Broken

by C. R. Jane

  “On Veon, women never let their hair grow too long.” And it took me several seconds to realize exactly what hair he was referring to.

  My mouth dropped open, and I felt violated to have Zeni laugh at my private area and show it to the Vepar like I was a monkey on display. “She’s sick. And besides, when was I supposed to get waxed? When I was locked in my prison cell?”

  “Told you. Nothing to worry about.”

  “I doubt that. So with all your technology, why do you still have printed photographs.”

  “Nostalgia mostly.”

  Walking predatorily in my direction, he stops in front of me, lowering his head in a flash to capture my mouth, stopping any further discussion of Zeni. I moaned as our lips connect. His kiss was remarkably soft as he cupped my jaw in his hands, tilting my head slightly to deepen it. I wasn’t sure how he was managing to control himself so well when I felt like I was about to combust.

  As was always my reaction to him, I was lost, completely swept up in him and his ability to render me speechless. I absolutely loved that he made me lose all thought with his kisses, all my insecurities of being here completely obliterated once more, every kiss feeling like the first.

  He walked me backwards towards the bed, through the embrace of our lips and tongues. Pulling away, he lifted me gently, searching my eyes before laying me down softly on the bed. I reached for him in unspoken need, his body molding over me as he searched my lips for another passionate kiss.

  I needed him to show me how much he wanted me after days of watching other Vepar females do everything they could to get his attention. I needed to know that he needed me as much as I craved him.

  A visceral feeling passed over me. Our eyes met and I saw enthrallment in his gaze, in the sensations of our kisses as our coming together imparted. Feeling his hardened erection pushing against me, I moaned into his kiss, sliding my legs along his length. My desire and need clear in my pursuit to speed things up. It was all for naught, as he took his sweet time, gently nipping along my jaw and down my neck. I remained still, taking my cue from him as he proceeded to undress me in slow measures. Unzipping my dress, he peeled it up and over my head, then rained gentle kisses along my stomach before worshipping my breasts through the thin layer of my strapless lace bra that I had finally figured out how to get the dressing cylinder to give me.

  “I don’t want any barriers between us,” he whispered, slowly removing every layer of my clothing, my overheated skin relishing the coolness of the room. Leaning forward, I dragged up his shirt, pulling it over his tight stomach, across his strong arms, like unwrapping the most cherished and wanted present. Lost in our silent fantasy, he stared lovingly into my eyes as we unfastened and removed his pants, dropping them and his briefs to the floor. Completely naked, no barriers between us, as he’d wanted.

  The anticipation of feeling him on me, in me, overtook my body, and I shuddered in his arms. He lowered himself over me. His strength and weight felt absolutely delicious, warming my blood with desire. In unspoken understanding, our undeniable mutual need declared the undressing experience as foreplay enough. I thrummed with so much kindled desire, that I already floated on the edge of an orgasm from his touch. My silent pleas signaled I was more than ready to welcome him inside me. He spread my legs with a gentle push of his knee. With slow, measured movements, he slid into me before leisurely thrusting deeper. I moaned, my back arching, captured by his unwavering stare.

  “Yes, that’s it, baby. So perfect,” he whispered, pulling himself all the way out, before pushing back in slowly, forcing me to open. I pulled his face down to mine to devour his mouth, gently nipping his lower lip. I was lost to the sensations of his steady rhythm, the slow sensual gliding in and out, as though he had all the time in the world.

  I wished we had that kind of time. This was a stolen moment. We’d escaped from the party and everyone would ask questions soon, then it was back to the games. I memorized this moment inside of me for when it got too hard...for when it felt impossible to keep going.

  But I realized at that moment that I want a lifetime of this. Of these Vepar men.

  “I want you to fight for me...fight for us, because I’ll never stop fighting for you,” he whispered, not breaking eye contact for one moment.

  Maintaining his languid strokes, he brushed his hand down my body, pushing it between us to gently stroke me, skating his thumb along the bundle of nerves in succession with his thrusts. Euphoria soared within me, growing, escalating. He drove me wild, pushing me over the edge.

  I writhed uncontrollably in his grip as he dangled me closer to the plunge of ecstasy. My body trembled in desire, achingly empty in the need for more, begging for release.

  “Corran . . . please . . . ”

  “Shhh, baby,” he whispered.

  Fisting his hand roughly in my hair, he held my hip securely in place, refusing to let me speed up our movements.

  “It’s too much,” I pleaded in desperation.

  I quaked in his arms, screaming in pleasure, my body pulsating and tightening around him. Pulling my lips from his, I screamed, “Corran!” Slowing the gentle glides of his fingers on my sensitized clit, he pulled his hand away, entwining his fingers in mine, our hands held firmly as he drove into me with final thrusts. He’d taken his time until I exploded, and now this was for him to take me, to bring himself to the edge with me. He hissed as he slammed into me harder. Our mesmerized gazes locked and he whispered my name, before coming deep inside me.

