Stolen By The Warrior

by C. J. Brookes

  And the even younger female whimpering nearby.

  So the hunt had been successful for Theo as well. Another of the four Tanisses fated to die tonight, then.

  Theo had a young female cuddled close to his chest. She was a more delicate, almost washed-out version of Aodhan’s female. One of the younger sisters, then.

  “Well, we were supposed to either kill them where we found them or take them back to kill there. I see you chose the latter.” Aodhan doubted Theo would be able to harm such a sweet-looking creature as the one he held. Her hair was in two braids, and the eyes were big and wide and vulnerable. Even in the dark, he could see that. She looked like everyone’s kid sister. And from the moment he’d realized who Mallory was to him, she had become as his kid sister, too. He would allow no harm to come to her tonight, either. “Rather sweet-looking one you’ve nabbed.”

  Not that the nearly blind male could see her that well, though.

  “She is mine. As her sister is yours.”

  Aodhan’s female erupted. She tried to reach her sister, but Aodhan prevented that. He yanked on the silk tether, harder than he’d intended. She jerked off balance, but righted herself. Her green eyes blazed when she looked up at him. “I will kill you both for this. If he hurts her at all, you will suffer more than you can imagine. Let her go!”

  He loved the sound of her voice, even when it was spouting threats at him. Aodhan ran one hand over the silk of her hair. “Of course, kitten. Now, either you walk, or I carry you. I would far prefer to carry you, but…”

  She arched away from him. “Don’t touch me.”

  “You will not be able to stop me.” Her body would crave him soon. After he fixed the entire human thing.

  Humanity. It was concerning.

  He wanted more than just forty or fifty years with her. He had waited a lifetime for her, after all. He would not want their time together over in practically an instant. Nor would he be able to stand by and watch her age as a human. No.

  He had only one choice in what he would have to do.

  He was going to have to kill her first. Without making her hate him in the process.

  “I’ll die first!”

  The fear that filled her eyes surprised him at its intensity. Before she’d masked her fear with fight, but now…poor little kitten. She did not understand.

  Aodhan loaded her into the van, though she kicked and fought. Theo and his burden climbed in behind her. Tajic hopped into the front with his master, then surprised Aodhan by climbing through the seats to settle next to his new mistress. The wolf put his head in her lap, no doubt sharing warmth with her. Trying to comfort. Aodhan drove the dark roads to his home city as carefully as he could.

  He had precious cargo in the back of the van. And his wasn’t fastened in.

  He could hear her alternately cursing and pleading for her sister’s freedom. He whistled, the tune one that had symbolized mating and Rajni bonding throughout Dardaptoan history. He doubted the females understood the significance of the song, but he knew Theo did.

  It hadn’t taken Theo’s confession of the sister being his for Aodhan to recognize that his closest friend would soon also be his brother-in-law. That pleased him. But their people would not welcome Taniss females into their midst easily. It would be problematic, and some would see it as treason. Whether they were bonded Rajnis or not.

  First order of business would be to convert her to Dardaptoan. He’d seen the procedure done four hundred years ago when a friend had found his human Rajni dying from a knife wound. It had been a terrifying experience for them, but the female had survived and become a beautiful Dardaptoan female.

  They had five beautiful daughters now—who terrified all the males who knew them.

  His female would look glorious with little fangs in her mouth. His body tightened when he imagined how it would feel to have his mate feed from him for the first time. Her, him, in the battle that was sex. He lived for that moment.

  The drive took too long. He wanted his female in his suite so that he could begin the conversion. Begin their life together. Aodhan had never been a patient male. He pulled the van up to the portico leading into the hotel.

  He assisted Theo in getting his Rajni out of the vehicle. She looked up at him in awe and fear, with the same shade of eyes as her sister. Both were beautiful females.

  His own mate spat and cursed, ordering him not to touch her sister. Aodhan pulled his Mallory from the van as she struggled. Even bound she was strong. They would one day have strong sons and beautiful daughters.

  Theo stepped closer and ran a hand over Aodhan’s female’s hair. Aodhan hissed a low warning before he could stop himself. No one, even his best friend, touched her but Aodhan.

  He forced himself to remain calm. He wanted to know what Theo had seen. And the other male had definitely seen something. Theo needed to touch others in order to see them for the first time. His gift of foresight had come at the cost of his physical sight.

  Compassion had filled Theo’s face, and Aodhan tensed further.

  “Be careful with her, my friend. Your female has suffered so much in a way no female ever should. Her soul still has the scars. They will stay with her forever.”

  Aodhan stilled. “What are you saying, seer?”

  “Just that ours is not the first act of vengeance against her grandfather she has been the instrument of. Treat her kindly, as gently as a kitten, rather than as the fiery cat she presents. It will serve you well in the long run. Far more than the others, this one needs that kindness. Especially from a male.” Theo’s face and words were sad. “More than any other. Little sister, you will be safe here.”

  Aodhan fought the urge to shift her off his shoulder and cradle her in his arms. To carry her in the same manner that Theo had lifted his own precious burden. His arms did tighten around her hips. “The conversion process will hurt her. That’s unavoidable.”

