Текст книги "Scars of his warth"

Автор книги: Zoey Ellis

сообщить о нарушении

Текущая страница: 14 (всего у книги 17 страниц)

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

When her consciousness ebbed back, every muscle in Naya’s body was screaming.

She moaned, wincing at the pain that scored across her most intimate muscles. Disoriented, she rolled onto her back, but that only made things worse so she opened her eyes and tried to take in her surroundings.

Her body ached as though she had just come out of her Haze, but the pain between her legs was bad. A raw soreness clawed its way right up inside her, stinging no matter how small a movement she made.

She rolled onto her side groaning and panting a little, trying to relieve the ache, but all at once several things became clear. This wasn't her own bed. The blankets around her with thinner and colorful with reds and yellows and gold patterning across the duvet, and the scent around her was deeper, musky, and addictive.

She stilled trying to force her brain to work, to remind her where she was.

It took a few long moments, but finally…

Akoro.

Horrified, she sat up quickly, but her body wailed. Whimpering, she looked around.

The bedroom she was in wasn’t like they one they'd given her, and it wasn’t like the one Akoro had taken her to have her Haze in. This one was huge and grand. The ceiling was arched, patterned with intricate decoration that matched the bed sheets.

Pillars and lattice windows were common features of his palace, but here they made the room feel huge and formal. Chairs and pillows made it feel homely, strewn around the room and to the far left, a small pool.

Thankfully, no one else was in the room with her.

Naya dropped her head into her hands, horrified at the situation she was in. Akoro had taken advantage of her heat, used her for his pleasure, even though she begged him not to. Based on the feel of her body, he had thoroughly used her.

She grit her teeth, exhaling harshly as her anger rose. She'd been stupid to think she would escape the forced sex that most captive Omegas have had to endure. Nothing made her special in that regard. She’d simply gone into the most attractive state that an Omega could, and he had taken her for himself. What had he said? He’d made the healer stop protecting her so he could “indulge” himself. Fuck, she hated him!

He’d done this because she’d lied about Omegas going into their heats for their true mates. He’d known what she was doing, which meant he knew that she’d known all along. And instead of letting her be, he decided to continue to prove how unhinged and unsuitable he was as her mate.

Slowly, she turned and moved her legs to the edge of the bed, standing haltingly even though her body continued to scream at her. It could take up to three hours for the memories of her Haze to return. Until then she wouldn't know exactly what had happened—how bad it was, but she stunk of him, of them, so badly. It was embarrassing.

Aching, she walked over to the pool. Steam curled off the surface of the water. She crouched and dipped her hand in, pleased to find that it was warm and she entered gently, allowing the hot water to envelop her, inch by inch until she was submerged up to her neck.

She looked around for soap and found it on one side of the bath. She scrubbed everywhere she could without harming herself. Between her legs stung like crazy, and it would probably be sore for a while.

She wasn't sure how long she'd been in her heat. Usually it lasted between a week and a week and a half but nothing was normal when Omega blocks have been ripped away suddenly, and she'd been with an Alpha this time.

After she'd rinsed off, she got out of the bath and found a towel to dry herself with. None of her clothes were in this room, so when she found a dark robe, she put it on and sat on the bed.

This had to be Akoro's bedroom. She couldn't imagine anyone else but him living in this space. It was over-the-top luxury that felt like it would suit him. At the back wall was another weapons stand, similar to the one of the rooftop grounds. If this was his room, what was she doing in it? She didn’t want to be here when he got back.

Tentatively, she opened the door.

Eight guards stood outside. They didn't say anything to her, but they also didn't stop her from stepping out of the room.

“I—uh… Where is my room? The one I was in before?” she said to no one in particular.

Two of the guards nodded and began to walk. She followed them and the others surrounded her. The corridors were strangely quiet. It might have been because she was in a wing of the palace that was exclusively for Akoro’s private use, but even when she got to corridors she recognized, hardly anyone was around.

After entering her room, she climbed into the bed and curled up drawing the blankets in to surround her like a cocoon, snug and tight. Only then, when she was surrounded by only her own scent, did she let herself cry for the first time.

She cried for the strength she thought she had to see this through, she cried for her papa and mama who would be devastated to know what happened to her, she cried for her little Omega sister Idaya that one day she may face a similar situation, she cried for all the Omegas who woke up to find themselves fucked against their will in their heat, just because of instinct and biology. She cried until she couldn’t cry anymore, until she was painfully dry and numb.