  Chapter 15

  Close to a week had passed without any news from the council on the third test or my Vepar, and I missed them terribly. Worry bubbled in my gut at the delay. Everyone gossiped about what it meant, along with talking about me. Most now completely ignored me, well except out in public. There they pretended to be my friend, and I played the game. Maybe too well because they squirmed when I hugged them, and I made sure to do it every time. Ever since the team dinner where I vanished with Corran, they accused me of cheating and treated me even worse than before at the mansion.

  A bitter breeze washed past, and the trees in the backyard swayed, their fruit swung back and forth like globes on a Christmas tree. This was the only place that the others left me alone most days and it gave me time to think--if I made the right decision to stay here.

  Someone rushed across the yard, and I perked up.

  “Luren,” I called out as I caught the elf Vepar crossing the mansion yard, waving to him.

  He glanced over, squinting beneath the glare of the two suns.

  I stood from the bench near the mansion and ran toward him.

  “Haven't seen you in days. Or the others. What’s going on?” Nerves danced down my spine as I watched Luren’s brow furrowed. He glanced back and forth before leaning in closer.

  “I shouldn’t be telling you this, but the council is selecting the mate today.”

  “What? But we haven’t done the third test.”

  He turned away and continued his march across the yard, leaving me alone, not looking back. Dread sank through me.

  Something happened…something bad. Why else had the Vepar disappeared and now suddenly there’s a selection without the completion of the last ritual test.

  My heart beat like it intended to stop, and sickness churned in my stomach. I rushed back to my room and shut the door, then paced when a message popped up on the monitor.

  “Ella. Council have called you to the front yard.”

  I paced some more, not sure I wanted to find out who they selected. I couldn’t stand it if it wasn’t me. Except the Council picked their mate, not my men. My focus was scattered and I hurried into the common room’s cylinder wardrobe, changing into a simple yellow, summer dress with short sleeves.

  Despite the new clothes, I sweated, and couldn’t bring myself to move. I hadn’t expected this selection to happen this fast and had kept telling myself there was one more test then I’d worry about the outcome. And now that it was here, panic strangled me beca
use all I could think about were the what ifs.

  What if they picked another girl?

  What if I had to live with the Council?

  What if my Vepar couldn’t do anything about it?

  What if I became a slave or they experimented on me?

  But I had to finally get this done. I hurried my steps out of the room and toward the front entrance where the remaining women joined me. They all wore pale faces and worry crammed behind their eyes. They knew… We all knew something wasn’t right.

  Four of us lined up in front of the three Council members. At the side near a bubbling fountain of purple water, my three Vepar stood stoic, their emotions barren.

  Terror consumed me. I remembered the Council’s threat. If I didn’t win, they would take me as their own.

  A few staff were present, including Luren, but where were the media crew needing to publicize the event?

  The one-horned Council member stepped forward, the blue cape he wore fluttered in the wind around his legs. “Thank you for your patience while we deliberated. This was a hard decision. The four of you who remain showed exceptional strength and bravery during the first test. The devotion and dedication were extraordinary in the social dates and confirmed you’re each well suited to our matches.” He paused for a moment, his gaze skimming over all of us, pausing on me a bit too long. “The third test… is complete.”

  Everyone murmured, and my mind was on fire. Had I missed a test?

  “What third test?” Zeni called out.

  “The dinner you were all called to was a test of keeping your emotions in check.”

  My mouth dropped open because I spent the whole time keeping to myself, never showing interest in the men, then I disappeared with Corran. Crap.

  Everyone else cooed like birds… their fakeness made me sick.

  The Council member raised his chin.“We’ve made our decision on who we believe is best suited for these three Vepar and our decision is final. The winner is Ella Monroe from Earth.”

  I rocked on my heels, convinced I hadn’t heard right. I won?

  The females around me gasped and cried out in protest. But the Council members didn’t even congratulate me. They looked away and spun on their heels, then were ushered toward a small spacecraft sitting on the front lawn that took off almost instantly after they boarded.

  “What just happened? This is a joke,” Zeni cried.

  My three Vepar watched everyone until they finally moved forward. Derrial collected my hands in his and drew me closer. Corran and Thane stood at my back, my protectors.

  “This isn’t fair!” Zeni wailed, and she glared at me, so much hatred projecting from her stare. She spun and rushed back into the mansion, while the other women stood there, lost and confused.

  Derrial drew me with him into the house and the four of us marched to my bedroom. He shut the door behind us and stated, “Pack your belongings, we need to leave now. We’re going home.”

  I turned to face my three men. “What just happened? I mean, it’s my first mating ritual, but that seemed rather sorrowful.”

  Thane stepped alongside me. “You weren’t going to be selected by the Council, so we had to… what do you say on Earth? Pull some strings.”

  “And we need to leave quickly,” Corran murmured.

  Worry rattled me. “Am I safe?”

  “Of course, pet,” Thane added. “It’s just not safe here anymore.”

  I had so many questions, and I wanted to celebrate the win, knowing that I’d just gained myself three mates, which in itself was scary and exciting, but something felt wrong about today.

  I glanced around to what had been my home for the past couple of weeks. “I don’t have anything to pack.”