  Theo nodded, and Aodhan suspected the other male’s attention had shifted inward. To his own female. He thought on Theo’s words as he carried Mallory in the direction of his family wing. Opposite of her sister.

  3

  Mallory watched the slightly shorter man carry Mickey away, and she fought the urge to scream. To cry. To berate herself for not keeping the gun her twin, Rand, insisted she know how to use in the house—instead of in the console of her car.

  Only the knowledge that doing those things wouldn’t accomplish anything now kept her from doing them. She had to figure out what these bastards wanted.

  He had called her by name—and gotten through some serious security to get to them.

  She took note of every turn he took down the long hallway as he carried her slung over his shoulder. She wanted to fight—but he had her tied so tightly she couldn’t move at all.

  Turquoise and gold covered the walls. Real gold. Even with all her family’s wealth, she’d never been in a hotel gilded like this one. Where the hell were they? The man hadn’t driven more than an hour in the van, so she knew they were still in Colorado. But a hotel of this caliber? There were a few possibilities near enough to the Taniss family land; she’d been to all of them but one.

  Dardanos. The city supposedly founded by an obscure band of villagers from Argentina or Tanzania or something. The city was a mere footnote in the Colorado history books. She’d heard about it, but she had never been there. Her twin brother and her uncle had both discouraged her from going there. They’d said that it was a filthy place filled with people who were unwelcoming to and suspicious of outsiders. Rand had told her he’d been attacked by the brothers of a woman he’d dated who lived in Dardanos.

  Rand. Rand would not stop until he found her and Mickey. Her twin had protected her and Mickey and their youngest sister, Rebecca, since the day Rebecca had been born and their mother had died. Her brother was more dangerous than anyone Mallory had ever met. He’d been the one to teach her martial arts when she was twenty-one and healing. He’d kept her grounded back then.

  If
her sister Mickey and cousin Joselyn hadn’t found her, she would have bled to death in the parking space beside her Uncle Jason’s car. She’d recognized the sedan and pulled herself to it, knowing her uncle would find and help her. Uncle Jason had been her hope that day.

  She’d vowed never to be a victim again.

  This monster carrying her would not hurt her that way. She’d kill him first. She might be bound, but she was not defeated. She would fight him and get back to Mickey, somehow.

  He carried her to the most elaborate pair of doors she’d seen so far, then turned so she could get a good look at them. “This is our suite. Best in the wing, of course.”

  “Bully for you. Let me go.”

  “Nope. Not going to happen.” He sat her on her feet and opened the doors for her with a flourish. Like he wanted to impress. “Welcome home, kitten. This is where you’ll be spending the rest of your life.”

  She shivered. She couldn’t tell whether he was joking or not. He could kill her within moments. He was big enough, strong enough, and, she had no doubt, deadly enough to do it. “How many days will that be? One, two? Five? My brother and my uncle will be coming for us. They won’t stop, and they will rip you apart just for looking at us.” Mallory pulled against the bonds. He’d wrapped a silk scarf around her arms, trussing her up like a damned turkey. She was half afraid she was losing sensation. Or circulation.

  He watched her wiggle against the bonds for a long moment, appreciation in his odd gold eyes.

  “I’d like to see them try. You are mine, now. For always. Better get used to the idea of it, kitten.” One large, strong male hand cupped her cheek.

  “I won’t have sex with you.” Mallory forced herself to look at him directly. He was enormous, solid muscle, and the black karategi made his shoulders look huge. It would take a tank to defeat this man in any fight. She was five foot nine—he had to be a foot and a half taller than that. She’d never seen a man that huge before. He had to have played pro football when he was younger, or something. It would explain the wealth she suspected he possessed. “I won’t. You might as well kill me now if that’s what you want.”

  “Oh, I want it. Drooling for it. I can’t look at you, smell you, touch you, without wanting that. But it will be your choice when we do.” He pulled a knife free from the pocket of his jacket. He brought the knife closer, and her breath backed up in her throat. Mallory tried to pull away.

  She’d been knifed before. Could still feel the vicious blade slicing through her skin. It had taken three rounds of plastic surgery to remove the scars. She still saw them whenever she looked in the mirror. She would never forget…and now it was happening again. All over again.

  Another whimper escaped, but she barely heard or felt it. All she could focus on was the large man coming toward her with a knife in his hand and intent on his face. “Please…don’t…”

  Her fear hit him like a fist to the face. The terror in her eyes was all that stopped him from touching her. Holding and comforting. “I am not going to hurt you. I’m just going to cut you loose. Make you more comfortable while we talk of things.”

  He made quick work of removing the bindings, berating himself as he did so. He had been an arrogant ass, thrilled with the idea that the female the goddess had chosen him was such a warrior.

  He had not realized that her tough exterior hid such a vulnerable creature. The instant the binding fell, she erupted, aiming straight for his throat, his stomach, then his groin. It reminded him of why, in that instant. His female was a fighter. A warrior.

  There was spirit there, spirit she no doubt did not know she possessed. She was quick and determined. And terrified. Theo’s words ran through his head while he attempted to subdue his female. He gentled his hold.