Her memories came back to her within the hour; it started with a memory of her mouth on his, sucking and pulling his bottom lip, and then the rest flooded back, hitting her all at once.

She tightened herself in her cocoon, horrified at the way she'd behaved with him. The things she did, the things she’d thought. How her people would be ashamed of her if they knew. She was supposed to be the Guardian of Omegas, she couldn't even guard her own legs and keep them closed. She was a disgrace. Her eyes prickled again at all the things they'd done. He’d taken such animalistic pleasure in her, but nothing was as bad as the pleasure she'd taken back.

Her Hazed self had revered him, thought of him as the best thing in the world just because he’d looked at her—wanting to please him, wanting to be good for him. While it was true that he’d fed and watered and knotted her with the care an Alpha was supposed to give, the complete abandon of all logical thought was the entire reason why Omegas had been so abused in the past.

When she had read the history books, she always thought she would rather die than allow herself to be used like that. And yet, it had happened. And by her own mate, no less.

Naya pushed away the thoughts running through her mind and let herself drift into sleep. She just wanted to go home and forget she’d ever met her beast of a mate, but right now, she couldn’t see how that would happen.

She woke when the bed jostled. Someone was disturbing her cocoon, drawing the blankets away. Naya let them. She didn't have the fight in her anymore, maybe she never did. Maybe her entire attempt had been a foolish one. She should have let him kill her when she first arrived, before they could ever find out who they were to each other.

The bed dipped and a huge figure joined her cocoon, pulling out her careful tucking, but she didn't care. The Alpha scooped around himself around her, large against her small. "Why did you leave my bedroom?" he asked, irritated. "That is where you should be."

Naya said nothing, allowing him to fix her wherever he wanted. He could do whatever he wanted, he was stronger than her. He pulled her up so her head rested on his bicep, wrapping his arms around her, and pulling her against him so they were snug bundle within the cocoon, but when he saw her face, his whole body bristled.

"You are upset." The words were harsh.

Naya said nothing. What was the point of responding to him? Anything she said he would have an answer for, except a good reason why he had still fucked her when she said no.

The Alpha made a displeased sound. "You are upset with me, tmot zia." He stroked his fingers across her scalp, sending a thrilling sensation through her aching body. She relaxed into him and then cursed herself for doing it.

"You cannot be angry with me," he said, still stroking. "You know that once an Omega is in her Haze, an Alpha’s rut is just as compelling. It couldn’t be helped. If it hadn't been me it would have been someone else; the only Alphas who have been around you are Nrommo and Oppo. Would you have preferred one of them?"

"I would have preferred none of you," Naya said, her voice low. "You forced my heat on me. If it was going to happen, it should have happened when we met, after you had been torturing me."

The soft growl at the back of his throat trembled in her stomach. "It was always supposed to happen. It was just delayed. My brother has been caring for you, and he thought it necessary to give you extra protection from going into your heat, on top of the steps we’d taken."

"You mean with these stupid bands?" Naya realized she wasn't wearing them. She frowned up at him. "Why aren't I wearing them? And why did your guards escort me to my room without them?"

"You don't need them right now.” His voice was heavy with satisfaction. “You smell of me."

Naya's face dropped and she dragged her eyes away. "Your methods of suppressing an Omega scent are ridiculous," she mumbled. "It's outdated. At least your brother was doing something that would protect me. He heals me. Nothing you have done has been for either reason."

Akoro growled. "I don't want to talk about Oppo."

"I don't want to talk at all!" Naya suddenly yelled. "You are in here uninvited." She pushed him, fighting against his overbearing nature, his imposing presence and the arms that pulled her and comforted her without her permission. But she was like a tiny, irritating gnat against a giant—it made no difference.

"When you build a nest, it is not just for you," Akoro said, pulling her even closer to him. "It is a sign that you want to feel safe. And that you want your Alpha with you."

Naya froze. Had she built a nest? No… It couldn’t be. This wasn’t a nest… but then, she hadn’t done this cocoon thing before. She sought out memories about what she read, her heart racing at the idea. Fuck, he was right. She scowled. "A few days ago you didn't know anything about true mates, and now suddenly know everything about Omegas?"

“It wasn't that I didn't know,” Akoro held her eye, "but I wasn't expecting it. This information has been buried in our culture. Once I sought the information out, there was plenty there."

