean that up and the broken glass in the kitchen.”

  “Do not worry about it,” Bran said as Court walked in. He sat down on the other side of me, frowning a little when I automatically flinched, but held out the bandages as Bran studied my finger.

  “Should we rinse it first?” Court asked.

  “I think it is all right. The bleeding is already starting to slow, and I do not see any glass in
the cut.”

  As Bran dabbed the cut with a bandage, Court held out the glass of juice. “Drink, Evelyn.”

  I drank. The juice was cold, and my teeth were chattering by the time I finished it. I huddled deeper into the blanket, trying not to cry from humiliation, as Bran finished bandaging the cut.

  “I will get you another glass of juice,” Court said.

  I shook my head. “N-no, that’s okay. I’m really cold right now and my finger isn’t stinging anymore. I just want to clean up my mess and go to bed, okay?”

  Court and Bran stared at each other over my head and I blinked back the hot tears. “I’m sorry.”

  I tried to stand, flinching again when both Bran and Court put heavy hands on my arms. I knew in my mind that they wouldn’t hurt me, but after years of being punched and kicked, my body couldn’t control its reaction.

  “Please,” I said again, “I want to go to bed.”

  “Soon,” Court said. “But first you will tell us the truth.”

  “Court,” Bran said. “She is afraid and -”

  Court reached out and grasped my chin with gentle fingers, tilting my head up until I was staring straight into his copper coloured eyes. “I know you are afraid, little human, which is why you need to tell us the truth. It will help lessen the fear.”

  Would it? I honestly didn’t know, but there was something in Court’s gaze that made me long to tell him everything. I couldn’t though. If they knew how pathetic I was, if they knew that I’d basically been held prisoner by my stepbrother because I was too afraid to leave, they might tell the king I was weak and not fit to be his mate.

  Evie, don’t be stupid. They won’t. You know they won’t.

  I couldn’t take the risk. I just couldn’t.

  I opened my mouth to plead for them to allow me to return to my room again, but before I could say anything, Court rubbed his thumb across my bottom lip. “Tell us, little human. Tell us, so we can keep you safe.”

  His promise to keep me safe, shattered my resolve to keep my secrets. Since my father died, I’d had no one to protect me, no one to care for me, and I was so tired of being afraid.

  “Alex,” I said. “He was the one who hurt me.”

  “Your brother?” Bran frowned. “He is supposed to care for you and protect you. It is his duty. Females are precious, but they are weak and require a male to keep them safe, not harm them.”

  “He’s my stepbrother,” I said, “and even if he had been my actual brother, it doesn’t always work that way on Earth. Human men don’t think of women as precious, I mean, some of them do but not in the way that, uh, you guys do.”

  Bran made a low sound of disgust as Court released my chin. “How often did he hurt you?”

  “A lot,” I admitted. “He started pushing me around and being rough with me before my stepmother died. She didn’t like me very much, but she at least didn’t let Alex full on punch me or anything like that. After she died, Alex started beating me up. He, uh, didn’t really have a job. He sold drugs and did some other illegal things. Anytime I had a job, he would make me quit after a few weeks so that I didn’t have enough money to get away from him.”

  I licked my lips, hating how weak I sounded. “I should have run away, but I didn’t have anywhere else to go, and I-I was afraid of him. He told me that it didn’t matter where I went, he would find me and kill me.”

  I stared at my knees. “He would have too. He was – I mean, he had some mental health issues before he started doing the drugs, but the drugs made it so much worse. He said he was my guardian and that I had to do exactly what he said.”

  Not wanting to sound completely pathetic, I said, “I did run away once. I took my last paycheque from a job that he made me quit and I took a bus to a different city a few hours away. I got a cheap motel room, but Alex found me after only a few days. I don’t know how, but he found me. And then he,” my throat was dry as dust and it made a painful sounding click when I swallowed, “he beat me so bad that I couldn’t get out of bed for two days. That was the first time I started peeing blood.”

  Court and Bran didn’t say anything. Afraid to look at them, I continued to study my knees. “He didn’t hit me in the face very often, he didn’t want people to start asking questions. So, he hit and kicked me a lot in the kidneys and the liver.”

  Court made a low sound in the back of his throat. I glanced up at him and made an anxious squeak at the look of pure fury in his gaze. It made me want to immediately try and protect my kidneys, but I resisted, looking back at my knees instead.

  “So, that is why you joined the lifetime breeding program?” Bran said.

  “Mostly. Alex had a friend – Troy. He was a drug dealer like Alex and just as mean. He, uh, he liked me.” Gallberry flavoured bile rose in my throat and I swallowed it down. “I was a virgin and Troy liked that. He said it was hot that I’d never been with a man before and that he was going to be my first.”