  That was a mistake. Her head rammed into his nose, and her knee hit him square on. He bent over as the pain threatened to block out every other rational thought. “Oh, you’re good. Really good. I will not underestimate you again, kitten.”

  Hopefully, he’d still be able to sire her babes after tonight.

  He grabbed her just as she reached the door to the suite. It was a struggle, but he did it. He wrapped his arms around her.

  She screamed. Her teeth went for his neck. He pulled back again—not now. She could bite him all she wanted later.

  The female lurched in his arms, desperation so evident.

  She was strong, strong enough to pull them both off balance. To send them hurtling toward the floor.

  Aodhan shifted her toward the couch; he would not let his female fall to the marble floor.

  He landed on top of her, his weight crushing her down into the soft turquoise cushions.

  Her scream chilled him. Aodhan pulled back to look at his Rajni’s face.

  Her lips moved, a litany he had to lean closer to hear. There was so much terror on her face. And why wouldn’t there be? She was human. Humans had no concept of his world or how it worked. How it differed from theirs.

  “Not again. Not again…please don’t hurt me again.”

  Not again?

  Your female has suffered so much in a way no female ever should. Her soul still has the scars…

  Aodhan reared his head back and let out a roar of pain when the true meaning of Theo’s words became clear.

  She screamed, a direct response to his. He jerked back, cursing himself aloud for frightening her yet again. She curled into a fetal position, trying to protect herself.

  From him. The one male who would breathe for her forever.

  For his people, abductions weren’t unusual. They were often done for political reasons. The females knew they would be unmolested before they were returned. They were to be kept safe and pampered for the duration. His own sister had been abducted twice over the past two hundred years—and enjoyed it each time. She’d been treated like a queen by her abductors, and had likened the experiences to nice vacations. Adventures.

  But his female was human. And terrified he would…

  “I will not force you. Ever!” Aodhan pulled her to his chest to comfort. To help her see she was protected, safe with him. He nuzzled her neck lightly, the way his Kind had to comfort females since the beginning of their genesis.

  She just pulled away.

  Where before she had been spirited and as dangerous as a little kitten, now she was practically limp in his hands. Catatonic. Aodhan crooned and did nothing more than stroke her hair. He rocked her and rocked her until the shaking stopped. Until she collapsed against him, too exhausted to fight any longer.

  There were tears on both their faces before she calmed.

  4

  Mallory tried to control the shaking that still racked her body, tried to even out her breathing, but when he’d come at her with the knife, then shoved her toward the couch she was back in the TI parking garage again. Defenseless, helpless, all over again. With a monster leaning over her with a knife.

  She didn’t know how long she’d screamed against him, but finally, she was too out of breath to continue. No one had come to save her this time. No one.

  Mallory collapsed against his chest, almost in defeat. She just couldn’t fight him any longer.

  He kept holding her, his hands hot on her back.

  “Oh, little kitten, you will not forgive me for the longest time, will you?”

  “Never.” Mallory was barely aware of whispering the word, but for all that she was quiet, she meant it.

  “Then it will be best, I think, to just do this while you know not enough to understand and to dread it.” His tone was resigned, but the hands he had on her were gentle. The gentleness was what frightened her now.

  She had expected pain, and roughness, like before. Gentleness was too unexpected. She needed to know what was coming. How else could she fight it if she didn’t know what it would be?

  “It must be done, kitten. I wish…I wish it wasn’t so. But the goddess decrees it.”

  Mallory arched away from him and stared into his face.

  H
is fingers ran through her hair, pushing it out of his way. He trailed a touch down the side of her neck as he stared at her. Mallory forced herself to sit still. He had her boxed in. She wasn’t escaping yet.

  She couldn’t even get off his lap. His hands kept her right where she was.

  Pity was in his eyes. His strange yellow eyes. She’d never seen eyes like his, not color or shape. Nothing about him was like anything she had ever seen before. Taller, stronger, harder. She couldn’t escape him easily. She wouldn’t be able to fight him off.

  “Poor little kitten. You’ll hiss and hiss when backed into a corner, but you don’t have too much fight to protect yourself with, now do you?” There was almost regret in his dark-gold eyes. Like he felt remorse for what he was about to do.

  It terrified her.

  “I can protect myself just fine.” Her father hadn’t raised a quitter or a wimp. Far from it. If he hadn’t taught her how to fight, Mallory wouldn’t be where she was now.

  She never would have survived what had happened to her. Longing for her father hit her; fear for how he would react when he found her and Mickey gone flooded her. He had a bad heart—the last thing he needed was for something to happen to her and her sister.

  “Until tonight, hmmm?” Before she knew what he’d done, he had both her wrists locked into one of his hands, held above her head. He leaned closer.

  Mallory leaned back, desperate. “I thought you said you wouldn’t…”

  “I will not force you to lie with me, female. I give you my solemn vow that I will only touch you in that way when you wish it, when you are ready, and not a moment before. Even if it takes years for us to get to that point. I will wait. For you. But I will have this from you now. It will be done, this night.”

  “What will be done tonight?” Her voice rose, and she pulled against his hold again. It did no good. He had her, and he wasn’t letting her move until he was ready to. “Get off of me, please!”