Naya lowered her eyes, wondering why information about Omegas would be buried, but a more important question pushed that aside. "What does this mean for your invasion?"

"Nothing." He held her eyes. "You do not understand our culture yet, but a true mate pairing is considered highly rare and coveted if it happens at all. It cannot be ignored or disregarded just because you come from a land facing invasion. The invasion must still happen."

Naya's heart sank. If he had been willing to stop the invasion, she might have found a way to accept what had happened. If she was going to be used and abused, it might as well be for a good cause.

"Once you are feeling better, you will continue the meetings with my council until at least until your memory comes back," Akoro was saying. "And then we need to talk."

Naya's eyes fluttered up to his. He didn't realize that her memory had come back already. She said nothing. Those memories would be burned out of her mind if it were possible—she would never admit to having them. He could wait until death for that admission.

"The one thing that changes is that we will sleep in the same bed," Akoro said. "Here or my bedroom?"

"Neither."

Akoro’s jaw hardened. “If you don’t choose, I will choose for you.”

“You’ve chosen everything else,” Naya muttered.

“Where would you be most comfortable?”

“In my forest,” Naya breathed. “I miss my forest.”

“Tell me where you want to be?”

She wanted her forest. Her mama and papa. She wanted Drocan, Azarn and Idaya. She wanted Lili.

He kept speaking and she stared at him, letting his voice blur, just appreciating the physical nature of Alpha male who should have been hers. He was so incredibly handsome. Imagine if he had been good. Imagine if he had arrived at Lox Palace, seeking a new alliance through marriage? Imagine if they had seen each other and recognized instantly that they belonged together? Imagine that he had a desire to learn about Lox culture, while also keen to teach her about his? Imagine if that had been their beginning, the start to something that could have been incredible? But all she could do was imagine. Because that was not the reality of who her true mate was.

And so, she didn’t fight it. She’d lost on every front. Her sister, her family, her reign, her self-respect. He’d thoroughly beaten her down, so what was the point? She was nothing more than a used Omega, whose Alpha cared only to fuck her both physically and mentally.

When she no longer responded, he pulled her into him, tucking her head against his neck. Naya tried to fight it, to twist her head in a different direction, but he held her there until she was too enticed by the deliciously scented skin. She breathed him in, forced to take comfort from her enemy.

Then she let everything blur. Sound, touch, taste—she let them become non-distinct, unimportant. She didn’t want to hear or see him. She didn’t want to care—she had failed her people. She couldn’t help them from his bed. She’d become a slave to her instincts, a slave to the one who was supposed to be her true mate. And he wasn’t even going to stop his invasion.

Akoro wasn’t happy about her lack of interest. He tried to speak to her, but his voice blurred into the background. She barely looked at him and refused to speak to him. Furious at her behavior, he was constantly inside her, taking his fill multiple times a day. When her eyes opened, his fingers or mouth were on her—pinching, caressing, probing. He learned what she liked and thoroughly dominated her pleasure, hyperfocused on her orgasm, since it was the only time he heard her voice. He ate her cunt every day, as he warned he would, like a man having his favorite meal, greedy and desperate, never relenting until she came in his mouth. Naya couldn’t resist the storm of him. She remained in a sticky, seed-filled, Akoro-scented euphoria, only needing to whimper for him to slide his fingers into her folds and start driving her toward the high.

The days blurred together, and she remained the Omega. Akoro spoke, he lifted her up and buried his face in her neck. She just let him do what he wanted—it wasn’t Naya he desired, just the Omega.

He wrapped her neck and wrists with the dark red material again and let them tighten, his non-descript voice threatening and quiet. Naya experienced the squeeze with no panic, letting them tighten until no more air could come through her throat, the bands cut into her skin. But she had no fear of the bands any more, it didn't matter.

He started taking her out of the room. Once it was in front of the council. They all spoke, their blurred voices directed at her, and they expected a response. Instead, she took the time to take in the beauty of the room. One of the things she loved about this culture was the attention to detail in their design. Who had done it? Who had sat for hours carving, painting, sewing all of the little lines and patterns that made up the magnificent design of the room?

And then the healer came. He had sad eyes and defeated shoulders. She hadn’t noticed that before. He had tried to help her, but he couldn’t help her escape. Still, when she saw him, she smiled.

Akoro erupted into a blazing rage of aggravation. Bellows burst from his lips and aggression tensed his body. He grabbed the healer and yanked him back, away from her, and their blurry voices argued. Naya curled up onto the bed, trying to ignore the stink of their aggression filling the room.