  Another low growl from Court and I crossed my arms over my torso, my hand resting against my kidneys. “I went to a bar one night, found a random guy, and slept with him. I figured if I wasn’t a virgin, Troy wouldn’t want me anymore. I made sure that some of Alex’s other friends were at the bar, and that they saw me go home with the guy. The next day when I came home, Alex was waiting for me.”

  I shuddered at the memory of what happened. “He was so mad. He beat me up really bad again, but I didn’t care because it worked. Troy didn’t want me anymore.”

  I took a deep breath and this time glanced at Bran. There was anger in his face but also pity, and fresh shame flooded through me. I should never have told them the truth, but it was too late now.

  “Anyway,” my voice was dull, “it only worked for a bit. Troy decided after a few weeks, that he didn’t care that I was used goods and Alex told me that I would be marrying Troy at the end of this month. I had applied for the nanny program months ago, but I knew I would never get chosen. I didn’t have any experience with kids.”

  I shifted on the couch a little, my thighs pressing against both Court’s and Bran’s. After being hurt by Alex so much, I didn’t like people in my personal space. It usually made me feel anxious and uncomfortable, but I didn’t mind this. The heat from their large bodies felt nice.

  “The day after they told me I had no choice and that I was marrying Troy, I had the genetic testing done for the breeding program. Three days after I found out I had the breeding compatible gene, the agency told me they’d found me a mate. Apparently, I’m what they call a guaranteed breeder. They said I’d probably get pregnant on the first try and because I signed up for the lifetime program, they matched me with the king.”

  “Did your stepbrother find out you joined the breeding program?” Court asked. “Is that why he beat you again?”

  I made a bitter laugh. “No. He had no idea. He was just drunk and high and in a bad mood, the night before I was leaving. He came into my room and tried to pick a fight with me about marrying Troy and when I refused to talk to him, he beat me up. I passed out from the pain and normally he stops hitting me when that happens, but I don’t think he did that time. I woke up in the morning and was in a lot of pain. I only had about ten minutes before the land vehicle from the agency arrived, so I had to pack really quickly without waking Alex up. It’s why I don’t have many clothes and personal items. I mean, I didn’t have much to begin with, but most of it I had to leave behind. I had to sneak out because if Alex had seen the agency coming to get me, he would have killed me. I know it.”

  “He nearly did kill you.” Court reached out to touch my side before seeming to think better of it and dropping his hand into his lap.

  “I tried to hide my injuries because at first I thought you were the king. I didn’t want you to send me back to Earth because you thought I was too hurt to have sex with you and bear your children,” I said to Bran.

  “Once you knew about the mix-up, why did you continue to lie to us?” Court asked.

  I didn’t repl
y, and his fingers grasped my chin and tipped my head up again. “Tell us, little human.”

  I searched his face, instinctively knowing that the worst thing I could do was lie to him in this moment. “I was afraid you would tell the king that I was weak, and he should send me back. I can’t go back to Earth. If I do, I’ll have no choice but to go back to Alex and then he really will kill me or worse, marry me off to Troy. My mom and dad are dead, I’m a lower with no money and no real job experience. If I’m banned from the breeding program, my only choices back on Earth are to be homeless and starving or being married off to a disgusting brutal pig of a man.”

  Court released my chin and I pressed my lips together before saying, “I loved my dad a lot and the day he died was the worse day of my life. I miss him every single day, and I hate that I’ll never get to see him or hug him or tell him I love him ever again. It’s why I’ll never say anything to the king about, um, what happened with us in the bed that morning.”

  I glanced at Court and then at Bran. “I don’t want to go back to Earth, but more importantly, I don’t want Bella growing up without a dad like I did. She needs you. Both of you.”

  A small semblance of a smile crossed Bran’s face. “We know you will not say anything, little human.”

  We sat in silence for a few minutes before I stood. “I’m sorry I lied to you and I’m sorry I woke you up by breaking the glass. I’m going to clean up the glass and then go to bed.”

  “We will clean it up,” Bran said. “Go to bed.”

  “No,” I said. “It’s my mess and I should clean -”

  Court stood and touched my dark hair for a moment. “Go to bed, little human. No more arguing with us.”

  I chewed on my bottom lip before nodding and, keeping the blanket wrapped around me, trudging out of the living room and back to my bedroom. As I climbed into the bed, there was a part of me that wanted to be ashamed that I’d told my pathetic life story to them.

  Instead, there was only an odd sense of relief. Lying to them made me feel sick to my stomach. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths. Everything would be fine. Court and Bran would keep my secrets, and, in a few weeks, I would be with the king and starting my new life. I’d never see either Bran or Court again.