  “Good, you’ll have everything you need at your new home.” Derrial hauled me outside, and their speediness, their dread leeched into me. What were they so afraid of?

  “What strings exactly did you have to pull?”

  But no one answered as we rushed into the space vessel parked in the backyard. We climbed on, and without looking back, the door shut. We lifted into the air.

  Suddenly, I felt like I’d somehow landed in the wolf’s den. Thane sidled up next to me on the seats and drew me into his arms. His lips were on my cheek, my neck, my ear. “Don’t worry, pet. We’ll never let anything happen. But most importantly, you are officially ours by Veon law.”

  Then why did my instinct scream that something worse was waiting for me around the next corner?

  Chapter 16

  (Derrial)

  We were called to meet with the Council the next morning. We left Ella sleeping soundly in bed in the secure room we had created secretly in our home. We didn’t know who to trust when it came to Ella, so we took all precautions. I fucking hated to leave her, but the Council would only get suspicious if we didn’t show up.

  As soon as we arrived it was clear that something was wrong. Zeni was standing next to one of the Councilmen, a triumphant grin on her face as we walked in.

  “Why the hell is she here?” Thane snarled. He had wanted to break up with Zeni before any of us and had been the most resentful when we found out that she had lied. His feelings had obviously gotten stronger with time.

  “Why were we not informed that Ella Monroe had a blood type almost guaranteed to be a success in Corran’s trials?” asked one of the old fuckers.

  I froze. How in the world did they find out? We had been holding them off claiming we had more tests to do.

  “Zeni was able to procure some of the human’s blood during the first Trial. She brought it to us and the test results just came back. She’s a perfect match for genetic suitability.”

  None of us seemed to be able to speak. After everything we had done to try and protect Ella, we were watching it all crumble before our eyes.

  “What tests did you run?” Corran demanded, trying to make it sound like they’d made a mistake.

  “All the ones we needed,” said Chloped, my least favorite of the Councilmen. “With the data we had already received from the first team about her parents, you should have known we would look into her,” he continued happily.

  “She belongs to us,” Thane growled, looking like he was ready to destroy them all.

  Vepar guards began to file into the room. The Council had clearly been expecting us to be angry, to retaliate and not take this lightly.

  “The human is currently being escorted to a secure lab where we will begin the procedures,” said Chloped. He pulled up a holographic image of a shell-shocked Ella being led out of our supposedly iron clad hiding place.

  How the fuck did they find her?

  “You surrendered your hold on her once you had her enter the Trials under false pretenses. She is now the property of Veon.” Gunter smirked, pleased with himself.

  I trembled with rage, not sure who I hated more, the Council or Zeni.

  “You can leave now,” Chloped ordered. “You are all currently suspended from your duties as we investigate your deception further.”

  Thane took a step forward and Corran and I both grabbed his arms before he could do anything to make matters worse.

  It would take all three of us to save Ella.

  Discover what happens next in the Fallen World Series in Betrayed...coming Fall 2019.

  Pre-order your copy at books2read.com/fallenworld3

  Authors’ Note

  We love the idea of exploring the universe, what lays beyond it. Mila recently attended a lecture by Brian Cox about the exploration and understanding of wormholes and black holes, and this has spurred us on to dive deeper and share what life out in the great expanse of the universe could offer. We hope you're enjoying the journey with us. This is a departure from what we normally write, but it has been so much fun to dive deeper into the Vepar world.

  School of Broken Souls

  Have you discovered School of Broken Souls yet? Here’s a sneak peek at the first chapter…

  School of Broken Souls

 
; Adeline Jones is perfectly average. Or at least she thinks she is until she receives an invite to attend Raven Academy, complete with a full scholarship. Raven Academy is the mysterious school that only the elite of the elite go and despite Adeline's misgivings about giving up her whole life to attend, there's no way her parents are going to let her give up such an opportunity.

  But things at Raven Academy aren't what they seem. Everyone is a little too perfect, a little too rich, and a little too powerful for any normal student population. Things only complicate further when Adeline catches the eyes of Raven Academy's group of elite boys.

  Can Adeline figure out what secrets Raven Academy is hiding before it’s too late? Or will the price of admission to the elite academy be more than she can pay...like perhaps her soul.

  Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before.

  -Edgar Allen Poe

  Chapter 1

  I grip the gun under my coat, and my hand shakes. All of me trembles.

  What the hell am I doing here?

  A drop of sweat slides down my back. It must be a hundred degrees in this store. Or maybe my nerves are just making me feel like I’m in the living embodiment of hell.

  A sudden shriek has me jumping in my boots, and I flinch around to see a child stomping his feet when his mom takes away a bag of fruit snacks that’s he’s poached from one of the shelves. Listen to your mother, I want to say, but I can’t find my voice. Not now.

  Not when I’m ready to run and hide.

  But I have to see this through. People are counting on me. And I can’t let them down.

  I won’t let them down.

  I glance around at who else is in the store. There’s a teenage couple making eyes at each other in the row over, and a grizzly old man looking over the beer aisle, but other than that the store’s empty. I need everyone to leave before I do this though. This stupid, crazy, impossible thing.