He took her to the stables. And for the first time, she delighted in something. The beautiful nnirae stood around the stables eating, resting, or being groomed. The Alpha led her to her to his, the incredible beige-colored beast. It was huge, but the Alpha encouraged her to pet it and then to feed it from her hand, lastly he showed her how to groom it—long smooth strokes down his coat and then combing the spiky short hairs down his mane.

Once she got the hang of it, it was so soothing. The nnirae made a trilling sound when they were being groomed, and Akoro’s one was low, almost too low to hear, but if she worked long and listened closely she would be rewarded by his sound.

The Alpha took her down to the stables and worked on grooming and caring for the nnirae for most of the day, until he wanted to fuck.

Once he was so impatient, he took her in the stables, bending her forward to brace a wall while he pried her thighs apart with his thumbs and prodded himself in. She loved the feel of him working in and out of her, pulling her back onto him and cupping her breasts with his large hands.

Eventually the Alpha took her out to ride the nnirae, an incredible experience that forced her to sharpen her senses. She couldn't let everything blur and be so dull while on the back of such an amazing creature. They rode through the city until they reached the ruined outskirts and then rode along the ruins. She noticed that some of the ruins had the glimmer in them, like the blue stone the Alpha used to create the dome when they fought in the desert. But she let the information drift into the part of her mind that used to care.

They developed a pattern. The Alpha would fuck her in the morning, bring her down to the nnirae to help groom and care for them, then he would watch her eat, and then they would take a ride in the afternoon.

Her attraction to him never waned, so any time he touched her or spoke to her with that incredible voice, her body reacted. It didn't matter what he said, it didn't matter where he touched; their attraction was a powerful one that should have been the greatest love known, but was instead being debased by a cruel Alpha who didn’t care and an Omega who was too broken.

On the days he didn't exhaust her through sex, when he wanted to stroke, and cuddle, and nest more, the nightmares returned. Vivid, gory, horrifying nightmares that racked her with terror three or four times a night.

It alarmed the Alpha, so much so that he made an even stronger effort to get her to bring everything back to focus. She didn't want to. She deserved the nightmares. They were her penance for what happened to Lili. She should have let them destroy her before instead of trying to function with them. Allowing life to blur was freeing; she didn't have to worry about anything or anyone. The Alpha met her most basic needs and without any responsibilities, there was no one to disappoint.

The last thought Naya had before she embraced being the enslaved Omega was how her family should consider her dead by now, reality just needed to catch up.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

The Omega's behavior was terrifying.

There wasn’t a lot that Akoro feared, but the Omega's sudden disinterest in everything had at first bewildered and frustrated him, but now seriously worried him.

Something was wrong.

Those beautiful brown eyes didn't focus on anything but the nnirae. Nothing interested her. She ate and drank on her own—never too much or too little. She enjoyed having her cunt eaten and clenching on his cock. If she used her mouth, it was to suck and lick him rather than speak. She seemed completely broken, but that didn’t make sense.

After finding out about the Alpha/Omega true mate bond, he sought out Prillu, who had mentioned it in her questioning. The only information she knew was that the Lox Empire had a larger Omega population, so she’d assumed the princess would have greater details about true mate bonds. Prillu admitted she’d been concerned that Naya had a bonded true mate, which would be good to know when they invaded Lox.

Akoro had almost barked at her at the thought of this Lonn, who had been in a small room alone with his Omega. He’d driven himself insane that night with thoughts of this strange Alpha “scenting” her. What the fuck did that even mean?

He had gone into the archives of the Tri-Dynasty period, where the Tsashokra region had thrived as a hub of culture and magic, a period in their history that would have recorded information about Omegas, if any. And he was right; however, nothing he found so far described why the Omega would suddenly become unresponsive. She had everything she needed—warmth, her nest, food, her Alpha…. It didn't make sense.

He had been forced to ask Oppo to examine her, but it had negatively impacted his and his brother’s relationship. When she'd smiled at Oppo, Akoro had exploded. She had never smiled for him outside of her Haze, and while he had treated her badly as a prisoner, he hadn’t known she was his true mate. All of her smiles should be for him, regardless. How could she randomly smile for Oppo? What the fuck had he been doing with her?

They had almost come to blows that day, with the Omega just a few feet away curled up on the bed not even reacting to them. Oppo had stopped their fight, immediately recognizing her disturbing behavior. It wasn’t normal for an Omega to not be afraid when Alphas were in that state. It was the moment Akoro realized how much he didn’t know about his own mate.

When they had cooler heads, Oppo admitted he was concerned but he didn't have enough information about other Omegas to understand what was happening. There were instances he’d read about where an Omega would withdraw due to various circumstantial or situational issues, but that wasn't the case for the princess. She had just come out of an incredible heat—the most blissful days of Akoro's life—unfortunately she was not with child, but that shouldn’t be a reason for this kind of behavior.

He'd been conflicted about Oppo’s decision to suppress her heat. For the purposes of the mission, it was a good thing his brother had done that; they needed her clear-minded, not enticing Alphas into a rut. However, if he hadn't blocked the Omega's heat, then Akoro would have immediately realized the princess was his. He couldn't blame Oppo for being forward-thinking, but he could blame him for the missed opportunity with his Omega.

Akoro spent hours scouring the archives for any piece of information that would help his Omega. Oppo said the fact that she brightened with his nnirae meant that it wasn’t a full breakdown and Akoro just needed to find a way to get her to respond, but nothing worked.

His council were anxious about the delays to the mission. Prillu in particular was nervous about the time they had left, but it couldn’t be helped. The princess was a piece of the puzzle now—she couldn’t be skipped over or replaced; she was crucial to the success of the invasion. If something was wrong with her, it had to be dealt with first.

When the nightmares started again, Akoro almost went wild. Fury and frustration and fear coalesced into a blinding need to solve his Omega’s problem. She was suffering, and he couldn't bear it. He'd hated it in the desert when he was watching from afar, and he certainly didn't like it in his bed, in the nest that she built so fastidiously for them while in his arms.

Oppo was reluctant to provide any medications for her, but when he heard about the nightmares he changed his mind.

"Don't use this more than a couple of nights," Oppo warned, handing him a potion bottle. He examined his brother. "You don't look you look like you've been sleeping either."

"How can I?" Akoro scowled. "I am awake when she is awake."

“Have you tried talking to her?" Oppo asked.

"Of course I have. It was the first thing I tried."

"No, I mean, finding her finding a way to talk to her on her terms," Oppo said. "Omegas are very special, Akoro. Figure out what is important to her and talk to her about it.”

Akoro inhaled and shook his head. “I am invading her world, Oppo.”

Oppo nodded. “I know, I know. But does she know why?”

“She will never understand why. I’m taking her empire away from her and her father. Besides, she shouldn’t know too much.”

“Why not? Do you ever intend on sending her back to her father?”

Akoro couldn’t answer. He wasn’t intending on keeping the princess when he took her but now….

“She will hate you her whole life, anyway. You might as well try to explain.”

“I don’t care if she hates me,” Akoro said. “I just want her.”

“You may regret that eventually, brother.” Oppo’s eyes drifted down in thought. “Being with her is much better when she loves you back.”

Akoro watched Oppo for a long moment. “I didn’t realize," he said quietly.

Oppo’s eyes widened, lifting back up to his brother. "What?"

"All of what happened between with you and the Omega back then, I didn't understand. I probably still don’t."

Oppo pulled his lips in and closed his eyes.

"I don't know how you did it," Akoro continued. "You are very strong, possibly the strongest Alpha I know."

Oppo exhaled a heavy breath, long and slow. Tears sparkled in his eyes and he swallowed, hands trembling. "I think about her all the time," he whispered. "It never goes away." He lifted his eyes to meet Akoro's. "I know you haven't told the council yet, but Prillu and Tshel will figure it out soon. This delay to the invasion is unprecedented for you, and the Omega is completely unavailable. It doesn't take much to guess what might be happening between the two of you; an Alpha and Omega."

"You need to tell them that it's medical," Akoro scowled. "And it is. At least for now."

Opera nodded. "For now."

The medication settled Naya for a couple of nights, but her sleep was still uneasy. After the fifth night of the Omega's nightmares, Akoro discovered how to purr. He was talking to her, trying to soothe her, pressed on top of her the way she liked, and a rumble erupted in his chest, vibrating between them.

The Omega reacted immediately, sinking into the vibration and sighing in relief. Satisfaction beamed through him that he was helping her. But his purr didn't stop her nightmares completely. He had to figure out what her trauma was.

So he had to make a plan.